Even though we are 3 weeks into 2022, I needed a little time to reflect on 2021. I would largely describe 2021 as a complete s***show 🤪 due to the wedding reschedules and navigating the pandemic world we live in, we have also hit some huge milestones! This year brought big new milestones with my functional neurology treatment, an amazing year of growth for Kelly Lemon Photography, and we watched Juliana grow and learn. She truly brings us so much joy!!
WINTER 2021
We celebrated Juliana’s 1st birthday, enjoyed the Colorado mountains, went snowboarding whenever we could, and went on our first family adventure to Moab! Moab was a blast and it was so nice to take a family trip together! We also learned we were totally underprepared for outdoor hiking with a new toddler… we definitely went on a hike with only 1 set of mittens and pants that truly were not thick enough #momfail!! Juliana was a trooper and we loved exploring and learning how to travel through the national parks with her!
For KLP, we launched the newly rebranded website!! That was such a huge labor of love and I’m so excited to have a website that reflects my heart in an authentic way!
SPRING 2021
For the last two years I have been undergoing functional neurology treatment to begin using my arm again. During Spring of 2021 we made huge progress as were able to successfully get off my main pain medication 100% and started retraining the brain on how to navigate nerve pain. This was such an exciting milestone and one I’m so thankful for!! And we are now reducing the 3rd and final medication as I write this.
We also got to go visit family in North Carolina and introduce Juliana Isabel to my grandmother, the incredible woman that she was named after. We were able to visit her just before she passed away. I’m so thankful for that trip! We took Juls to the beach for the first time and got to spend time with my cousins and Lexi (who carried Juls through surrogacy). It was amazing to see their special bond.
For Kelly Lemon Photography, I traveled back to Seattle for a few elopements and then enjoyed a creative retreat to Arizona with my gal Angie Evans! Our goal with that trip was to push ourselves creatively to feel renewed before the wedding season really kicked off… and let me tell you, it DID!
SUMMER 2021
We kicked off the Summer with an early Steamboat camping trip! Sleeping in a tent with a toddler in 35 degree weather did NOT work out! We ended up going to a hotel at 2AM, but we loved the camping experience throughout the day, playing in the water, warm meals by the fire and exploring out in nature! Enjoy an instagram reel that we made from our camping trip, here!
Agustin and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary and one of my childhood best friend’s weddings – where Juliana was the flower girl :) Our summer was filled with adventure as we hiked, explored the Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, and took a beach trip out to our family place in Michigan!
For KLP, whew!! The end of summer was a bit intense…Two years of weddings squeezed into 4 months was the definition of HECTIC, but I loved celebrating my couples. Most of my weddings were on mountain tops and valleys all across the PNW! From Mt. Baker, to Mt. Rainier, Snoqualmie Pass, Lake Chelan, Sequim, and the Seattle area. August was one for the books!!
SAILING IN SEATTLE
We also had the Kelly Lemon Photography Sailing Soiree and it was such a joy to see so many past and present couples and celebrate their love and marriage together! The KLP Community is so special and I love the chance to spoil my couples!!
FALL 2021
We took a family trip with friends out to Crested Butte, CO to see the Fall colors and loved seeing Juliana light up whenever we passed a cow… 😂 she loves cows. We love exploring with this little person and watching her learn about everything with such an adventurous heart.
For Kelly Lemon Photography, fall was my most travel packed season. My busiest week had three elopements and a wedding in three different states… literally coast to coast in 8 days! It was truly incredible, exhausting, and full of so many sweet memories with couples. I also loved exploring new national parks this Fall! Yosemite and Acadia National park were big highlights.
We wrapped up our year by going to see Agustin’s family in Ecuador for his dad’s 70th birthday and introducing Juliana to many family members for the first time.
I then finished my wedding season with a bang with an amazing wedding on an island off the coast of Mexico!
I’m honestly proud to have wrapped up such a crazy season, but I could not have done it without the love and support of my family and little community! We know the Lord brought us through this year and we are continually grateful for this season of focusing on my health with functional neurology treatment. I truly enjoyed the slower pace over the holidays with family and time to recharge before we dive into the new and exciting year ahead!
The world is really does feel crazy most days. Sometimes I genuinely feel like we are living in some bizarre universe where nothing makes sense. Can anyone relate?? As much as it feels like 2020 and 2021 blended together – looking over this review, I’m so thankful for so many incredible KLP couples trusting me. No matter how hard these times feel, there are so many blessings to reflect on and I couldn’t be more grateful.
