For the first time in, well, ever, Cliff and I hosted a dinner party! We called it Thanksgiving in January and hosted six guests. Since it was our FIRST party -- and because we were celebrating things we were thankful for -- we wanted it to be great! Because we're not millionaires, we had to stick to a pretty strict budget. Below are five ways we hosted a pretty awesome winter-themed party without breaking the bank!

1. Creative table settings.
I had no idea just how expensive tableware is until I started shopping for it. Those fun, funky placemats you see on HGTV can run $16 a pop! Um, WUT? I dunno about you, but we don't have $128 (8 placemats x $16/each) to spend on fabric. Instead, I opted for butcher paper. Not only was it cheap, but the paper ads an element of fun, since guests can draw and play games while they're waiting for food.

2. DIY napkins and napkin rings.
Same story. Cloth napkins and napkin rings are outrageously priced -- at least, I think so. The cheapest set of cloth napkins I was able to find was 4 for $12. Instead, I made my own napkins out of dish towels (which are much more affordable). I cut each dish towel in half and tied a twine bow around it for added detail.

3. Thrift store vases + inexpensive flowers.
If you're reading this, make me a promise: Don't ever purchase another vase (or woven basket) from a retail store again. You can get these same items at thrift stores for a fraction of the price, which is exactly what I did. I had planned to keep costs down by filling both vases with baby's breath, an inexpensive white flower that looks a little like snow. Sadly, the store was flat outa baby's breath. After much pacing, I opted for white roses. Roses are usually pricey, but thanks to the store's special, I was able to get a dozen for $10!

5. DIY fruit & cheese trays.
This is a trick I've used before, and I love it. I will never buy a pre-made fruit and cheese tray again! By making my own cheese spread and dicing blocks of cheddar, Gouda and swiss, I was able to treat my guests to all sorts of tasty cheeses at a fraction of the price! Plus, because I'm DYI-ing it, I'm able to select the fruits cheeses I prefer, rather than going with what's given to me.

Want more helpful ideas? Check out The Kitchn! They're great!

It's hard to believe baby Symon is two months old already! I remember when this little guy was just a bun in his mama's oven!

Meeting Symon was one of the highlights of my January! He's the son of my good friend, Larysa, and I couldn't be happier for her and her husband, Ryan! In addition to being a total cutie, Symon's a pretty chill baby. He was perfectly content looking out the window while I maneuvered around him to take photos.

As much as I love these images, I still think getting to hold him was the best :) I can't wait to watch this little one grow and see how his personality develops. If he's anything like his mama and dad, he'll be kind, caring and gentle, have a heart of gold, a particular soft spot for dogs and a passion for adventure!

This is the last New Year post I plan to put up. I promise! 2016 is off to an exciting start! It took three years, but I finally saved enough to purchase something I've been wanting to purchase for what seems like forever! New gear! I've fully upgraded all of my photography equipment and it feels amazing. The gear is top of the line, and it's pretty cool to be able to say that I'm using the same stuff all the professionals use! Getting to this point wasn't easy, but the best things in life never are. 
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​The new gear represents so many things to me -- all the hard work I've put into this little business, how thankful I am to my amazing clients who helped make this possible, and the pure joy I feel when I'm behind the camera. 

Of course, Louie was the first to be photographed with the new equipment. As exciting as I think the new gear is, he's way more interested in treats.

We might be snowed in, but that didn't stop a few brave souls from venturing out to Sligo Creek Parkway yesterday. I promised folks if they could make it out, they'd get family photos on me and... here they are!

Sometimes I still can't believe how much snow we got! Silver Spring is covered in TWO FEET of it, and some of the drifts are waste high! I actually got stuck in some yesterday -- camera and all! If I wasn't for the kindness of passers by, I might still be there! The conditions might be rugged, but they're also beautiful. Our own little slice of Winter Wonderland made a stunning backdrop for last night's impromptu photo sessions!

If there's one thing I've learned being a photographer, it's that patience really is a virtue. I have a very nervous personality by nature, so when I'm with clients, I'm constantly fighting an internal urge to rush. Alex and Vaughn's Silver Spring photo session was a fantastic lesson that taking our time and slowing down can lead to great things.

Alex and Vaughn were the perfect couple to learn this lesson with. They both love Silver Spring and have an incredible future ahead of them. Not only are they getting married, but they both just became lawyers and will soon be working alongside each other at the same law firm! Despite these amazing accomplishments, they're both down to Earth... and, as you can see, very much in love!

Alex and Vaughn needed professional photos for their wedding website, so I spent an afternoon with them last weekend in Fenton Village. We agreed to meet at one of their favorite restaurants, Zed's Cafe, and it's a good thing we did. About 10 minutes after we arrived, the skies opened up and it poured!  We had no idea when or if it would stop raining, so Vaughn and Alex ordered coffee and all three of us took our time at Zed's. Soon enough, the raid DID stop and we made our way outside, not knowing for sure what to expect. To everyone's delight, the evening light was just beautiful and rain puddles gave me the opportunity to capture some really unique reflection shots.

I really love how these photos turned out, not only because they feature two beautiful people, but because of the story behind them. They're a great reminder that with a little patience, lousy circumstances can sometimes lead to unexpected surprises. 

I didn't plan on blogging about the weekend, but I had such a fabulous 3 days off that I just couldn't help myself! All in all, I'd say 2016 is off to an awesome start.

On Saturday, Cliff and I hosted our first dinner party. We called it Thanksgiving in January, and celebrated everything from Thanksgiving to my recently published children's book to good health with some of our closest friends. Miraculously, I cooked for SEVEN people and somehow didn't burn the house down! #winning  Be on the lookout for a new blog post highlighting 5 different ways we hosted a pretty awesome party on a budget!

On Sunday, I finally got to hold Baby Symon! Symon is son my good friend Larysa. He was born just before Thanksgiving, but spent the first 10 days of his life in the NICU. In fact, that was where I first met Symon. At the time, the closest I could get to holding him was letting him wrap his little hand around one of my fingers. He was so tiny and fragile then, and it is so wonderful to see him now. He's a very healthy, happy baby!

Monday was a veg at home day. I worked on my blog and Cliff and I snacked on Thanksgiving-in-January leftovers. We didn't have high expectations for the day, which made the surprise at the end of our long weekend that much more exciting. Cliff and I are going to Colonial Williamsburg for my birthday later this month! We've never been before and we didn't plan on going, but after browsing Groupon, we couldn't pass up a fantastic deal we found!

If you know me well (or are an avid reader of this blog) then you know that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. No, not in the warped-sense-of-history way. In the peaceful, calming way. I just love the idea of slowing down, coming together with friends and family to share a home-made meal and reflecting upon what you're thankful for. I've said so many times that I think Thanksgiving should happen more than once a year -- so this year, I'm turning my talk into action!

To celebrate all of the good things in life and because we were away for Thanksgiving in 2015, Cliff and I are hosting some friends for what we're calling a "Thanksgiving - Christmas - New Year - Birthday - Home warming - all-around-good time - book-signing extravaganza." Technically, it's a dinner party, but we're treating it as Thanksgiving in January.

Here's the catch: Cliff and I have 0 entertaining experience. We've never hosted a dinner party or Thanksgiving or an extravaganza of any kind before... but you gotta go big or go home, right?

Since this is our first time having guests over in a more formal setting, my goal is to make this party a success. I know that involves fancy drinks and decorations, but my knowledge of this kind of thing is so limited that I did what any sane, responsible 30-year-old woman would do: I frantically ran around my condo hyperventilating before attacking my computer. Google: HAAALP!!!!!

2. Spacial Reasoning. Next came the issue of space. Our dining table, which I salvaged from a second-hand furniture store when I lived in Nebraska, has four chairs. FOUR. We invited six. (If you're counting, that means we expect to have a total of 8). To make room for everyone, we're going to extend our table with a card table and set of chairs. The hard part will be making everything look uniform, but I've got a trick up my sleeve!

​3. Theme & Decor. Ooof. Even though I'm a creative person, this is where I really struggle. Decorating isn't my forte, and themes--what's that? Given this is my first go 'round, I figured I'd keep in simple with winter theme (cause it's January!) I plan on re-purposing old vases and filling them with white carnations for center pieces. 

4. Odds & Ends. This is the fun part, mostly because I love shopping! We are on a budget, so I wont be doing that much shopping, but there are a few things we need for this dinner party, including an extra serving platter or dish, table coverings and a large drinkware container for those aforementioned cocktails. For these items, I'll be turning to two of my favorite home good stores, Wayfair and Marshalls!

Each winter, Cliff and I make an annual pilgrimage back to Nebraska to spend Christmas and New Year's with family and friends. It's always nice to go home, but one thing I particularly adore is stopping by Cliff's family farm. Far from any town, it offers a peaceful place to escape and unwind and has become like a second home to me. Part of what makes this place so unique (and fun!) are the animals that also call 544 Road J home -- namely, kittens! 

By now, photographing farm kitties has become a tradition in it's own right. They're just so stinkin' adorable! Most of the time I have to bring them indoors one by one to get good shots, but this particular litter of kittens hung out in Cliff's barn (as opposed to the chicken shed or dog house) which offers enough space to move around and change angles. A little back lighting and some warm hay made the perfect setting for some adorable photos!

Much to the chagrin of Cliff's mom, a few cats did make it inside for photos. (I couldn't resist! Just look at that face!)

During the visit, I got to meet another new face. This is Jackson, who joined the Starkey family earlier this year. Jackson is a 1-year-old English Springer Spaniel and he's one of the sweetest dogs I've ever met. Best of all, he loves the kitties and the kitties love him back!

I mentioned earlier how cool I think it is that instead of setting goals for herself, my friend Christy made a list of all of the amazing things she experienced in 2015. Her healthy attitude toward the New Year got me thinking differently about my own expectations for 2016. Instead of setting resolutions that might be difficult to achieve, I'm setting goals that will (hopefully) enrich my life.
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• Blog about recipes. Here's the deal: I love cooking and love sharing recipes with other people. I love it so much that I've toyed with the idea of starting a food blog... but the fear of failure always stands in my way. A food blog is a LOT of work, and I have a part-time photography business and a full-time day job. Finding downtime is hard enough as it is. As a compromise, I figured I'd feature a some of my favorite recipes here, on Jonna Michelle Photography.  (p.s. to learn more about why I love cooking so much, check out this Buzzfeed article!)

• Meet and make new friends.​ This is a goal I set for myself in 2015, and I'm happy to report that I was successful... but there's always room for improvement. In 2016, I hope to focus on spending quality time with friends and really growing relationships.

• A road trip with girlfriends. Believe it or not, I've never taken a legit, multi-day road trip with friends. Growing up, my parents were pretty strict, so taking off for a few days without an adult was out of the question. By the time I made it to my early 20s, I moved half way across the country where I didn't know anyone, making a road trip with friends that much more difficult. Of all the goals I'm setting for 2016, this one is probably going to be the most challenging since it isn't something I can do on my own. Where I'll go is yet unknown, but I'm totally putting it out there -- anyone up for  an adventure?

• Make it to more community events. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, this is something I was pretty bad at in 2015--especially during the last half of the year. I'm hoping to make up for some missed opportunities in the New Year. In 2016, I'd like to attend at least one Tweetup, one PechaKucha event and one Hand Lettering Society of Silver Spring meeting. 

Is anyone else with me that it just doesn't feel like 2016? I'm not sure if its the unseasonably warm weather, or just how fast this year has gone, but it just doesn't feel like the beginning of a new year. Perhaps I'm just grumpy... :)

No matter, I figured it's time to stop fighting it and try to jumpstart my way into that new year, new beginning feeling. To do so, I'm looking back at 2015 and thinking about goals for 2016.

Before I get to the good stuff, I've got to give a shout out to my friend Christy Batta, who is setting an example all of us can learn from. Instead of pressuring herself to meet potentially unrealistic benchmarks in 2016, Christy celebrated the New Year by making a list of everything she experienced in 2015. I love, love, love that idea! It's such a healthy alternative to the norm, and allows one to feel grateful for everything they have, rather than to beat themselves up for those things -- no matter how major or minor -- that they might fail to achieve. 

On that note, I'm starting off my recap of 2015 with all of the weekend getaways Cliff and I took. After all, doing more traveling is always something I have my eye on, primarily because of the richness it brings to my life!