A Year in Review – 2014

One of my favorite photographers – Jamie Delaine – recently did a year in review blog post & challenged other bloggers to do the same, following her same format. I LOVE this time of year – looking back at what happened in 2014 and looking forward to 2015 – it’s always a favorite time of mine! I have other “year in review” blog posts planned – including a post featuring my favorite images from the year – as well as a post with some “bloopers” – but I thought this would be a fun way to kick things off & not make things too overwhelming!

If you are interested in playing along with myself & Jamie & other bloggers – when you share your posts on Instagram or Facebook, just use the hashtag #2014blog2015 & we can all be linked together!

LOOK BACK
What are you most proud of this year?
When I think back over this year and what makes me proud – my business instantly comes to mind. My business doubled from 2012 to 2013 and my goal for this year was to double my business again from 2013 into 2014. I am SO delighted to report that it has happened! As I have begun pulling things together & getting organized for tax time in 2015, it is SO exciting to realize how much work I did in 2014! I shot double the number of weddings as 2013 and more than double the amount of engagement sessions! That along with the amount of portrait sessions I shot, I literally don’t know how I did it all while continuing to work a full-time job!

What was the biggest risk you took?
I feel like Derrick & I took a lot of risks this year! At the time, they didn’t really feel like risks, we spent so much time thinking, talking, and praying about our decisions that they definitely were the right things to do, but looking back, I can see how some people probably thought we were/are insane! Starting into 2014, by all “normal” standards, we had completely wonderful lives: we owned an incredible house that we loved, we both had great full-time jobs within walking distance of that house, we were blessed to have lunch together most days of the week, we were financially stable, we had a great dog – I mean what more could we ask for? Well, by mid-2014, we had put our house on the market & sold it, we temporarily moved in with Derrick’s parents while looking for new jobs 260+ miles away, we made the decision for me to not return to full-time employment but to simply work my business, we spent 6 weeks living apart from each other when I took a part-time babysitting job [in the town we were looking to move to] & waiting for Derrick to get a full-time job, we temporarily moved in with my parents – OH, we got pregnant! HA It’s been a whirlwind. Like I said, we absolutely had peace about our whole major move & even though it is an ongoing process, that will continue into 2015, it’s also exciting! And terrifying! But exciting!

What did you learn this year?
I learned that I really do love my husband! That might sound really weird, but we’ve been through so much this year, including several long weeks where he was living on one side of the state and I was on the other and that was so SO hard! I really do need him and his help and his wisdom and his telling me to quit stressing out & take a deep breath. People claim their spouse as their “rock” and Derrick is definitely my rock. I can only do so much by myself and on my own – but with his encouragement I feel like I am such a better person.

What do you wish you had made more time for?
I really wish I had made more time for writing/journaling this year. In the spring, I began working thru the The Artist’s Way – a workbook on creativity – and one of the activities is to wake up in the morning & instantly journal 3 pages of whatever is on your brain. It is such a brilliant activity. I stuck to it for several months and it was wonderful, but unfortunately with all the insanity of moving and moving again and transitions, it got put on a back-burner. Looking back, I wish I had specifically carved out time for it, especially to recount all my crazy pregnancy thoughts and feelings! It’s definitely something I want to get back into!

What are 3 highlights (business or personal) of your year?
1. One of my favorite things that we’ve EVER done was go on a 7-day cruise this past spring with my family. We had an absolutely incredible, relaxing time and it promises to be a highlight of our “pre-baby” lives!
2. Speaking of “pre-baby” lives – finding out we were expecting a little bean of our own was pretty darn exciting! I remember taking the test & laying in bed that night not being able to sleep for the thought of OUR little person who was coming! Umm, what!? Announcing the news to our friends & family was incredible, almost more fun than finding out ourselves! And now with just a little over 6 weeks before our little bean is due – and feeling her kicking all the time – we cannot wait to meet her & learn all about her & be her Mommy & Daddy!
3. Booking weddings for the following year is always ridiculously exciting, but the day I booked MORE weddings than I shot in 2014 was a pretty happy day! And considering that last year at this time, I had 2 weddings for 2014 booked and this year I already have more booked for 2015 than I shot in 2014 – let’s just say I’m pretty pumped for all the fabulous brides & grooms I get to work with next year!!

LOOK FORWARD
What “word” do you want to define 2015?
Is the word “enjoy” too cheesy? Yes? Too bad – that’s my word. I want to really stop & smell the roses, live each day as it’s own day, without worrying about tomorrow. To live in the moment. To live without regrets. To enjoy these last few days that it’s just me & Derrick and then to really enjoy our new lives as a family of 3. To enjoy all the new experiences and challenges that come along with being a new Mama. I want to enjoy life in 2015.

What are 3 big goals (business or personal) for 2015?
1. My biggest goal is to learn how to be a Mama + a business owner! To learn how to balance both, while still thoroughly enjoying both experiences! Thankfully, our little miss is due to arrive during a wedding photographer’s “slow” season – so I will have plenty of time “off” to truly enjoy and learn all about her, without the pressures of my business bearing down on me. It’s definitely going to be a challenge though – but one I am excited to take on!
2. Since we have made a pretty major move recently, I really want to begin to build my business here in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area! Don’t get me wrong – I love the Twin Tiers of New York & Pennsylvania, and still have so much planned there as far as weddings for next year, but I would really love to make strides toward building a business presence here as well. That involves implementing some ideas that I’ve been wanting to try out for quite some time but have never had time to follow through with while working 2 full-time jobs. Now, with more of my time being focused primarily on my photography, I can move in that direction! Exciting!
3. I really would like to push my photography to a new level by attending a workshop – I’ve wanted to attend Melissa Jill’s MJ2Day workshop forever – maybe 2015 will be the year to make that goal a reality! We’ll see!

What do you want to stop doing in 2015?
Procrastinating? I’m a classic procrastinator. For example, Christmas is next Thursday – 1 week from tomorrow, right? And Christmas for my family begins on Christmas Eve, with an all-day celebration at Meme & Grandpa’s house – so 1 week from today! Have I finished all the prep yet? Not a chance. And this year was so easy, all I had to do was buy gifts – we don’t have a house to decorate or host parties in – so none of those things stood in my way, just be organized enough to buy gifts. I’m working on it.

What things excite you about the upcoming year?
I am SO excited for 2015 because that is the year we will meet our baby girl! I can’t wait to hold her and talk to her and see how much she loves her Daddy. Along with that, hopefully soon after baby girl is born we will also be moving into a new house! Buying a house is such a ridiculous process, and trying to patiently wait for paperwork to be processed and approvals to move through is so hard! Slowly, but surely, we are moving in that direction though and it’s so exciting to think that out there somewhere is OUR house – the perfect house for our little family! It may not even be on the market yet, but it’s definitely out there! And the thought of going to see it & knowing that it is the “one” and then moving in and decorating it and making it ours – is utterly exhilarating!

What do you want to learn in 2015?
There are too many things! I have so many business things I want to learn and continue learning – better, smoother posing, lighting, better off-camera-flash skills, better communication with clients, systemizing my workflow, how to  blog regularly, read all these awesome business books I have sitting on my shelf, and the list goes on and on. Of course, those are all business things – I have lots of personal things to learn too! How to be a Mama, how to love & care for little baby girl, how to work these awesome cloth diapers I have, and the list goes on and on. So many things! 2015 is going to be a year of learning!

I know that is kind of long, so if you’ve made it to the end – congratulations! Like I said, stay tuned for some less-wordy posts in the next few weeks! And if you’d like to play along – here is the list to copy & paste!

LOOK BACK
What are you most proud of this year?
What was the biggest risk you took?
What did you learn this year?
What do you wish you had made more time for?
What are 3 highlights (business or personal) of your year?

LOOK FORWARD
What “word” do you want to define 2015?
What are 3 big goals (business or personal) for 2015?
What do you want to stop doing in 2015?
What things excite you about the upcoming year?
What do you want to learn in 2015?