Lifestyle Archives - Everyday Edits

Travel | Ireland

November 16, 2019

This time last year we returned from Ireland where the hills rolled and the sheep scattered along the hillsides. If Dublin got a little more snow it would be a setting for a Hallmark movie. It was a celebratory trip for my husband and me after paying off a business loan. Ireland was the perfect place to catch our breath and celebrate. It is my favorite country besides the United States!

Dublin was like a scene from It’s a Wonderful Life. Except, in any Dublin pub you are bound to hear a specific swear word used as every part of speech. #thatswearword

But when you add an Irish accent the swear word sounds poetic when used as an adverb, adjective, verb, noun, and preposition. If you know an Irish man or woman (I work with one) or have enjoyed a few Irish guys at a rugby match (my son played rugby in high school) you know that word.

But that word was not offensive with an Irish accent.

We spent the majority of our Ireland trip in Dublin. Walking the Trinity College campus had me on my phone texting my daughter to consider grad school in Dublin and maybe meet a cute Irish boy with an Irish accent. #momstop

Every morning we woke up and found these on the streets.

Did you know this author lived and worked in Dublin? I did not.

And, of course, no trip to Ireland would be complete with a little Guinness. We did a self-guided tour which means we sampled when we wanted and on every floor. I think a tour would have been more fun.

Some of you know I have a thing for clocks. These clocks were in the Guinness museum. The details got a little blurry by the 3rd floor.

And, finally, I loved the message on this awning outside a little cafe.

My Neighborhood Running Route and Colorado Views

June 4, 2019

What happened to our Colorado spring? It’s been rain and snow thru May. My son just returned to his college town for a summer internship in a lab. My house is quieter with one less child at home. Running, breaking a sweat or eating chocolate is how I cope with stress. My neighborhood running route is a fun way to take in the Colorado views.

This is the hill that leads out of our neighborhood. It’s steep and it’s a bear (and yes it’s not uncommon to see a mama bear and her cubs in the early morning). It’s the hill when you see a neighbor chugging up the hill you roll down your window and yell a few encouraging words.

But look at that sky! Colorado has over 300 days of sunshine a year! Oh, and no humidity. It’s the perfect weather for outdoor enthusiasts.

my running route

The trouble with hills was over time my hamstrings and core said, “no more.” It was a rough year figuring out the injury (need to treat the source, not the symptom). Blah blah blah. I do more physical therapy now than in the previous 20 years combined.

So my “team” suggested mixing up my runs with dirt (and tracks). I fought this suggestion for a while because of certain types of critters I might run into while out on a run.

On a particularly warm morning, I decided to try my knee (hamstring) on the dirt roads. I found a few snapshots of Colorado life along my running route.

Colorado is often referenced as the Mile High City or 5280. Both nicknames are references to the number of feet (one mile) Denver sits above sea level. In our part of the city, we are well above 5280. Because I have lived in Colorado for so long, I do not notice the difference in altitude. But, when my son was home from college it took him a few days to adjust to the altitude.

Along my running route, there are usually buffalo roaming in the distance behind the fence. This is a 2 lane dirt road and although most drivers give a friendly wave to acknowledge the runners; it’s not a guarantee. It gets a little precarious around the bends and turns.

This greeted me when I finished my run. It puts all of the struggles, pains, complaints in perspective. What are your favorite runs in your city?

Do you Have Wash or Wait Hair Days?

April 18, 2019

Okay, I am going off topic today with a very important question to ask all of you? Like I really need some clarity on this hot top. Here it goes. How many of you wash your hair every day? Up until six months ago the thought of not washing my hair daily never occurred to me because why would I not wash my hair? But apparently the choice to not wash one’s hair every day is a thing. I heard the chatter about the benefits of a no shampoo days. I asked my girlfriends and the wash vs. no-wash camps were split down the middle… like a bad, messy part. So where do you weigh in on the wash or wait hair days dilemma?

Ironically, on the days when I break a serious sweat (okay every day I break a sweat… I come from a family of sweaters- well except for my mother. Apparently, she does not sweat. I totally went sideways with that sentence. Here’s a photo of my mom who was clearly rocking her hair back in the day, circa 1974 in Omaha.

Back to my sweat equity hair. After a workout the sweat gives my hair a wavy, texture that I am unable to achieve with product. But, on my “no wash” days I just feel well… dirty. On the no wash hair days I either use a shower cap or just pull my hair back. Once I had to use a Target plastic bag (on a no wash hair day) and my husband just said, “That’s a solid look…” #noshame #upcycletheplasticbags

So, he may not love this woman’s decision on how long to wait in between washing her hair.

On my no-wash days I try to hide under a baseball cap (like most of my photos), but baseball cap are a little too casual for showing property.

I have dry shampoos and the tinted dry shampoo (which I like even on clean hairs days because it adds volume). So ladies (and guys) where do you stand on this important Wash or Wait hair days? Please weigh in on this in the comments!!! And, I would love any product suggestions.

The Why Behind my Blog Rebrand

February 2, 2019

Surprise! Welcome to Everyday Edits (previously Not a Trophy Wife). I know, right. A huge change with user errors, technical glitches and late nights. And, a to-do list that will take the better part of a month. Please stick with me! But, if you skip the why behind my blog rebrand, will you leave a comment on what you think of the new name or follow me on Instagram?

I will share the details and the team behind the rebrand later (once I organize all my passwords. But, let me explain the why behind my blog rebrand. In a sentence, it started in a therapy session with my husband.

That’s right, I paid someone to listen to me talk about my blog.

Well, that is the short version.

I thank my therapist for my blog rebrand. In a monthly therapy/life coach/marriage counseling session, I talked for the better part of the session about my blog; Not a Trophy Wife.

I lit up talking about all the details I love about my blog. And, how my blog pushed my creative side (sometimes over the edge).

The Why Behind My Blog Rebrand

I shared the circumstances behind my blog name. It began with a telephone conversation with my sister in a parking lot at our tennis club. I was asked by a friend to sub for a daytime tennis match. I had primer on my elbow and ceiling paint on my baseball cap. And, I had a car with months old McDonald’s french fries in the back seat. I was a lot of things, but I was not a trophy wife.

With three small kids and a new Realtor’s license (to help fund my husband’s start-up), I told my sister,

“Some days, I just want to be a trophy wife.”

I continued to share with our therapist my blog was an expensive hobby. My blog was my own version of therapy. It was a distraction from my life as a Realtor where the adrenaline of contracts, dates, and deadlines, fueled by coffee, created noise in my head.

Looking at my husband’s face in that session, made me think he thought I had gone off the rails. I am sure he was counting the dollars per minute during that 50-minute session.

I called it passion. Except, except that, I was increasingly uncomfortable with the blog name. I suspected the blog name, Not a Trophy Wife, was judgy with undertones.

But, I was not ready for change. So I danced around my thoughts and persevered thru my DSLR camera. I continued to work on my writing skills with the help of this great article from an unlikely author.

When I ramped up my real estate business two years ago, I knew I had an opportunity to marry the two: the creative side of the blog with the decor and staging ideas I share with buyers and sellers.

It took me three years from those initial feelings of a blog rebrand to the actual decision to initiate a blog rebrand. A trip to Haven placed me in a small blogging group with this lady as the leader.

But, this lady had just rebranded her blog. I followed up with her after the conference about my dilemma. Leslie was a great sounding board.

And, that is the why behind my blog rebrand. I was not the same person when I started my blog. I was evolving and so were my thoughts and my stage of life and my goals. It was time to edit me and my blog. Thank you for sticking with me! If you are new, welcome! I would love social media follows below. laura

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The Why Behind My Blog Rebrand

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