December 26th:Taylor: YOLO!

2013 has turned out to be one heck of a whirl wind adventure.  I learned to cook, loved on my bear, celebrated with my friends in their major milestones, and called my sister as often as I could.  I ate too much food in New York City, tried new things, and lived by the enduring motto YOLO (my sister and I mostly proclaimed it as our NYC motto in the event that if we ended up getting a tattoo, our mom would have no choice in the matter but to join in.  It turned out to work against us when our mom used it to her advantage the ENTIRE trip –no complaints!)  I experienced Las Vegas for the first time, kicked ass at craps and attended a wedding in a room of an old motel that, I kid you not, could have been mistaken for the Bates’ Motel.

It was a year full of a lot of first time experiences, but it wasn’t the firsts that captured my heart this year.  I am grateful to have made a new friend who reignited my passion for photography.  My dad collected antique cameras which I too cherished, I attended every photography summer camp program Lincoln offered, and took photography throughout high school.  Upon attending college I gave it up.  I don’t know why, I guess I was distracted by life and let it fall by the wayside.

One day I invited my new friend, Emily, out to dinner to pick her brain about branding and her business development, mostly for my husband’s photography business.  I learned a lot over dinner that night and left inspired for my own future in the photography business.  I was reintroduced to the camera, in a different way than I had been used to when shooting with Jacob.  I got back to the fundamentals of photography and camera functionality (I will not nerd out, I will not nerd out, I will not nerd out) which has always fascinated me, but with this new found inspiration it just felt, fresh.  I decided shortly after to see what I could accomplish.  So, I took a leap of faith and hit the ground running deciding to launch Taylor-Alvarado.com and venture out with my own photography business.

I wish I had a pretty bow to wrap this year up in, and some prolific piece of advice from what I’ve learned and accomplished.  I feel like everything is only just beginning.  I have had an unbelievable year, I’ve done some pretty stellar things, and I’m beyond excited to see what 2014 holds for my business and family.