Goodbye Big Apple, hello Sunshine State! Leaving New York has been a long time coming but was also a bit of a surprise. I knew New York wasn’t my final destination and that I would leave the city one day (let alone retreat back to Florida), but I always thought it would happen in the future. As you can guess, the future became the present (as the future tends to do). This post is not about how much I’ll miss what had become my home for the last 8 years. It’s not about the beautiful city I’m leaving behind, or the fast-paced lifestyle I’ve grown accustomed to. It’s not even about that delicious Vietnamese sandwich I fell in love with (Num Pang, will I ever see you again?). It’s about the exciting new adventure that lies ahead. A very long chapter has ended and a new one is beginning. A warmer one. One where I don’t have to put on three layers of clothes just to go down to the basement to turn over the laundry. Ah, life is good.

Here are some other really good things that happened in 2018:

1. Ben and I bought a house! So far, we’ve had a plumbing issue, our fence fell down, and we completed an amateur electrical job, and I’ve loved every second of it (or almost every second…). But! In the midst of all the excitement, we still managed to find time to get our FL licenses. It took 3 years for me to get a NY license, so I already feel very accomplished.
2. We got engaged! This one should have come first, it’s more exciting. After over 8 years together, it feels like we are already married. Except now, we get to have a party. Or maybe not, we’re still deciding.
3. This one is probably less exciting for all of you but very noteworthy for me. I dipped my toes in the commercial photography world and I didn’t hate it. I more than didn’t hate it, I really liked it. I may explore that some more in 2019. And now that my life has slowed down some (I’m telling you, the days are longer in FL), I finally have the time to do so.

Here’s to an equally, if not more, exciting 2019! I’ll leave you all with a photo of Ben from our last little NY vacay to Seneca Lake.