Who we are & why we unsettled

So, how did we get here?

My husband and I were parked at an overlook on a rocky beach in Southern California. Our 14 month-old daughter was asleep in the back of our very safe and sensible family car. We were contemplating our next move. For quite some time we knew we needed to make a dramatic change. We needed to stop living outside of our means.

We were paying an exorbitant amount of money in rent but we also weren’t ready to do what societal norms demand of us. You know the phrase: settle down. We couldn't afford to buy a house where we wanted. Even if we could, we'd be working ourselves to death and would never have time to build roots in our community and enjoy it. We'd be house poor. We couldn't stomach that feeling and, to be honest, we weren’t ready for that permanence quite yet anyway.

We had been scheming for a while, though. We were once hellbent on buying an RV and visiting every national park in the continental US. But we got cold feet knowing that that large of an investment would require another massive, soul-crushing loan. Resigned to the inevitable concessions we would have to make, I lost myself in the sounds of the waves and the seagulls. Then my husband turned to me and said, "Why do we need to settle down? Why do we have to? Why can’t we stay mobile?”

I looked at him like he was nuts. We had been through this already - the RV plan wasn’t in the cards right now. “I’m serious. Let’s do this,” he said. I stopped for a minute and felt the wave of anxiety rushing over me again. He continued to say, “What’s holding us back from seeing the world?” Then it struck me, as if I already knew the answer all along...

Nothing. Seriously. Nothing. 

So, here’s a our story…

We started.

I met Matt in 2011 at an advertising agency fresh out of college. 

Then we ventured.

Once we fell for one another, it didn't take long for us to start adventuring together.  This is at McAfee's Knob, Roanoke, Virginia.

Then we made the leap.

We "got the call" from a solar company in San Diego. Site-unseen we decided to move. It was the best decision we ever made (at the time). 

Then we drove. And drove. And drove.

We booked it through the midwest but spent 3 days exploring Arizona. This is at the Grand Canyon, Devil's View Watchtower.

Then he put a rock on it.

Oh yeah, and then Matt asked me to marry him the next year. We were ecstatic to be engaged. This is celebrating in Lake Tahoe, California. 

Then we planned a wedding.

I felt like Ariel and he was my Eric. Planning our southern California dream wedding was what I always wanted (or so I thought). This is at Windansea Beach, La Jolla, California and taken by Keane Studios.

Then we found out big news.

Surprise! We found out we were pregnant and the wedding plans continued... This is at Kate Sessions Park in San Diego, California. 

Then we said scratch that.

On a whim we decided to drive up the Pacific Coast Highway and get hitched because we couldn't wait any longer. The photographer was our sole witness. It couldn't have been more perfect. This is at Pebble Beach, California.

Then we continued to venture.

We spent a few days driving up the coast. Around every turn I wanted to take a baby bump photo because, come on, look at that place. This is taken in Big Sur, California.

Then there were three.

A few months later, our beautiful and perfect daughter was born. The lucky girl is a native San Diegan. This is taken at the hospital (obviously). 

And then we lived our Normal life in Sun Diego.

This is our Christmas Photo in 2015, complete with wholesome Christmas decorations, a doggy guarding the front door, and a few palm trees. This is taken in Normal Heights, San Diego, California. 

I am from a small college town in southern Virginia. Matt, my husband, is from a sleepy one-stoplight town in the hills of central Maryland. And about our daughter, Kai? Well, she’s cooler than both of us. She is a native Californian. She’s lucky enough to hail from sunny and beautiful San Diego where we moved about four years ago. 

When Kai was 9 months old, I left my 9-5 job to be back home with her. My husband, a web designer and developer, also works from home. The last year or so has been perfect, living and working out of our tiny, white 2 bedroom bungalow (with a white picket fence!) in an urban area of San Diego, ironically enough, called Normal Heights.

We have a dozen palm trees in our yard and near perfect weather year-round. There are endless resources for children and new families, the best craft beer in the country, 70 miles of coastline and Mexi-Cali food that absolutely cannot be beat. We couldn't ask for a better 'Normal' life. But still, the travel bug itches. That is an itch we have to scratch.

"Normal" life bungalow in San Diego, Normal Heights, California.  

So, why did we decide to Unsettle Down? 

By now you’re probably wondering why in the world did we decide to give up this life in Sun Diego. Well, you could blame it on our gypsy souls. You could blame it on our love for adventure. You could blame it on our insatiable obsession with new cultures and experiences. You could even blame it on being spoiled. We don't care what it is.

We know we will settle down one day, but today isn't it. We have always balked at the idea of that 'normal life' that everyone sees as inevitable. Instead, we’ve decided to forge our own path. Instead, we will Unsettle Down and the big adventure starts June 1st in Florence, Italy.

We hope you can relate to our passion to stay mobile and will follow our journey. 

Life is short and the world is wide, so let’s do this!

Life is short and the world is wide.