Hey there! It’s been a while, but I’m back. It was never my intention to disappear from the blogging world the way I did, and I even tried to jump back in a few times, but it was never the right time. I’ve spent the past month and a half preparing for my reemergence into blogging, so this time it’s for real (promise!) Before I get any further: let me clarify why I left the blogging world. There is no dramatic excuses or crazy answers, but I was simply burnt out. I’ve been blogging for almost five years now, and…

Growing up, I spent hours on YouTube watching MeganHeartsMakeup and JuicyStar07 all whilst cursing my awkwardness and my lack of natural charisma that seemed necessary to make it on YouTube. The idea of being a YouTuber seemed glamorous and exciting. The execution? Not so much. Secret time: When I was fourteen I actually had a beauty YouTube channel. It was top secret and 10/10 embarrassing. It didn’t last long, though. I got to my first 1,000 subscribers and then I was terrified that people from school would find out so I put all of my videos on private and slunk away into…

I interrupt your usual June travel–related programming to share an exciting update… I was interviewed on Live TV today! Locally, we have a talk show called Paula Sands Live that I grew up watching after school. Paula is as much of a Quad Cities staple as John Deere Headquarters or the Mississippi River is, so when I was invited to be on the show I had to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. Paula Sands Lives features local people, events, charities, businesses, and everything in between and gives them a platform to talk about whatever it is that they do. Blogging…