I almost dare to call myself a pro at moving. I mean, in 4.5 years of marriage Zack + I have lived in three states, four cities and five homes. But there’s something about using words like “pro” that make me not want to use them, for fear of really learning what that word means… {giggles nervously}
During the message at our wedding, my Pastor asked Zack to add up our wedding anniversary: June 7th, 2008: 6 + 7 + 8 = 21. “Twenty one, two become one” he shared with us — one part of our wedding I don’t think either one of us will ever forget. And so as we’ve worked to “become one” these last 4.5 years Zack + I have really learned a lot about what it means to be committed to our marriage. When one of us has a dream, we pray about it + ask for it to become the dream of the other. And when one of us feels like God is leading us to do something new/exciting/scary together, we pray God will show that to the other, plus how exactly to make it happen. For Zack, this has been supporting my desire to quit my day job to focus on Gussy Sews. And for me, this has been moving to Los Angeles so Zack can pursue a dream he’s been sharing with me since we started dating {over 8 years ago}.
Moving from city to city, as often as we have, has been really hard. I thought all I wanted in this life is consistency — I want to remember our address on my own instead of asking the pharmacist to give us a little hint of where we used to live {to verify our insurance}. Turns out pharmacists don’t think those kinds of questions of funny.
But they are more than just a funny question to ask. They are an overview of the crazy, roller-coaster life we’ve been blessed with.
But what I’ve learned this last year is all I really want is consistency with my God + my family. And I have both of those.
With our recent move to Los Angeles Zack + I committed to tackling a few things, to make the transition easier: find friends to connect with + venture out often, exploring this new city we call home.
And while I feel like we’ve made some amazing new friends in the 12 weeks we’ve been here, the latter part of that sentence has been a lil dull for us. So a couple of weekends ago we packed a quick lunch, grabbed our sunglasses + the pup, and drove north towards Malibu. We only drove about 30 minutes north, but we enjoyed the drive, stopping when we wanted to explore something outside the Jeep. And then we spent some time at one particular beach.
And it was amazing…
And so refreshing…
And so fun.
As we drove to this beach we were sandwiched between the Pacific ocean {on the left} and the mountains/bluffs {on the right}. We saw a dozen or more fresh fish/seafood restaurants, tiny little gas stations, bicyclists, colorful beach houses. We saw the brightest blue sky, crashing waves, flags whipping in the wind.
But I really think the best part of this little adventure, this trip to the beach, was watching this video of Bauer once we returned home. I know he’s just a dog, but he’s been the perfect companion to Zack + I the past couple of years. Seeing Bauer watch the waves crash against the rocks, and watching his fur become ruffled from the wind, makes my heart melt. I loved seeing Bauer experience something new at our trip to the beach.
I’m pretty sure my heart is going to explode once our baby is born in March. Yep, pretty darn sure :)
A pro at moving?! I like that conceptual way of saying it, we often use ‘hippys at heart’ when we explain how many houses my husband and I have lived in. I get a tad itchy footed or something after a while and have an urgency to move into a more homely place lol. The longest we have been in one place in our 9 years and 5 children later? Almost 3 years, this is home now! Before this it was an average of 9 months, minimum of 3. I love that you pray about your life dreams, my husband told me to stop doing that (jokingly) after I prayed for twins 2 years ago, and showed him the prayer diary entry, we found out a month later we were expecting, and 2 weeks later the scan revealed twins (7week scan) our twins are now 13 months old! :) dream big pray big!
super cute video! and he is certainly not “just a dog”, he’s your first baby. i used to apologize for how crazy i am about my dog, not any more, i admit it, she’s my baby girl and I’m head over heels for her.
Isn’t the beach amazingly refreshing? I always find my spirits lifted when I go – no matter what kind of mood I’m in, or how lost I feel, something about being where the water meets the land is so deeply satisfying. I can’t explain it, but I love it. It feeds my soul somehow. I think it’s great that you two are open to whatever adventures come your way. And yes, you are already full of love so watch out world come March! :)
I love that you said in the past 4.5 years you and Zack have worked on being one in your marriage. I am three months into marriage and those were good words for me to hear today, thank you!
You guys should venture south to a beach called Crystal Cove, it is in Laguna Beach, so most likely a drive but they have the cutest old beach cottages I have ever seen! I think you’d love it!
Gorgeous!! I really hope Joel and I get to drive the coast of CA one day. How amazing to have that practically in your backyard!! Glad you took some time to enjoy it :)
Love the video of your cute little baby! Somebody get him a new leash!! haha Bauer looks like he is loving the wind blowing through his hair!! :}
xoxo
Bauer is so cute. I think he and Murphy might be related. :)
Understand the consistency bit…that’s all I cared about too since I moved SO VERY MUCH as a kid. God knows. Hang in there. Good to stop by and see what you’re up to. Always have such cute stuff! xoxo
@amy, thanks friend!!! :)
I love driving to that area with my husband too.. There is a beautiful beach down there called el matador beach, you pay for parking but it’s worth it. Transitioning to this area almost 6 years ago was not easy for me but I am so thankful to have had patrick. I like the 2 become 1 part of this post, thanks!
Ok, so Zach has THE MOST contagious smile. Whenever you post picts of him I can be caught grinning at my computer like a moron for absolutely no reason.
I’m glad to know I’m not the only one that takes pictures of myself in the rear-view mirror! :)
@Nicole, DOESN’T HE? Almost nine years later and it still takes my breath away :)