Happy Holidays friends! What a year it’s been.
2019 was dominated by buying our first home in June. This is obviously a huge milestone, especially after years of roommates and apartment living. It was a stressful process, but overall went fairly smoothly thanks to our amazing realtor, Meryl Bennan, and our banker, Ashley Moore from First Republic. We’re so happy to have landed in the Portola neighborhood of San Francisco, a relatively unknown neighborhood that is super charming and sunny. It seems like it’s up and coming too – The New York Times just called it a “breath of fresh air” last month!
Portola is nicknamed “The Garden District” because it was home to Italian greenhouses until the ’70s. It has a real community feel and lots of sunshine.
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Soooo….we did a thing! @ThePatFiles and I BOUGHT A HOUSE! 🎉🎊🌈 #ASideofHome ❤️
We’re excited to dive into making this house a home. We’ve already ambitious remodeling plans. We started by turning one of the bedrooms into the photography studio of my dreams. From start to finish, Pat did everything – wood floors, painting, crown moulding and electric. The result was absolutely stunning. After years of doing my food photography in the living room, it’s so exciting to have a space to call my own.
Here’s a sneak peek:
The full room reveal will be coming soon! 🙂
Pat and I went to Alaska for the first time for an amazing week in Fairbanks and Denali National Park. We were there during the “midnight sun” – 24 hours of daylight!
We were blown away by Denali National Park. Vehicle traffic is very limited and there is only one road that spans the 6 million acre park. It made the park feel pristine and we saw so much wildlife – including seven grizzly bears in just a few hours. Thankfully these were all from the safety of one of the park buses.
I went to New Orleans for a medical conference and fell in love with the amazing food scene, vibrant culture, and beautiful houses. New Orleans feels somehow similar to San Francisco, but with a hefty dose of southern charm.
As I write this, we’re in the midwest visiting both of our families. It’s so nice to be back home and for some face time (instead of Facetime). My dad has his first grandchild and also five granddogs. Pat’s parents have two grandchildren and one on the way.
I’m continuing my full-time work as a physician in the NICU here in the Bay Area, and I also picked up another part-time job at a hospital in Los Angeles. I’ll be flying down once a month to help them out while they are short-staffed in their NICU. I’m excited for this new adventure! Pat is starting his second year at Levi Strauss. Being back in San Francisco for work means he can commute by bike – rain or shine!
2020 will be packed as we start remodeling our kitchen, with Pat doing most of the construction work himself. Given how amazing my studio turned out, I know it’s going to be an absolute dream when it’s done. We’re headed to Portugal in January and want to do more weekend getaways in the bay area this year.
Love,
Kelly & Pat
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