I get this question way more than I ever thought I would. So I figured what better way to open up on the greatest adventure of my life than writing it on this platform that I love so much.
For me, growing up-I moved around quite a bit.
Some background on that: I was born in Atlanta, moved to Nashville, back to Atlanta then to Houston and finally to West Palm Beach before choosing to call Tuscaloosa, Alabama home for college. When I was younger I hated moving, I thought it was the worst thing ever and felt like my parents were "ruining my life". (If you couldn't already guess- I was always a drama queen). When I was looking at colleges I realized that I was looking at anywhere that was far away from "home" to start this new chapter. Because for me "home" wasn't West Palm Beach,FL. I had a piece of home in Atlanta, Nashville and Houston too. I realized because of how I grew up I was able to go and explore new cities and be in new places so easily-which I know isn't very easy for most people.
I realized that all of those moves and starting overs were huge blessings and allowed me to make friends all over the place and also learn how to start over, make new friends and make the most of every situation.
So while most of my friends knew that after their adventures in Alabama ended, they would be headed back to their comfort zone and going home- I knew I wanted this next chapter to be new again. I'm young. I'm 23 and already have 5 states and a few cities under my belt- why not add another one after graduation?
I looked back at the southern life I had lived the past 22 years and realized I loved the south and hated the cold. So immediately I knew I had to be looking for jobs south of Tennessee and no West of Texas. That was my "comfort zone" but within that area there was still so much to explore. My next thought was- well that is still a pretty big area- can we make it any smaller? And I thought about every place I had lived and knew that Texas had been my favorite and that that was where I wanted to be.
When the job search came senior year the stars aligned with me applying for a job that had an office location in Dallas. THEN when I got the job they told me that I got my first pick in locations and would be at the Dallas office-SCORE!
I had never even been to Dallas before accepting my job offer. It was the job I waned, the change of scenery I wanted and I couldn't be more excited. Plus, I hadn't heard anything bad about it, so why not?
Before you ask- why not move to Houston to be with Alec?
Something we established VERY early into our relationship (I'm talking a month into our relationship-in 12th grade). We knew that we were SO young and that we still had so much life ahead of us. And with that being said, we chose different colleges because we chose where we EACH wanted to go. I wanted big school big football big everything, Alec wanted more 1:1 learning, a smaller community and a faith-based education. Nothing wrong with either- we were different people and wanted different things out of our college experiences. Plus, I am being a bit dramatic- we were only an hour away from each other so we saw each other quite a bit :) BUT when you're dating in high school, it feels like there's a lot of pressure to follow your person to college. We knew we loved each other and would make it work no matter where we went.
That still held true after graduation. I won't lie, we were both pretty bummed we'd be doing long distance again. But Alec knew how much I wanted my job and because of that he encouraged me to sign my offer the day I got it. We know we will be in the same city when we are supposed to be.
I'm 23. I didn't want to make a decision around a boy, no matter how much I love him. And he wasn't asking me to. Alec truly always wants what is best for ME, and for that I am so grateful. I couldn't imagine anyone more supportive.. okay I am getting. sidetracked here.
All of this to say, I have always been a very independent person and adventure lover. My favorite thing is making new friends, trying new places, exploring, traveling, all the fun things that come with new places. Dallas has let this blog blossom, given me countless memories, the most amazing friends and the greatest year already. I can't wait to see what else is in store!
I chose Dallas for so many reasons, but I know Dallas chose me too :) So with that- cheers and happy 1 year anniversary to the best city!