Spring Favorites

I used to have seasonal favorites segments on my blog, you know, my favorite things during that time in my life. But I stopped doing them for some reason. Maybe I stopped liking things. Regardless, I am back with new favorites and some shameless self-promotion. Whatevs.

1. Heart. As in Heart the band. My husband really likes Heart and I’d never really given them a chance so I always thought he was crazy. But I’ve been listening to them on repeat for 4 days and it’s starting to get weird. Like, I cannot stop. It’s unhealthy. I like blasting Alone in my room and pretending I’m some love-sick 80’s teenager.

2. Tumblr. If you’re bored and like looking at pictures of funny things, pretty models, and cool photography, you should check out my tumblr. I’d taken a long break from posting stuff on there but now I’m back into it and I’m lovin’ it! There is a link to it at the top of my blog where it says “My Links” or you can click HERE.

3. Candy Crush. I have a love/hate relationship with this Facebook game. It’s so addicting. I’m one of those people who will play every video game and computer game around. I love Facebook games and I’m not ashamed of it. I was a little late on the uptake with this one though. I thought I was over my love of gaming. Then, one rainy day I bought the App for my iPad and I haven’t looked back since.

4. My friend’s blog. I have a friend here who’s almost in an identical situation as me–stuck in Canada, missing the states, etc. Except she’s from San Diego so she really must be feeling the pain! Her recent blog post describes both of our feelings towards Canada very well–we shouldn’t be complaining…but we still manage to do so. If you wanna check it out click HERE.

5. Long walks. I’ve been going on hour long walk/runs lately and its been really refreshing. Maybe it’s because the weather has been so nice here and it feels like spring has finally sprung. My favorite places to walk are along the ocean and through parks. Very serene and peaceful.

6. Kidz Showz. If you haven’t visited my other blog that I share with Mooselicker, what are you waiting for?! It’s chock full of everyone’s favorite memories–children’s shows! I think everyone can bond over kid’s shows, whether you hate them or you love them or you love to hate them, they’re around and they’re not going anywhere. We talk about movies, TV shows, character studies, certain episodes–the topic is endless. If you are interested in guest posting, contact either Tim or myself and we will hook you up with the deets! There’s a link in “My Links” or you can click HERE.

What are some of your favorite things this Spring?

Blog of the Year Award

I’m not gonna lie, I was having a pretty bad Thanksgiving. It’s hard to be apart from my family and friends during the holidays. I do have my husband here but he doesn’t count. Hah jk. Harry from The Poet’s Corner and Dribbling Pensioner awarded me The Blog of the Year Award! He was able to boost my spirits this Thanksgiving and for that I am truly thankful.

Harry is a Northern Irish fellow aka a leprechaun who likes a good laugh and a good poem. He made fun of me for being a dumb blonde and I’d be lying if I wasn’t slightly relieved when I dyed my hair brown so he wouldn’t be able to make fun of me anymore. Whew!

The Rules:

1 Select the blog(s) you think deserve the ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award

2 Write a blog post and tell us about the blog(s) you have chosen – there’s no minimum or maximum number of blogs required – and ‘present’ them with their award.

3 Please include a link back to this page ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award – http://thethoughtpalette.co.uk/our-awards/blog-of-the-year-2012-award/ and include these ‘rules’ in your post (please don’t alter the rules or the badges!)

4 Let the blog(s) you have chosen know that you have given them this award and share the ‘rules’ with them

5 You can now also join our Facebook group – click ‘like’ on this page ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award Facebook group and then you can share your blog with an even wider audience

6 As a winner of the award – please add a link back to the blog that presented you with the award – and then proudly display the award on your blog and sidebar … and start collecting stars…

Yes – that’s right – there are stars to collect!

Unlike other awards which you can only add to your blog once – this award is different!

When you begin you will receive the ‘1 star’ award – and every time you are given the award by another blog – you can add another star! There are a total of 6 stars to collect.

I don’t expect or need any more stars to be honest. One star is all it takes to make me feel loved!

The Awards Go To:

A Gripping Life– An amazing blogger and an even more amazing mom.

Mooselicker– If you don’t read his blog you don’t deserve eyes.

The Waiting– Funny, smart, kind, all wrapped up in one cool gal.

Evolution of Insanity– One of the best Brits around. He’s ‘Ard, but really a softy deep down.

Michael Cargill– Speaking of Brits, Michael was the first person to ever read my blog. He does the best impersonations. Ever.

Don’t Quote Lily– My new favorite blogger with my name. If you like me, you’ll really like her. Super relatable and cute!

I’ll Sleep When They’re Grown– She’s way more than a mommy blogger. But I dare you to not get distracted by her cute kids.

UnfetteredBS– One of the nicest people in the blogosphere. True story.

1800UKillMe– A New Yorker who wrote a book on Mean Spirited Tales. She’s basically my hero.

Guapola– If you’re looking for a party in a blog, you need to head on over there. Guap is awesome!

Linda Vernon– Just plain hilarious. So lighthearted and perfectly perfect in every way.

Pretzel Logic– Creative, fun, nice. And his blog has the word pretzel in it. I mean, come on.

Adair You– Simple, easy-going blog posts that are always a pleasure to read. And I’ve been reading them for a year so I would know.

Brother Jon– An honest guy who blogs about his faith. Which is rare these days.

You’ve Been Hooked– He’ll take you on his adventures of being a bellman. He wrote the book on the topic. No, really. He did.

Love and Lunchmeat– She’s funny, sweet, and writes about the good stuff. And only the good stuff.

No Blog Intended– Ever wonder what the life of a Belgian teen is like? Well, she can tell you better than anyone else. 🙂

Giggles McGill Jill– An adventurous gal who always has good stories to tell. Entertaining and funny!

Conchsaladesque– Stories from a gal who lives in the Bahamas. Totes unfair.

Harper Faulkner– He’s okay I guess. I mean, if you like reading good posts and stuff like that.

I think I included everyone that I actually like. I’m sure I forgot someone and I’ll come off as really mean. But whatevs. Oh and don’t feel pressure to accept this award. I didn’t really leave any other bloggers for anyone to tag. Like, I pretty much nominated all of WordPress for this award.

This was so much work. Never again.

The Benefits of Being Online

The world has changed incredibly in the span of twenty years. When I was little, my family didn’t have a computer. I don’t remember having one until I was at least 9. Even then I don’t think I ever went “online”. The only activity that I did on the computer was typing my name over and over again in different fonts. I still do that on occasion.

Now it seems that I can’t go a day without being online. I have to check my “stuff” which consists of email, twitter, blogs, facebook, tumblr, pinterest…the list goes on. Of course there are times when I’m away and can’t check my stuff. Those are the times when I’m sitting in a corner and rocking myself back and forth.

One might look at this scenario and think my online life is unhealthy. Fortunately, I’m one of the light cases. I know for a fact that teenagers stay online for hours and hours on end. Even if they aren’t physically at a computer, they can still go online with their phones. I know I’m painting an extreme picture, but the internet, despite being a big time-waster, is actually an amazing thing.

We are able to connect with people around the world without leaving our homes (or beds…in my case). We are able to meet friends, share stories, and fall in love online. Some would even say it’s easier to meet people online because no one is judging you by your appearance, just by what you say.

Personally, I am more relaxed when I’m talking to people online than in real-life. Online, you can choose to respond to a conversation whenever and however you want to. You can take the time to think about what you want to say before your say it. You can eloquently word your input instead of trying to come up with the right words in your head. Everything is smoother and thought out. We can really be our best selves online for that reason.

Will we turn into drones that don’t know how to talk in the future? Possibly. Will we go blind from the light of our computers constantly being shone into our eyes? Most likely. But we’ll have many more acquaintances than we ever could have met in our own day to day lives. We can relate to others and realize that others can relate to us. We can comfort and be comforted. We can laugh and share thought-provoking stories. And that might be worth something in the long run.

 

200th Post!

So many milestones for me! In honor of my 200th post, I wanted to make a new header for my blog. Turns out I’m awful at graphic design. My friend Hayley Castle saved me by making me the cutest header ever! A picture of a lily IN a maple leaf! So cute, right?

Hayley is super talented and her website is awesome. If anyone ever needs any work done on the graphic design front, Hayley is your gal. All of her designs are so cute and creative. Some of the projects that she can help you with include: logos, invitations, announcements, holiday cards, blog design, notepads, posters, illustrations, packaging, business cards, branding, book covers and more!

If you have some free time, you should totally check her out at hayleycastle.com!

Thanks Hayley! Here’s to the new and improved Lily in Canada!