twenty-five.

so earlier this month, i was sitting in an airport, going... somewhere (it's been one of those months!), and i had to take one of those "two-minute surveys" to be able to access the airport's wifi. as part of this quick survey, i was asked which age group i fell into. i hesitated for a few seconds before clicking "25-34 years old."

twenty-five to thirty-four. i'm now one of those people. i've suddenly been thrown into this adult age group, you guys. 

and although i'm not suffering any sort of existential crisis or anything of the like, it is a bit of an adjustment for me. when i think of twenty-five year olds, i think of all sorts of societal norms and expectations. you know, people who have reached their mid twenties are supposed to be able to wake up before ten a.m. without any sense of resentment. they're supposed to have these budding careers and wear socks that match and maybe even have a mortgage. and a few babies! that's what society tells me i should be doing. and while i still fall short on a few (read: all) of these fronts, i also feel like i wouldn't have it any other way. the free spirit in me loves the unconventionality of this life... even if it's only for a season. i'm sure this twenty-five year old will have to grow up sometime, but for now, i'm just enjoying the ride. 

my birthday this year was a bit wild and ridiculously fun. it fell perfectly during the weekend of a sweet friend's wedding. so when she asked us to come out to orange county, california, to shoot the event, we were thrilled. we started the adventure off the night before my birthday, with a late-night transcontinental flight to LAX and four a.m. check-in time at our hotel in orange county... with a little bit of car dancing and an ice cream bar along the way. we spent the weekend pal-ing around with our super cool friends, kirsten + ryan, and the afternoon of my birthday was spent eating the best gluten-free pizza (holler!!!) and then shooting meredith's bridals on the beach. she was a perfect angel bride, and i love friends and creativity and mateo, so naturally it was ideal for me. aaand we finished the night off with a trip to in-n-out and sprinkles ice cream (i can't live without gluten-free cake on my birthday guys; i just can't.) ryan was a gem and drove us all around the whole dang county to get me that ice cream cupcake-- red velvet with vanilla bean ice cream, to be exact. 

after an insanely beautiful wedding on saturday, we headed to the beach to watch the sun set and feel that pacific breeze and talk about important things, like netflix series. we forced our husbands into last-minute, spur-of-the-moment ten-minute portrait sessions on the beach, and i'm really overly thrilled with how they all turned out. thank you, knw photo!!! you know how amazing i think you are. we will love these photos forever and ever.

SUCH A HAPPY BIRTHDAY, YA'LL >>>>>

i wish i could say something excellent or profound about the world and life at this stage of my life. but really, what i can tell you about this beautiful life, is that people matter. it's the joy of human connection and the love that it brings that inspires me, makes me happy, and keeps me going. i feel the best when i am showing love to those around me. similarly, i feel such joy and get such strength from the support and love of my family and friends. on my birthday, i was overwhelmed by the sweet and thoughtful texts i received and by the generous gifts i received. i wish i could've celebrated with you all!

and a special thanks to my mateo for being as sweet as ever in putting forth all efforts to make my birthday magical.

thank you for making my life a pretty wonderful place.