All who wander, are not lost.

So John and I are getting ready to set out on our own personal adventure.

We have decided to leave our families, friends, jobs, and everything here on the East Coast and move to Portland, Oregon. It's almost like we are setting out to find our fortune on the Oregon Trail, if you think about it. (Or at least, if you think about it like I do...)

So why the move? Well, both of us grew up here in South Eastern PA for our whole lives. And while we have lived in several parts of the country for short periods of time (Florida, California, Wyoming, Texas, etc) we feel that we really need to get away from the area and live in different places around the world while we still can. Now is the perfect time to do that- we are young and do not have any sort of established careers, we are married, but don't plan on any kids for at least 4-5 more years, and we've accumulated a decent amount of savings (which I am so thankful for!). We basically have zero responsibilities at this point, which is why we must go- go and seek our fortunes!

So why Portland? Although we both dislike the idea of big city living for the long term, we did want to try the experience while we were still young. Portland has consistently been rated one of the Top 5 cities to live in in the US, mostly due to it's abundance of parks and greenery, as well as its homey "neighborhood" feel. That aspect definitely appeals to the city-apprehensive such as ourselves. Portland is also a fantastic food town, due to the abundance of fresh, local ingredients in the area. The city prides itself on using mostly all fresh, local and sustainable products, which is important to John and I as foodies. It will also provide John with a great selection of restaurants that will help develop him towards his career as a chef! Last but not least, the Pacific Northwest region is simply a gorgeous, area filled with laid-back people, who in my opinion, seem more open, less greedy, and less self-absorbed than many people in the east.

So that is our plan- We will be moving in mid-October, driving all our stuff across the country, and then spending two weeks searching for jobs and apartments. John will be checking out line cook and sous chef jobs, and I am going to apply at every Event Planning firm I can find, in hopes to get my foot in the door of a new career. I'm not sure where we are going to stay until we can find an apartment, but I'm sure God will help us figure it out. He always takes great care of us. :o)

After Portland, who knows? The sky is the limit, and there's a whole lot of world out there to explore!