When the year started, I very excitedly proclaimed 2014 to be “the year of adventure”. I was dreaming of travel and new experiences. I had a sense of wanderlust and the desire to escape the routine by saying yes to as many new things as possible. And it’s been a lot of fun – that spirit of adventure has taken me to new cities both within the country and abroad. It’s pushed me to try new foods, make less excuses and even to take a trapeze lesson. I am better from those adventures and the general “why not’ mindset that comes with an intention of adventure.

And then an even bigger adventure presented itself – an adventure to move to a new city. To trade in the midwest for the west coast and say farewell to a city that has been so incredibly good to me over the past three years. I have said time and time again that Chicago was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made and I still feel both grateful and lucky for this city and the opportunities it’s brought into my life. My time in Chicago has taught me so much about myself – it’s taught me about happiness, ambition and community. It’s been the place I’ve called home during some of the proudest and most wonderful moments I have ever experienced. It’s been where I’ve met some of my very best friends and people who have made a huge impact on me within the relatively short timespan I’ve been here. And it’s also been where Pretty & Fun became the blog it is today – the support of the blogging community in Chicago and the energy of this city have pushed, inspired and motivated me as a blogger.

It’s a bittersweet goodbye but in the decision to move to San Francisco in January was made truly out of the spirit of adventure. It was the push I needed to say “why not?” when the opportunity presented itself and the confidence I needed to know that was the right decision, regardless of how well I’ve settled into life in Chicago. I’m excited to take the idea of adventure a step further than I had originally anticipated and explore life in a new city and experience all of the newness that will come with that big personal and professional change. While making this decision and planning the big move, I’ve been continuously reminded of a long-time favorite quote of mine: “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all”.

San Francisco, you’re the perfect ending to my year of adventure.