Project 52

Before the new year started, I joined a group on facebook called "Project 52" that had been created by a photographer that I'm a huge fan of. The whole idea of this project is to take one picture a week for the whole year and at the end of the year, you have 52 photos that will sum up the last 365 days. This isn't the first time that this idea has gone around, and in fact, there are some that challenge you to take one picture every day for the year! I'm not ready for that kind of commitment, but in addition to posting in the group once a week, I figured I would share my image each week on here with everyone!

I've wanted to participate in this for a while, but just never had the equipment or the confidence to throw my pictures in with so many professional ones. Though it's meant to not be judging, and this group is DEFINITELY not (it's so supportive that it's unbelievable. I'm part of an awesome photog community), I'm incredibly hard on myself and wasn't ready for that just yet. With a good camera and the knowledge on how to use it, I was more than ready to jump in this year. 

There's a theme that goes along with each week, and this week was reflection. As a creative art, you can take this theme as literally or as artistic as you want, and it's so interesting to see how many different takes there can be on one word. This was my entry for this week, and it's probably fairly obvious what I reflected on. 

I'm sure everyone knows that these two are my life, by now. I reflect all the time on how lucky I am to have two wonderful boys in not only my life, but my family. It's just been extra amped up with the holidays and with the new year. Sometimes it makes me sad that we're not ready for children yet and that that step is going to take a long time. It's truly a biological need and desire I have, and sometimes it gets hard to be patient despite the fact that there is simply too much I want to do before I'm ready to be a mother. We both have more growing to do, together and as our own people. 

I look at pictures like these, though, and my heart feels incredibly full. For right now, we three are enough. This is my small, but perfect, family unit that has been molded and shaped for me and I've been shaped for them. We all bring something different to the table, something the other two need, and fill in the spaces that we lack. I have a loving husband and an adorable fur child, and I'm ridiculously blessed to have them both. I thank God every day for giving me James as my eternal companion, and I thank James every day for convincing me to bring Mo home instead of the gray kitten I was set on. Things work as they're supposed to on the time schedule they're supposed to, and I forget that sometimes. Kids will come, but this is what I have right now, and right now is more than enough.

Favorite Pictures from 2013

Here they are, my favorite images from the past year. They're not in order, but they are composed from the very beginning of the year to the very end. These pictures show some of the more memorable moments of our year, some are just ones I really like, and some are truly impactful. I feel that all of these are an accurate representation of the past year. 

In 2013, we moved to an actual house instead of an apartment… and then we moved back into one. James went to inpatient all the way in Colorado and I used that month to further dive into photography. This marked the beginning of a lengthy medboard process for James, but we'll both continue to exercise patience because even almost a year later, we're much closer to leaving New York than we ever have been. I launched my photo business, and in turn captured some very intimate moments that happen all the time, all around the world, that I wouldn't have seen otherwise. Two homecomings, a child's first birthday, and how children within a family interact with each other. James and I spent our first holidays together, here in our home in NY and away from family in California. I got my first real Christmas tree, we made a Thanksgiving dinner, and decorated our home for the first time.

The two of us fell in love with a puppy and put all of our love, effort, and time into his adorable face. Unfortunately, we got a lesson in timing and learned that as wonderful as Atlas was, it wasn't meant to be right now and we found him a new home. We learned about what it is to truly miss an animal, a part of our little family, but to take it with a grain of salt because responsibility and maturity means doing what's best for someone else over yourself. We continued to smother Morris with love, and I continue(d) to take way too many pictures of him. 

On top of all of this, I was blessed to get accepted into Penn State and that marks the final step I needed to take to finally get my degree, something I've wanted since I moved up here. Birthdays were celebrated, seasons (very cold ones) have passed, and we grew more. Both together as individuals. 2013 was a year of struggle, stress, never ending patience, love, endurance, enjoyment, and big life moments. I, personally, would say that this year was a hard one and it wouldn't have been my first pick, but looking back on it, I wouldn't have changed how anything worked out. There was equal reward as there was hardship, and I would say the benefit from the rewards heavily outweigh the struggle. I'm greatly looking forward to a new year and to what this year will bring. There's a lot of unknown, but all that means is there's a great adventure in store.