The Best and Worst Day Ever

Ok is that title melodramatic or what? But I'm allowed to be a little melodramatic. (And yes, I just went onto dictionary.com to make sure I was using the right word..) My brain feels like it's been thrown through a blender and turned into tomato soup.. I just can't think anymore. As many of you know, I'm coming off of a very long, busy few weeks. The first issue of True North Parenting magazine is just about wrapped up--only a few pages left to finalize, and another round of proofs before it's off to the printer. At this moment, I am emotionally and physically exhausted. I was up until 3:30 last night turning all the individual ads and articles into an actual magazine. It's pretty amazing to see it all come together! And there seems to be a buzz around town about the magazine, with businesses trying to get a last minute jump on advertising (sorry, guys. Too late for this issue!) Anyway, all that to say, it's almost done. And tomorrow Las Vegas awaits. I've heard that estimates of 10,000 photographers will be descending upon the city in the next week for the annual Wedding and Portrait Photographers convention and trade show, and I'll be one of them! Josh and I fly out tomorrow night for four nights at the Planet Hollywood Resort. I've tried to line up my itinerary, but I've only gotten as far as Monday:

• 8:30 am - Michael & Anna Costa's talk on standing out in the photography industry
• At any point in the day - shopping at H&M (my favorite store that happens to be inside our hotel...along with 120 other stores. I'm in heaven.)
• 4:00 pm - getting a head shot taken by the fabulous [b]ecker in front of the "Eiffel Tower" at the Paris Hotel in the afternoon (with a ton of other people, I imagine!)

So what does the title of this post mean? Well, it's the best day ever because tomorrow means this insane season is pretty much over! And the worst day ever... because I had to say goodbye to my puppy. Since I'm working 15 hours a day, and Josh wasn't the biggest fan of having a dog in the house, he was getting pretty neglected. Really, he's been gone since Sunday. Josh took him for a walk and happened to run into a family from Prineville who loved him the moment they saw him (who doesn't?? he's the best dog ever!) They asked where they could get a dog like him, and Josh said we happened to be looking for someone to take him. Within three hours, he was gone. Off for a trial run with the family on their two acres. I've cried every day. Who knew I'd ever cry this much over an animal? They came over this afternoon to pick up his kennel and some odds and ends, and I had to say goodbye to his precious little face . It was sort of bizarre because when we saw him, he just wasn't our dog anymore. He is in love with the family, and they are so wonderful and will definitely spoil him rotten. So it's actually a really good thing. It's just hard saying goodbye. Especially when he lay his head down in my lap and went right to sleep in the brief minutes I had with him. Those kids and the acreage to run on must be wearing him out!

So it really is the best and worst day ever. And this is the longest post ever. Don't ever put a keyboard in front of me when I'm tired. Cheers to Vegas!