2022 Yearly Recap

It's always this time of the year that we find ourselves feeling reflective of the last 12 months.

The older I get, the more time seems to fly by so I love doing a yearly recap to see a big picture view of the entire year and remember the small milestones in between.

To be honest, this year was not my favorite. In fact, it was probably the hardest year of my adult life. We faced a lot of personal challenges like multiple miscarriages, family health scares and a car wreck. It was a hard year and while I'm excited to say "Sayonara" to it, I can't deny the little good moments, because they were there too.

I don't know if your year was amazing, not so much, or somewhere in between, but I hope you take some time to reflect on it. I personally enjoyed doing this exercise and it closed some gaps for me. Okay so here's my little recap of the year, month by month:

January

My word for 2022 was Release. I chose this word because I was grieving from the loss of an early pregnancy. It was the word that really helped me during this season, gave me some level of comfort and reminded me what to allow myself when things got hard.

Shortly after the loss, I took a work trip to California to do a 2 day event for Babylist. I actually used Babylist as my registry when I was pregnant with Everett so it felt like a full circle moment for me. On a personal note, we also got a hot tub this month! We use it all the time and I still think this was the best purchase of the year.

February

We celebrated Valentines day and Patrick’s birthday by doing an overnight stay in Nashville. Staycations are always a treat, especially when your in-laws offer it as a bday gift ;) Work wise, I began brainstorming for my new brand and created my logo for Dianuh Aerin.

March

I launched my first online workshop, The Portrait Protocol where I taught students how to draw a person from head to toe. I ended up passing my personal goal and had about 50 people join, which felt like a huge win (catch the replay here!) We also started demoing the backyard AND potty trained Everett. I remember both of those things felt so hard in the moment, but looking back, I am SO glad we did them. Delayed gratification at its finest.

April

April was a big month. Dianuh Aerin the brand was not yet official, but I had booked my first client, Be Kind by Ellen! I had a super tight turnaround and I started working on it as soon as I wrapped up my live online workshop. On a personal note, we celebrated Everett’s 2nd & my 31st birthdays. We also took a weekend trip to Chattanooga with friends, which was such a nice way to wrap up the month.

May

We launched our Mother’s Day collection with Sincerely Capri with 4 floral lockets. I also did a brand partnership with Allegiant Airlines for AAPI Month. They graciously allowed me to fly my entire family out to Key West, FL to enjoy a week of sun and beach. It was my parents' first time in FL and our first time in Key West. We visited a butterfly conservatory, ate lots of key lime pie and jet skied - it was amazing.

June

June was a fun month because my summer box with Be Kind by Ellen was out and it aired on the last season of Ellen Show (watch here!) It was definitely a surreal moment.

Another exciting project that finished this month was our long awaited backyard. After three months of demo, it was finally complete and ready to be enjoyed for the summer. We also flew to Colorado for a wedding and got to visit with family and friends.

July

My friend Daniela and I collaborated on my new website design and we launched www.dianuhaerin.com! It was quite challenging to come up brand colors and visuals that were different from Chasing Linen, but I think we did a pretty good job giving it its own unique look. I also interviewed for Biz Birthday Bash podcast, which was so much fun (episode out here!)

August

I made a second trip out to California to do a live art events for a dog event and a wedding. At the dog event, I applied to adopt the cutest little mutt but sadly the stars didn't align :') We also got to do a team brunch with our Chasing Linen ladies and it was so nice to connect in real life. I'm forever thankful for the hardworking and talented team of women behind Chasing Linen!

September

Months leading up to it, I was dreading for September to come. It was the month we were supposed to have our baby, but here we were, without. On the due date, Patrick and I went to downtown Franklin to have a little coffee and brunch date. There's not a day that goes by that I don't wonder, what if, but I'm also okay knowing it was not in God's plans. We also got to on a beach trip with friends this month and had such a good time. Had things turned out differently, we wouldn’t have been able to make those sweet memories so for that, I am thankful.

October

I always love when October rolls around because that means Fall is here! Fall in Tennessee is so different from the Falls I grew up with. It’s filled with colorful leaves and cold, crisp breezes. It is truly lovely. This October, I got to experience Falls in two other cities, Seattle and Pittsburgh. For Seattle, I did live art for a 2 day wedding and Pittsburgh, I attended a family’s wedding. Both places were absolutely breathtaking.

November

Holiday season is upon us! This was a busy month as we launched our annual holiday portrait cards. I always love painting returning customers and this year, we had several with new additions to their families. For Thanksgiving, the three of us decided to make a spontaneous trip to Miami. We traded turkey for cubanos and had a unique but fun festive dinner! Another highlight of the month was getting to meet Ruth Chou Simons, who is an artist & writer I look up to dearly.

December

When they say end the year with a BANG, this is NOT what they meant. While driving home from a friend's house, a large buck ran up and totaled my car. Thankfully, my friend and I walked away without a scratch and were unharmed physically. I was not expecting to buy a new car this time of the year, but ended up getting a Kia Telluride (total mom car.) We took my cute new car and did a road trip to Chattanooga! It was my parents and sister's first time there, and Ev's first time iceskating :)