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Why Jackie loves Orlando, and you can too!

I can’t believe it’s Wednesday. This week is just going to fly by!

Today, our guest blogger comes to us from sunny ol’ Florida. I love having guest bloggers over here in the first place, but I always get so excited when I don’t know what they are going to post about. My favorite part of this series is seeing what people love and how they think we can as well. All of these things make us unique and is a fun way for us to learn about each other!

So without further ado…here is Jackie…

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Hey everyone! I’m so excited to get the chance to guest blog here at Colors of Life. Molly was one of the first bloggers I ever started following and I love keeping up with her!

My name is Jackie and I blog over at My (Sort Of) Adult Life where I share memories with friends and family, my favorite recipes and anything else I love. I’m a proud dog mama, fiance, coffee lover and slight TV addict. I’m a Florida girl and I’ve lived in Orlando my whole life. Most people only think of Disney World or Universal Studios when they think of Orlando but there is so much more to do here! Today, I’m going to tell you about some of my favorite things our city has to offer.

Lake Eola

My very favorite part of the city is Lake Eola in the heart of downtown. It’s a great place to go for a walk, feed the ducks or you can try the paddle boats. They also have a huge Farmer’s Market every Sunday. The best part is it’s really dog friendly!

Sports

Our sports teams may not be the top dogs but the games are tons of fun. You can catch a Magic or Solar Bears game at the Amway Arena, which is huge and so nice! My personal favorite is the UCF Games, Go Knights! And we just added a soccer team and those games are incredible to be a part of.

Brunch

Orlando is a great place for foodies. You can seriously find any cuisine here and there is no shortage of amazing brunch spots! Some of my favorites are Dexter’s, KASA, Santiago’s Bodega & Soco. We also just got a Sugar Factory which I can’t wait to try!

Escape Rooms

We have a few different Escape Rooms around the area, which are perfect for a puzzle lover like me. If you’ve never been in one, it’s basically a themed room that you get locked in and have to solve a bunch of puzzles to get out of within a certain amount of time (usually an hour). It’s a great group activity!

Dinner Theaters

Another entertaining outing is our dinner theaters. We have a Pirate’s Dinner Adventure, Medieval Times Dinner Show and my personal favorite, Slueths Mystery Dinner Show. What can I say, I’m an amateur detective, I really like mysteries and puzzles!

So, next time your in town, even if you come to hang out with Mickey, I hope you’ll venture out and try some of these other activities! Follow along with me and all of my Orlando adventures!

Thanks again Molly for hosting me!

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Ahhhhh, thank you so much for sharing your city with us. I WANT WHATEVER THE FOOD IN THAT PICTURE IS! It looks like you have such a blast there!

Everyone go check out her blog and say hi! Thanks again for posting for me this week, Jackie! 🙂

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Why Jacquelyn loves sewing, and you can too!

Happy Tuesday!

Like I said yesteryda, while I am out on spring break this week i’ve called in the reinforcements to help me out. AKA other bloggers who have something that they love and want to share with you! It’s been 2 months since we’ve had a guest blogger and I figured what better week than while i’m vacationing??

Jacquelyn is coming to you from The Lowcountry Mama and I am very excited to share her with you today. You might remember the name because just last week I was over on her blog. She’s got a sweet little girl and also works at home, plus she’s one super creative mama…you’ll see what i’m talking about…and not to mention she happens to be the sweetest ever for making my blog button.

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Love.

You can grab it on my sidebar by the way 😉

Okay, drumroll, here she is!!!

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Hey everyone! I’m Jacquelyn and I blog over at The Lowcountry Mama. I write about life in Charleston, motherhood, natural living, recipes and DIY projects. I’m so excited to be guest posting for Molly! When she gave me this prompt I immediately knew that I would write about sewing.. something I’ve been doing for as long as I can remember. It’s something I do daily, and it used to be my hobby but now it is my business! Here are just a few reasons why I love it:

Artsibaby Sewing Room | Handmade Baby Slippers

The Possibilities + Creativity

Once you know how to sew, the possibilities are endless. You’re able to create anything you can think of! I go kind of crazy in the fabric store.. obviously..

Reasons to Love Sewing | The Lowcountry Mama

Saving Money

I can’t even begin to estimate how much money I’ve saved over the years as a result of being able to sew. When I see something I like in a store but it’s too expensive, I’m able to create my own version at home. Instead of spending hundreds on custom curtains, I can buy some fabric on sale and whip them up myself. Need a wardrobe refresh? I can go into my fabric stash and sew a maxi skirt real quick! After having my baby I decided to sew my own cloth diapers, and the amount of money that has saved our family is huge.

Reasons to Love Sewing | The Lowcountry Mama

Making Everything Custom

I love being able to make everything to my exact specifications without limits. For example, I designed and sewed my prom dress in high school, assuring that it would fit perfectly and pulling bits and pieces of inspiration that I liked from multiple other dresses! For home decor, I love being able to go to the store and find fabric that matches my decorating style exactly. I sewed a slipcover for my ugly black leather office chair and I sewed these curtains to match.

Reasons to Love Sewing | The Lowcountry Mama

The ability to repair things

I absolutely can’t stand throwing things out.. especially old clothes that can be mended or adjusted if they don’t fit anymore. I regularly repair our jeans and have taken in a few dresses for myself and others over the years

Reasons to Love Sewing | The Lowcountry Mama

And best of all..

Sewing is relatively easy to learn!

I basically taught myself when I was younger, and took some basic sewing classes in high school. Other than that, I’ve just experimented with various techniques, fabrics, e.t.c. and fell in love with it.

Hope to see some of you over at my blog! Thanks for having me guest post Molly!

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You make me really wish I knew how to sew. My mom knows how but it just looks so complicated and I feel like even though you said it’s easy to learn, I would have a tough time. I do agree that it saves a lot of money! Window treatments and things like that add up for sure!

Seriously…what you have made is AMAZING!! You have such a talent, Jacquelyn! Thank you for sharing it with us today!!!!

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Why Haley loves Thrifting, and you can too!

Good morning y’all!

Today I am excited for several reasons.

1.It’s Spring Break and i’m on vacation right now.
2. I’ve got some guest bloggers coming to ya this week.
3. Today i’m introducing you to Haley.

So here’s the thing with Haley. We were BEST friends growing up. From when I moved to Texas at age 6, and she moved to the house at the top of the street we were inseparable. You would have found me at Haley’s house more than my own. I have so, so, so many memories with her and there will be times I just randomly think of something we would do or that remind me of her and I get sad. Because why do we have to grow up and get old????? She now lives in Ohio where she’s finishing up her degree so I don’t see her anymore. I saw on Facebook that she recently started a blog and knew that the next time I had a guest blogger she was going to be asked! I love that so many of my friends are becoming bloggers now. (I forgot to upload an old picture of us before I left for vacation! :()

She blogs over at JustHaley.com from anything ranging from her personal life, photography, being a vegan, and her health and fitness journey. I am super proud of everything she has accomplished!!! Today she is talking about thrifting and I can’t wait for you to read!

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Hi friends! My name is Haley and my little corner of the internet is at JustHaley.com. A big thanks to Molly for asking me to participate in her “Why I love ____, and you can too” series. I love the idea of sharing what we love and giving it as a gift to others.

I’ve always been obsessed with clothes and fashion since I was a little girl. As I got older though the clothes started to get more expensive and I couldn’t always afford the styles I wanted at retail price.

Whenever we would grow out of our old clothes we always donated them. When I was 10, I asked my mom where the clothes go, and she showed me the Goodwill store.

It was then that I discovered thrifting and my life was changed.

I hardly ever buy new clothes anymore. It actually pains me to spend more than $10 on a piece of clothing. Sometimes it’s necessary, but I would rather hunt for unique styles than just buy things off the mannequin.

Thrifting is definitely more of skill than people think though. It takes patience, good judgment, and an eye for style in a sea of mundane drapes, wildly printed shirts, shoulder padded jackets, and everything denim.

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Saving Money

Obviously the best part about thrifting is that everything is SO cheap. The last time I went thrifting I was in search of office clothes for my internship and I came out with 2 pairs of pants, 2 blouses, and 2 shirts for $15. Not to mention they all were in immaculate condition, some still had the tags on them. If I had paid retail price for these items, it would have easily been over $100. I’m pretty sure no amount of coupons could ever get me $85 in savings. Feel free to challenge that idea though.

The Hunt

You never know what you’ll find at a thrift store. Thrifting is like searching for buried treasure. You might be searching for awhile, but once you find that piece you were looking for, and only pay $3 for it, you’ll feel a great sense of accomplishment knowing that you didn’t settle for something that costs 10 times more. Even if you aren’t looking for a specific thing, it is still just as fun to go in and see what you find. Get $20 from grandma for your birthday? Challenge yourself to see how many things you can buy for that $20 at the thrift store. I did this challenge with my boyfriend and we got some awesome stuff like a 1980s Rainbow Polaroid and a waffle iron. Because who doesn’t love waffles?

Some of my thrift store finds:

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Helping Out Mother Earth

Did you know that about 90% of the clothing purchased in the U.S. comes from abroad? That means that new sweater at the department store traveled thousands of miles and used tons of energy to get into your closet, polluting the air with carbon emissions. There is also lots of packaging associated with new clothing that ends up in landfills. With secondhand clothes, housewares and other products, you are reducing your carbon footprint and following the basics of environmental friendliness: reduce, reuse, recycle.

Being Unique

As a lover of fashion, I’m always looking for the next big trend. What I love most about thrifting is the challenge of taking old clothes and making them fit modern trends. “Vintage looking” clothing is a super popular trend right now that retail stores are trying to sell for at least 3 times the price of the thrift store. But why pay that when you can get the same look or better for less? Sometimes you’ll finds items that aren’t sold in a retail store to put together a genuine, unique look that will have your friends asking where you got your outfit from. You can decide to tell them the truth or not.

I hope this helps you learn a little bit more about thrifting and inspires you to check out your local thrift store. If you wanna learn more about saving money, awesome healthy recipes, beauty and life hacks, and fitness tips, click on over to JustHaley.com. I also post on Instagram daily. Another big thanks to Molly for letting me express my love for thrifting on her site!

Best,

Haley Baker
justhaley.com

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Haley, I am so glad you agreed to guest blog for me!! I feel like I know everything about you, but this is something I didn’t know 🙂

I agree 100% though! I’ve mentioned on my blog that I don’t like spending money on clothes. I would so much rather do something than get something. This is probably why we always got along so well though…the fun of the hunt for 5 pieces of clothing under $15 sounds right up my alley.

Thank you again!!

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Follow me…

…and my Simplified Planner on over to The Low Country Mama as i’m guest posting today. You’ll have to go over there to see what about 🙂

Happy Wednesday!

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Why Alexandra loves Photography, and you can too!

Hi friends! It’s guest blogger week and we’ve got Alexandra over here to talk about her love of Photography! I asked her to guest blog for me a while ago and the next thing I knew her post was in my inbox. She’s on top of her stuff. Then, I got an e-mail from her asking me to guest blog so I did…5 things I love about Texas. Go look today too!

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Hello everyone! I’m Alexandra and I blog over at myurbanfamily.com. I’m thrilled to be guest posting for Molly – especially because I love her “why I love ___, and you can too” prompts. I’ve read all the others and as soon as she asked me, I knew I wanted to write about photography.

I am a huge photography nerd. While I do try to keep my obsession to a minimum, if you get me started I can gab about cameras, lenses and my favorite locations to photograph around Chicago all day long. I am also that friend that pulls out her dSLR anytime someone mentions taking a photo – you know, instead of my phone.

So why do I love photography so much? Because it is the perfect way to be artsy/creative, sentimental, expressive, and aware of your surroundings all at once. It can also pique your curiosity, and make you look at the world a different way.

Being Artsy

So many of my friends tell me that they’re just not good at art and can’t be artsy. But photography is the perfect introduction to get in touch with your artsy side. And if you have a smartphone, you really have no excuse as to why you can’t start trying! I know by saying that anyone can do photography with a smartphone I may make a few photographers angry. But I have a BFA in photography and I still feel very strongly that anyone with any tool can create art – it just takes time and effort.

Being Sentimental

What better way to capture a moment than with a photograph? The older I get the faster time seems to be moving but I am so grateful that I’ve always taken lots of photographs along the way. It’s a perfect way for me to look back and reminisce, laugh, and just be reminded of why I am so lucky each and every day.

Expressing Yourself

Photography is a great tool to help you express yourself. I know my mood always shows through my photographs and I’m sure if you went out and took some photos you would be surprised at how much yours does as well. When I’m in a great mood I tend to come home with bright photos that are zoomed out, showing a lot of the world in front of me. When I happen to go out in a bad or sad mood with my camera, I tend to come home with darker, more dramatic shots. At first I didn’t notice the correlation, but over time it’s become more and more obvious.

Being Aware of Your Surroundings

Walking down the street with a destination in mind and walking down the street with a camera in your hand can be two totally different experiences. With a lense in front of you, seeing the world around you and really soaking it in can be so much easier. The camera gives you that extra excuse to quite literally stop and smell the roses – and then take a photo of them.

Those are just a few of the reasons I love photography and think you can too! To give you a taste of my photography, here is one of my favorite recent shots:

A photo posted by My Urban Family (@myurbanfamily) on Oct 25, 2015 at 4:27pm PDT

I would love for you to follow along on my Instagram or my other social media outlets: Facebook // Twitter // Pinterest // Bloglovin!

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Thanks for blogging over here today, Alexandra! I always wished I had an eye for photography. I love, love, love pictures – you can ask my family and friends haha they get so annoyed! And I love everything you said about photography today, especially about it being sentimental!

Ps if you’ve missed any part of this series about what we love, check them out:

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Why Shelly loves Giving To Others, and you can too!

Wow, I can’t believe it is Wednesday and tomorrow is New Year’s Eve. This week flew by!

Today I have another guest blogger for you. This is Shelly and she is The Queen In Between! I’m so happy that she agreed to guest blog for me. I found Shelly’s blog like i’ve found most of yours, through a link-up. Whenever I first find someone’s blog, I love to stalk their blog. I just want to find out everything about this person! As you all know, I looovveeee me some baseball. So one thing that really drew me in was that Shelly has a son who played for TCU and then signed to the Astros, so not only is that awesome, but we both love baseball! And have been to the CWS in Omaha! I love that she is always radiating positivity (check out her Queen Bees link-up). Her comments always, always put a smile on my face. And she just has a kind soul. You’ll see what i’m talking about when you finish reading this post 🙂 She also has 2 boys and 2 girls, just like my family. And she is a Texan also! Woohoo! Although she does like the Aggies, but I chose to forgive her for that 😉

Alright, so check it out. This is why she loves giving to others!

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When Molly approached me I was so honored but could not think immediately of a thing to write about. I love being a mom, love working out, love being busy but none of those things were feeling like a good fit. This time of year one of the biggest things on our hearts at our house is being kind to others. Giving back in small ways is something I have truly found fills a void in my heart way bigger than receiving gifts has ever done. I knew this had to be my thing! So, here is why I love giving to others, and you can too!

The thing about giving is it doesn’t have to be extravagant or time consuming. I always thought I needed to put in the heavy hours of volunteer work or be on the front lines at every event to really make a difference. The first step for me was really identifying the gift I have already been given by God that allows me to give back to others. I am blessed to have a college education and a great job. Many times the way I can give back is writing a check but let’s be honest that is not always the most fun. Because I work outside the home, being away from my kids in the evenings too much is not really where I need to be ether. What has worked for our family is finding a way to give back together!

There are endless possibilities in your community to give back. Here are a few near and dear to our hearts.

The Brazos Valley Foodbank is the local distribution center. I became involved with the board after realizing just how many people are food insecure in our community which included quite a few children at my kids own school. The food bank has a backpack program in which they sack up canned goods to be delivered to the local schools and sent home with children on Fridays in a discreet backpack. By allowing children and parents volunteer opportunities to actually put these bags together has really opened all our eyes to how blessed we are and how easy it is to volunteer a few hours of your time to bless others.

Every Christmas season one of our favorite ways to volunteer is by ringing the Salvation Army bell. The kids have been doing this since they were very young and honestly the younger kids really pull the biggest donations! Sometimes the weather stinks and sometimes there are passersby who are not so full of Christmas cheer but having the opportunity to smile and offer kind words to others while serving the Salvation Army always leaves us feeling a little more blessed.

It doesn’t take a huge amount of money to make a difference in someones day either. We try to find little unexpected ways to spread a little kindness all year long as you just never know when just the right person may receive this blessing. Here are a few easy ways to spread joy!

Buy a candy bar or $5 gift card for the cashier checking you out
Purchase a bouquet of carnations and hand them out one by one to random strangers
Pay for someone’s meal in a drive through line
Even better, pay for someones meal in a restaurant and watch as they find out their meal is free!
Over tip your waitress……even a bad one!
Write kind words on post it notes and leave them in unsuspecting places
Leave quarters taped to a vending machine or a bag of popcorn taped to the redbox machine

The possibilities are endless really and once you open your heart to thinking this way you will see so many opportunities! There are so many people hurting in this world and so many people just looking for another human to take the time to say “hey, I see you and you do matter”. So the next time you see a cashier who looks like they are having a crappy day, instead of rushing quick to judge their behavior hand them a candy bar with a smile. You will be surprised at the response you receive!

Lastly, I will encourage you to give with a loving heart free of strings. I spent much of my life giving only to realize I set expectations on the gift. Recognition of some sort was required for me to feel my gift was worthy. If you decide to give, do so with only the joy you feel in your heart as the repayment you need. I promise, you will be blessed tenfold.

So yeah, I love giving back and you will too!!

Thanks so much Molly for allowing me to stop by and share a little of my heart!

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Thank you for your AMAZING ideas, Shelly! I love one of the things you mentioned especially well. I went back to my waitressing job while classes are out for the month and was over-tipped last night. I can’t begin to tell you how much this truly does make someone’s day. Later in the night, I had a co-worker come up to me randomly and give me a $5 bill. I told him I wasn’t going to keep it so I gave it back to him. When I came out of the kitchen from rolling silverware I found the $5 bill on one of my tables and he was nowhere to be found. That $5 probably meant nothing to him, but it meant $500 to me. It truly is the little things!

Ps if you’ve missed any part of this series about what we love, check them out:

Category:

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5 Things I Love About…

….about WHAT?

Follow Sam Houston over to Alexandra’s blog to find out! Ah, I love when you ladies ask me to guest blog, it makes me so happy. Thanks for asking today, Alexandra!!!

XOXOX

Happy Friday, my friends!

Update: it will be posted next Wednesday now!

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Guest Bloggers

Why Lauren loves Traveling, and you can too!

Happy guest blogger Thursday!!

By now I don’t have to tell you that this is my favorite day of every other week. Today, Lauren is over here talking about something she loves, and how we all can too! Lauren makes me smile every. single. morning. At night before bed I set my blog to post around 4:00-5:00 AM. As soon as my alarm goes off in the morning I open up my phone and see a bunch of red notifications for e-mails, so I open them. And without fail (except when she was traveling…ironic), my first blog e-mail is one saying “Lauren commented on your post”. It’s so fun waking up to every day. Lauren and I are close to the same age (as a lot of us are), so I find I really connect with her on that level too. And now i’m getting all sappy, ha!

I just love all of you, my readers, so much. 🙂

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Hey y’all, thanks so much for having me, Molly! I feel honored, humbled, and excited to be apart of such a great series of bloggers. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading about each blogger’s passions. I love to hear what makes each of us unique! But before I start, let me introduce myself. I’m the Post Grad, but you can call me Lauren, and I blog at Post Grad in Progress. I usually am covering what it’s like to be fresh out of college with a real job in a new city with some decorating, DIY, and recipes thrown in for good measure. Come join me on this adventure!

When Molly approached me about writing this post it was clear to me what I should write about…traveling. Traveling is something that defines my now 23 years of life. I’ve hardly traveled in comparison to the immensity of the world but that’s something I hope to remedy for the rest of my life. So today, I’m going to share some of the places I loved!

I admittedly have not done the best job about traveling within the United States. But this past spring my college roommate and I traveled to San Diego. I fully recapped our trip in 2 parts here and here. Check it out! Some of the best spots from my trip were…

Seeing the Pacific Ocean for the first time and eating a delicious breakfast at Pacific beach…

…and visited the famous zoo…

…and walked around beautiful La Jolla.

If you get the opportunity, visit San Diego, I promise you won’t regret it!

If you’re looking to travel internationally Brussels, Belgium should be on your list. Brussels stole my heart with it’s quintessential old European charm. The people are amongst the warmest and kindest I’ve ever encountered.

The food is insanely delicious too!

If you’re traveling alone or for the first time Belgium is a great place to visit. Most of the locals speak English, it is very safe and clean, and it’s pretty tourist friendly. I also visited Brugge and Ghent while in Belgium as well. All of my Belgian recaps are here and here.

I’ve always beat to my own drum. So it wasn’t surprising to me that when given the opportunity to study abroad in Russia for 2 weeks, I jumped. I had been looking for a short study abroad opportunity my junior year but could never figure out where I wanted to go. I didn’t want to go to a typical place so Russia was the best fit for me! I would definitely encourage anyone to visit Russia. It was an incredible experience.

I’ve hit some of the highlight cities of Europe but Russia is such a unique culture. It’s a completely different world and pace of life over there. It was so great to contrast my European travels with this trip.

It’s important to venture out and see parts of the world that aren’t as polished and idealized. It’s humbling and teaches you so much. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend traveling by yourself to Russia though because it is a huge culture shock. It isn’t as tourist friendly as other areas of the world. I skimmed the highlights of my trip here.

I’ve also had the opportunity to travel to Spain, France, London, and Scotland. All of my trips enriched my life in some capacity. A couple of tips that I learned from my trips…

1. To set reasonable expectations. Traveling isn’t always easy. It’s expensive, exhausting, and challenging. Of course, it’s one of the most rewarding experiences in life but it doesn’t come without hurdles. I dedicated a whole post to touching on this. Check it out here.

2. Europe is a great place to visit because you can hit a lot of great cities and countries all within one trip. Utilize the trains that can travel within a country and internationally! I was able to do day trips using the trains. I talked about this tip and a couple others here.

3. Utilize staying in Airbnb. You get a larger space for a lower price! Also, it gives you a point of contact in an overwhelming new place. I talked about it in depth here.

4. Pack a lot of layers and pieces that can be mixed and matched. Weather in Europe is all over the place. It tends to be chilly and rainy but other days its sunny and hot. You have to be prepared for all situations! Also, you’re taking so many pictures that you don’t want to remember how you wore yoga pants at the Eiffel Tower…am I right!?! I unpacked my suitcase here.

Well there are some of my tips and experiences with traveling! I hope that y’all took away something to help you or inspire you! Thanks again Molly for having me! As always check out my blog every Monday, Wednesday, Friday to see what I’m up to! xoxo

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Lauren, thank you for guest blogging over here today. I’m ready to take a trip…who’s in with me??? I say we all travel to one city and meet up 🙂

Ps if you’ve missed any part of this series about what we love, check them out:

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Why Erika loves Online Shopping, and you can too!

Morning!

I am suuuuuuper excited about today’s guest blogger. Y’all know her and love her just like I do.

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Drum roll please….it’s Erika visiting with us from A Little Bit of Everything Blog. One of the reasons I am so excited about having her over here is because I know the majority (if not all) of you read her blog religiously like I do. Another reason is because of her positive, uplifting spirit and the #keepinitreal mentality of her posts. I mean we need that in blog world. I can’t say enough good things about her – from what I feel like I know of her. So here we go friends, enjoy!

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Hi Girls! I’m Erika over at A Little Bit of Everything Blog, where I blog just that…a little bit of everything. 🙂 When Molly asked me to share something I loved with all of you, I had NO clue what I’d share. Then I sat down to order a couple Christmas presents online and realized my new found love of one simple click and the presents arriving at your door HAD to be shared!

I’ve always been a lover of crowds. Seriously…sign me up for some Black Friday shopping. For the discounts and sales? Yes! But more importantly for the CROWDS! I get a rush when those doors are opened and hundreds (maybe thousands) of us are hurrying inside the doors to get $15.00 off the latest toy. hahaha! I love it, but some of you reading this are sweating! ha!

This year I accidentally signed up for Amazon Prime (the free two-day shipping program with Amazon). When I realized I’d already purchased the membership, I was determined to get my money’s worth in free shipping and two-day orders. So…I began ordering Christmas presents.

Ladies, I have to tell you….it’s SO stinkin’ nice!!

Here are some reasons I love online shopping:

*It’s CRAZY easy!

*I save so much time.

*You can price compare, but easier and quicker than running from store to store.

*You don’t have to shower?! Can I get an “Amen”?? 🙂

*This might be my very favorite reason…how many times in the store do they NOT have your size?? Online-there are usually every size in stock.

And maybe a little too often…I order things for myself and not just for others. 🙂

Please come visit me over at A Little Bit of Everything.…I’m asking my readers over there, “What They’re Thankful For” and I’m not talking the big things like family, salvation, and health. I’m looking for those small things…like a neighbor who brought us dinner or a husband who gave me a night off. I think if we all share our little things we just might realize we have WAY more to be thankful for. 🙂

Thanks so much for having me over today, Molly!!! XOXO

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Erika, thank YOU so much for guest blogging today. I was so thankful when you said yes. It’s fun learning about what some of our favorite bloggers love…and better yet why they love it! And I know we all can appreciate online shopping especially this time of year. Everyone hop on over there and say hi today 🙂

And ps if you’ve missed any other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

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Why Tara loves Cooking, and you can too!

Guess what? It’s time for another guest blogger around here! Today we’re welcoming Tara over at A Hill Country Heart! Tara started commenting on my posts back in August and I always love to return the favor because it’s how I meet most of my blogger friends, so I quickly clicked on her page and it was history from there! I love her page first of all. It’s so simple and easy to navigate (something i’m working on for my own blog). But I also love that she’s close to my age and in the same stage of life as me. I feel like her and I are alike in many ways so that’s always fun too!

And she has family up in my area so i’m like come up here and let’s be friends!

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Hi y’all! My name is Tara and I blog over at A Hill Country Heart! I’m here today to tell you why I love cooking, and why I believe you can too!

But first, I actually have a funny story about Molly and me! I found Molly’s blog through a link-up (What’s Up Wednesday I think?) and loved it and her immediately! I started following her blog daily and would gather here and there that she maybe lived in Texas too, but I wasn’t sure exactly where. Well…it turns out we actually worked for the same hospital (a chain of 6 hospitals) but in different cities and we didn’t even know it! I had even, as we later came to find out, made two trips to her hospital and met a bunch of people she works with! I was so surprised when we finally put two and two together. Such a small [blogger] world!

Anyway, I am more than honored and extremely excited to guest post for Colors of Life! I wanted to write about something that I used to think was hard and just not for me, but that I have come to love. I also thought “Why Tara loves drinking margaritas, and you can too!” was too easy (plus, I know you ladies love margaritas ☺). But really, I want you all to know that if you also think like I used to – that is that cooking takes too much time, is too hard, and is more of a chore, that it’s not! It can be easy, quick and it can even be fun!

Here are some reasons I love to cook:

It is so fun to cook for and with other people! It’s a great bonding experience. It’s also extremely satisfying to cook and eat your own meals! So pat yourself on the back when you do!
I’m big into health and fitness and cooking allows you to know just how much sugar, fat, etc. you are getting from what you eat (what’s really in fast food anyway??)
I really love eating and get sad when it’s over so cooking makes the process last longer (and you can taste test along the way ☺)
I LOVE the presentation of food! For me it’s fun. I can’t draw or paint all that well so it kind of brings out my artistic side in a different way.
Unlike baking (which I also love), you can kind of add as much as you want of what you want (pick your favorite spices, veggies, etc.)

Some tips for cooking:

I like to wash and pre-chop veggies and fruit so that when I do cook, I don’t have to spend extra time doing this. For example, I’ll chop green onions and stick them in a little baggie in my fridge. This way, I can just grab them and throw them in when I’m ready to cook.
If I like a recipe I make, I’ll make it a few times so that I can remember how to do it and just whip it up real quick ☺
I got into cooking by taking a food and nutrition class my senior year in high school but there are so many classes out there you can take to get a grasp on cooking (I have taken classes at Sur La Table and they have been GREAT!), OR these days you can take online cooking classes or use Youtube!
Pinterest is a great place to find recipes, as you probably know! I get so many of my recipes from off of Pinterest but I always make sure to read comments that people leave on the recipes first! Sometimes you can tell whether or not it’s a good recipe by the comments.

Thank you all for stopping by to read about why I love cooking and thank you Molly for having me over to your blog!

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Yep, Tara I pretty much agree 100% with everything that you mentioned here especially prepping everything beforehand. Mom and I will prep Thanksgiving way in the morning, rest during the day, and start cooking up early afternoon. It’s a good process for us! Also friends, if you’re interested in the Paleo diet (I actually might be doing this for health reasons soon so that’s why i’m mentioning it) you should read her 30 days of Paleo. It’s so interesting!

Thanks, girlfriend!!! MOVE UP TO DFW ALREADY! 🙂

And if you’ve missed any other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

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Guest Bloggers

Tagged with:

Why Emily loves Decorating, and you can too!

**Emily, I’m so sorry the formatting is off. My preview is showing spaces in between paragraphs, but the published post isn’t. I will work on it!! Ugh, technology. **

Happy Guest Blogger Day!

Today, i’ve got Emily over here talking about one thing she loves. Emily blogs about literally…a little bit of Emily. It’s really just everything that makes her, her. Fashion, recipes, beauty, etc. One of my favorite things about her blog is that she’s short, sweet, and to the point. Sometimes I see posts (i’m guilty of it too) where it feels like the writer is just rambling on and you think you’ll never get to the end. Emily’s post say what they need to say with good content too! But not dragging on. Does anyone else know what i’m talking about here or do I just sound like a crazy person???

Needless to say, I love her blog 🙂

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Hey all! I am Emily. I blog over at a little bit of emily where I share bits and pieces of myself and my life.

A few weeks ago, Molly emailed me about doing a guest post. I was SO excited to get this email…it is my first time as a guest blogger. Thanks, Molly! When she told me the topic, though, I had a minor freak out moment of “what in the world am I going to write about!?” After bouncing around a few ideas, I decided to go with decorating. Decorating is one of my favorite things, whether it be pulling an entire room together or decorating for the holidays or a party.

Here are a few tips on how you, too, can love decorating!

Decorate with things that mean something. My apartment is filled with little items that are special to me. While they may be small, they are what makes my apartment feel homey. My mom told me that my grandma on my dad’s side, said that every kitchen should have a rooster in it. After hearing that, I found a sweet little rooster statue that I have displayed on my counter. Every time I look at it, I think of my grandma, who passed away when I was in high school. Another item I have in my apartment is an old printer’s drawer. This came from my grandparents on my mom’s side. At my grandma’s house, she has a large printers drawer filled with little momento-s…baby pictures of my mom and aunt, little figurines she has collected from flea markets, sports tickets, just anything and everything. Even now I love going down there and just looking at what she all has in it…and every time I look at mine, I think of that.

Start a collection. I have a jar full of buttons on one of the shelves in my bookcase. I love it because it is fun to see all the different buttons. It also adds a bit of color! When I buy clothes that come with an extra button, I just put it in the jar. Not only does it add to my decor, but it also serves as a place to corral all those loose buttons.

Make use of scrapbook paper, free printables and your own pictures. I have framed scrapbook paper in my kitchen, bathroom AND bedroom. It is easy, cheap and looks great! Free printables can be your best friend, too. My mom found this awesome conversion chart online, we printed it out, put it on some scrapbook paper, framed it and viola, kitchen artwork. Another way to personalize your space is add your own pictures. I am not just talking about pictures of friends and family, but of places or things. I have pictures from my hometown and places in Michigan framed in my room. The pictures just so neat in themselves, but they also have a story behind them, as well.

Texture and layer. Pillows, blankets, baskets…the textures instantly make a room feel so much cozier. Layering them on a bed or couch just makes me want to cuddle up and relax.

Decorate together. I love coming up with decorating ideas with my mom. Although we may not always agree – she was NOT a fan of my color choices when I first moved into my apartment, but thankfully she came around – it is always fun to bounce ideas off each other. For example, I knew that I wanted an old window in my apartment. My mom added to that idea by suggesting we (aka my dad) add mirrors to the empty window panes. The mirror helps make my apartment seem so much bigger than it is, and it serves as the perfect place to give myself a quick look before I am out the door.

I really could just go on and on about decorating – it really is one of my loves!

Thanks again for having me, Molly!

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I LOVE YOUR DECOR EMILY!! I have a feeling that our styles could really get along. Maybe I need to come move in??? 😉 It’s so funny because I think my mom and your grandma would get along so well. Roosters have taken over our kitchen! I even bought one at Hobby Lobby earlier this year to take to my office to decorate with. Every time I see my rooster it reminds me of my momma. Oh yeah, and I never thought of the button thing before but this is such a cool idea. I always end up throwing mine away! Such good ideas. And I love that you said you bounce ideas off your mom too because i’m totally always doing that. Thanks for guest blogging today!!

If you’ve missed any other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Lindsay loves Hot Yoga, and you can too!

Hellllooooo guest blogger day!

You all know I love this day. I love sharing my friends and their passions/interests with you. Today, Lindsay from Not A Mom is guest blogging. I think I first clicked on Lindsay’s blog after reading the name in a comment. I was intrigued as to what it meant…if you are too you can read about it here. After spending some time on her blog I realized we both struggled with depression among other things. I started commenting on her blog and it was history from there. Lindsay (girl, where have you been lately!) is usually the first person to comment on my posts every day. And y’all also know i’m a HUGE FAN of comments as well. So naturally i’m a fan of her 😉

Today, she’s talking about Hot Yoga. Sit back, relax, and enjoy!!

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Hi Molly’s Friends aka Colors of Life readers! I am SO excited that not only did Molly invite me to come guest blog but also invited me to my very FIRST guest blog. Colors of Life was one of the first blogs I found when I really started in this community just a few months ago and quickly became addicted to her posts then was even more blessed when she became one of my blogging friends. My blog consists of a cup of newlywed life with no kids but 3 dogs, a side of beauty/fashion that I am currently dying for with a dash of heartfelt moments. You’ll see on the side of my blog where I have a quick intro that my motto is, a day with no sweat is a day wasted which leads me to what I love HOT YOGA!

I began hot yoga in February purchasing a preview month. I was a newbie and by newbie I mean I haven’t even done cold yoga {or regular yoga ha!} let alone add 100 degree temperatures to a room yoga. Then to make me even more terrified for my first class, I signed up for the 6am! What was I thinking?! I entered my first hot yoga studio scared to death but excited for something new and pretty trendy from what I have heard.

I’ve always been athletic but back in February I hadn’t worked out in quite some time which is why I decided to try add some new things to my fitness life. Now I will say that I am heat loving gal. The summer time is my weather, I’ll take a heater over a fan and a sweatshirt over a tank. That being said, I don’t want to completely scare y’all off, I had my husband try some classes who is not about the heat and sweats in like 50 degree weather and he enjoyed it as well.

It is one of the most exhilarating experiences and to add it to my life 4 days a week has been mind-blowing. I walked into the studio not even being able to touch my toes and in 3-4 weeks I had my hands completely over my feet stretching. It is not the most social exercise, it is more internal but for me that’s what I was looking for, it is a constant reminder of how important self-care is for everyone. I love at the end of each class how my studio will give you an inspirational quote, a reminder that you deserve this and 3-5 minutes to lie on your back and soak in all the work that you just did for 90 mintues.

So that’s a quick summary now here are a few reasons why you should love it:

1} It does things to your body that you never expected! Your back gets stronger, which creates better posture and for someone that struggled with tremendous back pain that rocked my world. Like I said before I was touching my toes in 3 weeks which I NEVER would have thought I could have done.

2} You will CRAVE the heat! Sounds ridiculous right?! When I first walked in all the ladies in the locker room were telling me how addictive it is and how I will be dying to do it once I get it in my system. Having no idea what they meant, by the 2^nd or 3^rd class I quickly realized, I NEED THE HEAT! My body wants it and craves it and yours will too!

3} For you fitness freaks, it is the best supplemental work out! I added it with my barre classes, then with my weight lifting and it brought benefits into all areas. It is great to add with crossfit, barre, running, etc. It is so therapeutic on your muscles that even people with injuries will be in there to rehab their muscles and joints.

4} It will bring a smile to your face! I have yet to leave a class feeling down. They quickly let you know, especially if you are new that staying in the room is the goal for 90 minutes and anything else you do is just icing on the cake basically. So when I am able to complete classes now without having to take small breaks, I feel like I’ve won a gold medal which is boosting my confidence in ways I didn’t expect. It’s always a good day when I’ve been able to get my hot yoga class.

I hope this may have changed some of your minds, I know the sound of hot yoga is scary at first but you won’t regret it! Let me know if this inspires y’all to hit up your local studio!

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The answer to your question Lindsay, is yes I totally want to go to a hot yoga class now. I think i’m going to look into it today. You’re right about it being intimidating…I hear people talk about it, but it’s been sort of scary to me. Hopefully I can find one of those free months studios like you 😉

Thanks for this post, Lindsay! It was great!

If you’ve missed any other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

Why I love running, and you can too!
Why I love yoga, and you can too!
Why Kylie loves spinning, and you can too!
Why Jamie loves celebrating, and you can too!
Why Christina loves hosting, and you can too!
Why Julie loves hiking, and you can too!
Why Randi loves Pittsburgh, and you can too!
Why Angie loves self care, and you can too!
Why Mattie loves Zumba, and you can too!
Why Katie loves reading, and you can too!

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Katie loves Reading, and you can too!

Hey, hey it’s Tues-day!

My friend Katie is over here talking about her love of books and reading. I feel like there are so many of us out there who can relate, and probably some who think she is plain crazy for writing a post about loving to read. Either way, Katie’s content is good and I know you will enjoy it 🙂 Plus, she’s as sweet as can be and it just shows through in her writing!!

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Thanks so much for asking me to guest blog for you, Molly!! I’m Katie and I blog over at Better Off Benedict. I love doing stuff like this and meeting the readers of other blogs. It is always to fun to find others who have similar interests in the blog world. If you check out my blog, you will definitely see that I love reading.

I have always liked reading, but when I was in school I would feel guilty reading anything that was not class related. I mean, you spend so many hours reading in college, it just wasn’t something that I would do for fun. Once I graduated though, I felt like I had so much time on my hands. I had one roommate instead of five, my boyfriend (now husband) lived 30 minutes away. I wasn’t surrounded by craziness 24/7. That was truly when I started to get into reading again.

Most of what I read would be considered best selling fiction. I’m all for the random books here and there, but I normally stick to the same old stuff. My theory is: if everyone else is loving it, there has to be a reason why! If someone raves about a book I will be so excited to get my hands on it. My favorite things to read are the types of books where people say “well the idea sounds really weird, but just read it and you will see how awesome it is.” Such as…Hunger Games, The Mortal Instruments Series, The Lying Game, etc. I also absolutely love a good book that has some twists and turns along the way. Sometimes I like to think that I’m somewhat of a detective. If an author can completely fool me I will love them right away!

I also believe that if you don’t love reading you probably haven’t found the right book yet! I mean, I completely understand not being able to sit down and concentrate on one thing. But if you are reading the right books that pique your interest, that will be no problem at all. I love reading most of all because it allows to escape from reality and learn about the world through another persons eyes. I feel like most books have plenty to teach us and can definitely help us see things from other peoples perspectives.

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My love for reading made me reach out to Molly about cohosting her BookwormWednesday Linkup! We kicked it off last month and it was so much fun. I love getting reading suggestions from other bloggers. If you are bookworm like us, you should join us on the first Wednesday of each month to review your latest reads (next one is 10/7). I love adding to my future reading list 😉 To see what I’ve read recently you can check out my “What I’m Reading” page!

Thanks again for having me, Molly!

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How perfect was it that she talked about reading when we have our monthly link-up?! I could tell whenever I e-mailed Katie that she really didn’t have a doubt that she wanted to post about reading. She asked me if that was okay and I said OF COURSE it’s something you love…so we can too! When I was younger I sooooo disliked reading and never wanted to. Now, it’s one of my favorite hobbies. Funny how times and age can change things. Thanks again for posting for us today Katie!! I think I might skip classes today and just open up a book or something instead 🙂

If you’ve missed any other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Mattie loves Zumba, and you can too!

Hey, friends! I decided to start out this week by asking Mattie at Northwest Native to do a little guest post for us. Although I haven’t actually met Mattie in person, I can just tell she is as kind-hearted as can be by her comments on other people’s blogs. I noticed that we both read some of the same blogs and decided what the heck, we needed to read each other’s blogs, too haha so I started following along with her a couple months ago. She is getting married in one month (WAHOO!) so check out her blog for some of that fun as well!

But today she is talking Zumba classes with us…

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I’ve tried lots of forms of exercises throughout my life. I did ballet from ages four to eight, played basketball in fifth grade (and totally hated it and quit after one season), started dancing again in sixth grade and gradually added different types of dance–hip hop, jazz, lyrical, and ballet (again). I had a lot of different dance teachers throughout the years and loved them all. One of my favorites was Stacy, who taught when I was in high school.

When I was in college Stacy started teaching Zumba at the dance studio that I went to. My mom, my best friend, and my best friend’s mom all went and raved about it. I of course had to try it out the first time I came home. I had a blast! For those of you who don’t know, Zumba is a Latin-based dance workout. There are some Zumba-specific songs (that are really catchy, actually) and some routines set to hit songs like you hear on the radio.

Every time I came home for a weekend or a break, we squeezed in Zumba. It was just such a party. Stacy got so into it and would yell and scream (in a good way!) to pump everyone up. I tried some Zumba classes at my college, and they just weren’t the same. I actually bought a Groupon for Zumba classes in my neighborhood in Seattle a looong time ago (seriously, it was at least a year ago…) and I still have one class left. Oops! I plan on using that last class this weekend or next weekend.

I’ve also purchased a Groupon for hot yoga and taken up running since my Zumba-ful days, and neither of them compare! I have a love-hate relationship with both hot yoga and running. I love them because I know I’m getting a good workout, but I hate them because hello, they’re hard! And for me, not extremely enjoyable, except that I know I’m getting a good workout in. With Zumba, I honestly don’t realize I’m working out. I give it my all, because as a former dancer, I just have to! It doesn’t feel like work. I don’t find myself just hoping for it to end, like I do sometimes on runs or in hot yoga classes. It’s just fun!

It was so much cheaper to do Zumba in my hometown, but prices here in Seattle are insane! I guess that’s what you get in a metropolitan area with crazy rent prices. If you try out Zumba, I suggest finding a teacher you love! If you don’t love the teacher, you might not love the class. I also can’t bring myself to pay more than $5 a class. I know that might seem low for some of you, but like I said, I was spoiled by small town Zumba. And if you’re embarrassed to dance alongside a bunch of other people (you shouldn’t because everyone is just paying attention to themselves or watching the teacher to get the moves down!) I would suggest a DVD or YouTube videos!

I’m so happy Molly asked me to write one of these posts, because Zumba was the first thing that popped in my head! Since I haven’t done it in a long time, it has inspired me to use my last Groupon class and find some Zumba videos on YouTube! Thanks for rekindling my love of Zumba, Molly!

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Thank YOU for rekindling my love of Zumba Mattie! I used to do Zumba in high school a little bit and when I would come home freshman year of college. It was so much fun and a different way to get a work-out in. We would always have people sweating like crazy. And it’s even better when you’re having fun while you’re working out. Thanks again for sharing about your love of Zumba with us Mattie!!

You all should go…because Ryan is watching. 😉

If you’ve missed any other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

Have a super Monday everyone!

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Angie loves self care, and you can too!

Happy Morning!

It’s my favorite day of every other week. Guest blogger day!! And today we’re meeting Angie from Pace with Grace. Angie is super sweet and I love reading her blog in the mornings 🙂 I felt like I really connected with her when I read her story on recovery. She’s open, honest, and real, which is always so refreshing to see in a blogger. From then on forward we just became blog friends and she’s great. I promise you’ll love reading her (especially all you runners out there!!) She’s one of those crazies who wakes up early to run mile after mile after mile 😉 You’re all crazy.

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Hi everyone! My name is Angie and I blog over at Pace with Grace where I discuss all things running, recovery, style and living (and anything else I care to write about!). I am excited to be a guest blogger today here on Colors of Life and talk about why I love self care and you can too!

Self care is something that can often be overlooked in the midst of busy schedules and the demands of life. I know this is certainly true for me at times. But over the past couple years, I have gotten intentional with incorporating self care into my regular routine and have noticed some positive changes. Some of these positive changes include decreased stress, improved mood, feeling more balanced and motivated to work hard knowing I have something to look forward to. Don’t get me wrong, I still have stress and times where my mood isn’t the best (that’s just life) but I bounce back faster and cope with struggles more effectively. I believe that mindset is everything and self care works wonders in helping to feel recharged and in a more positive state of mind.

What I love about self care is that it can look differently for everyone! We all have our own unique responsibilities, schedules, and lives so creating a plan for self care that works for you is so important. There are nights where I don’t get home from work until 8:45/9PM and after a long day, the best thing I can do for myself is take some time to unwind. This usually looks like me getting into some comfy pajamas, taking off my makeup and throwing up my hair, followed by couch time with my pup Milo and husband.

Another reason I love self care is because it doesn’t have to take a lot of time! Even 15-20 minutes can work wonders, you just have make it a priority. Some things I love to do when I don’t have a ton of time are: paint my nails, page through a magazine, sit and drink a cup of coffee (or tea if you like) and doing a quick face mask while relaxing on the couch. These activities take very little time and not only are relaxing, but help us to unwind and manage stress effectively. If we spend the majority of our time feeling stressed this most definitely shows up in our mood, our relationships, and our mindset.

Self care also helps me be the best version of myself. What I mean by that is when I am taking care of myself, I am a better wife, step-mom, therapist, sister, daughter, friend (the list continues). So not only is it important we do it for ourselves, it’s important we do it for others we care about.

There are SO many possibilities when it comes to self care! Here are some ideas:

Running, cooking, reading a good book, treating yourself to a drink at your favorite coffee shop, doing yoga, trying a new workout class, reconnecting with a friend, make a lunch/dinner date, see/watch a movie with some of your favorite snacks, get a manicure or pedicure, browse Pinterest for a fun activity/craft, bake your favorite dessert, take a walk, spend time with pets, purchase a new candle and enjoy it while relaxing, download some new songs, take a bubble bath, go on a date, try a new restaurant or activity, get a massage or spa treatment, call a friend to reconnect.

If we don’t invest time in ourselves, the rest of our world is affected! Take some time to think about how you can take care of yourself and make a plan of when you will do it.

Thanks for reading and I would love to hear from you:

How are you with incorporating self care?

How could you improve with incorporating self care in your regular routine?

What are your favorite self care activities?

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I ask all my guest bloggers to come up with something they love to blog about and i’m so glad Angie chose this topic…I never would have even thought about this. It really is so overlooked by us, especially as women and she knocked it out of the park. I think i’m going to write down all of those ideas and draw one out of a hat every day or every week. Thanks again, Angie!!

If you’ve missed any other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

Have a great day!

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Randi loves Pittsburgh, and you can too!

It’s that time again, y’all! We have another friend coming over here to guest post. Talking about things people love is my favorite. We yet a little peak into someone else’s life and things that make them who they are.

Randi and I “met” this spring when she reached out to me via e-mail about blogging. We talked for a little while and next thing I knew she had created a blog herself. It’s been so fun following her and i’m so glad she took the step to reach out to me and eventually start her blog! You should check it out!

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Hi fellow lovers of Molly’s blog! I’m Randi and I blog over at Randitions by Randi. First I want to thank Molly for asking me to be a guest blogger. I can fully credit Molly with being the final push I needed to start my own blog. I look forward to reading Molly’s blog everyday and following along with her adventures!

I had a lot of different ideas when Molly asked me to write this post, but I finally settled on “Why I love Pittsburgh and You Can Too!” I’ve grown up here my entire life and the city has so many different things to offer! I figured it would be fun to share my hometown with all of you and why I love it so much!

If you’ve never been to Pittsburgh, you should totally add it to your bucket list. There really is something for everyone. If you have visited Pittsburgh, than you know the best things about the city are the sports teams, views, things to do, and the food.

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Sports

Now as you all know, Molly has blogged about Boston and her love for the Red Sox many times, but growing up in Pittsburgh you HAVE to be a Steelers, Pirates and Penguins fan. You don’t really have a choice… not that I would ever pick another team – I bleed black and gold! My favorite part about going to sporting events, besides watching a great game and enjoying the great food, are the stadiums. Check out how gorgeous PNC park is…

My entire family loves going to Pirates games together. It’s the best thing to do on a summer night!

During the fall and winter, Heinz Field has my heart. I’m more of a football girl than a baseball girl anyways 😉

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Views

If those views weren’t enough for you, Pittsburgh has even more to offer. We have this place called Mount Washington, where you can ride up the incline (see below) and see the entire city!

You ride up the incline and then you get out and see this…

And if heights aren’t your thing, we also had this huge duck come and visit!

If you haven’t noticed by now, there have been bridges in almost every picture. We aren’t called the City of Bridges for nothing!

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Things To Do

There are so many things to do in the city, but I’m just going to share my favorites with you.

Not only do we have a lot of bridges in Pittsburgh, we also have a lot of rivers! You can tube and boat and paddleboard on them!

Tubing has always been one of my favorite things about being on the water.

If you aren’t into water activities, there is almost always an outdoor concert or movie in the park playing on a big screen.

But my favorite thing to do in Pittsburgh is during Christmas time…

It all starts with Light Up Night in November. The city puts up a huge ice rink from November to February and there are lots of decorations, live music, and horse drawn carriages.

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Food

Obviously I had to save the best part for last! If I haven’t convinced you that Pittsburgh is a great city to visit (and photograph)… please just look at this sandwich from Primati’s…

Yes, this is a sandwich with French fries and coleslaw on it. And yes I promise it’s the best thing you’ll ever eat. We put French fries on everything here… even our salads! (I didn’t say we were the healthiest city!)

If you’re not into sandwiches and more of a breakfast person – Pamela’s is the place for you. Even the president has eaten here when he visited Pittsburgh – it’s that famous!

Their thin strawberry stuffed pancakes are out of this world.

Thanks for having me, Molly and to everyone else, thanks for stopping by. If any of you are ever in Pittsburgh – let me know! I’d love to show you around!

Have any of you ever been to Pittsburgh? What was your favorite part?

xoxo,
Randi

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Thanks for showing us around your town, Randi!! Now i’m ready to travel to Pittsburgh. I was actually born in the Philadelphia area. Just a little fun fact for y’all 🙂

If you’ve missed another other part of this series about what we love, check them out:

Enjoy your Wednesday!

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Julie loves hiking, and you can too!

Having my blog friends come on my blog and talk about things they love is something I love! The friendships that are made in the blog world are so unique and my goal is to have all of my friends post something on my page at one point 🙂

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First of all I wanted to thank Molly for asking me to be a guest blogger, it’s the first time I’ve been asked and I’m so honored! Molly is one of my favorite bloggers and I love reading her blog everyday. There are so many topics I thought about writing about and I decided to go with hiking because it’s something I absolutely love doing and you can too! 🙂

I grew up in Chicago in the Mid West where it’s super flat and there isn’t a mountain in sight. Skyscrapers and cornfields? Yes. Mountains and beautiful hikes? Not so much.

Back in 2010 my boyfriend Dave and I started going on annual road trips cross country. We drove from Chicago to San Fran, to Vancouver, Seattle, Wyoming, Utah, went on a tour of the national parks: Yellowstone, Yosemite, The Grand Tetons, the Rocky Mountains, Zion, Arches, the Badlands, etc. He opened my eyes to the wild, wild West. I’d never seen such beautiful mountains before, especially up close. Ever since then I’ve been addicted to the mountains and the gorgeous scenery out West.

My boyfriend and I hiking in Big Sur, California.

Hiking is therapeutic for me. It’s so nice to step outside and breathe in the fresh air. I love seeing the flowers, trees, and feeling the dirt beneath my shoes.

There are hiking trails of all levels from beginners to advance. You can start with as little or as much experience as you’d like. You can hike for a few hours, few miles, or even a few days. But you’ve got to start somewhere, so don’t be discouraged if you’re new to it. (If you’re looking for inspiration I’d totally recommend reading Cheryl Strayed’s Wild. She was a beginner hiker and did part of the Pacific Crest Trail which is no joke! And she conquered it and is a huge source of inspiration for me.)

Me in Yosemite with the half dome in the background.

Here are a few of my basic tips:

Make sure you’re prepared and pack a good backpack. Bring lots of water, snacks, sunscreen, a hat, a first aid kit, and a long sleeve shirt. You never know when the weather might change during your hike.

I love pulling out my snacks during a break and enjoying the vistas. Looking at where I’ve come from and where I still have left to go.

Make sure you know your directions when you’re going. Whether you use google maps or following a trail map. Pick out landmarks to remind you of the trail.

Know your limits and don’t try to push past them in situations that you’re not comfortable with.

Research the trail before you go so you know what to expect from the terrain, parking, hiking distances, what to be on the lookout for especially in terms of wild life.

Being out on a big mountain makes me feel small and humbles me. It gives me perspective. It makes me feel protective of our environment because I want to preserve it for future generations to enjoy it too.

Me in Zion National Park on the Narrows hike.

My boyfriend Dave hiking in Alaska.

There is so much to see out there and I can’t recommend hiking enough! It can be a thing you do on the weekends or it can easily become a lifestyle and you might just find yourself getting addicted to it like I did.

Thanks again so much for having me Molly and Colors of Life readers! You can find me at sayyestohappy.wordpress.com 🙂

Another one of me in Yosemite with the half dome in the background.

Julie

********************************************************************************************************************************************

Julie, thank you!! That was so fun learning about a hobby of yours that you love. And that’s so awesome you and your boyfriend can enjoy it together. Surprisingly, i’ve never been hiking before. I always wanted to but never actually knew what to do and where to go. Hopefully, this will change in the future.

If you’ve missed any other part of this series, like:

Be sure to check them out 🙂 Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Christina loves hosting, and you can too!

Why, Happy Tuesday y’all!

One of the coolest things about having this blog is having guest bloggers come over to post. Today, i’m introducing you to Christina at The New Mrs. I really couldn’t tell you how I found Christina’s blog…but I can tell you that I am glad I did. I feel like I share a lot in common with her and that’s one of my favorite things…having something in common with other people! So, without me rambling on any longer, let’s let Christina take it away!

Hi all, I’m Christina and I blog over at The New Mrs. where you can find me talking about everyday life, marriage and relationships, traveling, a little bit of fashion, a pinch of home decorating and some recipes. I’m also always sharing about my husband and my new puppy Stella. I also talk a lot about the hosting/entertaining that we do, which leads me to today’s post.

When Molly asked me to do a guest post on something that I love and anyone else could too I thought for a little bit a second and quickly decided to talk about hosting. Hosting friends and family at our home is most definitely one of my very top favorites to do and ANYONE can do it. Whether you live alone, with a significant other, with a roommate, with your parents or in an apartment or house – it’s something so easy to do and something so fun to do.

My husband and I got married last September and our new home was finished being built the July before. I was giddy with excitement to have my own space to host parties and events in. Not that it didn’t stop me from hosting at my parents house or loving attending the dinners and gatherings my Mom hosted.

So why am I talking about marriage and house building when I’m suppose to be talking about hosting? Because I’ve hosted more in the past year than ever before. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love it. I’m a homebody for sure. You know that Sam Hunt song? My husband always sings it to me and says “So you’re a homebody, let’s have a house party” … and we do!! (this is Molly – see what I mean guys…we’re both homebody’s and listen to Sam Hunt. okay, sorry back to Christina!) I understand my meaning of house party and his are different but whatever!!

Okay – so back why Molly asked me here – HOSTING – So since I explained above, I’m a homebody and would much rather have the entertaining scene come to me. It’s funny how times will change – so that leads me into hosting…

+ Bring the party to yourselves! Make at least one place in your home a place that you’d want to have people over. We tend to use our deck and our basement because there is a bar.

+ Who isn’t obsessed with Pinterest??! Aren’t there so many recipes that you want to try out? I know there are more than I could imagine. During the week we try to eat healthy & simple meals. On the weekends, we indulge!! So when we are hosting someone for a BBQ I am surely going to take the chance to try out those big recipes that I’ve been wanting to – the biggest plus to hosting.

+ Formal vs informal. Your house, your entertaining, your rules! I love that hosting can be as simple as jeans and a tshirt and a little BBQ on the deck or as formal as fancy outfits and a nice sit down dinner.

+ Pick your serveware. Part of the fun of working hard in the kitchen for me is to have a nice display for whoever we’re hosting. I love my platters to match – if possible and always have a few simple white pieces because they go with everything. This time of the year is of course the best – who doesn’t want to be entertaining when the sunlight stays out past 8pm – so I like to have a set of outdoor serveware as well. I mean I don’t want to be cleaning up broken pieces if something breaks!

Molly, thank you SO much for having me.

Colors of Life followers, be sure to pop by my blog and say hello or follow along on instagram.

I don’t know about y’all, but I am ready to leave work right now and head on over to Christina’s for a party!!! It looks fabulous and I know I could sure learn some things! Thanks for guest posting, girl! And in case you all missed any other part of this little series…

I talked about “Why I love running, and you can too!“
As well as “Why I love yoga, and you can too!“
Kylie at Kylie McGraw told us “Why she loves spinning, and you can too!“
Jamie at The Celebrating Momma told us “Why she loves celebrating, and you can too!“

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Jamie loves Celebrating….and you can too!

Alrighty guys. I’ve got a treat for you today! Jamie from The Celebrating Momma is over here talking about celebrating. I had Jamie for Spring Cheer and naturally had to “stalk” her to find the things she liked. I loved everything about her blog. She’s so positive, she’s real, she’s upbeat, she will out-celebrate us all, and she has such a sweet family. You’ll definitely learn some things from her and I just knew she had to come guest post over here. So…let’s get to her!

Hey y’all! I am Jamie from The Celebrating Momma. I am worshiper of Jesus, wife to Jake, and mommy to Jack. I am a dreamer, celebrator, optimistic, list maker, recovering procrastinator, iced coffee addict, crafty, and completely random kind of gal. Grab a cup of iced coffee or whatever you prefer and let’s be friends.

I was so excited when Molly emailed me and asked me about doing a guest post! I “met” Molly thru a Spring Cheer Exchange where she sent me a box of goodies for Spring – one of those included lipstick because she read my 101 in 1001 {which reminds me – I need to update that}. She got me hooked on lipstick and I am always trying new colors. It is a crazy new obsession and fun new colors are worth celebrating in my book.

So why all the random celebrating? To be honest – I am not sure. I have always been a positive person. We all know those people that are always negative. Something in their world is always crumbling and they want everyone to join in on their pity party. Not that I have never had a pity party of my own but Negative Nancy’s {or Ned’s} make me so sad because what a depressing way to live. I truly believe there is always something worth celebrating. There is always something to be thankful for. I guess one day I just decided to make celebrating my life’s work.

I love throwing over the top parties and making a big deal about major life events but I truly love celebrating the small things in life. I celebrate things like a good hair day, an extra delicious cup of coffee, date nights with my man, days I put together a good stack of arm candy, the first snow cone of the season, dance parties in the rain, finding new ice cream joints, getting happy snail mail in the mailbox, a good book, and a million other things.

I know – it seems weird. I celebrate all the time but I would much rather go through life celebrating than complaining. There is always something to complain about – bad hair day, not enough money, having too much to do, nothing to wear in your closet, never having enough time, and so much more. But there is always something to celebrate – a roof over your head, a fun new nail color, a super good sale, a good friend, and the list goes on and on.

Celebrating life is all about looking at the positive. I get it – there will be days that are just no good but on those days I choose to celebrate the fact that I survived. Some days the only thing that feels worthy of a celebration is the fact that you survived and that is okay – choose to celebrate it.

So how do you celebrate the little things? You let it define your attitude.

When you are having a killer hair day let that confidence radiate from you. Be proud of it. Allow yourself to feel beautiful all day. When you find a fabulous new nail color with your girlfriend at Target have a dance party on aisle fourteen and laugh about it until you can’t breathe.

If you don’t know how to celebrate something a dance party is always an acceptable form of celebrating!

On days that you don’t feel like you have anything worth celebrating in your own life celebrate someone else. Do something for a stranger that makes them want to spend the rest of their day celebrating.

There is always something to celebrate, you just have to be willing to look outside the box sometimes.

I hope you join me on this journey of celebrating life each and every day. Tag me on instagram and document the fun things you are celebrating with #whynotcelebrateit so I can celebrate with you!

Jamie, thank you so much for participating!!! If you all missed any other part of this series, check them out:
Why I love Running, and you can too!
Why I love Yoga, and you can too!
Why Kylie love Spinning, and you can too!

Category:

Guest Bloggers

Why Kylie loves Spinning, and you can too!

Hello! Hello!

This morning, my friend Kylie is over here to talk about one of her favorite work outs: Spinning. I haven’t had a guest blogger here at Colors of Life, so I decided it was time for one! And it works especially well seeing as I talked about my spring work out routine yesterday, today was the perfect day to have her over here! I have no idea how Kylie and I met, but i’m so glad we did because she is so sweet, so positive, and so fun!

Do you remember my “Why I love running, and you can too!” post or my “Why I love yoga, and you can too!” post. Well, I asked Kylie if she wanted to do a little spin-off of that and she agreed. This girl does it all. She teaches PiYo and Spin and runs marathons and runs after teaching those class; all that jazz. She totally puts me to shame! So here she is ladies and gents, KYLIE!!!!!!
(aahhhh and the crowd roars) 😉

Hi, Colors of Life readers! I’m Kylie and I blog over at the very creatively titled blog…Kylie McGraw. I love to ramble about my dogs, what’s currently cooking in my kitchen, and my adventures around D.C., but I especially love to write about working out!

As a kid, I think most of us probably tried our fair share of sports. I was pretty eclectic in my choices…I was in a bumper bowling league, I played softball, and while all of that was going on, I was always really involved in some kind of gymnastics or dance class! It wasn’t until high school that I started to see working out was something I had to do rather than something I wanted to do. Have you ever felt like that?! Working out should be fun…not something we dread!

For my whole life, I have watched my aunt hit the park or the track almost every day of the week to run. I used to tag along with her on occasion, but it wasn’t until my senior year of high school that I fell in love with running myself! I joined the cross country team (mostly because I just wanted to be on a team…ha!) and I found that running was actually so difficult, but it is so powerful too! I feel strong and accomplished and energized whenever I finish a run…have you heard of runner’s high? Those endorphins are powerful things! Molly talked a little bit about this before too. Now I just run for fun, and I sign up for races when I can because having a goal is so motivating!

I call running my soul mate workout. It is just the best! Even though it is MY favorite, I know that’s not everyone’s jam, and hey! On some days I want to completely quit too. Last year, I even HAD to quit because I was injured. Luckily, when I was a sophomore in college, I discovered another workout that I love: indoor cycling! Sometimes I cheat on my soul mate, running, just to go get on a bike. 🙂

I loved taking classes at my university so much that I decided to become an instructor! In November 2011, I went to a 10-hour certification and learned all about the history and “how-to’s” of teaching classes. Maybe you know indoor cycling as Spinning…that’s what I call it. But guess what?! Spinning is actually a certified trademark and only those who are certified to teach classes are actually allowed to say they “teach Spin”. Some gyms also buy the trademark so they can write “Spinning” on their schedules. The Spinning certification is really well known and preferred by many gyms, which is why I chose it, but there are also other certs out there from Schwinn Cycling and Reebok. I’ve been doing continuing education for my certification and I have now been certified for almost FIVE years! That is crazy to me!

Anyways, back to you. Today I want to share with you four reasons why YOU should get yourself to a cycling class sometime soon!

– ONE –

Cycling classes are for everyone.

I’ve been to classes in college where everyone is about the same age, I’ve been to classes at my local YMCA where there are teenagers, moms, dads, and grandparents, and I’ve taught classes where there are people who have been in class for years and people who are just starting their fitness journey. If you aren’t sure what to do when you walk into the gym, go to a cycling class! Your instructor has carefully planned the class to be challenging for every person in the room. But, the best part is, you are the one that is in control of your bike! If your instructor tells you to turn up the resistance and make it harder, you should do that…but you might not be working as hard as the person next to you. That’s okay. No one can see what you are doing. As long as it’s a challenge for you, that’s a good thing!

– TWO –

Team motivation!

No, indoor cycling is not a team sport…but working hard in a room with a bunch of other people gives you so much energy! When you are starting to lose focus…or you just feel like quitting…look around at all the other faces working just as hard as you! Your instructor will probably be encouraging you as you ride, and depending on the class, people might even encourage each other.

– THREE –

Cardio + strength training all in one!

When you are pedaling along with lower resistance OR you are pedaling really quickly with high resistance, your heart is pumping. You are burning calories and getting an amazing cardio workout. But, when you start to add resistance and you stand up to “climb” on the bike, your legs are getting stronger and leaner! Notice I didn’t say bulky. Cycling doesn’t make you build muscle because it’s interval training. You are constantly changing speed and resistance, so your heart rate is up and you are toning your muscles! Also, when you are standing up on your bike, you have to engage your core to keep good posture. Six pack, here you come. 😉

Depending on where you live, you might have access to some of the more “famous” cycling studios. I have taught and taken classes at my local YMCA, LA Fitness, and university, but at studios that are just known for cycling, it is becoming more and more popular to do some light strength training on the bike. Places like FlyWheel and SoulCycle have weighted bars or light weights underneath the seat of your bike that you grab part way through the class to tone your arms. I have even heard of regular gyms adding a short strength session at the end of cycling class where you get off the bike and do more traditional strength work with your body weight like squats, lunges, or ab exercises.

– FOUR –

Upbeat music!

You know how you feel when your favorite song comes on in the car and you are just jamming out?! That’s how it feels to be in a cycling class. Your heart is pumping, your legs are burning, you are sweating…but you’re singing along to that awesome music so you hardly even notice. 😉

As a Spinning instructor, I pay attention to how many beats per minute (BPM) a song has. That way, when we are climbing a steep hill and pedaling a little slower, you can find the beat of the music and pedal along. I might choose something like this:

But, if we are sprinting and we want the music to move us, I’ll probably pick a song that’s a little faster paced or picks up on the chorus like this:

Usually when I hear a new song on the radio, I think, HEY! I can use that in class! And when I’m feeling uninspired, I like to check out Spotify…especially Chris Spins! She is awesome.

So what are you thinking? Are you going to take a cycling class anytime soon?! I hope so! If you are nervous about going for the first time, don’t worry! The instructor will be so happy to see you and will help you figure out how to set up your bike so that it is most comfortable for you. I also recommend inviting a friend! Working out with friends is one of my favorite ways to spend time with them…besides going out to eat. 😉 If your friend comes with you, you’ll have someone to laugh with when you’re feeling silly and someone to motivate you when you’re feeling tired.

The gym is waiting for you. 🙂 Make it a good Thursday!

Category:

Guest Bloggers, Working Out/Exercise

Colors of Life

This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

Archive for the ‘Guest Bloggers’ Category

Why Jackie loves Orlando, and you can too!

Why Jacquelyn loves sewing, and you can too!

Why Haley loves Thrifting, and you can too!

Saving Money

The Hunt

Helping Out Mother Earth

Being Unique

Follow me…

Why Alexandra loves Photography, and you can too!

Being Artsy

Being Sentimental

Expressing Yourself

Being Aware of Your Surroundings

Why Shelly loves Giving To Others, and you can too!

5 Things I Love About…

Why Lauren loves Traveling, and you can too!

Why Erika loves Online Shopping, and you can too!

Why Tara loves Cooking, and you can too!

Why Emily loves Decorating, and you can too!

Why Lindsay loves Hot Yoga, and you can too!

Why Katie loves Reading, and you can too!

Why Mattie loves Zumba, and you can too!

Why Angie loves self care, and you can too!

Why Randi loves Pittsburgh, and you can too!

Why Julie loves hiking, and you can too!

Why Christina loves hosting, and you can too!

Why Jamie loves Celebrating….and you can too!

Why Kylie loves Spinning, and you can too!

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