Bohemia Heart

52 Week Project 2016

52/52 & Bohemia Heart 2017

I've finished! I did it! I started and finished a 52 week photography project, finally! And I stuck with it. Even when weeks got chaotic and I had zero motivation to pick up my camera, I still marched on. Even when I had to combine weeks and it irritated me not keeping up with the original format of one post a week. Done is better than perfect. Another thing to cross off my bucket list!

A little bit about week 52 before I dive into what 2017 will look like for my little blog and I. Most of the week was spent at work but on my days off I carefully coordinated visits from family and friends. My family and some of my friends live a few hours away from me and it is always hard trying to schedule time together. Dan and I did a few cheese platters, successfully pulled off a roast chicken with all the trimmings and it was so lovely actually using our dining table (most of the time we eat on the coffee table and watch reruns of The Simpsons).

I spent Saturday pottering around the house, which is one of my favourite activities in the whole world. Dan and I went to his family's BBQ they have every Saturday and then we spent the remainder of our New Years Eve relaxing with Thor. It was perfection. We didn't stay up until midnight as we ended up falling asleep! It was one of the most restful sleeps I've had in recent memory.

It's been raining on and off for most of the week which suits me just fine, I would rather rain and cooler weather than the typical Australian Summer that I'm accustomed to. I could happily live the rest of my life without experiencing humidity ever again.

Our New Years Day was relaxing, lazy and filled with good food - just the way to start 2017. We woke up early, had our breakfast and teas and played video games. We then went out and had Thai for lunch. The rest of the day was spent around our home again, we watched a movie while it rained outside and I put all of our Christmas stuff away.

Unfortunately I am back at work today and I write this before I start my shift. This week marks my first week of my new contract and I will actually be working more now at my day job than I was last year. And I still have a few photography jobs and half-day wedding bookings trickling in for the year as well. I know, I know, I keep talking about being busy and wanting to just step back and relax a bit more but I have good reasons as to why I'm using 2017 as my "smash everything and set us up" year.

My Top 3 Priorities For 2017

1. Getting married and our wedding in February 2017.

2. Paying off our car loan years early and implementing our new savings and investment goals.

3. Taking an overseas holiday with Dan (honeymoon) before we start a family.

2017 is the year where we pretty much set up our lives before we start a family. Right now all our focus and extra money is going into our wedding which is fast approaching. It will be paid for all in cash and I will most likely post about this in the near future, including budgets.

We wish to pay off our car loan, the only type of debt that we have, years early. We have been paying extra off each month but we will really amp up the extra repayments this year to pay it out early, leaving us completely debt free. We will then funnel our cash into a house deposit (we figured we're a few years away from buying, given the state of inflated housing prices in Australia, but we will buy when we can afford to) and also start investing.

We gave up the idea of having a honeymoon straight after our wedding for two reasons: the first reason is we bought Thor and he set us back a small fortune (but he is priceless and there is no dollar value on him!) and due to the fact that Dan and I both started working new jobs in 2016 we haven't accumulated a substantial amount of holiday leave just yet. So we are aiming to take an overseas trip towards the end of 2017 as our honeymoon.

I'm already expecting for this year to be another busy one (just like 2016 - I lost count as to how many times I started a blog post with "I've been so busy!") mainly because I'll be working more and still doing photography work. Although I'm going to be a bit more prepared this year by outsourcing tasks, which I will speak more about in a future blog post.

My focus and goals in life right now is to build a good marriage with Dan and raise happy children. Every decision I make is based around those two things.

My Photography Business

My photography portfolio is down right now while it undergoes a renovation. I've been very confused about my style and 'branding' since I started my business in February 2014. I tried to take it full time and realised quite quickly that shooting 10-15hr+ weddings once/twice a week wasn't for me. And I've been short changing myself with pricing which hasn't helped. I've had a couple of dream clients but then because of my lack of branding and direction, I've had to deal with my not-so-ideal clients that still expect such a cheap rate it's not worth even the fuel to drive to the actual shoot. I think this year I will be happy to take on jobs as a 'side hustle' while I still work at my day job, while re-branding as well as re-pricing and be a bit more selective with the clients I take on and the work I show on my website . The stress and anxiety-ridden nights I spent worrying about money and where my next job was going to come from when I was self employed was too much, especially with trying to accomplish my top priorities. You can read about my wedding photography experience here.

The Future of Bohemia Heart

I've been thinking about the direction I want my blog to take now that my 52 week photography project has finally come to an end. I don't really believe my life is anything amazing or glamorous, and most days it isn't very 'Instagram worthy', but I love the process of documenting the small things. The little moments that we forget. My memory is awful, and taking photos regularly of my life and being able to look back on those photos is the best thing and it is so wonderful. Things that I have already forgotten about as well!

I think I'd quite like to keep this blog going as a visual diary, but I'd like to talk more. I don't believe I'm very good at writing so maybe this could be an opportunity to become better at it. I'd like to turn this into a bit of a lifestyle blog. I've been very passionate about self care and mental health, simplicity in all areas of life (financial, home, organisation, not owning lots of crap), and of course photography.

Thank you so much for following along on my 52 week photography project, and I hope you will continue to follow my journey into 2017.

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, by Jess

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Reflections on 2016

Before I finish off my 52 week photography project, I wanted to take some time to reflect on 2016. I absolutely love spending time getting ready for the new year and although I'm not resolution orientated, I do love the idea of renewed motivation and another year to keep bettering myself as an individual.

I read these questions from a post over on The Art of Simple, and thought I'd share my answers here on my blog.

What was the single best thing that happened this past year?

I can't pinpoint one event, but I got engaged, turned 30 and became a Mum to a beautiful little pug puppy all around the same time. I had been waiting for a pug for around 15 years!

What was the single most challenging thing that happened?

Again, not a single event but I can trace a lot of my "busyness" down to a date: August, when we moved house. That was when my backlog began. I had only been working at my new day job for a handful of months, Dan had just started his new job and we unexpectedly moved houses. Up until this point, life was smooth sailing, my routines were good, I was exercising and eating right, the volume of my anxiety was barely audible. I was working nearly full time hours at my day job while editing/photographing on the side and from all that stress I became sick for just over two weeks. Not just a little cough and a bit of a cold - completely bed ridden-couldn't move for days sick. I took way too much on in the second half of this year and I am still trying to recover from it.

What was an unexpected joy this past year?

Road tripping out to the country! Dan and I did a few trips this year, one to photograph a wedding, another to visit a zoo and one for his sisters wedding. I didn't think much of the trips to begin with as my mind was very much on just getting to the destination. But the trips themselves, especially with the company of Dan were brilliant. We packed picnics, relaxed in parks under Autumn trees, ate gelato by a beach, and enjoyed long and memorable conversations, sometimes about nothing in particular. Most of the time we didn't even plug in the iPod we were too busy talking!

What was an unexpected obstacle?

I thought I had finished getting through some past traumas (this is lolworthy in the world of self development) but realised towards the end of the year that every day is a new learning and growing experience. And that personal growth and development is never ending, it doesn't stop and it shouldn't stop. I constantly forget and have issues with memory (hence why I document everything with photos and journaling and I'm always writing lists) and because of this, I forget where I've come from and what I've been through. I am still learning that recovery and self development is a slow and gradual process over a long period of time, and that period of time can be a couple of months for some people or in my case, many years.

Pick three words to describe this past year.

Progressive, fulfilling and loving.

Pick three words your partner would use to describe your year—don’t ask them; guess based on how you think your spouse sees you.

Challenging, fulfilling and adventurous.

What were the best books you read this year?

I actually failed my Goodreads reading challenge of reading 25 books (I was on track to finish but by mid 2016 I started to fall behind and only finished up on 9 books).

I continued my love affair with Kate Morton and consumed The Secret Keeper quite quickly, I couldn't put it down! I gave it 5 stars.

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton was also another excellent read and I gave it 4 stars. Her style and genre of writing suits me exactly and I think I will have to buy all her books as physical copies to keep and re-read.

George Orwell's Animal Farm has been on my to-read list for many years. To be completely honest it's one of the most depressive reads I've ever encountered and it left me feeling quite hopeless and empty, but it is brilliant and such an important story. I would recommend it to anyone. 5 stars.

Who were your most valuable relationships with?

Dan, my fiancé and Emma, my sister. Dan and I's relationship is still growing and it has changed slightly, or maybe evolved is the better term. I feel like we have both matured quite a bit since we first started off nearly four years ago. We got passed a major hurdle in 2015 and now talk very intimately with each other, nice conversations and the not-so-nice conversations. It has definitely made us better people and has helped bring out the best in each other.

I have helped my sister out by allowing her to live with Dan and I for a few months. We helped pull her out of an awful situation and she is now rebuilding her life from scratch. When we were young we hated each other (there is a six year age difference between us) but now we get along well and help each other out. She is very important to me and I care about her a whole lot.

What was your biggest personal change from January to December of this past year?

Trying to accept that things are never perfect and that I am a chronic overachiever and perfectionist. Not being busy is okay and it is not a sign of weakness or being lazy. I don't have to constantly prove myself to everyone all the time.

In what way(s) did you grow emotionally?

I guess there isn't one single thing, but just learning to express myself and talk about my feelings in a healthy way. For many, many years I would minimize and internalize my problems, feelings, thoughts and it would grow and fester under the surface into a big ball of grossness. For many different reasons I did this (and still sometimes do) but it is an excruciatingly long and slow process to undo and change habits and core beliefs I have deep within myself.

In what way(s) did you grow spiritually?

Not entirely sure how to answer this one as I am very atheist and I don't really believe in new age beliefs either. But I do live my life in a way where I practice love, compassion and tolerance. I try to make a conscious effort every day to love the people around me, to treat them nicely and to tolerate some as much as I can (customers at work come to mind with this one :P). This year I really tried to become more patient with everyone and everything around me (perfectionism kills patience) and I would say that I have definitely become better at it.

In what way(s) did you grow physically?

I kept up with my gym routines and exercise. There were periods of time where it went out the window, but as soon as I was able and healthy again I got straight back into it. I think with exercise and eating well you really have to be kind to yourself. If you beat yourself up and start the negative talk in your head, you will just dig yourself deeper into the emotional-eating-binge-cycle that I feel a lot of people in the world suffer from. There were many times this year where I just said, "Fuck it, I'm getting a cheeseburger." when multiple things have gone wrong in the day. But then you just accept that it happened and say to yourself, "Okay just try again at the next meal." or "Tomorrow is a brand new day, try again tomorrow." The most important part is you get back into it, it's consistency not perfection.

What was the most enjoyable part of your work (both professionally and at home)?

Making friends with my co-workers, being part of a team, feeling like we're in it together!

When I'm photographing I love developing relationships with my clients and helping them, and actually clicking the button and photographing is my favourite part of the business.

What was the most challenging part of your work (both professionally and at home)?

My day job is physically exhausting as I work in a warehouse. I am covered in bruises most days and I am incredibly tired when I come home from work, both physically and mentally as it's a fast-pased environment. I do very much enjoy the challenge and my days go super quick, but I don't think I will be there forever (certainly not when I'm elderly with a bunch of joint problems!).

Photography I have a love/hate relationship with. The parts that frustrate me are admin/bookkeeping/marketing or any type of business development. All I want to do is photograph and talk to my clients! Editing is also a real drain, especially if I've photographed a wedding. I wrote a post about my wedding photography experience earlier this year.

What was your single biggest time waster in your life this past year?

WORRYING. Honestly I tell myself this all the time but when I get into an anxious state the thoughts and threats feel so real it's incredibly hard to get your head out of it. Worrying is the biggest waste of time and it has definitely sapped a big chunk of time from me this past year. It's an even bigger time waster than social media!

What was the best way you used your time this past year?

Relaxing, doing things for me, just sitting and playing a video game or reading a book, journaling, watching a funny movie, going to lunch with friends, spending time with Dan. All of these things made me feel better and mentally recharged afterwards.

What was the biggest thing you learned this past year?

It's not selfish to do things for myself and I need to indulge and look after myself. Sometimes I have to accept that everything around me will continue happening and there is never a perfect moment. It will never be all done. I won't be happy if X,Y and Z happen or I can't relax only if X, Y and Z are done. I have to accept that and still be happy with things just as they are right now and if I need to relax schedule it in among the chaos.

Create a phrase or statement that describes this past year for you.

This question is a bit hard so I'm going to share a few quotes instead.

"Watch your thoughts; they become words.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."

“I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next.

Delicious Ambiguity.”

And I would like to take the time to wish you all a very happy new year and I hope 2017 is everything you all want and more. I know my little blog doesn't really have much of a 'readership' but I do have a couple of you that comment every so often, and I want to extend a warm thank you for reading and commenting. It is such an honor to have you here.

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, by Jess

52 Week Project 2016

49,50&51/52

Another Christmas done and gone. This year Dan and I got to spend our first Christmas with our very own Pug and Thor enjoyed every minuted of it! He got way too many gifts, both from us and his Nan and Pop and even got to eat a little bit of turkey. He is very spoiled and so loved.

I gifted Dan some Space Wolf Space Marine memorabilia as he is in love with the Warhammer 40k universe.

Dan always puts pug related stuff on my gifts, either pictures or a card or even pug wrapping paper! This year he got me the Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic Polaroid camera! I've always wanted a Polaroid camera and this will be used at our wedding next year I think. And my love for cheeseburgers continues in card form :D

Finally some shots from our walking routine that we do almost every evening now with Thor. He is getting loads better on a leash and absolutely loves walk time! He is quite the adventurer and always stops and says hello to other people and dogs.

Thor meeting another Pug called Diesel. He came rushing over to his back fence and his owner and family happened to be in the backyard having a BBQ on Christmas day. They all came running over to see the Pug puppy! Pug owners seem to be very passionate about their dogs and other pugs.

It was a pretty chill Christmas day. We opened gifts and had a small breakfast. Then we made our way over to Dan's family who were cooking up a storm. Turkey, ham, roast potatoes, gravy - all the traditional Christmas day foods with all the trimmings. Although we had to eat it inside in the air conditioning because it was a billion degrees outside! We came home after our food comas, relaxed and then took Thor for a walk. It was a perfect Summer evening.

I said to Dan while walking, "I really love our life together" which made him smile. When I look back over all the photos I've taken this year I've had a pretty great time. A couple of lows but mostly highs. I plan to write a more reflective post later this week when I post 52/52.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

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, by Jess

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Bohemia Heart

52/52 & Bohemia Heart 2017

My Top 3 Priorities For 2017

My Photography Business

The Future of Bohemia Heart

Reflections on 2016

49,50&51/52

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