Long time no talk, huh? I'm so excited to be back to blogging! As you may remember I've spent the last few weeks since we talked moving across the country, spending time with family in New York and visiting London (I'll do a whole post on our trip later) so I've had a bit going on ;) This post is a little belated as I technically left California on June 8th but it still doesn't really feel like I've moved. I'm staying with my mom and Mark is back in California so it just feels like I'm visiting. I do start my new job today though (!!!) so I'm sure that will wake me up to the real world verrrry quickly.

In case you missed that news, you can catch up on our move here. 

OMG. I have wanted to share this for months! We are moving home to Minnesota! After our honeymoon we were talking and realized that we didn’t really know why we were living here. We live in a suburban neighborhood of the Bay Area where there’s not a lot to do and despite living in the suburbs our rent is still very high for minimal space. It just didn’t add up. The only thing keeping us here (aside from the fact that it’s California) was that we had good jobs and lived near our companies. After three years away for me and seven for Mark we were really craving more friends and family in our lives. Mark has a decent amount of friends here from college, and they’ve become my friends as well, but I’ve struggled to make friends of my own, which is important to me. I’ll cop to it and say that I could have tried way harder but as an introvert it’s so intimidating to put yourself out there! Three years of being away from family has taken its toll and we're both very excited to be closer to family and friends (and for the cheaper rent)!

Hi! I just wanted to pop in and let you guys know that there won't be any new posts this week. We're in the process of moving and I'm also taking a trip to AZ this weekend. I didn't plan very well to get content put together before all of the craziness started, so I'm just going to enjoy the week off. As always, you can follow along on Instagram or Snapchat (@myinnerfabulous)!

Thanks for stopping by!

xo Catherine 

While I've only lived in California for about four months, I feel like I've settled in enough to reflect on what I've learned from my cross-country move. I know that it's something a lot of people do at some point on their lives, so I wanted to share what I've learned in case it helps anyone else in any way with such a huge life change!

1. We, as humans, are very adaptable. I wouldn't say that I'm particularly good with change (who is?) but I've definitely come to accept that it's part of life. When I first got here everything seemed so strange and different and honestly, I was pretty judgmental about it,. Now, though, it just is what it is. Mark and I were driving home from somewhere the other day and I was musing about how I'm used to our life here. That isn't to say that I don't miss my life in Minneapolis, but I've adapted and gotten used to new things.

2. It's not as scary as you may think! I was terrified to move to California and leave everything and everyone I knew behind, but it really wasn't as bad as I had anticipated. Technology makes it so easy to stay in touch with people. I'm in communication with my friends and family in some form pretty much every day, whether it's Snapchat, text, or phone calls. I'll be honest, having someone that I was moving to (Mark) definitely made all the difference. I think it would be pretty scary to move across the country all my yourself!

3. Making friends is hard. Let me preface this by saying that I really haven't tried that hard. I came in with good intentions of asking other bloggers out to lunch, and joining groups on Meetup. Then the idea of actually doing all of these things gave me anxiety and seemed so daunting, and well I just really love Netflix and staying in. The friends that I've made so far have all had Minnesota connections of some sort. Which could be a whole other learned item: it's such a small world! If you do move somewhere new, chances are that you know someone who knows someone there. Reach out to people and find out. Because, honestly I think that makes meeting people way less intimidating!

4. Keeping busy is essential for sanity. In the beginning, before I started working, I just had all of this time to sit around and think about how lonely I was, or how I didn't have any friends or a job yet. Making plans and getting out of the house are so worth it to keep you sane!

5. Take advantage of the time you have in your new city/state. You never know when something will come up and you'll have another cross country move, so take advantage of all the new things to see and do. That's what I love about where we are: there are so many amazing places just a drive away. I think we've done a pretty good job of trying new places so far, but there's so much more to see!

Well, that's all! I'd love to hear if you have any tips or experiences to share about moving cross-country!

xo Catherine 

Well, today's the day! I've spent the last seven months mentally preparing, the last three months trying to do everything I love in Minneapolis, and the last week packing and cleaning, and packing some more. I'm equal parts nervous and excited for this next chapter. So today I thought I'd share a few things about moving to California that I'm excited about, and what I'll miss about Minnesota.

What I'll miss:

1. My family. Hands down this is going to be the hardest part. I see my sister at least once a week, and my mom at least every other week. There's going to be a lot of face timing!

2. All of the amazing friends I've made. It will be weird not to have anyone to have wine and movie nights with.

3. The lakes. I love the Minneapolis lakes.

4. My smallish, but wonderful city. I love everything about Minneapolis. There's always something to do or a new restaurant to try. 

5. Having all four seasons. I actually really love weather. Snow, rain, I enjoy it all.

6. The familiarity. I've obviously never been everywhere, but I have a pretty good grasp on the Twin Cities, so I'm not looking forward to learning a whole new area. 

What I'm excited about:

1. Getting to see Mark every day. After four years of long distance, I'm so ready to actually be in the same place!

2. The ocean. It's 45 minutes away from us :)

3. All of the amazing places that are only a few hours away. On my list: Big Sur, Napa, Capitola, Berkeley, and Tahoe. So many fun places to take weekend trips!

4. The fact that my shoes won't get ruined from snow. This is obviously small in the scheme of things, but I hate buying shoes and then only getting one season's worth of wear out of them because of the winters!

5. Going out on my own (plus Mark). I went to college 25 minutes away from home, and my sister went to the same college, so I've never strayed too far. I'm excited to see what it's like and to learn a lot about myself!

6. The fact that my blog backgrounds will probably be prettier (sorry MN). Everything is always so beautiful and green, so I'm excited to take some pretty pictures ;)

Well, now I'm off to drive the 30-some hours to CA! Wish me luck! You can follow along on Instagram and Snapchat (myinnerfabulous)!

xo Catherine

p.s. I will be taking the rest of the week off, see you back here on Monday!