I told you all I was going to keep you all updated during my sugar detox.

Today SUCKS y’all. Ohmyword.

Conversations with me today went something like this:

Random Co-Worker: “Hey Monica! I have something really important to talk to you about. Blah Blah Blah… <I stop listening> So, what do you think?!”

Me: “Did you say you had donuts?”

Random Co-Worker: “Um, no, I said that <I tune out again here>. You understand?”

Me: “Donut.”

Yeah.

Apparently no carbs makes me delirious, angry, sad, angry, repetitive, angry, and I lost all ability to focus and concentrate on anything.

Donut.

MAKE THIS STOP! I even told my friend today: “I’m so sorry for the words I’ve spoken out of hunger.”

I’m not going to lie—I am damn miserable. Blah. RAWR!

Things I’ve noticed since I’ve stopped eating delicious carbs:

• My head hurts like whoa.
• Everyone is my enemy.
• No one has donuts. EVER.
• This is awful.
• My skin is slightly freaking out…in a bad way.
• I don’t look like Jessica Alba.
• Everything takes an extraordinary amount of effort.
• Coffee tastes awful.
• I just wanna lay down and sob.

Have I mentioned it’s only been like 36 hours? How do people do this for long periods of time? People tell me there will be a puppies, sunshine and rainbows feeling soon, and it cannot come soon enough. Tonight I’m having a drink with one of my dearest pals, and thank goodness she insists on picking me up to show off her new ride. Because honestly, if I have to drive myself anywhere, I’m going straight to the donuts.

Does this get easier? Is this worth it? Why do so many documentaries say wheat/gluten/carbs are poison? Is that true? But isn’t all this meat product equally bad for me? Maybe moderation is OK, and I should stop the madness.

Someone just pass me a freakin’ donut.

The past 36 hours I have had the headache from hell. Like absolutely miserable. No amount of advil is working. Ohmygoshhelp.

So, I decided to make matters worse by doing a sugar detox. Yeah. I apparently want to have a terrible headache and be a cranky person. You’ve been warned everybody! Stay away from Monica.

I’ve been professionally trying to lose weight for, oh, like ever, so it’s always on my darn mind. Lose weight. Lose weight. Lose weight. Oh a donut! Lose weight. Hey, beer time! Lose weight. That’s a glimpse of my psyche right there. Ugh. So this year, I had managed to lose about 17 pounds, and now I’m at only 9 pounds loss, which means…lose weight. Obviously whatever I am doing is just not working, and I think the culprit is carbs. Not all of them, but the refined, delicious ones. Like donuts. Which I love. A lot.

I love donuts so much that I look forward to the fateful day in August when Bath & Body Works releases their cinnamon sugared donut scented candle. Judge away. Even worse, I snag all those suckers up once they go on clearance. I’m literally hoarding one right now in my home office. Maybe I’ll light that and sniff it when I get a donut craving.

{Photo credit}

With great triumphs, comes great sacrifice. And I’m willing to sacrifice refined sugars to see if I feel better. Well, honestly how could I feel worse? For real, y’all. I was on vacay in Houston with my pal last month, and while she was shopping away at most stores, I was sitting on a bench outside the store waiting for her because none of the clothes in there fit me. None. And how pitiful is it to google, “Plus size stores in Houston Galleria?”

The answer: hardly any unless you’re over 60 or want to look like a plus size prostitute. I prefer neither of those, thankyouverymuch!

I’m tired of being the DFF. Designated fat friend. I WANT TO SHOP AT NORMAL STORES! Oh, and yeah, I’m not talking about the plus size section at the JCP at La Palmera Mall—it’s upstairs, in a dark corner, sequestered with the maternity clothes, in the ONE PART of the store that has not been renovated. Oh, oh, and…!!! The fitting rooms are not air conditioned because they want us fluffies to sweat. I know I need to, but maybe not while I’m trying on clothes I haven’t even purchased, mkay, JCP?

But I digress.

I really do think that too many carbs and sugars have led my body to store fat despite my best efforts at calorie counting. This can lead to insulin resistance and diabetes. No thank you. Maybe for the first time in my life, my desire to be healthy is trumping my desire to be thin and shop at normal stores.

Here’s my plan of action for the next week:

• No pasta, bread, sweets, refined sugars, etc.
• I can eat fruit and nuts. And veggies, of course.
• Lean proteins.
• Nothing fried!
• I’m not quitting my diet soda for fear of committing a crime out of anger/hunger, but am limiting myself to 1-2 a day.
• Alcohol in moderation (though I will try to avoid it)
• Water, water, water! With lemon. :)
• I can still use honey/splenda, sparingly.
• Non-fat, unsweetened yogurt is OK.
• I’m reading this book and this book to remind myself that science backs this up.

Nothing crazy. Or at least not to me. Some of the sugar detox plans called for like no fruit, no honey, no caffeine, no artificial sweeteners…Once you start telling me what I can’t have, I obsess over it. I think this one-week trial is enough to get my foot in the door of trying to cut out some of the things I know are just not good for me. And then I can cut some more later. You can view my daily food diary over on MyFitnessPal and feel free to friend me if you’d like.

I’ll be blogging/tweeting about my progress, so if you want to cheer me on, please do so. I really hope this helps my constant headaches, oily skin and acne issues. Plus, I am so tired, cranky, and generally just not the woman I’d like to be because of all this junk in my body. Maybe I do have a gluten issue or am insulin resistant, so this will help no matter how I look at it. Lastly, this gets me started on a semi-paleo/gluten free/low carb lifestyle that I’d like to adopt forever. If you want proof that Paleo/gluten free can be delicious, please visit Juli’s blog: PaleOMG.com. (Thanks @FlamingoToes_ for the rec!)

Tortillas, I will miss thee!

Have you tried to combat a sugar addiction? Any tips, helpful blogs, success stories, or donut recipes that aren’t made with flour/gluten/sugar would be lovely.

My weight loss update is that I have no update. I seriously started off so well, and then I really struggled in March due to bronchitis. Then in April all hell broke loose in some areas of my life, so I was just trying to survive and weather the storm. Now in May, it’s been equally chaotic, and I’m just blessed that by some reason I haven’t gained it all back.

The most weight I had lost was 17 pounds, and right now I’m sitting at 14 pounds lost. In like 5 months.

Ugh that’s awful. I’ve been committed to keeping track of everything I eat, even if it’s unhealthy or over my calories, just to kind of keep myself cognizant of what I’m eating. I think in doing that, I was able to figure out the calories I can eat at to maintain my weight…that in itself is something, right?

And the icing on the cake (that I wish I was eating right now) is that I sprained my ankle not once, but twice in a less than 10 days. Because I’m just that cool. Yeah. And the most recent sprain was last Thursday, and I’m still hobbling around. Fun!

So stress + illness + injury= no weight loss. Ya know, in case you were wondering.

This week, I’ve really tried to get my calories back down to about 1800 calories since I’m not exercising, and by golly, I am trying to drink water. I have so much trouble with water, it’s odd. Bur diet pepsi? Oh boy can I chug those down fairly easy.

I’ve also let my blogging subside for awhile, but I miss it. I have so many in progress projects around the house that I hope to tackle this weekend so I can finally get back into a groove. I feel like in March, April and May, I’ve just let myself get too wrapped up in things that I shouldn’t be bringing home. I have a home, a husband, a life, and I've let recent things affect that.

Well not anymore. I want to be happy, I want to live the life I’ve always wanted to live, and I want to lose weight. In all likelihood, I will not lose the 90 pounds I wanted to lose this year, but hopefully in the months of June-December, I can lose another 30 pounds or so, and I’ll have to continue on this journey next year. And the year after that.

I guess my question to you lovely people is this:

1.) What can I do to still exercise even with a sore/sprained ankle? Besides walking…

2.) How do you balance your work/private life to stay happy?

I’d love your thoughts! I’ll be back soon with some exciting reviews and giveaways.

Love you all oodles.

-Monica

Hi everyone! I’m here to give you all my review of my new Fitbit Zip. Now, I will totally be upfront with you all about 2 things.

1.) I paid for this myself.

2.) I did so much research before buying this damn thing that it is SHAMEFUL.

So about #2… I was debating between a Bodybugg, Fitbit One, and the Fitbit Zip. I pretty much scratched off the Bodybugg from my list really quickly because they require a subscription fee to access all the data, and I found the armband to be rather obnoxious. I didn’t want it to be totally obvious that I was wearing a weight loss/fitness device, especially at work. Not that I am embarrassed, but I just didn’t want the extra attention or looks. No thanks!

Then I started debating between the Fitbit One and the Fitbit Zip. Now, without going into a ton of details, here are the main differences between the 2 devices:

-Price: The Fitbit Zip is about $60 and the Fitbit One is about $100.

-The Fitbit One tracks your sleeping patterns, stairs/floors climbed, and has a vibrating alarm to gently wake you up in the morning.

-Both track your steps, distance traveled, and calories burned.

At first, I was thinking of splurging on the Fitbit One, because hey for $40 I get a bit more data. Then I started thinking that I don’t really climb stairs (none at home or work), and that I don’t really think I would do much with sleep data. To me, my sleep is what it is. I try to get as much as I need, but I have a 99-cent sleep app that really gives me all the information I care to know.

So I finally decided on the Fitbit Zip. The MSRP is about $60, although Amazon has them at about the $50 range. Honestly, I am a total cheap ass because spending money STRESSES ME OUT. Like I seriously will agonize over $4 cosmetics at Walgreens. I guess it’s because I grew up that way, and I am still that way now. I call it thrifty.

Yeah. $50. Ugh. I waited.

I was at Target on my birthday, and I saw that they had the blue Fitbit Zip for $35…but they were all sold out. I checked my Target app, and sure enough both Targets we frequent were sold out. Curses.

Not one to be deterred, I checked the Target app again about a week later when we were in another city and BAM! They had 2. I snagged one up, and now I’ve had this little guy for almost 2 weeks.

Here’s what I love:

• It’s made me walk more. I used to avoid getting up at work to go do mundane tasks, and now I actively look for opportunities to get more steps in. Same thing at home. If I forgot something in another room, I am eager to get up and get it. It’s weird how a little device can make me want to work harder. It is really hard to get 10,000 steps a day on days I don’t exercise. I am lucky if I hit 5K. Hmph.
• I feel it’s accurate. I truly do. I don’t think it’s giving me extra steps or anything.
• The calories burned information is so valuable! I’ve been struggling with weight loss lately, so it’s nice to be able to look at data and develop a game plan. Looking at a week’s worth of data, I see I burn about 2100-2500 calories a day. This helped me come up with my daily calorie goal to help me lose 1 to 1.5 pounds a week. Before my Fitbit, I was relying on internet calculators to help me determine that.
• I clip it onto my bra in the morning, and I don’t think about it until I shower or change for bed. The little clip is super snug, so I am not at all worried about losing it. If you’re a guy, you can clip it to your waist band/belt.
• I can check my stats by either looking at my Fitbit screen or just checking my iPhone 4S. It uses bluetooth technology to sync with my iPhone so I can see if I need to get up and be more active, etc. HOWEVER, the Fitbit Zip can only do this with iPhone 4S and 5 (don’t know about Android phones, sorry!) because it requires some sort of fancy new bluetooth technology. It does come with a bluetooth dongle to be able to sync wirelessly using a computer. :)
• No need to remember to charge it; it uses a replaceable watch battery that has to be replaced every 6 months or so.
• No fancy subscription required.
• Totally syncs with MyFitness Pal flawlessly!

Here’s what I don’t love:

• Not waterproof! Not that I swim,  but if I accidentally leave this on a bra and throw it in the wash…bye, bye Fitbit Zip!
• Not backlit. If I want to check my stats in the dark (without my iPhone), it’s nearly impossible.

That’s pretty much it. I absolutely love this little gadget, and I think it would totally be worth the $50-$60. Will the novelty wear off? Hhmm. Maybe. I don’t know, I’m pretty determined to lose 100 pounds and have like 87 to go, so I think this will be a fun way to stay motivated and beat my previous weeks, etc. On the Fitbit website you can create a profile and add friends and such so you can get uber competitive if you want. Here’s the link to my Fitbit profile if you want to friend me.

I read some reviews that called this a fancy pedometer, and I would disagree. If you really drill down into the data and features, it’s truly a valuable health tool. You don’t even have to want to lose weight to find the data useful.

I guess the other bad thing is that now I really want the Fitbit Aria scale so I can really over analyze all the data!

If you have any questions, leave them in the comments or email me at monicawantsit@gmail.com :)

Would you want a Fitbit Zip?

Hi everyone! It’s been awhile since I updated my blog, and it’s been purposeful for the most part.

This month has been crazy, but I’ve so missed writing to you all. Today I’m here to give an update on my 8-week weight loss journey.

Since January 1, 2013 (8-weeks ago), I’ve lost 13.2 pounds. That equates to about 1.65 pounds per week, which is pretty darn fantastic. In my ideal world, I would have lost 10 pounds a week and be DONE, but alas, that is now how weight loss works.

Picture: Taken 2/1/13, my first day of Turbo Fire.

I’ve been counting calories on My Fitness Pal, which is by far my most favorite and FREE way to lose weight. Feel free to friend me on there, I don’t bite.

It blows my mind that My Fitness Pal is so amazing and costs me zero money. The first 4 weeks of my weight loss, I lost about 10.2 pounds with Turbo Jam doing the advanced rotation. In February, I switched to Turbo Fire and have only lost 3 pounds. Turbo Fire is essentially Turbo Jam on crack. I’ll do more in-depth reviews of both in an upcoming post.

I never thought I’d be able to do Turbo Fire, and it’s quickly become my most favorite workout of all time. It’s so fast-paced and you never do anything for a super long time, so it moves by so quickly. Yet my weight loss has totally slowed down since I switched programs. I’d like to say I’ve kept measurements, but alas, I have not. I suck at taking measurements because I half-way suck it in, or I don’t know if I should measure between rolls or above rolls.

Complicated, I tell ya.

I did take before and after pics, and I don’t see a huge difference yet. Hmph.

As soon as I am done with this blog post, I am going to take measurements just for my sanity. My pants feel a little looser every week. It’s funny because before I started on my weight loss journey (for the 1.8 billionth time), I was like squeezing into my pants. Like, shimmying them over the hips, laying down, sucking it in, doing squats to make those suckers fit. Now, straight out of the dryer, they fit loose. Progress!

However, I am fairly certain my weight loss may go faster if I totally gave everything I had with my eating habits, but I told myself I wouldn’t force myself to be a saint knowing very well that it wouldn’t be something I could do forever. I still eat out. I still drink. I still eat sugar and carbs. But I do eat less of those things I love. I cut my restaurant portions in half. I have switched from margaritas with salt over to beer with lime. A donut is a once-every-2-weeks treat rather than a 2-3 times a week occurrence. Moderation is the name of my game. I also don’t eat 1200 calories a day…I eat closer to 1700-2000. I know if I cut out all those things, I probably would have lost more weight by now. But I’d also be very grumpy and ready to cave at any second.

So, 13.2 pounds down, about another 85-90 pounds to go. This is going to take awhile, and maybe that is the most discouraging part on any given day. The fact that although 8 weeks have passed, I probably have another 60, 70 or 80 weeks until I reach my goal. But if I stop now, eventually that time will pass, and then I’d have to start over again.

I’m not going to let that happen. I look forward to week-9 because it brings me my 28th birthday next Friday, March 8. One of my 30 before 30 goals is to finally be at a healthy weight. I think I’m going to get there this time.

Hope you’ll stick along with me on these pages for the ride.

The next few posts will be about some awesome fitness headbands (see photo below), a cool desk I made, and maybe I’ll finally finish the damn master bedroom makeover and take photos.

Progress.

Picture: Taken 2/20/13, after 20 days of Turbo Fire.

I’m one of those people who says happy holidays. I don’t want to offend anyone or exclude anyone’s beliefs or holiday celebrations…

^Me, Christmas 2004. Much younger, carefree and totally oblivious to how lucky I was to be young and carefree. Youth is wasted on the young!

So, happy holidays and a Merry Christmas to all of you wonderful, lovely, kick-ass readers of this little blog o’ mine.

I know the posts have been scarce, and the projects few, around here lately. It’s somewhat because of lack of time and also because it’s just a hectic time of year.

I remember starting this blog back in 2009, right before my wedding, and hardly anyone read it.

Still much of the same now, it feels, but the analytics show you all are reading. Well, 99.99% of people are reading the espresso DIY cabinet post, but I hope you all are intrigued enough to click around.

Now, 3 years later, it’s odd to know family and friends also read these pages, and I guess it’s left me feeling a bit censored. That leaves me a bit uninspired sometimes because I may come off as very vanilla, when I’m in fact not. I hate the weird looks after a rant or the judgment/guilt after admitting something one feels. I feel ashamed of some of my weight related posts because I’ll write one, and the very next evening invite a girlfriend out to go gorge on beer and nachos with me at the local watering hole. A total contradiction. I know this.

So I’ve been feeling censored, and therefore just a smidge uninspired to come home and lay it all out there on the blog like the good ole days. I’m in a funk of sorts, and the scale shows it. This morning the scale read the highest weight I have EVER been. Ever. EVER. EVER. It may as well have just read WTF so I could just know that my scale was like, “PLEASE STOP EATING OUT!”

I get the memo, Mr. Scale. Got it.

I put myself here, or actually probably Chili’s did because everything on their menu is loaded with sodium, and I gain 5 pounds for a week every time I eat there. I’m not eating there ever again, sorry friends.

But, the scale is a direct representation of how my life is going, I think. The more out of control I feel, the more I eat. WHY CAN I NOT BE HEALTHY!?!?! I’m just going to say it…I want to look good naked for once in my life. Not even for my husband, but for me. Yeah, me. I want to not be repulsed by myself. I can’t be alone in this feeling, right ladies?

I am sad. Why? I don’t know. I am so blessed. My husband just got a promotion, my dog is fantastic, my friends are amazing, family is healthy…why am I not happy? Isn’t this what everyone wants in life?

Yes.

No.

Maybe?

Sigh.

I’m unhappy, and I’m fat. Fat and unhappy. My weight gain leads me to avoid family like the plague, I avoid friends from back home who haven’t seen me since oh…60 pounds ago? See ya in 2014, friends!

I’m rambling, it’s not making sense, and I just want to figure out why I am so damn unhappy and in a funk. Stressed, beyond the normal stress level for a 27 year old woman with no kids. My stress is through the roof.

Why am I unhappy? It can’t just be my size/weight. Maybe it can. Can I really be so vain that this all has to do with my looks? Can it?

I want to be happy this holiday season. I truly love Christmas despite the sadness that surrounds it. You see, it’s the 6th anniversary of my granny’s death on Christmas Eve, and the 12th anniversary of my dad’s death on Christmas Day. Tough cards to be dealt, eh? Yeah, I know it. Still…in the bottom of my in-a-funk heart, I know they want me to be happy. Truly happy. Everyday I’m alive.

And so I will be.

Merry Christmas, and/or happy holidays from me to you.

Love,

Monica

P.S.: I promise more projects are coming. :) Thanks for always being here for me, y’all.

I’ve tried it all when it comes to exercise DVD’s. From the age of 16 or so (when I started working at the Target 1-hour photo lab), I bought into the latest exercise crazes. If it had an infomercial, even better.

Winsor Pilates? Check. Hated it. Sold it on eBay.

Original Zumba on VHS? Loved it. Til VCR’s became extinct.

Carmen Electra’s Striptease Workout? Liked it. Til I got bored. Sold it on eBay.

Turbo Jam? Loved it, was too cheap, burned copies from a friend. Still love it.

Richard Simmons Sweatin to the Oldies? Adore. Still have them.

The Shred? Loved/hated/despised it. Sold it on eBay.

See? I’ve done it all. Now that I have to ahem, budget, I don’t go nuts and buy too many of those gimmicky kinds of things. I tend to only buy DVD’s that I can do and that will be fun. No need to torture myself doing something like P90X. No offense to those of you who love them and think they’re fun—it’s just not my style of workout.

Honestly, when I workout I like to pretend I am a backup dancer for Britney Spears. And I have to be DAMN NEAR PERFECT, because by golly, I am dancing behind Britney effing Spears.

I can’t be the only one. You don’t pretend you’re a pop star back-up dancer when you workout?

You should.

Image Credit: Amazon

While working out to the Jazzercise: Burlesque DVD. First of all, the workout has songs 90% of us will recognize. It has 2 Britney songs (“3” and “Slave For You”), 2 Pussycat Dolls (“Dontcha” and “Wait a Minute”) songs, a song from the movie Burlesque, a song by JLO (“On the Floor”), one by Beyonce (“Girls”)and a song that sounds like it maybe could be by Marc Anthony. Don’t hold me to that. It’s Latin-ish, not by Pitbull, so Marc Anthony is a safe bet.

As someone who has done Jazzercise before, I adore the format of their classes. They stay true to that in this workout DVD. The warm-up and stretch part lasts a good 6 minutes or so, unlike other workout regiments I do where they’re like “shake your hips, clap twice, now let’s hurt ourselves by jumping around like crazy people!”

None of that here folks. After about 6 minutes, you go into the JLO “On the Floor” routine, and it’s challenging. I’ll be 100% forthcoming in admitting if it involves jumps, I am NOT doing it. A year ago I landed in physical therapy due to Zumba classes, so I do not want to go down that road again. While they’re jumping, I march in place or shake my ass.

Also, minutes 6-20 are the absolute hardest. You will be huffing and puffing, but you’ll also be having FUN. The moves are fun, and you don’t feel dorky. The moves are a bit sexy and don’t require you to be a proficient dancer. Again, just to be real with you all, I am the type that picks up on dance workouts very quickly, but for someone who doesn’t it might take 1-2 workouts to get in the groove. As long as you’re moving, don’t sweat it.

After you finish the super hard part (minutes 6-20) you do a few more dances until about minute 30 when it switches to Beyonce. It’s a standing ab workout that I find to be effective and not torture. The next toning song is Britney “3” and it’s toning for legs. I do about 1/2 of this one—anytime there’s lunges I lightly march/jog in place. I’m not willing to hurt my knee over a $15 DVD. Toning lasts from about minute 30 until 40. Then the last song comes in and you cool down and stretch.

Super fun, not super easy. This workout is great for those who find working out to be a chore, are overweight, don’t like dancing in public, but are willing to shake what their momma gave them…in the privacy of their own home.

I hope this review helps someone who has been wanting to workout, but dreads doing a super “serious” DVD and wants something that feels like a night of clubbing with friends.

If all else fails, I swear that pretending you’re a back-up dancer for your favorite pop star is a good way to have fun and dream a little.

What workout DVD’s do you love?

You all know my struggles, and boy do I struggle, with weight loss.

The last time I wrote about it, I then committed to about 4 weeks of counting points and doing well, but without exercising at all. Then, I went out-of-town to see my mom, decided to splurge, fell off the bandwagon and have been half assing it since then.

So, I lost 5 pounds, gained them back, and here I am, oh about 6-8 weeks later?

And let’s rinse and repeat because, hey, it’ll probably happen again!

And again.

Dear God why is this so hard?

I know a lot of people say that fat people are fat because they are lazy. Then fat people get all upset because they have a thyroid issue or some medical attention or are big boned or whatever…

Personally, I’m coming to terms with the fact I am fat because I AM lazy. I know, sounds harsh, but truth hurts. And it hurts to be fat.

Big time.

Pun intended.

I want to lose weight, look like a JLO/Jessica Alba hybrid and still eat what I want and sit on my ass watching my TV shows every night in my super huge night shirt that hides every ounce of fat.

Wow, I sound pretty pathetic now that I said that out loud.

But it’s true. So. I know I’m not alone. Perhaps you’re feeling this way, too. I guess what I need to think about during these moments is that being lazy and overweight not only leads me to be unhealthy, but it leads me to be unhappy. Since I’ve put on all this weight since my wedding (like a ton…it’s awful…omg…), I now don’t go to the mall to shop for clothes. I go to the mall and stick to buying pretty shoes, handbags and jewelry or stocking up on stuff that smells like donuts at Bath & Body Works. You know, stuff that doesn’t revolve around getting my thunder thighs into the latest trendy, cute clothes. With the exception of plus size stores, I can’t really buy any clothes at the mall.

And that is sad. I miss the days of being able to fit into clothes at New York & Company or Anne Klein or White House Black Market. Now I shamefully do the walk to the “woman’s” section of the department store or I try to be blissfully oblivious and shop from home to avoid seeing my rolls magnified in a 3-way mirror under harsh lighting and dressing rooms that smell like armpits and pee. Oh, oh, and I also hate to see the “W” behind my size. It’s bad enough it’s a LARGE number, do we hafta add a W for like “WIDE ASS” after it? I mean, gosh.

BUT, rather than give up, I somehow never lose sight of what I want. I want to be healthy. I want to be thin. I want to shop in normal stores again.

I want to feel better about myself.

So, I’m devising a weight loss plan for lazy people, like myself.

I do so much sitting around at home in the evenings from about 6-11 pm, so part of my lazy people weight loss plan involves scheduling stuff in the evenings so I am more productive and more active.

4 times a week, from 6:30-7:30 pm, I will engage in some form of exercise. At 6:30, I will stop what I am doing, change into workout clothes and MOVE. Then from 7:30-8, I will shower and all that jazz. From 8-9 pm I will work on blog posts, with original content, so I can actually try to get in the habit of posting regularly instead of sporadically. Then from 9-9:30, I will do stuff around the house in order to not have to spend all my weekend doing housework. Then from 9:30 until bedtime, I will watch TV or troll online, etc.

Just 4 evenings a week. The other evening I can use to catch up on my DVR or do grocery shopping, menu planning, etc.

On weekends, I have to exercise on Saturday or Sunday.

And as far as eating goes, I get off track when I don’t plan, or when I allow myself to totally splurge. Oh and when I go out drinking. This means I have to think ahead and plan, plan, plan. I will stick to what has always worked for me…the old school Weight Watchers flex points plan.

Will this work? Who knows.

There has to be a way for lazy people to lose weight. If only desire produced results.

But speaking of shopping, there is a new line of clothes I am in love with (especially for work!) that I will be writing about tomorrow. I know it’s so hard to be plus size and confident, so I am excited to write about some of the stuff I’ve bought from this fab brand/store.

What do you do when you have no energy to focus, workout and lose weight, but tons of desire to?

I’ve been asked to write about my “dream” today. Am I living it? Is it all I thought it would be? Quite honestly, it’s something I’ve been thinking of even before getting the opportunity to write about it. Sometimes I feel like an old soul because I am only 27, and sometimes I get stuck into a mentality of thinking, “Is this it? Is this what my life will be like forever? Will I really make in the low $30Ks ALL MY LIFE?!”

So every once in awhile, it’s good to dream. Big or small, it’s necessary to strive for something better in order to keep improving and working hard. That’s the attitude I approach my career in because sometimes I feel stressed and like I will never get to advance or earn more money, but I know that by working hard and improving my skills, the dreams I have will hopefully come true.

My dreams as I am approaching 30 revolve around being able to afford to travel, being able to afford to pay off my student loans and being able to afford that new SUV I’ve been lusting after for 3 years now. I thought it would happen this year at Christmas, and like some of my dreams, they’re just not going to happen right when I hoped they would.

But they will happen someday.

And then there are those fun dreams that will likely never come true like hopefully getting to meet celebrities I adore (Jennifer Lopez, I’m talking to you!), or winning an HGTV home makeover or simply fitting in a single digit jeans size. Oh, and winning the lottery, of course. Those are fun dreams— Harmless, fun, and great conversation starters.

For me, dreams keep me going even when I don’t feel like I can push myself anymore. Dreams keep me inspired. Dreams give me hope for something better.

As of today, I continue working away at my dreams, big and small, by staying positive, helping others and relishing in the dreams that do come true. And I get to chronicle some of them here on these very pages you’re reading.

I’d really love to thank LATISM for selecting me for this opportunity in partnership with Verizon Wireless. I know you’re probably thinking, “What does Verizon have to do with making dreams come true?” Well, in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, Verizon Wireless is hosting an exciting sweepstakes to win a day with celebrities that inspire Latinos to keep thinking BIG and keep working towards careers that fulfill their dreams.

And who doesn’t need a little reminder to dream BIG for our careers? When I get in a slump at work, I remind myself that every day that I work hard leads to better career opportunities and prosperity down the line.

From NOW until October 15, enter to win the Día de tus Sueños (Day of your Dreams) Sweepstakes at www.verizoninsider.com/dreamday and you might get a dream-come-true experience! Adding to the excitement, is can be a little easier to get closer to your goals with the additional cash prize of $1,000 and a Verizon Wireless 4G Tablet to help record your thoughts and plans through a video diary.

Are you following your dream? Go to www.verizoninsider.com/dreamday and take a step closer to your dream.

Check www.verizoninsider.com/dreamday for complete rules including eligible zip codes. Prize package includes bringing a friend for the experience – so go enter right now! I just checked who the celebrities are for the Texas/South region—I would love to meet Helio Castroneves. He was on Dancing with the Stars, and he was so fabulous that he won! And that accent…swoon.

I am dreaming right now… And it’s a simple dream involving a salted caramel mocha frappucino and some glitter to craft with. And I promise I have some great tutorials/recipes coming up in the next week or 2.

What are you dreaming of?

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post that I was selected for by LATISM. All dreams, opinions and stories are all my own.

Me, 70 pounds ago, at my bridal shower in 2009.

Sometimes I feel like the hardest part of weight loss is waiting. And waiting.

You get started, and you feel like you’re constantly waiting until your next snack or meal. (Hell, I am at this very MOMENT.)

You wait to step on that scale to see if your success will be reflected with a number. (Don’t- also take measurements!)

You wait for weekly weigh-ins to turn into monthly losses that will lead to visible changes that you can see, and hopefully others, too.

You wait to see that magical goal number on the scale at the end of months, possibly years, of hard work.

Well, no wonder most of us fail. We’ve been conditioned to get instant gratification. To want it. To need it.

This might explain why I fork out money for Amazon Prime. I want my stuff in 2-days, gosh darn it.

I’ve also learned after trying for a DECADE now to get to my goal weight (shameful, I know), is that if you try to rush the process, it just doesn’t work out in the long term.

I think a turning point for me wanting to buckle down for the umpteenth time is BlogHer 2012. Sure I chose not to go because the flights were very expensive for me, and because I do have a new job, but the main reason I chose not to go to BlogHer 2012 is because of my weight.

And it’s taking me so much courage to put it out there, but I hope others can relate. Last year at BlogHer I was about 30 pounds lighter. BlogHer is the type of place you have to feel confident at or else you’ll just kind of get lost in the midst of swag and bloggers.

As I did last year. I left San Diego having had a fun time with those I hung out with, came home with cool swag, but I didn’t really accomplish anything in terms of my blog. I didn’t gain readers, sponsors or fans. I got to giveaway some Riceworks coupons and some coffee creamer coupons.

Nothing glamorous mostly because I lacked the confidence to go up to companies and sell myself.

I saw plenty of bloggers that were larger than I was, rocking their sleeveless shirts and showing armpit and talking to companies. Now they have HUGE blogs with great connections, and I am just kind of at slightly a higher level than last year.

So, one Saturday morning in June, I decided to just not go. Just like that. I sold my ticket, transferred my hotel room, and decided I just couldn’t do it. Why spend all that time and money when I knew I felt even worse about myself than I did last year?

And something else.

I hate being the fat girl in the group of pretty girlfriends at these things. You all know what I mean, right? It’s like your friends like you and all, and you’re super funny and witty, but when it comes time to take cute Instagram photos to post on their FB wall, you’re not in them because you’re the DFF (designated fat friend). I felt like that a few times at conferences/events this year, and let me tell ya, it sucks. I realize I am not a gorgeous, svelte, flawless girl, and honestly I don’t want to be in any photos unless I have to be…but…it’s hard. We don’t want to feel less than.

And so I’m not going to BlogHer because I am fatter than I was last year, and because it’s expensive and I have a new job.

I’m 27 now, and have been fighting this battle for a decade, and I just want to achieve my goals. Weight goals, career goals, blog goals. I want confidence in myself, yet can’t ever really summon up some.

Monica Wants It.

But I just have to wait.

Sorry for the lack of updates y’all…I’m so sorry.

With my new job (yay! I’m PR pro) and the long hours (during the summer we work from 7:30-5:30 and it leaves me exhausted when I come home…) I’ve been neglecting my blog for the past week just to kind of be. Just exist for a moment. But I am so excited that my very first press releases are up on our local newspaper website and in the paper. I’ve finally landed a job in the field I’ve loved all my life. Oh I am blessed.

 

I’ve also been thinking a lot about what I want my blog to be about or focus on. I can’t quite figure it out. I mean, it’s a lifestyle blog, so I blog about things that are going on in my life and lifestyle kind of topics, but I don’t feel like I am consistent. So. I’ve figured it out, I think.

I like to write things that allow me to share knowledge with you all. I like to write about things you may find useful and that are affordable. I like to write about my weight loss struggles because I know you all “get it.” That is major to me. I hope when you land on my pages you will learn, empathize/sympathize and feel inspired in some way.

This leads me to narrow it done to a few key topics I love:

-DIY (home, décor, crafts, etc.)

-Recipes

-Weight Loss/Fitness

-Product reviews (about stuff I really do USE and like…or stuff I really do use and HATE- I’m looking at you Rustoleum cabinet kit).

I know some people have asked why I do so many Collective Bias posts, and to be perfectly honest, I do enjoy writing them. I love Collective Bias/Social Fabric very much. I get to go out and buy products I’d likely be buying anyway. And yes, there is some compensation, not a ton, but mostly because I like the product/company that I get to write about AND I am doing it as a way to earn money to go BlogHer 12. I desperately want to make it happen, and the sponsored posts help get me there a little bit at a time. I know I may judged for that, but I never take an opportunity I don’t believe in or agree with, and I do always post my honest opinions regardless of whether or not I am getting paid. And I do not accept any paid ads on my sidebar, so if it’s posted up there, it’s by my choice/support for that company/blogger.

Just wanted to throw that out there.

But I will be back with a vengeance next week. I really want to post about 2-3 times a week, excluding any sponsored posts. I mean original content, made by yours truly.

I did revamp my menu bar to make it a bit easier to find blogs by topic. And if you notice, the Etsy part is gone because I am on an Etsy-cation. It may be permanent, but I haven’t made up my mind just yet. :)

So enough of my babble…what do you want from my blog? Why do you come here? What do you expect to see?

And boy do I need to write about some fab beauty products I bought at Sephora recently. Swoon.

As many of you know, mine and Daniel’s 3rd wedding anniversary was this past week. Being married for 3 years has flown by just as quickly as being together for nearly 9 years has. I will say that the beginning of our relationship, like many, is always the most fun. It’s new, it’s exciting, and it’s fantastic.

Now, we’re sort of comfortable with one another. This sometimes means that we can be mean, ungrateful and generally just not all that lovey-dovey to one another. We take each other for granted sometimes…

And it’s not what I would want my marriage to be. I don’t want to be that crazy wife that is always nagging, and I don’t want Daniel to be that oblivious, apathetic husband that they portray all too well on most TV shows.

Photo credit: Amazon.com

I was asked to read “Attracting Your Extraordinary Love” by Ricky Cohen, and I really did enjoy the overall message of the book. Although I am not trying to attract anyone other than my husband nowadays, the book helped me focus on our relationship. Lately I have been snippy and angry and bossy and that’s not good for us.

I let all the small things and nuisances of our hectic lives affect our relationship. I try to get Daniel to act certain ways. I am angry about something that has nothing to do with him and take it out on him.

Cohen’s book didn’t read like a how-to manual, nor does it promise to fix everything, but it reads more like a stream of consciousness. Prose, even. Little tidbits of thoughts and information for the reader to mull over and apply as needed or desired. The only slight issue I had with it was it did have a bit of religious stuff in it, which is just not my thing. But a minor caveat to an otherwise good book.

My favorite line in the book is this:

“Love him or her for how each can love you, rather than how you would like to be loved.”

Personally, I took that as let Daniel be who he is. Sometimes we expect things of our significant other that wouldn’t be natural to them as individuals.

The book was a very quick read on my iPad thanks to buying it from Amazon and reading it in my Kindle app. It wasn’t condescending, and it will definitely make you think a little, if not feel a little differently about your spouse or loved one. Overall, it didn’t feel like I was reading a self-help book with 10 steps that I needed to do or else.

So, with some new thoughts in my head, Daniel and I headed out for a fun date day. We got up early for breakfast, went and shopped at Walmart, got excited when we saved 20% on our groceries using coupons. Then we came home and watched TV, had dinner, went to a graduation, then went out for a movie night. It was fun to chronicle our day through some Instagram photos. Gotta love technology.

It was a gorgeous day to enjoy great company and conversation.

We both love to have drinks, so we were excited to find a light beverage both of us could enjoy. Both of us had one last night and thought it was tasty. See? Shopping trips to Walmart can be fun.

Some tasty food at Dog & Bee. Though it’s not good for our bank account and waistlines, we enjoy eating out on date nights. Makes it feel a bit more fancy and special.

During our date night we made time to support our best friend’s daughter at her Kindergarten graduation. Part of having a strong relationship is to be good to friends and family.

Here’s a picture of us before heading to the movies. I love this pic!

And during the pre-show at the movies we have fun chatting about our day. The movie we ended up watching is “What to Expect When You’re Expecting,” and it was such a cute movie. We give it a solid 4 out of 5 stars.

Overall, I think the book helped me work on myself, which will in turn mean less fights and nagging. I hope. He hopes. Our weekly Friday date nights help us have fun and remember why we picked one another to be with forever more.

Also, I created a board on Pinterest with some fun ideas, tips and quotes for date nights/relationships.

What sorts of tips do you have for keeping a marriage strong and fresh when it starts to feel a bit stagnant?

We love to laugh.

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias

A week ago I was in Orlando with my darling husband. We were likely sipping on butter beer inside the Wizarding World of Harry Potter... and trying to put out of our heads how much we were paying for said butter beer.

It's essentially magical cream soda. As in, I think it may have something illegal in it causing it to cost $3+ per cup. Hey, that's still cheaper than Starbucks, isn't it?

And while we were in Florida a mere week ago, 3 years ago today we got married. We pledged to be with each other forever. And everyday I am blessed that he hasn't come to the realization that he committed to be with my crazy self forevermore.

Poor guy.

But for now I am going to leave you with some pictures from our vacation, and I promise to have a full review of our vacay soon. I am thinking of maybe a top 10 things I learned at Universal Studios kinda thing? We did our vacation on the cheap and want to spread our frugal travel skills to all of you wonderful people. Anything you'd like to know?

Happy anniversary, my dear Daniel. I love you more today than I did yesterday and I will love you more tomorrow than I did today.

Unless you forget to give me a card.

Then, all bets are off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I swear I am not naked in the above photo.

I got my dream job! Woo!

You see, ever since I’ve been a little girl, I’ve wanted to be a journalist. The exact moment this happened was when I was watching a white bronco speeding down a highway and the reporter was very quickly trying to inform me of what was happening. I then proceeded to turn to my mom and say the following:

“I want to do that!”

And I am sure my mom said a quick, silent prayer that I wasn’t talking about being like OJ Simpson.

What I was talking about was the TV reporter. I was enthralled. And ever since then I’ve been the weirdo who petitioned to start a newsletter at my elementary school when I was in 4th grade. It went kaput after I put in a couples section. A tad inappropriate, I suppose, but everyone wanted to know who was “going around”, so by golly…

I was going to tell them.

Then I moved onto junior high where I was on the yearbook staff and a prolific writer.

Then in high school I did an independent study mentorship where I got to be fully immersed in my dream career AND I helped start our very own broadcast TV network/announcement show for the whole school. We called it HBCN.

It was heaven.

In college, I was bestowed with the honor of getting into one of the top broadcast journalism schools in the nation. I excelled in all my courses. I had knack for writing for radio, and my professors always sung my praises.

I loved it, I was good at it. The story I am most proud of is a kick-ass radio story I did on frisky fitness pole dancing courses. It is fabulous.

My senior year of college I started looking for jobs…oh my lord. Entry level reporting jobs were paying $18K a year. That’s how much I would make without a college degree working at Subway. Insanity.

Dreams had to give way to being a college graduate with bills to pay. Loans, car, etc. It was a huge reality check, and I just had to come to the realization that I couldn’t afford to be a journalist.

That was all back in 2006. Since then I’ve worked for 2 grant programs and presently work as a financial aid advisor for a community college. Essentially, I’ve been in education for about 5-6 years or so, but always found a way to use my skill set. You gotta stay sharp, ya know?

Finally a position opened up where I currently work, and I felt a spark. A spark I only feel during Kate Spade sample sales, visits to Home Goods and lunches at Cheesecake Factory. That spark that makes you feel alive. Meaningful. Hopeful.

Happy.

And I got it! Working hard these past 6 years has finally led me to my big break into a field that is closely related to journalism…

Public relations. I am officially the new Public Relations Officer.

I get to make newsletters, write press releases, plan events and overall do what I love to do every single day. And get paid.

Will everyday be puppies and rainbows?

Of course not.

But for now, I am simply thrilled to finally get a pay off to all my hard work. I look happy in the photo below at my college graduation in 2006, but I was a scared 21 year old girl who didn’t feel she’d ever really have a career she would love.

Maybe dreams really do come true.

And last but not least…

I really do think OJ Simpson did it.

This past weekend, my best friend Candy and her daughter Caylee came over to partake in egg dyeing. While it was my first time EVER dyeing eggs, it’s something that Candy and Caylee do every year. I know, can you believe I’ve never dyed an egg? I apparently live under a rock. A rock without Paas dye.

Caylee adores me, so she was super excited to help me dye my very first batch of eggs.

Isn’t she adorable? Yes, yes she is.

We got all the stuff prepared, and honestly, I didn’t know this project required so much vinegar. And honestly, my house majorly smelled like farts for a few hours afterwards. I imagine its what a house full of teenage boys would smell like. Perhaps?

The dye gets all fizzy and the colors are so bright and gorgeous. This project also requires lots of cups…

Candy used the time to bond with her daughter as well as chat with me about the Fifty Shades of Grey book/novel that I had already given up on. I got bored, but she got me intrigued enough to keep reading it. We decided that Zac Efron would make a fabulous Christian Grey. It’d also help us forget he was ever in those High School Musical movies. We also decided that we had no clue how on earth it could get away with a rated R rating unless they took out 70% of the book. But I digress.

Minutes later, we had a bunch of bright eggs. It almost seemed kind of magical. How does a little dye tab the size of a Sweet-Tart + 3 tbsp of vinegar= bright eggs.

We also used a tie-dye egg kit with GLITTER. It was heaven. Lots and lots of glitter everywhere. And the best part? You can make really gorgeous eggs. Look at this one that Caylee made. Love.

Mommy and daughter look happy. :-)

It may seem like this whole egg dyeing thing was just an activity. But really, it meant so much more than that to me. I am blessed to have a best friend who wants me to partake in traditions and projects that I never got to do. It means a lot that Candy made it a point to ensure I got to stain my hands a variety of colors and smell a plethora of farts all at once. Even sweeter than that is watching Candy with her daughter. I am the friend that gets to tag along with them a lot, and it often makes me wonder if I truly don’t want children like I always tell people. I’d like to do this sort of thing with my daughter someday. I’d like to have memories that are sweet, innocent and precious. I am sure my mother has those of me, and well… it just makes me wonder.

Do I or don’t I want one of these beautiful little girls to call my own someday?

And then the very next day I went over to my in-laws for Easter lunch. My 2.5 year old nephew was present and in a sour mood. He was just tired and whiny. I kept wanting to take a photo of him and he said, “NO!” Oh goodness. I gave up. Eventually, he got totally fed up with everything and let out a tantrum that I miraculously caught using Instagram.

And now I am more confused than ever. Sigh.

• Do you have any fun/meaningful traditions that you built with your friends? Did you ever not want children and change your mind?

It really is. And honestly, the past 3 years have been me yo-yoing up-and-down, and I am so up right now that I can’t even see the floor where I started from.

I think I’m doing this all wrong. I feel like I’ve tried everything. Count calories/points. Do low fat/low calorie. Cut out carbs/sugar. I just cannot seem to find something I can stick to unlike the fat that has no problem situating itself on my mid-section.

And I’ll be honest: I want to lose weight to look good. Plain and simple. But they say to be successful at something, you must want the end result more than the immediate satisfaction. Much like saving money for a vacation. It is much easier to go out to eat every night than it is to eat at home everyday and eventually go on a vacation.

It is also said that you should never give up something that you cannot go a day without thinking about. Granted, you have to follow the cliché in a logical manner. If you can’t go a day without thinking about possibly winning the lottery…you should probably get a new hobby and stop wasting money on lottery tickets.

Right?

So, for over 27 years now, I’ve wanted to be thin.

I sit here, 27 years old, at the highest weight I have ever been. I’m fatter than I was 30 pounds ago when I thought I was really fat. OMG.

Last week I was at the mall getting my wedding rings inspected for this dumb warranty thing I have. Sad to say, I didn’t even wear the wedding rings into the jewelry store. In fact, I haven’t worn my wedding rings in months. Not because I am going through some turmoil in my marriage, but because it’s that I have gained so much weight that to wear my wedding rings is impossible unless I want them to have to be cut off.

Wow.

While chatting it up with the lady at Gordon’s Jewelers, I joked that I gained the weight due to marriage and that eventually I’d be back to have them sized back down again.

And she laughed.

Hysterically.

I need to prove her wrong. I cannot go to BlogHer 2012 and be about 25 pounds fatter than I was at BlogHer 2011. I’d sooner just not go. I want to at least break even by then. I want to feel good about myself and not dread family functions due to my weight. I want to not avoid my childhood best friend because I’m so much larger than I was last time I saw her. Insanity.

But how?

I have a fabulous list of excuses, but none of them really get down to the root of why I am so unsuccessful at losing weight and maintaining it.

Oh lord. Maybe I am just lazy.

But maybe, just maybe, I’d really love to be this cute, thinner, happier lady again.

Man I had great hair back then. And no rolls. Sigh.

Oh thin Monica, how I miss thee.

Words cannot express how extremely grateful I am to get to go to Hispanicize in Miami next week. Mostly because I really hadn’t planned on going, but it appears that I was meant to go because everything fell into place.

With that being said, I must cue the song that I have been indulging in ever since I found I was going for sure last Friday:

Don’t judge.

This will be my second blogging conference, and as a blogger, of course I feel the need to write about it. Today’s post is all about tips for people attending Hispanicize/blogging conferences. Also included is what I am most excited about and what I am most nervous about. And then I get all mushy and thank people at the end. Sound like a plan?

My top 3 tips for people attending Hispanicize. Now I am not going to go into obvious things like pack comfortable shoes, rest, eat, sleep, etc. Those are a given. I’m going to tell you 3 things that I wish someone would have really hammered into my head before I went to BlogHer last year.

1.) I was at a training for work recently, and the speaker said something that really resonated with me: “You can only be known by what others know about you” How this relates to blogging is that you have to let people (i.e.:brands/bloggers/contacts) know what you and your blog are about and what you can offer them. Quickly. As in try to get it down to under 30 seconds; that may be all you have. At BlogHer this is known as the elevator pitch, but it really works no matter what. Furthermore, don’t be shy about what you do. For a long time I kept my blog a secret to those who are around me everyday, but again, you can only be know by what others KNOW about you. Let it be known exactly what you do that makes your blog yours.

Brag. Be succinct. Be prepared. Be you. Be proud.

2.) Write down information about the brands/PR reps you talk to on their business cards. Don’t do this as you’re talking to them, unless you’re jotting notes, but do try to get it done within 15 minutes of meeting them. I have a stack of business cards from BlogHer last year that all are identical, but with different names on them. Heck if I know which brand Jennifer or David worked for/were representing, although they both do work at the same PR agency. Yeah, no clue. I should have written down the brand they were with, what we talked about or something that would allow me to put a name to a face. Or at the very least a memory to a business card. Now, this issue isn’t so big for blogger business cards since they usually filled with relevant info like blog URL, Twitter handle, yada yada.

3.) Let it be known that you are attending the conference so you can find people to hang out with. For me, this whole Hispanicize thing is very sudden. I won a pass, asked for help, got the help and BAM I am going. After all that sunk in, I was thinking, “Oh my gosh. I am going to be all alone.” I am just not down with that, at all. So, I went to all my networks and groups to let them know I was going. And now? I have several girls who are looking forward to hanging out with me, and we’re going to have cupcakes and go on a Chevy Landmark tour and party it up. Together. You’ll feel so much less intimidated if you just find some people who you can connect with. Get cell phone numbers, put them into your phone and make sure to keep in touch with them.  A conference buddy is just a text away if you follow those steps. I am so looking forward to Carolyn being my BlogHer pal again this year. We truly bonded at BlogHer last year. She was the person I’d run around with or go to the room and chat with as we looked at all our swag. It’s amazing the friends you can make if you put yourself out there.

Now moving on to what I am most excited about at Hispanicize:

Image Credit: Monsters & Critics

1.) Cesar Millan. Not going to lie, I am hoping to stuff him in my carry on and bring him back with me to Texas so he can make Pee Wee stop licking his paws. I am totally joking and mean no harm to Cesar Millan. He is a doggy genius, and just to be in the same room with him is a dream come true. Much like meeting Bob from The Biggest Loser at BlogHer was last year. These conferences are great for meeting people you admire.

2.) Connecting with brands and other bloggers. When you get that many people in a gorgeous location with all the creative energy moving through the air…it’s bound to be amazing. I hope to meet people that can help me take my blog to the next level. And I want to meet other bloggers that can share tips and advice. Furthermore, I want to let loose and have so much fun.

3.) I look forward to all the events being put on by Hispanicize and their generous sponsors. I’ll be attending a yacht party by McDonald’s and a fun event by the Latina Mom Bloggers. Besides being able to have a fiesta, these events are great to have longer conversations, take lots of photos and make special memories you’ll cherish. And blog about.

And although I am not a total conference newbie, there are things that make me nervous about Hispanicize:

1.) I hope no one tests me on my Spanish skills. I totally understand it, I can read it, but speaking it…oh lord. I am a bit rusty on it. I do know the words margaritas, fiesta and siesta. Hope that doesn’t disqualify me at still being classified as a Latina! ;-)

2.) Miami humidity. Will straightening my hair prove to be a waste of time?

3.) Feeling like I know no one. Even though I know I will know people, it’s still a little intimidating, but I am sure I’ll have a lovely time.

And now I’d like to thank some very special people/companies for helping make this trip a reality:

Eva Smith & Zelma: They are awesomesauce. Eva helped me try to find a flight sponsor, and she answers all my dumb questions via DM. She is what Hispanicize is all about-- helping others succeed and feel included. Zelma is my conference buddy and a total sweetheart. So blessed to have them in my life. <3

I’d also like to thank the Clever Girls Collective for my free conference pass, Southwest Airlines & Hispanicize for the free airfare and Collective Bias’ Courtney Velasquez for letting me crash with her for 2 nights.

See you in Miami!

If you’d like to tweet with me, follow me @monicabenavidez and if you’d like to e-mail me you can do so at monicawantsit@gmail.com

To see what sessions I’ll be at during the conference, check out my schedule here.