A Beautiful Quote

I was looking at some blogs today and I ran across this quote by my favorite controversial figure, Madonna. I love it and wanted to share. I think it sums up my life and marriage pretty well :)

“It's not easy having a good marriage--but I don't want easy. Easy doesn't make you grow. Easy doesn't make you think. I thank God everyday that I am married to a man who makes me think. That's my definition of true love.” 
― Madonna

2013 Resolution

I have almost completed my New Year's resolutions from this past year. My goals were to read 25 books by the end of the year and to lose 30 pounds. Originally I wanted to lose the weight by our first wedding anniversary (June 4th) but that ended up not working out. Now I am working hard to lose my last 7 pounds by the end of the year though! I know I can do it and I desperately want to lose the weight so I can set a new weight loss goal for 2013. I also have to read 4 more books to complete my goal of 25 for this year :)

I have already started thinking of what I want to accomplish for 2013. Obviously I will continue to lose weight and get myself into better shape. I also want to take on a project though. I want to take one photo every single day for the year 2013 and then at the end of the year compile them into an album. I want the pictures to reflect every day life for me. They won't all be family photos or even pictures of very important things. That will be my goal for the new year- to record the everyday things that happen for a year.

Quick Post

Just a quick post to share a photo that I took last week- this is the view from our balcony and I just looooove this photo! Every time I wake up and the weather is not so great, I remember that at the end of a rainy day you can often see things like this.

I'm a Slacker

It's been a little bit since I posted! I have been trying to keep up with my journaling so instead of writing  on this blog I've filled my 2012 journal. But I will try to keep up with both from now on!

Things I'm looking forward to this autumn:
-baking cookies
-painting a pumpkin(i've never done one so I'm going to try to take it on)
-attending one of my oldest friend's wedding this weekend
-going through a corn maze
-trying some new low calorie recipes
-going to Belterra Casino with my in-laws next weekend
-getting some GREAT fall pictures of the leaves and sunset

I'm a Real Photographer!

This past weekend I got the opportunity to start working with a friend of mine. She has been photographing weddings for a while now and she was in need of a second shooter so she called me up!  I was beyond excited- I spent the three days before the wedding looking up ideas for photos and trying to figure out the best way to get to the site :)

To make it short- I loved it. I was so nervous that once I actually got to work a wedding that I would find out that this isn't what I wanted to do after all. I have a hard time committing to things and finishing projects, so my biggest fear was that I would FINALLY get to start doing my dream job only to find out that this was not it for me. I was wrong. It was so exciting and I felt so privileged that this couple let me share in their special day. I was a little timid about telling people what to do and jumping in with my camera, but I'll get over that.

Now I can not wait to get back to work. I have another wedding this weekend and I wish it was here already! I am trying to book some sessions for families/engagement photos/senior portraits over the next few weeks so that I can continue building my portfolio and get comfortable directing people. Wish me luck!

Puppy Searching

My husband is definitely a dog person. He loves them and they always seem to be naturally drawn to him. I never had a dog growing up, but I always wanted a cute furry one. Well now that we have been married for over a year, the search has begun for a new addition to our little family. No, we do not plan on having children any time soon. We have both said since we started dating that although we love kids and plan on having them one day, we want to be married for a while and be more established in our careers before we start worrying about diapers and preschools.

So here is our dog dilemma- Ethan is obsessed with the idea of getting a pug and I have always wanted a dachshund. I love all small dogs but for some reason I just can't get my mind off of those cute little old-man looking dogs! I feel like I may lose this time though. Ethan has taken to looking up pictures of pug puppies whenever we are together at home and i have to say- they are pretty darn cute.

I guess we will just have to see what we can find. Either way I know that it will still be at least a couple of months before I am ready to fully take on the responsibility. One major decision that we have agreed on is the name for our puppy- Dr. Archibald Morris. Archie for short :) (We are both big E.R. fans and we love the idea of naming a dog after a surgeon) Wish us luck in our search!

Healthy Snacking

I'm back from Vegas! we had such a wonderful time- we renewed our vows, gambled a lot and drank plenty of margaritas. I gained 5 pounds while we were on our trip but I managed to lose that extra weight the week we got home. Now I am focusing on losing my last 7 pounds to make it an even 30! My most recent accomplishment has been cutting out on mindless snacking. For some reason it's hard for me to stay out of the kitchen in between meals so I have been coming up with some snacks that won't completely ruin my efforts-

*celery with low fat cream cheese
*rice cakes with Better N'Peanut Butter
*individual string cheese
*frozen strawberries
*banana blended with 1 cup of low fat chocolate milk to make a shake
*light yogurt
*coffee or other hot drinks (they curb the urge to eat more)
*Blow Pops- can't eat anything else when you're chewing gum!

These are just some of the things that have worked for me :)