The Beautiful Colorado

Since we have been engaged for over a year we thought it was time to take some "engagement photos". We took a drive to Kenosha Pass to watch the leaves change. I haven't seen leaves changing in that magnitude since I was a kid. 

JK Rowling Quotes will help to inspire your life. Check out these quotes for a more magical life.

Another big announcement is that I started a new blog called The Rising Damsel. There I focus on financial independence and helping people to get ahead with their business. I would love it if you check the site out. Find me on Pinterest!

My Go-To Resources

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Rakuten Coupons deals and cash back. When you’re shopping online if you aren’t stacking your savings, you’re losing serious money. Get rebates from 1%-20%+ on thousands of stores and get $10.00 for signing up. 

Ibotta! I save on all my staples from eggs, to paper towels, to coffee and even uber rides! With Ibotta you just snap a picture of your shopping receipt and match it with current deals available online. Get $10 just for signing up through The Rising Damsel. Redeem your first $10 by verifying a purchase from any of their stores. It’s an obsession. 

Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing to earn money blogging. There are tons of ways to make money on your blog. If you want to make money by promoting an affiliate, you need Michelle’s course Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing. It was an invaluable resource to me despite 1,000+ hours of research on how to earn. The money didn’t actually start coming in till I took this course. Save yourself from frustration, Michelle has it figured out for us!

28 Years Old

 What an amazing weekend. It was my 28th birthday!! This may seem really weird but when I turned 27 I was kind of in shock. Not because I felt like I was getting old, but because I was a huuuuge Nirvana fan when I was a kid and at 12 years old knowing Kurt Cobain had died when he was 27 you kind of think "well he lived a full life". When I turned 27 it was like WOAH, who would ever feel like they lived a full life at this age?  I am glad to be living and exploring all that the world has to offer.  Was there a specific age you turned that meant a little more than the rest?

On a separate completely different note I would like to announce after a years and a half of unemployment, I finally have a job!! I was lucky enough to get a human resources/recruiting position at dish network! I think it is going to be a huge shock to my system, but I am really excited to start the next phase of my life.  

I hope that everyone had a lovely weekend!

A Weekend Story

What a wonderful weekend in such a gorgeous part of the world. Steamboat Springs, Colorado is a place I have been lucky enough to get familiar with.

Took a gamble on going to the mountains,

on the way

Cortez checked out hoof prints.

Once there we ate lots of BBQ after it smoked for 5 hours.

I found some fungi and a feather!  Continued to explore,

walked around

looked for Harry Potter; I came up empty handed,

I can't wait to go back. Sometimes it's seriously about the little things. I just happen to live in a really cool part of the world. Where is your favorite spot to visit?

Suchard Rocher

Ok ... yum. These are by far the best thing that you could ever possibly fathom putting in your mouth. The key to it is that you have to warm them up in your pocket for a bit before you eat. A slight crackle, rich creamy hazelnut chocolate, a few nut crumbles, the best thing ever! After you are done make sure you check your vitals because you just hit heaven. This brand of chocolate is in no way affiliated with Ferrero Rochers. Has anyone else ever had the pleasure ? If you win the giveaway you can bet these will be in the box!

A few Thoughts on Travel

There are a number of things that I am sure we all LOVE about traveling.  I might love more than a few, but I have shortened the list to these select few.

1.  Experiencing a different culture.  It is nuts how seeing other people living their daily lives can open your mind.  In America we often times forget to stop to smell the roses so to speak.  Seeing people  in the same bakery every night to buy their bread, gathering their children from school on a Saturday, kids rolling around on scooters.  These are things that might happen in Colorado but I don't always notice them because I take them for granted.  Here it seems unique and I appreciate it.

2.  FOOD ... I looooove food there are a number of flavors here that are not available in the states.  For instance I am addicted to diet soda (I know I know chemicals!!!)... here they use different processes to flavor their soda and drinks.  More commonly they use beat sugar rather than corn syrup.  Nothing has that throat burning sweet taste.  When you drink peach tea here, it literally tastes like you are biting into a ripe peach picked at it's prime.  A lot of foods here are picked at the proper time and sold at market the next day, whereas I think a lot of us are use to fruit picked while still green and ripened on a truck to our grocer.  If you have ever seen that episode of King of the Hill where Peggy goes "these tomatoes taste amazing" and Hank says "don't be crazy Peggy we all know tomatoes don't have a flavor."  It's kind of like that.  Ha.

3.  Style !  We all are capable of wearing fashions that are up and coming.  Sometimes it just the way that someone wears something though that makes it different.

4.  Sense of accomplishment.  I am completely refreshed and ready to take on the world again when I get home.  I have a new list of diys to complete... got a couple of job applications in, paintings to paint.  People to see you know, things to do. :)  

Here are some future diys that are in the works for when I get home. I am sure that I missed a zillion things about the wonder of travel, but feel free to fill in the blanks.

Steak Yums

Such good meals today. The ice cream store we visited is called Berthillon. Absolutely amazing. I got the nougat au miel which is nougat and honey. I have seen bigger scoops of butter on pancakes ... hahaha .... but it was very good and to my surprise just the right amount. The steak and pomme sautee I had was too good for words, probably the best potatoes I have ever had. It seems like a simple recipe involving oil and garlic and little else. Guess sometimes the simplest things are the best. I can't believe I ate all the steak, all the potatoes some salad a piece of bread and a triple mini serving of dessert. Seriously was food wasted by the time my mom and I walked out of the restaurant. It rained like crazy tonight. Some how the birds all started chirping when the rain stopped. Do they have a sense to chirp after it rains? Really did not hear a bird all day until it stopped raining. Everything seems a little silly I must still be drunk on food.

Paris Insta

Some flowers, love and taxidermy c'est parfait ! I saw that dear little antelope in the window the other day. So of course I had to go back with my camera and document his existence. Glad that I found him again looking just as dapper as the first passing.

It's official there is one week of Paris left. I came here wanting to move, and honestly I am not sure I feel that way anymore. It's almost a burden lifted. Having been to Paris several times before it has always made me sick to think that I couldn't live here, or come back here ... silly as that seems. I don't know if it's because I am getting older, or if it's because Paris is less like Paris every year; and more like New York. Life here seems incredibly hard, and getting harder and it's really expensive. I would liken it to a class change. You would need to be in a higher rung of society here to maintain the lifestyle you were accustomed to in the States whatever that might be. There are just so many luxuries we have that seem necessary that are just not available here. I am loving every second here. But as of now I know that my future is not pointed in the direction of France as I so desperately hoped for in the past, and that is extremely refreshing. Seems so weird to say out loud or write, since it has always been such an intense goal of mine. Anyone else ever have an experience like this ? where something was so important to you and then all of a sudden it no longer was? I would love to hear about.  Oh and my apologies it seems I dropped my smile in that picture ;)

Paris Instagramed

I just have to say that instagram is pretty much the coolest thing ever. I have yet to invest in any fancy editing programs for my blog. I kind of have been flying by the seat of my pants so far. With instagram though, it really feels like you can make a picture 100% better. This is a sort of compilation from the last 2 weeks. A couple of the photos have been featured on other entries, but they just came out so vibrant on instagram, I think that it is worth showing them twice. I believe that I will be in the market for some photo editing equipment soon. Anyone have any suggestions? Anything super user friendly? (because I will need that for sure!!) Hope that everyone is having a great week! Don't forget to sign up for the giveaway. Till tomorrow little birdies.

Giveaway Update

Well here we go. Finally got a few snaps of the giveaway. There is a super cute necklace that almost looks handmade, a pack of cards that has different French scenes, a little Eiffel Tower, a reusable shopping bag from monoprix, and also a French date book to keep yourself organized. I am still shopping around, and you can certainly bet that there will be candy in the bag as well. Make sure and sign yourself up for the blog and then leave a comment to double your chances. Much love little birds.

A Bit of the Life in Paris

Well this post is a bit of a cluster.

As you can see from the top picture, the French army is not something that you want to mess with!  Those guys were just strolling around with giant guns like it was nothing.  A little unnerving I am not going to lie.  It seems that the country is quite monitored.  Every single store (even what we would consider a small gas station) has a security guard.  If there is even a rumor of a protest there are cops everywhere.  We are talking like 15 buses full of cops with riot gear on.  At least they are prepared for the worst?

A little further down in the Seine we spotted a guy swimming with flippers on.  Hopefully you can spot him on the wall; seemed a little bit dangerous, but I guess that's one way that you can get your exercise in.

Upon seeing the Nicholas Flamel sign my mind immediately ran to Harry Potter.  I normally watch those movies every night to fall asleep to.  I think that is probably the only thing I miss about home .... falling asleep to movies that I have literally seen around 5000 times.

Despite all the walking that we have been doing, I do believe I am still managing to gain weight.  I guess an entire baguette and 2-3 pastries as day is too much?  Who knew?  ha.  I am now trying to monitor the food intake a bit more.  Goodness me it is hard with so much temptation.  In the states normally I gorge on fresh food, here in a hotel that is a little bit harder to do.  I was craving veggies so bad today I actually went to a Chinese buffet, luckily they had sauteed vegetables!  They also had some crazy fruit too.  Has anyone else tried a waxberry also known as a yumberry?  Had to look that one up!  Really good.  Definitely tried some things that I have never seen before.  That gooey ball pictured is a coconut ball.  It was sooo gooey I thought that I would be able to blow a bubble with the "dough".  The middle had a coconut paste in it and it was AMAZING.  Chinese food in France is a little bit different that in the States after all.

If I get motivated I will post some of the goodies I have bought for the giveaway so far.   Hope that everybody had a great day!  Till tomorrow little canaries.