A Lucky Number, A New Decade ▌Sierra Vista Photographer, Arizona

My jersey number in youth soccer was 3. I won two state championships in highschool basketball wearing the number 30, and I shot, you guessed it, three pointers. This year I gave birth to my third child, my third baby boy. It is also the third year of business for Photos By Karyn. Today is June 3rd, my 30th birthday! Hello thirties! I'm not scared of you, I'm rather excited that you are finally here. Reflecting this week has been fun, and most of you won't read this whole list. But what I have learned about myself is: I have most often done exactly what I wanted to do at the time I wanted to do it. And I can continue to do everything I want to do from here on out, in fact, I should aim higher than ever before. I went to the gym tonight to finish my twenties good and strong, a final sprint if you will. I noticed during the warm down that my souls are worn... Tomorrow I think I might go treat myself to a new pair of Nikes to remind myself to "Just Do It", all of it.



30 MOST NOTABLE MOMENTS OF MY FIRST 30 YEARS:
1. I was born to very loving parents
2. Sang one of the lead roles in my 6th Grade musical, as the baker’s wife, Into the Woods.
3. Won back to back state championships in High school Girls Basketball ‘97, ’98
4. Fueled by the enthusiasm of 200 crazed fans, hoisted by two very strong lesbians, I slipped a hand painted fan letter into the bathroom window of the tour bus belonging to The Indigo Girls. I’m still waiting for a reply…
5. Punted on the Thames River, England, summer of 1996.
6. Graduated from High school in the top 10% of my class
7. One year in Ringsted Denmark as a Rotary Exchange Student
8. Attended one day of instruction at the Royal Danish Military Academy (West Point Equivalent), an all male academy; aside from PT, one of the most memorable days of my life!
9. Celebrated my 19th birthday in Paris, France, at the Monte Cristo on the Champs De Elyse
10. Attended a Rochester Redwings Baseball game with MSNBC Hardball host Chris Matthews, and MSNBC Executive Producer Phil Griffin. Politely requested they did not smoke cigars in my Honda Civic and declined their offer for drinks in the hotel…
11. Graduated from RIT with a degree in Photography
12. Won a silver medal in the Philadelphia Dad Vail Regatta, collegiate rowing
13. Colliding with a Buick pick-up truck while riding my Cannondale in Tucson, AZ, resulting in two broken wrists, multiple other wounds, and a brand new bike torn to shreds.
14. Worked alongside world renowned photographer Richard Avedon, at the Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, AZ.
15. Graduated from the University of Arizona with a BFA in printmaking and photography
16. Trained for and completed the Tempe Sprint Triathlon, AZ.
17. Married the love of my life, Yukio, in 2003 after a whirlwind courtship consisting primarily of swing dancing.
18. Lived overseas in South Korea for three years
19. Dove into a school of jellyfish while snorkeling in Borrocay, Philippines, OUCH! This remains the most gorgeous island I have ever set foot on.
20. Viewed the sweeping rice paddies of Japan through the windows of the bullet train, the fastest passenger train on earth; met my husband’s family and visited the family homestead during 9 days travel in Japan.
21. Hiked two different sections of the Great Wall of China, 2004 & 2005
22. Walked in the Lotus Lantern Festival Parade through central Seoul, South Korea 2005
23. Gave birth to baby boy #1, in a Korean hospital with NO medication; said baby boy also gave me my first and only helicopter ride over the bridges of Seoul at sunset while only 27 weeks pregnant.
24. I ran the Cherry Blossom Ten Miler in Washington DC, finishing in just under 2 hours, unknowingly 5 weeks pregnant with The Baby.
25. Gave birth to baby boy #2, in a Texas hospital with medication that did nothing
26. Survived 15 months as a single mother, supporting my soldier husband during his deployment to Baghdad, Iraq.
27. Started my own photography business in 2007, Photos By Karyn
28. Gave birth to baby boy #3, in an Arizona hospital, with an amazing epidural, and slept through 5 hours of labor
29. Traveling to places others can only dream about: Canada, Mexico, Germany, England, France, Belgium, Holland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, South Korea, Japan, China, and Borrocay in The Philippines.
30. Hot Air Ballooning over Austin, Texas, with dear friend Julie Rivera.



MY NEXT 30 YEARS (in no particular order):
1. Travel through Italy and eat a real pizza
2. Take my family on a Disney Cruise; I hear they are a lot of fun…
3. Ride the Rails, and explore the fjords in Alaska
4. Stroll the streets and beaches of Perth, Australia
5. Start a non-for profit organization benefitting military children, photographing friendships during PCS.
6. Learn how to REALLY sail
7. Own a fabulous home by the water, any water.
8. Plant an award worthy garden at said home.
9. Raise a pair of Airedale Terriers
10. When the kids are old enough, get back into attending regular swing dance exchanges, master the Balboa.
11. Travel: Italy, Greece, Scotland, Ireland, Checzh Republic, Northern Japan, Turks and Caicos, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji.
12. Act in a city theatre production
13. Publish my children’s book
14. Publish a photography book
15. Worry less about bears, mountain lions, and snakes.
16. White water raft down the Grand Canyon or an equivalent
17. Grow Photos By Karyn into a full time business by 2020.
18. Live overseas again: Hawaii, Italy, Germany, Belgium, or Japan
19. More Hot Air Ballooning; over tulip fields, autumn leaves, vineyards in Tuscany, The Rhine Valley
20. Vacation at a working dude ranch when the boys are old enough to go on a trail ride.
21. Return to Denmark to visit my host families, and spend some time on the beach, which I never really got to do while living there.
22. Teach myself how to really cook, more than lasagna and tacos.
23. Get married again, to the same man, in a church.
24. Own a Bed and Breakfast Inn on the coast.
25. Learn how to surf
26. Take my husband to a Michigan Football game.
27. Downhill ski in the Italian Alps
28. Roller-skate more
29. Host an exchange student
30. Take a dip in the hot springs of Iceland