Be sure to check out the rest of the Mom-to-Mom Capturing Candids.

Captured with my Tamron 24-70mm lens and Canon 50D.

Although you may not have much control over your workplace (unless you own the office space), by being aware of how environmental concerns affect your health will help you take real measures to create a nurturing and stimulating environment in the office. In the following article we look into a few tips that will help you understand what it takes to create the right environment that is balanced and green…

#1: Ergonomically Correct Chair
Most of the lower back injuries along with neck injuries are a result of bad posture and sitting practices that are inadequate. Make sure you get your office chair from ComputerDesk.com so that it’s comfortable and also has adjustable arms and height. When you’re sitting straight with the feet flat on the ground, your arms need to be at an angle of 90 degree as you type on the computer.

Having to stretch or strain for reaching the computer is not a good thing as it puts stress on your shoulders and back. Investing in an ergonomically correct chair will work in your favor in the long run and you’ll end up spending much less time consulting a chiropractor.

#2: Effective Lighting
Studies have shown that natural light helps in increasing your productivity and brings down fatigue/stress. What you can do is replace the antiquated fluorescent tubes at your office with “full spectrum” tubes. This will help in instantly enhancing the overall office environment because full spectrum lights happen to emit a natural and balanced spectrum of light, which is the closest thing that you can get to sunlight inside the office. These lights not only add vibrant colors to your workplace but also work great in improving mood and easing eye fatigue.

#3: Right colors
Color therapy is an age-old practice with its roots found in ancient Egypt. Various scientific studies have shown that colors tend to bring about strong to mild emotional reactions to people. Colors affect us all in a major way, so much so that we take them for granted. When you’re enhancing your office’s environment, you can use different colors to bring in different positive feels.

For example, orange helps in stimulating creativity; red energizes you; blue throws a calming effect; yellow expands/intensifies your intellect and boosts motivation, etc. So in your office you should try to use those colors that give benefit to your productivity and health.

All in all, by putting in some time and money along with effort to make your office’s environment healthy will most definitely pay off in the long run. Of course, keeping the environment healthy goes hand in hand with taking care of your body by eating right and exercising regularly. Remember, maintaining good health requires you to have a high level of determination, discipline and desire. So make sure you cultivate these qualities as you work on building a greener, healthier office.

The Administration on Aging states that there were over 39.6 million people over age 65 living in the US in2009, and the numbers have been growing each year. The AOA estimates that, by year 2030, approximately 19% of the population (or 72.1 million) will be over age 65.

Many of these elderly will have serious physical health problems like diabetes or heart disease, or mental health issues like dementia or Alzheimer’s. And some could have a combination of mental and physical ailments, all of which could require round-the-clock care.

Senior communities give elderly residents the ability to live independently, while having access to 24-hr emergency care, or in assisted-living environments with on-site nursing. But not everyone can afford these types of living arrangements – a one-bedroom apartment in an assisted living facility could average $3,200 per month. Additionally, many people have mixed feelings about putting mom and dad into a “home.” Even if assisted living is an option, there is still that transition period where parents might need extra care before moving into the facility.

But taking care of elderly parents is very demanding and stressful. If your parents have mental issues, it can be much like taking care of an adult-sized toddler. Add the demands and expectations of your job, your spouse, and your own children, and you will find that you get lost somewhere in the equation.

The thing is, as a caretaker, you are possibly the most important part of the equation because you hold everything together.

There are hundreds of resources telling you what to do to take care of yourself: get plenty of rest, take breaks, give yourself “me time.” But they don’t always tell you how you’re supposed to do it when caring for your loved one can take up every minute that you aren’t at work or tending to your own family.

So here are some ideas for getting help with your loved one’s care, so you will actually have some time to take care of yourself.

Reach out to Family
Reach out to family. All too often one person somehow ends up the sole caretaker. Sometimes it’s due to proximity – everyone else lives out of town – but sometimes it happens because other family members don’t realize that help is needed. If you have siblings close by, let them know that you need their help. Suggest splitting up duties so that no one person is overwhelmed, and each person has some time to take care of herself, or her other duties.

Nursing Service
Consider a nursing service. Companies like CareFamily caregivers offer in-home care for a few hours each day, a few nights a week, or even several days in a row. They can provide medical care, or just be there in case something is needed.

Adult Day Care
Enroll them into an adult day care service. Isolation is a big issue with the elderly. Adult day cares provide social activities, and the opportunity for them to make new friends. They also provide a place for them to go during the day, while you are at work, or to give you some alone time in your own home. If your parents are on medication, the day care could also make sure they get their medicines during the day.

Check out silver sneakers fitness classes at your local gym. Like the adult daycare, these fitness classes give your loved one an opportunity to socialize, and also let you both get out of the house. The classes last from 30 minutes to one hour and, during that time, you could get a small workout yourself, or use that time recharge on your own.

I adore this office by Katelyn James

Even if you have no desire to go freelance, you might be able to talk your boss into letting you work from home—at least part of the time. Working from home saves money—both for you and for your boss. Of course, before you can get any work done, you need to make sure that your home office is properly set up. Here’s how you do that:

Communications
You need to be able to communicate with clients (or coworkers). Spend some time researching the best audio conferencing solutions, the best internet connections, etc. You’ll want a working phone line (you can use VoIP technology like Skype to save money here). You might also want to set up a fax line in case your clients or boss won’t let you simply scan in and email signed documents.
Equipment
Obviously you know that you need a computer. You’ll want a computer with a good sized hard drive, a back up drive, a web cam, speakers, etc—the whole shebang. You will also want a printer. You can save money by getting a machine that will print, scan and fax. If you want to save even more money and time, you’ll get a laser printer instead of an ink jet. Laser printers cost more but their toner cartridges yield more pages and the printing process is much quicker and smoother than with an inkjet.

Furniture
Beyond the desk and the desk chair (look for something ergonomic so that you can be comfortable and healthy) you’ll also want a filing cabinet and a printer stand. A bookshelf is also a good idea for storing manuals and technical publications that you might want to keep handy. Beyond that it’s up to you.

The Physical Office
If you can swing it, you’ll want your office to be a completely separate room, preferably one with a door. A window is nice but not absolutely necessary. A dedicated home office with a closeable door allows you to deduct certain home expenses on your taxes and maybe even a portion of your rent and your mortgage payments. Beyond that, it provides you with a quite place in which you can work without being disturbed.

If you can’t swing an entire room that’s okay. Choose a quiet corner of your home and make sure that your family knows that it is for business purposes not personal ones. Make sure they know not to dump their own things on your desk or chair or to use your work computer without supervision.

A lot of people love the idea of working at home but they rarely think about how to actually set up their working environments correctly. The things we’ve talked about here are just the basic things you must have. Everything beyond this (including business-friendly software, IT, and other infrastructure questions) is up to you. How do you work best?

Read how I figured out how to make things work and what the rest of the moms do in this month’s Mom-to-Mom Photographing Night Life.

But that’s boring…

And I’m tired of boring, REALLY tired of boring.

So today I bought two dresses from Ruche, even though I still need to get shoes and cardigans it’s one step closer to having a wardrobe. Be sure to check out shopruche.com they have some really adorable dresses and accessories.

This month I’m doing something different. This month I signed up for 30 Days to Better Food Photography which means this month’s photo challenges are going to be all about food. Way before I walked into a college I always imagined being a food photographer. I have no idea why, but my dad had a food photography book that I would look through on a regular basis. I even read up on how to make food look good on film and much more. But alas my college studies drew me elsewhere.

Now here I am doing a complete 360, drooling over amazing food photos wondering how do they come out some wonderful. I’ve tried my hand in food photography and thought it would be fun and challenging to participate in the 30 Days to Better Food Photography.
The first day we talked about some great food photographers – while most of my favorites come from the food blogging world the one’s on his list are amazing as well.

Some of my favorites include thepioneerwoman.com, theyearinfood.com and foodformyfamily.com.
If you have some favorites please send them my way…

I thought it would be fun to show some of my pre-30-days-to-better-food-photography pictures here and hope that I improve during this journey.