Goals for 2009

Note, not resolutions... these are goals I want to meet...

1. Follow my diet so I can get healthy, not super skinny or anything like that just healthy. I'd like to have a much better health report by December of this year. (see if it were a resolution I'd want to be in a bathing suit by my birthday which is in June, but I know myself and that's so not going to happen)

2. I never again want to go through this nightmare I'm having with Quick Books. It's my goal in 2009 to be a meticulous book keeper.

3. To keep my office tidy, clean is a stretch cause again, I know myself... so tidy will work much better

4. Organize myself and my business (kinda ties in one two and three)

5. Spend more time out of my office

So those are really the top 5... I don't want to overload myself with goals for the year... LOL I'm sure there are others but these are the big things!

Leah & Daren's Wedding Sneak Peak

There isn't much more to say about this wedding other than WOW.... it was beautiful, fun, and sweet! Leah and Darren are SO in love, and they have so much fun together! I've got so much more work to do on their photos but I wanted to post up a couple of favs...







Now, to all my 2009 couples... I'm issuing you a challenge, can you top this bridal party shot??? it'll be hard... this group was crazy! and so much fun... it's my fav group shot to date!!!!

Worlds Apart....

So, today hasn't been a wonderful day, let me just start with that... it wasn't bad until I realized that I had left my brief case in Wes' car after my last consultation and that I needed to go by the base to get it, and then head to Orange Park... I get on base and turn into Wes' work and go down the wrong way in the parking lot, I got angry with the guys going the right way cause they didn't want to scooch over to give me room to pass them and get to where I could correct my mistake, all while my husband is calling me to rib me about being an idget.

I get my briefcase and had about 15mins to make it to the consultation on time, speeding down 17 I see a cop with his radar out... THANK GOODNESS he didn't get me, or he did and let me go I was only going like 5 over... I get to the light to turn into my destination for my consult and I get a call from the person saying they have to cancel and right before I could ask if they needed to reschedule she says "we got another photographer, I was hoping to catch you in time, before you got there"

Oh what a day... and it was only ONE in the afternoon!!!

I bitterly drove back towards my house and towards the post office box hoping I had better news in the mail... It wasn't that I had a last min cancellation Lord knows that happens often, or that they had found another photographer it was everything prior that just made that a not so nice cake topper...

Anyway, I let my iPod play while I went inside the bank to make a deposit, still a little disgruntled about my day, and came out to my car started it and playing was one of my favorite Jars of Clay songs, from way back in my high school days... The part I came in on was also my favorite part of the song. I immediately started to cry, such a trival things to be upset about. Going the wrong way in a parking lot, calling the guy going the right way a few choice words, things that were all pretty much my fault just irritated me to pieces today!!! I played the song over twice on my way home (I live maaaybe a mile from my bank and post office box) I turned it up loud, so it would drown out my severely out of tune, and sobbing self.

This is the part that was playing when I got in the car:

I look beyond the empty cross
forgetting what my life has cost
and wipe away the crimson stains
"dull the nails that still remain"
More and more I need you now,
I owe you more each passing hour
the battle between grace and pride
I gave up not so long ago
So steal my heart and take the pain
and wash the feet and cleanse my pride
take the selfish, take the weak,
and all the things I cannot hide
take the beauty, take my tears
the sin-soaked heart and make it yours
take my world all apart
take it now, take it now
and serve the ones that I despise
speak the words I can't deny
watch the world I used to love
fall to dust and thrown away
I look beyond the empty cross
forgetting what my life has cost
so wipe away the crimson stains
"dull the nails that still remains"
so steal my heart and take the pain
take the selfish, take the weak
and all the things I cannot hide
take the beauty, take my tears
take my world apart, take my world apart
I pray, I pray, I pray
take my world apart

So amazing! Not that I feel like my day is going much better, I'm home and going to get a jump start on tomorrow's project of cleaning my office before Liz gets here Friday... but, my perspective is different....

6th Photo Tag

Liz just tagged me... here's the deal...

The Rules: Open your photos, choose the 6th folder and then the 6th photo in that folder. Then post the photo with a description about it and then tag 6 friends to do the same!

Sooo I'm going to do this from my personal photo folder vs my business one.. if ya'll don't mind... lol


hahaha!!! of course!!!! There isn't really any good story here... I was, well.... bored!!!!

So, I'm tagging:
Tara
Amanda
Corinna

Short list I know...

Fishies!!!!!

If you've been following my twitter and myspace updates you'll know that Wes and I got a fish tank for christmas. His Aunt in GA didn't want hers anymore and said if we wanted it we were welcome to it. So, while Wes was visiting his family in GA he brought the tank back. We debated about setting it up and going through all the trouble of keeping it up and buying fish, etc etc etc... or selling it on craigslist....

Well we decided to keep it, and it's really a very pretty addition to our living room. Aunt Trisha gave us a 55 galon tank, the stand, two filters, two large bubble stones, water conditioners, nets, the vacume hose thingie, and even tank ornaments! (Greek/Roman style no less!!! so pretty!!!)

So all we had to do was buy any other ornaments we wanted, rocks, and some fish. We decided we'd try it and if they all died or got to be too much to keep up with we'd sell the thing... Well it's been a coupel of weeks now, our first batch of fish from Wal-Mart half of them died... such a mistake getting them from Wal-Mart... and of course we didn't keep the receipt, and you can't just take dead fish back to the store!

Yesterday, we headed to petsmart, we had rebates back from AT&T from the recent phone purchases we had to make and all sorts of changes we did to the account... anyway, we got some tank ornaments that we wanted and some more fish! The tank is really pretty and so far we love it! that could change when it comes time to clean it for the first time but we'll see.. :)

Here are some photos of our tank:

our super cool ruins...


the coral hiding spots we got yesterday


the Coliseum my fav


the really pretty pink coraly stuff & the statue, my second fav


And here is our whole set up thus far



Oh yeah... and then there's the three angel fish that are likely going to need new homes when they start to grow up cause we didn't know that they were semi aggressive when we got the first one and we got two more yesterday like idiots! so I may have a tank in my office soon with pretty little Angel fish in there so they don't eat our cute little neon tetras!

Back to work now

So, tomorrow... Monday I go back to the daily grind... I pretty well took this holiday season off to get some perspective and some things together. I've made some CD cases so people will be getting nice custom cases from me instead of just a white envelope. I've come up with some business and networking plans and things like that... Most importantly I've spend time with my family, lots of time with my husband, and have started going back to the church I grew up in...

It's been a good month!

But tomorrow I've got t start getting ready for all that 2009 is going to be throwing at me. I've got taxes to prep for, more aspects of quick books to learn, and systems to set up for a new proofing system and organization systems for the office...

I also have a new printer arriving and might start offering some unique things printed in house... all in all 2009 should be a rockin year for both Jess Cumbie Photography and Breaking Tradition Studios and I'm truly really excited!!!!

I had a really great Christmas as you can read about in the previous post, Wes loved all his gifts as well, thanks to everyone that helped make that happen for me. We got a fish tank as a gift for Christmas as well that we've set up and should be getting some fishies for pretty soon so look for some photos of our new additions... Those of you who know Wes and I and have been to our house, I'm sure you are shocked that we are getting more things that eat, but we are! And I'm well aware of our level of insanity! :D (for those of you who don't know us we have 6 dogs and 4 cats!)

So, thanks to everyone that kept me sane in 2008 and here's to a Rockin 2009!!!