Reflections of 2017

At the end of each passing season, and at the close of each year, I look forward to sitting down and reflecting on the moments that have passed. I review the highs and the lows, come up with a "top ten" list. I even like to reflect on my favorite purchases! I appreciate looking at what I have learned, and what I hope to improve on in the days to come. I fully acknowledge this all might be a bit much ;). There were so many years when I sat down on New Year's Eve where I felt like I hadn't fully maximized the time that had come and gone. I felt like I should have spent more time with my family; I could have done more at work; I should have done more house projects... It always seemed like there was a lot of 'shoulda, woulda, coulda', which to me, simply translated to my own guilt. What I didn't realize until I started these reflections a few years back was that as a family we really do so much together. I just forgot about each and every moment as I hadn't documented the time as well as I would have liked. I wanted to try to minimize my guilt, and frankly, I didn't want to forget so many moments, which is why I started creating the family yearbooks (which you can read about here). I feel like by me taking time to reflect on the moments that have passed and to document my goals for the future, it helps me to live a more intentional life rather than one that just seems to happen. These goals help me to maintain my focus and they free me from so much of that 'mom guilt' that I felt so riddled with before. I don't know what it is about being a mom, but I feel like so many of us are inundated with these feelings of inadequacy that we forget to see all that we do so incredibly well day in and day out.

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In 2016 I completed a Project 365, which is a common challenge taken on by photographers to help grow in their photography. It helped me in countless ways: to change my composition so that all my images didn't look the same; to help me really hone in on my personal style and my favorite things to photograph (true emotion told in a storytelling style); to make my images more dynamic by learning how to work with natural light; and certainly to tell an absolutely incredible story of my family that we were excited to review at year's end. Each and every photo was certainly not a showstopper and that was OK! The memories they preserved helped me to remember the laughter and the conversations each photo held, that I may have otherwise forgotten. The biggest takeaway for me that was most unexpected, was that the challenge forced me to get out and see so many new things, simply because I just didn't want to feel uninspired each day as I walked on my back deck and tried to find something different to photograph. 

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When I sat down to create my goals for 2017, at the top of my list was I wanted to continue to see new places and experience new things. Now don't get me wrong, there were definitely days where I stayed in pajamas and binged watch Netflix! But there were so many days where we sought out new things to do and places to see. Although I chose to stop my 2017 Project 365 two months in, I never let go of that goal to get out and explore new spots, and I feel so thankful for it.  If you're interested in checking out some of the new things we did in 2017, here are some of our stand out spots we visited:

If you have any suggestions on places we have to check out in 2018, please let me know!

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So much has happened since January 1st. Some were intended goals, and others were surprisingly unexpected ones. This past May when my husband came down the stairs one morning, I told him I felt it was time I finally start my photography business, as so many had suggested I do over the years. We discussed what I envisioned, who my target audience was, and while I didn't necessarily know where it would go, I just felt like it was something I needed to explore. Since that very moment, I have been blown away at how well this venture was received by my friends, my family, and new clients that had never known me, but chose to hire me to document moments with their families.

Here is a glimpse at some of the moments I captured in 2017, some with my own family and some with others. I feel such tremendous gratitude to each and every one of you who have browsed this website, liked a photo on my Facebook page, or simply appreciated one of the shots I've taken. Though I can't feature every family I've photograph on my website, I hold such a special place in my heart to all of those that chose to hire me this year. To all of those whom I've captured already and to those who are thinking of hiring me in 2018, I am truly humbled by your interest in my work, and I thank you for giving me the opportunity to capture such special moments with those you know and love.

Gratefully,                                                                                                                                  Courtney

 

 

Courtney WagerYear in Review, Reflections, Mom Guilt, Project 365