Imma get real personal y’all…
Last year I packed up my whole life out of Austin, TX - said goodbye to cherished friends, swam my last swim in my beloved Barton Springs, honkeyed my last tonky, and closed the doors of my photography studio there after so much hard work building my business. My husband and I stuffed our cars to the absolute GILLS and drove pretty much straight through to Arnold, California…it was like 40+ hours of driving.
When we got there I breathed in the fresh mountain air - those pines smelled amazing. …and immediately found out that my cancer ridden family dog, who was my dog for many years, had passed. I’m not going to say it was a harbinger, but…it certainly felt like one.
(Me and my good boy, Camus)
I’m accustomed to moving and big life changes. I do truly embrace the unfamiliar and seek novelty. And have developed some skill at rollin’ with the punches. But this was different. This move was incredibly challenging. Nothing about it ever felt quite right. Instead of a metamorphosis of the soul into something more beautiful, I could see myself withering away.
The new town was mostly filled with second homes that people rarely visited. In fact, that’s why we chose the area for a move. My husband, who’s a California native, spent many years visiting his family’s cabin nestled in the Arnold pines. But we quickly found out there’s a difference between retreating somewhere and living there. Most of those who do live there full-time are retirees - no one in our age bracket or with shared interests. Nowhere to dress up and go out dancing. And OMG y’all…the nearest Target was like an hour and a half away. I was working part-time at a wine tasting room and missing the joy of my skill and service as a boudoir photographer.
I began to feel so isolated, alone, and depressed.
Living with mounds of regret and a broken heart for the life I left behind. It was a strain on my relationship to my partner and to myself.
This place and pace of living might sound like heaven to some, but it was basically my personal hell. Living in the middle of nowhere is the right speed for many people, but not for me. I am not a cabin in the woods kinda gal. I mean…not for everyday living at least.
Life felt incredibly uncertain, tumultuous, and directionless. I felt trapped and stagnant.
And don’t get me started on the snow. I hate snow. I grew up on Guam, y’all. I’m an island girl at heart. So for weeks on end when I was shoveling feet on feet of snow, I broke. So did my husband.
We knew something had to change.
I'm taking a leap of faith
We're embarking on our second major life-changing, leap-and-the-net-will-appear kind of move in less than two years. That’s fast paced even for me! We’re relocating to the lovely town of Sebastopol in Sonoma county California, which I feel in my bones is the right place to be.
I’m believing in myself to start from the bottom with absolutely nothing and build it up. I’ve done it before and I’ll do it again!
It’s an act of courage to do something new.
It takes grit and staring right in the face of fear and insecurities. It takes overcoming continual waves of discomfort. It takes saying STFU to the voice in your head of self-criticism and doubt.
So when I ask you to BE BOLD and step outside of your comfort zone, know that I get it.
If you’ve faced some challenges, if you’re working on overcoming your fear and self-doubt, if you’re also moving into something new or a big life change, or even if you have something to celebrate…I invite you to join me on a transformative journey.
Boudoir is about revealing yourself in a way you’ve never done before.
It teaches you how strong and brave and beautiful you are. It shows you that you can flow through anything. It reminds you that you are an unshakeable, majestic, and radiant woman. It connects you to the power of your sensuality, which is the power of creativity and transformation.
Let’s chat about what’s going on in your life and how boudoir can help your on your transformational journey
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