Happy Valentine’s Day

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I absolutely love love, so naturally today is a wonderful day! Tbh I’m not a huge participant in the hallmark holiday, however I can’t sit and be against it when I have so much love in my life. I am so blessed to have a great husband, and I am also blessed to have supportive, loving friendships in my life. I will always root for love and truly believe everyone deserves a special, safe love in their life.

Favorite Place

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Do you have a favorite place you have visited? Where is it?

My first thought when I read this was Aruba. Just over five years ago my husband and I went on a cruise where Aruba was one of the stops, and we were absolutely in love. The clear blue water, the beach, the weather… we kept saying we would get married in Aruba and couldn’t wait to go back.

Shortly after that cruise, Covid happened. We had let our passports expire in 2021 since we figured we probably still wouldn’t leave the country for a while still with just the state of the world and what not, and low and behold we got married in Pensacola Beach Florida, so now we can renew them and I can get my new passport with my new last name!

Speaking of Pensacola Beach, that was the very next thought that popped into my head after thinking that Aruba was my favorite place I visited. Of course Pensacola now has a special place in my heart considering we got married there, but honestly I look forward more to returning there than to Aruba. Pensacola has the gorgeous white sandy beaches, the calm energy, and the hotel we stayed at had ocean views on both sides- it truly just felt so peaceful.

Overall, I’d go back to Pensacola Beach before I’d go to Aruba- so that is my favorite place I’ve visited.

Aruba, November 2019
Pensacola Beach, October 2024

my forever love

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for years we’ve heard the same questions over and over again: everyone was always wondering why we weren’t engaged or married after being together for so long. people will always have their views, and most of the time you’ll find that it often has to do with society. it’s funny how people complain about “society’s standards” and then simultaneously push them upon one another, when in reality, society isn’t even meant to be in your relationship- so why let it dictate your timeline?

as I’ve been healing and growing throughout my life, I’ve recognized the importance of blocking out noise. people will always have an opinion or something to say, but they are NOT in your partnership. I feel it is important to hear people out if those are people who truly love and support you, but when it comes down to it, your relationship is about you and your partner. it’s important to pay attention to who is giving you advice and who is projecting their own issues and opinions. you wouldn’t ask someone who is thrice divorced for marriage advice, just like you wouldn’t ask someone who has never purchased a home for homeowner advice- so why let that outside noise affect your relationship?

when Cameron and I started dating, we were 16 years old. we told each other we loved each other after eleven days of dating. he wrote me a letter after a couple months where he told me that he understood why people would meet and get married within six months. if we would have gotten married in a rush at that age, I can’t tell you where we would be, but I can tell you that society and others around us would have disapproved. when we were buying a home at age 21, we had people asking why were we rushing to do that, while simultaneously asking us when we would be getting married. to us, it never mattered what people told us.

we have always listened to what we wanted and needed, and I am so blessed that we have been able to grow along side each other for the past 13 years. marriage is a lifelong commitment, even though society may not see it that way any longer, but it is to us. I’m glad we spent time building our foundation and I am so excited to spend forever with my husband.

Monday Morning

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It was just 5:55 on the clock, which is the angel number for “change.” Well, in two short days I get to marry the love of my life! I’m so grateful that we may it to our destination safely, and I also already had some family arrive as well! The rest of our friends and family arrive tomorrow, and then Wednesday is the big day!

We get to spend the next few days in our lovely suite with the ocean view! Although we may already miss our cats, it will be nice to be away from work and chores for a little while and just be able to focus on each other and all the love that surrounds us. 🤍

Friday Feels

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Happy Friday the 13th!

I know most people feel like today is superstitious and unlucky, but I am the opposite. Today I am feeling blessed, grateful, and overall full of love! The wedding is only 19 days away and I am so ready to be married to my fiancé.

I also cannot get over that we’re getting married on our 13th anniversary, and 13 has always been his lucky number. We also happen to have a new moon solar eclipse the day of our wedding! Although we won’t see the eclipse, it’s exciting to have a celestial event going on during our special day!

Everything feels like divine timing and alignment, and I am so happy to be present to it all.

Friday Feels

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Today I’m off while my fiancé is at work. I’m using today to take care of my car, the groceries, and ending the afternoon with a nail appointment. Maybe I’ll finally get over my anxiety about birds swooping at me and I’ll actually take a walk in the park!

I have definitely been avoiding walks since the cicadas were all over the place, which then made the birds fly crazy all over the place… but I miss my me time just connecting with myself and nature. I know I need to get my body moving again and soak up some sunshine. I did spend a little time laying in the sun on my balcony yesterday which was much needed.

It’s so crazy to think that my fiancé and I will be husband and wife in just under three months! I’m looking forward to relaxing on our vacation together, saying our “I do’s,” and just enjoying pure, present time together away from work and regular life. We haven’t had a vacation in so long, and I just know we’re gonna have the best time.

I’ve been feeling so grateful and just going with the flow of life. Letting everything happen, making observations without attaching any feelings, and just being thankful for the genuine love around me and in my life. It’s incredible to look back and see how much both I and my fiancé have evolved over time, and that only brings me more confidence and assurance as we transition into marriage life together.

The more I move through life, the more I recognize just how important it is to follow your gut and to forget about the unavoidable, irrelevant opinions. You know you better than anyone else, which is why it is so important that we all reconnect and come home to ourselves. Constant distractions and comparisons just keep us from our own intuition, so take time to remove them and sit in the stillness with yourself.

Sit with yourself and your feelings.

Count your blessings.

Release the worries that you truly have no control over.

Be here, in the now.

Be love. Send love.

Time with Him

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Who do you spend the most time with?

I spend the most time with my fiancé, which makes sense considering we live together. I did think about how we’re both away at work for 40 hours a week, but even with that and the time I take to socialize with friends, he definitely gets most of my time and that’s how I like it!

My fiancé is my favorite person, so naturally it makes sense that most of my time would be spent hanging out with him. I love his presence, I love our conversations and how well we communicate with each other, and overall I am just so happy to have him in my life!

Magic

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It’s crazy how connected people become the longer you spend time together. Last night, my fiancé and I were sharing a long embrace when tears started forming in my eyes. I felt so safe and happy, and I couldn’t help but think of our wedding day being a few months away and how amazing it will be to marry my best friend.

As he started to pull away from the hug I held on a little longer and told him that I got emotional. He’s like “what are you thinking? talk to me.” And I am smiling so big as the years literally just fall out of my eyes and I said “I’m just thinking about our wedding and I’m just so happy.” He looked at me and asked: “is it weird that I was thinking the same thing? I was imagining how our wedding kiss is going to end up turning into a long embrace like this and how you’ll be crying and I’ll just be holding you.”

We were both envisioning the same thing, the same moment. I’ve been feeling divinely supported throughout this wedding planning process, and this was just another confirmation of our love and how this is our time. I am so thankful to have him in my life, and to have support from all around us. 🥰

Moment of Gratitude

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As I type this post, I am standing at the kitchen island typing on my laptop while sun beams in through all of the windows in the living room. One cat is basking in the sun rays, stretched out on the wood floor, while the other is entertaining herself with an empty amazon box. My fiancé is asleep in our bedroom, and our third cat is likely laying on the bed with him. I have my air pods in, listening to R&B now radio on apple music, and I am just soaking in the present moment, and thinking about the day ahead.

In less than an hour, I am meeting up with a friend to go on a walk here in town! We planned this a few weeks ago and I am so glad we have great weather for our walk! Then later my fiancé and I are headed to his parents for our monthly family dinner! We also had a game night last night at our friend’s place which was really fun, and it is just a weekend full of connection and good energy. This month my calendar is filling up, but it is all with seeing good friends and family, and I am just so grateful for this chapter in my life.

Wedding and honeymoon planning is just about done, and we are just finishing up planning for our joint bach party where we are going to celebrate with all of our friends with go-karting and food/drinks back at the house. I am just happy to be present here in my body to actually be able to enjoy all of these blessings around me. I am also grateful to my angels and guides who are protecting us and keeping only pure, supportive energy around us. I know that I can trust in the divine timing of everything in my life, and I can trust that all is exactly how it should be.

I am so thankful for this life. I feel lucky every single day knowing I have true love; the love I always needed in my life. I have a partner who is respectful and cares deeply about me, even after seeing me during my worst moments. The way he loves me and makes me feel so safe and free, I truly don’t know how I got so blessed, but I am forever grateful for him and our relationship. This is the year that we say our “I do’s,” but it was when we told each other “I love you” at the young age of 16 that we knew were going to love each other forever.

Falling in Love at 16

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Describe a risk you took that you do not regret.

I fell in love my junior year of high school, and I went full send. I completely opened my heart to him; I was honest about my insecurities and also expressed what I was not willing to put up with. I said “I love you too” after only 11 days of us being together, and to this day, we are still in love.

In October we will celebrate our 13th anniversary together, and on that same day we will be eloping! We moved out together at 19, bought our townhome at 21, and this year at age 29 we will finally be husband and wife.

It’s insane for me to think about how much we have gone through together, and how we literally have grown together for over a decade. Our communication skills have improved immensely over the years, which has a lot to do with my own personal work in therapy.

It’s been so fun to see how we have grown together, but also how we have grown individually. I used to be extremely codependent, which could have resulted in some horrific situations, but I was truly blessed to find such a respectful, supportive life partner.

Falling in love is a risk, and doing so at such a young age is also terrifying, especially because we barely even know ourselves as teenagers. I am so happy that I trusted my gut and allowed myself to fall so deeply in love. Together we put in work to keep our relationship thriving, and I am so blessed to have him in my life. 🫶🏼