I am joining some crazy talented blog friends to share some of our holiday rooms this week. Don’t believe me? Check out this lineup! If you’re visiting here from Shand at Quarters One, welcome! I’m glad you’re here!

Tartan Plaid Bedroom

I don’t decorate a ton in our bedrooms now that my kids are older (read: they don’t care anymore), so it was the perfect opportunity to spruce up my son’s room/guestroom. Something else I never do? Decorate with red! THIS was a fun one.

I have come to realize that I love to decorate, but I don’t necessarily love the prop styling that comes along with modern blogging. I promised myself to use things I have and not make it too fake. Does that make sense?

I didn’t primp with the pillows at ALL until my dog did a body dive into them in the middle of the shoot. He was quickly escorted and shut out of the room as I plucked dog hair out of the navy blanket. Lord help me.

Speaking of pillows! Va-va-voom!! Am I right? They are the stars of the show. Even better is that I found the tartan pillows on Amazon, and they are so inexpensive! I saved so much money! But then I bought more of them because they were so well-priced. So I didn’t save so much money! Woops.

I just love the look of a daybed partnered with numerous messy-ish pillows. Something about it says, “Come lay here. Don’t do any work. It’ll be fine. I’m serious.” It’s a talkative daybed.

Want a little bit of full disclosure (oxymoron much, Chris)? When my son left for Europe, I gutted his room and ripped out the carpet. I didn’t replace it yet. The picture below will show you the subfloor under the bed! I think it’s high time bloggers start showing the ugly truths, eh? Just me?

Whatever. It is what it is. But it does make me chuckle (and cry) at how deceiving pictures can be.

I know it’s a lot of pictures, but it’s really one of my favorites. Tartan plaid has my heart forever. And so does Harry Styles. And Harry Styles IN tartan plaid.

Christmas Bedrooms

If you’re jonesing for some more Christmas bedrooms (let’s pretend you are), here are a couple I’ve done in the past!

Here is the full list of bloggers and their goooorgeous rooms from the week! Go visit their blogs, click through their pages, and be inspired by them. Please stop by Angie’s place at Postcards from the Ridge to check out her beautiful home!

Monday, November 29th (Front Porch/Outdoor Spaces)
Southern Hospitality | A Blissful Nest | Most Lovely Things | Cindy Hattersley Design | Shine Your Light

Tuesday, November 30th (Entries/Dining Rooms)
11 Magnolia Lane | Sincerely Marie Designs | The Pink Clutch Blog | Summer Adams | Home by Heidi | Classic Casual Home 

Wednesday, December 1st (Living Rooms/Dens)
Sincerely Marie Designs | 11 Magnolia Lane | Sincerely Sara D | This is Our Bliss | Thrifty Decor Chick | Dimples and Tangles

Thursday, December 2nd (Kitchens/Laundry Rooms/Misc.)
Evolution of Style | Sincerely Marie Designs | A Stroll Thru Life | Pink Peppermint Design | Setting for Four | Citrine Living  

Friday, December 3rd (Master Bedroom/Kid’s Rooms)
Quarters One | Just a Girl | Postcards from the Ridge | Decor Adventures | A Stroll Thru Life | Country Road 407

The post Tartan Plaid Bedroom first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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If there’s one thing I like to do, it’s shop. So narrowing down my list was trickier than I thought. Let me be clear–I LOVE every item I’m sharing. I take this post very seriously. Ha!

Well if that’s not a hodgepodge of things, I don’t know what is! Leggings! Highlighters! Toilet lever! Wait, what? Let me explain…

Favorite Things 2021

• Gold Toilet Lever: Yes. It changed my toilet game! Wait. It changed my toilet’s game. That makes more sense. Trust me on this one. It’s such a small, yet impactful change for a small bathroom in particular.
• Gold Initial Necklace: Admittedly, a couple of these are my daughter’s favorites, so I decided to include them. For what it’s worth, I’m a high school teacher, and allll the girls are wearing these necklaces. So pretty, right?
• Countertop Ice Machine: We have a full basement bar, but we were lacking the ice we needed to make drinks for people. This ice machine has such a low profile, it’s super quiet, and it makes all the ice we need! AND I love the price!
• Smart Phone Tripod: Man I love this thing! It comes in clutch when we’re trying to take any kind of group shot!
• Tinkle Razors: I love these so much, I hand them out to my friends like candy! They shave that hairy fuzz right off your face! Sounds awful, but trust me. Your makeup goes on better, your moisturizer applies better, and I find that my tanning bronzer works better as well!
• Leggings: This is another one of my daughter’s favorites. I felt like I kept seeing them in my Amazon cart, so I did a double check. She has FIVE pairs of these! They come in the prettiest colors, so I don’t blame her.
• Greeting Card Organizer: I raved about this over on Instagram, and I’m definitely telling you to buy one. If you’re a last minute-er like I am, this comes in so handy! Running out the door and late for a graduation party? Grab and go! Thank you, little card box.
• Slimming Swimsuit: Look. I’m no fashion blogger. But when this body went into that suit, I received so many compliments. It’s especially attractive on me when I keep said body under water. Seriously though–very pretty!
• Makeup Mirror: Another favorite of Little Miss. She bought this for her poorly-lit dorm room, and she raves about it. Her roommate has one, as well.
• Travel Jewelry Organizer: I’ve been fortunate to travel quite a bit in my lifetime, and I have developed quite a discernment for what works and what doesn’t. This thing is awesome! I don’t wear much jewelry, so I never felt the need for this. Uh, I was wrong.
• Family Passport Wallet: Speaking of travel…I’m not sure how I ever went without this thing! Anyone who has ever traveled with kids out of the country is all “Preach! This thing’s a life-changer!” and they’re right.
• Hair Claw Clips: Raise your hand if you have fine, slippery hair. *Raises hand. NOTHING stays in my hair, and it’s so frustrating! My daughter bought these, and when I saw how well they worked, I quickly snagged a couple. Score!
• Pastel Highlighters: Oh my lord. Where were these when I was in high school?! These highlighters are the best school/work/life tool I’ve purchased in YEARS. I love them and use them every. single. day.

If you read that whole thing, you deserve a gold star! I put hard money on my sister-in-law being the only one who actually read it. xoxo Ha!

Want more favorite things? Look here!

Man. I guess I’ve been doing these a long time! I think I’m missing a couple, but these favorites really never go out of style! Have fun looking around!

Favorite Things 2014 was when I shared the eye shadow pallet that changed my makeup game.

Favorite Things 2016 I upgraded my camera and never looked back. It’s still my favorite toy!

Who knows where 2015 and 2017 went?

FV 2018 was the year of Harry Styles (and all years since) and the best popcorn hack I’ve ever purchased.

FV 2019 I posted twice (must be to make up for “15 and ’17?) and included the makeup setting spray that I gift every Christmas and the daily moisturizer that has become a favorite of my husband’s too!

And 2020 was the Victoria Emerson watch band that gets comments every. single. day and collagen powder that kept my hair from falling out! I’m serious.

Some of the best bloggers I know have also shared their favorite things, and I know it’s gonna be a problem for my bank account! My friend Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick has hosted this hop for years, and it’s one of my favorite things! (See what I did there?) By all means, check them all out!

The post Favorite Things 2021! first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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It’s an unassuming tree that we keep in the dining room now, but when kids were little, they loved it right in the kitchen! It was “almost” as exciting as their advent calendars. I decorate it with a simple garland-this year was a bell garland from Michael’s. I purchased it last year, but I found some similar garlands here and here.

While it wasn’t intended for this, it has been a bit of a time capsule for us. Each year, the kids have asked for things that relate to what’s going on in the world around us. I have a senior in high school this year, so you can imagine how badly she wishes for this.

The rules are pretty simple. They have to wish for someone or something outside of themselves. The Wishmas tree is a time for thinking of others. My son may have asked for lower taxes , but he also asked for someone at his work to get well. No questions asked. I’m just happy to see him thinking of someone else.

Well if you ever want to have a Wishmas tree of your own, hopefully this will give you some inspiration! I keep the cards/ornaments stored away to read as they get older…and can’t seem to remember that we’ve ever had this tradition until I show them. Ugh.

The post Our Christmas Wishmas Tree first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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Come on into my black and green Christmas office-otherwise known as my new classroom. Trust me when I tell you it doesn’t normally look like this. This office desk and leather chair are a perfect combo for the dark bookshelves.

I kept the colors very basic this year (shocker). Those colors bring me the most joy, and I guess that’s the point of them right? I found the garland at a consignment store for $12 a couple of years ago. I add some ribbon to it, and it completes the look!

I’m calling this the year of the candle. Apparently, they’re my favorite this year? This console table is a favorite to decorate because it immediately changes the look of the room!

My view from my kitchen. While I’m baking cookies, of course. Ha! I get asked about this mirror (similar) and my rug quite often! I love them both!

Because I’ve been home more (virtual teaching-yay), I had a little extra time to put up another Christmas tree. I put this flocked tree in my room, and I may never take it down! (That’s a lie.)

The ornaments were all clearance from Kirkland’s last year, and the tree was purchased from At Home. I love the color combo!

Pretty sure it’s my favorite tree ever…and no one sees it but my husband and me. Go figure. I do have a couple more spaces to show, but these are our main areas. I hope you enjoyed the tour! If you’d like to see some more beautiful spaces, pleeeease go take a look at my friends’ houses too!

• The Crafted Sparrow
• Thrifty Decor Chick
• Stacy Risenmay Not Just a Housewife
• Lolly Jane
• Just a Girl

The post 2020 Christmas Tour first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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Let’s get right to it, shall we?

• Hmm. Is it bad to start off with booze? I’m a huge fan of eggnog, but when I had this Evan Williams eggnog at a family Christmas party a couple of years ago, it was a game-changer! It’s strong (in my opinion), so it’s such a good sipper throughout the evening!
• This little portable heater is my new best friend! I’ve used an old one for years in my classroom, but it finally died. I love this thing so much that I brought it home from school to use during my virtual teaching. It oscillates, has two heat settings, and even has a cool fan for when those hot flashes hit! Oy vey.
• I know. It looks like a computer mouse. But this thing! It is a SILENT computer mouse! I keep my laptop in my living room, and I like to be on my computer when we’re watching tv. Needless to say, the clicking was getting annoying. I was worried this wouldn’t work right, but it’s brilliant!
• I love the Raskog utility cart from Ikea so much that I have three of them. The versatility is endless, and this green one had to be mine. Simply because of the color.
• This personalized puzzle is such a favorite that I’m about to buy my third one in one year! It was the perfect way to get us through quarantine, and it proves to be a sentimental pastime at family gatherings!
• Ok, listen. I’ve been a fan of Victoria Emerson bracelets for a long time. But when she came out with Apple watch bands????? Every. single. time someone sees them on me, I get a compliment. The one I have is pictured above. And I may have just purchased another one.
• I started putting this powdered collagen in my coffee about a year ago, and it changed my hair dramatically. I was losing hair like CRAZY, and it was really starting to concern me-like panic concern. I put one (flavorless) scoop in my morning coffee, and that drastic shedding has stopped! Now I swear by the stuff.
• My pasty white skin is always in need of a self-tanner in the winter. My daughter uses this Isle of Paradise, and I “borrowed” it. It’s so nice! I recommend spraying it and rubbing it in with a daily moisturizer for the best coverage, but it’s so natural!
• We recently had a shed built for our backyard, and it inspired me to finally put in a cut flower garden (ten years after I originally wanted one, but who’s counting?) Floret Farm’s Cut Flower Garden book has been an invaluable tool for me! I have pages marked, lines highlighted, notes taken…and let’s be honest-the pictures are gorgeous!
• For all my tall girls out there, I saved the best one for last. Long leggings! I’m 5’9″, and I’d say my legs are about 5’7″ of that. I have never been able to wear leggings without tall boots because I couldn’t find them long enough. These leggings are awesome! I bought the 34″ inseam, but it goes up to 36 inches! They are also high-waisted and fit beautifully. You’re welcome.

WHEW! Pretty sure all that typing brought me to my blogging quota for the year. I’m exhausted. Ha! Well I hope you were able to find something from my list! If you’d like to see what my friends are suggesting, here’s some links for you! They are making me fill up my shopping carts, I know that much!

Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick

Chris at Just a Girl

Rhoda at Southern Hospitality 

Myquillyn at The Nesting Place 

Brooke at All Things Thrifty 

Stacy at Stacy Risenmay

The post Favorite Things 2020 first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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Melted candle supply list:

• Green bottles (shocker) I love the look of green bottles with candles, so it’s fortuitous that Proper Twelve is so cool-looking!
• Long taper candles
• Aluminum foil
• Lighter

Whatever you do. Make sure you place aluminum foil underneath the bottles. I may or may not have learned this lesson the hard way.

I found this box of candles at At Home. 10-12 inch candles will work. To get the candles into the bottles, hold a lighter to the bottom of the candle to warm it up. After a few seconds or so, place it into the bottle and twist it while pushing down gently. You’ll see that it forces the candle in and allows you to straighten it.

Here’s where the problem comes up. Taper candles today are made so they don’t drip all over. GREAT, candle makers of today. Thanks for making things better, therefore making things worse.

So there are a number of ways to actually get the wax to melt down the side. Essentially, you’ll need to make a channel for the wax to fall down. After some trial and error, I found that lighting another candle to burn said channel while also using wax from the candle I was holding worked best.

Don’t worry if that didn’t makes sense. Basically, you just need to help the candles along to get the wax to drip. Using a lighter or another candle is the best way. Melt it until you like the look, and you’re good to go!

I’m super pleased with how they turned out! It’s just the manly candle bottle decor I needed for some shelves. I can’t wait to show you more of the bar area! Don’t forget that I share lots of updates on Instagram if you want to follow me there!

The post Making Candle Bottle Decor first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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After years of putting it off, we finally added some outdoor lighting to our deck, and it. is. glorious. Not only that, but it’s super easy and relatively inexpensive to do! So that’s why I’m here. To teach you my outdoor lighting ways.

Supplies needed:

• A deck. This could be a patio. Or a porch? A floor with one wall?
• String lights. I recommend something industrial to hold up better.
• Fence posts (ours are 12 feet, cut down to 9 feet) I couldn’t find the exact one online, but I linked a shorter version of the one we purchased.
• Small caribiners for each point you attach to the house
• Eye hooks to drill into the wall
• S hooks for each pole
• Cordless Drill
• Hacksaw (if cutting down your fence posts)
• Zip ties (similar style) to match your poles

Ok, first things first. You’re going to want to figure out the layout of your lights. Zig zag, square around your space? It’s up to you! I’m showing you some poor-ish photos of the actual supplies I used.

There are obviously different means of hanging the lights on the pole, but we opted for drilling a small hole and inserting the S Hook into it. It seems to be holding (keep in mind, there is a lot of tension once they’re up), so I think it works!

Once we drilled the holes into the poles and put in the S Hooks, we attached them to our deck railing. Because we have metal railings, we couldn’t drill anything into them. Again-wing and a prayer here-we decided to zip tie them to the railings. We used 18-inch industrial ties.

Once we clipped off the ends, you barely notice them on the railing. Worth it even if you do see them!

Thennnn use the eye hooks to drill into your house (sounds scarier than it is!).

Attach the caribiner to the eye hook and then put the light cord into the caribiner.

I suggest placing the hook quite high up. I’d say around 9 1/2 feet. You want to allow a little room for the string lights to “swoop”, and you don’t want anyone hitting their heads.

Honestly, the hardest part of this whole project is figuring out the configuration of the lights. I only had to move one hook once I drilled it into the wall, and I wasn’t too upset about it. People shouldn’t be inspecting your house walls anyway!

Here you see the progression from late afternoon to evening, to night.

Va-Va-VOOM!

I haven’t written a tutorial in about 712 days, so my apologies if I forgot something! Feel free to watch the video version of this over on Instagram. I have saved it to my stories. Good luck!

The post Adding Outdoor Lights first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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I love it when I visit a place that is not only beautiful, but also offers up a history lesson that I didn’t realize I needed. We only visited for a day, and it was perfection. The weather was spot on, and we were able to wander through the city to discover all that it had to offer.

There were so many “oh my gosh!” moments for my husband and me. We took a tour to see the very apparent difference between West and East Berlin–even all these years later.

The ghost line of the Berlin wall runs through the entire city. We were in awe as we walked freely from side to side thinking about how many people would’ve been killed to do the same years ago.

We also saw the site of the book burning at the Bebelplatz. The memorial was an underground library at the site. So very cool to see this.

The bear became a symbol of Berlin, and we loved spotting the different variations of him through the city.

And this Halocaust Memorial was one of the most moving I have been too. Again, we wandered on our own just taking it all in.

I was able to have a geek-out moment when we saw that the Ante Nationalgalerie was hosting an Impressionist art exhibit. It is my favorite art, and I couldn’t believe it was being showcased while we were there!

Case in point? This is me geeking out. It was amazing to see their brush strokes! Their signatures! Ugh. Love you, Claude.

There is SO MUCH more I could share about Berlin, but know that I wasn’t overly thrilled about visiting…and then I was hardcore proven WRONG. It was beautiful AND historical. I highly recommend!

The post Just a Girl Travels: Berlin first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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I’ve had shelves on this wall for years, but they were no longer functional for me. I loooooves me some travel, so I wanted to expand the many treasures I’ve been collecting over the years. So…the corkboard moved on in.

Because you have to use such a strong adhesive for the cork roll, I really didn’t want to adhere directly to the wall. We purchased some inexpensive plywood, cut it to the size of the wall, and installed it with some screws. Don’t forget to cut openings for any outlets you may have on a wall too!

This is where husband exits, and I enter stage right. The corkboard was my job. It was essentially a one-person job except for the very beginning. I needed another set of hands to help me line it up right, and then I was off to the races. Once you start putting the cork on the roll, there isn’t any room for error. So be sure to start in a corner and follow the wall down.

I used a notch trowel to apply the adhesive onto the wall and then smoothed the cork over it with a rolling pin. I was so nervous about bubbles, but the adhesive is a rockstar! No bubbles.

When it came to the edge of the wall, I used a sharp utility knife to just follow down the edge of the wall. It was so sharp, in fact, that it went right through the cork and through my thumb. Nothing a quick trip to the emergency clinic couldn’t take care of!

To finish it all off, I painted a corner piece of trim to match the wall and just used a small bead of wood glue to adhere it. Because the cork is thin enough, I just butted it up to my crown molding and my baseboards. No one would ever know that it isn’t trimmed out on the top and bottom edges, so it saved me a bunch of time!

Ok. You ready for your supply list? It’s short and clear-cut-but also imperative that you use the right materials.

Corkboard supply list

• Cork. I looked all over for the right roll. You could use soooo many variations of this, but I didn’t want ANY seams. Because of that, I spent more money. I found cork rolls at Bangor Cork. They were the best price, and they had so many options! I purchased a roll and had it cut to 8 feet-the height of my ceilings. Seriously-it was worth the extra money because it looks so streamlined!
• Notch trowel. It doesn’t have to be anything specific–just something that has teeth to spread the adhesive on the wall and give the cork something to stick to.
• Flooring Adhesive. This was the star of the show. It was forgiving enough that I had a moment to adjust, but once it started to set, there was no moving it! I was glad for that because, as I said before, I was so worried this was going to turn out horribly. Yay for not failing!
• Utility Knife. If you’re looking to cut your thumb off, might I suggest this utility knife? I kid-sort of-but this knife is super sharp. It did what I wanted it to do!
• Rolling Pin. Another star was my old rolling pin. It made it so much easier to smooth out the cork.

Well after all those cruddy iPhone photos, here’s a better one to remind you of the finished corkboard wall.

I really love it, and I hope the directions were clear enough! If you want to see more of the finished corkboard wall, go here!

The post How to Install a Corkboard Wall first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

| Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest |

By dead wall, I simply mean it isn’t really seen by guests (therefore, it doesn’t matter if it’s not particularly tidy), and it was a space where I didn’t really have room to do something with furniture. For reference, you can see where it is in relation to the front door. You can also see how my dog moved when I told him to get out of the way.

Here’s some detail of things I included. As for what I display, I love to pick up art, maps, license plates, ornaments, patches, coasters, pamphlets, etc. I come home, sort through the items, and disregard things that I won’t need or want to keep. This way I don’t have any regrets when I get home and wonder, “Why didn’t I pick that up when I was there?!”

The best part about it? It brings. me. joy! I look at it ALL the time, and I find myself rotating items so I can refresh my travel memories.

It was a relatively easy process-so easy I’m looking to do it in another space later. If you’d like to see how we did it, you can check out the tutorial here!

The post Corkboard Wall first appeared on Just a Girl Blog.

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Chris

Well, hello. Ahem. Allow myself to introduce..my..self. My name is Chris! And I’m a blogger! I got into blogging after spending months reading all the inspiration that is found in blogland. I thought to myself, “Self, I can do this. I might have something to offer too!” And so it began...

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