Spring Recap + Summer Goals

Well, since we’re officially into summer now here in the Willamette Valley (even though today’s cloudy weather might have you thinking differently), it’s time to check spring OFF the list!  I love to recap each season here–what happened professionally and personally for me the last few months, AND go over my goals for the coming season.  I love being able to click back through my blog and see what I’ve accomplished, and putting those goals out there with all of you helps keep me accountable!

Spring was a fun time!  I think I got into the swing of things with having my son in school and my daughter at home while still running this business!  I totally Marie Kondo’d my house in January and I think that had a LOT to do with it!  I’m a total Kondo convert…is that a thing?  It is now.  Less is more and I’m ALL IN!

At home, I spent a lot of time adventuring with my daughter–checking out new photo locations, hiking with Hike it Baby, and having many brunch dates at Coffee Cat here in Newberg.  We had a fabulous Easter at Jaquith Park and then at my parent’s house.

Now that my son is out of school for the summer, my son is home too and we’ve been enjoying having lots of summer fun!  Berry picking, running through sprinklers, and lots and lots of gardening!

Professionally, I kicked off wedding season with two amazing spring weddings: Logan and John’s McMenamin’s Cornelius Pass Roadhouse wedding and Mary and Marcus’s Pumpkin Ridge wedding.  I loved these weddings!  I also shot quite a few engagement, anniversary, and family sessions with some of the BEST clients!

Some of my favorite parts of spring were connecting with and leading other photographers in Yamhill county!  I mentioned the launch of The Professional Women Photographers of Yamhill County’s website–that was a huge project and really such a fun way to connect with so many incredible photographers in Newberg!  I also organized the Dream Bigger // Mastermind Retreat for Wedding Photographers out at the Oregon Coast, and it was SO AWESOME!  You can read more about how amazing that weekend was on these blog posts here.  But really, I just find it so inspiring to surround myself with other strong business owners, and in my free time I’ve really been dedicating myself to that!  There are so many opportunities to connect with business owners, especially here in Yamhill County and the Portland metro area, and I just can’t imagine doing this without them!  I hosted and taught a lighting seminar for the group at my home in June.

I also invited a few of my favorite local photographers to shoot with me at a rustic wine country themed styled shoot that I organized earlier this month, and it was EPIC!  Truly, connecting with these women is just LIFE-GIVING!

So let’s get to the goals!  How did I do this spring?

BUSINESS goals–SPRING:

• Plan and enjoy an amazing Dream Bigger // Creative Mastermind Retreat with my favorite creatives!  DONE! Check out the recap!
• Launch the website for The Professional Women Photographers of Yamhill County!  SO EXCITED about this one! See it HERE!
• Shoot and share MARY’s wedding in April!! A DREAM!
• Shoot and share LOGAN’s wedding in MAY!! LOVED IT! SEE THE BLOG HERE!
• Stick to my calendar: I’ve been pretty good lately about planning out blogs and scheduling dates for business tasks–I need to keep sticking with it! I’m giving myself a 7 out of 10 on this goal!  Now that school’s out and the sun is shining, I’m slipping 😉

PERSONAL goals–SPRING:

• Plan an epic dinosaur-themed birthday for my son!  RAWR! DONE!  I didn’t blog it, but it was ADORABLE!  It was our first party at our house with all of his friends, and it was CHAOS but super fun!
• Hike more: I’m letting the rain or the cold keep me inside too much!  DONE!
• Keep Kondo-ing my life!  DONE! I’ve been doing small declutterings here and there and I’m ADDICTED!

Summer is HERE–here are my goals!

BUSINESS goals–SUMMER:

Catch up on my business calendar system–I let it slide in June but I need to catch up on all those admin tasks!

Another styled shoot–friends.  I’m obsessed.  I mean creating something super pretty that dreams are made of and then photographing it?  I.  Love.  It.  I have an idea in mind for another shoot I’d like to do.  It involves pie and country fields.  I’m hoping to make it happen this summer!

Boring spreadsheet stuff–like, not even fun to blog about.  But it has to be done because #businessownerlife so it’s on my goal list to keep me accountable.

PERSONAL goals–SUMMER:

Be present with my kids–this means getting all those systems in line under business goals so that I have more time for front porch sitting while they play in the garden!  Summer is my favorite and I don’t want to miss anything!

Do another Day In The Life photo project–it just popped up in my memories on Facebook that it’s been TWO YEARS since I did one of these day-long documentary projects at home, so it’s time!