SPONSORED POST: This is a paid post. The Road to The Good Life chose to work with McDonald's for their commitment to providing nutrition information about their food and offering families choices that accommodate allergens and stretch their budget dollars. I am part of the Mom It Forward Blogger Network . All opinions presented are my own.   McDonald's and healthy: two words that thanks to Super Size Me ( *affiliate link ) aren't words you immediately associate with one another. But have you been to McDonald's lately? Sure McDonald's still sells hamburgers and fries, but there are now smaller portions and healthier options available. Having grown up only eating hamburgers and fries at McDonald's it's rare that I try something new when I visit. That's changing starting now.   What's your favorite thing to order at McDonald's?     Last week I had the opportunity to join a few other bloggers, a couple of nutritionists, and some McDonald's...

Technology connects all of us and has made the world a much smaller place. But, there's still something about an in person meeting and connection we crave and seek out as humans. As a freelancer or often the sole Marketing person at a start up, I turned to conferences to find inspiration and likeminded creatives with whom I could brainstorm and collaborate.     Depending on why you're attending a conference and what you're hoping to get from it, you may be disappointed or you may be elated.   Sadly, I find many of the people I interact with are in the first camp--they're disappointed.   Even worse, I also find that many people don't see any long-term benefits. Want to see those long-term benefits? Follow these five tips guaranteed to maximize your investment.   What conferences do you attend? What are your goals for attending conferences?  

My relationship with fashion has been one filled with tension and contradiction. I'd watch old movies with Katherine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich, Elizabeth Taylor, and I want to be like them. Unabashed. In control of whatever room they walked into. Unafraid. Confident.     At the time, I formed an opinion of who they were as women from the clothes their characters wore. Later as I studied the women, reading biography after biography, I learned that they were trailblazers and actively shaped the clothing their characters wore. Attire mirrored and magnified their personalities. And even more than ever I wanted to be like them.   How do you define your style?  

For this month's Cricut Design Space Star Challenge , Team 12 decided to throw a Roaring Twenties birthday party for one of our girlfriends. Because my friend Emily of The JetSetting Fashionista is celebrating two years calling San Francisco her home this month, I decided I would throw her a "birthday" party.     Roaring Twenties and Art Deco always bring the 1920s silent film Metropolis to mind. So I had to look no further than the San Francisco skyline for inspiration where I found the San Francisco Marriott Marquis. The hotel has levels of gorgeous art deco windows that I wanted to replicate through layering in my design.  

SPONSORED POST: This is a paid post. The Road to The Good Life chose to work with McDonald's for their commitment to providing nutrition information about their food and offering families choices that accommodate allergens and stretch their budget dollars. I am part of the Mom It Forward Blogger Network . All opinions presented are my own.   Growing up I wanted so much to fit in. At home I was happy, at after school activities I was happy, but during school hours I struggled to keep up appearances. Nowadays, I have no problem pulling back the curtain and revealing the magic: how I manage "The Good Life" on a budget (including the times I've almost exclusively eaten McDonald's to stretch my dollars).     We're taught from a very early age the importance of keeping up appearances. Our "lessons" come not from parents or educators, but rather from our peers under their unrelenting teasing. But, we need to stop keeping up appearances and start being ...

Fear. It can be a constant companion, with such a strong presence it almost feels like you have another person walking beside you. It can overwhelm you, leave you gasping for air. For me, fear often brought me to my knees through panic attacks, until I started standing up to fear and building confidence. Tackling fear is a momentous feat and one I began by choosing a purse (a purse you can win).     I used to never give my purse a second thought, after all it's just a convenience to hold one's phone, keys, and other stuff. I'd typically pick up one or two good sized bags in a neutral leather (brown or black), a small crossover purse for going out - also in a neutral leather - and one or two clutches for more formal affairs not necessarily in leather but in neutral colors with maybe a bow or some crystals for embellishment. Then came a bold BCBG Magenta clutch, and my life started to change.  

SPONSORED POST: This is a paid post. The Road to The Good Life chose to work with La Crema Winery for their dedication to handcrafted wines at reasonable prices. All opinions presented are my own.   Summer squash is one of those vegetables available year round in California, and similar to peppers and tomatoes is best when eaten in late summer/early fall. Right now there are many varieties of yellow squash and Patty Pan available at your local Farmer's Market.   My love affair with squash didn't begin until I was in middle school, and it began because my mother paired summer squash with bacon and tomatoes and served it over Ala (cracked wheat bulgur). (Seriously, my mother was a genius. Want to get a kid to eat their vegetables or try something new? Try my mom's trick: add bacon or substitute bacon grease for butter or oil. Because, let's face it. What kid doesn't love bacon? But, I digress.) I primarily love summer squash for the color it adds to food, but I al...

Everywhere you turn as a parent you are warned about too much device time for your kids. Yet despite all the warnings, there are few realistic alternatives offered, leaving parents to figure it out as they go. So, I'm constantly researching and preparing activities for Gates, and was excited to try out Kiwi Crate , a themed monthly subscription for 3-8 year olds that includes all the materials and inspiration for two to three activities - art, science, games, imaginative play, and more.   How do you keep your kids away from the screen?  

( updated 3/9/2022 ) My favorite treat when I need a pick me up or when I'm celebrating is chocolate, usually paired with one of my favorite red wines: a Pinot Noir or a Zinfandel. So, when I had the opportunity to attend a wine and chocolate tasting a few years ago at the See's Candies at Church and Market Street (this location has since closed) I jumped at the chance.   What would you pair with your chocolate? At the tasting, we sampled See's Candies with Champagne, Merlot, Muscat Canelli, and Stout. For me, the most surprising pairing was a Muscat Canelli with a Key Lime Truffle. But that wasn't my favorite; read on to discover the obvious pairing I couldn't believe I'd never tried.  

Just in time for the Fall comes the first Family Dinner at The Station. I've spent the summer putting the finishing touches on recipes and discovering the limits of a kitchen powered by a single 15 amp circuit just so that I could offer your tastebuds a symphony of flavors and showcase local ingredients. And the menu I have lined up for you does just that.   Wherever I've traveled I've always found a way to host a family dinner. I've filled small apartments to capacity and taken over the hallways. I've commandeered the back of a box truck. I've pre-made, vacuum packed, and froze meals to reheat and serve in the Black Rock Desert. Now I'm excited to announce that I'll be hosting a family dinner around a real dining table, and you're invited!  

Belonging. Almost everyone wants to belong. To a community in which we feel appreciated and wanted. To a place where we put down roots. Communities and places conjure images in our minds; they are labels with general characteristics and beliefs. They have a defining edge and with that edge they have outsiders. And, lately I've been struggling with those labels.     With communities, the edges are often blurry and typically defined by and policed by the group. With places, outsiders are somewhat clearer--those who don't live in, who weren't born in, or who can't trace their ancestors back to that place. Yet, no one controls the labels we use to define ourselves; belonging is personal and not necessarily reliant upon the approval of others. Labels can get murky as "membership" changes. But is that bad? Or, are there certain labels we shouldn't use without permission? And, who gives permission?  

As part of our participation in the Cricut Design Space Star Contest , Cricut has given each team a Cricut Explore to give away to our readers. A Cricut Explore is a personal electronic cutting machine. Imagine taking a design you've dreamed up, pressing go, and having the paper and fabric cut out while you wait. That's a Cricut Explore.     Even if you've never used a Cricut Explore before, trust me you'll still want to enter this giveaway. It's easy to get started creating and once you make your first project, you're going to be hooked like I am. The ease at which it cuts complicated designs on paper is amazing. (Oh how I wish this machine existed in 2010, our wedding invitations would have been a breeze to make!)  

Innovating. Creating. Making. They all fascinate me. Whenever I'm stressed, suffering from writer's block, or feeling overwhelmed, I make something with my hands. The problem solving and frustrations of imagining something and bringing it to life are addictive. So of course I jumped at the chance to participate in Cricut's Design Space Star Contest and put a Cricut Explore Electronic Cutting Machine with Cricut Design Space Free Online Software (* affiliate link ), a personal electronic cutting machine, through its paces (and am excited to be giving one away!).   There's inherent joy in creating something from nothing. As the daughter of a mixed media fiber artist and third-generation civil engineer, making is in my soul, and I'm hoping in my daughter's as well.