Hello everyone! I went to Texas to visit a family that I used to Nanny for and had a great time. I want to share with you an adventure that my daughter and I went on while visiting the gorgeous city of Austin. We went on a 1 hour boat cruise to see bats! Super cool!
There is a bridge that sits on Lady Bird Lake in Austin, Texas, called The Congress Bridge. An estimated 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats have made this bridge their home. Every night, after the sun sets and it’s getting dark, these bats fly out of the bridge and go hunt for their food. These little creatures fly up to 100 miles to go search for food. Amazing, isn’t it?
This is such a fun thing to do if you are looking for a laid back adventure. You are given a tour on a boat of Lady Bird Lake. You also get to hear some of the history of Austin. It’s a good time, a beautiful view of the city and a memory that you won’t forget any time soon. Try it the next time you are in Austin, Texas.
I love nail care and pretty nails. Having nice nails can make you feel put together, pretty, feminine and more attractive. Nice nails can be an expression of who are. The color of polish, the designs you get put on the nails, the length and shape of your nails are all up to you. Having healthy nails that look good doesn’t have to time consuming and you can do it on a budget. I have always had nails that break unless I keep nail polish on them. It’s so frustrating but I am learning how to manage my nails and help them be stronger.
Did you know that if you are over cleaning and maintaining your nails, you could actually damage your normal, strong, healthy nails? The risk for your nails to get a bacterial or yeast infection increases. Crazy huh? I guess there’s is such a thing as being too clean. LOL.
There are things you can do to have healthy nails:
Keep polish on them. Polish won’t harm healthy nails, however, it might be good to give your nails a breather and leave polish off once in a while. Always use acetone- free nail polish remover.
Eat healthy, well balanced meals and take Biotin. Biotin is a B vitamin. Biotin is known for making nails stronger and growing faster.
Keep your nails trimmed and file them regularly. It is important to keep nails smooth from snags and breaking.
Wear gloves to clean and do dishes. When your hands are immersed into hot, soapy water, your nails can become weak because chemicals in cleaners and soaps dry out your nails and your hands.
Avoid acrylic nails. They can damage your nail bed and lead to infections as well. If you are going to get acrylic or gel nails, use sunscreen on your hands to protect them form the UV light that affixes the acrylic nails and gel polish. Skin cancer is a minimal possibility but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
I am the first to admit that I love a good manicure with gel nail polish. Gel polish stays on so much longer than if I used regular nail polish. And it is flawless if applied properly. I think that there can definitely be a balance with having healthy nails and getting manicures. I love the girl that does my manicures. Each time I go she checks my nails to see if they need a break. If they do, she will put a clear strengthening coat on them and tells me to wait at least four weeks to do anything else to them. We need to remember that chemicals are being used on our skin and nails. It’s important to not get too caught up in the fun of having a great manicure and do whats right for our nail health. Find a good nail salon and follow their guidelines. You won’t regret it at all. Good luck with your nails everyone! Remember, natural is beautiful too!
What the heck is this right? I recently started having horrible pain in my feet. I was trying everything under the sun to get relief and I couldn’t get it under control. I just wonder if people are living with this pain because they have never heard of Plantar Fasciitis. I hope I can shed some light on this topic for you if you are suffering with this.
According to www.webmd.com, your feet have thick, fibrous bands of tissue that is called “fascia.” The fascia reaches from your heels to your toes. These tissues support the muscles and arch of your foot. If the tissues get stretched too far, you can get tiny tears in the facia’s surface. Hence, the foot pain. Plantar Fasciitis can cause heel spurs which are bony growths that will form in the foot.
What causes plantar Fasciitis? There are several things that can play a factor in this. Men usually do not get Plantar Fasciitis. However, they can. Woman are the unlucky souls that seem to have the most trouble with this. Plantar Fasciitis is more likely to strike if you are on your feet for several hours a day, overweight or as you get older and age.
Other things that will increase your risk of developing Plantar Fasciitis :
Wearing worn-out shoes with thin soles.
Have flat feet or a very high arch.
Frequently wear high-heels.
Have tight Achilles tendons or “heel cords.”
Have a unusual foot position or have an unusual walk.
My foot pain was getting so bad that it was debilitating. I couldn’t even walk through a grocery store to get groceries without having to come home and ice my feet. I had to figure out what was wrong and fix it.
I went to my chiropractor and told him about my foot pain and he did a few tests on my feet and new right away what was wrong. He was able to treat my Plantar Fasciitis with some ultrasound and graston technique. Graston technique is where a stainless steel tool scrapes the knots out of, in my case, the bottom of my feet. Painful? Yes. I am not going to lie. Very painful at times. Was it worth it? Absolutely. I also went to a good shoe store (Body ‘n’ Sole) and got proper inserts for my shoes. Between the inserts and the treatment from my chiropractor, I am happy to say that I am almost pain free from Plantar Fasciitis in less than a month! Thank the good Lord above! I don’t know how people live with that kind of pain. As you read this, I hope you are not suffering from Plantar Fasciitis, but if you are, I hope this has helped you in some way.
So, your getting married. The time has come to plan the wedding of your dreams and profess your love in front of family and friends. Sounds easy enough right? Well, it can be. It can also very quickly turn into the most stressful time of your life.
You may know exactly what you want for your wedding or you may be feeling very overwhelmed with all of the decisions that have to be made. You will probably find that there is a lot more that goes into planning a wedding than you thought, but if you focus you will conquer it all!
Before we talk about the things that will help you plan, I want to encourage you and your soon to be spouse to stay true to yourselves with what you want for your wedding. I have seen so many wedding plans get so complicated and confusing because the Bride and Grooms family or friends think that their ideas should be incorporated into the wedding. Now, I am not saying that you shouldn’t ask for help or take suggestions from your friends or family. I am saying that if you are going to plan according to what other people think you should do, there will be regrets on your end. I know how hard it can be to speak your opinions especially if you are a non-confrontational person and also when someone else is helping pay for your wedding. The truth of the matter is that if a person is pushing their opinions about your wedding onto you and they use the threat of them paying for your wedding as a way to get what they want, then they really do not have your best interest at heart. Standing firm in what you want as a couple for your wedding is a great start to boosting your marriage.
Now, the fun stuff! Yay! Here are some things that may be helpful when planning your wedding.
Hire a planner! Just do it! A planner has insights for you and also has relationships with vendors. Also, this is a great way to keep your wedding true to what you want. The planner will be there for you and will run everything by you so that things don’t get thrown into the planning that you don’t want.
Start a wedding folder. This is a great way to keep track of your ideas. Look through bridal and food magazines for inspiration on what you think you might want.
Pick your wedding party. Decide who you want to stand with you as you say your “I Do’s.” Everyone will be excited and will want to know who your going to ask. Again, think about the big picture. In ten years, when you look at your wedding pictures, who do you want to see standing there with you? Who will support your marriage? Who can you not imagine getting married without? Don’t take this lightly. You will find it is more important than you might think.
Budget. Everyone knows that a wedding is expensive. Be realistic. Use your resources and figure out what is most important to you to spend your money on. This will be different for every couple. It’s a personal preference. Some couples will want to spend more on the ceremony than the reception. Others will want the opposite. Some couples may want to spend more on real flowers instead of fake flowers. There are lots of ways to cut the expense if needed.
Make a guest list. Invite people you want at your wedding and not people that you feel obligated to invite. Remember this is about you, not them. If you haven’t talked to Cousin Sue in 10 years, you probably do not need to invite them. More people doesn’t always make it a better wedding. If you are on a tight budget, as painful as it may seem, if you reduce the amount of guests you invite, the less the cost.
Reserve a date and venues. This can be overwhelming as you need to decide if you want to have the wedding and the reception at the same location or if it is best to do it at separate locations. It is best to try to not have a lot of travel time between the two locations if you decide on separate location.
Hire florists, caterers, bands, photographers, babysitters for children at wedding. It is important to do this as soon as you know the date of your wedding as a lot of these professionals are booked months, sometimes a year in advance.
Reserve hotel rooms for out of town guests. Typically, find hotels that are close to the reception so people don’t have far to go. Especially if alcohol is involved.
Hire a designated driver. If you are going to be serving alcohol at your reception, you can hire someone to make sure your guests get home or to their hotel room safely.
Register. Pick two or three of your favorite retailers and register so that you can be blessed with gifts from your guests.
Purchase a dress. Of course!
Shop for bridesmaids’ dresses. You should do this at least 6 months in advance in case the dresses have to be ordered or need any alterations.
Meet with the officiant. The efficient will help confirm all legal documentation that you will need and also help you design your ceremony and what will take place on the day of the wedding.
Arrange any transportation. If you are needing limos, minibuses, trolleys, cars, horse and buggy, etc… the sooner you figure this out the better.
Book the rehearsal and rehearsal-dinner venues. This can simple or fancy.
Order a cake. Attend several tastings. Good tasting cake is everything!
Hire a hair and make-up artist. Look for someone that is good at the style you are trying to achieve. Someone can be a great hair stylist or make-up artist but not good at the look you specifically want. This is much easier if you know what you want to look like on your wedding day.
Choose Music. Create a list of music to be played during your wedding and reception. If there is something that you do not want to be played make sure to include that.
I am sure there are other things that can be added to the list above but hopefully this will help you with your decision making that can seem so overwhelming when planning a wedding. Take it one step at a time and remember to be true to you and make this your special day, the way you want it to be. I hope if you are getting married soon, that you have the wedding of your dreams and have a fantastic time.
I also want to say that if the big fancy wedding is not for you, think about a destination wedding or a very small ceremony with a few people attending of your choosing and then have one heck of a reception to celebrate. What ever your taste or style is, enjoy and be blessed. Happy weddings everyone! I would love to hear your wedding story. Please feel free to comment.
