Renovation Frustration: Things Most People Will Overlook

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Renovation Frustration: Things Most People Will Overlook

If you’re planning to renovate or improve your home this year, you’ll have to think long and hard. You need to make sure that your budget stretches to cover everything, or you’ll never feel satisfied with the outcome. However, the issue is that many people overlook simple jobs. Which they only realize after they’ve spent all their money, and so people don’t get the results they desired. With that in mind, we wanted to provide a helping hand with this article today. We’re going to list some of the things people overlook in the hope of making sure that you don’t follow suit. So long as you read this information and consider our tips, you can’t go wrong. With a bit of luck, you’ll perform an entire home renovation during the next few months:

Adding a New Bathroom: When it comes to replacing your bathroom, you will have to spend a lot of time considering your options. In some instances, you won’t have to change the entire suite. Maybe you just need a new bath because the panels are cracked? Most bathroom retailers will sell individual items so you won’t need to break the bank. However, if your bathroom furniture is more than ten years old, you should treat your family. At the end of the day, adding a new suite could make your home appear far more luxurious to guests. Even so, it has functional benefits too. The latest products like modern illusion cabinets are designed to save space and that can go a long way in a smaller bathroom. New fixtures also stay in working order for as long as possible so you shouldn’t have to worry about dealing with any more leaks, creaks, and malfunctions.

Replacing or Fixing Your Air Conditioning: Your air conditioning unit is important if you live in a location with a warm climate. You have a few months before the summer arrives, so there’s plenty of time to sort it out. Again, you should look towards replacing the entire unit if it’s more than around ten years old. Those devices will often stop working properly after that period which could result in wasting electricity by running it when the weather improves. Of course, sometimes your AC unit just needs some care and maintenance. Getting your AC fixed is easy these days because there are many specialists in the marketplace. Just search online for a local firm that can visit your property without too much hassle. Also, make sure that you settle on a price before you let anyone mess with your unit.

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Beep beep boop

Installing a New Boiler or Furnace: Those summer nights can become rather cold if you live in the middle or southern areas of the United States. The temperature often drops below freezing so you’ll also need to think about heating your property. Most homeowners use a furnace or a boiler these days as they’re the most economical and convenient solutions. You need to check yours as soon as possible to discover if you require a replacement or not. Getting a new system installed is easy and it should take no longer than a couple of hours. Indeed, some companies selling those products will provide the installation for free depending on how much you spend. Make sure you don’t overlook this task or you’ll regret it when those summer nights begin to turn cold and a case of the chills comes on.

Converting Your Attic: Most people would agree that adding more space to their properties is a wise move. It could also mean that you don’t have to sell your home and move as your family grows. At the very least, you will make better use of the rooms available to you. Perhaps instead of spending all your money on new kitchen tiles, maybe you should convert your attic? You could turn the attic into an office, recording studio, or extra bedroom. The job is going to cost a few thousand dollars so you need to contact the experts as soon as possible. Obtain some quotes and work out if you can afford to push ahead with the plan. Attic conversions are an excellent idea because they will also add value to your home so you should see the spending as an investment.

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I want an attic room!

Using Your Garage For More Ground Floor Space: If you don’t like the idea of converting your attic, there is an easier and cheaper solution. People who own a property with a garage attached could knock down a wall and extend their ground floor. Maybe you’ve always liked the idea of having a dining room? Perhaps you need somewhere to brew lots of wine or beer? A garage conversion could be the ideal solution. You won’t break the bank, but you could give your home a new lease of life. Just bear in mind that you will have to insulate the space for the best results. Failure to do that could mean the temperature is too low to make the room comfortable. Ideally, you want to ensure that it’s the same as the rest of your home. That way, you shouldn’t notice that you’re walking into what used to be your garage.

Painting the Property Exterior: Many homeowners spend time painting the interior of their properties every single year. It helps to keep the house looking fresh, stylish, and modern. However, almost everyone forgets about the exterior of their building. Painting the outside of your home brings a couple of advantages. Firstly, it will make sure your house looks stunning when people get out of their cars on your driveway. Secondly, it could help to ensure that your home is more resilient to weather damage. Giving your home a new coat of paint will help to protect it. It will also make sure it doesn’t deteriorate. Even so, unless you like working at heights, it’s sensible to employ a Painter in Houston TX or a team in your area. Most professionals would complete a job like that in under two days.

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Flickr Image

With a bit of luck, you shouldn’t overlook anything important when renovating your home after reading this post. Now you just need to make your plan and set the wheels in motion. At the end of the day, you want to feel as proud as possible of your house so you should always try to make improvements whenever you have the time and money. It will keep your family happy, but it will also mean that you could make a substantial profit when you decide to sell.

Featured Image By: Flickr

4 Fun Ways to Spend a Night in with Friends and Family

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4 Fun Ways to Spend a Night in with Friends and Family

What are you usual plans for a Friday night in? Do you go out to the bar with your colleagues? Maybe you have a lovely dinner with your partner or family members at a fancy restaurant? Or perhaps you like to visit the cinema and catch up on the latest film releases? Whatever your decision, there’s always the option of staying indoors with your friends and family.

But why? There are plenty of good reasons to stay indoors, such as the reduced cost of having an entertaining night or the freedom of doing what you like and not having to be around crowds, loud music, and sloppy drunk patrons. If you’d like to switch it up this week and enjoy a night in, here are a couple of ideas to get you excited for a change of pace:

Movie Night: Having a movie night can almost become a ritual if you do it often enough. It’s a night to look forward to because you get to catch up on the latest shows or movies with your friends while stuffing your faces with pizza, tacos, or any kind of greasy fast food. It’s cheap as well thanks to subscription services such as Amazon Prime Video and Netflix. There are even specialized services, such as Crunchyroll, if you’d prefer to watch something like anime.

With so many shows and films available on the internet, it’s hard to get bored or stumped on what to watch. You could even have a video night where you browse funny and interesting YouTube videos together with your friends and family, and with the growing library of content you’ll always have something fun to watch.

Bingo Night: Bingo might be associated with seniors playing in a club or retirement home, but it’s still a fun and exciting game that is suitable for the whole family. No matter how old or young the players, bingo is a fun game that can be played almost anywhere. You don’t need complicated machinery either because you can play bingo online and use online tools to draw numbers and print off bingo cards. Or you could take things one step further and make the cards relateable to the players by using their initials and inside jokes or memories as the calling criteria.

Gaming Party: Almost everyone has played a video game once in their life, and it’s becoming increasingly popular for young adults, parents, and children to engage in video game parties. Set up a large television in the living room, grab loads of snacks, and connect four controllers to your video game console of choice and play together. You could even get party games such as Just Dance which is fun even if you’re not a gamer—you don’t even need controllers because you can play with your phone!

Board Game Night: Board games have been somewhat forgotten because of the rise of video games, but it’s still a hobby enjoyed by many people around the world. Whether it’s a humble game of Monopoly or something more immersive such as Dungeons and Dragons, there are plenty of board games and pen and paper games for you to play with your family and friends. Board games aren’t very expensive (they cost about as much as a video game or less) and you can have countless hours of fun with them if you keep them in good condition. Board games also provide the opportunity for some amazing keepsakes for your gaming crew. A surprise like custom Monopoly pieces or Dungeons and Dragons Dice will not only come in handy but commemorate your time together.

Board game specific stores, cafes, and bars have been increasingly popular and for good reason. It is just pure fun whether you are on the go or at home. My husband and I are avid fans of board games and we have some advice. Prior to making a purchase on a site like Backwoods Wizards or your local game store, do your research! We have made the mistake of buying games simply because they look fun but found the rules to be difficult and extensive when we tried to play. Your favorite game store or website will have games for every skill level and interest and will have great options for you when you know what you want in the first place!

Featured Image By: Pexels

The Household Problems We Dread (& How To Deal With Them)

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For most of us, our homes are our sanctuaries, our little retreats from the rest of the world; they are the places that we feel the most comfortable and safe. There’s no doubt about it; we love our homes. That’s why, when something threatens them, we are prone to panicking. Of course, there are some household problems that we aren’t fazed by, little things that are easily fixable, such as peeling paint or a shower that has a drip. However, there are some problems that send us into a tailspin.

The important thing is that no matter what the problem, you stay calm, cool, and collected, and deal with it in the right way. To help you to do that, below are some of the household problems that we tend to dread, along with tips and advice for the best ways to deal with them:

Water Damage: Whether your home has flooded due to a burst pipe, an overflowing bath, or a natural flood, it can be incredibly upsetting. Water damage doesn’t just damage the flooring, walls, and furniture, depending on how severe it is it can also damage the electrics. The most important thing when a flood occurs is to work out what has caused it and then call in the appropriate help. If it’s an internal flood, call a plumber. However, if natural flooding has come into your home, call your local fire department – they should be able to come and pump the water out. Once you’ve dealt with the flooding itself, the next step is to call your insurance company to log your claim. This is important as you only have a certain time period to do this within, or else your company may not cover you.

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Yikes!

Pesky Pests: Another nightmare that most homeowners dread is the appearance of pests in their home. There’s nothing worse than sitting at the table eating your breakfast only to spot some sort of pest – be it a rat, insect, or another form of rodent, it’s important to look for local pest control companies immediately so that you can get the problem dealt with as soon as possible. You see, the longer you leave an infestation, the worse it will get. So, it’s best to act quickly, as that way it can hopefully be caught early and easily dealt with.

Damp: Damp is a surprisingly common problem, but it’s something that a lot of homeowners panic about. This tends to be because there’s a common misconception that damp can be expensive to treat. In some cases, it can be expensive. However, that depends on how bad the problem is and where in the property the damp is found. That being said, if you notice any damp in your property, it’s best to call in an expert as soon as possible, to ensure that the problem doesn’t get any worse.

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Double Yikes!

The issues mentioned above are some of the most common problems that homeowners dread. However, as long as you know how to deal with these sorts of issues, they don’t necessarily have to be a serious problem!

Mystery Blogger Award

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Mystery Blogger Award

Another award?! Ahhhh! Thank you so much to the darling Juli for nominating me for the Mystery Blogger Award. What a fabulous surprise to wake up to two awards this morning! Juli’s page at Blonde’s Tea is a wonderful blog to get lost in so definitely take a look and give her some love. And also, shout out to Enigma who is the creator of this award! OKAY, let’s see the rules:

The Rules:

  • Display the award logo on your blog.
  • List the rules.
  • Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link to their blog.
  • Mention the creator of the award and provide a link as well.
  • Tell your readers three things about yourself.
  • Answer five questions from the nominee.
  • Nominate anywhere from ten to twenty bloggers.
  • Notify the bloggers by leaving a comment on their blog.
  • Ask your nominees any five questions of your choice, including one weird or funny question.
  • Share the link to your best post.

Three Facts About Me:

  1.  Whenever I am working on the ol’ blog, my sweet little pup named Ollie always sits at my feet and it’s basically the cutest thing ever. My other dog, Gem, could care less.
  2.  I really would love to get a pet dwarf rabbit named Floppy. The only requirements is that it’s a female and that she’s black like my soul.
  3.  Taco Bell and getting my nails done are my two vices. I couldn’t live without my acrylics and my burritos! ❤

Q & A:

Favorite place you’ve visited?

Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. I’ve been there twice and constantly think about going there again! Harry Potter World is my favorite place to be!

A place you’d love to visit?

Europe, Europe, and oh yeah – Europe.

Your dream job?

It sounds silly, but I would love to be a fashion model! Ugh, the clothes, the lifestyle, everything about it just sounds like a dream to me.

If you could have 3 wishes, what would you wish? (more or infinite wishes is not an answer)

If I told you, my wishes wouldn’t come true.

Something you can’t live without?

My beloved car!! I work multiple jobs which all consist of driving so I would be nowhere (literally) without the Little Red Love Machine.

My Nominees (I’m only doing three):

My Questions For You:

  1. Would you rather wear the same outfit for two weeks or no makeup for a month?
  2.  What is something that you have accomplished that you are proud of?
  3.  What is your favorite junk food to snack on?
  4.  How long have you been blogging?
  5.  If you had a gift card filled with one thousand dollars, what are some things that you would buy with it?

Thank you so much again to the darling Juli for the nomination! You’re a doll! How would you answer some of Juli’s questions? How about mine? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

One Lovely Blog Award #4

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One Lovely Blog Award #4

Heyy everyone and happy Hump Day! Oh my goodness! So many awards, so little time – but thankfully, I freaking love doing these posts so it’s time well spent. Super special thanks to one of my darling friends, Jackie, for nominating me for my fourth One Lovely Blog Award. Miss Jackie is going to be one of my featured bloggers for my Think Spring series so be on the lookout for her in the next couple of weeks but, until then, check out her page here! Okay, let’s get to the rules:

The Rules:

  • Thank the person that nominated you and leave a link to their blog
  • Post about the award
  • Share seven facts about yourself
  • Nominate at most 15 people
  • Tell your nominees the good news

Seven Facts About Me:

  1. I love to read and am currently on my seventh book of 2017 already – All The Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy.
  2. I have a weakness for getting hooked on different television series. I’ve rewatched Orange Is The New Black and Wentworth three times each and have grown increasingly fond of Face Off again on SyFy.
  3.  I coach figure skating for the Special Olympics and will be enjoying the banquet party to celebrate tonight. And soon, I will start coaching my friend, Dana’s, little girl so that will be fun!
  4.  I love all things food as long as it doesn’t have meat in it because I am a strict vegetarian. I love to cook, bake, and EAT!
  5.  My current favorite adult beverage is the Moscow Mule – I’m obsessed!
  6.  I am dedicated to improving my French speaking skills for when I eventually go to Paris and have been listening to French tapes in my car for the past year.
  7.  I have four tattoos and eight piercings and am always thinking about getting more! It’s a curse!

My Nominees (I’m only doing three):

Thank you so much again to Jackie for the nomination! You’re the best! What is one fun fact about yourself? How do you shake away the midweek blahs? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Stamp Your Personality On Your Home With These Quick Fixes

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Stamp Your Personality On Your Home With These Quick Fixes

Homeowners are keen to turn a new house into their family home pretty much as soon as they move in. Even though they can be excited to start redesigning a new property, life can often get in the way and ends up slowing down this whole makeover. But don’t worry if you start to lose time to fix up your new house – there is plenty that you can do to stamp your own personality into a house no matter how long you have been living in it! Here are some super easy and quick fixes that can help you personalize your own home:

Use Plenty of Color: Homes in which the predominant colors are whites and creams are often regarded as quite austere and sterile. That is certainly not what you want to aim for if you want a home that pops with your personality! So be sure to use plenty of color in your rooms. You can go bold and paint your walls with bright colors. Sound a bit too intense for your tastes? Instead, opt for neutral shades on your walls but add bright accessories for bursts of color. You’ll find lots of colorful accessories by looking at sites like the Versace Home decor and furniture website.

Share Your Memories: No one will have the exact same memories as you do, so one great way to splash your personality all over your home is to share all your memories. There are various ways you can do this. For example, you could hang photos from all of your adventures abroad in your living room. You might even like the idea of collecting all your trinkets and souvenirs from around the world together and showcasing them in a display cabinet. Displaying family photos is also a great way to show off your fantastic memories, especially if your kids are no longer babies. Nothing beats cute baby pics!

Show Off Your Hobbies: No matter what your hobby may be, there will certainly be ways of incorporating it into your interior design. For example, if you have an artistic side, you might like to create your own artworks to hang on your walls. If you love watching the birds in your garden, you could think about taking some photographs to hang on your walls. Love sports? Then why not buy some decorative sports equipment to display in your home. For instance, a vintage tennis racquet or a cricket bat will look very stylish propped up in your hall with smart lighting around it.

Get Your Kids To Help: I’m sure your kids will love having their pictures and drawings stuck onto the doors of your fridge. But why not spread them out around the house? You can frame the best ones and display them in your living and dining rooms. There are also some companies who will take a drawing that your child has done and print it onto a cushion cover. That will be a super cute touch to any living room!

Make boring and blah a thing of the past and add a touch of fun into your home with these tips.

Featured Image By: Pexels

Puppy-Love: Introducing A Dog To Your Children

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Puppy-Love: Introducing A Dog To Your Children

There can be nothing cuter and more heart-melting than seeing your little one(s) playing in the house or garden with their best-friend; their dog. Very quickly, you’ll watch them become the closest of companions, look out for each other, and make a bond like no other. However, there needs to be some responsibility when introducing a puppy or a dog into your home, especially with small children running about. The dog needs to get used to the children, especially as they approach life differently to adults: they scream, shout, run, and rarely sit still. As such, you’ll also need to teach your children how to care for a dog to instill a sense of responsibility as a new caretaker to their canine companion.

A Cautionary Tail: Making sure you create the foundations for a wonderful relationship can be dependent on the age of your children as well as the age of your dog. If you’re thinking of doing something fantastic and getting a rescue dog, you might want to wait until your little one is a bit older. If you’re getting a puppy, we’d suggest that you supervise the way it interacts with your tiny human by monitoring them at all times, at least at first. Of course, we all live busy lives and total supervision can be hard. So if you can’t supervise, keep your dog in a safe and comfortable place away from you kid(s),  just in case.

Creating the Best Relationship Ever: When it comes to bonding, you’ll need to teach your kids how to be around dogs, especially yours! The first thing you should do is teach your children how to say ‘hey’ to a dog nicely, so that it doesn’t get spooked or scared. Basically, let the dog know that you are there and that you want to interact with him or her. A great way to do this is by standing side-on, getting your child to make a slightly bunched fist and invite the dog to come to you. If the dog wants to play, then great, but make sure your little ones stroke his back and don’t reach for his head straight away.

Another great tip is to teach your child that dogs need to be treated with care and that they should always be gentle with dogs. That means no hitting, no biting, no scratching, and no pulling ears or tails. As a parent, reading up is always a great thing to do, as well. Read up on the breed of dog, yes, but why not go one step further and educate yourself on dog body language. This is an excellent way to know if your doggy is getting uncomfortable and being able to intervene before anything happens. Make sure you’re always ready to intervene, like we said above; just in case.

On the dog side of things, a great thing to consider is training; professional training. It doesn’t matter if it’s a new puppy or a rescue dog, dog training services are a fantastic way of getting your dog to behave, know your commands, and learn how to act around children. We can’t stress enough how valuable this service could be, not just in terms of safety, but your stress levels too – dogs combined with kids can be quite hard work!

Featured Image By: Pexels

Who Is Really Looking After Your Kids? Get Peace of Mind, and Find Safe Childcare

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Who Is Really Looking After Your Kids? Get Peace of Mind, and Find Safe Childcare

Sometimes in life, we have to leave our children in the care of others. Maybe it’s due to work commitments, because of their extracurricular activities and hobbies, or perhaps we just need a break. Parenting is busy and stressful, sometimes you just need a nice date night with your partner away from the kids to keep the spark alive and claw back a bit of sanity! But when our children are so precious, as parents we need to be vigilant about their caretakers. Schools require teachers to have thorough checks done, but not all childcare establishments do, so you have to be careful. Here are some of the ways that you can ensure your child is safe when they’re being looked after by others:

Do a Background Check: When it comes to your kids, you can never be too careful. Doing a background check on anyone who cares for your kids without you there can give you peace of mind. You’re able to pull up past information about people from convicted crimes and warnings to cases that were dropped in court. You can get background checking done from an Expert Private Investigator in Edinburgh – Bondrees.com if you are considering a new childcare provider. While it’s not completely foolproof, a clean record can help if you don’t know the person well.

Of course, always use common sense and good judgment, but if you just need to know their background to be sure, then this is one way to go about it. Whether it’s a nanny, babysitter, an ex’s new partner, or anyone else who is around you children- it’s always good to be cautious. You could click here for free warrant checks online if this is something that you would benefit from.

Ask About Medical Training: If you leave your children at a daycare, babysitter’s house, or with a nanny- ask about what medical training they have had. Do they know first aid, and can they apply it to children? Don’t feel shy about asking to see certificates for proof. Those who have nothing to hide won’t mind showing you. The same applies to food safety. To avoid illnesses and food poisoning, those looking after children and preparing food for them should have a good knowledge of kitchen safety and hygiene.

Request References: Good references will show you that the person looking after your children is competent and good at their job, as well as has prior experience in child care. If you’re hiring a nanny, for example, you will want to choose the most qualified candidate, and past experience is a great way to judge how well they will do when they work for you.

Use a Nanny Cam: In most places in the US it’s completely legal to use surveillance equipment in your home, without the consent of the person you’re recording. It’s illegal to record in areas where people have a reasonable expectation of privacy however, so it goes without saying that bathroom areas are off limits but also your live-in nanny or au-pair’s bedroom. But for use elsewhere in the home, a nanny cam can be useful if you want to keep tabs on what’s going on.

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Featured Image By: Pexels

Here’s Why Everyone Should Do At Least One Sport

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Here’s Why Everyone Should Do At Least One Sport

We are a generation of yoga-practicing, gym-going, swimming-lovers. Now, while it’s all well and good to be involved in activities that are not team-based, team sports come with a lot of benefits, which is why everyone should aim to take part in at least one team sport. A lot of people give up team sports when they graduate from high school, but there’s no need to. Believe it or not, taking part in team sports is not only a lot of fun but also incredibly beneficial for a range of reasons, including the fact that most team sports offer a fantastic workout. Still not convinced to give team sports another try? Then have a read of the reasons why you should, below:

Team Sports Boost Confidence: When you’re taking part in a team sport, your confidence tends to increase. This is because you are learning new skills and are getting a lot of praise when you do well. Each time you get the ball, score a goal, or make a good pass, you will get praised, which helps to give your confidence a boost. So, if you lack self-esteem, joining a sports team could be the answer.

They Provide Consistent Exercise: It’s far too easy to convince yourself that you’re too tired to go for a run or that you don’t have the time to go to the gym. However, when you’re part of sports team, you can’t just not turn up to practice because you’re tired or miss a game because you are busy. This means that you’re much more likely to stick at it and exercise more consistently than before.

You Will Learn To Be a Good Loser: Yes, we all want to win, of course. However, sometimes we can’t win – it’s just another part of life. As part of a sports team such as a football team, for instance, you will get to win football trophies and medals, but you will also have to learn how to be a good loser. So that on the days when your team isn’t successful, you are able to be positive about it. Perfecting the art of being a good loser is a life skill that does come in incredibly handy.

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Pixabay Image

You Will Meet New People: One of the great things about being part of a sports team is that you will meet a lot of new people and make new friends. Whether you’ve already got lots of friends or are in need of some new ones, joining a sports team is a great way to socialize and meet like-minded people. Being on a sports team isn’t just about practicing and playing together, it’s about spending quality time together, so if you join a sports team, you will be invited to social events, as well as to practices and games.

If you’re not already part of a sport’s team, maybe now could be the perfect time to join one? You never know how it could benefit you until you try!

Featured Image By: Pixabay

Blogger Recognition Award #2

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Blogger Recognition Award #2

HEY! My friends in the blogging world were kind enough to nominate me for my second Blogger Recognition Award this week! Thank you so much to the darling Fashionably Eva for the nomination and everyone please check out her blog and give it some love – I’m sure all of you will enjoy her page! I know I do! Because I literally just did a post for the Blogger Recognition Award, I thought that I would only post the rules and who I nominate so check it out:

The Rules:

  1. Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link to their blog.
  2. Write a post to show your award.
  3. Give a brief story of how you started your blog.
  4. Give two pieces of advice to new bloggers.
  5. Select 15 other bloggers you want to give this award to.
  6. Comment on each blog and let them know you have nominated them and provide a link to the post you created.

My Nominees (I’m only doing three!):

Thank you so much again to the lovely Miss Fashionably Eva for the nomination – you’re a doll! Have a fab Monday, everyone! Much love. -Sarah