back to cali :: sneak peak

Hello! I know it seems as though I have been MIA for a while, but I have been traveling for a few weeks and am just starting to settle back in to real life. From San Jose, Santa Cruz, and San Francisco to La Quinta and Palm Springs to Portland life has been a bit busy lately, but don't worry, I am going to get back to normal blogging as soon as possible. I still have Telluride to catch up on before I can start tackling all these pics, so stay tuned for some big posts over the next few months.

In the meantime, here is a preview of the pictures I posted while I was in the Golden State.

[[ santa cruz boardwalk. pretending to be drunk on a rooftop in san fran. morning view. bakery breakfast. ferry building market. bay bridge. chinatown. fortune cookie factory. the beautiful golden gate. trying on wedding dresses (this one was a joke). cousins in front of my grandma's store. my very first giant cactus spotting in palm springs! my office for a week. redefining happy hour (playing with our go pro). photobooth at the ace. exploring the parker. ]]

saying goodbye to 2014

2014 was full of ups and downs (and some pretty big downs at that), so it has been quite a learning experience for both of us. I was ready to say good riddance and move on to 2015 until I started working on this and realized that despite the tough moments, 2014, overall, was still a really exciting year full of new and positive experiences. In no particular order, here are 2014's key events. 

1) In February Pat had to leave for NBA All Star in New Orleans, and I decided to meet him at the end of his trip so that we could spend a few days together exploring the area. It was definitely a unique adventure. Though still a large city, this was my first experience with anything in the South so there was a big leap in terms of the culture from what I am used to. I loved taking in the history of the city as well as the old architecture and trying out some new dishes, like fried catfish prepared several different ways and alligator cheesecake (yes, you heard that right). Sandwiches at Butcher and late night visits to Cafe DuMonde for beignets and coffee with chicory were also a definite highlight, along with the famed music scene on Frenchman Street and throughout the Quarter. One thing that shocked me about NOLA (aside from the prices) was the fact that everything, I mean everything, came fried or sautéed, including the vegetables. I was in dire need of some fresh water and a salad by the time we got home. All in all the trip was a great experience, and I hope to return some day. (Parts I, II, and III)

[[ jackson's square. travel buddies. lafayette cemetery no. 1. big branches and spanish moss in audubon park. beautiful southern homes in the garden district. the dirty and stormy mississippi in person. ]] 

2) In June, me and Pat met his dad and stepmom in Walla Walla, Washington for a long weekend of wine tasting throughout the region. The wine was amazing and we had a great time exploring the area (pretty thoroughly I might add despite the overwhelming amount of tasting rooms and vineyards to choose from). By far my favorite stop was to K Vintners (Charles Smith) for both the wines and the aesthetic of their brand. On the last day we decided to take off a little early and make a pit stop in Hood River, which is quickly becoming one of our new favorite places. We also enjoyed some delicious meals throughout the trip, and still have a fully stocked wine fridge. (Parts I, II, and III)

[[ vine after vine. k, our favorite stop. grape vines up close. multitasking. in the middle of nowhere and loving it. taking a break in a beautiful garden. ]]

3) Work this year has been insane both with new projects we have taken on and travel for both me and Pat. While he went to New Orleans (twice - for NBA All Star, and Wrestlemania), Phoenix, Vancouver BC (for Heritage Classic) and Portland (for the MLS All Star Game), I went to Telluride Colorado twice for a new hotel property we picked up this year. Though the workload has been pretty overwhelming for me over the past few months, the trips to Colorado were amazing. Telluride is such a unique small town in a beautiful area completely surrounded by mountains. We went toward the end of the summer season, as well as in the fall as the leaves were beginning to change colors (golden season they call it) and both times the landscape was drastically different. I would love to visit in the winter when everything is covered in snow, and am definitely bringing Pat with me next time! (I have not sat down to do these posts quite yet, but hope to get to them very soon since I took a ton of great pictures).

[[ looking down at telluride. mountain village. pandora mine on my solo hike. at the top of imogene pass looking in to utah. taking it all in on our morning adventure. the gondola never gets old. ]]  

4) We spent most of 2014 really settling in to our new life in Bend, which also included a lot more local hikes and adventures. We went to Smith and the Obsidian Flow with my family, took several more tips up Pilot Butte, revisited Tumalo Falls, hiked Black Butte for the first time and explored the Metolius River with the Dinans, visited Bachelor and Wikiup Reservoir in the summer, and more... Man I love it here.

[[ having a black butte on black butte. black butte trail summit. the metolius at wizard falls fish hatchery. tumalo falls. surprise snow at the obsidian flow. smith rock. taking it all in. from the summit of pilot butte. family at the top of misery ridge. watching the sunrise over bend. wikkiup reservoir with the pups. our first big snow together in bend! 

5) As usual, there were some pretty great parties in 2014, like celebrating NYE with friends in Bend, Halloween at Colleen's place in Portland, my birthday dinner at Pine Marten Lodge, and most notably our epic Brewfest weekend in celebration of Pat's bday (and mine). :)

[[ nye photobooth fun. brewfest day 1. brewfest day 2 (and the introduction of the mustache glasses). brewfest day 3. pat's bday shirt and new cornhole set. the group. addy macs ice cream for my bday. my first ski lift experience (yes, in the summer). bday dinner at pine marten lodge. halloween at colleens. the dude abides. ]]

6) Me and Pat took a trip to Newport to take our annual Wally the Walrus pick, celebrated our 9th anniversary in town, spent an awesome afternoon shooting our engagement pictures at Smith Rock (I still need to do a full post of these), and started actually planning a wedding. 2015 is going to be a BIG year for us!

[[ our annual visit with wally. my favorite engagement shot at smith rock. ]]

7) While Pat was on a business trip in Canada I got in a car accident on the way to work, when I slipped on some back ice and collided with a large pickup truck pulling a trailer. Thankfully I did everything I could have without panicking, and by the time we connected I was going under 30 mph so no one was injured despite us both pulling a 180 in to the opposite lane. The Subaru itself was not so lucky and was declared totalled. The accident was probably the scariest moment of my life and what made it worst was that I was all alone, in the snow, and had to suck it up and drive on the same back road to get to work the next day. Though I was devastated to have lost our car (the car I learned to drive in even) we did get a lot more money than we expected back from the insurance company and were able to put a nice downpayment on something a little nicer. I now drive around (very carefully or not at all in the ice) in an Audi A4 Avant and love it! Unlike the Sube, the air conditioning and heat works, as well as the speakers, headlights, and windshield wipers, and then of course there is the whole navigation, bluetooth speakers, seat warmers, and the car just being way nicer overall thing... So all in all, it worked out ok (aside from our insurance premium jumping).

[[ rip 2006 subaru impreza hatchback. welcome to the family 2011 audi a4 avant. ]]

8) We got to go to a few concerts this year, though as usual, not as many as I would have liked. In March we met with Brad and saw TOOL at the Rosegarden (I will not call it by its new name). That was a pretty crazy show in terms of the insane amount of people from all over, the light display, and the fact that security was actually trying to stop people from taking pictures (uh, good luck with that), though I have to say that such a large concert felt a bit too impersonal and would not be my first choice in the future. That being said, I am still pumped that we get to check this one off the list. In March me, Pat, and Tony saw Memphis May Fire (again) at a small venue in Portland and I got to go crowd surfing for the first time (and stage dive)! It may have resulted in me getting bashed in the face and walking away with a few battle wounds, but it was still an amazing show. We also posted up across the river and listened to some free Dave Matthews Band in Bend and checked out a few other local shows throughout the year.

[[ memphis may fire. me on stage. jump! crazy visuals at the tool concert. ]]

9) Aside from concerts, I also got to go to my first Timbers game and I got to spectate the MLS All Star Game with Pat, which was actually pretty sweet since we had watched SO much World Cup and I actually knew who the players were (for once).

[[ mls all star game. t.i.m.b.e.r.s. goooaaaalllll. ]]

10) The lowest moment in 2014 was loosing my grandmother who has battled with parkinson's for decades. It is still hard to think of words to say that have not already been said. She was an amazing woman who did so much for her grandchildren, and I am so thankful that I got to spend so much time with her. She truly shaped me in to the person I am today. You can read my full post to her here: Norma Jean.

[[ an old photo, circa 1991? of me and my grandparents at my aunt's wedding. ]]

A few extras to note: Hayden's graduation, meeting Henley for the first time, the Two Bulls Fire, snow, snow, and more snow... I also read a ton of books, and got serious about my fitness goals.

It has been great to look back and put things in perspective once again as we enter a new year full of promise! 2015 is going to be amazing for us.

telluride :: sneak peak

Here is a small preview of my two recent work trips to Telluride, Colorado. I basically could not keep myself from snapping pictures the entire time, so I have a ton to go through before I start working on posts. Stay tuned for some epic landscapes...

[[ trip 1: the view from my balcony. my first gondola ride! more gondola views. my solo hike to pandora mill near bridal veil falls. trip 2: first night shenanigans with the marketing guys from nola. morning 4x4 trip! the top of imogene pass! last ride for now. ]]

walla walla :: sneak peak

Here is a little preview of our recent trip to Walla Walla, Washington (with a pit stop in Hood River). I took a TON of pictures, so it might take me a few weeks to get everything sorted and posted, but I should have some good stuff coming your way soon. :)

[[ fields on fields of rolling colors. bein' fancy. k. multitasking. beautiful day. pit stop in hood river. ]]

new orleans :: sneak peak

Here is a little preview of our trip to New Orleans. I will be editing the pictures this weekend and hopefully instead of waiting months to get these done, I can actually start posting them next week!

Wish me luck.

[[ my first of many flights. day 1: architecture, cafe du monde, jackson's square, oysters for days. beautiful homes in the garden district. lafayette cemetery no. 1. audubon park. frenchmen st. some of our best meals. the dirty mississippi. ]]

Also, before I got there I sent Pat to one of the places on my list for friend chicken, Willie Mae's Scotch House. Here are the pics that he took... As it turns out I kind of sent him to a bad part of town, but he said it was delicious! 

[[ pat's trip for some fried chicken. ]]

saying goodbye to 2013

2013 has been hands down one of the best years of my life, and I was honestly a little sad to see it go! I hope that 2014 will continue to be full of milestones and great memories. As usual, in no particular order (aside perhaps from #1), here is a look back on some key events.


1) By far the biggest thing that happened to me and Pat this year was the purchasing of our very first home together! I still find it hard to believe that this place is ours, we own it, and can customize it however we want. It feels great to put our time and money in to something for ourselves finally, and I look forward to really making it feel like our home over time. Of course, we could have never done this if we hadn't moved to Central Oregon, a place that we have both rapidly fallen in love with. Looking back, we just wonder why it took us so long to make the decision.

[[ our cute little home. ]]

2) In regards to our jobs, things are going great. I have officially (as of today) been in my full time position for a year, and I couldn't be happier. I love getting to be creative every day, and I absolutely love the place that we live. Needless to say, all of the doubt I was feeling with making such a huge move a year ago went away quickly, and this ended up being a great leap for both of us.

3) We weren't running around all over California this summer, but we did attend four different weddings, one of which was my cousin Ashley's which we flew down to San Jose for (her and Jake have been together even longer than me and Pat!). We also attended Pats friend Hojum's wedding in Corvallis, I went to Gresham for my old friend from high school Amy Adam's wedding, and finally, in October we attended my coworker Amy's wedding, which was local.

[[ hojum & mariah's wedding in corvallis. ashley & jake's wedding in gillroy, ca. amy & garrett's wedding in gresham. amy & steven's wedding in bend. ]]

4) While getting used to our new surroundings me and Pat did a tremendous amount of exploring the local area. We started hiking for the first time, checking out Tumalo State Park, Tumalo Falls, Smith Rock (parts: 1, 2, 3), the Obsidian Flow at Paulina Lake (I still need to do a real post about this hike), the Wayside Viewpoint in Terrebonne, and the Cline Butte Lakeside hike at Eagle Crest, which we did a bunch of times. I also took a special trip to some local farms for work, and went horseback riding for the first time (also for work), which I thought was super scary! Me and Pat even spent some time wandering around the Metolius River area (which I also still need to post about). I am really looking forward to getting back outside to explore more places this year!

[[ tumalo falls. cline butte lakeside viewpoint. horseback riding. exploring the metolius. the rock stacks at smith. at the top of smith rock. pat & rory jumping for joy at the top. wayside viewpoint. the river. terrebonne. tumalo state park. ]]

5) Me and Pat celebrated our 8th anniversary a little early by taking a trip to Newport to do our yearly picture with Wally the Walrus, and spend an awesome day together. Then we celebrated in Bend on our actual anniversary by going out to dinner. The day itself was also the day that we had our second walk through on the house that we now own, which obviously ended up being pretty meaningful. I know I say this every year, but I still can't believe its been eight years already!! ♥

[[ our annual wally picture in newport. ]]

6) We did go to a few concerts this year, although definitely not even close to the number that we got to see last year. We saw Steve Martin play his banjo, and Pepper, both here in Bend. Other than that, we watched a few local acts like Stairway Denied and Secondhand Soldiers, but that was about it for 2013. I am hoping to catch a few more in 2014.

[[ pepper. local acts. steve martin. ]]

7) Aside from weddings, we did of course have a few parties in 2013, though not as many as last year since we were moving right before Halloween. We celebrated New Year's 2013 at The Nines with a ton of our friends, we of course had Colleen's dress-up birthday party in February, which was themed Historical Figures this time (we went as Bonnie & Clyde), and Pat had a guys weekend for his birthday which was over Bend Brewfest. We had to miss Halloween and some birthday parties unfortunately because we were way too busy, but we had a constant flow of house guests since most of our friends came over to visit us, so it evened out.

[[ new years eve 2013. historical figures party. amy's bday cyclepub. pat's bday guys weekend. ]]

8) This year I finally got to take a road trip with Pat to Seattle, which is something I had been wanting to do for a long time. We had so much fun exploring the local restaurants, "speak easies", shops, the market,  a few local landmarks, and the scenery, (even with the rain and constantly cloudy skies). It was an amazing trip, and I can't wait to go back sometime, or even better, to convince Pat to take a long weekend trip to San Francisco with me next. :) (I am just finishing up the Seattle posts, and will get them up for you next week, finally).

[[ the city behind us. public market. the needle. beautiful flowers. gasworks park. speakeasies. ]]

9) For the first time I also got to go to Las Vegas this year (part 1, 2)! Pats family invited us for his little brother's 21st birthday, and it was insanity. The Vegas trip was only really one full day and two nights, so it was just a swirl of bright flashing lights, lots of walking, high heels, drinks, spectacle, cigarette smoke, and an overabundance of fake. It was definitely fun, and we had some great meals, but man was I tired (and ready for some fresh air) by the time we got on our plane. I will be back one day.

[[ the fountains. elevator self shot. chandelier. mirage. paris eiffel tower breakfast. view of the strip from the palms. ]]

10) As I mentioned above, we were able to take a trip to San Jose for my cousin Ashley's wedding in September, and to spend some time with my Blechman family. I also got a chance to take Pat around to some of the places I frequented as a child, like the Santa Cruz Boardwalk, which is something I have been wanting to revisit for years! Here are the posts from our San Jose trip (parts 1, 2, 3).

[[ rehearsal dinner. the bride & groom. part of the blechman fam. santa cruz. happy pat. countryside. ]]

A few extras to note: Our trips to Seattle, Vegas, and specifically the Santa Cruz Boardwalk were all on my 30 Before 30 List, as well as buying our first home (though I didn't really expect that one to get checked off yet), so I have four new things to cross off all in one year! Not too shabby. Moving on, Pat finished up his Egyptian sleeve tattoo (which he started in December of 2012) and it looks amazing. His dad also got two lab puppies (Ricky & Lucy) that we get to spend lots of time playing with now.


Alright 2014, lets see what you have in store for us...  

time to party!

We are down to the last few hours of 2013, and I feel like its a little bittersweet. This year flew by! I mean FLEW. It still seems like we just got to Bend, but its almost been a year and so many things have changed. I think 2013 was one of the most incredible years I have ever had in my life, full of milestones and great memories. I am welcoming 2014 with open arms and hope that it is an amazing year as well.

With that said, I will be doing my big "Goodbye 2013" post later this week, so look out for that!

Until then have a great New Year's Eve and a Happy New Year. It is time for this chick to get ready for tonight!!

[[ some of my favorite memories from 2013. ]]

san jose :: sneak peak

In lieu of a "My Week" post I am just going to do a picture preview from my most recent trip to Cali since before heading out on Thursday all we did was work and work on our house.

Per usual, here are the pictures that I posted on Instagram while I was away. I will do a full post of our trip within the next couple weeks. After that I will tackle Vegas and Seattle.

[[ instagram photos: pdx. me and my little at the rehersal dinner. my wedding date. the beautiful bride. santa cruz. photobooth pics from the wedding. ]]

another year older...

I think this might have been the fastest year of my LIFE! So many big, no, pretty huge changes have occurred throughout my 26th year such as: finally leaving Corvallis, completely relocating our entire lives to the fabulous city of Bend with no real plan in mind, starting an actual career with the position I had been freelancing for, and even bigger things that I can't even say yet... Well, I guess, it is my birthday so I can say whatever I want. I will give you a hint, it involves moving in to a house that we might not actually be renting. (More on that soon)!

[[ a picture of me from today with my free boneyard birthday hat. ]]

Checking in on my 30 before 30 List it actually looks like I am moving right along.

I have been reading lots of books (and the birthday present Pat got me should help out with that even more), the format of my blog has changed (even if it is not what I initially intended), wedding plans are in the works, me and Pat have made it to California, Seattle, and Vegas together so far, we got to see Deftones together finally, we moved out of Corvallis, I am really happy with my job and our soon to be living situation, I am working really hard to get myself in to shape, I am actively working on my photography, once we move I will really get cracking on the picture printing, I am doing my best to stay in touch with friends with little meet-ups, and we have been practicing our long boarding skills (not so much this year, but I made a lot of progress last year, we need to get back at it). I still have a long way to go though... I haven't made much progress with painting, and obviously no tattoos yet to speak of... There are others as well, but I have a few more years to go. I think its important to have goals, even if they are not all accomplished in time. :)

Alright, here goes another year. I wonder what 27 will have in store for me... Hopefully many great things, and a slower pace!!

vegas :: sneak peak

You know the drill... it is going to take me a while to get through all of the pictures I took in Seattle and Vegas (it has to be creeping on 2,000 now...), but in the meantime here is a little sneak peak of our Las Vegas adventures, as posted on Instagram.

I will say right now that Las Vegas is insane. We had a very epic/exciting/interesting/plastic/hot/casinofilled/latenight/exhausting/sensoryoverloaded/sequinfilled/vodkaridden adventure that was over in a flash.

[[ instagram photos: our hotel room view. posing in the elevator on night one. breakfast in the eiffel tower. exploring the strip. my chocolate milkshake at 3:30am. the city view from the palms moon bar. ]]

seattle :: sneak peak

I have a lot of big plans over the next few weeks so it will probably take me a while to get to editing all of the pictures that we took from our Seattle trip last weekend (over 1,000 by the way, I am out of control), but in the meantime, here is a little sneaky peak of our adventures! It was an amazing experience by the way. I am really glad that I did some research on restaurants and bars ahead of time because we found some really awesome places with very friendly people to interact with.

If you follow me on Instagram then you have already seen all of these pics, but I don't want to give anything new away just yet. :)

[[ instagram photos: a very serious biscuit  bartenders with major flair. pikes at night. gasworks park. a view of the entire cityscape. my beautiful bouquet. ]]

goodbye corvallis

As I have mentioned a few times before, at the end of December me and Pat were making preparations to move and saying goodbye to good friends, and the town of Corvallis. A place that I had reluctantly grown to love. Even a year prior I had been aching to get out of our small college town and start a life with Pat somewhere new, and although I was ready for a new career, when it came down to the prospect of actually leaving, I was a little sad to leave it all behind. 

The two of us had really begun our relationship there, we had shared four residences over almost seven years there, we had both struggled with and graduated from college there, and made a ton of great friends and amazing memories along the way. So in the end, I was sad to see Corvallis go, but excited about the prospect of starting over together in a new place that we really really love. As we drove away from our long term home town for the last time, I was very reflective on each of the places I had lived, and who I was at that time. Although I am ready to collect new memories and residences in Bend, Corvallis Oregon will always hold a special place in my heart, so I owed it a little goodbye post.


Here are a few pictures from our last few outings right before moving. 
I wish I would have taken some pictures of our going away party, because we had a really good turnout, but I was so exhausted from packing and cleaning that I forgot. Thank you again to everyone who came out.

[[ cloud & kelly's. ]]

[[ sada sushi. ]]

[[ snugbar. ]]

[[ murphey's. ]]

Places I am going to miss/remember fondly:
Block15, Cloud & Kellys, Fairbanks, Snugbar, Murphey's, Bar 101, Aomatsu, Reeser Stadium, Monroe St., The Elements Building, the Waterfront downtown and my favorite place to sit, Francesco's, Sharon's, Tommy's, University Hero, McMenamins, American Dream, Crow Bar, and The Crow's Nest, the 35th street house, the entire OSU Campus, and yes, even though very reluctantly, I have to make mention of The Peacock and La Conga (whatever its called now) because no matter how horrible they are, I have many great memories at both.

Goodbye for now.