The 100 Dreams Project Vol 5 & Friday Chat

Happy Friday! I am so ready for the weekend! What about you? I have a few things to chat about today as well as my next set of dreams for my 100 Dreams Project

1. 100 Dreams


41. Have my family be close again.
42. Have a space just for me dedicated to writing, yoga, meditation, etc.
43. Confidently promote myself.
44. Be a great parent.
45. Be a mentor.
46. Land a sponsorship that pays me to vacation.
47. Figure out what my "dream" job is.
48. Own a Range Rover Sport SVR in Estoril Blue.
49.Start a benefit/foundation that helps women with body image issues and mental health.
50. Dance like no one is watching. I need to get over the fear of people watching me.

2. Updates

Yay for blog updates! I am finally sprucing the place up a bit. New layout and nicer photos. I am actually taking time to either take my own photos or buy stock photos to make everything a little more clean around here. I can't believe how long it has been since I did any kid of housekeeping here. It is super exciting for me. Maybe not so much for you. Sorry about that.

I'm giddy about writing a new "about" page and adding some more focused topics here. This will always be a lifestyle page, but I truly believe if you write about what you love, it will be effortless and the passion will shine through to your readers. That is my main focus now. Write what makes me happy. If it goes viral great! If not, that's okay too.

3. Speaking of going viral..

So I mentioned in a post a few weeks ago that a link from my blog was posted on a Reddit thread. Well it is apparently getting some hits because that post is now the top post on my blog. See exhibit A:



Not bad for a post I wrote in 2016.. Mind you this was the page views for one week.

Moving on.

4. Letter boards

Guys, I think I have found my new passion in life. Maybe even my "dream" job. Sorry dreams post, I think I just scratched one off the list before you were even published. So I got myself a letter board at Target (Also speaking of Target, I think I go there 900 times a week now that I'm a mom.. but that's a whole 'nother post) for a project and now I own 3. Mind you I went to Target on Sunday, like this past Sunday. Yeah I have a problem. Check out my 2 first masterpieces on Instagram. Follow me while you're there. I'm sure there will be MANY more great letter board works of art to come.

5.  Who likes it HOT HOT HOT?



If that's you, move to Central NY. It is going to be SO HOT this weekend. Like it's going from being in the upper 60's and rainy all week to the mid 90's this weekend with full humidity! Seriously! I am already roasting just thinking about it. I will NEVER complain about the heat after the winter we just had, but can we at least ease into the fires of Hell? Thanks!

How was your week? I hope it was fabulous! Have a great weekend! Stay hydrated!



Trish List signature

Stitch Fix # 18

The more I photograph these fixes, the more I realize I love fashion. I was never a "fashionista" growing up. I just wore what was comfortable. I don't think I had a specific style per say. Although I do specifically remember a moment in my early 20's when I got to a friends house and she made a comment that I always looked so put together. Her and her boyfriend had been discussing how nice I always looked.

That make me feel awkward at the time. I never thought about what I wore. I just put clothes on and went out. Thinking back, I think I was more fashionable than I gave myself credit for. I suppose that fits my personality though. I am always so naïve about my talents, or my looks, or anything about myself really.

I remember standing in front of my closet two years ago and the wheels started turning. I started seeing pieces of my clothing matched with each other. Pieces I would have never put together normally. I got excited. I was always the girl who did the awesome makeup. Not the girl who had awesome fashion sense.

I had thought about subscribing to Stitch Fix for awhile, but always thought it would be a waste of my time. I told myself I already knew what I liked to wear. I told myself it would be too expensive. I told myself I wouldn't like to wear clothes someone else picked out.

I was so wrong about all of those things. I finally bit the bullet early last year. I was going to try one box and then cancel. I was so sure I wasn't going to like it enough to keep it going. Now here we are at fix number 18.





Stitch Fix has allowed me to try on pieces that I would never have picked out on my own. I have found quality items to add to my closet that again can be mix and matched with my existing wardrobe. It makes it fun to get dressed.

It also makes it fun to photograph. I love modeling the clothes I get sent. Even if I don't keep the items, I still get to freeze them in a frame to post here for you to see. I have been inspired to do more and more fashion posts because of Stitch Fix.

Now on to the photos. It was such a bright and cheerful fix that popped to the backdrop of my backyard.

 For those of you unfamiliar with Stitch Fix, it is a monthly clothing subscription where you get a personal stylist to send you 5 pieces according to your profile. You have the opportunity to write your stylist a note each month further customizing your fix. You pay a $20 styling fee each month to receive the fix, which is then deducted from the cost of anything you keep from your fix. If you keep all 5 items you also receive a 25% discount. Pretty great right? If you have interest in trying out the fix, I would appreciate it greatly if you used my affiliate link.

First up is this Fortune + Ivy wrap dress. I have come to realize since I have given birth that wrap dresses just do not work for me. This one is also a bit too short for my liking. It is a pretty color, but not my style. This went back.

  

I really loved the color of this Papermoon blouse. I paired it with these really comfy joggers from my last fix that I kept. I already have something similar in my closet so I sent it back.  Bonus here is seeing the rear end of Rick. He is such a photo bomber! Ever since he was Mr. May in the local SPCA calendar he demands the spotlight. Such a diva!




I really love this outfit. The Alice Blue top is simple and cool for the summer and pairs nicely with the  RD Style shorts. The shorts are the only things I kept from this fix. They are comfy and have pockets!



Not pictured because I some how forgot to photograph it is this pink Nine West Crossover.  I thought it was really cute, but was not in the need for a new bag right now.
All in all I loved this fix. There were pieces I would never had picked out myself (hello shorts!). When it first arrived I thought maybe they sent me someone else's fix because it was so out of my comfort zone. But this is why I keep getting Stitch Fix. It forces me out of my comfort zone.

I also realize I need to do better on my photos for these posts. I am just lucky I got it done while it was still daylight to be honest. I literally ran down from my office after work and did this before I went to the gym. I only have so much "me" time now with the baby. Oh well! I am just glad it got done.

Which piece is your favorite?



Trish List signature

What Inspired Me to Change

Hi there. Happy Monday. You may notice things are looking a little different around here today (Ahem, new layout). Over the next week you will see some more changes here. I am not completely done yet with the layout. This is just the barebones. I will put in time as I can to get my vision created. But now on to what has made me decide to put in the time to make the changes.

You may (or may not) remember me mentioning the book 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam. (Just an FYI, I won't make any money off of that link if you click it, because even after 5 years of blogging, I have no idea how affiliate marketing works! Ooops!) If you don't remember, it is basically a book reminding you of how many hours in a day you waste on pointless shit.  That is pretty much the jist of it.

Now you may think I am not digging this book by that statement, but that's not true at all. The book has reminded me that I once had a passion and some real time put into this blog. This blog was my life at one point, in a good way.

I loved coming here each and every day to work on something new for you all to read and engage in with me. Over time a life thing happened that really left a bad taste in my mouth, and from that point on my time here became less and less. I was looking at my archive list earlier. My first year of blogging was in 2014. I wrote 137 posts and I started blogging in May.

In 2015 I wrote 156 posts and really started to get some notice. I had brands who reached out to me. I did some sponsored posts. It was great! I loved to write and I was getting asked to write. It made me happy. In July, the life thing happened. Things slowed down a bit, but I made a promise to myself that I would at least blog through the end of the year, plus I had some commitments already that I had to honor.

In 2016 I was down to 123 posts and by last year I only had 73 logged. Here we are in 2018 and this will only be my 22nd post of the year. A majority of these posts only happened over the last 2 months. It seems I have found my passion again with writing. It doesn't even have anything to do with being sponsored or making money.

I just love it. Signs have been pointing me back to writing for awhile now. It is something I never thought I would enjoy so much, yet here I am. Inspiration at it's finest.

 Now back to the book I mentioned and how it inspired me to change my path here on the blog.

It reminded me that if I am passionate enough about something, I will make time for it.  There is no longer an adequate excuse. It's either I want to do it or I don't. There really isn't any in between.

You carve out time where you can. For instance, I am typing this out while I pump for baby bloob. I have mastered doing this lately. I write and I create food for my child. I am making time for 2 things that are very important to me.

You use all of your free time efficiently. It works.

If I can hash out time and multitask for something I love, then so can you. You just have to make a choice.

I plan to finish this book today, as it is due back to the library tomorrow. I plan to write down my week in hours next week. I will share how it goes along the way. I am excited to see how I spend my time.

Who's going to do it with me?



Trish List signature

100 Dream Project - Week 4


 
Happy Friday. I hope you are following your dreams in every way possible. Here are the next 10 dreams on my list.


31 Hike the Appalachian Trail
32 Hike to Havasu Falls in the Grand Canyon
33 Visit the Tulip fields in the Netherlands
34 Attend a wellness retreat (Yoga, Meditation, Silence)
35 Become a master Yogi
36 Visit the Greek Isles and stay in a hotel with a cliff infinity pool with a view
37 Pay off my student loans and be 100% debt free
38 Fly first class
39 Book a vacation with no budget
40 Eat at a fancy restaurant and not look at prices before ordering

Make sure to catch 1-10 , 11-20 and 21-30  if you missed them!


What dreams are you achieving this weekend?
 
Namaste.



Trish List signature

"Home" is where the heart is




We hear this saying all too often. "Home is where the heart is", but do we ever stop to think how true this is?

Our bodies are ultimately our homes. We live in our bodies everyday. Our heart beating keeps us going. It also becomes the source of our emotions.

Sayings like "Putting your heart and soul into it", or "She was broken hearted when her dog passed away" will reference the heart with an emotion.

Today I am thinking a lot about the emotion side of the heart and body because of something that happened recently.

The other night I was sitting in bed with R and our cat Grace. She wasn't feeling good through the day and she had lost a lot of weight. She came up into the bed and was being super affectionate and cute like she is when she wants attention.

My immediate reaction was, something is really wrong. Maybe she's sick and she doesn't have a lot of time left. Maybe she is here trying to comfort me so it will be an easy transition whens she goes. I had all of the emotions running through me.

My heart was literally breaking and full of love all at the same time. I wanted to be strong for her but sad because I love that little cat like she's my child. I sat there petting her and the tears started falling. She just kept on butting her little head into me, like "Mom, it's going to be okay. Please stop crying".

My body literally reacted to the emotions before I could even make that connection myself. The heart and emotions are such a powerful force of nature. My body reacted to these emotions and helped the tears along, which alerted Grace to comfort me more. Such a powerful moment.

I was able to calm myself down and talk about it with R. I wanted to be in control so I could prepare myself if something was wrong and she didn't have time left. This pushed my emotions into a place of comfort while I remembered all the times I spent with her. My silly little furball, who will only be 3 next month. Too young in my opinion to be sick and dying.

R comforted me to remind me we didn't know she was on her way out. We needed to trust that things were going to be okay. We needed to take her to the vet to have her checked out.

Yesterday she went to the vet, and miraculously she was feeling better. She was eating and seemed to have gained all this weight back, which I am not sure how that could even be. The night before she was so frail and I could feel every bump of her ribs and spine as I rubbed her back and belly.

I was relieved and felt whole again when the news came to me. I realized at that moment, that Grace is home to me. My heart reacted with those emotions because;

Home is where the heart is.  <3



Trish List signature