Next week I will have been full-time in my business for FIVE years!!! For some reason today that wee fact only just sunk in. I mean I knew it was coming up but suddenly the reality that I have been doing this amazing job, working for myself and pursuing my dreams full-time for five years just hit me. And my first thought was what am I doing to celebrate?! Because this is a huge milestone!!!

I started this business after 8 years in accounting. My passion for photography grew from a hobby until it became my dream full time job on the 20th of July 2016! I will never forget that day - I was EXCITED and nervous. Scared to take the leap but so ready at the same time. I'd been slowly reducing my hours at work as my summer months got busier with weddings until finally there came a tipping point. I had told myself that even if I just gave "going full-time" a go for 12 months, and if it didn't work - well at least I had given it a shot. I always had my degree to fall back on right?

Man I should have backed myself more! Haha. I haven't looked back since that day five years ago. I can't imagine working a 9 to 5 again. Sure there are days when I wish I could just call in sick and there are times when I wish I wasn't the boss, the cleaner, the receptionist and the worker all in one. Those first few years were pure hustle and I still work harder for myself than I ever did for my employers (sorry guys!) but I guess that's part of self-employment. 

​These last five years have flown by and yet they've also been crammed full of adventure. I love being a photographer so much. My career as an accountant seems like a lifetime ago already. I have so many dreams, hopes and goals for the next five years in business. But before I get too soppy I actually would love your advice...

What do you do to celebrate your wins? Whether you're self-employed or not, your wins in life and/or business - I'd love to hear what you do to celebrate milestones. I'm a total believer that we should recognise, celebrate & reflect on these moments in our lives and I'd love to do something to mark this occasion of five years next week. Send me some inspiration team! xx

Meet Teddy, a black & silver miniature schnauzer. Yep we got a puppy! After being quite certain I didn't want another dog for a long time after our Henry passed away. In fact I distinctly remember saying a mere couple of weeks ago that I wasn’t sure I’d ever be ready for another dog! But it turns out our house isn’t a home without a dog and then this wee dude turned up with a story that I simply couldn’t resist.

When Teddy's first appearance on our Facebook page gained over 3,000 views and a LOT of comments (I swear some people follow me just for the dog posts haha!) I thought I'd better share Teddy's story on the blog.

To say I've been missing our Henry dog constantly since his passing is an understatement. I'd been still crying almost daily grieving for our fur baby. I hated coming home and the house not feeling 'right' any more. I missed Henry's presence and I missed being a dog mum. I also had this stupid idea stuck in my head that I had to keep feeling this way as a tribute to how special Henry was to me. And I was adamant that I never wanted to go through this loss ever again. One day after I'd broken down yet again Matt said he thought I needed to be a dog mum again. I said no, I wasn't replacing Henry. Matt said we couldn't replace him if we tried and perhaps I should look at things from a different perspective. Yes there is pain in losing pets, but what about all the years of being able to give them the best life and all the joy they bring. And so the idea was sparked - we would consider another dog, maybe after wedding season - later on in the year.

But one thing led to another - as always. I messaged a past wedding couple asking about the breeder of their wee schnauzer who we adored. I rang the breeder wanting to simply register my interest in a litter down the track and then I heard about Teddy...
He was a beautiful accident. Quite literally - his parents weren't meant to have another litter so soon but their owners couldn't keep them apart. He was the only child of the litter too. He was nine weeks old, hadn't been advertised for sale yet & I by chance called the very week he was getting his vet sign off. And then I found out he was born on the day our Henry died. It was the universe sending me a sign.✨

And that is how we ended up with Teddy! He was meant to be and of course we fell in love as soon as we laid eyes on him. This past week we've been enjoying getting to know his little personality and are in awe of what a good wee boy he is. Teddy is a fast learner, doing so well with basic training already. He travels well, he's cruisy and playful, he sleeps through the night and he's a cuddly wee pup (which I am loving!).

It took the whole drive home from picking him up (almost two hours!) to settle on a name. Matt reckons he'll end up being Ted once he grows into those distinguished silver eyebrows! But for now he is my Teddy bear.

If you visit the studio you'll get to meet him, my Instagram stories are sure to be filled with puppy spam and I will share lots of photos as Teddy grows and does life with us!

Have you noticed it's been pretty quiet around here lately?! In truth I've been actively chasing slow this year and doing a whole lot of living away from the desk and social media. 2020 has for sure given us the opportunity to pause and take stock of the lives we are living! This year I've created some kick-ass content, cried for our wedding couples and let go of many things in our business and in my day to day life that were no longer serving me. There has been big feelings of anxiousness, unease, discontent and also happiness, gratitude and peace.

I was just starting to feel like I was coming out the other side of some big energy shifts, when life decided to send some more challenges our way. Recently I have had a huge health scare which has been stressful and emotional. After a heap of tests and scans, last week I got a clear diagnosis and while the results aren't ideal, I can now get a treatment plan in place and it is all very manageable. In fact now that we know what it is, we can work to get it under control and I can be healthier because of it. But it never just rains, it pours right?! In the midst of my tests we found out our Henry dog has a tumour in his lung and that our time with him might be so much shorter than we'd hoped for. We have been completely blindsided by this news and haven't even fully processed it yet. Although I'm sure most people already know, Henry is our furbaby - he's been with us for 12 years and he's such a massive part of our family.

So yeah, I've really stepped away from social media recently. My life hasn't been a beautiful highlights reel to share and what with everything else going on in the world lately, I'm happier not scrolling my newsfeed! Also I've been doing a whole lot of living in the moment and I haven't felt the urge to share as much. But I wanted to share this update with you because we all go through stuff. Life isn't easy for anyone. My instagram feed might look polished & fun-filled but we've sure had our fair share of shitty days too. I've done my absolute best to try make sure it hasn't affected how I'm turning up for my portrait clients and wedding couples. But if you've seen me in the street and I didn't see you waving, if your email has gone unanswered for a few days, if I wasn't very conversational when we last spoke - please know that I am sorry. I've been dealing with an internal shit storm.

Life has certainly reminded us these last few weeks that every day is an absolute gift. Forget about whether a moment is 'share worthy' and just be in the dang moment. If you're not happy with something in your life, change it. Remember that your health is precious. Do the things you dream of. Love unconditionally. Live with reckless abandon.xx