2012, I Sure Will Miss Ya

It's December 31, 2012. As I type this, I can hardly believe that 2012 has come and gone - in what seems like the blink of an eye. It's been a huge year for me. I moved from Florida to Washington, DC; I finally got the nerve to pursue my own photography business; I met incredible new friends but also realized how dear my old ones are. This year has been full of ups & downs, many MANY laughs, incredible times with my family, roadtrips, city explorations & new adventures. I am SO grateful for everything I've been blessed with this year and have so many wonderful people to thank for making it quite possibly the best year of my life thus far (you know who you are).  

I have to admit - I started 2012 in a rut. Thankfully, that rut motivated me to pursue my 365Grateful photo project. Every day this year, I took a picture of something I was grateful for. It started off as a way to bring me out of this so-called rut by bringing to light the wonderful little everyday things that I would often overlook. It ended as the perfect way to reflect on what turned out to be an incredible year. 

I've decided to highlight a few of my favorite things about 2012. It was so hard to pick!

1/ The amazing wedding of two of my best friends! 

2/ Beautiful Ocala.

3/ The Ocala Symphony Orchestra & its inspiring people.

4/ Tampa adventures with SP.

5/ The newest addition to our family - little Zooey! 

6/ A roadtrip through the South (Savannah, Charleston, Appalachians & all!) with my Dad.

7/ Fun(ny) evenings with the family in Southport, NC for the 4th of July week! 

8/ DC summer with the soulmate - Mary.

9/ Coldplay's 2012 concert. Absolutely amazing/wonderful/breathtaking.

10/ The Hardknocks - our kickball team! 

11/ Glen "ohmygoshiloveyou" Hansard's live show at the 9:30 Club.

12/ Life with the always amazing/supportive/fun/talented/hilarious Kati & Bridget

13/ My new Arlington apartment! 

14/ New friends :)

15/ A northern fall complete with brightly colored leaves, pumpkins, and perfect weather.

16/ The beginning of my pursuit of a photography career.

17/ The purchase of my first real Christmas tree! Whattacutie.

18/ Thanksgiving with my New England family.

19/ An inspirational morning of wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery.

20/ The most perfect Christmas at home with my family. 

21/ My first snowfall as an official VA resident! 

2012, I love you a lot & I'll miss you dearly. 2013, I can't WAIT to meet you. 

The Segway Sisters

These pictures have been sitting in a draft of a post for about a month now - and to be completely honest, it's because they leave me speechless...I mean, look at us. Again, what can I even say...

My mom got Sarah a Groupon for a segway tour of St. Pete. It was Sarah's spring break, I played hookie, met her in Tampa, and what do ya know, we found ourselves down in St. Pete speeding through the streets on our segways. Honestly though, SO. FUN. 

After I realized I was not going to fall off my segway or lose control and hit that little old lady walking her dog, Sarah and I found ourselves zooming everywhere. Of course, we had to be first, right after the tour guide - who, by the way, was too cool for school. We'll leave it at that. 

We zoomed through the streets, down by the bay, through the park, across the pier. As I write this, I am picturing a montage of Sarah and I segwaying back and forth through various scenery. HA - and it's making me laugh. 

Now, don't forget, you have to wear protection. Segwaying can be very dangerous. Sarah and I were super pumped to plop those helmets on our heads and ride into the wind. 

Oh, also. I forgot to mention. There were about 8 of us on this tour. 2 Wickham sisters. 6 German tourists. 2 of those tourists were kids - one, who obviously couldn't contain his excitement at his new found toy and continued to stray from the group causing our too-cool-for-school guide to continually repeat "I am not a regulator", and the other who was so experienced at segwaying, he made all of us look like complete amateurs (aka idiots). 

After about a 2 hour tour of St. Pete, we called it a day. Phew - what a workout, right? Sarah and I treated ourselves to a beer after that. It was, after all, spring break.