A Quarter of a Century…

Wow, I sort of can’t believe it. Today I turn 25 and I’m not quite sure where the past 4 years of my life have gone. It seems like yesterday I was turning the big 2-1 and jetting off to Berlin with a couple of strangers turned friends to celebrate. Now I’m looking back on the last four years and I can’t believe how much has happened. This post is kind of just for me to embrace and soak in all the good things that have happened since that last big birthday. So rather than just recapping the last year of my life, I think it’s more exciting to recap the last 4 because I think that’s when my grand life adventure really began.

• I met the love of my life, Scott, while we were both studying abroad in Denmark, and he has shown me more love, affection, happiness and friendship than one person could ever imagine deserving. Every day for the last (almost 4 years) have been undeniably wonderful because he has been by my side.
• Scott and I traveled to 13 different countries since meeting in 2012. Denmark, Sweden, Finland, England, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, America, Norway, and the Bahamas. And additionally have adventured to at least 10 different states together.
• I started a photography business specializing in weddings and engagements for adventurous couples in love, and lifestyle photography for creative entrepreneurs!
• I graduated college with honors and awards.
• I held a position as Lead Designer at an Interior Architecture firm for almost 3 years before taking the leap to do photography!
• I photographed over 25 weddings in my second full season of business.
• I went FULL TIME at the end of 2015 with my business and now enjoy the benefits of working in my pajamas on a daily basis.
• I took a leap to lead a local group of entrepreneurs as part of the Rising Tide Society and have been blessed by so many new friendships as a result since June 2015.
• I reached my business goals in 2015 and 2016!

And some business goals I hope get accomplished by the next big birthday (30):

• Launch the quarterly publication that has only been a whisper on my tongue for the past three years. A publication celebrating love, legacies, lifestyles and travel and all the good things that make up an adventurous and fulfilling life.
• Host a workshop for photographers.
• Host adventure workshops in countries all around the world for photographers + videographers + other entrepreneurs who want adventures!
• Work 30 hours a week or less. Hmm….

And some personal goals I hope to accomplish by the next big birthday! (30):

• Get married.
• Buy a paddle board and use it!
• Buy a house and make it a home!
• Travel to 5 new countries!

And some places I look forward to adventuring to this year:

February: Colorado!
March: Charleston, SC!
April: Cape May, NJ (I’ve lived in NJ my whole life and have never been!)
May: Thailand!
June: Acadia National Park, Maine!
July: Reykjavik and Vik, Iceland!
December: Key West, Florida!

Some things I want to check off the bucket list in the next five years:

• Go to an elephant sanctuary in Thailand
• See the Northern lights in Iceland
• Go to the arctic circle in Norway to the Lofted Islands
• Ski the Canadian Rockies

And lastly, my motto for the 25th year of my life: Collect Moments, Not Things and be filthy rich. Rich in adventure, in health, in knowledge, in laughter, in family and in love.

And here’s a pretty picture for good measure of the most impactful time in my life in Copenhagen, Denmark.