Hi friends!

It’s been a while since I’ve posted so I wanted to pop in and give some quick updates. I love my blog so much even though maintaining it takes up more time than I seem to have these days, but every time I think about letting it go, I just can’t do it. Life feels pretty routine lately and I doubt anyone is interested in hearing about the monotony of our days, weeks, months, etc. so I haven’t had much to write about–although I have toyed with the idea of doing a day-in-the-life post. What do y’all think?

Anyway, through the monotony, we’ve still had some cool things happen so I’ll share what we’ve been up to lately for those who are interested.

Hi, dear readers! I didn’t mean to disappear for a month, but life has been hectic. Between travel, work, toddler needs, and life, time just got away from me. Let’s catch up, shall we?

Travel

At the end of September, Nick and I traveled to California. It was a dual-purpose trip: My best friend was getting married in Carmel-by-the-Sea and asked me to be in the wedding on September 29th, to which I couldn’t say yes fast enough, and then, because her wedding was two days before our own wedding anniversary on October 1st, Nick and I decided to head up to San Francisco for a few days to celebrate our own wedded bliss.

The wedding was stunningly gorgeous. I’m so jealous of how beautiful everything was but I’m honestly not surprised because it simply matched the beauty that is my best friend, both inside and out. I was so busy helping with and prepping for the wedding that I didn’t get to take many photos, but I can’t wait to see the photos that the photographer took. I have a feeling they’re going to be top notch. In the meantime, here are a few that I managed to snap when in the little bit of downtown we had.

Big Sur, California. This was basically the background of my friend’s wedding!

Happy bridesmaid!

Obligatory Golden Gate Bridge picture

Fashion

In North Carolina, we had about a week of “false” fall in mid-September where the temperature cooled down to a beautiful 68-75 degrees, but then quickly heated up again. In California, it was “true” fall with temps in the 60s-70s every day. I think that was my favorite thing about California aside from the wedding. Anyway, NC’s false fall allowed me to wear a few fall-like outfits, which was exciting. You can find them on my Instagram and I shared them on Nikki by example’s Facebook page, but here’s a recap.

Fall outfits, finally!

Outfit 1: Blouse: Loft Outlet | Cardigan: via Stitch Fix | Jeans: LOFT | Shoes: H&M | Necklace: Old Navy 
Outfit 2: Sweater: ModCloth | Jeans: Wit & Wisdom via Stitch Fix | Shoes: Banana Republic (old) | Necklace: J. Crew Factory
Outfit 3: Sweater & Trousers: Banana Republic (old) | Shoes: H&M | Jewelry: Target | see outfit post here.
Outfit 4: Sweater: ModCloth | Jeans: LOFT | Shoes: Madden Girl | Necklace: J. Crew Factory | Belt: Target

Family

In mid-August, Sebastian started potty training and he’s really been rocking it! We’ve gotten super lucky in that many of his friends at preschool are also potty training so I think he picked up on it really quickly from seeing them go to the potty at school. He’s very good about peeing on the toilet on his own and is slowly overcoming his fear of pooping on the toilet. This is pretty common with kids from what I’ve read and heard. I feel like it has been incredibly easy learning/training process, and that for that I am eternally grateful! This kid is truly the best.

The “baby potty” as Sebastian calls it.

Work

I just accepted an offer to work as a research coordinator in the Department of Population Health at one of the large universities in the area and I start next month. It’s a welcomed change that will come with more responsibilities and more pay, so I’m really excited to start this new career journey. I will miss working in adolescent sexual health but the time has come for me to move on and move up in my career. And don’t worry – the building also has a big mirror in the restroom so you’ll still get regular outfit updates 😉

I will soon be a university employee

I think that’s it for now. Lots of stuff going on and many changes to work through, but overall, life is great! I hope all is going well for you, too.

I was sitting at the kitchen table on a sunny late-summer afternoon, feeding my son lunch, when I was overcome with an amazing feeling of contentment. As Sebastian peeled the turkey and cheese off his sandwich and shoved them into his mouth, dropping some turkey onto the floor in the process, he looked up at me and grinned.  And I realized that this, right here, is exactly where I want to be. It’s really all I need in life. A loving partner, an adventurous kid, a goofy dog, a cozy home, and some fun experiences are what truly make me happy.

This isn’t turkey, but you get the idea!

Thinking about now, I’m not as surprised as I would have been a few years ago.

In my post on Monday, I announced the big decision that I made to quit my job to focus on my health and to start figuring out a new career. So, sit back and let me tell you a little story about my dilemma in today’s job market that helped lead to these decisions.

photo source

I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2007. I worked for three different companies gaining “real world” experience in the two fields I really love – psychology and public health. I always knew that graduate school was in the cards but I wasn’t sure which direction I wanted to go. I had many passions and working right after college was supposed to help me figure out which passion I wanted to pursue as my career. When I finally figured it out, I went to graduate school and earned a Master of Public Health degree in 2015. At that point I had more than six years of relevant work experience and this newly gained knowledge to utilize in the field I had chosen. I really wanted to work in health program planning, implementation, and evaluation.

But here’s where it gets frustrating.

I’m overqualified for most entry level positions yet I don’t have enough work/post degree experience for most of the positions in my field. I know this because of an experience I had a few years ago during an interview for a position at a nonprofit where I was volunteering. Even though it was an entry level position, I thought it would be a great opportunity for me because I really liked the organization, I felt I could get my foot in the door to start gaining experience in the field, and I could start working toward the career I really wanted. HOWEVER, the director stopped me after the very first interview question and told me I was overqualified and wouldn’t be happy in the position, and then refused to continue interviewing me. First, while her observations may have been true, I feel it wasn’t her decision to make for me. Second, so much for getting my foot in the door so I could gain the experience that all those other organizations and companies require, right? If I can’t even get entry-level experience in my field, how am I supposed to get the jobs that I actually went to school for? What exactly am I doing wrong?

via GIPHY

Fast forward a few years and, after getting laid off from a job I thought I would be happy making into a career, here I am doing something that is not even close to utilizing the knowledge I gained in graduate school with no prospects in sight because I still don’t have – nor am I currently getting – that specific type of field experience that employers require.

And don’t get me wrong; I know it’s a great privilege to have an education and to be earning an income to provide for my family. And I’m thankful for that, truly. But my current situation is costing me my physical and mental health and it is taking me away from my family, and for that I just can’t be grateful. In the few years since finishing my graduate program, I’ve lost out on several other jobs because they decided to go with someone who had more experience. And I’ve been told by well-meaning folks that “there’s always going to be someone out there with more experience than me,” and if that’s the case then why even bother at all? Won’t they always get chosen over me? And how to I get experience if no one wants to give me a change to learn? I have no idea how to get over this hump.

But let’s try to stay positive, shall we? I’m thinking this is a good time to start all over and try something new. A job that I’m in love with and look forward to doing every day, and one that will allow enough flexibility that I don’t have to sacrifice time with my family. For me, I think that’s writing. I’ve always wanted to be a writer and I wrote on Monday about how it took me a long time to give myself permission to believe that I am a good writer. So I’m taking time to figure out how to break into the writing world with little experience, a bare portfolio, and a love of words.

I’m holding out hope that I’ll eventually find a job that brings me joy instead of anxiety, and I hope that soon I’ll be on my way to establishing a successful career. Whatever I end up doing, I just want to love it. Friends, wish me luck! 🙂