5 reasons why you should read blogs

As many know, blogging is my hobby.  And working with blogs?  Well it happens to be my full-time gig.  So as you can image, I often get a lot of questions about blogs.  How to start one? Which ones to read? What some bloggers are like in real life? How to get free stuff? But the question I get asked the most is, why do you read blogs?  In my opinion, reading blogs is such a personal experience.  We only read blogs that relate to our interests or life experiences (afterall isn't the point of blogging), but the ones we choose to read are based on personal tastes.  What I like to read may not make sense for others and while everyone has their own reason for reading blogs, I've put together my short list of the reasons why I encourage people to read them more often.

Reading blogs is like an intimate relationship and it all starts with a first date....

mom crush ~ caitlin murray giles

Name:  Caitlin Murray Giles

Stats:  Wife, mom of three, blogger at Wee Windy City and PR/marketing maven who is the co-founder of 2 Moms Media - an integrated marketing company that specializes in creating authentic connections with consumers, specifically women and moms.

Why she's crush worthy:  Caitlin is a mom and a darn good one at that, so it makes sense that as a career she helps her clients speak to moms in a way that makes them listen.  She gets to work with great companies like Red Tricycle, Bump Club and much more, so much that you wonder when she has time to balance being a mom, wife and well-known Chicago blogger - but she does it while making it look so effortless.  

Meet Caitlin and learn how she juggles it all with her thoughts on....

mom crush ~ johanna grange

Name:  Johanna Grange

Stats:  Wife to husband Jack,  mom to two beautiful girls (Liv & Lola), Sr. Account Executive at ChowNow and blogger/founder of 101 Things I Love.

Why she's crush worthy:  In reading Johanna's blog you automatically gravitate towards her keen sense of style, witty sense of humor, love for interior design and willingness to share the many highs/lows of life.  In every word she writes you embrace her passion and immediately think, "How does she have time to do it all and look so put together doing it?".  While she seldom mentions her full-time job in posts - she has one and she's damn good at it.  She's a woman who has great sense of style, amazing taste for food and appreciates a good glass of wine any time of day.  She's a girl after my own heart!

Meet Johanna and read how she manages to juggle many things in life without breaking a sweat.  

mom crush ~ lisa fergus

Name:  Lisa Fergus

Stats:  Wife, mother, fashion blogger and co-founder of a thriving online fashion site.

Why she's crush worthy:  Right off the bat, Lisa is a person that makes you have closet envy.  Just catch a peek at her blog Stilettos and Diaper Bags and you'll see what I mean.  However, she's more than just a fashionista, wife and mother.  She is a "momtrepreneur" who turned her love for fashion into a business...all because she proclaims that she shops too much.  Her online service called Because I Shop Too Much (BISTM) gives fashionistas an opportunity to buy, sell and swap clothes with other like minded women.  In between blogging full-time and starting her own business, she whips up some tasty looking gluten-free meals and makes time to enjoy date nights with her hubby.  Lisa is a great example for moms who aspire to turn their passion into careers and motivation for us moms to live in more than those black yoga pants!

life (lahyf) | dose market

Ever dream of an indoor market that gives you just a taste of the many great vendors and small businesses in your area?  Well that's what Dose Market offers here in Chicago.  This monthly market held in the River East Art Center brings together some of the best boutiques, services, artists, designers, restaurateurs and much more, under one roof.  It's a little less than a year young and I had been dying to go, but sadly up until this past weekend it never worked with my schedule.

This past weekend I finally got to check it out with blogger friends Johanna, Ashleigh, Jen and Zoe.  We wiggled our way from vendor to vendor, checking out everything from coconut lavender cream pie at Bang Bang Pies to designer goods from Luxury Garage.

There were tons of people within each aisle which made it a little difficult to maneuver at times, but the quality of vendors that participated made the cluster of people more manageable.  The vendors vary from month to month, but you can always expect: something delicious to eat, an item you wish you could add to your closet, a service you didn't know existed and a little random trinket that might change your life.

After walking around and checking out each vendor, we all couldn't resist the Cheese Dream guys who were making grilled cheese sandwiches to order.  They had a couple variations of grilled cheeses available, which made it hard to decide which one to order, but how could I resist anything with bacon?  So I went for the Beastie that was absolutely delicious and hit the spot.

If you've been wanting to check out Dose Market, I recommend going.  Just be prepared for a crowd, semi-long food lines, but an overall good time.

beau•ty (byoo-ty) | kelly from path to positive

Every week, I introduce you to a blogger who has been kind enough to share their story about a feature they love now that once brought insecurities and how they learned to love it. Together, these women will help re-define beauty in their own words and will hopefully help others feel more comfortable in their own skin because each of you are beautiful - you should feel that way everyday!

Meet today's beauty Kelly from Path to Positive.

What is your favorite feature that you didn't always love, but have learned to appreciate?

My lil elf ear.

I think I finally started liking it when my mom began telling me that my ear got stretched a bit when I was being born. 

Apparently, while she was pushing some angels grabbed a hold of my ear as a way to keep me in heaven with them. They were going to miss me too much. So she says.

What made you learn to love it?

I've come to love it through that story. Obviously, fictitious. But I just loved the idea of it. The magic behind it all.

Now I understand it's quite fun to have these little quirks.

They are what make us different and separate from the rest of the world.

There is no one else in the entire world that is like you. Pretty cool, huh?

Any advice for other beautiful women out there who struggle with being comfortable in their own skin?

Honestly, it took me a while to figure out what I was going to say.

There are so many image issues that women fight off on a daily basis. Sadly, it is all stirred by the mass media we unconsciously consume. I could've easily had said cellulite. But honestly, I may never come to terms with it. I may never love cellulite. I've been hardwired to loathe it. 

All I can say is that if you say you LOVE yourself. Then you should treat yourself accordingly. Talk about yourself in a positive light. Hug yourself. Thank yourself and in turn you will love that self of yours.

beau•ty (byoo-ty) | laura from the blog of worldly delights

Every week, I introduce you to a blogger who has been kind enough to share their story about a feature they love now that once brought insecurities and how they learned to love it. Together, these women will help re-define beauty in their own words and will hopefully help others feel more comfortable in their own skin because each of you are beautiful - you should feel that way everyday!

Meet today's beauty Laura from The Blog of Worldly Delights. 

1. What is your favorite feature that you didn't always love, but have learned to appreciate?  

It took me a long time, and sometimes I still struggle, but I've come to really appreciate my curves. I've never been a skinny girl, even though all my life I've always pined for a waifish figure. I was always jealous of my sisters who are sizes 0-2 because clothing seems to just drape off of them just as I imagine them when I see them on the rack. Growing up in Asia having my build/shape was hard. I was constantly teased because I was already 5 ft. tall when I was 8 and had already obviously hit puberty. That plus not being stick-thin fueled a lot of insults that stayed with me even though I'm pretty thick-skinned. I was also raised in a very conservative household/culture, and showing off one's figure is really frowned upon. So I wore a lot of baggy clothes to hide my shape. Now, I am more comfortable wearing clothing that shows it off and flatters it. 

2. What made you learn to love it? 

My husband actually made me learn how to love my curves. This is gonna sound cheesy/ borderline-NSFW, but he calls me his Venus Naturalis. As opposed to the Venus Caelestis, who is more ethereal, the Venus Naturalis figure is earthy, sensual, and very curvy. Think of a figure perfect for child-bearing (though I'm not thinking about kids right now!)-- full, rounded, and soft. My husband has really helped me realize that my shape is perfect just the way it is. I can try to mold it as much as I want to, but if I don't love myself now, when else will I ever do?

3. Any advice for other beautiful women out there who struggle with being comfortable in their own skin?  

I really believe that whatever insecurities women have with their bodies are purely mental. That said, it should be easy to change one's view on their bodies because all one has to do is change your mindset on it! I've been using this strategy shared by Bella (from One Sister's Rant), and it's really helped a lot! Every single day-- and especially at times when you don't feel so hot-- look at the mirror. Don't just glance. Don't just take a peek. Really LOOK at a mirror and tell yourself, "You are a beautiful woman." Do it as many times as you need until you feel the message has really sunk in. Once you know you're beautiful, you'll start acting more confident!  

life (lahyf) | chicago blogger crawl

Last Saturday I had the pleasure of attending the very first Chicago Blogger Crawl (#chibloggercrawl) hosted by Nikia of Chitown Fashionista.  Much like a bar crawl, we went from one Marshalls and TJ Maxx stores to another scoping out the variety of goods that each was carrying. 

The day started off at 9am, where we all re-grouped before our first store to catch up and get the layout of the day.  Nikia is so super organized that she put together this fabulous agenda full of attendee names, our blog sites, details for a fun scavenger hunt activity at each store and info on how we can share our adventures with our Twitter followers through a giveaway that was taking place while we went from store to store.

With all that fun information, a great playlist (c/o of Melvin) and eager shoppers - we were all prepared for our day to find some great items.  As you can tell from this group shot - we obviously were a fun bunch to be around the entire day.

attendees (l to r) | andrea | gabriel | nikia | rai-jean | dee dee | hallie | patrice | yours truly | jen | elise | mariposa | lisa

From store to store we wandered with intentions of finding the best deals and that we did.  Everything from Elise's Rebecca Minkoff bag and Hallie's Cynthia Rowley purse to Mariposa's throw pillows for her daughter's room- everyone walked away happy with their purchases, but more importantly their great deals and money saved.

By the end of the day, we not only picked out some of the best things from all three store locations, but knew so much more about each other.  We spent our time in the van talking about life, blogging, shopping and food, that by the end of our trip I almost didn't want it to end.  Thanks to our wonderful hostess and her hubby (also driver of the day) Melvin, I spent a good portion of my Saturday bonding with some other fabulous bloggers who I can proudly say are real life friends.

*A HUGE thank you goes out to Nikia and Melvin for planning the day.  In addition, thanks to all the folks at each TJ Maxx and Marshalls for letting us take over the stores, and last, but not least, Kellogg's Special K for providing us with gift bags full of food to fuel us throughout our trip.

fash•ion (fash-uh n) | sorel boots

Living in Chicago any local will tell you that it's mandatory to have some good Winter boots - and no Uggs don't qualify for many reason.  I'm talking about boots that not only keep your mootsie tootsies warm, but can also stand the harsh weather conditions and are stylish.  Those are the only things that need to be checked off your list when shopping for a pair and thankfully Sorel boots pass that test with flying colors.

Last week I was lucky enough to join my friends Andrea, Lisa, Emily, Merl and Grace to check out Sorel's new collection at the Step Into Style event hosted by Daily Candy.  Timed perfectly with the first snowfall of the season, Winter boots were on my mind that day and who better to look for new boots with than my fashionable blogger buddies?

With Voga Italia wine and Sprinkles cupcakes in hand, we gallivanted around the store to scope out the latest collection.  Over the last few years I was obsessed with Sorel's Caribou boots, but this season I'm totally crushing on the Tofino's.  These boots are stylish enough to throw on when commuting to work in a massive snow storm, but are also perfect to wear on a cool, crisp and laid back Winter day.

By the end of the night we not only overstayed our time at the on-site photo booth, but we each found a pair that we loved just in time for us to be prepared for the "worst" Winter we're expected to have.  Overall it was a great night to hang with my lady friends who not only let me act like a fool, but tolerate it.  Have I mentioned how much I love these ladies?

|Do you have a criteria when choosing a pair of Winter boots?|

*Thanks to Trisha at Daily Candy for hosting us ladies and Voga Italia for the wine, as well as a pair of Sorel boots. Lastly thanks to Andrea for taking all these wonderful pic!