25 was the year of surprise.

Every victory, every set-back, every opportunity…everything that happened over the past 365 days took me by surprise, mostly for better, occasionally for worse. There have been many changes (a new job, a big move), many lessons (never take Santa Monica Blvd during rush hour, check the oil in your car), and many things that stay the same year after year (the love of crafting, the inability to resist a Real Housewives marathon). Overall, I’d say 25 was a pretty solid experience.

Here are twenty-five noteworthy things from this past year:

1. Lost my job in Utah, moved home to California, and in turn, began working for myself (the job I wanted all along!).
2. Revamped my blog + my shop.
3. Explored NYC with a fantastic group of paper-loving friends.
4. Listened to hundreds and hundreds of podcasts.
5. Let my hair grow out + wore it in a top knot nearly every single day. (Thank goodness that’s actually a trend!)
6. Spent lots of time by myself and even lived alone for a month and a half. Always a welcome thing for this introvert.
7. Became even more obsessed with Pinterest + Instagram than ever before.
8. Put together lots of scrapbooks at amazing events in amazing locations.
9. Took on several design projects and learned a ton along the way.
10. Tried my hand at selling a few stamps I designed for myself. Did not expect any sort of response. Was completely taken aback by the overwhelmingly positive response. Continue to be amazed by the opportunities it has brought my way.
11. Attended three spectacular destination weddings.
12. Wally! The biggest, happiest, and most destructive surprise of all.
13. Took as many Zumba classes as possible.
14. Shot thousands of pictures and truly fell in love with photography.
15. Made several Project Life spreads.
16. Went 100% vegetarian for most of the year. Currently I’m about 95% veggie, 5% carnivore.
17. Got hooked on a bunch of new-to-me shows, including The Big Bang Theory, The League, and Happy Endings.
18. Accomplished the most work between the hours of 10pm and 3am most days (or nights?).
19. Fell in love with neon pink.
20. Spent so much quality time with all of my friends (even the out-of-staters). Probably the most amount of time since high school!
21. Went on lots of California day trips + weekend getaways spanning from San Diego to Cambria.
22. Gave Target a good chunk of my income.
23. Made Gold Star status with Starbucks.
24. Contributed to the production of a wedding. Decided I am ready for one of my own.
25. Visited Disneyland so many times. Way too many times. But never enough.

Now that I’ve officially crossed over into late-twenties territory, I’m reminding myself of a great line from Dan In Real Life:

“Plan to be surprised.”

Bring it, 26.

xoxo