It’s no surprise to anyone that we loved our apartment and our neighborhood in Brooklyn. I never realized people would make an assumption that we wouldn’t be happy living anywhere else. I’ve had people tell me that they feel bad that we had to move. I figured I’d take a minute to set things straight. I think it’s definitely possible to love two places at the same time. We love New York City. We love Minneapolis. It’s pretty easy. I figured I’d share with you some of the reasons that I’m excited to be in MN.

1. Lakes. There’s so many and they are all so different. I’m excited for cabins, kayaks, fireworks and summer evening strolls.

2. Happiness. According to this article, this is the happiest state in the country.

3. Our People. I think this is probably pretty obvious, but we have nieces, nephews, siblings, parents, extended family and a whole bunch of awesome friends here. It’s nice to be able to grab dinner with a girlfriend instead of planning a few months out for a visit.

4. The airport. MSP is one of my favorite airports. It’s a few minutes from our house, the delays are few and far between because they are used to all weather and I can occupy myself for hours there just wandering around.

5. Breweries. There are so many breweries that have opened in the last few years and I’m so excited to try as many of them as possible.

6. Target. I can drive into a Target parking lot with so much ease.

7. A good Bloody Mary. They are the real deal here. There’s food on a stick in your drink plus you’ll always get a “chaser” of beer in case it’s too spicy.

I’m most excited about getting to explore this state with a whole new state of mind. We learned in New York that we enjoy variety and constantly exploring. When we lived here before, we were stuck in a bit of a routine. We are determined to keep it fresh and get out and explore… but maybe after I’ve gotten used to the winter weather.

Have you ever been to Minnesota? I think I’m going to work on a bucket list like this one I did with NYC. What should I add?