on dec 28th 2019 i sent out an email to my newsletter folks that said…

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“we are proof that He works all things out for our good — and things that other people meant for evil, He can and will use for our good… and if He will do it for us.. He’ll do it for you too!

this morning – ava walked out on to the porch and we heard her singing as she paced back and forth looking out at the sunrise…

“today is a beautiful day…. i got my chance… i got myyyyyyyyy chance….”

and while we have no idea what she meant by that — it settled on our hearts in such a beautiful way!!!

we got our chance!”

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in case you’re asking yourself – what in the world sharon, y’all moved – here are a lot of the questions we’ve been getting and our thoughts!!

1) what is going to happen with the photography business?!?!? — this does not affect my photography business much at all actually… i’ve always photographed sessions/weddings down here in the OBX and it’s always been a part of my marketing plan… as far as my photography team — it just means that we get to have all of our trainings and retreats at the beach now (win)… i would say the biggest change is now no longer having a boudoir studio… i’m currently revamping the entire experience anyway though but i haven’t finalized exactly how things are going to look — but letting go of the studio and the experience change came at such a perfect time because God has been leading my heart in a different direction when it comes to building up women…. so be on the lookout for more details later on about what that means for the ‘boudoir experience’….

2) is chase really going to make that drive to work every day?!!?!? this was one of our early on ‘hesitations’ when we felt called to live down here — so early in 2019 we made lots of trips down to the OBX and even spent an entire week down here so chase could test out the commute… and the answer is yes — he has a flexible work schedule/work hours and due to his current work hours, he completely misses the traffic both ways… he says he loves turning on a podcast by elevation church and getting in his jesus time and by the time it’s over, he’s at work!

3) what about ava’s friends?!!?!? most people probably don’t know, but ava already had a handful of friends down here at the beach — and she has always attended the YMCA stay and play whenever we would come to town…. so now she has friends up and down the east coast — i think that’s pretty cool!!!

4) did you not love smithfield?!?! i’m surprised this has been a common question — but a lot of people haven’t understood why we moved… it definitely wasn’t because we didn’t love smithfield — it’s such a beautiful and charming little town…. but instead of continuing to live the rest of our lives believing we could only live at the beach after we retired — we decided that life was too short and we felt called to move now!!!

5) what about your dogs?!?! with diesel being blind – i am having to carry him up/down the stairs… which is totally fine – he’s such a little mama’s boy and loves being held… i would say torque has had a rougher transition though… he’s been dealing with a couple of infections and is missing his mamaw (chase’s mom) — so we think he’s been acting out a bit… but he’s spoiled rotten and well loved, so he’ll be justtttt fine!!!

6) why aren’t there plastic bags in OBX?!!? i totally didn’t know this either until we moved down here — but there is (and/or was) a ban on plastic bags in the OBX! I’ve seen/heard that the ban may have been lifted; however, most everyone down here still abides by the law of no plastic bags!!!

7) do you live on the beach?!!? we live on the ‘sound side’ for those of you familiar with the area — but we’re less than a 1/4 mile from the beach (and an access) – INSANE!

8) can we see a photo of your house?!?! chase and i have decided that for now – we are not sharing photos of our house in its entirety… while we’re so open and transparent about so many things in our lives — we also want to maintain a small level of privacy in regards to our move… including our address.

9) can we see you when we’re in town?!!? need i remind everyone – that i am still 1002% an introvert LOL…. we are so excited to have a home to invite our loved ones to — but we won’t be on ‘vacation’ mode like most folks when they come in town to visit… ava will still have school during the school year – and chase and i will still be working like normal… so if our schedules allow and we would love to schedule things in – but pretty please with cherries on top understand that while we do live at the beach now, our lives are still the same as they were back in smithfield… just a lot sandier!!! hahaha!

10) doesn’t the island basically shut down in the off season – there’s nothing to do down there?!!? i think this has been my favorite question and comment… mostly because it’s not true.. but also because i grew up in a one stop light town where dairy queen and burger king couldn’t even make it… our grocery store even shut down (i’m so not exaggerating) so me now living in nags head is like HEAVEN… there are so many grocery stores – and SO MANY THINGS TO DO.. and while some of the family owned restaurants are seasonal – it’s still happening down here, trust me!!!

11) what are you going to do about food, sharon!?!?!? and speaking of grocery stores — a lot of y’all have been worried about me having access to food… and would you believe that i actually have MORE access to food that i can eat AND WATER… they actually sell my bottles of water down here — in MULTIPLE locations!!! the convenience of living down here paired with the small town beach vibe — has stolen our hearts for sure!

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i was totally expecting some sort of ‘adjustment’ period — but so far, i’ll be honest, things just feel pretty darn normal… we feel like we’re right where we belong and our neighbors y’all?!?! everyone has been SO warm and welcoming… i think it’s true, people are just happier at the beach haha!!!

— it was a little over a year ago that it settled on our hearts to live by the water and little by little we felt God align our hearts and we started feeling led to the beach… it happened separately with Chase and I and when we finally had a conversation about it – we realized God had been working on both of us… and we didn’t look back… throughout this process over the last year or so, Chase and I have both just felt so much joy and peace over this decision… the desire continued to grow and we were willing to wait for it…  and now — here we are… saying hello from nags head, north carolina!!!