OUR FIRST HOME!

Well, the stars aligned at the very end of our house hunting trip in March and we found the perfect home. The market up here is crazy and homes sell incredibly fast due to the large influx of medical residents every year. And since we didn't think about it, we planned our trip the week after match day, so it was extra hectic! For example, on the first day with our realtor, we looked at 18 homes. By the end of that day, 16 had gone under contract. Every single day was like this, so it was an exhausting and emotional process! We put an offer on a home and got into a bidding war and then lost. We found another home we liked, put an offer on that and same story. So we put an offer on a third house and left out of town. Literally on our drive home, our realtor called us and said, "I'm driving around town and saw the for sale sign being put up in this yard. I walked through the house and it's perfect - it's everything you're looking for. I'll send you the pictures I took and the link to the listing. Look it over and call me back ASAP!" After realizing that this was our favorite home so far, we pulled our other offer and made an offer on this home. We received verbal confirmation that they accepted our offer, and got it in writing later that night. (And it's a good thing too because apparently the previous owners got a few cash offers later that week.) God was looking out for us. When our previous offers would fall through, our parents would tell us not to worry and that it would all work out. It was hard to keep that mentality all the time but they were so right! 

Are we crazy? Yes. Is this the perfect home for us? Yes! Our realtor is seriously amazing! After spending 5 solid days with us, he knew exactly what we wanted and how much we were willing to spend. He definitely went the extra mile for us and we trusted him completely...enough to buy a house without seeing it in person! We felt so good about this home that we weren't that surprised when it worked out. By the time we got back to PA at the end of May, we were dying to see our home! And you know what? We walked around it with our realtor and said, "It's perfect" probably a hundred times and he just grinned and said, "I knew you'd like it!"

We closed on June 2, 2015 and basically felt like we were signing our life away! Haha. It's sad but true. The moving van met us at our house immediately after and we were so excited to see OUR stuff coming into OUR home. Our first home! Such a momentous day.

LEAVING OUR SWEET HOME ALABAMA & GATLINBURG, TN

After our month in Utah, we flew home to Alabama once more (so sad!). After packing up, cleaning, and saying our final goodbye's, we began our drive to Pennsylvania. It was surreal and sad leaving Birmingham; I remember tearing up as we pulled out of the city, looking over all the places we loved. That place and time was so good for us! We established some truly life long friends, grew together, G excelled in graduate school and I completed my undergrad, and we experienced a place and culture that we instantly grew to love. Alabama will always be home to us, that's the beautiful thing. Heck, I even picked up "y'all" when I told my family before we moved to Alabama that if I ever did start saying that to slap me. That right there proves my love for Bama! Also, #RollTide.

Luckily for us, we had planned to meet some family in Gatlinburg, TN for a few days on our journey. We had so much fun with the Dahle's and were in awe of the beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains!

I LOVE BYU

As I mentioned earlier, I finally graduated from BYU in May!!! (Well, technically I finished my last class in May and graduated in June.) I really felt so accomplished, mostly because it was so hard to finish online. But also because I got my bachelor's degree and that is something to be proud of, for me anyways! It only felt appropriate that I took my last final ever on BYU soil where it all began for me. (Side note: Gordy just said out of nowhere, "You know what I want, I want to be the mockinjay. Alright, G.) I know that a lot of people feel a sense of pride and loyalty to their alma matter, and I feel that right along with them. BYU was the perfect college experience for me. I learned and grew in all the ways I hoped. I'm someone who has always enjoyed school and learning, but BYU felt different for me. I studied things I'm passionate about and the whole campus has this feel that just by being there you're improving yourself. I'm a big fan.

Perhaps the highlight of my BYU career was going on my study abroad to Jerusalem.  I will be forever changed from this! It was a busy semester full of 15 credits; daily adventures in the Old City; weekly field trips all over Israel; trips to Turkey, Jordan, and Galilee; delicious food; amazing cultures; incredible professors who taught me so many truths; literal lifelong friends; and pretty much a big party for 4 months straight. I have so many memories that I could literally write about for years, but I'll spare you those. Except for this: in the informal talent show I licked my elbow. I practiced for weeks and had a friend coach me. You heard me, that really happened.

Thanks BYU for helping me reach my dreams and plan new ones. Go Cougs!!!