I Could be a Vegetarian, Just Not a Vegan, I Like Cheese Too Much!

Here is another Pinterest worthy recipe, first appearing in Fitness Magazine, to add to your recipe boxes!!! It's a Vegetarian dish and even though I'm not a Vegetarian I really enjoyed it! The goat cheese was my favorite part and this was the first time I made caramelized onions! Yuummmmy!

What You Will Need:

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced onion
1 teaspoon sugar {I used Splenda}
1/4 teaspoon salt
9 ounces baby spinach {I used ready-to-eat Leaf Spinach}
4 8 inches whole-wheat flour tortillas
4 ounces semi soft goat cheese
2 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced

Whole Wheat Tortillas-Splenda-Onion-Tomato-Spinach-Goat Cheese-Olive Oil

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, sugar and salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is dark golden brown.

Remove from pan.

Add the spinach and 1 tablespoon water to the skillet; cook 2 minutes, or until spinach is just wilted. Remove from skillet and turn off heat.

Spread a quarter of the goat cheese on each tortilla and top with spinach, tomato and onion.

Fold closed and press lightly. Heat the skillet and place two folded quesadillas in it; cook two minutes per side, or until golden brown and lightly crisp. Repeat.

Enjoy!!!

I hope y'all are having a fantastic start to the week! The weather here in Southern VA has been beautiful which makes the beginning of a work week so much more bearable!! XoXo!!!

Five Truths You Didn't Know About Me!

A few weeks ago I was tagged by the beautiful Natalia over at All the Things, Etc. to admit some truths to my readers!!! I've done a few of these "types" of truthful-bet-you-didn't-know posts in the past but they were usually linked to some kind of blogger award. There is no award for this one, no rules, no have to dos, just honesty, and while I would love to just copy and paste Natalia's, because the majority of hers were me to a T, I can't! So here we go with some honest secrets about me that you may find interesting, funny, or down right strange!

Via

Truth One:

I am a horrible housekeeper! I'm not the worst out there, but I am pretty terrible! If you notice, I don't take many photos of the inside of our home because I'm ashamed of its condition! We always seem to have stuff piling up every where, crap on the desk and dining room table, dirty clothes piles waiting to be washed, and don't even get me started on all of the dog hair! It's literally everywhere! It's gross, but I feel like it's so bad that I just can't even get motivated to vacuum and mop regularly! It basically has to be a daily chore. The hubby and I have discussed trying harder to keep it up instead of hiring a cleaning service and I'm hoping to come up with some kind of cleaning schedule to help tackle this disaster! Admitting this secret just inspired a new Bare It All Friday post and I can't even believe I'm thinking about doing it! You'll probably want to stay tuned! 

Truth Two:

I cried on my wedding day and not just happy tears! Only a handful of people know this as they were standing with me when the tears came, but it's something I'm not ashamed of and don't mind sharing to outsiders. Our wedding was one of the best days of my life because I said "I do" to my hubby and to the rest of our lives, we became one and I would never be ashamed of the day that all happened. To say it went off without a hitch or drama, well that would be a lie. During our reception, my feelings were incredibly hurt and with all kinds of emotions already running high, it wasn't long before I ended up in tears. Luckily I had some awesome bridesmaids who stood with me afar from the party, in the middle of my childhood home front yard, and snapped me back to reality with hugs, a cigarette {yes I used to smoke}, and a touch up of makeup! Even though I still remember that moment, it's a foggy distant memory because it didn't matter! At the end of the day and looking back on it, our day was perfect for us and that's what matters! 

Truth Three:

I do not own anything by Lilly Pulitzer! I know, I know, this is almost a crime! I was so sadden to hear of Lilly's passing yesterday. Her designs have been so classic and timeless, which are the types of designs and styles I go for! Without a doubt I loooooove anything and everything Lilly Pulitzer, but I've never owned an LP piece! Part of it is my inability to spend money on myself {if you follow me you know this is an "issue" I'm working on} and part of it is there are only a few stores in my area who sell her items and they're not in the most convenient locations for me to get to - and before you say shop online, the answer to that is NO! My body type is too wacky to shop online! I just ordered some shoes not too long ago that I ordered in a 9 {I wear an 8.5} and had to send them back for a 9.5 because they were too small! Seriously, if I have issues with shoes I most doubt will have issues sizing clothes!

Truth Four:

I can't listen to a lot of country music! I love being from the "country", I love riding horses, I love my southern twang, but Lord knows I don't love listening to country music! Don't get me wrong, I love love love country music. I actually love ALL genres of music, but I DO NOT LOVE listening to country music. It's extremely emotional for me! For instance, I happened to have it on one morning last week and "I Drive Your Truck" by Lee Brice came on and before it even got to the chorus I had tears streaming down my face! Miranda Lambert's recent song "Mamma's Broken Heart" gets me all teary eyed, even with it's upbeat chords, because where I come from, it's the truth. Been there done that with a broken heart but you never forget how it made you feel! Crazy, lost, revengeful, and the list goes on just like Miranda describes! Don't even get me started on all of Toby Keith's songs about our soldiers and America! I lose it every time he sings about his American pride! I'm beyond grateful and blessed to say America is my home! I cried watching the ACM's last night.. yea.

Truth Five:

I used to love eggs, now I find them hard to eat! I have no idea if it's a texture issue or what, but I can't eat eggs unless they are scrambled and dried out. If they have any moistness or sliminess to them at all I will gag. I used to love love love deviled eggs but now it takes great effort to eat them! I got through two of them at Easter but had to cut them up in small pieces! They tasted great and the whites weren't slimy so I was good to go! Egg whites on a fried egg make me gag as well and I can't eat a hard boiled egg so save my life! The reason I can get through a deviled egg is the mayo and mustard that is mixed with the yolks! I can't even put hard boiled eggs on my salads anymore or enjoy egg salad! This saddens me because of the protein I could get from eating them but I guess I'll just have to enjoy it's momma more...actual chicken! 

Did you learn anything new about me today??!! Hope y'all had fantastic weekends!!! I enjoyed the beautiful weather, had my hair done, enjoyed a manicure and pedicure afternoon date with the hubby, did a few house things,  perused Home Depot, planted an herb garden, worked on YAAA! obligations, spent time with some family, clocked 3 miles total this weekend, and had a photo shoot with Baby Reef. All in all a pretty darn good weekend if I do say so myself! 

Happy Monday! XoXo! 

Bare It All Friday!

I'm still debating whether I want to start this series or not. It's been in the works for some time now and I'm hoping, that if I stick with it, it will turn into a link up for the rest of you to participate. I'm keeping it solo right now to see how I feel after opening up to all of you on some of my insecurities, fears, doubts, hopes, and dreams. There is a lot I always want to say or explain about myself, but it comes at a cost. The cost of baring it all to the public. Everyone knowing the inner battles I struggle with is not what frightens me, it's more of the judgmental attitudes and scrutinization some will give.

My hope for this series is that it will allow you all to be inspired to always be honest with yourselves! I find, here in blog land, that many writers portray their lives in a certain light, a very positive light, which I think is great! However, for me every now and then, I'd love to see some raw emotion and honesty. That is what I hope to bring to you who come, read, and support my daily rambles. Life isn't always rainbows and butterflies but what is life without storms and rough seas? It's pretty damn boring would you not agree? 

As you all know, if you frequent here a lot, I have really been "working on my fitness" since January! The age of thirty is right around the corner for me. A little over a year and a half if you want the actual countdown! It's scaring the bejibbas out of me and I am noticing changes everywhere in my body! More cellulite, drooping breasts, flabby underarms, and a slew of other things I find disheartening. It's enough to make me want to go get some nips and tucks that's for sure! {side note: Nip/Tuck? Best show there ever was!}

Ever since I was young {as in early elementary school} I was ALWAYS "chunkier" than my peers! I wouldn't say I was fat, but I had a pooch that would put a beer gut to shame. All my peers?! Yea, they had flat little tummies without an ounce of chub! Just call me a cherub! I'm pretty sure my insecurities started at the age! 

Then there was middle school, where I had to change out for gym, in front of other girls, who were all thinner than me. Granted non of us had boobs or anything of the like to which, I'm pretty sure a rumor was started that I stuffed my bra with scrunchies in the 6th grade! Talk about scared for life?! If I still remember it, obviously it did a number on me way back when. 

Next was high school and of course I was still chubbier than all my friends! I was a base on the cheerleading squad for crying out loud. If that doesn't scream, I'm a "bigger" girl, I don't know what does. Although it did mean I was a "strong bigger girl" so that was a tad bit of a confidence booster! It still didn't help however, when I was called a "fat bitch" by certain mean girls. By the way, bullying has been around for years.. it's nothing new! There should have been anti bullying campaigns 10 years ago! As in middle school, if I can remember it, I still have scars from it! The other worse part about high school? I gained the college freshman 15 my senior year, before I ever went to college! 

My original college experience was a great one. Original as in, I did the whole go off to college for a few years thing, but then I transferred to a college closer to my hometown later and no longer lived on campus or close to campus for that matter. More on that in a different post. My first two years were great and bullies didn't exist, BUT the opinions of young men did! It would sting when a potential date would chose the skinny friend over me! I'm pretty sure that during the Spring of my Sophomore year, after going on a low carb diet and losing 20 pounds, one guy in a drunken stupor told me I was not skinny enough for him. This of course  also being after he lead me on for a few weeks! Luckily as a confidence booster I had other guys who were interested, but of course I ruined all of those because, let's be real...what girl wants to date the nice guy who thinks she's beautiful?! None! At that age, we want the douchebag jerk who tells us we aren't good enough! Oh my, if I could have known what I know now! 

I wish I could say since I started dating my now husband and have gotten married that I am comfortable with my body. Honest truth, I'm not! My hubby tells me I'm beautiful and perfect and wonderful and, well I'll spare you the rest of the mushiness. While I would like to believe it all 100%, I don't! My weight has continuously fluctuated since we've been together! Skinny and confident one year, chubby and down the next. This last year is a chubby down year for me as I just can't make myself feel good about my body or appearance! The last time I felt absolutely flawless was my wedding and honeymoon. Why?! Because I was the skinniest I'd been in a very long time! I had a jawline, neck bones, and my stomach was the flattest I think I had EVER seen it. How'd I get to that point?! I took over seas diet pills that you could only order online and that were probably really dangerous for my health. Why not take them again?! 1. I did, you can now get them in the states but the formula has changed to make them legal in the US, and they didn't work. 2. I know that's not the solution for long term healthy living! 

Long term healthy living is my ultimate goal but I do want to lose weight! I know exercise isn't the only way and that diet plays a HUGE role as well! While I haven't turned every meal into rabbit food, I am slowly making some changes! My love for food is a constant battle. I just want to get to where I was 2 years ago! I was happy with my body and how I felt in a swim suit! Now I'm embarrassed to even think about putting one on! I've lost my sexy and I need to bring it back! Even when I did have my sexy back I knew I wasn't as small as my friends and always held on tight to those insecurities when they were around. I still do! I don't know if I will ever truly rid myself of my weight insecurities, if I will ever truly think my body is attractive. Maybe if I went from Carrie Underwood American Idol days to Carrie Underwood now I would love my body, but let's be real, the girl works out like six hours every day! That's unrealistic for my schedule! 

I wanted to share this with you all because it is a very large insecurity that I posses and to let you know that if you feel this way too, you are not alone! I very much feel a lone as many people I know either, lose weight very easily or just don't talk about their insecurities of it! One reason I don't speak much of it is because I don't want to hurt other peoples feelings! There are bigger gals than me who suffer these same insecurities and may look at me like I'm crazy for feeling this way! I know when thinner girls than me talk about themselves being "fat" it makes me want to slap them across the face! HOWEVER, I have to remind myself that we are our own worst critics! I can't judge a thinner girl for having the same insecurity about her body as I have. Just as a larger girl shouldn't judge me for my insecruity. Either way, I wanted you all to know that I am here to listen or offer advice or to be an accountability partner for your workout routine! Support is one of the best ways to reach a mighty goal! 

I really do appreciate y'all reading my blog! It is my goal to help make women feel empowered and stronger as females, individuals, and spouses {married or not} one honest bare boned post at a time!! Thank you for reading today and have a glorious weekend!!! XOXO! 

We Pulled a Switch-a-roo and Love Sam Steele Ponder Too!

I've come to the conclusion, that upon first glance, my Thursday posts titles will NEVER make sense and I'm okay with that! With that being said, I'm ridiculously stoked about my guest today!!! I know I've shared that I've made many blogging buddies through Instagram, but this gal and I share a unique IG friendship! We met through Samantha {then Steele} now Ponder. Don't know who she is?! Well, she has my dream job and is an ESPN broadcaster! She also married Christian Ponder, the Minnesota Vikings QB on my birthday this past year! If you want to know the rest of the story, you'll have to wait till the end of the post because I'm dying to introduce Taylor to you!!!! Enjoy this girly girl! She's a fashionista who shares my love for classic pieces, her furrbaby, Princess Kate and a cute pair of Hunter Wellies too! 

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

Hi friends!

I’m Taylor from The Taylor Diary! I am a non-profit fundraiser during the day and am fashion and beauty obsessed by night…well, during the day too! I am a newlywed and a dog mom….a really obnoxious dog mom. I was a Fashion major in college and after graduation I worked as a shoe buyer in St. Louis, Missouri for a large online shoe retailer called shoes.com. It was a wonderful job but being from Kansas City originally, I decided to head home and be a little adventurous. Okay, A LOT adventurous. I opened my own boutique in downtown Kansas City and worked…and worked…and worked for three years straight. Overworked. Needless to say, that is why I am doing what I do now. (non-profit fundraising and event planning)

I decided to start my own blog after I got married (who doesn’t these days?!?) just to keep my creative juices flowing. My job is so much business during the day that I needed a little bit of fun and flirty on the side. When you visit my blog, you will see my ramblings, your typical outfit of the day posts, and lots and lots of beauty reviews. I’m serious. I love trying new beauty products and am always dying to share the latest and greatest with my readers.

However, now that spring is here and the days are longer (and much warmer) there will be a lot more fashion and a little less gabbing. Kansas City had one of the worst winters in a long time and it is really hard taking outfit photos in 24 inches of snow. You wouldn’t have been able to see the shoes! And those are sometimes the most important! Right?!?

I love new Instagram friends. (Just ask Lauran. It is how we met!) So stop by and follow me @THETAYLORDIARY.

I decided to put together a fun, spring outfit for y’all today. I love a girlie lace top, printed pants and statement extras because they make for a totally unique mix of pattern and texture, coincidentally one of spring’s hottest trends.

What I’m wearing:

Lace top: Karlie

Printed pants: asos.com (Vila Clothes)

Shoes: Emilio Pucci

Clutch: Sondra Roberts

necklace: Anthropologie

Lipstick: MAC Cremesheen Lipstick in Sunny Seoul 

I want to give a huge thanks to Lauran for letting me take over her blog. It has been a blast being an honorary Real Young Housewife correspondent today! Head on over to my blog and see what Lauran has to say. We swapped! 

Xoxo,

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

Is she not super adorable?! I know without a doubt if we lived closer we would be the bestest of friends!! I definitely could use her help in the fashion department, that's for sure! I've even used some of her IG posts as inspiration for my own outfits {I'm still working on finding my inner fashionista}! You really have to pay her blog a visit now, especially, to find out more about our initial meeting!!! It'll give you a chance to check out some cheaper cosmetic alternatives that I've come across recently too!!! Head on over and pay me a visit! 

Hope you darlings are having a bright and happy Thursday! Almost to the weekend! 

XoXo,

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Alrighty loves, I'm not going to lie, this is going to be a short and sweet post! I have my monthly migraine and I'm really just not in the mood for staring at the computer for too long! What am I loving this week?! Certainly not this headache!

1.  I ran 2 miles yesterday! Yes, you read that correctly! I, Lauran, ran two miles, nonstop yesterday! I'm pretty positive that was the first time I've EVER run two miles straight! I may have ran it in high school but I can't remember so it definitely doesn't count! I'm still in utter disbelief but I'm also super proud of myself! On another plus side, my hip isn't bothering me anymore either! Bring on the miles!!! I've already clocked 4 miles total for the 30 Miles in 30 Days link up!

Nike Running App! Some of the red spots signify me running in place for passing traffic or slowing down. I did not stop or walk at all! 

 2. The Dashing Dish Blog! I ran across this blog yesterday while doing some research on "clean eating". This girl has it going on! Loads and loads of amazing recipes and a whole tab dedicated to clean eating! She has the most amazing faith in God and watching her video promo and listening to her story is inspiring!! I can't wait to try some of her recipes and hopefully share them with y'all!

3. The Origami Owl necklace my momma gave me for Easter. Even though I told her I didn't want one she couldn't resist buying one for me and filling it with little treasures! An "L" for my name, a heart to represent her love for me, my birthstone, and a dog paw for Baby Reef! She also added a pearl charm as well! I'm looking forward to filling it with more sentimental goodies!!

My sweet necklace!

4. Baseball is officially back! If you are a fan of baseball you know Monday was Opening Day!! Baseball is HUGE in our home. My husband played his entire life, played in college, and now coaches at his high school! I like to refer to baseball as his "other wife" but when I'm annoyed with it I'll usually refer to it as his "mistress"! From now until the playoffs in October, some kind of game will be on nightly. It's such a familiar sound; announcers, the cracks of bats, and the roar of the crowd! I'm praying the Braves have a great season and I foresee they will with the Upton brother's joining the roster this year! You know they are from my neck of the woods right?! That makes me love them even more!!!

5. The home next door to us and the home two doors down are for sale! I hope I don't have to eat these words later but I really am excited about the possibility of having new neighbors!! The townhouse next to us has been empty for about two years now. An elderly woman, who was sweet as pie, lived there but she ended up moving in with her daughter and the house has been empty ever since {it's also the house where I scored that awesome vintage tufted ottoman I told y'all about here}. The town home on the other side of that one just went on the market yesterday! That home has been a rental and has seen its fair share of tenants! I'm looking forward to the possibility of some nice young families moving into both of them! Fingers crossed that they will be as awesome as our neighbors across the street! So, who wants to be our neighbors?! Seriously, if you are looking in the Hampton Roads area add them to your list!

For sale signs! Come on and be our neighbors!!!

Happy Hump Day!! I'm off to pop some more exedrin in hopes this headache goes away!!

On a side note, if any of you follow Perfectly Imperfect Jenn than you know she lost her beloved pup child Daisy on Monday! I am planning to do something nice for her to show her that all of her blogging buddies care deeply and are heartbroken for her! If you would like to partake please let me know!!! I'll be putting a group email together to send out the details later this evening!! 

XoXo!

Arugula, Spugula! Gnocchi, Ganache!

I found this AMAZING recipe while gallivanting through the land of Pinterest not too long ago! Who is the gal behind the recipe you ask? Mandy from Baking with Blondie! After finding her blog through my wee little pin, I am really excited to try some more of her recipes!

I gave this recipe my own added twist - shrimp. If you've been following me for some time you know my hubby has to have some sort of manliness in his dinner! I seriously think I could be a vegetarian! The hubby? Not so much!

What You Will Need:

3 medium-sized fresh sweet corn on the cob
3 cups fresh arugula {I used a mixture of fresh arugula and spinach as Mandy did}
3/4 cup fresh mushrooms, chopped {this was optional but I did include them}
1 pound potato gnocchi
3/4 cup half and half, half heavy cream, or half whole milk/skim {I used whipping cream that I had in the fridge}
3 oz light cream cheese {I used fat free}
1 teaspoon salt {see next ingredient}
1 teaspoon garlic powder {I used garlic salt in place of the garlic powder and the salt}
1 teaspoon fresh basil, julienne {I used dried basil in my spice cabinet}
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Pinch of crushed red pepper
Parmesan cheese for sprinkling
And my little added ingredient:
1 lb frozen or fresh tail off deveined shrimp

garlic salt-whipping cream-gnocchi-spinach-crushed red pepper-dried basil-frozen cooked shrimp-arugula-mushrooms-corn on the cob

Directions:

In large pot, boil water and cook gnocchi according to package directions, adding in the corn on the cob in the last five minutes. Remove corn, transfer to cutting board. Drain gnocchi, but make sure to reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water. Don't rinse your gnocchi. 

{My gnocchi packaging stated to cook until gnocchi rose to the top and that the cook time was only two minutes. I wasn't able to add the corn to it, so I drained the gnocchi using a slotted spoon and just added the corn to the pot after I removed the gnocchi.}

Sauté shrimp in a sauce pan {I used the same pan for the cream sauce and combining all the ingredients at the end} Once the shrimp is cooked/heated thoroughly, remove from pan and set aside. 

For the cream sauce, combine half and half, cream cheese, salt, garlic powder, fresh basil, and pepper in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat for about ten minutes, stirring until cream cheese has evenly dispersed throughout sauce. Stir in reserved pasta water. 

Remove corn from pot and let cool before slicing corn off the cob. 

In a medium bowl combine your shrimp, pasta sauce, corn, mushrooms, gnocchi, spinach and arugula. Sprinkle with additional salt, pepper basil and crushed red pepper if desired. 

{I combined all the ingredients in the sauce pan to help wilt the spinach and arugula}

Once fully mixed and coated, plate and top with Parmesan cheese! Enjoy!!!

From start of preparing to plating to eat, this recipe took 30 minutes! Y'all know I'm all for that!!! Be sure to add this to your recipe box! It's really yummy and I love that it's packed with loads of veggies! I may or may not have added a ton of spinach to it!! Thanks to Pinterest for bringing another yummy recipe to my kitchen and for introducing me to another blogger to add to my reading list! 

XoXo,

It's Warming Up and So Are My April 2013 Mini Goals!

Greeting April means a plethora of things; warmer weather, opened toe shoes, opened windows, and more mini goals!! I really can't believe we are saying hello to the month of April! It seems just like yesterday we were celebrating New Years! I am beyond excited to see what this month has in store for the hubby and myself, hopefully a list full of completed goals!!

Via

1. Complete at least one Pinterest project that I posted about here! I'm hoping painting the front door will happen this month, however, I have some serious crafting to accomplish for my cousin's Bachelorette festivities at the end of the month. I know I will be busy trying to complete that, so I may work on something a bit smaller that will be easier to tackle and finish! I certainly do not want to set myself up for failure before I even get out of the starting gate!

2. Arrive on time to work, every morning. Y'all know about this goal, so no need to explain! If you are new to the blog you can read about it from March, February, and January! At least I know I'll get there on time this week as it is Spring Break and traffic was a breeze this morning!

3. Buy a scale. We have not had a workable weighing scale in our home since we moved into this house over 3.5 years ago! I don't like weighing myself because I am usually very disappointed by what it tells me! However, I've been working on my fitness since January and I really wish I would have started keeping track of my weight at that point. Now that I have added running into my fitness routine, I really am hoping to see a drop in weight and the only way to track that correctly would be through using a scale! It's not something I hope to use every day, maybe just once a week so I can see a significant change! Anyone recommend a good scale? I haven't done my research yet and would love recommendations!

4. Host at least one family lunch, dinner or activity. I have said it more times than I can count, how hard it is to divide time between all of our families. We don't do a lot of random, just because get togethers because there are often birthday celebrations or holiday's traditions we participate in! I wouldn't mind hosting a dinner or lunch for some of the family or even an activity of some sort, like visiting the local zoo! I'll have to get creative on the activity but you get the point!

5. Accomplish the 30 Miles in 30 Days workout plan. Nikki over at The Pink Growl did this last month and I think it's a BRILLIANT idea!! The point is to clock at least a mile a day, whether it's running, biking, walking or the doing the elliptical. If you miss a day or two, you have to make it up in another day! I am reeeeeeally excited about doing this and hope adding this to my fitness routine will help me see more good results with my body, energy levels, and stamina! I've already started clocking miles with running a few days a week but I love the option to use other methods to clock miles as well! I plan on hitting the bike or elliptical after my Pilates class tonight to clock my first mile!



6. Figure out if blogging is really something I want to do and stick with! I'm not going to lie, blogging is exhausting me. I stay up incredibly late creating posts the night before. I mean like midnight to 1 a.m. which has really taken a toll on me! I don't feel like I'm forming solid relationships either, because I can't seem to show many readers and other bloggers the attention they deserve! It's hard to juggle this with a full time job and an active home life! Seriously, I'm dying to know how some of you do it, especially those of you with children!! I hope to really reflect on this for April. I don't necessarily want to leave the blogging world, because I do love it, but if I don't learn how to juggle it correctly, I'm going to end up dropping balls in other aspects of my life and I just can't sacrifice those things for this little piece of the Internet world.

7. Start working on renovations in the kitchen. Being that we've been in our home for so long now, I have no idea why we really haven't tried harder to complete the kitchen! It really is the one room in the house where we haven't done ANYTHING, except for replacing the dishwasher and the oven. Our goal is to replace the flooring, refurbish the cabinets, add new hardware, paint the walls, add back splash, install new faucet, purchase a new refrigerator and replace the counter tops! It seems like a lot reading it but our kitchen is small enough that it's not going to be a crazy project to take on, as long as we do one step at time! First step?! Take the hideous 80's wall paper border down!

8. Try harder to prepare better for birthdays and other special events! I will always promise that I will never show up empty handed for a birthday or other special occasion celebration! However, I am HORRIBLE at waiting until the last minute to buy a gift! I would loooove it if I could think so far in advance that we can purchase something more sentimental and personal! I'm a lover of ANYTHING personalized, but I never seem to treat anyone to those kinds of gifts because I'm a crazy procrastinator! I also want to utilize Etsy for more unique and thoughtful gifts as well, which also involves thinking far in advance! I just need to reference my planner more frequently! What's the point of having that if I don't use it?!

9. Develop the attitude of "It is what it is". Here's your shout out Taylor! My little sister and the hubby have this mindset which is very different from my own! I tend to worry about everything, to over analyze everything, and to try and fix everything and sometimes that adds an unnecessary amount of emotional stress to my life! I don't want to adopt this attitude completely, because I feel that my personality allows me to express my compassion on a greater level, but I do want to rid myself of emotional stress beyond my control. It is what it is, there is nothing I can do to change it, therefore I must accept it.

10. Secret goal! As much as I want to share this, for my well being I can't. If things change from this goal I will, without a doubt, publicly tell you about it, but at this moment I have to protect myself and certain parts of my life. I'm including it on this list, because if I write it down, I tend to stick to it!! If your curiosity is getting the best of you and you would like to know what it is, shoot me a comment or email, I'm totally okay with sharing it privately!

As always, some of these are a bit easier than others! I brought a few over from last month but I am really excited to have added some new ones to the list! Any of you trying new goals for the month of April?! I'm looking forward to what this month will bring, including warmer weather, though the forecast for this week isn't looking too swell in the warmth department!

Be sure to check out my April Sponsors to your left in my sidebar!!! I am beyond thrilled to add them to TRYHOSOVA Family!

XoXo!