Skip to main content

Virtual Hugs to Five Amazing Women

Blogging is at the same time incredibly personal and in-your-face public. When I hit publish I never know whether or not someone will comment. I don't know whether people who read it think I'm crazy. So, when Holly Becker suggested giving our favorite bloggers a virtual hug, I was in.
 
Five Bloggers Who Inspire Me
 
Here are five bloggers who make my days brighter:
  • Nicole of Making It Lovely: The first homework assignment of Blogging Your Way had us identify five blogs we read that we couldn't be like. I loved Nicole's blog for how open she was about her life. In my journal, I noted I couldn't be like her because I didn't have children and I wasn't likely to own a home in this lifetime. Since then, I've taken two Blogging Your Way classes that Nicole co-taught. I've learned so much from her; where this blog is today is due to her help and guidance. (At Alt, I got incredibly tongue tied and barely managed to say thank you.)
  • Kathleen of Jeremy and Kathleen: I knew Kathleen and I could be kindred spirits when I read her story of hopping in a boat with a stranger and going on an adventure. (I have a similar story from when I lived in Austin.) I loved how she lets her personality shine in her blog and at work. Having worked in many corporate environments where someone was always commenting on how I was dressed or how I was acting, I've often felt like I've lived two lives -- what you see at work and what you see when I'm just being me. This past Fall I got the opportunity to take a series of eCourses that Tara (Kathleen's sister) and Kathleen offered on personal branding, content curation, and customer focus, which has helped me merge my personal and my professional lives. If you ever need a kick in the pants to do something that scares you, check out Kathleen's blog.
     
Crafting Thank You Cards
 
  • Lisa of With Style and Grace: Lisa's enthusiasm for her first and her second Alt convinced me that I really really should go to Alt. I've followed her blog -- and her -- through two (soon to be three) moves, the launch of her coaching business, and the birth of her son. I haven't commented on her blog in awhile, interacting lately on Twitter and Instagram, but she still continues to inspire me, especially with how she's blending talk of her son Mason on her blog.
  • Ez of Creature Comforts: I first learned of Alt through Ez. She wrote about getting to go to Alt and speak. None of the other bloggers I followed then were talking about Alt. I looked up the conference and thought I wasn't ready yet. It gave me the motivation to work towards getting my brand and my blog to a place where I'd be ready for Alt. This year was my first Alt, I'd hoped to run into Ez to thank her in person for positively impacting my life, but our paths didn't cross. Maybe they will in California; she's moving to where I used to spend summers and some of my family still lives.
  • Melissa of Lulu the Baker: Melissa was one of my roommates at Alt this year. Over the fall and winter I started following her blog and let me say this, I wish I lived in Oregon. She's the type of person that makes everyone feel welcome. Co-hosting Hello Social with Lexy of The Proper Pinwheel so that all of us first timers wouldn't feel overwhelmed, and surprising me with a welcome basket filled with goodies, baked waffle cookies (which I managed not to wolf down in one seating, so delicious), honey from her farm (I've never known anyone who raised bees before!), and more.
How do you recognize those who inspire you?
 
Ciao Bella!
Eden!
 
Credits: All layouts designed by and images taken by Eden Hensley Silverstein for The Road to the Good Life.

Popular posts from this blog

How to Store Fresh Winter Squash, Potatoes, Onions, and Garlic

I love a well organized kitchen and pantry. Sadly, since moving to San Francisco, all of the places I've lived have lacked a pantry. No pantry means one has to get creative with storage. Some solutions, while pretty, aren't always best at keeping food. I'm now on a mission to organize my kitchen with prevention of food spoilage in mind.     Right now winter vegetables are available from our CSA, some of which I'm not very familiar with -- hard or winter squash varieties for example. And, with cubes until recently on a soft foods diet we didn't go through what I was buying as quickly as before. So, I was seeing potatoes turn green or shrivel. Squash rot. Garlic turn to dust. Seeing this waste a light bulb went on: I must be storing the vegetables wrong. To my cookbooks and the Internet I went in search of the right way(s) to keep them. And I discovered, or rather confirmed, I was doing it wrong.   General Guidelines for Storing Vegetables Most of us don't hav...

8 Best Places to Get Texas BBQ Shipped to Your Door

( updated September 27, 2023 ) Depending where you're from, BBQ is sure to get a crowd fired up. Just try to convince a Texan that Kansas City, Memphis, or Carolina Style BBQ is the best--I guarantee you're sure to see fireworks. Sadly in the San Francisco Bay Area, Texas BBQ is in short supply--rotisserie is more our style. So when I've got a craving, I head to my Texas favorites and have the BBQ shipped.     After years of getting Texas BBQ shipped, here are my top 8 places to get Texas BBQ shipped to your door. Along with my favorites, I'm sharing tips for ensuring your Texas BBQ arrives in time for your special occasion.   How do you like your BBQ? Dry rub or Sauce? Texas, Kansas City, Memphis, or Carolina Style?     Read on for my favorite meats along with the places in Texas to get them shipped from!  

new? start here.

( updated 02/24/2022 ) Welcome! Nice to meet you!   I’m Eden, a fourth-generation Californian. Together my husband, 9.75 year old daughter, and Maine Coon/Ragamuffin rescue cat are in the process of unpacking and nesting in our new 100+ year old Craftsman in Berkeley, CA (until this past December we called a 100-year old, a 847 sq ft Edwardian flat in San Francisco home). We define The Good Life with haves not wants and experiences not things.     What's your story?