I am alone or are there others who get motivated to workout just by having cute workout gear? I mean there are days I just don't want to spend the time to workout and then I look at my clothes and think I didn't buy these to sit in a drawer. 

I have a few favorite places to buy workout gear but one of my absolute tried and true stores in Nike and Nike Factory Outlet. Not only are they stylish, comfortable but they last a long time. I am not getting a dime for writing any of these words, they are my own, I just wanted to get that out there! :) 

So after a title like that I better deliver something pretty spectacular below huh? 

Well I personally think I have. I got this recipe from my friend Christine, mentioned on this blog more than once, a while back. She got the recipe from Annie's Eats blog. You can find the recipe here. It is my go to for parties, thank yous and when I need a little chocolate in my life. 

So until about 4 months ago, I didn't even know Vlogging was a thing. I know...I know I am so behind the times. Well after a few months I saw the benefits that vlogging can bring to a blog and just to a person's life in general. Imagine having snippets of your life in video form. It's pretty awesome in my opinion.

 

I am personally a fan of vlogging because I like the insight it gives me to the blogger/youtuber. Two of my absolute favorite vloggers to watch are Lily Pebbles and Viviana Does Makeup. They are both from the UK and they are both hilarious and serious beauty bloggers to follow.

 

So this leads to me the point of this post...would you watch someone's vlog? Do you currently? Honestly I think for me, it will be a personal decision but I am always interested in seeing what you guys have to say. So let me know your thoughts and any other good vloggers to follow.

 

 

 

Not that this is at all what my vlogs would look like but I took this video while at the beach with my sister and told her I would post it on here and I keep my word. Also just so you know I had to crop the video to send from my phone since I couldn't find my card...vlog fail! haha

 

 



Football hasn't always been in my blood, in fact, growing up I was a HUGE basketball fan. It wasn't until I went to college that football became such a big part of my life. You see at the University of Georgia, football isn't just a sport it is a way of life. A weekend in Athens is an experience I believe everyone should have. Saturdays in Athens are not a joke. We arrive early. We arrive rowdy. And we arrive dressed to the nines. So it the last part that I am going to explain a bit further. 

The wonderful group over at Paul Fredrick asked me to put together his and her game day outfits that represent my favorite team. I happily accepted and got to work creating  two dressier game day looks for you guys. I know you are probably thinking. Did she say dress? Yes I did. You see some people think that game day attire is simply shorts or jeans and a jersey BUT in the south we view football as a religion and if you dress up for church then you best believe you dress up for the football game. 

This is such a classic look for guys. I recommend starting your outfit with a dress shirt. Paul Fredrick has a great selection but this red and white striped shirt was my favorite. Then you move to selecting your bowtie. Of course you can wear a tie but I personally prefer a gentleman in a bowtie. This black and white polka dot bowtie was the perfection addition to the striped shirt. Pants are a bit easier as you just need a good pair of black pants however I will say PLEASE get flat front ones. No one likes a pleat. This pair of flat front black pants is a great staple to have in any wardrobe. The finish touch will the be these black winged oxfords which add an extra dash of sophistication to the outfit.

So if you don't already know I have a serious blogger crush on Hallie over at  Corals + Cognacs. I read her blog religiously and let me tell you if you haven't read it before well you will love her afterward.

Funny I mention love because Hallie wrote a post on Wednesday about how you can fall in love with anyone after answering a simple 36 questions. If you check out her post, she answered some of the questions on the list in true Hallie humor fashion (told you, serious blogger crush) and then invited fellow bloggers and readers to do the same. 

The article is based on mutual vulnerability and how being completely open can create a level of intimacy. So instead of the already scheduled post, I decided to slip this one in today. Let's see if this works out...will we fall in love? ;) 

Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest? My great-grandmother Me-Me. She was my best friend for 9.5 years and I would like her to see me as an adult and give me advice...she always had the best advice. 

Before making a telephone call, do you ever rehearse what you are going to say? Why?  It depends, work call, yes because it is usually a conversation I need to have down pat, but otherwise no or I would over think it and just get tongue tied. 

For what in your life do you feel most grateful? My relationships with my friends and family. They are biggest cheerleaders, my constant moral compass and the people who ground me when I need it. 

If you could wake up tomorrow having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be? I wish I was less uptight. I always envy those who can go with the flow when things don't go as planned but I am currently not one of them. I am a planner and I want things to go as planned. 

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If a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself, your life, the future or anything else, what would you want to know? If I was going to get married and when. It is hard for me to say this but I fear that I won't ever find the person I am supposed to spend the rest of my life with. 

Is there something that you’ve dreamed of doing for a long time? Why haven’t you done it?  I want to go abroad and work with women and children to show that they too have a voice and right to be heard. I believe this world would be a better place if more women spoke up. 

How do you feel about your relationship with your mother? I am lucky to have a mom and a step-mom. I get told I am like both of them and that is the biggest compliment I could get. 

When did you last cry in front of another person? By yourself? The last time I cried in front of another person was on Jan 3 while watching The Hobbit. By myself was right now as I type this and watching Scorpion's Christmas episode. 

If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate with anyone, what would you most regret not having told someone? Why haven’t you told them yet? Gratitude. While I know the people in my life know how thankful I am for everything they do for me, I do not think I express it enough. 

Tell your partner something that you like about them already. I like that so far those who have commented have been kind. As a new blogger, I am terrified of that first comment that screams hatred so I like your kindness. 

Your house, containing everything you own, catches fire. After saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make a final dash to save any one item. What would it be? Why? My external hard drive. It has all of my pictures and files that I treasure. 

Would you like to be famous? In what way? Yes, I want to be famous in a way that inspires others to help those less fortunate. 

Take four minutes and tell your partner your life story in as much detail as possible. I was born on November 3. My great grandma, Me-Me, kept me after my mom had to go back to work. My parents divorced when I was five and I lived with my mom until I was 12. We moved around a lot and I grew up pretty quickly. I won't say that my parents didn't put me in the middle because they did, but I hope in hindsight they realize the tole it took on me as a child and person. My little sister was born when I was 9.5 years old. I didn't want her at first but grew to love her. I moved to Michigan when I was 12 and lived there for a month before coming to visit my dad for Christmas and he told me he filed for custody. I definitely went through a mom/daughter struggle in my later teens. I lived with my dad and Teresa until my sophomore year of college when I moved on campus at Young Harris College, one mile from my house. I joined a local sorority and met some of my best friends. I also played golf at YHC. After graduating from YHC, I moved to Athens and eventually graduated from UGA. I got a job in Charlotte and moved there knowing absolutely know one. I lived with a wonderful roommate who has become one of my best friends and introduced me to my current employers. After working for them for 1.5 years, they asked me to move to Mobile and handle our bank relationships. 

Share with your partner an embarrassing moment in your life. I was out with some friends and we were dancing. I started dropping low and then all of sudden I lost my balance and fell on my butt. There was probably a good 25 people who saw my fall...I wish I could say I was graceful but truth is I trip and fall  A LOT! 

 

This past weekend I went to Navarre, Florida to visit family. It is such a great place to visit and I am glad my grandma is moving there soon. It isn't overly populated, touristy is not a word I would use to describe it and you can bet that you won't find building after building along the beach. All of this is what makes Navarre a great place to visit.

 



If you read my last post, then you know that living a healthier lifestyle is a top priority for me this year and the years to come. So for a Christmas present to myself I purchased Focus T25 from Beachbody. Before I go in to why I chose this program, let me tell you a little bit about how I got to this place. 

I have struggled with weight pretty much my whole life. After college, I moved in with someone who I met the day before and quickly learned she was quite health conscious. Good news for me is that her healthy habits started to rub off on me and so I started training for a half marathon. I was making smart meal choices, running and really sticking to my goals. In April about three months before my half marathon I got an awful pain in my right knee. Fun Fact: I tore my ACL once in middle school and then again in high school. After a week of my knee not getting better I went to the doctor and he told me what I was dreading...that I would need knee surgery in order to remove more of my meniscus that was trapped between the bones in my knee. After surgery he told me that running was no longer an option and my heart broke. 

Fast forward a few years and I haven't really committed to a healthy lifestyle since then. So what better time to start than the new year. Thanks to some guidance and group challenge put together by one of my favorite bloggers Marion I chose Focus T25 to help get me to a happy and healthy place. 

For me it was a no brainer, no equipment is required at least in the Alpha phase and since I travel every other week, I could always just pack these DVDs with me. Oh and of course the best party it is only TWENTY FIVE minutes. I mean seriously who says no to less than 30 minutes for a workout. 

You get the Alpha and Beta phase DVDs, a bonus stretch DVD, a nutrition guide, 5 Day Fast Track and a Quick Start Guide. You also get a resistance band which you don't use in the Alpha phase. 

Well what better way to welcome myself back to this blog than to give you guys an update on my 101 things in 1001 days. I am excited to report I have marked  few more off my list and look forward to marking some more off over the next few months. 

Since moving to Mobile, New Orleans has been on the top of my list and for my birthday this year, I decided it was the perfect destination. I was lucky enough to spend my 27th year in the beautiful city of New Orleans and cross off an item on my 101 list. While in New Orleans we ate delicious food, of course we visited Cafe Beignet, and the highlight of my weekend was meeting Manny Montana live and in person. If you don't watch Graceland on USA then you need to.