And just like that, 2019 has come and gone and a new year has officially begun. Not only is it a new year, but a new decade. A new decade full of endless hope and possibility for a beautiful life. Twenty-nineteen was a year of so much change, tears, happiness, growth, and new opportunities.
On January 6th, 2019 my husband, son, and myself were received into the Orthodox Church after almost eighteen months of searching for the Truth. When my husband had originally mentioned the idea of visiting an Orthodox Church, I was not too keen on the idea. I was even less keen on it after having visited the first time. But after lots of reading, research, and most importantly prayer, my heart was softened to the beautiful, sacred Traditions of the Church and I knew that it was where we belonged.
Just under a month later, a whole seventeen days after her due date, our second child, Vivian, came in to the world. I had planned to have a natural water birth with her from the moment I found out I was pregnant. The birth of my son didn’t quite go as planned, so I was hoping and praying for a healing, beautiful birth with my daughter. It was truly the most beautiful moment of the year, the decade, and of my life. The birth of my son was beautiful too, don’t get me wrong. But birthing on my terms, exactly the way I had envisioned and hoped was the most empowering thing I’ve ever done. Everything about the labor and birth went even more perfectly than I had planned in my head. My labor with her was just over three hours long, and it was honestly no where near as grueling and intensive as I had thought it would be. If all the labors and births of my future babies could go even the tiniest bit like hers, I would be so happy!
In May, I started my third year as a wedding photographer. It was honestly a slow year for me, but it ended up being the perfect amount of work for this mom of two. The couples that I had the pleasure of working with this year were the kindest, sweetest, most easy going yet, and so were the weddings! I’m now going in to my fourth year and with six weddings on the books for 2020, I am totally content and happy! Happy that I get to do what I love, and content with the amount of work that I have in store. I’m not overwhelmed by the amount of work that I have to do, and for that I am so grateful! To all of the mamas that can take on more than that and remain sane in the process, you blow me away.
Our summer was mostly slow and steady, as was our fall. My husband submitted his applications for medical school in June, and from there we waited to hear back from schools with interview offers. On September first we celebrated our seventh year of marriage, which totally boggles my mind because I feel like we just got married yesterday! Around that same time, my husband had his first med school interview, followed by two more at both of our #1 and #2 choices. By mid October he received his acceptance letters to both of our top choices and we finally were able to start making plans for our future. The medical school interview process leaves so much up in the air, because you truly don’t know where you’ll interview, and if you do interview, if you’ll even be accepted.
We are overjoyed by the fact that just five short months from now, we will be moving HOME! We will finally live in the same town as my inlaws, and half the distance away from my family, making it so much easier to visit often! The difference between 2.5 hours one way and 1.5ish hours is HUGE when you have two small children- one is doable in a day, the other is an overnighter.
Looking back, 2019 was honestly kind of a blur. It was a year spent settling in to the routine of being a mom to two under two and learning to juggle it all while supporting my hyper-focused husband while he put his all in to his studies so that he can achieve huge things for our family. It was a huge year of growth for me, and I certainly feel like a more patient wife and mother because of it. I’m definitely still lacking in the patience department, but 2019 definitely helped me gain more of it.
And in the middle of writing this post, my toddler fell and we are currently sitting in the ER waiting on X-Ray results of his possibly broken hand. What a way to end the first day of the new decade, am I right?
What are you most looking forward to in this new year and decade? Do you have big plans? The new year really does have me feeling more motivated and inspired. It always feels like a clean slate and a new beginning.
Happy New Year!
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