Guilty Pleasures

Today a few thoughts have occurred to me in regards to aging and retirement. The older I get the more I understand I have to think about the future and plan and prepare for it. It can lead to a high stress lifestyle. Thankfully I have a fantastic support team standing behind me.

I was raised by lots of people, but I grew up with my grandparents being a huge influence in my life. So, now they're at the point where they are thinking and planning for the years ahead where they won't be working. The Golden Years! However, with the way the system goes, retirement doesn't sound like it's going to be as fantastic as I envisioned it growing up. I secretly have always wanted to join the ranks of the Golden Girls, but rumor has it social security won't even be a thing when I reach that mark.

I feel like, most of us, by the time you reach your 70s and 80s have deserved some kind of recognition and accomplishment. Some grant from society that says, "yes, you paid your dues and you can have your favorite smoothie everyday or go visit your grandkids annually. Yep, it is ok by us if you decide to move to the shore and gets more wrinkles from all the sunshine." Ya know?

However, these small ideas and dreams seem to be pulled out for only a select few and the more I think about it, the more it bothers me. Of course, I fully understand the principle of this is why we are financially smart when we're younger, this is why we work hard, and some people don't work hard or aren't smart with money. That is a separate issue.

I think one of my trials in this life is having patience with the system.... *sigh*





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 Love, Katie

Written in the Stars

I promised I wouldn't be one of those people but here I am. I have to blow up the internet and my social media spaces with how grateful I am for my boyfriend. If you're already getting nauseous you should probably just stop reading this now because it's only going to get more sweet. To talk about the present, understanding of the past is required. FIELD TRIP! ... Ben and I have known each other for the better part of 15 years. Our families know each other, yet our interactions were limited (very much to my dismay). Life grew us and drew us into very opposite directions. In more recent years I found myself adventuring in North Carolina...

Before packing up and heading out on a brilliant adventure to the Pacific North West. It was cold... but it was fantastic. For more details on that trip see my first entry... 

Upon returning to Delaware it was painfully obvious that I didn't fit in... anywhere & it was a large struggle to overcome. I spent a few months trying to level out and finally pulled my head out of my backside enough to recognize the needs of those around me.

Ben and I often explain the story as though we were each working on our lives and then backed into each other, lightly acknowledged each others presence and then suddenly were both hit with a figurative 2x4 to turn around and see each other.

It's amazing how much you can miss that's RIGHT in front of you. 

I was so hesitant... we'd both been through a lot romantically and I was not certain I wanted to open this can of worms. Actually... the first time he asked me to be his girlfriend, I said no. I pulled out my deck of missionary cards and dealt him the one that had, "I need to pray about it" written on it. I think it ended up being a longer week for me than it was for him. 

For myself I needed to be sure. I needed to be certain. And I didn't want to hurt him. He deserved more than that. Sometimes hurt is inevitable in relationships, but I didn't want to start another one. To make a long story short, I ended up agreeing and here we are.

I am definitely stuck on this guy. He says I've got him wrapped around my finger, but I'm not so sure it doesn't also go the other way around too. 

There's an incredible honesty and a candid feature between the two of us. A delicacy in the way we deal with each other that's still emotional, raw, and honest.

The hand holding, the kisses, opening my door, the way he looks at me, I keep waiting for it all to get old... and it nneevveerr does. He's my second witness that Abercrombie cologne can smell good in doses and it absolutely alluring as well. 

I always made fun of the girls that seemed to swoon so fast and let boys come in and sweep them off their feet. God made certain that all the many years of that build up came right back around to haunt me. Yes, ladies & gentlemen karma is a very real concept. He came into my life quietly. 

"Real love isn't just a euphoric, spontaneous feeling-- it's a choice-- a plan to love each other for better and worse, for richer and poorer, in sickness and in health." 

"FInd someone who traces the lines in your hands just to feel close to you, and someone who believes the ocean is trapped in your eyes. Find someone who loves the bones in your body and loves the skin that you live in. Find someone who will help you love yourself."