spoken from the heart: August 2016

I can't believe how fast summer came and went and that I haven't even had time to blog once. I am currently working on updating my blog with all the adventures Jesse, Buddy and I have embarked on this summer.

It feels like April (when we had our early spring) was just yesterday! I remember seeing the sun after what felt like the LONGEST winter of my entire life (because it was) and felt so excited for great weather to be here again!

Our very first adventure was the first weekend in April. Jesse left for work on Friday morning and shortly after he walked out the door, I decided we were going to go somewhere. I didn't know where but I knew I would figure it out. So I wrote him an email while he was at work and I got to work myself. I first figured out where we were going to go, which ended up being the Olympic Peninsula; and then I packed everything we needed, waited for Jesse to get home, we loaded the car and off we went!

I told Jesse in my email that I needed to "set my soul on fire" and that is exactly what that weekend did for us! You can see that adventure here!

The super organized, list maker in me came out after that trip and I added to my Washington Bucket List all these places I wanted to see and then I made a hiking list of all the hikes I wanted to accomplish.

Our adventures just took off from there. Of course come mid- May I really buckled down, finished my senior project and prepared for graduation in June. But once graduation passed, we moved from our apartment into a beautiful country home and pretty much every weekend since we have gone somewhere new and went on so many hikes! I am completely in love with the beauty surrounding Washington- Especially the North Cascades!

It's crazy to look back one year ago. I felt so lost living up here, not going to college (because I was finishing online) and being so far away from family. Then I think about when winter hit and it rained ALL day EVERY day! It was dark and dreary, and groggy. I am not a negative person and I truly cannot think of a single positive thing about last winter. I think it is safe to say that I for the first time in my life, experienced depression. Of course, I am thankful for my amazing husband and comforting fur baby but even with them, we all did a lot of Netflix watching!

With that said, I am feeling a bit scared of this winter. It seems ridiculous to me because I grew up in Eugene, Oregon which is also known for it's rain. But I think after living in Klamath Falls, Oregon for 4 years of college and that being known for 300+ days of sun each year (even in the winter with snow)- going up North was a HUGE adjustment to say the least. So today I am hopeful that I have adjusted and this winter will be a different story.

Now that we are in a house instead of an apartment I think it was help a TON as well as being farther away from the city- because lets be honest- I am not a city girl! The traffic and amount of people in one small area is insane!

I have been avoiding thinking about how summer is quickly ending and fall is making it's way in- but with today being August 28th I realized September is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER. 3 days to be precise. So I think it's time I accept that the sun will soon be gone for a multiple months and start making a list of the fall and winter activities around here.

First on that list- canning! I am heading to Carlton Farms today to get boxes of tomatoes and get my salsa started :)

I always say I will try to keep up on my blog better- but that never really happens so, again, I'll leave you with- I will try to keep up on my blog better this fall ;) It's just hard because I love to be in the moment and until I have down time to sit at my desk and type, it usually doesn't happen until weeks later.

Be watching for my Fall Into The Season list!