I'm glad, despite all the odds being against me, that I made it to 29...

Birthdays have never been a fun concept for me. Not necessarily because of the getting older part but because since I’ve moved to LA my social circle has shrunk immensely. When I lived in Orlando I had a group of people I knew I could always hit up. Here? Well every day is a struggle to meet new people who aren’t just interested in what I have to offer. I feel like often before even exchanging names people want to know what I do. That mixed with the bouts of depression and anxiety that I’m plagued with doesn’t make for a social butterfly with many friends.

This year, since it was the first birthday since completely leaving the abusive, isolating hell that was my last relationship I really wanted to celebrate myself. I hit a low point last fall that I wasn’t sure I would ever get out of. Within months I lost my mother to a brain tumor, a childhood friend overdosed on heroin, and my best friend/ex-boyfriend turned into a monster and forced me to leave our home putting me out on the streets in LA. I never thought I’d recover. But…fast forward to this May and I actually found an amazing group of people who wanted to celebrate the fact that I made it through all that and am possibly healthier than ever. Not yet the happiest I’ve been but I’m working on it! Thanks to a friend in Orlando we were able to snag free tickets to Universal and visit The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It was a bright and beautiful day and looking at these pictures brings me immense amounts of joy. It felt like the world was telling me “It only gets better from here. Aren’t you glad you held on?” I sure am glad I did. Anyways, I hope you like them!

(These were all taken on an iPhone 6)

Welcome to Hogsmeade Ya'll! (I did in fact grow up in Texas. I will never be broken of saying y'all.)

Aaaaaall aboard The Hogwarts Express!

One of my favorite characters in Harry Potter isn’t a person or a critter at all. It’s the Hogwarts Express. It’s such an integral part of being a witch or wizard in that story. Like the thing that finally seals the deal. “Yes, you’ve been chosen, and yes, here we go! All aboard!” I’ve always found trains to be so magical and fascinating. They have an old timey charm that I think very few things have left. Something about trains makes me feel like even if I’m just going the next town over, it’s a magical adventure to embark on. As a kid my dad got me a train set and I remember spending hours plotting out journeys for my Polly Pocket dolls to go on. Unfortunately trains aren’t super popular here in the US so it wasn’t until I got to London that I was able to ride my first proper train. I'll never forget being so absolutely gleeful at being able to just sit back and enjoy the English countryside.

Where's The Butterbeer?

While everyone ran over to taste the butterbeer, I took my time strolling along and taking in every detail. So much time and effort was put into this place. One of my friends did safety operations for Hogsmeade and I knew she worked immensely long hours. I simply didn’t want to overlook any details. It was so convincing that for a moment I forgot that I was hot and sweaty in Southern California. In my head and heart, I was at Hogsmeade.

The shops themselves were full of all the usual tourist trap offerings. There was some pretty cool little knick knacks but the only thing I purchased was pumpkin juice and a really pretty Ravenclaw journal. (It was another attempt at motivating myself to journal consistently like my therapist has asked. The journal is still blank. I'm sure someday I'll get to it....). The shop decor along the top half was absolutely stunning though. I kept thinking I wish they had shops that had offerings like that. Is there a place like that on earth? Maybe Savile Row in London.

On to Hogwarts Castle!

The main thing in this area is The Forbidden Journey. Really it's the ONLY thing to do. It's a ride that's a mixture of a roller coaster and simulator. People seem to get sick on this quite often but thanks to some magic we had the secret password for the day (each ride has one) so we were able to ride it over and over without any issues.

I still can't get over how beautiful the sky was today. It almost doesn't look like a real picture but it is! I'm really impressed with my phone's pictures actually!

As we were drawing the day to a close I was quite happy to be able to get some more nice shots in. I really wanted to capture this day and all it's beauty for moments when I get down and I need to remind myself how awesome life can be.

Goodbye Hogsmeade! Until we meet again!

And my favorite shot of the day:

The only thing I'd like to leave you with is that....no matter how hopeless things get. No matter how awful life may seem at this very moment....things really do get better. If I had given up when I was standing on the edge I wouldn't have ever been able to enjoy this beautiful birthday or made these wonderful memories, or seen these beautiful things. I hope you enjoyed them!