Laina Turner's Blog, page 79
June 18, 2014
Birthday Food
Yeah….it was my birthday yesterday and surprisingly enough I’m not in such a sugar and wine coma I am unable to write. Trust me it IS surprising.
I started the morning off with my once a year AMAZINGLY awesome breakfast. The Apple Pancake from The Original Pancake House.
I mean who doesn’t need crystallized sugar at 7am in the morning. So of course around 11am I was starving and had some delicious Auntie Anne’s cinnamon sugar pretzel bites. I apologize that there is no beautiful picture of this as I scarfed them down before I remembered I wanted a picture.
I was good until dinner time and that’s when the fun started. Ever since I can remember I’ve had red velvet cake on my birthday. My grandmother made the absolute best cakes ever. Then when she passed my dad made them and then I would buy them. I have it on my list to try this year just didn’t want to do it on my birthday in case it didn’t turn out.
I happened to be out of town by myself for the evening but I didn’t let that stop me. I headed over to the Cheesecake Factory and had my favorites!
Seven Daughters Moscato
Factory Nachos
And….red velvet cheesecake. And yeah….the picture is in this post twice because it is THAT GOOD!
Ok, I admit my birthday was highly centered around food. Due to my schedule I wasn’t able to do some of my normal fun birthday events but trust me this food was enough.
I may never eat again! Well…at least not until my next birthday!
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June 16, 2014
Slow Down The Train
Do you ever have those blogging days where you have a million ideas of what you want to write about but when it comes time to actually put the post together you can’t think of a single one that you can put together more than two sentences?
That’s my day today!
We moved out of our house Friday and now are living in a hotel until July 1st. I am trying to get caught up and organized all while living in a state of chaos. I’m not sure it’s realistic. But then I almost always feel like I am living in a state of chaos with everything that is going on. I need to slow down and learn the word NO. Or learn that not everything can be accomplished all at once nor does it need to be. The problem I have is that I HATE waiting. If I want something I want it RIGHT NOW.
I don’t mind working hard for the RIGHT NOW but sometimes taking more off your plate rather than to put more on is the better way to go. Because if you’re always crazy and taking on too much you don’t get to enjoy the journey and life is about the journey. RIGHT?
So help me out. How do YOU make yourself NOT take on too much How do YOU enjoy YOUR journey?
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June 13, 2014
Fab 5 Friday
My fab finds from around the web!
A Cup Of Jo: A 19-hour vacation Because vacations are about the moments you experience.
I Wore Yoga Pants To Work: My Anxiety Wrote This Post I LOVED this one because my anxiety has caused me not to write a damn thing the last few days.
Delightfully tacky: fields of poppies This dress is all kinds of gorgeous.
Stephanie Blondet Everything on this site is gorgeous and who doesn’t love notebooks?
Just a Girl and her Blog: Building a Framework: Everything I Learned My First Year Of Blogging. You can never have too much information.
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Fashion Police: Clean Your Wardrobe Now, Lady
You can hardly find a woman who is completely satisfied with the clothes, shoes and accessories she has. As soon as we find a desired item and buy it, something newer and more fashionable comes up. It seems like all women worldwide suffer the same fate – they are caught in the vicious circle of wasting their money on buying stuff they never intend to wear. All of a sudden you find yourself surrounded by piles of clothes, bought a couple of years ago, and a new problem arises: there is not enough space for the newer items you got on your last shopping spree. Don’t you think it’s about time you get rid of all the unnecessary clothing your wardrobes are stuffed with? Instead of boring, this activity can be enjoyable.
Let’s look at the reasons why you should organize your wardrobe now, listed by TidyCleaning in N1:
- You think you might never wear the pink dress you bought on sale, but want to keep it just in case…, but it can be the perfect gift to a friend of yours who would really appreciate it. Go through all the forgotten treasures you bought, organize and stock the alike items together. You will probably find some pretty unappealing things and you may even regret having them but think about the statement “Many men, many minds” – give them to somebody else – make a donation to a charity organization, make a yard sale and throw the ones that are in a really bad condition, away.
- The most important thing is to clean your wardrobe and make enough space for your future valuable possessions.Some women find it really difficult to decide what to keep and what to throw away. If you are among them, don’t worry. Whenever you are hesitating, ask yourself: “What am I going to use this piece of clothing for? Keep it for a special occasion or wear it while I am at home?” If you have survived a year or two without wearing the newfound blouse or jeans, the chances to survive without them in the future are pretty high, so don’t be nostalgic when it comes to cleaning up the wardrobe.
- Your favorite and super comfortable jeans are out of fashion already? Remember that everything new is – forgotten old. Make some changes to your clothes and they will be in fashion again. Take a look at the current fashion trends and amend your jeans in accordance with them – make holes, sew some lace onto them… be creative and save your money.
- Why don’t you continue with the modifications and make some interesting items out of the worn out clothes? Unlock your imagination and make a handbag, a pillowcase, whatever you might think of.
- What should you do with the hundreds pairs of shoes you have collected during the years? Depending on the material they are made of, clean them up with an appropriate soft cloth or a specialized brush. Separate them in three categories: “Keep”, “For Sale”, “Throw Away”. This will make the cleaning up process way easier. Your trainers can serve you a couple more months while you will never wear the high heels in a strange color. Organize the shoes properly and once again: Don’t be nostalgic.
Although organizing the wardrobe is rarely included in your house cleaning activities, it definitely needs regular attention. Otherwise, at one point, you might get overwhelmed and instead of spending 30 minutes per week, later, you will have to waste an entire day off just cleaning and folding the clothes.
Guest Blogger – Karen Shanne
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June 12, 2014
Classic Shoes To Go With Any Look
When it comes to shoes, there are certain styles that don’t fade when a new trend comes out. Some shoes just remain timeless. I know I have shoes that I bought 10 years ago that I still wear occasionally today (my red pumps!). Instead of always buying the latest trend, add some shoes into your wardrobe that always look classy! Below are some of my favorite classy shoes from around the web…
Pinkish 4 High Heels (Beige)
High heel pumps are a staple in any woman’s closet! They go with just about any outfit, unless you’re going for a super casual look. I love this beige color!
Pinkish 4 High Heels – Beige – $99.99, Free shipping – Available at 6pm.com
Peep Toe Ankle Strap Kitten Heel
If you’re like me, you don’t always want a really tall heel (I don’t like to be taller than my husband when we go out). Try these classy peep toe heels for a change.
Tupper Black Pat Dress Peep Toe Ankle Strap Kitten Heel Office Sandal-6 – $18.50, 15.90 shipping – Available at Amazon.com Marketplace
TOMS ‘Alessandra’ Ballet Flat
I prefer wearing flats most days. These basic neutral color TOMS are great for a casual day.
TOMS ‘Alessandra’ Ballet Flat – $83.95, Free shipping – Available at Fullfillment By Amazon
Friendship Women’s Sandals – Gold
Summery dresses call for great sandals, so go for a timeless pair like this one!
Friendship Women’s Sandals – Gold – $43.45, Free shipping – Available at 6pm.com
“Zen” Closed-toe Sandal – Cognac Women’s
Another great sandal to wear for any occasion. I love the closed-toed look in this one.
“Zen” Closed-toe Sandal – Cognac Women’s – $59.95, Free shipping – Available at Fullfillment By Amazon
Happy shoe shopping!
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links provided by Postpresso.
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June 11, 2014
How E-mail and Article Marketing Can Boost Your Blog
E-mail Marketing for Your Blog: Why Consider It?It increases your reach
It is inexpensive
It is a personal approach
You can offer exclusive things such as free newsletters or e-books
To obtain e-mail addresses from your readers, you should offer something of value to them. Give them an invitation, a list of Quick How-To Tips, something relative to their needs, etc. Two recommended e-mail marketing programs with autoresponders are Aweber and Mailchimp.
Article Marketing: What Is It?
Have you ever heard of ezinearticles.com, articlesbase.com, goarticles.com or ehow.com? They are free online article directories used as references for everything from how to French braid your hair to how to do your taxes.
How can article marketing benefit bloggers?
It gives your posts a different audience
It drives more traffic
It boosts your SEO
It enhances your credibility
I am most familiar with Ezine Articles. This article directory is a great platform for repurposing your posts and submitting them to a new audience. Or for writing a new article that is outside the niche of your blog. Publishers are required to include your Resource Box (which contains your mini-bio or website contact information) and can not alter or edit your article in any way without obtaining your permission first.
Ezine Articles reviews all submissions before publishing them on their site. There are also specific guidelines for their site that you need to review pertaining to how the article should be written, i.e., not in the form of a blog post, e-mail, personal letter; no promotional content; no profanity, etc. A free basic membership allows 10 submissions initially. Your membership status increases based on the quality of your articles and more submissions are then allowed.
Recommendations for using any article directory:
Strong biography stating why you are qualified to write about the topic
Knowledge and understanding of the site’s content and submission guidelines
Place keywords at beginning or near beginning of article to boost SEO
Are you using article directories to promote your blog? Locate content?
Do you send newsletters to your readers?
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June 9, 2014
Moving: My Least Favorite Thing
Normally, I’m not overly thrilled about Mondays. While weekends having fun with the kids can be exhausting they’re fun and getting back to the daily grind of work, even though I love it, can sometimes be a letdown.
Today, however, I am thrilled to have it be Monday. We spent all weekend packing up the house and putting it in a storage POD to get ready for fully moving out on Friday. Then we will have the great fun of living in a hotel for 2 weeks while we are waiting to get in our new house.
By Sunday night the entire family was physically exhausted, the house was ripped apart, messy, and I had no idea where anything was. I packed up the entire kitchen so we are eating on paper plates with plastic ware utensils. There is cereal, bread and meat for sandwiches, and a bunch of unhealthy snacks that are in their own little packages for easy eating. The next few weeks will not be all that easy but the end result is worth it.
Anyone have some tips or ideas on how to manage with 3 kids in a hotel when it’s not vacation?
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June 5, 2014
The Comeback of the High Waisted Bikinis
When summertime rolls around each year, the thing I dread the most is having to search for that perfect swimsuit. Why? Because it’s so hard to find that perfect swimsuit! I, for one, do not like wearing a bikini unless I have a perfectly smooth, tight stomach. I think far too many women try to pull off wearing a bikini when they really probably shouldn’t. However, on the flip side, I’m really not a fan of wearing a one-piece either. For one – it just doesn’t seem my age and for two – they just aren’t flattering. So, what are my other options?
Well, this year it appears that the high waisted bikinis are all the rage. Everywhere you look, you see them! I haven’t tried any of them on yet, but from what I have read, it seems that they are a great fit for someone like me. The general consensus is that women of all body types like the high waisted bikini because it flatters those areas that you typically feel most self-conscious about (stomach, butt and hips). However, how do men feel about these retro 1950′s swimsuits? Those opinions seem to be mixed.
I think the most important thing about choosing a swimsuit is that you feel comfortable and beautiful wearing it. So, if the high-waisted bikini makes you feel this way – then I say GO FOR IT!
What do you think? Do you LOVE this retro style that’s making a comeback? Or should we have retired them back in the ’50s?
Some of my favorite high-waisted bikini picks for this season:
Love the cheery pink color and pattern in this one! From Etsy $39
If you can pull off orange, I think this polka-dot swimsuit is so cute! From Nordstrom $68
You can’t go wrong with all black – this would be flattering on most body types! From Topshop $50
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Milwaukee Is Pretty Cool!
When I think of Milwaukee I think of the sitcom from the 70’s, Laverne & Shirley. I was very envious of Laverne’s L on her clothes being that my name also starts with L. Somehow my mom didn’t agree and refused to sew the L’s on.
This past weekend my significant other and I made the trip for a weekend getaway and some friends of his were having a party in the Wisconsin Dells so we thought it would be fun to look around Milwaukee for a bit. He is from Wisconsin but I’ve only really driven through the city not actually stopped to look around.
Established in 1846 it’s the 30th most populous city and the largest in Wisconsin (see what you just learned today? Unless of course you already knew this and in that case never mind.)
It was much more quaint that I would have thought. We didn’t have a lot of time but we got a few good pictures to show how pretty it is.
Have a wonderful day!
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June 4, 2014
Healthy Eating Is Hard on The Road
A couple weeks ago after much research I decided I would try eating Paleo. Healthy eating is something I normally try to do, staying away from crap food, but lately I felt I needed to do a little bit extra. I just felt tired all the time and with what I had read thought this might help stabilize that and give me my energy back.
While it’s only been a couple weeks, I do feel a difference. By cutting out grains, sugars, and dairy and focusing instead on eating meats, vegetables, and fruit I do feel fuller longer and have more energy (I’d have even more if I could sleep but that’s a whole different blog post).
Eating this way does require more planning on my part regarding what I’m going to eat but I’ve done pretty well. I would say the biggest drawback of this eating lifestyle IS the food planning in advance because it is very hard to stick too otherwise. However, it is cheaper to not eat out.
I almost blew it though when I went out of town last weekend. It is HARD to eat Paleo on the road when you are only stopping at fast food joints and gas stations. I was traveling with my significant other who loves crap food and I didn’t want to be a pain thinking I could just find something. yeah…not so much. I spent a lot of money on food I thought I could eat but couldn’t after actually looking at it so I subsided mostly on Lara bars (one of the few Paleo approved prepacked foods I’ve found) gas station bananas and jerkey. Though after looking at the label and seeing jerky has 3 kinds of sugar, I regretted it, but it was too late.
The goodness is except for a couple minor unavoidable slip-ups I stayed the course and felt better for it.
To prepare better for my next trip over the 4th of July I am hoping some of you Paleo friends might stumble across this blog and help me out with ideas of how to eat on the road!
It would be much appreciated.
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