tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36525192293126205252024-09-20T21:28:19.268-04:00A Minnesotan Moves EastKarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.comBlogger134125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-42002860068271561852013-07-24T00:04:00.000-04:002013-07-24T00:04:38.111-04:00

... to a new blog. Since starting A North Star in an Eastern Sky about seven months ago, I've learned a lot. I've learned about branding, growing a readership, some basic HTML. I've stretched myself as a person as I've explored blogging about different categories: cooking, budgeting, crafting. I thoroughly enjoyed the learning process. But, I've also learned what I'm not. I'm not a food

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-14938630395965301572013-07-15T11:54:00.003-04:002013-07-15T11:54:47.911-04:00

Hi Friends. Things have been a little sporadic here on the blog, and I think that trend might be continuing for a little bit. I was promoted at work, which was pretty exciting. Proof that my hard work is being noticed and is paying off. However, this also means that I'll be working extra over the next few weeks while I'm training for my new role. So, lately we've been: treating ourselves to

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-30792662797289470562013-07-10T06:00:00.000-04:002013-07-10T06:00:09.509-04:00

In the course of meeting someone new, like a coworker or a friend of a friend, one of the first things I'm asked is, "why did you move to New Jersey?" After explaining that my boyfriend found a job here and after two and a half years of long-distance we were ready to be in the same place, the new person will inevitably respond, "He better put a ring on your finger soon." Sigh. This statement

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-82531468016479882892013-07-08T06:00:00.000-04:002013-07-08T06:00:00.741-04:00

Regular readers here know that I've been learning to keep a budget over the last few months. It's been challenging to track my spending and I definitely have struggled to stay under my budgeted spending limits. In June, I managed to stay under budget.... except for shopping. Shopping for clothes has definitely been a challenge for me lately. Working for a fashionable boutique has made

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-91117570445083315432013-07-05T06:00:00.000-04:002013-07-05T06:00:06.358-04:00

I'm off hanging out at the beach, so thrilled to share a guest post written by my friend Manda from Break The Sky. As a lady on a budget, it can be tough to know where to skimp and where to splurge. I love to cook, so skimping on taste is never worth it.  -Kara I am all for cutting corners when possible when cooking on a budget. I like to eat good, home-cooked food as much as the next

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-38314080251297437822013-07-04T12:13:00.000-04:002013-07-04T12:13:05.728-04:00

picture taken by my boyfriend, Keith I LOVE the 4th of July. Fireworks, carnivals, parades, BBQs... you can't beat it. Since it's the day after my birthday, the good feelings just keep on rolling. I have to work for a little bit, then I'm off to fireworks with friends. I hope you are all enjoying your holiday and long weekend.

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-10598229629114125402013-07-03T06:00:00.000-04:002013-07-03T06:00:01.622-04:00

It's my birthday, kids. I have a day full of celebrating planned: brunch with the boyfriend, a day at the Museum of Modern Art, and dinner with friends tonight. Twenty-two was a crazy year, in that my life completely changed. I graduated from college, moved home, got into grad school, moved halfway across the country, started grad school and learned that I hated it (and that sometimes Plan

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-39758359204380061662013-07-01T06:00:00.000-04:002013-07-01T06:00:13.370-04:00

Juicing is all the rage these days, and for good reason. They are convenient, tasty, and healthy. But, smoothies are definitely superior to juices. I promise, I'm not just saying this because I can't afford a juicer -- there are some serious health benefits to drinking smoothies! Smoothies have more nutrients The skin of many fruits contains a plethora of added nutrients. An apple, for

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-40255494306443877232013-06-29T06:00:00.000-04:002013-06-29T06:00:04.758-04:00

Since I mentioned that I've been getting back into drawing, a couple readers mentioned that they'd like to see more! While I'm happy to oblige, I also thought that posting more drawings might be a nice way to motivate myself. I'm happy to unveil my newest column: The Weekly Sketch. Sometimes I'll post a finished drawing, like this week, but other weeks it may be a snapshot into my

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-42593126485214370012013-06-28T06:00:00.000-04:002013-06-28T06:00:09.456-04:00

Here's what I've been up to this week: + Redesigning this little blog. It's so fresh and open, and I love that the colors still come through but are much more subtle. + Pitch Perfect is On Demand now... so I've watched it twice + Putting fresh fruit on everything! Spinach topped with mango, peaches, kiwi, walnuts, and strawberry balsamic dressing -- delish! + switched to all-nautral facial

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-42969977709451588342013-06-26T06:00:00.000-04:002013-06-26T06:00:11.475-04:00

It's exactly a week until my birthday, so allow me to be a little materialistic here. Being underemployed means that I've had lots of time to daydream about the things I would buy if I had a full-time income. Here's what I'd treat myself to for my birthday, if I could. Settlers of Catan // Harry Potter // Downton Abbey Season 3 // MacBook Pro // Polka Dot Shirtdress //

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-62963310693110749032013-06-24T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-24T08:00:13.339-04:00

split an appetizer instead of going out for dinner! I've talked before about the fact that I'm currently underemployed, meaning I'm working a part-time retail position despite having a college degree. Underemployment influences my life in lots of ways: I'm very concerned with learning to budget and I try to keep expenses low by DIYing lots of my clothing instead of tossing things that don't

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-88044898637412778532013-06-21T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-21T08:00:14.493-04:00

The first draft of this post was a little intense. Intense in that I was really hard on myself. I feel like I haven't been doing much lately. I haven't been going out, taking pictures, or generally acting like a blogger. Then I took a step back and realized that I've done a lot this week that I'm really proud of, even if I did most of those things sitting at my desk in my pajamas. I

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-9784507378648584142013-06-19T02:12:00.002-04:002013-06-19T02:12:39.182-04:00

A few weeks ago it felt like the middle of summer, and then suddenly it became rainy and grey and has remained that way ever since. Regardless, I am hopeful that beautiful, clear, sunny summer days will return. I've gotten into the practice of making summer goals for myself each year during my time off from school, but even though I'm not in school anymore, I can't shake the feeling that I need

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-16109212379764253402013-06-17T10:36:00.001-04:002013-06-19T13:16:56.250-04:00

The posts this week have been very... "real." Which, is great because life happens and sometimes you just have stuff on your brain. In effort to lighten up life and the blog, I thought I'd share some of the little things that I've been doing lately to add some joy. Over the weekend I baked up some white chocolate and rosemary scones. The mixture sounds strange, but it's heavenly. Great

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-32168028250181486432013-06-16T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-16T08:00:03.412-04:00

 I always think that better times will come and the problems of the day will pass, and perhaps new ones will replace them, but they will pass. Be comforted Kara, life is not perfect and never will be, but it is always worth the journey. I was so lucky to be abnormally close with my dad. Lucky, because he was an incredibly sweet, smart, funny man that cared

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-33386467448218570432013-06-14T22:11:00.000-04:002013-06-14T22:11:00.419-04:00

I had planned to bring back my TGIF column to infuse this blog with a little bit of positivity. Then, I got a call to schedule an interview. For a real, full-time, career-starting job in marketing. I honestly felt like I was going to throw-up. Then, I thought about it, and I started to get really excited. I started dreaming about working a 9-5 schedule. Of having a disposable income. Of having

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-78111774840893206272013-06-12T10:36:00.000-04:002013-06-12T10:36:07.412-04:00

A few weeks ago, I was doing some Googling to find some yoga poses and found an article titled Yin Yoga for Back Bending with Ease and Grace. The article shares some great poses, and also includes this gem: If you try all these postures you will feel by the intensity which ones are going to be helpful for your body. The more intense the more you need it! And this thought has been

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-5617008712205477402013-06-10T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-10T08:00:02.113-04:00

It's already hot and sticky here on the East Coast, so I switched my morning cup of coffee over to iced a few weeks ago. In talking with friends, I'm amazed by how many people don't know how to make coldpress iced coffee... especially because it's so simple. Supplies: High quality coffee beans* coarsely ground** French press OR a pitcher with cover, colander, coffee filters, and large

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-43458814968388607932013-06-07T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-07T08:00:00.561-04:00

I'm a little late with my May summary, whoops! A lot happened in May, so it's a little overwhelming to think about it all. I finished my semester of graduate school and ended up with a 3.8 gpa; I'm so glad that I'm not going back! The week after that, I started my new part-time job. Even though I'm still looking for a full-time position, this is so much better for the interim. My previous job

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-19852567734384288252013-06-05T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-05T08:00:06.380-04:00

Have you heard of the Envelopes Full of Cash budgeting technique wherein you withdraw cash and only are able to spend that money? I started budgeting a few months ago and overall the project has been kind of hit or miss. It is challenging to keep track of how much I've spent while I'm out and about, then I cringe as I'm adding up the totals later. Or, I forget how much I've allotted to each

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-34968134605822233682013-06-04T08:50:00.000-04:002013-06-04T08:50:05.245-04:00

I wanted to add a blog button to my sidebar with a code box for sharing; however, each code that I tried resulted in a blank code box! I was so frustrated. After lots of Googling and trying lots of tutorials, I began to notice that lots of people were commenting that they had the same problem on Blogger. The code box would hold text, but not code. Also, if the text box was in a regular post then

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-58823815328156269582013-06-03T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-03T09:06:31.248-04:00

I am thrilled that Heather from Over the Hill nominated me for a Liebster award. I love this award because I'm finding out so much about other bloggers, which is pretty awesome. And, you find cool brand new blogs to follow. Win, Win. The Liebster Award is for lesser-known blogs with under 200 followers. It gives these bloggers more exposure by introducing them to others -- and who doesn't

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-59415614376382460572013-05-31T08:00:00.000-04:002013-05-31T08:00:12.280-04:00

When I left, I was certain that I was leaving the best life and that I would never be truly happy elsewhere. Sometimes it's hard to see the changes that you've experienced until you're placed familiar. When I arrived in Minnesota, it was surprising and comforting to see everything the same: the same roads, same restaurants, same friends. But, I kept walking around my house feeling like

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3652519229312620525.post-7635479497759442392013-05-28T09:55:00.002-04:002013-05-28T09:55:32.090-04:00

Pictured: my pup snuggling in an armchair Not Pictured: the joys of being home. Favorite restaurants and people, board games, Summit beer, and lots of laughter. Green trees everywhere, Caribou Coffee, and driving with bare feet. Over the weekend my extended family came to my mom's house for lunch and catching up. My friends and I spent the evening at one of my favorite restaurants playing

Karahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08956564575828623478noreply@blogger.com0