It’s been over a year since my last blogpost and I have some big news! If you’ve been following me on social media, then you know that I got married to the most incredible man I’ve ever met, Lyle Seebeck. Our story of falling in love, getting engaged, and our fairytale wedding (featured in People Mag!) is for another post of its own.
As if me getting married isn’t big enough news, I have some more for you… we’re moving to Europe! Well, not exactly moving-moving, more like we’re being nomadic for the next year.
On our first date in November of 2022, Lyle and I bonded over our love of travel and our desire to do it more often. In 2014 I studied abroad in Amsterdam, and in 2015 Lyle studied abroad in New Zealand. We both said we would want to live abroad again one day.
One month into dating we went on a spontaneous New Year’s Eve trip to Mexico. The evening we arrived, Lyle pulled out a card and a jade butterfly pin and asked me to (officially) be his girlfriend. Since meeting, we’ve traveled to Mexico twice, Ireland, Japan, and all over the US together.
Before Lyle and I became engaged in April of 2023, we talked often about the idea of moving abroad. The dream scenario would be a year of living in four different continents, for three months each. Afterward we’d “settle down” in one place and start a family.
Within the 14 months from engagement to our wedding, there was no time to plan a move abroad, and due to the time difference with Lyle’s work schedule, we knew it wouldn’t be possible to live in places such as Australia or Asia - so there went that 4 continents for 3 months at-a-time plan.
We knew prior to our wedding weekend that we’d have to move out of our apartment, as our 22 month lease would be expiring and the rent was to be raised – and we were already wanting to lower the amount of rent we were paying.
When we got back to LA after the wedding, Lyle and I sat down to discuss what we wanted our next few years to look like: what were our top goals, how can we achieve them, etc. On the top of both of our lists was more travel.
I had started looking at a few apartments in LA and wasn’t impressed or interested in any of them. Buying a house isn’t currently in the cards for us, and with the housing inflation bubble yet to burst, I brought up the idea of moving to Europe. At first, Lyle felt we should wait a year so we could get back on a routine and get back on our feet financially post-wedding.
When we got home from the beach on the 4th of July, of all days, we had a serious conversation about what our life would look like if we moved to Europe. A huge plus with booking long term Airbnb is the discount they give for staying over 30 days in one place. We’d be paying way less in rent (even with our US storage unit factored in). As we looked into the logistics further we realized that (depending on the city) European living would be the same, if not cheaper, than living in LA. “Plus getting to travel? It’s an awesome deal!” says Lyle.
We quickly realized that the time to do this is now, and if we could actually pull it off, it’d be the experience of a lifetime. That night we decided to commit to doing this. We shook on it and sealed it with a kiss.
Knowing we had to be out of our apartment in mid-August, and wanting to come back for the holidays, we figured we could do three months (the max stay without a visa in most European countries) in one city to test this all out. But which city would we spend our time in?
Although I held onto the idea of living in the Netherlands again, I realized that I can’t relive the exact experience I had when I studied there. I’ve put that time in my life up on a pedestal, and this is an opportunity to do something different.
Lyle has been taking Spanish on Duolingo for almost two years, so living in a Spanish-speaking country was important to him. We considered Barcelona vs. Madrid. In Barcelona they speak Catalan, and are currently having some tension with tourists. We agreed Madrid would be best for us. Here’s the thing though; there are so many places we want to visit! If we lived in one city for three months we’d be traveling most of the time, and committing to an entire three months in one place that we didn’t know we’d like didn’t seem to make sense.
We quickly came to the conclusion that we could live in three cities for 5 weeks each, and then come home for Christmastime. Our three cities became Paris, Madrid, and Lisbon.
On the morning of July 13th, we bought our one way flight to Paris, and booked our first Airbnb. That afternoon, while at a birthday party for my friend Jana, Trump was shot in the ear. It felt affirming that this is the perfect time for us to take a break from the US. But fear not! We will be sending in an absentee ballot and voting for our girl Kamala; whose rise to the top makes me overwhelmed with emotion. A female leader of the free world is upon us! I don’t want to be let down again, but I am so hopeful we will finally see the day where a woman leads our country.
Lyle and I have no kids, no pets, and no true ties to LA right now. Okay yes, my mom and family and friends live there and my career goals are still to conquer Hollywood and change it for the better – but with the industry is still recovering from Covid and the SAG/WGA strikes, and given that I’ve already networked my ass while living in LA, it was time to take a break.
In January of 2017, I made my dream of moving back to LA come true. I could have never predicted the way the next 7.5 years would play out - but I wouldn’t change any of it. While writing this blogpost, I re-visited my previous posts from when I was moving to LA. My sights were set on a clear vision, big goals, and an unwavering confidence in myself.
I want to get back to that level of belief in myself. Don’t get me wrong, I still believe in myself and feel in my core that I will get to where I want to be in my career, but while living in LA I've been knocked down and am constantly surrounded by competition.
As we made the decision to move, I felt that I was running away from failure, or that I already failed. With help from Lyle and my therapist and others, I realized that wasn’t the truth. Upon reflection I see now just how much I have accomplished in my time living in Los Angeles.
I’ve sold a movie about my life that’s set to film sometime soon. I’ve finished two movie scripts, a TV show pilot episode, a book proposal, and am working on a new script idea. I’ve walked renowned red carpets such as the Golden Globes and Cannes Film Festival and have partied with A-list stars. I’ve modeled in numerous ad campaigns and had my face on billboard placements. I’ve been flown around the world for speaking engagements.
I’ve made and lost friends. I’ve worked in various jobs. I’ve moved into better and better apartments, even making enough money to furnish my single-girl apartment to my own liking. I’ve dated and had break ups. I found Lyle by a chance encounter. I found a local coffee shop that’s a safe space for me to have as my home base office. I’ve paid off a big chunk of my college loans (yet am still in college-loan debt).
Moving from New York to be in Los Angeles during my 20s was my dream. In many ways, I’ve done the things I’ve set out to do and made my dreams come true. And yet I still have more to make into a reality.
So what are our plans now? After we sold a bunch of our furniture and packed our remaining belongings into boxes to keep in a storage unit in LA, we packed up our car and set out on our cross-country road trip! I’m currently writing this from the road!
We moved out on August 16th and drove down to visit with my Grandparents for a few days. Then we drove 13 hours across to Santa Fe, New Mexico to spend another few days with my brother and his family. Afterward, we drove up and over to Chicago (with a nights-stay in Omaha, Nebraska) with a total driving time of 20 hours. We visited with Lyle’s family, or rather our family, and some friends. We left our car there with one of Lyle’s brothers, Ray. We finalized what we were taking with us to Europe, and between the two of us have four checked bags, two carry-ons, and two personal bags (wish us luck lugging them all around)!
Then we flew to New Jersey for a friend of mine from high school's wedding on Sept 1st. Now we’re spending a few days in New York City, staying at my oldest family-friends apartment on the UWS. We’re seeing friends and have our final farewell party before flying to Paris on September 7th!
We’ll be home in the US toward the end of December, and we have tentative travel plans for 2025 too, including our official honeymoon, but I’ll share that in a follow up post. We have a friend’s wedding in The States in June 2025, so we’ll most likely come back to the US around then (just in time for my birthday)!
If we aren’t ready to buy a house, or start the process of having kids, or if I’m not crazy busy on sets making movies; then we may go back to Europe in the fall of 2025. Who knows? But that’s the fun of it! I never thought the nomad life would be for me. But here we are. It’s amazing how the right person, the right relationship, can change you for the better and help you live life while still accomplishing your dreams and making more of them come true.
While Lyle works remotely, I’ll be strutting around the streets of Europe, creating content, and hopefully finding a new home base cafe to write at. I also plan on posting podcast episodes I filmed while still in LA, and continuing to “pod as I go” so stay tuned for that!
I know in my soul that my story in LA isn’t over. I still have so many goals to accomplish, and a lot of them involve me being in La La Land.
LA, I love you. As I mentioned in my recent Instagram caption, this isn’t a goodbye, it’s a see you later.
xx CR(S)