Hey guys, I’m moving to New York.

I know…about damn time right? Us newlyweds (and Finley) have our bags packed and our U-Haul ready to go with a big fat grin on our faces. It’s been a dream of mine since I was a wee little embryo to move to Manhattan and in just a few short days I’m making that dream become my reality. I couldn’t tell you what attracted me to New York City in the first place. It wasn’t just the fashion that caught my eye or the city that never sleeps that set this insomniac’s heart on fire. No, it’s so much more than that. It’s the timeless buildings, the unending culture and the people on the subway- each with one hell of a story to tell. I want to listen. I want eat, sleep and breathe this city. I’ve never wanted anything more in my life. Who knows how long I’ll end up staying. That’s never something I worry too much about because when your time is up…it’s up. I’ll give it a year, two years or maybe even ten. With the help of God, I’ll know when it’s time to move on and start my next adventure.

So many people told me that I couldn’t do it. Their discouraging words rang in my ear like a blow horn crushing my hopes and dreams with “It’s a rich man’s city” and “I don’t think you’re strong enough.” I finally pushed away their negativity and fought away HARD at my own and it opened my eyes to my own strength and drive that I knew I had within me. I am finally burying the people, places and things that have drowned me over the last couple of years and moving forward with great hope and peace of mind of a new adventure. I feel such calmness with how everything has been falling into place for my life lately. I recently got married to the sweetest, most supportive man and I moved on from a job that wasn’t taking me anywhere but down. These two things impacted my life for the better and made my decision to move to New York that much easier.

God works in the funniest of ways. Three years ago, right around the time that my brother and best friend passed away, I thought that my life was a dead end. I had no hope for the future and I took my dreams of the concrete jungle, a family and a life full of spontaneity and put them away…far far away. I told myself that without them, my life would have no meaning and that I would never be able to move forward and truly be happy. Here I am, three years later, nearly laughing at myself for thinking such things. I am so much more than the tragic events that I have endured. I am definitely so much more than those mean girls in my life thought I would be. (Oh Karissa, if only you knew that those set backs were actually catapulting you into bigger and better things.) I wouldn’t take back my time here in Denver because it was a step in my story that needed to be taken. Regardless of the negative people that had come my way,  I have also met some pretty incredible girls that I will never EVER forget. They both have served they’re separate purposes but it’s finally time to move on.

What gives me such satisfaction and allows me to sleep better at night is the fact that I’m doing this completely for myself and completely on my own. No one is doing it for me, not my dad, not my mom…no one. I’m taking my hard earned savings, my creative brain and carpe diem mantra and I’m gonna get sh*t done. Wyatt, my sweet loving Wyatt, supports my inner independence and he’s ready for the ride. He knew from the day he met me that I wasn’t the kind of girl to settle. I’m a dreamer, a believer, a do-er and he absolutely loves that about me. I can’t wait see all the beautiful ways that he and I will both grow in the big apple. Our first year of marriage is going to be epic.

Let the adventures of Wyatt and Karissa (and Finley) begin.

NEW YORK CITY… HERE WE COME!

With love,

Karissa Marie

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