When I had my first baby, Instagram had just barely hit the scene.  I had an android phone, so I couldn't even have Instagram - which just killed me because of my job.  I had so many pictures I needed the world to see!  I had hundreds upon hundreds of photos on my phone, from my son's birth to his first birthday.  I backed them all up to my computer whenever I needed to free up some space. 

Cut to my third pregnancy.  I had an Instagram account, but didn't love the idea of posting literally everything my kids did from day to day - not gonna lie, my friends that posted 100 pictures a day, every day, drove me totally crazy.  I mean, I love you and your kids, but I don't care what they have for lunch every single day.

Then - my light bulb clicked on.

I had heard of Chatbooks, but never looked into them.  Once I learned more about Chatbooks and how amazingly awesome they were - my master plan hatched and my new journaling baby was born.

I made Instagram accounts for each of my kids.  They are private and only our family follows them - gotta keep those cute babies internet safe!  Wondering how to keep them extra safe? Check this out. 

This is how I started journaling like I should have been since my first son was born.  Not only did our family get to keep up on our kids and their lives, but my husband (who works out of town) could see what we did everyday and read the funny things they said.  

Each account is linked to my Chatbooks account and everything AUTOSHIPS!!  I don't even have to think about books.  I have the option to rearrange, exclude and edit any of my posts before my books print.  The app on my phone sends me a notification when one of my kiddie's books is about to go to print.  I go into the app, edit it if I need to, and my work here is done.

At the end of every day, or whenever I have pictures on my phone, I add them to Instagram and delete them from my phone. 

I also take photos of all the artwork my kids do in school.  Then, instead of keeping every single thing from the year, I make a custom Chatbook and print it at the end of the year.  Adios Clutter!!

Because I didn't have Instagram for most of my first and second babies lives, I made custom books of all the photos I had on my computer since their first day of life.  And Chatbooks automatically sorted them by date and made them into a book for me!!  Like, how do ever beat that? I'll tell you know.

YOU DON'T!!

It's just too easy, my friends!!  And so affordable!

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Since I'm a pathological photo taker, I have Custom books for all of our trips, too.

I know you're dying to try them - you'd be crazy not to! It's so easy, and I feel like Super Mom because I journal like no one's business AND my phone is conveniently photo free - no more "Your Phone Is Almost Out Of Storage" warnings for me!  Jealous? You don't have to be!

Chatbooks, my friends!  

You're life is about to change!

For a FREE CHATBOOK - click this link -->  FREE CHATBOOK

Not only has it made my life a million times easier, but my kids LOVE them.  They get SOOO Excited when they see a little square green envelop in the mail!

AND.. yes there is MORE amazing things about Chatbooks!!  You can reorder or order more copies whenever you want!  My mom orders them for herself of our trips and my Kids Instagrams.  We even have a family Instagram account where we all sign in when we're on vacation and post all of our pictures.  Then we get those books for Christmas from my parents. 

AAAAAAND - it's another back up of your photos! You can never have too many back ups.  If you've ever had a computer crash, you know this to be TRUE!

I can't sing the praises of Chatbooks enough!  It is by FAR the best mom thing I've done so far.

In fact, I haven't met a single person who doesn't love Instagram.

What I don't love... creepers. 

And they are EVERYWHERE on the Interwebs.  Especially Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

If you have a public account, I know that you've been followed by someone creepy.  It's just a fact of life.  Why do these people follow you?  I don't even want to know.  Are they following me to see my children?  Can they figure out where I live by the photos I post?  They could figure out the names of my children and family members.  They could easily figure out what school they go to.  I just broke out into a cold sweat. 

HOLY. CRAP.

Pass.  Hard pass.  I would rather have safe children than a million Instagram followers every which way to Sunday.

SO! How can you keep you and your family safe on Instagram?  Here's how I do it.

1) My kids have a private Instagram.

     Only my family can follow them.  I don't even let me friends follow them.  I post literally everything about my kids on these accounts and print them as books       later on.  I love my friends, but they don't need to know every single detail of my life or my kid's life.  None of these accounts have profile pictures (another way to keep the creeps out), and I don't follow anyone in return from my kid accounts. 

2) Never post innocent nudity.

     Yes, those naked bums are cute.  So cute that some weirdo is going to steal it.  Even undies and diaper shots are pushing it, in my opinion.  You can never be too careful.

3) Consider not using your child's real name.

    Refer to them as their first name initial, or a nickname.  I had someone approach me once who I had never met in my life and call all three of my kids by their first names.  It really freaked me out and I deleted almost everything about them off of my account.  That stranger knew way too much for my liking.  If she, a middle aged woman from my own town, knew - then all the creeps did as well.  

4) Never post your home's street sign or street number. 

    No one needs to know the exact location of your home.  From there, they can find your school and who knows what else.  Even pictures of the exterior of your house can lead a motivated person to find it.  Sharing your home is totally fine! We want to see it!  But, be mindful of what parts you're sharing.

5) Turn off your location.

    Did you just drop your baby off at daycare and post a picture? Did it have the location attached?  You just gave the world your child's location for the next so many hours.  I shudder to think what could happen.  Always better safe than sorry. 

6) Wait until you're home to post about your vacation.

    I know it's tempting to post that amazing sunset picture while you're in Mexico or that cute shot of your little one running on the beach in California.  But - you are alerting the world that your house is currently empty.  Don't disclose the location of your hotel until you're home, either.  It is SO easy for someone to find you and your kids.  If i sound over protective or too cautious - oh, I know that I am!  I'm going to say it again (and every day until I die)... better safe than sorry. 

7) Some things are too personal to share.

    Contrary to some very popular Instagram accounts, you don't need to post everything.  Some things in life aren't meant to be shared.  It's okay to keep some things just for your memory books (or your private accounts).  

I hope this helps you and your cute little ones to be a little more protected on social media! The internet and social media are amazing things! But...

one more time with feeling!

Better safe than sorry!

-xo hayley

Their wedding day was gorgeous and one of the most fun weddings I've ever been to! They did all of the decor themselves - can you believe that?! It was a stunning spring wedding and I was so happy and honored that they chose me to be their photographer!!

Lucky for me, Makendie is a photographer/videographer, too!! We get to shoot wedding together all the time and I love it!!

  Floral by Southern Blossoms - the best ever!

Then, I decided my mom friends NEEDED to participate.  My brave friends let me bend them into all sorts of weird sitting positions and MY GOODNESS I have some beautiful friends.

A few months later, I decided to do a giveaway and had some of the most beautiful girls in Utah win!

I'm a fan of black and white, my friends!

Floral: Bloomers

Venue: The Ledges

Planning: Forevermore Events

Floral - Bloomers

Dress- Very Wang

Flower crown: Bloomers

Anyways! I've said it before, but one huge regret I have from my first pregnancy is the lack of pictures I took.  I have ONE pregnancy photo from my second pregnancy that I love - so this time, I wanted to do it right.  I searched and searched for exactly what I wanted, and had a custom flower crown made when I knew that the peach blossoms were going to be a possibility for my photos!  It is SOOOO worth the time, money and effort.  These pictures are everything I wanted - exactly how I pictured in my head!  Hats off to my cousin, Makendie - a budding photographer, for helping me with these! It's pretty rare that I relinquish control of my camera, and I can be pretty picky when it comes to how I'm photographed.  She did an amazing job!! I already cherish these photos so much.  We never in a million years thought we would have any girls, and for some reason that makes this pregnancy so special to me.  I adore my boys more than anything, but we are over the moon to be welcoming a daughter!  She's already a spoiled princess... that should make for an interesting eighteen years down the road :)

I appreciate all of you so much - my hormone soaked brain can't even find the words to tell you how much!  I'm looking forward to accepting clients in June - possibly sooner! So, keep an eye out on Facebook (Hayley Bradshaw Photography) and Instagram (@hayleybradshawphotography) for when I'll be booking again!  Now, I'm off to watch way too many hours of Netflix, dig in the sandbox with my boys, and fold teeny, tiny, PINK baby clothes until our daughter is FINALLY here!!