Changing My Last Name

Well hello world, it has been a long minute since I wrote, but I realize how much I value having these little online journals to look back on and get a snapshot of what's happened in my life.

I am currently 70 days away from becoming the new Mrs. Bridget Wolfe. That kind of blows my mind, not because I'm going to be getting a new identity, I'll always be me, good old silly, clumsy, stubborn Bridget, but I'm going to be transitioning to a forever partner of someone in this world. When I was a teenager and I heard of people spending 10, 20, 30 years together, it terrified me, back then, I couldn't imagine spending that much time with one person. My perspective has completely changed since then, I feel so unbelievably lucky that I GET to spend that much time with Noah. We will grow together, become new versions of ourselves as we hit milestones and learn to adapt as the other person finds their passions, aspirations and reaches for their goals. We have now been together almost four years and I love what we've built together in that short amount of time. I love that we are independently working hard to better ourselves so that we can be better for each other. We both have very different interests and passions, but that's what's so important about a relationship, we understand the other's passions and try to motivate and keep pushing them, even if they're not our specific hopes or dreams. My hope and dreams for Noah are for him to first and foremost be happy and secondly enjoy and be passionate about what he's working towards. I'm so excited for the future and to see what life is going to throw at us, but I'm also thoroughly enjoying right now. Becoming Mr. and Mrs. Wolfe is just going to solidify what we've already built over the last four years, our wedding day is an important day for us to express how much love we have for each other and our commitment to the other, regardless of the trials and troubles we may experience. Life can be messy, but it's critical to think of the positives and why we do the things we do. At the end of the day, my heart is very happy to be held by Noah and I'm ready to continue being his forever partner in crime.

Thanks for reading
<3 B

Tips on Living with your Boo

Wow it's been way too long since I've posted a blog. School has just been so crazy it's hard to keep up with everything else going on, but here I am! 

I wanted to post a blog about my experience living with someone other than my parents, more specifically, Noah. It's a big adjustment living with people who you're used to living with for years on end to living with someone who you know extremely well, but have never lived with before. So here goes...

Noah and I have been living together for about three months now and I thought I'd share some things I've learned about myself and him have take some getting used to, but now help us on an every day basis. Not only did I go from living with my parents for 24 years to living with Noah, but we also went from a long distance relationship for two years to being together 24/7. I was really excited to finally be done with the long distance segment of our relationship and finally be back together full time, but I was also nervous to give up my independence; luckily we have found a good balance between the two. Let's get to the things I've learned.

1. Pick your battles. 

I know everyone has heard this before, but I truly understand it now. Noah and I are both hard headed, we are used to doing things a certain way and have those expectations ingrained in us. There are certain things that are more important to me than others and I've learned that if something is really bothering me and I'm unwilling to compromise on it I will speak up and make my thoughts known. This doesn't always mean that a compromise will be reached on both sides of the argument, but I think it's important to speak up. 

A great example of this is team work. I strongly believe that if two people are sharing a space, it is up to both people to be considerate of the other and help out when they can. Laundry is something that I don't mind doing so I have taken on the laundry chore and don't expect Noah to do it, Noah on the other hand is really good about putting Wendy's needs first and does a great job of taking care of her when I'm at school or work. Obviously there are tons of other things we have to work together on and more often than not we make it work. I think it's vital to a relationship's success to find someone who has a similar expectation of how their space is kept (i.e. clean or messy.) Otherwise one party may feel as though they're always cleaning up after the other and that's not fair. Don't be afraid to fill your partner in on your hopes for the space and be prepared to make compromises on certain chores and aspects of the living environment. 

Teamwork makes the dream work :) 

2. Be willing to make sacrifices and compromises. 

Most relationships don't work unless there are sacrifices and compromises made on each party's behalf. When you live with someone this is so important, because you share this space 24/7, it isn't okay for one person to always be dominating things. Keep in mind that even though it's your partner's space, it's your space TOO. Each person's needs are important to consider, especially when you're living together. For example: Maybe you set up a night where you both do your own thing and you get to enjoy the things that only you enjoy and on another night you come together and do something that you both enjoy. This will also help you keep your independence and hopefully eliminate you two getting sick of each other. Compromising on things is a great way to keep a relationship strong. 

3. Set up boundaries.

Boundaries are also very important to any relationship, not just a relationship with your significant other. It's also important to set up these boundaries from the get go so each party is aware of them and there isn't frustration later on down the road. These boundaries can be as simple as walking away from an argument before you think you'll say something you'll later regret and coming back together a little while later to discuss things. Another may be giving a person privacy when they want to be alone for whatever reason. It's also critical to set up boundaries with your significant other's family, especially if you're getting more serious. It's always good to be on the same page with people, especially when the subject can be touchy. 

4. Accept your significant other for their strengths and weaknesses. 

This has probably been one of the hardest things for both Noah and I. There are things that each of us do that gets on the other's nerves. It's important to remember at the end of the day that you love this person and everyone makes mistakes and has their weak moments. 

I am such a clutzy person, always have been and I probably always will be. I do my best to prevent this and to be as careful as I can, but sometimes I do stupid things. Noah is getting better about being patient with me during these moments and hopefully realizing that I don't do these things intentionally. Noah on the other hand can be pretty grumpy in the morning, it is still hard for me some mornings to not make comments and try and cheer him up, but I'm starting to learn that it's better to just let him do his thing and he'll come around when the clock hits 12 PM :) 

5. Make time for each other!

I can't stress this one enough. It is so important to make time for each other and your relationship. Life can get so stupid busy sometimes and you may not even realize how long it's been since you sat down and were just together for a little while. Noah and I have realized how hard this has been ever since we got a dog and started school and work. Although Wendy brings us so much happiness, joy and love, she is like a child. We don't do a lot of things we used to do before we got Wendy and school and work started. We definitely need to remember once a month or so to have some Noah and Bridget time. This is probably true for any couple, especially those who have children. Be with each other, no phones, no outside distractions, really be with one another and help make your relationship stronger. 

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this blog and I hope some of these things help in your current situation or will maybe help sometime in the future. 

Lots of love!

B 

Good luck 25, 24 was pretty unbeatable.

As my 25th birthday is quickly rounding the corner, I can't help but think about all that's happened, all the hats I've worn over the years and all that I've been lucky enough to experience in my life. I can honestly say that I am so glad to have gone through it all, because I am stronger, wiser and a better version of myself now. 

Four years ago, I was a body obsessed control freak who's life was passing by rapidly and I was putting my health, relationships and well-being at risk because of a short-term lifestyle that I thought was more of a priority than the things that were truly important. 

My identity was being the "gym rat" and the girl that always strived to look "better" each week. There are many positives that I take away from those years, one very big one being my personal training career. I never realized how rewarding that job was and how much joy it brought me until I was forced to walk away from it. I still miss all my clients, the early mornings and the late nights. The most rewarding part was having the ability to show people that there was a better version of them inside and seeing them proud of themselves and each having huge emotional and physical breakthroughs. I do hope to one day reenter the personal training world and use all that I've experienced to teach people that looking a certain way is not all that is important, loving yourself for who you are and what you look like is a gift that everyone should experience. 

The past three years have been some of the most daunting, physically and emotionally draining years I've experienced thus far. I was diagnosed with hip dysplasia after multiple misdiagnosis' at age 21 and spent the next two years going through reconstructive hip surgeries to correct the shallow hip sockets I was born with. I always thought I was invincible and would never have to go through any serious surgeries or have any injuries. What a wake up call surgery number one was, I was forced to open my eyes and realize that the lifestyle I had been living was extremely unhealthy for me, mentally, physically and emotionally. I was unable to fulfill my goal of becoming an Air Woman after joining in November of 2012. 

I had to go through an outpatient treatment program to learn how to love myself again, regain a good relationship with food and repair the relationships that I had damaged during my bodybuilding years. It's taken a lot of hard work and time, but I am feeling more like the Bridget I want to be now more than ever.

I no longer have hip dysplasia thanks to my amazing doctor in Salt Lake City who performed two major reconstructive hip surgeries on me. I'm also so lucky to have had my "A-Team" with me through the whole process to help keep me sane, strong and not allowing me to give up even though there were times I wanted to.

I've been able to love someone more than I ever thought possible and share life with him every single day after two years of long distance. We moved across the country together which was extremely bittersweet for me. We are engaged and starting to plan our wedding for the Summer of 2016. 

I lost my the most amazing cat that had been by my side for 18 years. I still miss her every day and am looking forward to seeing her again one day. Losing a pet is so heart breaking and only time helps heal that wound, but luckily she's in a better place and keeping my grandma company. 

I'm now able to share a piece of my heart with a little puppy who is so sweet, loving, smart and a pain in the booty at times. Owning a dog with Noah has been such an amazing learning experience and one I'm glad we put a lot of time and effort into thinking and planning for before getting Wendy. It's a big commitment and our lives have changed drastically since adopting her. It is completely worth it for us and we're happy to be "puppy people." 

I am so grateful for all the lessons that I've been able to take from the past few years and I'm looking forward to growing more and more as I'm sure life won't let up anytime soon. It can be messy, frustrating, uncontrollable at times, but through those rough times there are definitely silver linings that life offers us. Don't ever give up, no matter how hard things may be in the present moment. When you get through the hard, impossible times you'll be so happy you stuck through it and will be able to use those lessons and hardships to help others or yourself through things in the future. 

I'm excited to see what 25 has in store. 24 was pretty epic and memorable. Thanks to everyone for making this year so great. 

I miss you Albuquerque, can't wait to come home for Christmas. 

Lots of love. 

<3 B

Our Girl Wendy

Noah and I have wanted a dog for about two years now, but it was never something we could make work since we were 2,000 miles apart. I've always had animals and can't imagine living without animals for a long period of time so we decided to get a four legged friend. I totally would've taken my kitty cat, Pandy with me to Troy, but since Noah's allergic that wasn't possible, unfortunately. We have been researching different breeds of dogs we thought would best fit our lifestyle and personalities and finally landed on a Corgi. They're playful, yet cuddly and smart. We decided to look into Corgi rescues in our area and found a few that we liked, but never pulled the trigger on any of them. Then one day, I found Wendy. I was browsing a petfinder.com website and came across her pictures, there was also a video on her page and after watching it, I fell in love. I sent her link to Noah and he too fell in love with her. That night we decided to fill out an application for her and waited patiently for a response. We heard back the next day from someone who was doing a check on our application to make sure we would be a good fit for Wendy (I really appreciate that they do this, because let's be honest, some people should never own an animal.) After everything was checked out and we were approved, we learned that Wendy would have to be driven 4,000 miles to us in a semi by a guy named Greg. He owns an awesome company called Rescue Road Trips where he takes dogs from the south who are mostly in high kill shelters and drives them to their forever homes in New England and surrounding areas. Being involved with Rescue Road Trips has been such a rewarding experience and I'm so glad we were able to save Wendy from an uncertain future. Wendy was found on a Texas interstate where she was covered in fleas and ticks, luckily she wasn't afraid of people and jumped right into her rescuers car. She is 100% healthy now and our little cuddle bug :)

Wendy is about 8 months old, she's a mix of a bunch of different breeds we think, Corgi, Border Collie, Australian Shepherd, maybe some Jack Russell Terrier. Who really knows, maybe someday we'll do a test and figure out what she really is. All I know is she's 18 lbs of adorable mutt. We love her already and can't wait to go on many adventures with her. I made a video of the day we got her, Greg calls it "Gotcha Day" and some other memories we've already made together :)

Thanks for reading and enjoy the video!

Wendy's video

Lots of love <3 B

B + N (More engagement pictures)

Photos by Ashley Cummings http://www.ashleyjoycephotography.com/

B + N

I've always loved having snapshots and videos of moments in my life, engagement pictures were no exception. I wanted to get pictures of Noah and I taken by someone who I knew could bring out the real us. Ashley was that person, she wasn't afraid to tell us how to pose, what she was trying to bring out in that particular pose and was honest with us when she wanted something better. We really enjoyed our time with her and were so impressed with how the pictures turned out. Here are a few of them :)

Ashley's website: http://www.ashleyjoycephotography.com/

We Made It

After 40 hours of driving, pee breaks, two hotel stays and meals, Noah and I made it to Troy, New York. We drove out in a brand new Penske truck that only had 1,000 miles on it. It was by no means comfortable, but we made it work and got about 15 miles per gallon! We drove through many states, but stayed in Springfield, Missouri and Columbus, Ohio. It was such a beautiful drive, so much greenery, cows, horses and road kill (not beautiful). On the last leg of the trip we hit a pretty bad storm that we were apparently driving with so we had to pull off and hang for a bit so it passed. Thanks to Noah's dad who walked us through that storm and got us safe.

When we made it to the apartment that we set up to move into on the 10th of June we were fairly disappointed. We showed up to an apartment that wasn't ready for us to move into at all. We were also extremely hungry, tired and annoyed from the 40 hour drive. Thank goodness Noah had a back up apartment he'd been living in the past two years so we crashed there a few days until our apartment was ready for us. We got all of our stuff in thanks to Noah's friends and the past few weeks have been focused on making it homey. I didn't realize how much stuff you need to feel comfortable in a new space, but after many Target trips we have made it pretty cozy.

The dining room 

Our fishies: Stuart, Steve, Agnes, Jerry, Bob, Gru, Kevin, Dave, Tim, and Phil 

(If you know where those names are from you're awesome :)) 

Homesickness hasn't been too much of a hardship yet; of course I miss my family, friends and Albuquerque in general, but I've definitely accepted that this is my new home. When I was thinking about living here I was looking forward to being here, but didn't really think through that I'd be home alone when Noah was at work. That's been the hardest part of the adjustment. I'm so used to being a team player, I like working and helping out. I don't start school until the end of August so I have a few months to put some time in somewhere. I had an interview and am hopeful that something pans out soon (fingers crossed).

My new school, Russel Sage 

There isn't too much to update, just been really enjoying being with my fiance. We have been playing lots of Wii, cooking together everyday, enjoying the farmers market that happens every weekend. Just catching up for the two years of lost time :)

Hope everyone is doing great and everyone in Albuquerque, now that I'm no longer there I definitely do appreciate the sunset pictures :D

Lots of love!

B