Okay – I thought it would be fun to start doing tradition blog posts with you guys! I’m thinking every Tuesday with be Tuesday shoe day? Every 1st of the month I’ll share my monthly must haves & Every 3 months I’ll do a life update to fill you guys in on what’s going on with me, my goals for the month/all the things I’m loving! I’m brainstorming up some more but for the moment that’s all I got 😂

So, here goes the first “Life update”! Let’s do this …

what’s been going on and what’s to come?

So last month was crazy busy & this month is not. I am 100% looking forward to NOT having anything major to do!! Last month I visited Colorado and Boston + New York, while I love vacationing they kinda interrupt the swing of things and it makes it hard getting back in the motion! All that’s on my calendar for this month and next is Hayden’s communion, my best friend Vanessa’s baby Kollins’ baptism and Boston again at the end of may!

I’m excited about this Boston trip because it means my brothers coming home & because we are making it a girls trip with my aunt Renee!

I also have a little hair project I am working on that is pretty exciting & a big deal butttt I’m still tweaking the details so I can’t wait to share with you guys in hopefully a few weeks!

NOLA to do’s for me right now..

I have a few Nola restaurants on my mind right now, I want to get to Turkey & The wolf & bakery bar! OINK,ONIK! I’d also love to make it to French quarter fest one day this year.

Others on my list include some boat days on the lake & I’m craving a Sunday funday in the quarter – I will probably bug Ryan or someone else to do that soon so get ready people if y’all are on my list of besties to bug!

Goals for this month..

• Start and finish reading “BODY LOVE“. This is a book I’ve heard tons of things about, it talks about finding your comfortable weight and knowing your body’s do’s and dont’s so that food is not always a constant thought or battle for you! I need a little extra motivation right now and reading a health book always seems to help!

• Extra family time is on my list right now. I have been so slammed I tend to let the days and hours get away from me. I need to be intentional about my time & what’s most important at the end of the day!

• Get my closet more organized #springcleaning

• Finally watch “The Greatest Show Man” I started this the other night but couldn’t hold my eyes open!

• Complete the BBG ( bikini body guide ) on the sweat app! So I downloaded this app and this week is my first week in! It’s a four week program for the first set and continues on to different levels as you become stronger!

Stores that I am loving..

Forever 21 , always a great pick for trendy and inexpensive clothes! American Eagle , okay NEVER would I have thought this was on my list. It totally is, their summer stuff is SO CUTE right now! Trust! Free People , this is an expensive problem but I can’t help it!

Blogger that inspires me..

Emily Gemma. I’ve been following her for years! I am obsessed with her style & closet, although I can rarely afford everything in it! I also really love her style of blogging and how she is just SO real with her followers + she is really good with stories and lets you into her daily life! Check out her blog here.

Last movie I saw that’s worth talkin’ about…

Coco, I watched it on the plane on the way to Boston. I am aware that I am 29 but I am a sucker for a good Disney movie! The story behind this was so cute & is all about following your dreams even if your not doing what everyone thinks you should be!

That’s it for my first official life update post! If you guys want to shop anything in this post, like that body love book, scroll down to the slider & it’s all there! Just click the arrows 🙂 I hope you all have a fabulous Thursday!

XoXo, Chelsey Rae

📸 : Nina Celie

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okay, soooo – is it just me or does anyone else feel like socializing with our girlfriends ( or really anyone ) here in good ol’ New Orleans pretty much consists of eating food?! Pahaha! I feel like anytime me and one of my friends get together it’s planned around food! It’s funny because when I’m trying to diet I end up being completely unsocial because I won’t leave the house to go to dinner!

Now your probably thinking just have some self control and go eat with your friends. BUTTTT, I don’t & then that would defeat the whole point of this post!

The other day I met up with my friend Katie. We used to work together & she actually used to babysit me (which we now think is funny because she’s technically only like 3 or 4 years older then me I think, but she was basically there to watch my brother seth who was a psychotic little child and I couldn’t handle him, so, I’d be peace out I’ll be riding my bike around the streets if you need me). Anyways, She’s getting into this whole blogger thing too & with both of us trying to make it in the big blogger world we thought it would be fun to get together and takes some pictures! (P.S.- check her out & giver her a Instagram follow)

Let me just tell you, we had SO much fun! We ran from place to place obviously taking pictures but it was honestly pretty cool to check out some of the new things downtown even if it was just to pop in and move along! We maybe might have ate ice cream but it was totally for picture purposes!

It got me to thinkin’ why not do different things like this with my girlfriends all the time!?

I brainstormed and wanted to share a list of a few ideas I have to save you from eating with your friends pahaha!

• Plan a half day to check out new things in your city

Even if something’s on one end of the city and somethings on another hop in the car and check some things on your list of things you want to see off or even stroll around if it’s a pretty day!

• Clothes swap

Bring some things over to your friends house and swap! Obviously clothes you’ve already worn and are over! Maybe she likes a shirt and you like a dress! Swap em’ out!

• Movie Date

Every month me and my friend Mel try to go see a girlie movie that we know the boys obviously wouldn’t be into! We always have fun & this is so simple and easy to plan!

• Have a beauty night

Head to one of each other’s houses and try out some beauty masks or different beauty products you’ve been wanting to try!

• Get crafty

Pick a craft you both like and get to makin’. Think of something like D.I.Y. painted wine glasses or tumblers!

• Meet for mani’s + pedi’s

This is always a good option that’s easy to plan as well! Pick your place and meet up!

• Wine & cheese night

Head to someone’s house and do a wine & cheese tasting! I mean whoooo doesn’t love cheese? And wine actually?!

if y’all have any other ways y’all bond with your sistaasss leave them in the comments below!

XoXo, Chelsey Rae

📸 : Nina Celie

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Hey y’all! It’s Thursday! Yay for that!!! I’m excited about this weekend because we are having a crawfish boil and ry makes the BEST crawfish!!! Other then that we are laying low because next weekend we’re on to another vacation! Boston + New York!

Now, here’s the kicker & why I’m writing this blog post … we have a DAY in New York! Literally flying in at about 7:00 AM and hopping on a plane back to Boston at 11:30 PM.

I have been to New York and have to say my opinion of it is a little unlike the general public’s … I feel like everyone LOVES it. Me? Ehhhh, I could never go again and be totally content. I’m a BEACH girl! I like sunny vacays where I get to lay around and be in and out of the water! New York to me is just a bunch of sight seeing + shoppin’ and let’s be honest by now y’all know I don’t need New York to shop … I’ll do that any and everywhere!

Ryan’s excited because he’s never been so my goal for this day is to really see anything he is SUPER into seeing/doing and to eat at 3 REALLY YUMMY PLACES!!

So, I need to know, what are some of y’alls

New York MUST DOES & MUST EATS? Comment below and share them with me!!!

Looking forward to reading about all of y’all a favorites!

XoXo, Chelsey Rae

📸 : Krista Cheramie

Shout out to my good friend Krista for this pic and lots more to come! I’ve known Krista for about 8 years now. We met when H2O was doing honey bee hair, she was good friends with one of my best friends Michelle and she’s kinda stuck with me since that 😜 Shes the cutest little momma & one of the sweetest girls I know because she’s always thinking of others! In the mix of her busy mom life she’s an amazing photographer so if anyone needs their photos taken, shes your girl!

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Hey guys! It’s currently 11:27 and I can’t sleep because I’m so excited about our trip! I figured why not use my time wisely to blog!

I wanted to do a little post on some of the things I do that help packing be a breeze! I know a lot of people get overwhelmed when it’s time to pack for a trip but there’s a few little things to save some space in your suitcase & your sanity!

• Plan ahead

I know this sounds crazy, but one to two weeks before I will start making a little pile of clothes on the chair in my closet. I’ll throw things on there that I know I want to take but won’t be wearing/needing till then! This makes it easy when it’s time to really get down to business because you already have some things ready to go

• Make a list

This is so simple & SUCH a game changer! How many of us have left the house and 10 minutes into the plane ride your like, ohhh shit! It’s the worst! I normally tend to do this with things in my bathroom – hair ties, contact solution, round brush, shampoo & conditioner etc. trust me I’ll stop now because we could be here all day! As I’ve gotten older & wiser 😉 I started to realize making my own little check list is SO helpful!!

• Plan your outfits / Picture them

Okay this is a BIG one for me! This saves me stress on my vacation & space in my suitcase! Let’s be real, if you already know what your wearing there’s no option for over packing! I always think up outfits before I leave and even go as far as taking pictures of them! This is nothing fancy, below pictures is literally all I do just so I can go through my phone and know oh this went with this and blah blah blah! Again, this might sound extreme HOWEVER … it’s totally not! It honestly takes the stress away of “oh lord what am I going to wear today” while rummaging through my suitcase full of 10 pairs of shoes I didn’t need! This is a little bit of effort that goes a LONG way!

• Check out the weather

I don’t know if this is just something everyone starts doing as they get older or if this is something I started doing after a bad experience in Boston lol! One time we went and it snowed like crazy and I had absolutely no snow shoes/attire with me! This. Was. Dumb. This might be something everyone does but if you don’t, you should! It saves you from packing flip flops when you need rain boots & saves your wallet from having to buy stuff while your there!

So, those are just a few little steps of mine that I think really help me out when it’s time to pack up my bags! You have so many other things to take care of before you leave for vacation so simplifying this takes one stressful thing out of the picture!

Its officially time for me to hit the sheets & if this post is all over the place, I doooo apologize because I was dozing in and out while writing pahaha!! Btw, I’m wondering if anyone else has any cold trips in their near future? Or if anyone’s ever been to Keystone, what’s the must dos?

Let me know!

XoXo, Chelsey Rae

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Hey guys! With Valentine’s only a few short days away I wanted to share a post all about ways we can spend time with our better halves!

We all know we can get caught up in the hustle and bustle of our busy day to day lives but spending time together doesn’t have to always be a major to do! Making little changes here or there can work some major magic!

Its easy to turn to the normal dinner & a movie scenario but here’s a list of some ways me and Ry spend time together & some ideas I’d even like for us to take on!

• get cookin’

I love getting in the kitchen with Ryan! Whether one of us is running the show or we’re making something together it’s always fun just hanging out it the kitchen with each other! It makes for a good time to get together and chat about your day or anything exciting that’s going on! Plus it’s kinda a good way to accomplish something together, that sounds silly but it’s true!

• play a game

Basically think channeling your inner child! I’m cracking up typing this because I’m thinking, now THIS is something I have to say we are really good at! We obviously play games when Hayds around but we’ll pull a game out just us too as well! It’s fun to have a little friendly competition! We’ll play a board game, pull out a pack of cards or I’ll even try to leave him in the dust on Mario Cart (it’s always the other way around though). Klask is so fun, it’s like a mini air hockey & I love skip-bo!

• break out the bikes

Okay, I LOVE riding bikes in general! Hopping on a bike is a great way to get some outdoor activity in together, and on a pretty day there’s nothing better then getting some sunshine with your best friend! One time me and Ryan road all the way from my house on the bayou to port of call! I will say I wouldn’t recommend a monsoon & bike driving considering I bit the dust on the way home, BUT we had SO much fun & I laughed the whole way home even with my bloody wrist!!

• pick out a show

Um how fun is it to share excitement for the same show coming on every Monday night haha!? This sounds silly but again it’s something small and simple that gets you to unfocus about everything else and hop on the couch together!

• unplug

Talk about or schedule certain times the phone should be off limits. Maybe you’ll both say dinner is a time to stay off the phones. Or maybe for a hour at this time at night or that time. Just an idea! This is something I really try to be conscious of. Although I’m not always the best at it, at least I can acknowledge it’s important!

• get a common interest or hobby

Have one together, or make it a point to be interested in the others hobby! It’s important to have your own hobby as well but being supportive of your significant others or having a common one is a great way to bond & spend time together! Pick a room in the house to redo or a certain goal to reach together!

• hop in bed

Ahh this isn’t going where ya thinkin’ (although that’s important and all too). This is simply what it says. Every night me and Ryan go to bed together! Even if I’m not totally ready for bed, I love to be able to lay with him for a little while and chat before we go to sleep! This was never a priority to me but in the time we have been together it’s just something I have made a thing and I think it plays a important roll in ending our day together! Now once he rolls over I normally get on my phone, do what I’m doing now (blog) or catch up on my emails! I’m not saying there’s never a night I don’t stay in the den and watch a movie or something but I could probably count that on one hand!

• do a chore

Okay, what makes doing a chore better? Obviously doing it with someone else 😂 duh! Maybe I’m a weirdo but I really don’t mind standing in the laundry room with Ry folding some clothes! Or even straightening out something here or there! I think this is always a good thing because your accomplishing something together!

Now obviously I’m just sharing some of my ideas – I am in no way the queen of loveeee, but I do genuinely attribute some of the nature of my relationship to these little habits we have/make!

I’m linking some of our favorite games & things you can use to make your Valentine’s Day special/use to spend time together below in my shop the post slider!

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I also wanted to share the cute sweater I have on from TOBI it’s so comfy! I’m linking it HERE for you guys!

If any of you guys have any different ideas or special ways you get your time in together or just fun out of the box things you do with your significant other you have to share with me!

XoXo, Chelsey Rae