BECAUSE I KNEW YOU WANTED TO SEE MORE SCENES FROM THE CAR.

does this not look like i bob ross'd this for you?! but, snapped just outside of yellowstone.

side note: this may have been one of the numerous times i belted out "america, the beautiful". people, we SAW the purple mountain majesty. our country is truly breathtaking.

idaho. i saw no potatoes. and no mormon temples. sorry to have stereotyped you, idaho.

quick! continental divide sign! they should really spring for something more fancy, right?

white out. the road really was scary for quite a few hours and there was no one else out there.

but then it cleared out, and there were {moderately} sunny skies going into washington. {let's talk about someone else who should spend the money on a better sign.}

 

and then we drove over this mountain and THIS was the view. hello columbia river!

windmill farms just as the sun started to go down.

after this? it started to rain and we had to drive in these steep mountains and it was dark and moderately stressful. but then we made it to shelly's house and all was right with the world again. {we played hangman with betty and rhodes and betty, age SIX, was able to guess the world elephant with ONLY THE Es on the board. genius, i tell you.}

this blog post marks the end of our never ending journey to seattle photo montage. hooray!

THAT TIME I RODE 100 MILES ON THE BACK OF A SNOWMOBILE.

we divirted off our path to seattle specifically for the opportunity to tour yellowstone. now, when i called to ask if the park was open, they said that the way to see it when it is winter is by snowmobile. as in, i thought it was the only way.

so, we put on our warmest clothes and woke up early to get a quick 10-minute course in how to operate a snowmobile and we were off. i was sorely unprepared for just how cold 15 degrees would feel, especially when zipping along at 30 miles per hour.

but! within five minutes, an awesome sighting: a giant elk! photo by b, he is very proud.

my view the entire time.

being inside the park with nary another soul in sight {beyond the other couple with us and our tour guide} was pretty incredible.

and, the bison were hanging out in the street. is this big guy not totally giving us the side eye?!

by noon, we had made it to old faithful. i should mention that by this point, i had seen the "snow coaches", aka buses on monster truck wheels. i have never been given a look so sympathetic than from these folks all warm in their bus as we whizzed by, tears streaming down my face and freezing onto my cheeks.

but, we got an hour at old faithful to go inside and chug two steaming cups of the best hot chocolate i have ever have while waiting for old faithful to do his thing.

and do it he did! it was very cool to see in person. and mind blowing to think that they can time it down to a few-minute window when he will blow.

from there we stopped at paint pots and more geysers. and our tour guide remarked that in the summer you would be jam packed on the trails with other visitors and have to wait your turn to even catch a glimpse at all the things we got to stop and stare at for as long as we wanted.

so, i guess what i'm saying is even though the sub-freezing temps had me the coldest i'd ever been, and subsequently gave me the plague for two weeks, it was all worth it to see the beauty of yellowstone.

YELLOWSTONE.

after a quick day one and an easy day two, we pulled into yellowstone national park! the only place you can stay in the park is the mammoth hot springs hotel. what to say about this place?! ... i'll just let the next photo illustrate the experience:

straight from "the shining", right?! it actually wasn't that bad, although we weren't aware they didn't offer wifi OR any cell phone service, sooo.

the actual hot spring! funny story: we had super researched going to the hot springs in colorado {because it was on my summer in denver bucket list}, so i just assumed that all hot springs are the same and you can, you know, get in them. i had my bathing suit all ready and then we learned these are like sulfur lava pools. so, you don't even get close to them.

obvi these ladies did not get the memo.

i was colder than i appear.

then, we paid $12 for an hour of wifi so we could let our family and friends know that we were alive. and we had a wonderful dinner in the fancy dining house.

but, wait, there's more! here's just a preview of the ridiculousness that is to come tomorrow. i'm calling my fashion sense here "homeless chic". it's about to be all the rage, i am sure.

ON THE ROAD.

as you know, we made it to seattle. here's a recap of what a 1,496-mile journey in the car looks like, courtesy of my 1,496 photos.

so, wyoming is like a hot second outside of denver. and the beginning of wyoming is booooring. we had originally planned to leave on sunday, but we heard about incoming storms and decided to move our trip up a day. after cleaning up the apartment, we hit the road to casper, wyoming. i can't remember who recommended casper - so don't be offended if it was you - but it was moderately awful. the restaurant we went to, which shall not be named, served me brown, wilted iceberg lettuce touted as a salad, and then i was so scared at the hotel that i woke up every hour to make sure our car hadn't been broken into. #dramatweets

needless to say i woke b up super early to get on the road. it was worth it to see the still of the morning.

the driver.

the passenger.

have you ever seen the movie "the mist"? me neither, but i know the plot involves this crazy killer mist. i was 100 percent sure we were driving into a murderous fog and were about to never be heard from again.

and then we were in said deadly smog/fog for an hour and we indeed did not see the light of day or have cell service the entire time. is that not the weirdest?

dundundunnn: big sky! wyoming turned out to be much more beautiful than i gave it credit for.

can you guess what this is? our first sign we were nearing yellowstone!

scenes from that trip on the blog tomorrow. 

HELLO SEATTLE.

well, it has been raining non-stop, and it is so foggy you can't see... anything... and i'm having quiteeee the hair day, but we are here!

lots more traveling posts to come - including our insane 100-mile-round-trip trek of yellowstone on snowmobiles!

DEJA VU.

wasn't it just yesterday we were holding this pose before leaving our nashville home?

 

you know what we didn't have last time, though? professional movers. hallelujah - they made the whole move 100 times easier.

we waved goodbye to all our stuff on friday morning, and headed out mid-afternoon saturday. here's hoping our semi-truck driver paul arrives in seattle in a week with every single box. if you're reading this tuesday, we are probably somewhere in montana. {say a quick prayer we beat the snow that is allegedly headed our way!}

how many pounds of stuff do you think we had? here's a hint: our driver said we have way less than most people. one bed, a loveseat and enough clothes to fill up six wardrobe boxes. ready for the grand total? 3,300 pounds!!! what weighs that much?!

and one last glance at our empty home that we were so grateful to live in. a garage, two point five bathrooms, giant closets, neighbors we knew and walking distance to our favorite little spot. seattle, get ready, you've got a lot to live up to.

ON SAYING GOODBYE.

there is a lady at work who arrives the same time i do every day. she gets dropped off right in front of the building by her husband. each morning they have the same routine: kiss in the car, hug, she gets out and says "i love you" while gathering her things, then she stands and waves goodbye with her hand in the air until he is out of the parking lot.

i mean, i am very into baker, but my first thought was "geeez lady, give it a rest!" i have watched them do their morning routine for months. then one morning she was being dropped off by what looked to be her mother. she hugged her, said "i love you" and then proceeded to wave until her mom drove out of sight. i was so taken by this that i waited to walk in with her and said with a laugh, "you are very passionate about your goodbyes!"

her response: "you never know when it may be the last time you see someone."

today is my last day of work. i had my last prsa committee meeting a week ago. the final cocktail club hung out earlier in january.

it is very strange to leave a city where you have no roots. with nashville we knew we'd be back. but, we won't even have lived in denver for 365 days. it is like 2012 is this weird lost year. so much happened and we built an incredible life here. but, now it's over.

so, when i say goodbye today, i hold it in my heart that it's not goodbye forever, but just for now. thanks for everything, denver.

colorado sunset watercolor.

MOVING TIPS FROM A SLIGHTLY OCD LADY.

this weekend was alllll about the packing! the moving company comes on friday to haul our stuff to seattle, which makes relocating one billion times easier. when we moved from nashville to denver not only did we pack all our stuff, we also crammed it into a u-haul trailer and then unloaded it all ourselves. 

i think a successful move is all about the packing, so here's a look into my method to the madness that is prepping for a cross-country move.  

step 1: those things you stocked up on because you thought you were staying in denver forever? sell it.

we had a two-year lease at our current house. we have a brand new bed for the guest room and that adorable porch swing. both of those are up on craigslist now. fingers crossed they sell.

step 2: that stuff you already moved cross country once and then still never used? throw it out.

this is very easy for me because i am the opposite of a hoarder. if i don't use it on the regular or i am not in love with it, then it goes straight into the goodwill pile. this is much harder for b. but, he has been super great this time around about agreeing that we don't want to tote junk with us another 1,372 miles.

step 3: all those "decor" items you'll probably need to put in storage when you live in 700 square feet? group it together.

i pre-group all my boxes before actually packing. that's so i can see what else should go in said box... and also that i can see i have a problem with buying decorative candles and then never burning them, apparently.

step 4: whatever you just crammed in that box? label it.

this way, i can just peek inside to know exactly what is filling up the whole box. and as mentioned above, we may need a storage unit this time around.

we went from 483 square feet to a two-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bathroom, two-car-garage mansion and are going back to a small, one-bedroom apartment. in capitol hill, we had a wall of boxes. here's hoping all these packing tips keep our new place a little bit more organized - especially considering we signed a full year lease!

FAQS ABOUT THE M-O-V-E.

needless to say, people were pretty stunned by our news. here are some of my favorite comments, and my answers.

are you going with him?! 
yes. we just got engaged.

do you know anyone in seattle? 
we do! baker's wonderful cousins shelly {mom of my future-seattle-bff betty} and laura {owner of little water cantina, home of the best margarita i've ever had} live there.

can you guys just live apart for a while?
no. i don't plan to start our marriage 1,000 miles apart. also, i'm afraid of the dark, killers in the closet and everythingelse, so no.

do you like the rain? 
no. have you seen my naturally curly hair? you will after we move. prepare yourself.

do you like seafood? 
this is a major yes and a huge plus to moving to the pacific northwest.

are you still getting married?!
...

are you going to have to get a job? 
yes. he wasn't promoted to ceo. plus, i need to work for my mental well-being and general independent woman-ness.

what did your parents say? 
they were very supportive. my mom guessed it when i called and told her we had news. we were able to facetime b's parents and that was priceless. they are very proud of him.

aren't you a feminist?! moving for a man?
this one is totally only said out loud by me, but hinted at by many. i'm pretty sure sacrifices are part of being someone's WIFE, i think i can still be pro-woman.

at least it's not tulsa!
amen to that!

photo: seattle poster by anderson design group.

WE'VE GOT NEWS.

in case you didn't get my fashion-based hint in the photo:

WE ARE MOVING TO SEATTLE!

crazy, right?! i am still in a state of disbelief and i've known for a couple of weeks!

long story short: b got the opportunity to either transfer and take a promotion at his company's seattle office or stay in denver and do a lower-grade job. that doesn't mean it was an easy decision. i have a job i love, we finally made friends and we really feel like we JUST got settled. plus, we are trying to plan a wedding and i still have debt from our first cross-country move.

but, in the end, i am so proud of him and i want him to have the chance to see this job through.

and, hey, we've already done this once, right?!

p.s. totally mad at everyone who assumed i was announcing our pregnancy. um, wedding in SIX MONTHS people - hold your horses!

WEEKENDGRAMS.

what. a. weekend. here are some quick snaps from the past few days.

sister! sunrise from the plane, courtesy of mr. b. celebrating getting the keys to our new home at the mexican place within walking distance, salty rita's. very impressed at the clean carpets in the townhouse. picking up items at ikea and riding the cart escalator - i had no idea it locked the wheels for you! i was holding on for dear life. movin' hillbilly style with the mattress on the roof of the car. goodbye old apartment. a new {opinionated} neighbor. flowers from our new grocery store thanks to my sweet bf.

we are officially moved into our new home. so happy and so tired! here's to a great week.

GOODBYE CAP HILL.

today, the townhouse in lowry is officially ours. 

when we moved to denver, everyone told us to live in capitol hill. it is near the city, you can walk everywhere and people are always out and about. for those reasons, it has totally rocked. see photos above of the cute mini-carts at our local grocery and the sunset at cheesman park, a literal half block from our front door. 

the reasons i'm so happy to be moving include: coin laundry, omnipresent smoke {of the cigarette and marijuana variety, which routinely cause me to wake up coughing}, a still broken disposal that ruined my collection of dishtowels, a peeping tom situation we had earlier this year, no air conditioning combined with 99+ temperatures, overhearing a drag race in our alley every sunday night {it's just like fast and the furious, for real} and 400 square feet crammed with stuff we never unpacked. my mother weeps that i shared that photo of our "storage unit".

it's been a crazy few months, but i think getting settled in a home will help us me feel more settled here in denver. suburbs, here we come!

the hard times, the straight-to-your-heart times.

{the bridge on the tennessee river, somewhere in illinois.}

a lot of people have called me "brave" for packing up and moving cross country with no job waiting, or family to come home to, or friends to welcome in.

i touched on it in this post, but i don't think that's what i'd call it. i wouldn't say i was running away, because when i say i was happy in nashville, i was. i was... unsatisfied? unsettled? unclear?

i'm not sure what i expected. maybe that when we parked in town i would feel a sense of relief? a feeling of belonging that i never really felt in the south? a hint that i was on the right path?

there is some of that. for sure. but there's also "i don't understand my job and i will never have a job i am good at again." {ahem, determined on day six.}

and "no one here gets my ability to use a song lyric in all conversations." {bonus if you recognize this post title!}

or "baker has to work holidays and i will die if i have to spend thanksgiving alone." {also, we prob both would literally die if we tried to eat a turkey i cooked.}

we are starting over, at the beginning. we have a small, small apartment and very new jobs. we have no friends {okay, i have one friend - holler anna lisa!}, no routine and seriously no way of knowing if a street we are walking on is pretty much the gallatin of denver.*

{*that last one was a joke. people in east nashville will get that. and p.s. the gallatin of denver is colfax. and we walked it! SO scary!} 

so, yeah. that's the reason for the radio silence. just thought i should keep it real.

i've got just one life. so i'll stand my ground here.*

{*finish that lyric: and i won't back down.}

hi from colorado: welcome family + friends!

{photo taken today at the 16th street mall - more on that later!}

we are now officially 1,600 miles from our peeps in tennessee and 1,200 from family in ohio. {don't let that deter you if you were planning to drive to visit, though!}

to keep everyone in the loop with our daily activities - without clogging up your inbox - we decided to launch this blog.

we miss you all and can't wait to see you!

love,

katelyn and tim

people will surprise you, or what you learn when you move across the country wilth no prospects.

{the sun setting somewhere in kansas.}

moving to denver has been a lot of things. shocking, for people who know me as little miss planner. a leap of faith, definitely. and eye opening, most of all.

i have never been unemployed. i have worked since i was 16 years old and i had one day between college graduation and starting my first real job. so, to come out here without any prospects of employment was definitely a risk. and it has been very hard. i easily could do a post on how lonely it is to have no close friends out here, how frustrating it is to spend 14 hours a day on the computer looking for jobs or how sad it was when people looked me in the face and told me that it was a huge mistake to move to denver. i could talk about all of that.

but, that has not been the most common response.

people have come out of the woodwork to help me. my professor michelle opened her rolodex to me and introduced me to 10+ amazing people. those amazing people have given me advice, offered me guidance and nudged me in the right direction. former supervisors i haven't seen in years have contacted me to say they'd be a reference. a friend from nashville welcomed us into her home and took us into the mountains this past weekend.

it's hard to blog about life as it unfolds. it's easier to look back and say "here was this experience and here is its perfect ending". it's nerve wracking and messy to write about things before you know the happily ever after. so, while i'm still unemployed, don't have a denver bff and am not sure how things will all fall into place, i know they will.

because people surprise you in the best ways.

and life has a way of working itself out.