You may have noticed that I’ve been a little aloof around here lately, and for good reason. There has been so much going on outside of the blog recently that I wanted to be fully present. It’s hard sometimes to find a balance, and sometimes I end up just neglecting this space for a few days. So thanks for sticking around!

Anyway, here’s a few random updates, in no particular order…

A few weeks ago, I spoke (twice!) at the Downtown Raleigh Home Show. It was completely out of my comfort zone, but I’m so happy I did it. I talked about our home restoration and some tips I have for anyone trying to tackle such a big project. I’ll be sharing more about that a little later, so stay tuned. Before you ask, no I didn’t get to meet the Property Brothers. Womp womp. They were in and out super quick. Luckily there were plenty of these cut outs to give us a sense of celebrity. Ha!

We did meet Candis and Andy from Old Home Love and they were awesome! They are so fun, and totally put my mind at ease before I went to speak. Overall it was an amazing experience, and I learned so much about myself through it. It was also fun to look back through all of those old “before” photos and see how far we’ve come!

I taught my first seminar for the NC Small Business Center network last Thursday. I was a little nervous, but I felt a lot more confident and prepared after the home show. I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Teaching is not something I’ve ever wanted to do, even as a kid. I never wanted to be a teacher when I grew up. But I walked away feeling strangely energized, and I’m so looking forward to doing it again! If you’re in the area and interested in attending a FREE course, here’s my teaching schedule.

If you follow on Instagram, you may have seen that we have a new niece! My brother and his wife welcomed baby Eleanor on February 12th. We are all so in love!

I have recently lost 26 pounds and I’m still going. I don’t usually share things like that around here, but I’m really proud to see that my hard work is paying off. Not sure I’ll be feeling a bikini this summer, but I’m headed in the right direction.

Self employment just gets better and better. There’s not a day that I regret my decision to leave the accounting world and go into business for myself. My job is different every single day, and I’m learning new things all the time. I finished up my taxes last week and felt a huge sense of accomplishment when I saw that my actual earnings far exceeded the forecast I did before going full time. I feel so grateful that I found this job that I love!

One of my clients has asked me to help them design their new store front space, and I am so thrilled with how it’s turning out. Marketing, branding, social media, teaching, event planning, interior design…apparently I’m not painting myself into any one corner! #ineedanap

My dad gave us his old 1980 Jeep CJ5 and we’ve had a ton of fun with it already. It needs a lot of work (like for real…we can’t over 35 mph and it’s already broken down on us once), but Charles is a genius when it comes to cars and I’m sure he’ll have it looking good in no time. And of course, Sully loved his first ride!

We’ve also spent a lot of time lately in our backyard, and have changed around some rooms in the house. It’s been a while since I’ve given a full update on the house, so come back tomorrow and I’ll be sharing lots of new stuff!

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