The Details

**Sappy personal post alert**

Do you ever have those moments where you feel like you’re in a dream? Where you wish you could just make time stand still? Michael & I just got back from Portland & this trip had SO many of those moments. From hiking Multnomah Falls, to holding hands walking the streets of downtown Portland, from exploring the trails of Forrest Park, to eating an inordinate amount of delicious food. This trip left me feeling incredibly grateful. Grateful to share my life with someone who makes me feel so valued & cared for. Grateful for a career that inspires & motivates me. Grateful for true friends to walk through life with. Grateful for the journey life has taken me on & the person that I’ve become as a result.

Sometimes all it takes is getting out of your everyday routine to reset your mindset. Life takes work. Careers take work. Relationships take work. But this trip actually made me excited to keep doing the work. Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely one of those people who can get bogged down & overwhelmed by all of the work that needs to be done. But at the end of the day, when I challenge myself & choose to persevere, there’s nothing like the feeling of seeing yourself grow. The older I get, the more I realize how important it is to surround yourself with people who will challenge you. I don’t want to live a stagnant life. I don’t want to just watch life pass me by. I want to be an active participant who is constantly growing, learning & bettering myself.

I owe a lot of this new perspective to Michael. I love watching the way he navigates life, conversations, adversity, & frustration. I’ve said it a million times before & I’ll say it til the day I die … one of the things I love most about him is how introspective he is. He’s got the biggest heart & is constantly evaluating himself, analyzing the way situations are handled & is so aware & so present in our relationship. He never shies away from conflict or conversations but chooses to communicate through it all so that we can understand how our behaviors affect each other. He makes my heart so full & makes me want to be better.

Thanks for such an amazing trip, Portland! Until next time …

A few of our favorite spots:

Multnomah Falls

Forrest Park

Oven & Shaker

Tasty & Alder

Andina

Pips Doughnuts

Heathman Hotel

The Images