// things i know today //

1. different people bring out different qualities in you and it's important to choose wisely. 

2. time heals 

3. love heals

4. we need a balance of optimism and realism. find your cheerleaders and find your question askers.  

5. a cozy blanket, cozy scarf and hot drink make cold temperatures a whole lot easier. 

6. talking about people and their flaws is tiring and draining. talking about ideas is energizing. 

7. there are a lot of people in the world sitting on dreams at their desks. go out and get yours. if you don't do it yourself, no one will tell you to do it. 

8. don't stop until you get there. and when you get there, begin again. 

{mountain weekend}

This past weekend, Chris and I went up to Cashiers, NC with dear friends, Katie and Austen, for a mountain getaway. The weekend was just perfect.

{obviously needed road trip snacks. current fav: perfect bars. SO GOOD}

Friday, Chris and I went to dinner before they got in to celebrate a few milestones from the fall.

Saturday morning, we went to the grocery bright and early to get food for the weekend and grabbed coffee at a cute local shop. I'm loving almond milk lattes with mint - the almond milk makes it taste like a treat, but you avoid a lot of the sugar of seasonal lattes. It's a win win :) 

{really happy about the coffee}

After that, we ate breakfast then bundled up for a hike. 

The views were beautiful. 

After that, we ate chili, watched football, had more coffee and wine and great conversation. 

The weekend reminded me how important it is to get out of the city. 

I love Atlanta, but every time I leave, I remember how much more deeply I breathe when I'm not confined by pavement. How well I sleep where the stars shine a little brighter. And how much I love being away with dear friends.

I hope you had a great weekend!

{the last few weeks}

Hello :) I'm back from my accidental blogging break. Here's where the last few weeks went...

//

Robyn came to visit for Halloween. And, yes, I do mean that Jane Fonda came to visit Zack and Kelly at Bayside...

We also went to Chomp and Stomp, which was my first time and is now one of my favorite things ATL's fall has to offer. (Bucket list #124)

And then it was sweet Sam's 25th birthday. We celebrated with friends and toasted him and the amazing man he is. 

And, also, made a cooler out of a pumpkin. :)

And then, at work, I planned a conference for young professionals, which also meant meeting Bill Rancic. Who, I had no idea how dang cute he is! 

And after that, Courtney and Ashley (&Max!) came into town so we could have a beach trip. But before we did that, we celebrated Sam's birthday again. And also took this slightly awkward family photo. Why does it look like we are claiming Sam? #thislandismyland

Then, we drove to the beach.

Then, Ash and I drove back to Atlanta, where she got to meet Chris and celebrate Sam's birthday a little more with lunch at Victory and froyo at the Yogurt Tap.

And now, back to normal life in Atlanta!

I spent the week catching up from the insanity of conference planning. And, tomorrow, Chris and I are heading to the mountains. But for now, this sweet little city town of Atlanta is where I am!

Happy almost weekend! :)

on the way things change

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In my twenties, I've learned that I am someone who loves physical change, like moving apartments and rearranging a room and starting a new job. But, I am not someone who loves emotional change. I hoard my emotional possessions and am a keep-in-touch-addict and do anything I can to maintain sameness when it comes to my emotional well-being. 

And, as it turns out, your twenties is one of the hardest phases to crave emotional sameness, because everything is constantly changing. It's a time warp of a decade - 10 years that feel like 20. The person I am at 28 barely remembers 23 year old Whitney - let alone the 20 year old version. The way life changes from 26 to 28 alone is mind boggling - to think it was just two years ago that

Katie, Melissa and I were in the rat house

with a broken foot. It feels like a lifetime ago. 

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And, even crazier, that it has

only been a year

since I went to Africa and quit dating and started dating again. My, how much has changed in just one year.

Halloween weekend marked four years in Atlanta for me and, as is inevitable, in that time, many of my relationships have changed. From new ones forming, to others fading away and others going much deeper, it's impossible to avoid that time changes our relationships. It weathers some and strengthens others - but it very rarely leaves them the same. 

The friendships we craved and needed at 21 best not be what we need at 28, or else we're stagnant - and if we aren't growing, what are we doing? We're like the ocean - sometimes moving forward and sometimes backward, but never staying still.

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Lately, I'm dancing between both resisting and learning to accept the way my relationships are changing. There will be those that will grow forever deeper - alongside one another through good and bad, near and far. And there will be those that are absorbed and carved deeply into our hearts, shaping us into the people we are today - even if they are no longer part of our day to day, the nitty gritty. 

The beautiful thing is, every day, we have the chance to meet more people and build more relationships. But the hard part is, every day, we still only have 24 hours. And the more people you add in, the more your hours are divided and conquered - the more we must choose who should be in the nitty gritty and who should become more periphery. Not because they are less loved or important, but because as our desires and needs change, so do the people that must be in the day to day with us.

There will be those that once carried and sustained us and whether they continue to walk alongside us with every step or become more distant, they are important and beautiful. Because they made us who we are today and who we will become tomorrow. And that is really the best part of it all.