Get a Double Dose of Me!

I have very exciting news for you guys today- 

I am guest posting for a friend today. 

It all started when Jen and I met in the SITS 31 Days to Build a Better Blog workshop. We then ended up in the same group- and I have really enjoyed this journey with her. Without her encouragement, I don't think I would be where I am today. 

So, when she asked me to guest post for her- I was ECSTATIC! 

Finally, I can give back for all the support and encouragement she spreads around. 

Long story short- I am guest posting at Making Our Life Matter Today. 

Hop on over and see what I have been up to. 

Jen, thank you for this opportunity! 

30 Before 30

I may not be very organized lately, but generally I am very organized and list driven. I make lists for everything. I even make a list of lists I need to make. It is kind of obsessive.

As many of you know, I turned 28 earlier in the month. As I get closer to being 30, I realize that there are so many things I thought I would have accomplished by now- but, life happens. 

Here are the thirty things I would like to do before I turn 30. 

1. For the Me and the Mr to buy a house. 

2. Have my book written and published. 

3. Have the children's book I wrote published. 

4. To have a local aspect of my business. 

5. To paint something for my mom.

6. Read the top 10 novels of all time.

7. Travel to New Orleans. 

8. Learn to build wordpress themes. 

9. Dance in the Rain.

10. Run a marathon.

11. Learn to pole dance- I think it would be fun! 

12. Learn burlesque (one of my obsessions)

13. Get in shape.

14. Wear a bikini.

15. Speak at a conference.

16. Record a song. 

17. Sing on stage again (Its been almost 10 years)

18. Take my son to Disney World.

19. Have a drink named after me. 

20. Buy a good suit.

21. Create a recipe for the perfect good for the soul soup. 

22. Become a Notary. 

23. Learn how to decorate a cake

24. Take an event planning class

25. Cook an entire Thanksgiving meal by myself

26. Start an etiquette school for young girls and boys.

27. Organize and back up my computer files.

28. Take a massage therapy class.

29. Be the subject of a pin up photo shoot.

30. Have breakfast at Tiffany's for my 30th birthday!

They are not all exciting, but they are all things I have my heart set on doing! 

What is your next milestone? Do you have things you want to have done by then?

Summer Lovin'

First of all, I want to say that I truly do love summertime. I love sitting on the porch and sipping on some iced coffee or even sweet tea. I like the day trips and camping. I adore grilling out and spending time with my family. I also love all the new adventures that find us during the summer months. I'm especially craving catching lightning bugs with my little prince!

 

Summers are always crazy busy for us- but always beautiful!

This summer promises to be especially busy, so I am going to share some goals with you. 

Thank you Rachel for giving me the inspiration for this post. 

My intention is to have each of these completed by my Mother's visit in September. I'm setting a deadline of September 19 for them all- that will give me a few days to prepare for her visit. We will be appearing on a local television show promoting her book and her amazing story. So... here goes. 

1. Lose 50 pounds. 
2. Have the prince completely potty trained. He's on his way- but there are still improvements to be made. 
3. Have the WHIRL Network up and running. 
4. To not cut my hair (except for my bangs). I'm trying to grow it out, but I keep getting tempted to cut it. 
5. To have more defined business hours so that I can spend more time with my family. 
6. GET ORGANIZED (and record this journey)
7. Have my course planned so that I can teach it. 
8. Have the first chapter of my book written. 
9. Define and plan out my long term goals. 
10. Find the time to go camping. 
11. Find an exercize plan that I will actually stick to. 
12. Get better at drinking water (I drink entirely too much coffee)
13. Finish my portfolio.
14. Spend more time with my family. 
15. Enjoy a few sunsets with the Mr!

I'm sure this isn't all that I intend to accomplish by the end of summer (note #6 and #9) but its a good start. Some are lofty, but I'm sure that if I put my mind to it I can accomplish it all. 

What are your summer goals?

Southern Charm Sunday: Tech Etiquette 101

This post has been brewing since my first Southern Charm Sunday. The comments regarding thank you notes really got me started thinking about etiquette dying out in this tech age. It doesn't have to be that way. We can embrace technology and keep our charm. That is the point behind Southern Charm Sundays- to keep it alive in the chaos we currently live in. So- I present to you Tech Etiquette 101! Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing etiquette tips for different areas of tech. We can still be charming, even in the tech age!

This week's lesson is about email. Some of these tips may be common sense (but I think the world is lacking a lot of it these days). However, some are things that I think we just let slip our minds. 

1. Make sure your email address is appropriate. myhoneyspookiebear@blahblahblah.com might be appropriate for your closest of friends - however, it may still gag them- but not everyone. I suggest using your name as your email address. It is much more professional and unless your name is Cuddle Bug, I'm pretty sure you won't gag anyone. I also have a separate email address for each blog as well as for my business. A Gmail account works just fine for this. I find that it helps me stay more organized and focused. 
2. When at all possible, respond to email within 24 hours of receiving it. I am guilty of not doing this. My inbox tends to get slightly out of control (I will share tips on handling this soon). If you have office hours, it is acceptable to respond to emails received during the weekend Monday morning. The same holds true for holidays. 
3. NEVER email delicate content that is best given in person. After all, we are charming- not cowards.
4. By all means, send thank you notes in email. I personally like to send a hand written thank you note, but I know that is not reality for a lot of people. If you find yourself wanting to send notes, but forgetting to, send an email. Even better, send an e-card. You can also find pretty graphics to insert into email. 
5. Even in email, be sure to use a person's correct title (IE: Sir, Mr, Mrs, Ms, etc) -it really can make a world of difference. 
6. Be sure to use salutations. I like to write an email in the same form as I would a letter. Use the signature function as a letterhead. 
7. Be sure to use correct spelling and grammar. 
8. Read your email out loud before sending to ensure that your tone is appropriate. 
9. Use standard fonts to ensure readability. 
10. Type unto others as you would have them type unto you!

I hope you enjoyed my tips. If you have anything to add, questions, or a suggestion for a future post, just leave it in the comments.

Thank you for reading and for your continued support- and HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

Happy Anniversary to my Knight

I'm sure you guys can tell from my lack of posts, but things have gotten slightly hectic in my neck of the woods. Between Junes always being crazy, my birthday, being sick, and all of my many many projects, I've gotten slightly behind. I'll get you guys all caught up. 

1. My birthday was last week. I turned 28, I'm not really enjoying being this close to 30- but for different reasons than you might think- more on that later. 

I like to call my birthday Queen Cari Day- why not? 

2. I started a new project (surprised?). Whirl is Work at Home Information, Resources, and Lifestyle. This is a project to allow those of us who work at home to connect, support each other, find jobs, and  manage everything. This is a huge project which I will share more of later. 

3. Today is my anniversary. The knight and I married two years ago, and I couldn't possibly be happier. I love him and the prince with all of my heart. 

I'm out of my funk and I'm not sick any longer, so I will be posting better now! 

Have a great day ya'll!