tennessee river...

well. we moved.

and now it looks like this...

it happened extremely quickly. kyle got the job, took about 12 hours to think it over, accepted it, we went to look for houses twice within the same week, signed a lease and packed our stuff. 

our dear parents went ahead of us on saturday and unloaded all of our stuff for us. kyle, taylor, casey and i arrived about 7 hours later to a house full of boxes and life. i am forever thankful that it worked out this way, and honestly, think it saved us all a lot of headaches.

we spent sunday afternoon at the grocery store and downtown, showing our families around our new city. my dad said he came her fully anticipating something terrible and ready to pick the place apart. but much to his disappointment (only because he didn't have any real reason to tell me to come home), he loved it. and i think everyone else did, too.

they left around 5, and i don't think it was as bad as the first time i left, but it still wasn't easy. being away from home has never been easy for me, but being with kyle on this new adventure is so exciting. leaving home is just a part of life and can seriously break your (and everyone else's) heart, but i am so excited to be going headfirst into this part of life with kyle.

hot tea and a new candle for our new place

on the way to knoxville, my sister rode with me in the car and she and i talked the whole way. literally, the whole way. like, my throat is sore because we talked so much. but we were talking about my leaving and the changes that are happening, and i told her if i had reached this part of life where i knew it was time to move away and i didn't have kyle, there's no way i could've made it through it, or even done it at all. i think i would be too cowardly to move by myself. not that i'm not independent, because my entire life i have been determined to do things for myself, even when i know i probably need help. but having to be alone in a new place while missing my family and friends? no way. in my experience, going through this with someone i know is going through the same things makes it easier. and fun. and exciting. and what's better than being with the love of your life in a new city and making a new home together? not many things. newborns, maybe. but pretty much, that's as good as it gets.

if i didn't think kyle and i were the real thing, i wouldn't do this. i wouldn't pick up and move. i wouldn't risk not having enough money. i wouldn't put myself through packing and unpacking and being away from my family and friends and not knowing what's going to happen next. but it is the real thing. i mean, i'm his emergency contact at work for god's sake. jokes. but seriously, i am. 

tennessee is pretty wonderful as far as states go, and aside from the zillions of pancake houses it has that basically just make me wanna gag every time i pass one, it's lovely. i'm happy this is where we landed, because for so long we had no idea where we were going to be. but as much as i think we will love it here, west virginia will always be where our hearts are. no matter where we are in the world.

porch owl. i have a porch.

keep us in your thoughts, prayers and hearts. we need positive vibes and support, and i hope you're all as excited as we are. 

here's to new beginnings.

love.

krq.