New Year...What Now?

While ringing in the new year, I felt positive and happy.  I had survived a two week Christmas break without getting sick - a miracle in and of itself, the weekend was upon us, and New Year's Eve was spent in a whirlwind of dressing up, fine dining, a combination surprise birthday party and NYE party...and having an adult night out.

{scratches on jeremy's face courtesy of ava and a plastic fork}

I love dressing up for a night out and our current tradition of getting all dolled up for a nice dinner on NYE allows me to spend just a bit longer on my make-up, slip into a little black dress and heels, and feel - for this one night - that I'm living the good life.  And I mean the good life, where fancy steak dinners and $10 glasses of wine are the norm.  Of course, if that was the norm, it would be just that...normal.  Average.  So I cherish these nights out and live in the moment as much as I can. 

{truffle fries, anyone?...and a nice filet in the background!}

Dinner this year was just the two of us, and it was nice.  Normally we get a big group together to celebrate - which I also love - but it was extra special to have a dinner date with my husband on NYE...and then go to a fabulous party.

And fabulous it was!

We were celebrating not only a new year, but also Gemi's 39th birthday.  The party was a surprise to him, and surprised he was!  It was definitely not the NYE party he was expecting.

A new year makes everyone feel the urge for a fresh start: whether it's a change in diet and exercise, a chance to try out a new hobby or career, or even to simply become more aware of ones thoughts and actions...most of us make resolutions to better our lives.  This blog is The Bright Side, but honestly, Mr. Pessimistic is still lurking in my head.  I never make resolutions because to me, it's just one more thing to keep up with and eventually quit.  How many people keep their resolutions for the entire year?  It's hard work.  And for me, staying positive all time is hard.

It's easy when you're out celebrating with friends...

But in the daily grind, it's hard.  What has become really hard for me lately is coming to terms with the fact that my Two Year Plan is not going to work, at least not in two years like I had hoped.  It seems as though I've been swimming upstream since I began teaching, and I don't like that feeling.  Photography is something I absolutely love, something I discovered as a passion on a whim.  I just wish it would take off as a business quicker than it is....so that I could make my two year plan work.  And who knows what the future brings - maybe my business will explode this spring or summer and I can finally make my dreams a reality.  We shall see.

In the meantime, I will keep doing what I'm doing, but I will also try to make some changes.  They aren't resolutions...just areas I want to focus on in order to better my life.  My end goal is still to make photography my full-time career.  And what better way to get there than to practice, practice, practice?

Ava is the main reason I got into photography in the first place.  She is and always will be my muse.  I love that I've discovered a passion for documenting more than just the big moments in our lives.  The small moments count too - and those small moments are what I tend to focus on the most.

I still feel as though I am in a funk...going back to work after two weeks off does that to me.  But it reaffirms the goals I set back in August and pushes me just a little bit more to work hard for what I want.  My goals may be further in the future than I want them to be, but to bring them closer, I need to take action.  Or, I guess I should say, keep taking action. 

How do you climb to the top of Mount Everest? 

One step at a time.

{pssst...one step i am taking is doing the 365 project.  follow me here}