May22

It’s The Small Things

Posted on May 22, 2015 by lifewithlilred

Helloooooo everyone and TGIF! This post isn’t going to be a long one, but it’s something that I thought was worth sharing because it was super sweet. Earlier this week when I was with a girlfriend, I got a call from my sister Kristen asking when I was going to be home. She told me that she was at Kohl’s earlier in the day and she bought me a pair of really cute earrings. Now usually Kristen and I have very different styles, so I was a bit ambivalent about what her idea of “cute” for me might be, but I was still extremely touched and couldn’t wait to get home to see my new addition to my earring collection. Unfortunately by the time I got home, Kristen was already asleep. (She doesn’t have the nickname “Sleepy” for nothing!) I kind of forgot about her little surprise for me until I was in my room taking off the earrings and bracelets I had on that day when I noticed the gift placed strategically in the middle of my desk. I hurried over to my desk, and this is what I saw:

^^^ So cute!!! As soon as I laid eyes on them “awww” was the first thing out of my mouth! Not only was Kristen’s gift extremely sweet and thoughtful – but I was so impressed at how perfect her selection was for me. These earrings are so fun and quirky, and I can’t wait to put them in my second hole on my double pierced ears. I was so sad that Kristen was already asleep because I didn’t get to thank her as soon as I received the earrings, but I texted her a “thank you” and an “I love you” for when she woke up. As soon as I saw her the next day, thanking her was the first thing I did. Her little pick me up really did make my evening and the good vibes definitely carried on to the following day. The little things in life really are so special to me. Whether it be a letter in the mail, a compliment from a stranger, or a tiny pair of colorful earrings…as my featured image picture says “It’s the small things that make life big”. So true.

I hope all of you guys have a fabulous Friday and an even better weekend! What’s everyone up to this weekend? Any big plans? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May21

A Deeply Concerning Incident

Posted on May 21, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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So when I was in Madison, Wisconsin this past weekend there was an incident that occurred that really disturbed me. While my family and I were leaving breakfast as McDonald’s, there were two elderly gentlemen walking behind us. Both of them looked like they were struggling a lot to walk, but they were still carrying on with their conversation as if nothing was wrong. I was bringing up the rear in the family, so I lingered behind to hold the door open for the gents, then as they walked through I ran forward so I could get the other door for them. Both of the men were so thankful for this small act of kindness. They called me “little lady” and one of them told me that “not many people would do that” after he thanked me. I was genuinely shocked by this comment, and as I waved the gents off for the day with a smile and well wishes I couldn’t help but feel really sad. Here were these two elderly men who looked like they were in pain as they were walking – and yet not many people would hold open their door or flash them an extra smile? There’s something so severely wrong with that. The fact that I made those two strangers days a little bit better just by something as simple as holding open their door made me wonder why people don’t do that all of the time. For one, it took literally no extra energy to stay behind and hold the door open and for two, it took approximately one minute of time out of my day to pause and chit chat with the gents afterwards before going on my merry way. So to spell that out even more for you, here’s the numbers behind the brief chat and small favor:

No extra energy
One minute lost
Three days made (Mine included!)

I really like the looks of that. There are sooo many small things that people can do throughout the day to make someone else’s better. It can range from asking a stranger how their day is going, waiting those extra seconds to keep the door open for someone, or just shooting out a compliment at someone who looks like they’re having a rough day. When I had my run in with those two gentlemen I saw how much of an impact that one tiny act of kindness can have on someone, and the fact that people choose to hurry past these situations even though they take a minute of time or less kind of sickens me. I don’t understand how someone could let the door slam in front of an elderly man or why a passerbyer wouldn’t offer some extra attention to a person clearly having a bad day. Next time you see a stranger whose day could be improved – I suggest you jump on the opportunity to assist their situation. I’m very confident that both of you will end up feeling a lot better afterwards.

I guess this post is just a Lil Red PSA reminding everyone to be kind to one another – because you really never know what a stranger is going through. Has anyone performed a random act of kindness lately? Has anyone recently made your day with a RAK? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May21

My Tradesy Listings!

Posted on May 21, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Heyyy everyone and happy Thursday! So I joined this fabulous website called http://www.Tradesy.com in the hopes of getting rid of some of my gently used clothes and designer fragrances. Think of Tradesy as a site kind of like Ebay – you can buy and sell used items…but Tradesy is strictly for fashion purposes. I thought that I would share my listings with you guys in case you wanted to get your shop on, so here we go!

https://www.tradesy.com/accessories/gwen-stefani-lamb-3023977/?tref=category

https://www.tradesy.com/accessories/juicy-couture-peace-love-and-juicy-couture-3023938/?tref=category

https://www.tradesy.com/accessories/harajuku-lovers-baby-3023824/?tref=category

https://www.tradesy.com/accessories/britney-spears-circus-3023758/?tref=category

https://www.tradesy.com/jeans/insight-boyfriend-cut-jeans-washlook-2853436/?tref=category

https://www.tradesy.com/jeans/gap-skinny-jeans-washlook-2852302/

https://www.tradesy.com/outerwear/unknown-multi-blazer-2853133/

https://www.tradesy.com/bottoms/apt-9-relaxed-pants-2852905/

https://www.tradesy.com/accessories/american-eagle-outfitters-knick-knack-necklace-2852137/

https://www.tradesy.com/accessories/unknown-beaded-flower-choker-2852089/

https://www.tradesy.com/accessories/unknown-beaded-choker-2852038/

https://www.tradesy.com/dresses/lux-dress-greennavy-2851867/

I have lots of great stuff listed above for amazing prices so pleeease make sure you check them out! If you are interested in any of the items on my Tradesy account or have any further questions, you can email me at sarah.mush6794@gmail.com! Thank you! ❤

May20

Some More Photography Fun!

Posted on May 20, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Heyyy everyone! As you can recall in one of my latest posts “Beautiful, Fabulous, Perfect Day!” my lovely friend Kate took some amazing photographs of yours truly! I mentioned that there were more to come, so I just wanted to show you two more that she posted earlier this afternoon! Take a look: (Photo credit goes to Kate “The Great” Powell!)

^^^ Love, love, love. I’m a fan of every single picture that Kate took, but I’m particularly fond of the ones that she put in black and white. As you already know, both of us have a deep love for putting the black and white filter on basically every picture we take together! I’m not sure how many more pictures Kate will be posting online, but if I get my hands on a few more, best believe that I’ll be posting them on here for your viewing pleasure! And make sure you check out my post “Beautiful, Fabulous, Perfect Day!” to see all of the pictures from our little impromptu photo shoot! Spoiler alert: They’re all really pretty!!

I hope all of you had a terrific Hump Day! I know I did! I have lots of fun posts lined up for tomorrow, so make sure you check back in at lifewithlilred for all of the latest and greatest! Are you into photography? What’s your favorite picture that you’ve ever taken? Who or what is your favorite subject to take pictures of? I would love to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Goodnight! -Sarah

PS: Like what you see? Make sure you hit the follow button and continue to spread the love with a like, comment, or a share! THANKS! 😉

May20

Woman Crush Wednesday ;)

Posted on May 20, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Hellooo everyone and happy Wednesday! So today my sister asked me if she could be my “Woman Crush Wednesday” to which I replied “I’m my own Woman Crush Wednesday” (classic Sarah!)…But secretly, Kristen is always my WCW and my Woman Crush Every Day (WCED) for that matter, so take a look at this major hottie!

^^^ Damn!!! My favorite picture is the last one because it really captures Kristen’s true beauty. :’) (PS: The dress that Kristen is wearing in my featured image photo is what she picked out when we went shopping at Urban Outfitters during our weekend in Wisconsin. So cute!)

I love my beautiful, sweet, sassy, super, gorgeous, pretty, hot, annoying, smelly, and smart sister more than anything. She’s my best friend, she shares my DNA, and she touches my butt sometimes when we cuddle. :*) Who could ask for anything more in a sibling and in a #WCW? So here’s to you, Kristen – enjoy your moment of spotlight on lifewithlilred! 😉 YOU’RE WELCOME! ❤

I hope all of you are having a terrific day so far! Make sure you check out my most recent post “Beautiful, Fabulous, Perfect Day!” for some lovely new pics of yours truly! Who is your Woman Crush Wednesday and why? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much Love. -Sarah

May20

Beautiful, Fabulous, Perfect Day!

Posted on May 20, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Helloooo everyone and happy Hump Day! So I was laying in bed reading Still Alice (so far so good, btw!), but I had such a terrific day yesterday that I decided to put down the book and tell you guys all about it. Not gonna lie, my day started out really rocky. I had a not so good appointment with my psychologist that ended with me walking out of the session halfway through. I was pretty much fuming as I left the building and got in the Little Red Love Machine, but my mood instantly did a 180 as soon as I reached my destination point post appointment. I was lucky enough to be able to squeeze in best friend time with my two favorite girls, Kate and Lea, so after my shit show of a session I headed straight to Lea’s for some coffee and girl talk. We hit up Dunkin and made a quick trip to the nearby mall so I could snag a free panty from Victoria’s Secret AND a free lotion from Bath & Body Works…who doesn’t love free?! After my little errand we went back to Lea’s for some much needed girl talk. We made plans for the next craft we make together and my birthday outing, vented about all of our recent turmoils, and had plenty of time to be our usual goofy girl selves. Literally within thirty seconds of first seeing Lea, my mood improved and I was so thankful for it. I needed our best friend time so bad, and I cherish it like no other. Before our time together came to a close, her twin brother BILL (!!!) took a million batrillion pictures of us – some cute, some candid, some completely awful BUT I loved them all! Here’s our favorite one together, and then a picture of me doing god knows what that Lea and I actually happen to adore, haha take a look: (All photo credit goes to…BILL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

^^^ Lol I LOVE US!!!!

My shitty day turned fabulous continued after I left Lea’s for some best friend time with my other darling, Kate. As soon as I arrived at her house, I learned that we were heading to Target (our favorite!) for some bar cart supplies. We left with a drink shaker kit and some porcupine shaped salt and pepper shakers…they were completely necessary. Once we arrived back at home base, Kate made us the most amazing vodka cranberries I’ve ever had and then we headed to the great outdoors to hijack Boggle from her parent’s house so we could get our drink AND education on in the sunshine. Kate and I both share a deep love for word games, so it was wonderful to have a worthy opponent! Halfway through our extravaganza we decided to finally take the fifty foot trip down the street to this really precious chocolate shop to get some snacks and a chocolate bribe for Kate’s mom so that we could borrow her fancy camera for some photo shoot fun. The chocolate was delicious, the bribe worked, another drink was made, more Boggle was played, and a photo shoot was had. Take a look at Kate’s amazing shots! (All photo credit goes to the incredibly talented Kate Powell!)

^^^^ SO gorgeous! Before I discuss these pictures further, here’s the usual break down of my OOTD:

Rust orange dress: Urban Outfitters, Kimchi Blue (This is the dress I got at the Urban in Wisconsin during my trip this weekend! So obsessed. Thanks mom! <3)
Bomber jacket: This actually belongs to Kate, but she got it at Target!
Black zip up wedges: Kohl’s, Apt. 9
Panama hat: PacSun, Gypsy Warrior

Honestly, there’s really not much to say about these pics other than the fact that I’m in love with them. And most importantly, this is literally Kate’s second time picking up her mother’s professional camera. What even? Kate has this super human ability to excel at everything that she tries and clearly photography is no exception! These photos are actually the first of many that she’s shown me, because we seriously took a ton – so make sure you keep it posted for more of our photo shoot!

As you can see from Kate’s pics, she managed to light a fire in the fire pit just hanging out in the back yard area of her apartment complex, so naturally we substituted our vodka cranberries for beer, took more pictures, and played more Boggle around the fire. (Due to Kate’s ability to light wood on fire with a candle lighter, I’m convinced that she’d be able to survive Naked And Afraid…she’s a woman of many talents!) Once it started getting chilly outside, we brought our sweet asses back into the apartment for some crafting, Papa John’s pizza, and a viewing of our Netflix favorite…The Ladies Man. A more perfect day could not be asked for. Both hang outs with my two girlies were so special to me in their own unique ways, and I’m so thankful to have two chickas that can shake my bad mood in an instant. Lil Red is one lucky bitch. ❤

I hope all of you guys have a fabulous Wednesday! Who watched the season finale of Dancing With The Stars last night? Are you happy that Rumor won? (I know I am!) I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May19

Akron Zoo Adventure

Posted on May 19, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Hello everyone and happy Tuesday! Because I was away this weekend, I didn’t get to write about the beautiful afternoon my best friend Kate and I had last Thursday at the Akron Zoo! The weather in Akron was absolutely perfect for a zoo excursion, so best believe I broke out a sun dress and some fun wedges for the occasion! We had some lovely quality time roaming the park and the aquarium and making friends with the animals which Kate captured on her mom’s fancy camera. All photo credit on this post goes to Kate Powell, and shout out to her because she did an amazing job! Take a look:

Featured Image photo: LLAMA LLAMA LLAMA LLAMA LLAMA!!!!!
Picture 1: Cute little birdy in the aviary! Honestly all of the birds in the Akron Zoo’s aviary set up were birds that I could see in my backyard, but that’s okay because they were still fun to look at! The aviary is laid out like a tree house that looks over the entire zoo, complete with a rickety wooden bridge. Love it!
Picture 2: The grizzly bear in this pic was gnawing at a fallen tree like nobody’s business. Hey, a bears gotta eat. The bear eating the log looked very similar to me when I’m eating Taco Bell, therefore the grizzly bear is one of my many spirit animals. (Lil Red Fun Fact: My number one spirit animal is a peacock!)
Picture 3: Ahhhh that goat was the cutest – and I must say my nails look fantastic in that picture! There’s an adorable barnyard section at the Akron Zoo complete with goats and sheep that you can feed and pet, and I especially bonded with the little sweetie in this picture! :’)
Picture 4: Spotted! A wild Sarah!
Picture 5: This tiger pic is mine and Kate’s favorite. Kate captioned this photo “Lunch a la toddler” because there was a little kid standing by us when Kate snapped this shot, and the tiger is definitely looking at something pretty longingly! And let’s talk about those eyes! So gorgeous!
Picture 6: I’m also very fond of this photo of the majestic looking lion. He had his tongue hanging out for most of our time looking at him, and it looked so ridiculously goofy and I loved every minute of it!
Picture 7: Lololol, Kate captioned this pic “The Introvert” and that pretty much sums up this big guy. Every time I see a tortoise I always have a fantasy of climbing up on top of its shell and riding around on it cowgirl style…A girl can dream, right?

Besides all of the gorgeous animals that you can see, the Akron Zoo also has lots of fun stuff to offer like their carousel and a clear plastic slide that takes you through the watery otter exhibit. One thing that Kate and I particularly enjoyed was the touch tank in the aquarium. We got to feel up some stingrays, a crab that I forget the name of, and a chocolate chip starfish. The stingrays did not feel like what I was expecting them to feel like at all – they were really silky and velvety as opposed to the greasy and slimy that I was expecting. Despite all of the amazing exhibits and activities, The Akron Zoo is relatively small and Kate and I got through the entire zoo in under two hours. If you’re ever in the Akron area and are looking for a fun way to spend your afternoon, I can’t recommend the zoo enough!

So there you have it, my Akron Zoo Adventure. Is there a zoo near you in your neck of the woods? What is it like? What’s the best zoo that you’ve ever been to? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May19

FaceTime Fun!

Posted on May 19, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Whatupppp. So I recently discovered after over a year of having my iPod fifth generation that I can FaceTime on there! Better late than never, right? My FaceTime experience began when my best friend/soul mate, Kate needed a chat and I couldn’t come over to her place for some reason or another. After about fifteen minutes of technical difficulties, we finally figured FaceTime out and had a lovely Skype-like convo. My favorite FaceTime story though has to do with my darling and dear friend Tyler, who’s in the army and lives in California. Tyler is my Middle Aged Monday cocaptain, my confidant, and someone who I hold very close to my heart. (You can read all about Tyler in my posts “Middle Aged Monday” and “My Friend, Tyler”). I haven’t seen Tyler in over half a year since he began basic training in October and then left for California in January. Before FaceTime (B.F.), we would text and write letters to each other. But needless to say – I still missed him terribly! Thanks to Kate helping me discover that I had the capability to FaceTime on my iPod, I asked Tyler if he had the technology to video chat with me in Cali, and luckily he did! We scheduled a FaceTime date with each other, and my heart was seriously pounding like a drum while I waited for the call to go through – I haven’t seen Tyler face to face in so long and I was SO excited! When we finally got connected with each other and I could see his goofy self, I legit could have cried. Being able to hear him and see him talk was so special to me – texting and letter writing are great, but there’s really nothing like hearing someone’s voice. During our first FaceTime it was mainly just freaking out over actually seeing each other! We decided to make our video chats a weekly thing, so once a week we FaceTime for a half hour or longer – as long as it takes to tell each other all of the news we have from the previous week! Being able to talk to Tyler face to face – or phone to iPod I should say, seriously never gets old. Every time our FaceTime call connects through and I see his face appear on my screen it still makes me feel the way I felt during our first video chat with each other – happy, happy, happy! My favorite thing about our FaceTime talks is being able to laugh with him. I never realized how much I missed his laugh until I got to hear it again! We talk about serious stuff, but a hefty portion of our chats are usually devoted to reminiscing on old inside jokes and making references to our favorite movies that we would watch together during our Middle Aged Monday hang outs. I never knew that something as simple as a video chat could bring me so much joy, but here we are a month later and I still look forward to our talks every week and I cherish every minute of them! I love my Tyler so much and I can’t wait to see him hopefully in the near future!

^^^ Ahhh, these were the last pictures we took together on our final hang out before Tyler left for basic training! So cute!

I hope all of you are having a fabulous day! Who is someone that you love to FaceTime or Skype with? Do you have someone who’s far away from you that you’re missing? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May18

Sorry, Sis ;)

Posted on May 18, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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During my weekend trip to Wisconsin, I may or may not have played a stupidly funny prank on my beloved sister, Kristen. And for that, I am publicly apologizing. Kristen drove the first two or so hours home from Wisconsin on Sunday, and during that time I was manning her phone to reply to the texts that she received. She’s been talking to a new guy recently, and it was my responsibility to type everything out to him that she dictated to me….Bad idea on her part. When he asked what Kristen was up to, my sister told me to text him “driving home! yay!” and unfortunately I heard “driving home! gay!” When I heard “gay” I thought to myself “hmm, that’s an odd way to describe driving home” so I asked her to repeat it three times and every single time, I heard “gay” so into the text it went. To spruce the message up even more I also added “and I really have to go to the bathroom :((((” to the message and hit Send. I straight up told Kristen that I added her bathroom issue to the text (which was more like my bathroom issue, because I really had to go!), and she didn’t believe me! Smh. When we stopped for food and she looked through her phone, she saw the text I sent that she thought I was kidding about, and got a bit upset at Lil Red. Once we got back on the road again, my mom took over driving so Kristen got back into the backseat with me. She was still pissed at me, even though I told her what I texted him, so after snacking on hella Flamin Hot Cheeto’s, I decided to write her a story on my iPod to make her laugh and to pass the time. I emailed myself the story, and I am now going to share it with you guys:

A short story of a very naughty thing:

Once upon a time there were two sisters, named Kristen and Sarah, respectively. During their journey home from a weekend adventure in America’s cheese land, the younger of the girls, Sarah did a very naughty thing. While the elder, Kristen drove the whip through the Chicago traffic, she received a text message from a potential love interest. For the fear of our personal safety, I manned her phone so I could text the messages to the young man as dictated by Kristen. When mister man asked what Kristen was up to, the reply I texted was not necessarily the same as what was said to me. Instead of texting “driving home, yay!” I accidentally typed “driving home. Gay. And I have to go to the bathroom :(((” in my defense, when she said “yay” it sounded a lot like “gay” and I for one, really had to go potty. I told Kristen what I had texted and she thought I was kidding. But guess what…I wasn’t. When Kristen saw what I texted she was most upset, and I feared for my life. After her round of driving, Kristen returned to the back seat of the car with me, and I tried my best to win her friendship back and humbly apologize for my wrong doings. We bonded over flaming hot Cheeto residue and she delivered one swift punch to my arm. And now I think we are friends again. The end.

^^^ Needless to say, Kristen was dying of laughter as she read my short story and we are now most definitely friends again! Sorry for being an asshole, sis! (Even though it was still kinda funny) I love you! 😉

^^^ SHE’S SO CUTE!!!!

Hahahahaha. Kristen and I both found the situation insanely funny after she punched me, so I thought it would be fun to share this goofy story with all of you! What was the silliest thing you did to pass the time during a long trip? Do you have a story of a text message gone wrong that trumps mine? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

PS: Who’s excited and slightly depressed about the series finale of The Following tonight?! I know I am!

May17

Honey, I’m Home!

Posted on May 17, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Hello, hello everyone! I have returned safe and sound to Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio after my weekend getaway to Madison, Wisconsin – and let me just say…it’s SO good to be back! My brother, Peter graduated this weekend from the University of Wisconsin with a PhD in Chemical Engineering (so proud!), so my family packed up the car and made the nine hour trip up to Madison for the ceremony. I’m going to post a few pictures tonight to give you a little sneak peak for the usual Monday Update tomorrow, where I’ll discuss the trip in detail! I mainly just wanted to let all of my lovelies know that I’ve made it home in one piece and that I will talk to all of you very soon!

^^^ Mwahaha, there’s the graduate himself – swagged out to the max! Love you, Peter! 😉 And there’s my sleeping beauty sister, Kristen getting her snooze on! 😉

There’s going to be a bunch of fun stories, pictures, and my graduation fashion choices to discuss tomorrow, so get ready for it and keep it posted with yours truly! How was everyone’s weekend? Did any of you have a weekend getaway trip? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Goodnight! -Sarah

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