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Living

On Life + Love

ON LIFE

I haven’t been by here in almost two weeks with good reason, much like a large portion of the United States we’ve been battling sickness off and on for the past few weeks. Thankfully, the flu hasn’t found it’s way around here *knocks on wood* but one child has had a pesky cold that went away and came back, then the other one caught it. Then there was a bout with a stomach virus and vomit. Don’t forget we thought she might have appendicitis and after a battery of tests found out that wasn’t the issue but another one of her labs came back a little elevated so heading to the Dr. tomorrow to see about that.It’s just been one thing after another.

Can a girl catch a break? Don’t answer that.

Through it all I’ve remained healthy and I have been taking extra doses of vitamins to keep it that way. I  keep saying if we can just make it to March as if March is some type of magical place where sickness doesn’t exist. Well, technically March is a pretty magical place seeing as how the 2nd day of “Magical March” marks the beginning of the last year of my 30s.

I still remember my 30th birthday like it was yesterday, and then there was 35 and now you mean to tell me nearly 40 years have passed.

 

Moving on.

MY evenings have been for reading, the one thing I vowed to do more of in the new year and am actually doing. I’ve read 4 books so far one of which was my very first audible book. Wasn’t sure if I would like listening to a book but I really enjoyed it and was educated that I can actually get audio books for free from my local library. I’m really looking forward to taking advantage of that.

I finished reading: The House on Mango Street, You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life, The Woman I Wanted to Be and Black Privilege: Opportunity Comes to Those Who Create It.

I’m currently listening to : The Mother of Black Hollywood and will be reading The Mothers and The Gilded Years respectively.

Outside of reading, I’ve been doing a little socializing and plotting and planning.

ON LOVE

So recently I’ve been organically sharing our nightly family shenanigans on Instagram stories and my DMs have been lit with people saying our family needs its own show. Primarily it’s my husband that gets the people in hysterics, he’s not that funny to me but I live with him.  I sure hope the right person/brand hears or sees that and offers us a family friendly/wholesome deal, in the meantime I’m going to do a better job at sharing our family on Youtube by bringing back our vlogs. If you want to see the foolery in real time be sure to check out my IG stories,  and follow along on Youtube.

I’ve been working on the gallery wall. Slowly collecting Dollar Tree frames and adding pictures of my family and loved ones to them. I have so many photos and the narrowing down process is taking some time.  Be on the look out for part II of the hallway makeover in the next week or so.

Thanks for hanging in there with me. More content coming soon, as long as everyone stays well and the creek “don’t” rise!

How’s life on your end? Are you ready for “Magical March” like me?

 

*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you buy a book, I make a few coins*

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kids room organization
Home• Organization• Video

Kids Room Organization | Tips for Organizing Kids Drawers + Video

The amount of stuff kids can accumulate is mind boggling. From toys to too small clothing the propensity for things to get out of control and fast in a child’s room is real. As quickly as you buy things they outgrow them, those $5 toys that we pick up here and there start to add up if we don’t constantly purge and before we know it we are living in a cluttered mess. But today I bring you one of the best kids room organization hacks. And it cost effective too.

Kids Room Organization | Tips for Organizing Kids Drawers

As part of the #OrganizedOnFleek organization challenge, my second space to declutter was Addison’s drawers. I’d needed to go through and purge too small things before Christmas, but Christmas…..so there’s that.

kids room organization

 

kids room organization

My very first hurdle was emptying the drawers, dividing everything into a pile of “Keep” “Throw Away” and “Donate.” Once I had everything separated the items that were to go back into the drawers were rolled and put into Dollar Tree shoe boxes to keep them neat and tidy. Addison has the Malm drawer from Ikea and the shoe boxes fit perfectly. I add a dot of poster tack, also from Dollar Tree to the bottom of the box to keep it from sliding around in the drawer.

kids room organization

 

kids room organization

After successfully cleaning everything out, poor thing needs some new clothes but I couldn’t see that for all of the mess. This hour out of my day not only  saved my sanity but has also saved me money because I know exactly what she needs going into Spring. Now to fill up these cute DIY Gold Plastic Hangers I made for her with clothes that actually fit.

Danielle, Trina and I are still running our #OrganizedOnFleek Instagram Challenge. For the month of February get in the action by organizing a space or spaces in your home. Need some inspiration? Check out the hashtag on Instagram.

Here’s a fun video of me cleaning out her drawers!

What area in your home do you desperately need to declutter and organize? What’s your favorite kids room organization hack?

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Chesapeake Bay Candle
Home

Soy Based Fragrance Options for Your Home

Thank you to Chesapeake Bay Candle for partnering with Unlikely Martha. Who doesn’t love a good soy candle and a comfy home. I was compensated for this post. All opinions are mine.

 

Childhood memories never leave us and I’m thankful the vast majority of mine are of pleasant times growing up in Maryland right outside of Washington, D.C. In the summers, we would travel to Ocean City, MD which would require us to cross over the Bay bridge. I have so many fond memories of my dad saying, “We’re going over the bridge,” and me peering out of the car window glaring down at the Chesapeake Bay not in the least bit afraid of how far up we were but only focused on the fact that we were just a short distance away from the boardwalk, salt water taffy and the smell of sand and ocean.

I’m quite certain my love for all ocean and marine inspired looks and smells stem from our annual family trips to the beach. No matter the season, I am known to mix in the crisp and light smells of ocean inspired candles with more seasonal tones to include notes of amber and florals. Walking into a home that smells good immediately offers a sense of coziness and Chesapeake Bay Candle has done a great job of offering many of the smells that remind me of my childhood growing up in Maryland spending days on the beach combined with other smells I love. Chesapeake Bay Candle products have an amazing aesthetic that is simple, and clean with a modern feel. They turn from just a candle to becoming a part of our home’s decor with their stylish designs and nature-inspired fragrances.

One of my absolute favorites is Aqua Marine Small Jar. The notes of bergamot, lemon zest and other floral and fruit tones creating a calming smell, and rightfully so this candle lives in our bedroom. Even unlit, the throw of the scent is remarkable, soothing and calming much like the ocean and perfect for winding down.

 

Chesapeake Bay Candle

The Milk & Honey Coffee Table Jar Candle is a soy blend of vanilla, white freesia and bergamot amongst other tones lives in our laundry room. This scent reminds me of fresh laundry, and I light it even when I’m not in there doing my least favorite chore. The rate at which this candle can fragrance our entire house, tucked away in the laundry room is unbelievable. I’ve often had people come in asking where the fragrance is coming from.

Chesapeake Bay Candle

Snuggling up in the living room, by the fire this Winter has been one of our favorite pastimes. If a smell could give you feelings of fuzzy socks, cuddled in a blanket with a good book its the Driftwood & Amber Small Jar Candle. Situated in our little reading nook, saturated with the smell of driftwood, vanilla, sandalwood and amber, this has been the absolute perfect candle for Winter.

Chesapeake Bay Candle

My son is 12, and if I may be blunt boys are stinky. Real stinky at this age. When I need to air his space out I light this Fig and Redwood Double Wick Tine Candle. Its design fits the industrial chic look of his room and sits nicely on his bookshelf. The sophisticated notes of birch and cedar among other masculine scented notes freshen his room in no time.

Chesapeake Bay Candle

When creating a cozy home it takes layers, and not just layers of fabric and rugs and curtains but smell is also an integral part. Ever walked into a house that looked and smelled good?

Exactly!

The Chesapeake Bay Candle Heritage Collection of soy blended fragrances are layered to add depth to your overall feeling of home with an array of soothing, energizing and refreshing scents that work for any season. Infused with natural essential oils and designs that are modern and minimal in design these candles are perfect for finishing off your home decor.ave

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Living

7 Things to Know When Switching from a PC to a Mac

I pride myself on being fairly intelligent and technologically savvy, however the struggle that was switching from PC to Mac at times made me want to flip a table over and throw in the towel.  Switching from a PC to a Mac has to be atop the list of things that has tried every ounce of my patience. I’m sure it’s because I ignored people who said there was a learning curve, because surely I’m more tech savvy than them and I won’t have those problems….until I did.

Surprisingly, I’ve gotten quite a few questions when I post photos or IG stories with my computer in them about whether I prefer a Mac over a cheaper PC brand. I will say the learning curve exists and it’s very real. Nearly a year in, I still find myself googling how to do simple things like making a screenshot or hitting control + alt + del. Despite those hiccups as a visual person who loves pretty things, I don’t think I could ever go back to a desktop PC. If you are thinking about taking the leap, here is a quick reference guide of a few simple PC actions that are totally different on a Mac. If you are thinking about converting, bookmark this post. Trust me you’ll need it!

How To Control + Alt + Delete | On a PC it’s straightforward, simply press the CRTL, ALT and DEL keys together. On a Mac these buttons don’t exist. You’ll need to press Command + Option + ESC or right click the icon on your deck and force quit.

Where are the Apps | At the very bottom of the screen you will find something called the “deck” that holds all of your frequently used apps for easy access. You are able to specify which items you want stored there and you also have the option to minimize/hide it when working. If you opt to hide it, you simply place your mouse at the bottom of the screen and it will appear. For all of your apps that are not located on the deck you will need to use Launchpad to access them.

The Mouse Scroll is Backwards |  THIS. MESSED. ME . UP. FOR. WEEKS. You are able to change this in the System preferences. I didn’t find this out until I was used to the backwards way. Go figure.

How to Screenshot | There isn’t a PRNT SCRN key on the Mac. You will need to press Shift + Command + 3. If you are only wanting to screen shot a portion of the screen you press Shift + Command + 4. The pointer then changes to a crosshair, select the area you want to screenshot and release the mouse. The screenshot image will appear on the desktop.

How to Open a New Window | In the upper right hand corner of your screen on the browser there is a little + sign. Press that.

How to Backspace| There are two delete buttons but no backspace button. The larger delete key on the number row is the backspace. The smaller one off to the right of it is the actual delete key.

Converting a Pages document to Word or PDF or any other format | Pages is the Mac version of Word, except it’s not compatible on all fronts. You are able to type an item in pages and save it to a Word format. While in Pages, hover your mouse at the top of the screen select the File option, scroll to export and from the drop down select the format you wish to save it in.

If you’ve ever transitioned from a PC to a Mac share your frustrating moments so I don’t feel alone! If you are thinking of transitioning and have a question I didn’t cover, leave it in the comments and I will try to answer or provide a resource for you.

 

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