Servus und Herzlich Willkommen! Hi I’m Morgan and I do most of the writing here. I am a civil servant with a background in nursing. I enjoy baking, being active, and cuddling with my dog.
This is my husband Austin. He’s around for the editing, content input, and good looks 😉 . He is a Navy Veteran, video game enthusiast, and sports fan.
Together we enjoy traveling, good conversation, and all things outdoors. We aren’t really sure the full breadth and depth of this blog yet, but hope you will come along for the ride! We promise to (attempt to) keep you entertained with our European Adventures.
How did we end up in Europe? That’s a good story. It all began that fateful day when we met on Tinder in 2015… but really. Long story short, we were both Cincinnati born and raised, but we had never lived there together until 2 years ago when Austin got out of the military. Over the course of our relationship, Austin had lived in Japan while we did long distance then we got married and moved to North Carolina. We did deployments and traveled a lot for leisure as well. When we finally made the decision to leave military life, we made the only logical choice for us and moved to Cincinnati. It was the city we both loved. Family, sports teams, a proud Midwest heritage, and a strong work ethic. We found great jobs, bought a house, and were spending time with our favorite people. What could be wrong with that? Welllll we lovingly refer to Cincinnati as our Shire. You see, once you leave the Shire, you really can’t go back and see it the same way. In the words of Frodo, “There is no real going back. Though I may come to the Shire, it will not seem the same; for I shall not be the same. I am wounded with knife, sting, and tooth, and a long burden.”
Now, I’m not saying we are carrying some crazy burden, but we changed during the time we spent away from home while Austin was in the military. We matured both professionally and personally in ways that most people could not understand. Austin and I became rock solid as a couple, having learned to communicate, forgive, be flexible, and to truly find joy in the time we had together. Furthermore, our hearts had found home in multiple places around the world. Our friends and memories tie us to these places. It’s nearly impossible to explain that to someone who doesn’t know it firsthand. When we returned home to Cincinnati, it became painfully evident how much we had changed, but also that not much at home had. It took us a while to process this and to comprehend what we were longing for. We were seeking fulfilling work, an accepting community, and active living with access to adventure. Realizing that home is simply being together for us, made it clear we wouldn’t be slowing down and planting roots in the traditional sense. This realization opened our eyes to a world of new opportunities.
We are actually very traditionally minded people. We grew up in conservative environments and weren’t about to throw away our achievements to go travel the world without a plan. We desired to integrate and contribute to a community, not to simply pass through. It took a lot of persistence to find something viable that fit this description, but I believe the stars aligned to make our dream a reality. We landed an opportunity to move to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany and make an intentional life change. Germany was always a top destination on our search because Austin and I both have family heritage here. Austin was an exchange student in high school and still speaks German. All in all, this move presented an opportunity to prioritize the things important to us: meaningful work, good food, fun culture, and access to nature in the beautiful Bavarian Alps. We wanted to live a more balanced and healthy lifestyle while we are physically able to do high-adventure things. Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mecca for trail running, skiing, climbing, swimming, biking – you name it. The location would allow us to slow down to enjoy the simple pleasures more regularly. Plus, great accessibility to a whole new world of travel destinations? Sign us up. We do not know exactly how long this will be our home, but while it is, we plan to make the absolute most of it.
Our Daily Prost was an idea born at Hofbräuhaus in Newport, KY prior to our move to Germany. We had worked for months to make this international move a reality and had SO MANY conversations about how it might come to be. We discussed what wasn’t working for us in Cincinnati, what we needed out of our careers, how we could achieve a more balanced life, how our families would react, and topics that were totally off the wall as we navigated this difficult transition in our lives. Then we realized that these conversations were regular for us, but other people might really find them interesting. I have a biased belief that the level of communication we have in our marriage is rare – it is truly something that we enjoy and that comes naturally to us. Right now, we feel extremely lucky to be on an adventure to experience so many beautiful places around the world with each other. If we are living this full and exciting life, why keep it to ourselves or only infrequently take the time to document it? This blog is a commitment to honestly share our ongoing conversations and discoveries. We hope that through our reflections, you will be able to get a glimpse of our joy and find some for yourself.
Keep reading if:
- You want to hear about our adventures living in Europe
- You are someone like us looking to increase travel, joy, and life balance
- You’re a burnt out healthcare worker or transitioning Veteran searching for a place to relate
- You want firsthand travel inspiration or targeted weekend trip itineraries
- You want to hear our random takes on everything (culture, Bengals, relationships, etc.)
- Or if you are like 99% of people here who are family and obligated to stay up to date on our lives 😛