My Thoughts on Charlotte

I just got back from my trip to Charlotte and it was amazing! I couldn't have picked a better city for us to move to. The city seems to be pretty similar in size to Seattle so it's nice to feel like I'm in a small/big city if that makes sense. If you have been following me on instagram @thevintagemodern, then you will know that I posted a million pictures like a madwoman. Go check out my instagram if you missed those. I feel like I never have any new pictures to blog cause I have instagrammed them all. I will try to get better at that. I promise.  


View of Hyatt House from the pool

  

EpiCenter at night

 As you can imagine preparing for a cross county move has not been easy.  Emotionally or physically. I have done so much research on the topic that I feel like I could write a book about it now. But I digress. These past few weeks have been packed with finishing up projects at work, spending as much time with friends as possible... And yes, of course packing. Although I'm not sure I've actually packed a single thing (thanks hubby). Only recently have I started to feel pangs of sadness. Before this week, I was all go-go-go applying for jobs, looking at apartments online and just trying to prepare in every way I thought possible. It is hard to prepare yourself emotionally for something like this - honestly I think it's the hardest for those you leave behind. It's kind of like when your spouse goes on a trip and you stay home. You are just going through your regular day to day motions while your spouse is somewhere new having adventures without you. But honestly I think it will get easier as time goes on. That had been my experience so far living far away from my immediate family.

 



View from our new apartment balcony

  

From the front entrance

 

Our actual apartment: island in the kitchen, looking out into the living room  



Our actual apartment: Living Room with window and door to balcony

  

The Clubhouse with pool (not pictured)



Another shot of the Clubhouse, I loved the styling and
want to use it for inspiration while decorating our apartment 



 While I was in Charlotte this weekend, I signed a lease on a brand new apartment and got a job! So I am considering this a productive and successful weekend trip. While I'm not crazy about the 5 hour flight to Seattle, it is a necessary evil. Jake and I often get asked the question of when and how often will we visit. The answer is of course, we don't know yet. We have to figure out our savings budget, coordinate vacation time and  figure out how much is a "good deal" for that particular flight. I do have a fare watcher set up so I can monitor the best round trip flight and so far, it's been consistent at $332 for several months now. I am sure the prices will be much higher around the holidays and we will have to be sensitive to that too.

I do have to warn you that we ended up with a brand new 1 bedroom/1 bathroom apartment, so if you want to come visit, you will have to either sleep on our (1) couch or (2) blow up mattress. We decided that we would rather get a smaller, nicer place that we would use everyday rather than a bigger place that would only benefit us when guests were in town. Not to discourage guests, we want you to come visit us! Maybe wait a few months so we can figure the city out, but after that, we're game!



View from my hotel room on the 13th floor

   

View to the other side



The Chiquita Banana HQ! Who knew?!!

There are a lot of unknowns for us right now but I can honestly say that I am super excited to start this new chapter in my our lives and can't wait to see what it brings. It will be a nice transition to have a couple weeks off and be a tourist in our own city. So far we were thinking about doing the following: underground tour, ride the ducks, check out some happy hours around the city, have a jcrew shopping spree (just kidding - I was checking to see if you were paying attention), take a trip down to Portland to see friends and family, have dinner at Canlis (our first time!!), and spend our last night in the marqueen hotel in Queen Anne.

Sometimes I feel like blogging is so one sided and I just talk about myself so much. Do you feel like that sometimes too???