Tag Archives: proud

Dec25

Merry Christmas!!!!!

Posted on December 25, 2023 by lifewithlilred

Hello everyone and Merry Christmas to all of you!!! What a year it has been and I am SO ready for quality time with my family and time off. Other than Thanksgiving day, I have not taken time off since having Covid in September. Minus a few random shifts, I will be taking a whole week off and I could not be more excited if I tried. I can’t wait to watch all of the reality TV, hang with my bunnies, read, and relax. It is going to be just what I need and I hope that you will be able to find the time to recharge and enjoy the holidays too!

I know I say this literally every time a holiday rolls around, but it needs repeated: I am so beyond thankful to all of you wonderful people throughout the blogosphere. Wherever you are, you are special to me and words cannot express how happy I am that out of all the blogs online, you stumbled onto mine. Every day, I am motivated to create content for all of my dear friends and readers and I feel immensely proud of everything we have accomplished together. At the end of the day, I couldn’t do it without each and every one of you. ❤

Merry Christmas and thank you for being you! Much love. -Sarah

Dec4

A Lil Red Update

Posted on December 4, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Helloooo darlings! Is it just me or have these past few months been crazy? I feel like I have been going nonstop and am so looking forward to Christmas break even though I literally just took time off for Thanksgiving lol. Even though I have been on the move between all of my jobs and I am exhausted, it hasn’t been bad at all! In fact, I have made quite a few changes to my work schedule and have been enjoying it – even though this change requires me to get up at three AM a few mornings during the work week. 😮 So early, I know but so worth it!

Since October I have been providing transportation to one of my old clients to take him to work. I pick him up at seven thirty in the morning, but that doesn’t mean that I can sleep in until I have to leave. After lots of mental math, I realized that I would need to get up at three for my morning to go like usual. Get up, work out, take care of the bunnies, shower, take the buns out to play, write, and work from home for my other job for two hours. After all of this, it takes me to seven o’clock when I have to leave.

The mornings are a doozy, for sure, but I have so loved seeing my old client again that I don’t even care. What’s even better is that our day together doesn’t end once we get to his job because I have recently became his job coach too! I got my job coaching certification a few years ago for another client and, unfortunately, it fell through. I never sought out another client for that particular aspect of my job so it was most exciting for the opportunity to give it a shot. I like to think I’m rocking it, but my client takes the cake and it has been a great experience for both of us. 🙂

My work in the field isn’t the only thing that has been keeping me busy busy because online work has been nuts too. Gotta love peak advertising season! Between lifewithlilred, my job as an in house writer for a tech entrepreneur, and potentially creating a podcast with a local celebrity, it’s safe to say that I have had a lot of quality time with my computer. It’s a lot, yes, but once again it is extremely fulfilling and I am thrilled with all of the ways that my different jobs have been taking off. I feel so proud of myself and it keeps me motivated to keep working hard to achieve even more of my goals.

With all of these changes to my work schedule, I am patting myself on the back and giving myself an “attagirl” for being all done with my holiday shopping! I knew there was a reason that I started around August because it’s one less thing I have to worry about now. Well… Except for wrapping everything lol but, otherwise, it’s a wrap. I can’t wait to keep working my hardest until my holiday break and hope the new year starts just as strong!

What has been going on in your wonderful world? How has work been going for you? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Nov15

Memories Of Misnyland

Posted on November 15, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! Way back in May, Ohio’s premier personal injury/medical malpractice lawyer, Tim Misny, launched an online store called Misny Merch. I’m sure all of you are thinking “big deal”, but in my neck of the woods it actually really is lol. Anyone who lives in Ohio knows Tim Misny and he is a much beloved staple across the state thanks to his A+ billboard marketing. When the merch shop opened, there was a contest to show off your new swag for a chance to win an afternoon with Tim at his home called Misnyland. So, my dad got me some Misny Merch to rock for my birthday, I posted a Misny To The Max OOTD, and I ended up being a contest winner!

^^^ The man, the myth, the legend.

Originally, the spoils of winning the contest was a summer BBQ at Misnyland. However, it had to be rescheduled to this past weekend for a Fall Fest instead. On Friday, Johnny and I made the trip to Misnyland and I was filled with butterflies during the entire almost hour drive. I was SO nervous to meet Tim and had no idea what to expect for the party on his property. Johnny and I were blown away when we pulled into Misnyland – the estate was gigantic, of course, and it was hard to believe that we were actually attending a party there. It was even harder to believe that we were personally welcomed by Tim as soon as we arrived!

During the party, Johnny and I met some fabulous new friends who we spent the afternoon with. We took a golf cart tour of Misnyland, had lunch, and mingled with the other contest winners and Tim himself. It was such a surreal afternoon, but it gets so much better. As the party was dying down, I asked Tim for some pictures as well as if he had time for a quick Q&A. He agreed, we went into his hunting lodge, and I ended up interviewing him for about thirty minutes. I think we could have talked all day if he didn’t have to bid farewell to the other guests! It was one of the coolest experiences of my life and it was easily the best thing my blog has ever done for me. I’m so glad I worked up the nerve to even ask him because that was a coin toss in my head the whole afternoon. 😀

There is SO much more to come from my time spent at Misnyland. Keep it locked for a brand new OOTD, bloopers, another OOTD with some new Misny Merch, and snippets from our interview. You don’t want to miss it!!

Who is a local celebrity in your neck of the woods? Have you ever won a contest before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

PS: Remember that proceeds from every Misny Merch purchase benefits the Cleveland City Mission! ❤

Oct28

Sweet Surprises: Reader Friend Edition

Posted on October 28, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! Every day, I am thankful for the beauty of blogging. Of course, I always love to write and it is a joy to express myself on my page. However, the thing that I love best about blogging is the people! I met my best friend through lifewithlilred and so many other members of the blogosphere that I feel lucky to connect with. This Tuesday, I received a beautiful card in the mail that was bought for me by the darling Leenda, the author behind The Bus To Sorry. While she was at a craft fair, she spotted a card and sticker that she thought I would like and she was so right! Check it out:

There is something about a handwritten note from a friend that just hits different. I was SO excited to open the letter from Leenda because I had no idea what it was going to be. All I knew was that it was something that she thought would match my vibe. I ripped into the envelope like a rabid beast and clutched my pearls over what I saw. Guys, I am obsessed with my note card and sticker by Freshly Squeezed Art. As soon as I got home, I immediately put the sticker on my laptop and left the note on my desk. I enjoy looking at it too much for it to go in my letter box!

These lovely little gifts match my aesthetic to the T. It amazed me that someone who only knows me from my blog and comments could pick something that I would have picked for myself. It honestly made me feel really proud of myself that I am so open on my page that it gave one of my beloved reader friends perfect insight into a prezzie I would adore. I feel incredibly touched to be thought of by Leenda and it was a wonderful reminder of why I started my blog in the first place. It was always to make new friends and I am so glad that it is having that effect. ❤

Thank you, thank you, thank you to Leenda for this Sweet Surprise. It made my week and do be sure to check out her page and give it some love!

What is something that you would pick out for me? Have you met any good friends through your blog? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct8

Therapy Success!

Posted on October 8, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! After a very unsuccessful first shot of therapy, I finally had an appointment with someone new this past Wednesday. And, I am pleased to report that it went awesome!! After canceling with the person who I was seeing, I had no plans of giving therapy another try. I felt really disappointed by how the session went because I didn’t feel heard whatsoever and it was hard for me to even set up an appointment in the first place. Thankfully, the receptionist encouraged me to give it another go with someone who she thought would be a better fit and she was completely right. It was a match made in therapy heaven!

During my introductory session with my new therapist, I felt really comfortable talking to her. She was pierced and tatted and I instantly liked that right away! I was also shocked to find that my last therapist wasn’t hearing me for real. My new therapist warned me that our session would be repetitive to questions already asked with the prior therapist and that was fine. I understood that she needed to confirm what was in the notes. However, MAJOR experiences in my life that are very important to my healing weren’t taken note of at all. This seemed so inappropriate to me because those appointments were not only a waste of my time, but it was went about in a way that I didn’t appreciate and it was confirmed.

Thankfully, not feeling heard wasn’t an issue at all with my new therapist. In fact, I felt better than I have in weeks after our session because I could tell she was truly interested in what I had to say. Like my first appointment with my old therapist, I made it clear that while I would like to learn new coping skills and get advice, I really needed my feelings validated and to talk about my trauma. My new one agreed 150% and my old one spent our appointments shoving halfhearted solutions down my throat. I am SO happy to know that I am going to get what I need during my next appointments and I feel great about the next steps going forward!

It’s true that you need to shop around for a therapist that works for you and this last session was a testament to that. I am proud of myself for trying again and so relieved to have found someone that I can do that with. 🙂

Have you ever had a bad therapy experience? What did you do about it? I honestly have half a mind to complain to the office about mine. I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct2

Lil Red’s Guide To Setting Boundaries

Posted on October 2, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello my sweets! One thing that I have struggled with all of my life is setting boundaries for myself. Although I wasn’t a fan of the therapist who I was seeing, this is something that she encouraged and I agree. Living a boundary free life and being a constant yes man is only going to lead to your own demise. For me, this came in the form of massive burnout, poor mental health, and bottom of the barrel self worth and esteem. I am trying to be better at establishing boundaries and sticking to them and here is what I have been working on:

Learning To Say No:

Saying “no” is one of the hardest things for me – especially when someone needs my help. This saying is cliche, but it really is true – you can’t help others until you help yourself. One of the things that I need to work on is re-framing my thoughts because I can’t help but feel like a bad person when I say no. My mantra when I am getting in my feels about it is “You are not a bad person. You are a good person. Your boundaries are appropriate.” It is something that I am constantly reminding myself of and, with time, I am hopeful that my thought patterns will change.

Do What You Can:

My uncle gave me some advice that I really liked when discussing boundaries with him. He said what helps him is to say “Well, I can’t do this BUT I can do that”. I like this because it puts me in control of the situation and what I am willing to give. It’s also a nice reminder that I can’t do everything but I can do something and that is a comforting place to be. I will definitely be utilizing this pro tip and it feels good to have a technique that is so simple, but effective.

Have A Support Team:

My aunt and uncle have been an amazing support team for me and we talk on the phone frequently. When I told them that boundaries are something I’m making an effort to work on, they were so proud and it made me feel proud too. Setting boundaries can feel like a bad thing to me and it was uplifting to hear that it really is a great thing. Hearing my aunt say “you go, girl” when I was telling her about a text I sent was motivating because it let me know I am on the right track. When you are making a change in your life, you need people in your corner and I am so thankful I have that.

Hold Yourself Accountable:

Setting boundaries is a brand new thing to me and I understand that I need to hold myself accountable. In other words, I can’t just talk the talk but I need to walk the walk too. Wanting to change and actually changing are two completely different things. As I work on this new goal, I know that I need to keep myself in check. I can do this by checking in with my support squad and standing firm with my boundaries. And, yes, standing firm with these boundaries even if they are not respected. It will be hard, but no one ever said a big change is easy!

I am working really hard on myself and I am proud to be doing this for me. I try to be very honest with all of you about my mental health and, honestly, it has been hanging on by a thread. I am looking forward to feeling better and I can’t wait to meet my new therapist so we can work on boundary setting even more!

How do you set boundaries for yourself? What is something that you struggle with? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep24

About Our Bunnies

Posted on September 24, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!!! On November first, it will be one whole year since Johnny and I welcomed our sweet bunnies, Melvin and Penelope, home. We adopted Mel and P from a friend who adopted Penelope from some type of fair I think? Little did she know, Penelope was pregnant and had eight (Yes, eight!) babies. When Johnny and I decided that we were committed to adopting bunnies, I scoured humane societies and posted on Facebook for any leads. My post was answered by the new bunny parent of nine and we took our babies home two weeks later!

It was and still is so exciting to have pets in our apartment. Melvin and Penelope are our little buddies and we are just as obsessed with them now as the day we brought them home. It is such a blast to watch our two gremlins romp around our bunny proofed area, play with their beloved Chewy boxes, and get into mischief. Mel and P’s favorite activities include snack time, chewing literally everything, and getting all of the cuddles from their mom and dad. Although, cuddling definitely wasn’t on their agenda when we first got them… It took a while for them to get warmed up to being held, but now they are always on the couch with us when we watch TV! 🙂

Our almost first year of being bunny parents felt like a lot of trial and error. It took both Mel and P a while to get about 95% litter trained, for starters. The first few months involved a lot of cleaning up accidents and rearranging their litter boxes to find a solution that worked. We had to figure out the best ways to clean their hutch, the best places to shop for their leafy greens, as well as finding supplies that they liked and getting them acclimated to our touch. This process took a while, but we never gave up and it feels like we have had them for so much longer than a year.

Melvin and Penelope are completely different bunnies from when we first brought them home. Pen was SO shy and was not interested in exploring her new digs whatsoever. Melvin, on the other hand, was quite skittish and would rather run away than be near us. Now that they know who mom and dad are and are so used to us, we finally see their real personalities. Pen is sweet as can be and loves to be held – the way to her heart was lots of yummy treats! Mel is our little adventurer and tolerates being held for a while, then he scampers off to play, play, play. He loves toys and thinks it’s hilarious to dump his food dish all over the hutch as soon as I refill it! Their personalities compliment each other so well and I am thrilled that they are comfortable enough with us to show it off. ❤

Since Johnny and I did not have a birthaversary bash this year, we are hoping to combine it into a party for Mel and Pen’s Gotcha Day. Our bunny babies are so loved and in my perfect world, we would have an apartment full of them!

What is your pet’s personality like? When it your pet’s Gotcha Day? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep17

Belated Nine Year Blogiversary!!

Posted on September 17, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!!!! September 13th was lifewithlilred’s Nine Year Blogiversary and it came as a huge surprise to me lol. Obviously, because this is a belated celebration post! Not only was the date of this a shock, but also the length of time. It feels like just yesterday that twenty year old Sarah sat down and began her blogging journey. It is thrilling that almost a decade later, my blog is still going stronger than ever with daily content for the past four years and change!

As always, the best part about lifewithlilred is all of the incredible friends and readers that have come along for the ride. And, man, have we been through a lot! You have all been there through major milestones in my life – graduating college, new jobs, and getting married. It is so special to me to know that my dear readers are there celebrating the good and offering support for the bad every step of the way. It inspires and motivates me to no end, which is the main reason lifewithlilred has kept on truckin all of these years.

Every day, I feel so excited to sit down and write and I think that my blog is a reflection of my favorite phrase “the joy of writing”. I write for me, I write for my beloved viewers, I would write for no viewers – it just makes me happy to do. lifewithlilred is something that brings me true joy and it is my safe haven that I have carved out in the great world wide web. For nine years, I have been in blogging bliss and I cannot wait to see what else is in store for my page in the years to come. ❤

Thank you to each and every one of you for being the driving force behind lifewithlilred for the past nine years. I could not do it without that love and support and it works both ways. I love all of you and wish nothing but for you to continue on in your blogging journey and experience the joy of writing every day!

Aug25

Mental Health Day

Posted on August 25, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! This past Monday, I enjoyed my first mental health day in I don’t know how long. Granted, it wasn’t necessarily my choice but it still counts lol. This weekend, I was in a crazy freak accident – no one was hurt, but my car was so I was out of commission to get to work anyways. I would have loved to have had a mental health day under different circumstances, but I guess I’ll take what I can get? Haha and I used my time off well!

On Monday, I slept in until… SIX AM!!! It was great and definitely beats my normal wake up time around 4:30. Melvin and Penelope weren’t thrilled to have postponed their super early morning outing, but once I was up they got to hang out outside of their hutch almost all day. I also was able to get my car set up for its repairs because who knew auto body shops were closed on the weekend? Not me and it was a big relief to get all of that sorted. Also, I took my car to a mom and pop shop and the owner was just adorable. 🙂

Once I was home from my errands, I got to work doing lots of cleaning and that felt fantastic. When my life was really crazy, it was hard to find the time or energy to do a good deep cleaning of the apartment. I got to do that and more with my day off and I felt so accomplished and proud of my efforts. Maybe I needed this day for me more than I realized because I knew it would be nice to clean, but I didn’t appreciate how nice until I proudly surveyed a sparkling space.

After my chores were done, I completed the last item on my agenda which was finishing my Independent Provider annual training. Every year, we must do eight hours of additional online training to maintain our certification. I was on hour six of mine so I didn’t have too much left to do, but it was cool to not have to do it once I was home from work. I also don’t mind the online training at all because they’re always super interesting and it’s fun to learn something new!

Once all of my checklist for my day off was accounted for, I got to spend the rest of my afternoon FaceTiming with my bestie, Kate, of Live In The Nautical. It was the perfect way to end my Mental Health Day. If you are feeling like you need a day for you too, then I can’t encourage an MHD enough. We all need one from time to time and it’s important to listen to what your mind and body needs!

How do you like to spend a day off? When was your last mental health day? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug24

4 Year Celebration!!!

Posted on August 24, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!!!! lifewithlilred has been going strong since 2014! That’s almost a decade of everyone’s favorite lil redhead in the blogosphere and it is something that I am very proud of. Several years back, I decided that I wanted my page to have fresh content daily and I have stuck with it. Huge shout out to being able to schedule posts because that definitely helps the cause! This past weekend, I ran my calculations because I am currently on day 1,474 of daily content which makes….

An over four year streak!!!!!!

I knew that I was having a good run with publishing every day on lifewithlilred, but I had no idea that it was that good. Writing almost every morning feels so natural to me that it’s something that I don’t think too much about anymore. Knowing that over four years ago, I set a goal and I have been achieving it for that long feels awesome. It also makes me even more dedicated to continuing the quest for daily content because how could I mess up a streak like that?! That would suck lol.

Despite such a lengthy tenure in the blogosphere, I still get writer’s block and feel uninspired from time to time too. However, having so many amazing friends that I have made tuning in serves as the best inspiration of all. If it wasn’t for all of these fantastic friends and readers alike, I think I would have given up on daily content a long time ago. So, thank you all for helping me achieve my goal. I love you!! ❤

What are some of your blogging goals? What is your favorite thing about your blog? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

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