September 9th, 2012 - September 1st, 2014
I've been trying to write this post for days. There are way too many memories to write one post about Blake & I's two years in Orange County. I could write and write and write about the friendships we made, the places we worked, the bands we saw, the holidays we had together, the changes we made in our lives, the knowledge we gained, the set backs we had, the trips we took, and the people who were there for us and influenced us.
So without all the stories, here's a list of all the things I never want to forget about our time by the ocean.
2012
September: I was pulled over by a cop in Santa Monica and told not to keep going into LA on the moped, so we came to terms with the West Coast trip being over, rented a van, & drove through LA three times to get our things to Dana Point & to take the van back.
September: We were welcomed with open arms into our friend Alicia's apartment with her boyfriend, who never met us before inviting us in, & their super cute French Bulldog, Zelda. We are so grateful for everything they did for us during the two months we were there looking for work & our own place.
September: I started work right away with Alicia ((we used to work at La Casa Fiesta together, where we met)) at Hennessy's Tavern just down the street from the apartment & right in town.
September: Blake started working at Whole Foods in Aliso Viejo, a 7 mile bike ride each way. He was glad he had his time at Whole Foods. The experience was great for our future knowledge of businesses & the kind of company we would like to have one day.
November: Walking the neighborhoods of DP we found our apartment right in town, a block from my work, & a walk to the beach. It was empty & felt huge without furniture, or a bed, or even kitchen wear, but it was home. Eventually we accumulated enough goods to wonder where it all came from once we packed it all up again. I built and painted a dining room table, we found awesome chairs on the curb, I stapled palm tree fabric to the kitchen wall, I took off the cabinet doors and painted the inside white to make it look more open, we bought a california king bed off craigslist, we got two couches from neightbors, we borrowed surf boards in the last few months, the garage was turned into bike storage and a workshop for my crafts, the back patio turned into a sunbathing/lounge/reading corner/yoga studio/gym/tanning bed area. We had a pretty good setup.
November: Blake's parents came to visit us the day after we got our place. We were so happy to see them after we hadn't seen any family since leaving for Seattle in the beginning of July. There's something about your family seeing where you are working & grocery shopping & riding your bike around town that makes you feel ok.
December: I was really enjoying my time at work, mainly for the friends I was making. I bonded with a little French girl, Tiphaine, over Bronco's, love, & building things in my garage. We built things our of wood pallets & swore we'd have an etsy shop called Gold Rush Poppies ((as usual life obligations get in the way of the artist's dream.)) The girls at Hennessey's became family during girls' nights, holidays, pool days, birthdays, football games, being away from family, hard times, creative times, & so much more. I am forever thankful for you, friends!
December: Our Christmas was quiet & simple. We spent it working & being in our place, opening presents from family & each other. I think we got one another kitchen, bedroom & bathroom stuff; things we needed to make our home comfortable for ourselves.
2013
This year had a lot to do with going back home to Colorado for family & friends as well as friends & family coming out to visit us!
January: My first trip home was a just because trip. My mom threw a little surprise party with my good friends. It was so refreshing to see them after being away from home for so long.
February: The second trip was for my Dad. He had a stroke, so I went home for a few days to see him & be with my siblings. My sweet friend Kelsie helped me come home at the last minute. During that trip we had also done some bridesmaids shopping for her August wedding.
March: Blake started working for a juice bar in the harbor. Organic tree was connected to the Ashtanga studio we took yoga classes at. Little did we know this experience fueled our upcoming change in lifestyle as well as giving us a new dream for the future.
April: My friend Bianca came to the coast to use our couch & soak up some sun. It was fun having a girl's week with a friend from back home.
April: Blake & I started our new lifestyle of eating clean & vegan. It wasn't all or nothing from the beginning but we did quickly jump into this new way of eating. I credit Blake's curiosity for food & why we eat in the first place, people we met on our coast trip, & the endless supply of seasonal fruits & veggies in Southern California. We haven't looked back since, I am so proud of how far we have come.
April: My soul sister Maddy & her friends crashed our place for a night. Being a place our friends could find shelter, shower & eat some food was humbling for Blake & I. We had so much help while we were homeless traveling down the coast, we knew we could open up our home to whomever wanted to stay.
May: Blake & I went back home for my best friend Lauren's wedding. I wouldn't have missed that for the world! It was Blake's first time back home since we left for our West Coast trip. He was able to spend time with his family, his nephew, Cash, & new baby niece, Marley Mae. During that trip we also got to celebrate Mother's Day with our moms. Blake made incredible lobster benedict ((even though we gave up meat and dairy, he did it for the moms.))
June: Once the warm summer came, Blake & I started stand up paddle boarding, going to yoga in the park, & becoming beach dwellers. We would like to thank Elsa at I Heart Yoga in the Park for bringing the community together in the outdoors for a donation based yoga class. Our lives also changed with Diana at Ashtanga Yoga. She was excepting our very new yoga practice & we never felt judged for being beginners in this incredibly talented way of yoga. These two yoga places, located right in town, changed our lives for the better &we can only hope to continue the passion for seeking inner peace & blending into the community with agility.
June: We were able to grab brunch with Colorado friends who were visiting family at a great spot in Laguna Beach, Las Brisas. We had a great time catching up with Mark & Renee!
June: I started volunteering at the cat shelter with one of my girlfriends in San Clemente. It was a beautful shelter & we got there right when it was kitten season. I had a great time taking care of those kittens & finding them good homes since I was missing my Raeni cat so much ((she had to stay in CO.))
July: We spent the 4th of July on a boat in the harbor. It was a new experience to see the DP harbor come alive with water fights, stand up paddle boards, boats, kayaks, bbq's, & sunshine.
July: Blake's brother Travis came out for a visit. Blake had a great time showing Trav around town, checking out juice spots & talking about the two babies. They also met up an old motorcross friend, Ben, who was living in Huntington Beach.
July: A week after that my younger brother Anthony crashed our couch. I was so happy to have a family member come visit us. Anthony loved the ocean! We took a kayak out in the harbor, saw a movie at the best movie theater, swam in the ocean, & soaked up the sun on the beach.
July: I flew into Denver for a bachelorette weekend with Kelsie & her girlfriends. It was the best weekend, spending it all around Denver, celebrating this incredible woman.
August: There were so many things going on in August including Blake's mom's birthday, my mom's birthday, Blake & Travis' birthday, Travis & Danielle's wedding, & Kelsie's wedding that we decided to rent a U-Haul & bring the bikes & moped out to Colorado for an unknown amount of time. We road tripped through AZ & NM for about five days. It was such a fun vacation down memory lane on the way back home to CO. We drove through Santa Fe ((where we lived for just under a year)) then followed the same path Blake traveled through on his bike, including Durango, Ouray & Telluride.
August: My parents had split up during this year, so being back home to see how my siblings lives were changing was really good for us. It was hard to watch the change, but I felt blessed to be able to have time with each parent in their new lives & check on my three younger siblings.
September: Still in CO, Blake & I were working at La Casa Fiesta, & I was also working at O'Malley's. We couldn't have been more thankful for these places, allowing us to pick up shifts. Making money at jobs we once worked at allowed us to stay in CO for however long we needed. We knew when we got back to DP we would want to look for new jobs. I still can't believe how it all worked out.
September: Blake & I attended a bridal shower for my longest girlfriend, Caitlin & her fiance Andrew. We also celebrated with Maddy & Josh at thier bridal shower while they were in town from AZ.
October: In one week we saw two different shows, Pepper & Tribal Seeds at the Ogden theater in Denver. Going to shows at different venues has turned into one of Blake & I's favorite date nights. I can't even start listing all the shows we've been to in the states we have lived, that's almost it's own blog in itself.
October: We decided to stay longer because my dad had a birthday, my Grandpa was coming into town from Florida, & Mary took a trip to Italy. We wanted to be there when she got back from her trip.
We had three months of spending time with Blake's nephew & niece, friends, & family. After the summer we had the year before & the short trips back home, it was nice to settle in & get a routine going. Right when we started getting antsy for change, we decided to extend our lease in Dana Point & were excited to head back to the beach.
October: The last week of October we road tripped back to CA, this time in Blake's Jeep. We sold Pearl, my moped, packed up what belongings we could, including the bikes, & headed out as soon as the snow started falling in Monument.
November: Celebrated my 26th birthday doing handstands on the beach!
November: I quickly got a new job at a brand new restaurant to DP, Jimmy's Famous American Tavern. I was happy to start working at a place that was forward in the industry ((the harbor view out of the glass wall wasn't bad either.)) I made some really great friends while working there.
November: My longtime girlfriend, Morgan, came to San Diego with her fiance, Josh. We decided to make it an adventure and biked to the train station, to take the train to San Diego then a ferry to Coronodo Island. It was a really fun day exploring & catching up with old friends.
December: Blake packed up his Cannondale & left out of our front door for Baja, Mexico. He knew he needed to take this trip before settling back into the grind of working, so that's what he did. Check out my blogpost about his incredible 1000 mile bike ride through a different country.
December: I spent the holidays working & spending time with my friends. We had a couple of birthdays and holiday parties to keep me distracted. I didn't decorate our place because it was just me, but I enjoyed time to myself & waiting for Blake's phone calls from somewhere in the dessert.
2014
January: Once Blake got to Cabo 21 days later, I flew down there. Travis & Danielle took their honeymoon then so we all met up at the tip of Baja, Mexico. Here's my blogpost about our relaxing time in Cabo San Lucas.
January: My amazing friend Kelsie decided because she missed wishing me a happy birthday that she needed to come stay with us for a few days. I loved nothing more then showing her around the town I was growing to love. We did yoga in the park, took the paddle boards out on the ocean to say hi to the seals, went to dinner, visited with Alicia ((we all worked together in CO!)) & made lots of great food.
February: I officially started my hand-lettering/chalkboard business! I was hired by JFAT & Stuft Pizza to design their huge chalkboard menu. I was thankful for the opportunity to practice my love for design and type. I also worked on chalkboards at Juicilicious Juice Bar & at Hennessy's Tavern.
February: Blake & I were given the opportunity to take a few classes from our yoga instructor on becoming yoga instructors ourselves. Though we have not pursued it, yet, it was eye-opening into the amount of work & dedication that goes into teaching a class based on body movement & verbage.
March: Bianca came out to visit again. We toured Hollywood & Santa Monica beach, practiced yoga in the park, drank coconuts, & ran on the beach.
May: End of April, early May I headed back home to be with my friend who was due with her first baby. She was still living in GA, but her husband was working in TX, so she came to CO for the last leg of her pregnancy. We stayed at her sweet, Italian grandma's house, watched trashy tv, talked about how much life was about to change, & watched for any sign of Luke to arrive. Last minute her husband was able to come be with her & as I was boarding my flight back to the OC, they welcomed their chunky little angel into the world.
June: The summer consisted of stand up paddle boarding, working, learning to surf, designing, biking, beach, farmers markets, and shows. We saw OAR at the House of Blues in Anaheim, Tribal Seeds in Bakersfield & Riverside, & Micheal Franti, Trevor Hall, & SOJA at the Greek Theater.
June: My brother, Anthony, came to visit again. We hiked in Hollywood, went to the Observatory, saw a movie at the coolest movie theater, walked around town, & spent the Fourth of July on the Harbor watching firework.
July: Over the summer I had left JFAT & went back to Hennessy's ((the girls missed me too much)) & started working with Blake at the juice bar up the street, Juicilicious. Blake quickly became manager and could run the place on his own. He became a pro at making juices & smoothies. He also did bike deliveries into Laguna Canyon & worked at their booth in the weekly farmer's market. Working together was good for us because we were able to spend time together in an environment we both loved & would want in our future.
August: Blake & I were going through some hard times when the time came for another trip back home. Being apart at home, we were able to set our priorities straight & realized that the OC was too much for us. I cried & cried when we came to realize we needed to move home, but it wasn't worth my relationship. We decided to fight for us & that our time struggling to stay afloat was over. We worked at our Monument jobs until the final decision was made & flew back to the OC for one last week in the sunshine by the beach. We packed up & cleaned our apartment, took our last yoga classes, said goodbye to friends, threw a party, & left the items that wouldn't fit in the Jeep on the curb. We drove through AZ & NM & up through CO. The cleaning up and the road trip was hard on us, especially after the previous few weeks of emotinal stress & big decision making, but it was what we needed.
September: On the 1st we were back in Monument, CO, starting back up at the restaurant & living in Blake's old house ((now Travis' family's house.)) It's still surreal that the beach life is over for us, for now, but we learned quickly that we needed to move back for a much bigger purpose then ourselves. We will be expecting our first baby in May of this year!! We didn't know it but I was pregnant the whole time we were cleaning up in CA and road tripping back home. We couldn't be happier for this love baby of ours to appear in the world & that we are able to be home with family for support & encouragement. The little cousins are excited ((they are also expecting a little sister this July)) and the aunts, uncles, & grandparents are ready for this next chapter! We couldn't have ended our time in Southern Orange County on a better note & truly for a better reason. It is expensive out there & sometimes it'll eat you up and spit you out, but we were able to work hard for the two years we were there, and the three years we were away from home, getting to know each other & experiencing the things that changed our lives & our dreams.
Thank you, everyone in Orange County who befriended, helped, motivated, & encouraged us on our crazy journey! You & the memories will NEVER be forgotton. You will always have a couch to crash on in the mountain town we live in now.
Dream Big Ride Far
