I can hardly believe that 2012 is coming to a close..I almost don’t WANT to believe it..while I’m looking forward to 2013, to setting goals and making new resolutions, I’m also wishing that time would slow down just a bit!! Even though I still get to be 22 for three more months, I can’t help but feel like life is passing me by too quickly!! I want to learn to do a better job of savoring each and every moment, but sometimes my life feels like a whirlwind..It feels like I’ve been living life in overdrive for the past few years…I graduated from college early, got married to my high school sweetheart and moved to Richmond (I fall more in love with both all the time), we got involved in a new church, I made a lot of new friends, I got my first few big girl jobs and discovered that the corporate world is not for me, we visited my relatives in Germany, we bought a house and left our first apartment, and started a business…I made a lot of mistakes and chose to learn from them, and I think I also made a lot of good decisions and progress that I can celebrate!

At the beginning of 2012, I was just a girl with a fancy camera and a lot of dreams…which is still true, but I’m so thankful for the people that God put in my life this year to encourage me and challenge me and to help me grow..and I’m especially thankful for the people that wanted me to photograph and capture their sweet memories this year…You people are the BEST and I love you forever because you believed in me and helped me grow even more. I feel so blessed to be ending 2012 having reached a lot of my goals and that I learned so much and grew more than I thought was possible for me. I am so humbled by everyone who has supported me and especially by my husband, who is my biggest fan, supporter and daily encourager. I can’t wait to continue to strive to grow in 2013! I have so much more to learn!!!

In some ways I get exhausted just thinking about the past two years, and especially 2012…but I don’t think my heart could feel any fuller! If the past two years have been about new beginnings, then I hope 2013 is all about settling in and slowing down and being content right where God has me, while still moving forward and building on the blessings that He has already given me.

I’m a dreamer and a go-getter, but I’m also a change-hater. I’m learning to embrace change because it will always be a part of life, but I think it’s also so important to embrace REST. That’s something I’m bad at..evidenced by the fact that I’m an insomniac and it always takes me AT LEAST 30 minutes to fall asleep  every night as my mind swirls with dreams, plans and ideas…In 2013 I want to learn to LET GO better..to let go of my own plans and dreams and to learn to REST and embrace God’s plan for me…

Change can be good and I’m so thankful for all of the good changes that have been made in my life in the past few years..I’m going to continue to learn to embrace little changes, but I’m also going to strive to rest as I slowly work to build and grow the things that are already a part of my life. I hope to make time to continue to make our house into our home..to make time for growing and developing my little business..time for becoming a better wife, a better daughter, sister, and friend…And okay if I’m being honest there are a few new things I’m excited for this year (like a new custom designed blog/website!!)… but I’m just going to try not to get too crazy in 2013..of course only God knows what the future holds, but I’m resolving for 2013 to be a year of rest and contentment, and a year for growing and developing all of the things I’ve already been blessed with…I still have a lot of big dreams, but I’m starting to realize you can’t make all your dreams happen at one time..you just have to take life step by step so you don’t get overwhelmed and so you can slowly become the person that you’re intended to be. I want to learn to hold onto things in life with an open palm and to savor every blessing, because things in this life are so temporal.

Goodbye 2012!! You were a big year for me…

I can’t wait to ring in the new year with friends tonight and I’m so excited for all the things that will happen in 2013! I’ll share more on my specific goals and plans for this year soon… Happy New Year blog readers!!! Here are a few fun quotes I found on Pinterest to help inspire you for a new year…