STORY TIME:

Okay so yesterday my mum and I headed out on a mini road trip to a blueberry festival.  Yes, you read that right, A BLUEBERRY FESTIVAL.  It was called ‘Blueberry Blast’ and was just as cute as the name sounds.  But anyways, on our way home we found AN ALPACA FARM.  AN ALPACA FARM WITH REAL LIFE ALPACAS NOT STUFFED ONES.  It was totally magical and btw if anyone has a pet alpaca that they can permanently lend me, that would be great thanks.

Anyways... HI! I’m Em, welcome!!

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July Reflection

JULY WAS GOOD.  REALLY REALLY GOOD.  As for my goals... I MADE SOME PROGRESS!

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Simple Living

I kind of/not really started.  I’m just too sentimental.

Gratitude

To be honest, I kind of forgot about this one....But realistically, I think I already express quite a lot of gratitude.

Fruitful Relationships

YES YES YES.  I TOTALLY ROCKED THIS GOAL!!  I focused on tending to my friendships and boy, was it ever fruitful.

Screens Down, Book Open

I read 2 1/2 books.  That’s more than June... Social media is just SO distracting!

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August Goals

I actually divided my goals into monthly, weekly and daily categories, which makes for A LOT of them, so I’m just going to include a couple from each category.

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MONTHY:

Simple  Living

It’s back.  PROGRESS NOT PERFECTION GANG.

Embrace  Awkward

With school starting at the end of the month, I know that there is going to be a TON of awkward.  I also just reached out to some friends that I haven’t spoke to in MONTHS.  The best things were always awkward at some point.

WEEKLY:

Love My Friends Well

This one is SO important.  Growing strong friendships is one thing, but in order for them to flourish you need to water them.

10km Training

One thing that I really wanted to do this summer was run 10km.  So far this summer, the farthest I’ve gone has been 6km.  This is definitely going to be a challenge.

DAILY:

Read All The Books

Read the hard truth.  And read the good truth.  Read it all, and soak everything in.

Encourage Everyone

Encouragement is the ultimate way to achieve things, and I want to spread some encouragement to my friends and family that THEY CAN DO THIS.

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That’s a wrap!

Let me know one of your August goals below in the comments!

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WAIT DON’T GO YET!

I almost completely forgot.... 

I’VE CREATED AN AUGUST SERIES

*woot wooooooo*

There will be 5 posts in total and they will be going up on Wednesdays.  It starts on August 3rd!!!

Here’s a little sneak peak...

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LOVE YA

Em

Hey darling, what’s up?

This has been a good week.  Like one of those weeks that you just never want it to end.    Last night I flew back home from a week long vacation in the big city.  I stayed with my aunt and she is absolutely amazing and she has a pool.  It was pretty awesome.

This week I’ve been listening to the Make It Happen podcast by Lara Casey.

And I’ve been reading Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard.

My focus has been on growing relationships and relaxing (which I did reflect a lot on this week)

I also leave for England in 11 days so WOOT WOO I CAN’T WAIT OMG.  This also means that the next 11 days are going to be completely NUTS.  

I am trying to plan out my birthday party/friend gathering.  My actual birthday is happening when I’m in England, but I still want to do something with my friends once I get home.  Any suggestions?  I was thinking something along the lines of a picnic...?

I’ve been wearing these shorts every single day is week.  I think I might have a problem...  And yes, they’re 100% worth the $58, trust me, BEST SHORTS EVER.

I am also starting to prep for back-to-school which has me a lil bit scared and excited at the same time.

While away, I got to spend two days with my great aunt and uncle.  Our visit consisted of lots of dessert and me falling asleep outside in the gazebo, but the visit really showed me the importance of spending time with your family, even it’s not the most fun activity.  

so...

That’s all I have for you on this sunny Wednesday morning.  

Have a wonderful day!!

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HUGS!

Em

2016 is the year of observing what works and what doesn’t.  2016 is the year of adapting new, good habits.  2016 is the year of analyzing and creating an action plan.  2016 is the year of learning.

And boy, have I learned so much already this year.

I like to have a general focus each year.  Whether that focus be set on January 1st or on a rainy Thursday in July, it really doesn’t matter.

There is nothing magical about January 1st

-Lara Casey

I encourage you to really sit down and think about all that has happened this year.  Whether it be good or bad, think about the bigger picture:  What did you learn from that experience?

Maybe you tried a lot of new things, some didn’t work out but you still tried, which is the important part.  Maybe then for you, 2016 is the year of stepping out of your comfort zone.

Maybe you really struggled with friendships.  Some were lost entirely and some are slowly growing apart.  Maybe for you, 2016 is the year of pruning and new growth

Whatever 2016 may mean to you, make it something that really sinks deep into your heart.

What do you think?

What is 2016 the year for?

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Lots of LOVE,

I am not very good at friendships.

I always feel so awkward and out of place, so usually I just avoid the situation altogether and spend time alone.  Which also kind of sucks.

And I honestly don’t know why but I just freeze around new people.  I also takes me years to learn to trust others.

BUT I’M WORKING ON IT!

This summer especially, I’m focusing on tending to my previous friendships and growing them stronger.  I want relationships where I know in my heart that they will last for a very long time.

I know that family is very important.  But I also think that there is something really special about the family that you get to choose, your friends.  I find that my friends truly and deeply understand me more then my family does.  Saying this I know that I need to have them in my life.

This summer I encourage you to truly evaluate your friendships.  Which friendships need some tending to?  Do any friendships need pruning?

I’m going to tell you a little story.  

I used to be friends with this girl.  We had been friends since pre-school and I personally felt like we were growing apart.  So, I transferred schools the next year.  I essentially ‘pruned’ our friendship.  And guess what happened?  I made a bunch of new friends who understand me so much more then she ever did.

Sometimes pruning is necessary for new friendships to grow and flourish.

It’s like a garden: You need to prune your plants to allow for new growth.

So, as a little treat for you lovely readers, I created a free printable.  It’s all about growing your friendships and I encourage all of you to fill it out and post it in a place that you will glance at throughout the day!

My Printable

AND THAT’S A WRAP!!

So...

Do you have any friendships that need pruning?  Do you like the printable (I think it’s super cute!)

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HUGS!

Em

What’s up buttercup?

As your reading this I am probably learning how to put casts on people and all that cool medical stuff.  Seriously though, I’m in this summer camp at a medical school this week and IT’S THE BOMB (do people even say that anymore...?)

Anyways, I haven’t done a ‘let’s chat’ in a few weeks so here we go...

Blog Theme:

I feel like my blog is all over the place.  You have probably noticed that I have been writing more ‘inspiration’ posts, instead of fashion or food related things.

I just enjoy writing inspiration posts more because I feel like they are more personal, and to be honest, I like to go back and read them when I’m in need of motivation.  I’m writing the type of posts that I like to read.

Writing Style:

Okay so this is kind of bugging me right now.  Like one minute I sound all professional and use big words like ‘cultivate’ and the next I’m super casual and making absolute zero sense.

I JUST DON’T KNOW HOW TO WRITE.

I find it fun to write blog posts like I’m actually having a conversation with you, but sometimes I feel the need to be all deep and serious.  AND I JUST DON’T KNOW ANYMORE OKAY.

I am also working on a super exciting August series for you beautiful people, SO GET EXCITED IT’S GOING TO BE GOOD.

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Let’s Talk...

Do you like reading inspiration type posts?  Do you prefer a certain writing style?  And how’s your summer going (I really wanna know!!)

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Bye for now,

This post was inspired by Lara Casey, who I really look up to for her wise words of wisdom.

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I’m going to be completely honest with you here,  I feel like I have to be the best at what I do in order for what I do to be valued.  I am now starting to realize that this is so not the case.

We live in a world where society tells us that we need to be the best at everything.  This is a lie. Failure is okay.  And being average is okay.  

Last place is still better then not racing at all.

I have quit doing so many things that I loved simply because I wasn’t the best at them.   I thought that quitting was the right thing to do.  Now looking back on it, I realize that it wasn’t and if you really enjoy doing something, perfection shouldn’t matter.

It’s okay to really love something and not be the best at it.  It’s okay to have a special talent or skill and not make a career out of it.  It’s okay to be average at things.

And maybe you are average at everything you do.  That’s okay too.  You can be average can still have a voice and be valued.

So, let’s abandon perfection.  Let’s take the things that we are average at and continue pursuing them!  We’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.

LET’S EMBRACE AVERAGE!

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Let’s Chat...

What things in your life do you love that you feel you are 'average' at?  

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Love,

Em

Sometimes we set way too high expectations for ourselves.  We give ourselves ridiculous due dates of when certain things should be done and then, when the plan changes we are stuck sitting here wondering “Now what?”

I’m quite sure that we have all been there at some point in our lives.  I know I have.  

And it’s really hard to deal with.  One minute everything’s going great and the next your either moving backwards or not moving at all. 

But, one thing I have learned from this is you need to be stubborn about your goals and flexible about your methods. 

Here  are  my 3  tips  for  overcoming  roadblocks:

If you have something that you want so badly and your willing to put in 110%, don’t worry so much about how you get there.  Stick with it.  Keep trying.  Fight until you can’t fight anymore. And never, ever, let roadblocks stop you from success.  

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Talk  to  me.

What roadblocks have you had to overcome recently?  How did you get passed them?

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LOTS OF LOVE!

This month, I want to work on cultivating meaningful goals.  I feel like we all get caught up in creating goals that just benefit us.   But I think that our goals should not only help us, but everyone around us.  Think about how much better the world would be if just one of our goals focused on helping each other in some way!

So, these are my monthly goals for July:

Simple  Living

I haven’t read “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up” yet, but before I read it I want to just get rid of ‘stuff’.  Stuff that has no special place in my heart and that I just don’t need.  Instead of throw this stuff out, I am going to donate to local charities to help out others in the community who may be in need of these things.

Gratitude

This month I would like to work on expressing and cultivating (which is my new favorite word!) gratitude.  Gratitude is hard.  I find myself getting so caught up in ‘what’s happening next’ that I forget to be thankful for the things happening now.

Fruitful Relationships

I want to build stronger, and longer lasting relationships with people.  Since I’m an only child I’m kind of a natural introvert, but I want to start putting myself out there more.  I also want to grow the relationships that I already have by expressing small acts of gratitude to show them that I care.

Screens Down, Book Open

I admit, I am 100% a constant ‘phone checker’.  Even when I’m not expecting any messages or e-mails, I am always subconsciously refreshing feeds and inboxes.  AND IT NEEDS TO STOP.  So, instead of aimlessly searching my phone, I am going to pick up an actual book and read.

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AND THAT’S A WRAP! 

I will let you know how I do with these goals at the end of the month.  But for now, I will leave you with this; Are your goals meaningful and do they cultivate (there it is again!) kindness, gratitude and empathy?

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P.S HAPPY JULY GAL PAL IT’S OFFICIALLY SUMMERTIME WOOT WOO!!

P.P.S I have determined a summer posting schedule, and it is as follows: New posts on Wednesday and Sunday at 9am EST!!  I'm going to try and stick with it, I promise!

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BYE FOR NOW!