My Life's Successes So Far

This week's prompt in my “Creative Dreams Come True” journey is to list our life's successes so far. I feel like I'm bragging, but as Andrea explains it: "It is important to own our successes and be proud of what we have done. This can fuel us to accomplish more. Sharing our lists with our fellow creative dreamers expands the sense of success~fullness and helps us bring that sense of success into our dreams for 2010 and beyond." So here goes:

Made National Honor Society in high school (going WAAY back!!)

Got scholarship to college (didn't use it, though - ended up going to a different school)

Got my graphic design degree and have worked in that profession for 26 years

In the final student art show in my last year of college, I had the most pieces selected (11) to be shown

Won Blueberry Hill's 1995 CD Cover Contest

Bought 2 brand new cars (and without any co-signers!)

Wrote poem that placed 3rd in our local paper's Valentine's personal ad contest

Designed and painted sets for a local play

Bought home

Got married, and had a beautiful wedding

At my third job in my field, I got promoted from production artist to jr. designer, then to supervisor of the jr. designers, then to art director

Joined SCBWI and attended several local conferences

Approached a group of strangers at one of those conferences and we started an illustrator's critique group

Attended an Oprah show taping and was in the 4th row!!

Learned to laugh at myself

Given 4 cats and 1 dog (so far) loving homes

Traveled to: Sun City, AZ; Boston/Cape Cod, MA (and saw a whale so close that I got wet from water coming out of his blow hole!); Orlando/Destin/Cocoa Beach, FL; New Orleans/Baton Rouge, LA; Chicago, IL; Hot Springs, AR; Washington, DC; Austin, TX; South Haven, MI; Seattle, WA; Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA

Have been in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and The Gulf of Mexico

Participated in group art show - The Sketchbook Project

Traveled to Utah alone for the BYU Children's Writers/Illustrator's Conference and my drawing won the daily challenge on the first day

Going to New York alone for the SCBWI Winter Conference

Gotten over fear of dining and going to movies alone

Have maintained several long-term friendships with some awesome women - including one that has lasted 29 years, and one that has lasted 22 years

Started this blog and cyber-met (I think I just made up a word!) some awesome artists

Illustrated a story in the 2009 ABC's Children's Picture Book Contest - we came in third

Have sold some of my art on merchandise in my Zazzle store

Completed PiBoIdMo in November and came up with 33 picture book ideas

Joined several (probably too many!) artist/writer networks

Started my new journey this year as a freelancer, with a goal of illustrating, then writing AND illustrating children's books along with my graphic design