Starting my Blog

My name is Madeline Duncan, and I am a newlywed living in Eugene, Oregon with my husband, Corbin, and my cat, Haze. I have wanted to start a blog for a couple of years now and am finally pulling the trigger. I want to use this space as my online journal where I authentically share things I love, pieces of my life, and the stuff I am passionate about. First, I want to start by sharing a little bit about who I am.

My husband, Corbin, and I have grown up in Eugene, Oregon with our families. Our families are a huge part of our life, and part of the reason our roots and forever home will be here in Eugene! I have been a nanny for the past five years and am currently pursuing my real estate license. Corbin is a Home Loan Officer assistant under his mom, and his dad and sister also work for the same mortgage firm. I got so lucky when I met Corbin, in a bar, but that will have to be saved for another blog post. I truly married into the best family! My dad is a high-risk Obstetrician in town, and my mom has always been our on duty parent at home.

I graduated from the University of Oregon in 2017 with a degree in Family and Human Services with an Early Childhood Emphasis and a minor in Special Education. This is what led me to being a nanny these past five-plus years. Because I did not graduate and go straight into a teaching position, I was able to take a couple of years to focus on traveling. It was truly a dream, and one of the best decisions I have made for myself. Taking every spare moment and dollar to travel for those couple of years lit a fire inside me. One of the things in life I am most passionate about now and excited to share with you is my experience and pure love of traveling.

I got pretty used to a "fun" lifestyle after my traveling and decided I no longer wanted to go into a teaching position once I settled back down. So on top of nannying, I decided to start working at my Grandparent’s winery in Lake Oswego, Oregon called Oswego Hills Winery. I added in some nights where I would work events for some of their vendor friends as well. I took over the wineries social media pages and started helping them come up with marketing ideas. Working in the tasting room made me curious to start learning more about wine.

My dad and I decided it would be fun to educate ourselves, so we went through wine courses, took a trip to Napa California, and then flew to Nashville for a weekend to get certified with the level two of the Wine and Spirits Educational Trust. Our education and experiences focused on wine knowledge, tasting, and enjoyment more than the alternative sommelier certification that focuses heavily on service. I was also able to combine both my love of travel and wine and went to New Zealand with my older brother to wine taste throughout the Central Otago wine region. Then later that year, my family took a trip to Italy where we drank our way through the incredible wines of Tuscany. Wine has now become a passion of mine and something I want to share with you all on here, even if it's simply my favorite inexpensive rosé of the season!

Working at Oswego Hills Winery

Three day trek to Machu Picchu

Traveling through Italy

Beach life in Jamaica

Hiking through New Zealand

Exploring Walla Walla Wineries

Studying wine in Napa Valley

Honeymooning in Cabo San Lucas

Wine tasting near home!

Urban wine tasting in Eugene

Along with me sharing my love and knowledge of wine, and travel, I would love to connect with you on the other pieces of my life I find passion in. A huge part of that is my love of social media that truly created my deeper love and appreciation of fashion.

I have always loved social media. From updating my Facebook statuses to loving every phase of my Instagram self (even the poorly edited, cropped, blurry posts). My main goal with social media has always been to authentically show my life. I try to be someone who not only shows all the pretty, happy, exciting, and aesthetic things of my day to day but also the struggle-filled reality that comes with life. I want to continue this authenticity on this platform as well. I want you to know that everything I share is one hundred percent me! Over time, I have gotten more and more into fashion. When I started out on Instagram the only people I followed were my friends and now it's mostly other bloggers who truly understand the world of fashion. I will be using this blog to share this passion with you!

As I continue with this blogging journey I will figure out where I fit into the blogging world more and more. For now, I will be using this space to authentically share whatever excites me each week. Whether it's the new recipe my husband and I cook, a weekend guide to a cute Oregon town, my favorite place to shop for affordable jeans, or something I am struggling with. Just know that I am here to not only share my thoughts, and tips but also to engage with you! I hope this blog inspires you and teaches you that none of us are perfect but as long as we stay positive and keep chugging along things will be just fine. Talk to you soon!

XOXO,

Madeline