2008

People these days tell their partner that they are their best friend.
One day, I hurt my husband's feelings by telling him he was not my best friend. That may of been irresponsible, but at that moment I couldn't explain to him what he really was to me. Besides being my partner for life, father to our daughter, a great provider. He is more than that to me. He is more than a best friend.

The moment we got together I found my soul. I knew you were the one.

A weight of burden, to fight or flight, fear, trapped, and anger was lifted off my chest when I met you. I felt light as a feather, like I had finally found peace. Drowned in love and security. He gave me the respect that I never experienced before. I've been suffocated for so long, he was the breath of fresh air. He showed me a piece of my heart that was missing. Surely he wasn't expecting to pay to fix any damaged heart; but he gave willingly and without hesitation. I didn't know I was lost because I didn't feel lost.

I found my better self in you.

When you meet someone who changes you for the better, that feeling is like your soul intertwining together. You're calmer. Like nothing can get you down.

I care for you, more than you can imagine.
I love you more than you'll ever know.

Thanks for all the memories.

PNW Life

Born and raised in Ohio. Moved to Georgia for the first time at age 23. Flew 4,703 miles to Hawaii. Had our first child and found another Husky. Now residing in the Pacific Northwest. I never imagined my life to be like this (in a good way).

I wish I had taken the time to blog more about Hawaii (or when I was living in Hawaii). There were so many experiences and wonderful people I had met. Do I miss Hawaii? Of course, it's fucking gorgeous there. Would I want to go back and live there? No. As beautiful and friendly the locals were, I don't think I could live there. Why?

Growing up, everyone around me wanted to move out of Columbus, Ohio and into a major big(ger) city. For me, I really didn't care. I didn't mind living in Ohio and knowing where all the backroads to take. I didn't mind my city because it's my home. I loved my home. I love Ohio.

Hawaii was compact with too many people and tourists (hence the traffic). There was only 1 way to get to Town (Honolulu) and that was H1. Being on the mainland, I enjoy the convenience of driving to my destination without being limited.

I also enjoy the convenience of driving short distances to a Korean grocery store, Michaels, Panera, Marshalls, JCPenny, etc. Also, our poor truck has been through enough abuse since the parking spots in Hawaii are very skinny (lots of dings, scratches, etc).

Being in the Pacific Northwest for the past 6 months has been pretty cool. The weather here is total opposite from Hawaii, of course. There's hardly any humidity here (THANK YOU JESUS) and I haven't been eaten up by mosquitos while sitting on my back porch. The Huskies are loving it here and enjoy the cool breeze. My husband and daughter especially love the cool breeze here. Both of them hate being hot, haha. Plus the outdoor recreation is my husband's type of a good time (shooting, hunting, hiking).

Mount Rainier is the bees knees. It was Kato's and our daughter's first time playing with snow! They loved it. These photos were taken this past May and they still had snow up at the top! It took us about an hour to reach the entrance of Mt. Rainier and then another hour or less to reach other spots around the mountain. Definitely worth it.

My goal is to discover more places around here before we move again. I am so grateful for the experience. Living in different coasts has really opened up my eyes to a lot of different things. I'll try to remember and post another entry of what I had learned the past 6 years.

Paulina's Sweet 30th Birthday

What an exciting day! Only because I've finally sat down to blog on this thing. It's been forever. I used to blog all the time. Wrote diaries since I was in elementary school (don't know where they want went, oh uh).

Happy day! Today I'm blogging about a photoshoot I did a few weeks ago. I am an amateur photographer, I know. So don't judge too harshly. I personally like my photos! But am always striving to be better, do better.

When I first met with Paulina, I intended to hire her as my babysitter. Evidently, it turned out that she needed me to take her 30th birthday photo's! She looked through my previous (personal) Facebook albums and loved the photos that I took while I lived in Hawaii.

Since she is my first client, we spoke through Facebook messenger and had a "laid back" plan on how we wanted to set up. This was low budget but I think with what we worked with turned out beautifully. Just let that sun work it's magic and just be happy!

Isn't she so cute?! Can you believe she is 30? I can't. Her family genes are strong in this one. 

I had a great time with her. She appreciated me helping her walk around those rocks with high heels on. Then I convinced her to take a photo closer to the water. She is a really sweet person and works really hard for what she has. I'm really honored to get to know her & to take her photos. Especially for her birthday!

Happy 30th Birthday, Paulina!