Ready for 2 0 1 6

Now that we're counting down the hours left in 2015 it's stereotypical of me to look back at this year and figure out what I can do better . There's not a lot that I would change about this year because I was blessed with so much more than I could have asked for . However, I've come to the conclusion that resolutions don't work and instead I should be setting goals for myself (realistic and not generic goals) 

2016 GOALS

love myself more 

I tend to forgot that I still have to love myself more . I've been neglecting loving myself because I feel like I need to love others before myself, but I've realized how can I love more if I don't love myself? I want to do the things that I love to do again. I've adjusted to believe that I'm "just a wife and mother" role and though that is a huge part of me it's not all of me. 

love my husband more

Every year, we struggle to find the balance between being friends and husband and wife . This year was especially hard because we had to shift our focus to our active toddler and I forgot to work on us.    I want to be able to go on more date nights with just us , confide more in him ( I tend to keep things to myself) and focus on him being my absolute best friend. 

love my child more

Haidyn is the center of our world, but there's so much more that I would love to do with her  and show her. I don't spend a lot of time already with her since I work and she goes to school, but I'd like to cherish the moments that I have with her, even more than I currently do. 

be present 

I want to take more time to be there for the people that need me the most and that have been there for me. I want to focus on what matters in life, which is the people I love and giving them my undivided attention and love. Money can't buy happiness. 

slow down 

I tend to believe that the faster I work the faster I will be done and that's never the case. I want to slow down this upcoming year and smell the roses if you will. I never enjoy the small things because I'm too busy focusing on the bigger picture.

worry less 

I'm a worry wart at it's finest. I can't help but worry about everything and anything that MIGHT happen. Those things usually never happen and I miss out on a great chance. 

seek more adventures /try new things

I like my safe zone and if something is out of the ordinary for me , I would rather just sit it out instead of trying something new. My husband is a thrill seeker that married a safe girl. Most times I feel awful because I won't even try it. Not anymore.

I'm ready 2016! 

Happy New Year Everyone!

Recapping 2014, Welcoming 2015.

This year has got to be one of the most exciting year of my life thus far. I was blessed with my baby girl, reached my 2nd year of marriage, my blog is celebrating 2 years and  I’ve attempted to start a small business. Even though it has been exciting and full of blessings, it definitely was one difficult year for me. Everything that happened to me this year was a learning experience. Not one thing came easy this year and I believe that, that will be a standard for years to come.

Realizing that marriage was something you had to work at instead of it being easy was particularly difficult for me. The honeymoon stage is over and our marriage is no longer the cute and naively blissful image I saw when I was 21. Our marriage is serious and very real. It's not all about being right or winning the fight anymore it's more about compromise; which believe it or not hurts my pride more often than not since I tend to lean towards enjoying winning every argument. However, swallowing my pride and remembering that we are no longer the center of our lives changed our marriage forever.  We love each other dearly but our lives  revolve around little Miss Haidyn instead of each other. Our love has transformed from being happy newlyweds to happy in love best friends.That is the love that I've always wanted.

Being a mother on the hand,  was everything I imagined it to be with the exception of the lack of sleep. I had no idea how much sleep I would lose being a new mom or the patience I would gain. The birth of Haidyn changed my life for the better. If you would’ve told me that I would be a mom at 23, I wouldn’t have believed you. Every day I am still in disbelief that the beautiful girl I gave birth to is really mine. Life is a lot more stressful and full of worry because I have to be concerned over everything about and for her, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. The joy of being a parent overwhelms with me with every milestone she reaches and every art project that comes home with her. Being Haidyn's mother is what I was put on this Earth to do.

Attempting to start my business this year has taken me by a whirlwind. I love doing what I am doing. I love making my clients happy capturing all of their joys in one photo.  I don’t feel like I’m working when I’m out at the location. I’ve gotten to meet such wonderful people and really get to learn more about their lives. All I hope for is that I can build clientele and keep doing what I love doing.

Another rough patch for me this year was losing Jon. It was hard for me to let my little brother go. I haven’t been away from him in 20 years and all of the sudden went from talking and spending every weekend together to Facetiming/ calling once a week, if that. It was rough when/every time I had to say goodbye. I remember crying for days at a time. I had just taken Haidyn home and I was completely overwhelmed without being able to talk to my best friend and being a new mom. Now that we have a rhythm of everything and seeing how happy his career is making him, I can’t imagine him doing anything else than what he is doing now. He was born to do what he is doing. Haidyn and I love our hours with him on Facetime when he has his days off.

This year is the start of something so exciting. I still get shivers from thinking about everything that has happened. As difficult as it might be, I’m happily learning to accommodate the change and all of curve balls I’ve been thrown. Thank you 2014 for being such a good year to me. I can't wait to see what 2015 has to offer.

Happy New Years Everyone!