*Image taken by my lovely friend Mary, overlooking Big Sur.
That Two-Year-Plan that I started talking about back in 2020? You’re looking at a big part of it right here. This has been a long time coming and I’m trying to find some profound, and succinct, words to share to give you a little insight into how this came to be, but we all know that “long story short” with me is actually “short story long”, because I live in the details. And maybe that’s the TL/DR if you need it. ….TL/DR = a bunch of details! For those of you who want them, read on.
Back in March of 2020, right after returning from a really epic trip to California, the entire world shut down. I know it was easier on my kids and I, at least at first, because we just got back from this amazing adventure and we were totally fine just hanging out at home for a while. But eventually I got to thinking about how it wouldn’t be long before those days would be a memory. Not just those days, but the days with my kids in general. I spent the previous couple years navigating all the changes in our lives after the loss of my mother, and I knew I had to start planning for the day that my kids would go off on their own. I’d been their mother before anything else since they were born, and I’ll always be their mother, but this is their time to create their futures, and the work is all on them now. And I didn’t want to be sad about them leaving, so I created the Two-Year-Plan. Or, The “What The Hell Am I Going To Do With The Rest Of My Life” plan.
The initial plan was quite different than it looks right now. We all know about the “best laid plans” though. They never lay themselves the way you intend (the trip out west back in June is the perfect example of that!). And things are still changing, although that liminal stage between graduation and my kids finally walking out the door has quit lingering and all the pieces are finally starting to fall into place. Including this website, which has been months and months of me driving my web girl nuts with my indecision and need for “more time to think about it”.
So, what sets this endeavor apart from my previous photography page? More stories. More depth. More connection, more understanding, more details. More of the When, the Why, the How, and the What’s that make the Who’s who they are. And you’ll find that here. You’ll still find plenty of images, but there will be more storytelling attached to those images.
You’ll find travel stories, because nothing makes me feel more connected than travel. You’ll find more documentary stories about my own hometown and the surrounding areas, because there is just as much adventure here in our back yards as there is out in the Tetons, and stories about all the other Gardners, Carlisle, and Mt. Holly Springs towns all across this country that deserve to be shared as well. And Travel Planning! Because I LOVE to plan road trips!
What will stay the same? I’ll still be taking on portrait clients and the occasional wedding, but in limited availability. The Friday Flashbacks will continue, with some exciting additions! Eventually I’ll get around to a newsletter, as well as other things I’ve been wanting to do. But for now, I’m going to go ahead and hit publish and put this baby out into the world. Last but not least, many, many thanks to www.meetursaminor.com for her patience, and for knowing me enough to create this extension of myself. I owe much gratitude.
Have a look around. Let me know what you think!
