Isaac and I have a new home headquarters – Chicago!

Here’s the backstory/how it came about:

The second half of last year was probably one of the busiest times of our lives. From launching Lightward Journal to traveling the East Coast for five weeks to buying a condo to hosting a company retreat to moving from Denver to Laguna Beach to moving back to the Midwest to traveling to London for the holidays to hopping over to Paris for my 33rd birthday with friends from around Europe to closing out the year with friends dancing to ABBA in our new downtown apartment. And that’s really just touching the surface.

A big part of that list above was moving back to the Midwest. In November, after the dust had settled a bit after the big launch of Lightward Journal, a project a full year in the making, Isaac and I went on a ten-day vacation to San Francisco and Napa Valley. It was the first time we’ve taken that much time off, ever. It was amazing. We had time to breathe, to not think, and also to dream. We dreamt about places we wanted to visit, projects we wanted to work on, and how we wanted to show up.

We also talked about where we wanted to live.

We toyed around with the idea of splitting time between our beach cottage in Laguna Beach and L.A., as we started to really honor the fact that we are city boys through and through. We love being in a big city with loads of people and culture and things to do and amazing places to eat, a place where our senses come alive.

But something wasn’t right about the L.A./Laguna mix. We were about to sign a lease in L.A. and something wasn’t right, in our guts, about that move. After a few sleeps, we brought up the option of moving back to Chicago and making it *home base*. We had already bought a condo there to be a small base for when we visited Chicago to see friends and family. But since leaving Chicago in early 2020 to travel the world (then COVID hit and we ended up in Denver), our subconscious really craved being in the city flow again, near a lot of our friends and family.

So we decided to move back! 

One thing you’ll know about Isaac and me is that we follow our guts and hearts, no matter what. And they were leading us back to Chicago.

We’re both from the Midwest, so being close to a lot of our community has been so special. The random Tuesday night pedicures with my good friend from college, rock climbing nights with various groups of folks, last minute comedy shows by some of the world’s best improv groups, weekend sleepovers with friends, taking a nap on the couch next to my dad after an amazing lunch together, catching up with friends I haven’t seen in years—it’s been life giving in so many ways to be back.

I haven’t heard Isaac say “Wow, I can’t believe we get to live here, in this beautiful building. I love living here *SO MUCH*” as many times as I have since being back in Chicago. For me, it’s given me what I feel like I’ve been missing since moving out in 2020: a consistent dose of stimulation between friends, family, work, walking around in the city, shows, the gym we used to work out at, etc. It’s giving HOME VIBES. 

But truly, my brain hasn’t been this consistently stimulated since we left, which is amazing. I feel more calm, more excited, and more creative. I love being in the center of it all, watching the world and people go by, hearing the sounds of a city. And I’ve even enjoyed the cold (for the most part – hello from warm Southern California, where I’m currently writing this ;)) … I’m most excited about the space that Isaac and I are in right now – we feel grounded, soaking in every day, and not rushing to anything, really. 

I’m allowing myself to be filled up with this moment of a bigger life chapter we’re in. Good things happen when we give ourselves permission to fill our cups –that’s the season I’m in right now, and it feels incredible. I think sustainability comes from this sacred space because if I’m intentionally aware of what feels good to me right now, I can apply the same awareness to what I build next, which is my deep intent for this upcoming year. 

So, here’s to the future adventures in Chicago, gaining energy and momentum by having a home base there. And here’s also to leaving Chicago, because that’s also an important part of the flow as well–leaving home to adventure and soak in the world, and then to come home to a place/space/presence that is sacred and safe and energizing in a different way. Stable. Deeply rooted. 

It feels good to be home, again. 

Onward and upward!