I'm really fortunate to have a handful of really close friends. As one of my closest friends said, we can "head dive into deepness" from the first hello of a phone call. However in general, I tend to be a rather private person. Online especially I like to keep a pretty low profile. Because we all know that what happens in Vegas doesn't really stay in Vegas :)
Starting this blog (celebrating over a year now; woohoo!) was quite a large step for me. I wanted to get to know others, show off my amazing clients, and let myself be known a bit too.
However, as I re-read my blog entries from last year I felt a bit of sadness, because I couldn't hear my voice in the writing. In my desire to not overshare, I don't think I was real enough. So one of my goals this year is to blog more from the heart. Don't worry, I have no intentions of airing dirty laundry, but I do want to be more real, and let you know a bit more about the quirky girl behind the lens :)
In an effort to be more personal, I thought I would share my list of 101 things I'd like to accomplish in the next 1001 days (a really fabulous idea I saw on Gail Werner's blog). Now I know some of these are lofty, but there's nothing wrong with dreaming big! And if you don't write them down; how will you celebrate when they happen? I believe in the power of writing down your dreams and goals, so here's to hoping some/most/all of these come true in the next 3 years!
1. Travel to Italy
2. Go roller skating
3. Go rock climbing
4. See a play on Broadway
6. See the California Redwoods
7. Visit South Carolina
8. Go to Disneyworld or Disneyland (never been to either!)
9. Walk a marathon
10. Pay for a stranger's groceries
11. Plan an awesome party
12. See the Grand Canyon
13. Pay for a stranger's dinner
14. Work for someone for free so they can take a vacation
15. Take a road trip
16. Volunteer at a non-profit for a year
17. Do a photography trip overseas with a non-profit organization
18. Get published in Munaluchi Magazine
19. Get featured on The Bride's Cafe
20. Take an art class (painting, sculpture, floral design, etc.)
21. Sew something
22. Make and complete a scrapbook
23. Design a custom piece of jewelry
24. Get a new website
25. Buy a laptop
26. Go to a dayspa
27. Do a professional photo shoot with a photographer I admire
28. Go ice skating
29. Take a ballet class
30. Do Help Portrait Dallas
31. Attempt a complicated hairstyle
32. Volunteer at a soup kitchen or shelter on Thanksgiving Day
33. Do a photo shoot for fun outside of my normal wedding/portrait genre
34. Do a personal photo project
35. Send my mom on her dream vacation
36. Take a cooking class
37. Decorate a room
38. Visit an aquarium
39. House sit
40. Paint a wall/room in a house
41. Help remodel a home (i.e. Habitat for Humanity)
42. Read 10 business books
43. Learn to tie gele
44. Wear fake eyelashes
45. Attend a fitness boot camp
46. Go berry picking
47. Volunteer in a crisis/disaster relief area
48. Print my favorite go-to recipes into a book
49. Fly first class
50. Learn how to swim
51. Make Egusi soup
52. Do a 40 day sugar fast
53. Go go-karting
54. Climb a mountain
55. Visit a natural hair salon
56. Shoot in film
57. Do a styled photo shoot
58. Become a preferred vendor for an industry peer
59. Rebrand
60. Run a race on Thanksgiving Day
61. Surprise my mom at work with lunch
62. Visit an Amish community
63. Attend a Meet-up for something fun
64. Photograph my brother opening for a hip-hop artist
65. Collaborate with an artist on a multimedia project
66. Take the strength finders test
67. Visit a friend overseas
68. Visit my friends who moved to California
69. Spend a day in the life of another wedding industry professional
70. Not eat out for a month
71. Cook a meal every day for a month
72. Make a personal photo album for myself
73. Do monthly self portraits for a year
74. Take photos monthly with close friends and family for a year
75. Ride a motorcycle
76. Volunteer with a youth mentoring organization
77. Do a girls night getaway in downtown Fort Worth
78. Visit Reunion Tower in Dallas
79. Play recreational volleyball for a season
80. Make a promo video for Izehi Photography
81. Go vegan for a week
82. Straighten my hair with no chemicals
83. Spontaneously give a couple a date night and babysit their kids
84. Visit the riverwalk in San Antonio
85. Sponsor a child overseas
86. Go to WPPI
87. Design personal stationary
88. Attend a live poetry night
89. Sing Karaoke
90. Watch a live professional dance performance (maybe even the Alvin Ailey dance company :))
91. See a play in the Dallas Summer Musicals series (maybe even Wicked :))
92. Attend any city's restaurant week/taste of week
93. Ride in a hot air balloon (despite my fear of heights)
95. Reconnect with an old friend
96. Join a book club
97. Have a shoot featured in Essence magazine.
98. Photograph couples from every livable continent
99-101....There's always room for more dreaming :)
And if you actually read this entire list; I am majorly impressed! We should totally sit by each other during lunch now :)
Here's a photo I keep on my memo board that I cut out from a magazine YEARS ago. I think it was a magazine ad for Disney. It's fitting for this post don't you think?