2016: The Good, The Bad, and The Better!

I cannot believe it's already January. I feel like 2016 flew by and by the time I had gotten used to it, it was gone! While there were so many ups and downs, I can realistically say that it wasn't such a horrible year. I've been seeing everyone on Twitter and Instagram complaining about how horrible 2016 was, and I'm pretty blessed that it wasn't so horrible for me. Regardless of it's downs, 2016 has had a plethora of ups for me. For one, I began my Youtube channel. It's definitely slow building a following to say the least, but that's not really what it's about for me. I have so much fun filming the videos and even more fun editing them (backwards I know).

Link to my Youtube Channel -> COME SAY HI :)

2016 was the first year I ever visited Washington, D.C. I was 23 and I thought it was crazy that I had never been to our nations capital! I was surprised at how much I enjoyed myself. We stayed in town at the Mariott Marquis on Massachusetts Avenue. The hotel was stunning! It was huge and had a decent view of the city street (if you stayed on that side of the hotel). We did some major exploring. Being that it was my first time in D.C., I was so ready to do anything and everything dedicated to history. We visited Lincoln's Memorial (and I cried, yes. . . cried), and Ford's Theater. We also went to Smithsonian which had a killer dinosaur (no pun intended) exhibit. I was more excited than pretty much every kid there LOL. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip:

Another amazing trip was our family vacation to Savannah, G.A. 2016 was the third consecutive year in a row that my family and I visited the city. I am OBSESSED with it there. It's stunningly beautiful and so absolutely rich with history. My whole family is filled with History nerds, so we love to soak up what we can while we're there. We stay right in the thick of it in City Market, just two blocks down from River Street. I hadn't shared any of these pictures with y'all, so I figured I'd add some fun ones :). If you are ever near Savannah, you MUST go! Even just for the day, stopping through will make you want to stay. Here are some of my favorite pics from the Savannah trip:

In addition to my two amazing vacations, I got a brand new smile! I got braces put on to fix my gap/teeth in general. I got them in July of 2014 and they removed them in April 2016. I wasn't supposed to have them on that long (something that apparently is a common theme with Orthodontists). Prior to getting them off, I had to get all four of my wisdom teeth extracted. Needless to say that was not at all pleasant LOL. Alas, I got through the pain and my fear of anesthesia and am relieved that it's over with! Here is a before and after picture of my smile :D

Lastly, but certainly not least, I also started a new job! I'm working as a Teaching Assistant at an elementary school as well as continuing as a makeup artist, and I love it! I'm currently in the process of applying for my Masters and Teaching Certification in grades K-5. I'm so excited to start! Of course it will be super difficult, especially trying to balance school with my insane schedule; but I'm definitely up for the challenge. If any of you are elementary school teachers, let me know some things that helped you get though school/praxis!

There have been so many more great things that happened, as well as bad. My life is definitely not perfect, and 2016 had its trying moments. If I've learned one thing in my 24 years; it's to always try to look on the bright side. If it seems impossible, fake it till you make it! Here's to a happy, healthy, and wealthy (hopefully lol) 2017!

xx,
Seanmarie