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Saturday, July 29, 2017

24 Deep Questions About Me - Kathleen

This is round number two because I accidentally published the other one...

Hi guys!! How are you? School is coming up and I can't wait for the back to school posts! Today I have something kind of like the 30 Questions About Me posts, but a little deeper. Lets get started!

1. When was the last time you tried something new?
I think the last time I tried something new was this past summer. We went up to Minneapolis for Independence Day, and while we were there we went kayaking down the Mississippi River. I thought the water would be rough with lots of rapids. Basically like the St. Louis part of the river. But it was actually really chill. I had fun and got a really bad tan line.

2. Who do you sometimes compare yourself to?

Honestly, I don't compare myself to people that much... Really I just admire people who I want to be like. Jess Conte, Collette Butler, etc.

3. What's the most sensible thing you ever heard someone say?

I haven't actually heard someone say this, but it's a quote that I try and live my life by:

"The secret is to never lose sight of the simple, everyday miracles of life. Good food, literature, laughter, music, compelling conversation, nature, and art. Look for them in every day, and even when it feels like your whole life is unravelling, you will never be too far from a needle and thread."
- Beau Taplin (Needle and Thread)

4. What makes you excited about life?

I am so excited to just live my life as gracefully and mercifully that I possibly can. If that makes any sense...

5. What life lesson did you learn the hard way?

I learned that you can't let yourself be shy and you have to get out there. I was not even that shy. But it was enough that I was afraid to speak up and now I have anxiety because when I get in an aggravated situation where people are angry, I have anxiety attacks because I feel like I can't do anything about it.

6. What do you wish you spent more time doing 5 years ago?

I wish I had spent more time getting out there and talking to people for the same reason I mentioned above. I also wish I worked out a bit more, but doesn't everybody? 😄

7. Do you ask enough questions or settle for what you know?

I think this goes both ways. Sometimes I ask too many questions and other times I assume things and end up messing up. Lately I've been trying to slow down and think things through, not only so that I don't miss something, but also so that I don't look stupid.

8. What do you love and what are you doing about it?

I really love photography... and to be honest with you, I'm not doing anything about it... I'm trying to find something I can do in college that helps me towards being a professional photography and having my own business.

9. What is a belief you hold to that most people don't agree with?

Yikes... Sorry Emma we might lose a few views over this...
There are two beliefs that I will always without a doubt hold to. Number one is about abortion. I am a whole-hearted Pro-Life supporter. The second is that I believe in waiting until marriage. I think I might even be taking a vow never to kiss until my wedding day.

10. What can you do today that you couldn't do a year ago?

I can impact so many other people's lives through this blog. That's so crazy to me (even though only six people follow us.)

11. Do you think crying is a sign of weakness or of strength?

It depends on what you are crying about. If you are crying about having to do the dishes, then darling, you're gonna have to toughen up. If you are crying about something you did wrong, then I think it is a sign of strength because you are able to admit that you did wrong and show how sorry you are.

12. What would you do differently if you knew that nobody would judge you?

I would probably become a vlogger... It sounds stupid but I really want to do that.

13. Do you celebrate the things you do have?

I certainly do, but I also realize that I do put a lot of value in material goods.

14. What is the difference between living and existing?

The difference between living and existing is simple. Living is loving, and learning, and experiencing new things. Existing is eating breakfast out of a box, going to work in a box, working in a box, coming back home from work in a box, living in a box, staring at a box for 5 hours a day, and then dying in a box.

15. If not now, then when?

Later. And this is why people aren't happy. Because they procrastinate their way through life.

16. Have you done anything lately worth remembering?

If you are answering by happy, life memories, at my cousins lake house on the 4th of July, we were in a boat parade. We went as Moana, and we danced around on a boat. We placed third. It was so much fun.

17. What does your joy look like today?

I think today, my joy is pink. Childish (finding happiness in everything) and simple.

18. Is it possible to lie without saying a word?

Totally. If you were cheating on your boyfriend you would instantly be lying about your relationship.

19. If you had a friend who spoke to you the same way you speak to yourself, how long would you remain friends with that person?

I don't know. Maybe like a year... I feel like I speak kindly to myself, but maybe I push myself a little to hard sometimes.

20. Which activities make you lose track of time?

Swimming, blogging, cleaning, shopping.

21. If you had to teach something what would you teach?

Probably history...not that I'm good at history, but it's the I would least likely fail at.

22. what would you regret not fully doing, having, or being in your life?

Doing: going to college.
Having: kids
Being: a mentor to someone

23. Are you holding on to something you need to let go of?

Yes. my dog. He's goin insane.

24. When you are 80 years old, what will matter to you the most?

When I am 80 years old, what will matter to me the most is how many lives I have changed.

Kathleen

Sunday, July 23, 2017

My Night Routine -Emma

Hey everyone!

We're trying to get a bit more active on the blog again, so I hope you all are enjoying the new posts! :P

Today I'm going to be showing you all my night routine! I've always wanted to be one of those YouTubers who makes routine videos and things but I've tried, and it's just not my thing. So I figured I'd do my little version of my routine in a blog post!

Without further ado, lets get to it!

7:00-

This is the time of night I normally get done with dinner. After dinner I take my puppy, Sadie, outside and spend some time with her, feed her dinner, playtime, that kind of stuff. Some nights if it's not too hot or rainy outside I take her on a walk around the neighborhood.


8:00-

After playing with Sadie for awhile, I change into my pajamas. I usually just wear some grey sweatpants/joggers (I'm obsessed, I have so many) and a tee shirt. After getting changed, I do my nightly skincare routine.



I don't wear makeup everyday, but when I do, I start off using the Neutrogena makeup remover towelettes. Let me tell you, these are amazing. There are a lot of makeup removers that irritate my skin or don't take off makeup well enough and you just have to keep scrubbing away, but these are amazing. They are a bit on the pricier side, but extremely worth it.

Next, I cleanse my face using the St. Ives Green Tea Scrub. I just recently started using this and it is AMAZING. My face cleared up from having a lot of acne in just a few days. It's a must try! Makes my skin feel so smooth and refreshed, and smells really great too. It's also pretty cheap compared to other cleansers, at only $4 at Target. 

The last step in my skin routine is to use the Clean & Clear Dual Action Moisturizer. It's really difficult to find a moisturizer that is oil-free (won't cause acne), and this one is perfect. It not only is oil-free but also helps treat acne. It made my skin visibly clearer immediately. 

After my skincare routine, I also brush my teeth and put in my rubber bands for the night. Yes, braces suck.

8:15-

After getting ready for bed, I watch T.V with my mom and sometimes Sadie for a little while. Right now we're re-watching Pretty Little Liars. We LOVE that show just like everyone else. Watching T.V before bed really calms me down and gets me ready to go to sleep. I know some people don't recommend it, but it works for me.

9:00-

Once we finish an episode of PLL, I take Sadie outside one last time to go potty, and then put her in her crate for the night. 

Before bed, I read. First, I read my devotional and whatever verse goes along with that day in the bible, then I read a normal book. I'm currently reading "The One" which is in the Selection Series. I'm obsessed with this series. If you liked the show "Reign", you'll love this series of books. While I read, I sometimes like to light a candle just because it's calming and gives that "good vibes" lighting.



10:00-

Before going to sleep, I check my Instagram, @emmalacroix, and Sadie's Instagram, @sadieonthemove. I also send out my last texts for the night, and that's about it.


Thank you all so much for reading! If you'd like to see more routines/day in my life blog posts, just let me know! Talk to you all again soon! :)

-Emma



Saturday, July 22, 2017

What's in My Travel Backpack & Steuby Pictures - Kathleen

It's been awhile... yikes...

I can't believe how irresponsible I am with this blog... I know I know, I keep saying that I'm gonna post more and get back too it, but lets face facts: I haven't. I've been taking drivers ed every morning at 8 am, and staying up late at swim meets, and traveling. (More on that later 😛) Now that isn't to say that I couldn't have written a post way before I left or before I got super busy because I could have. So. I'm taking responsibility for that and making up for it. I'm sorry.

So speaking of travel, I have a little list for you! This is what I travel with in my backpack!!

So this is my backpack...


I got this for Christmas in 2016. I don't know where Mom got it from. The one I originally wanted was from PINK but that one was pricey for a backpack. This one looks just like it and I love it!!! It has three little pockets in the front. The two on the side are smaller and perfect for chargers, lotions, or snacks. The bucket pocket is sort of rectangular and not as much of a cube as you might think. It has a small pocket on the inside that is perfect for your wallet.


The buttons are all made like this which, I think, makes it a lot easier to open and close the pockets. The buttons are also nice buttons. It won't be easy for someone to open your bag or pickpocket.

Let's move on to what I bring IN the bag.

Electronics
I can fit my laptop, tablet, and phone in this bag all at once. However, this bag wasn't made to protect a laptop. I also usually don't need to take my laptop with me very often. I usually just pack my tablet and phone here because that's all I will really need. I also make sure to pack my chargers. My phone charger used to work on my tablet, so that made it easier when packing, but I got a new phone and the chargers are just a little bit different. So now I have to pack both... what a first world problem! 😄

Hygiene
I always bring hand lotion, hand sanitizer, tissues, and chap stick in my backpack. If I think that I might have some anxiety wherever I'm going, I will bring a pack of gum as well. If you want a post on this (anxiety hacks/tricks) comment below and I will share my limited knowledge.
If I am going on a longer trip, sometimes I will bring a paper face mask to do or something like that.

Stuff to Do
Being a blogger, I have a notebook for ideas. That usually goes everywhere with me. I also usually bring a book or two for down time.

So this is really what I packed in my backpack for Steubenville, which I have pictures to show you! I'm not going to really explain most of them. You will be able to tell what/when they are based on what Emma told you.


Saturday night by the gym... getting ready for small groups


The sunrise Saturday morning



Waiting for Saturday morning session to start.


Saturday morning talk #1


Saturday afternoon talk #1


Vocation call (Priests)

Thank you so much for reading this post! I love you guys so much! I hope you enjoyed the pictures! Tell me in the comments if you want the Anxiety Tips/Tricks post! Thank you!

Kathleen
twodorkswithablog.blogspot.com

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Steubenville 2017 -Emma

So this weekend was life changing...

Hey awesome readers! It's Emma here, and this past weekend (July 14-16) I attended the Steubenville conferences in Springfield Missouri for the first time.

Kathleen graciously gave me rights to do the Stuebenville blog post since it was my first year going.. so thank you Kathleen!

I also have Kathleen to thank for encouraging me to go. She helped me along the way and I was super thankful for that because this past weekend turned out to be not just one of the greatest faith experiences of my life, but also one of the all time greatest.

This post is going to be pretty long if you couldn't already tell, because I'm excited and want to RANT! Okay? Okay.

So if you have never heard of Steubenville Conferences before you're probably like.. what the heck is this girl on about? You can check out their website here: https://steubenvilleconferences.com/youth/

The conference Kathleen and I went to was at Missouri State University in Springfield Missouri. It was about a 4 hour drive from where we are from, so it was a pretty long car ride (for me at least).

Now I'm gonna get vloggy.


Friday:

I got up bright and early at 5 AM to drop off Sadie at my boyfriends house for the weekend, I'm still very thankful he watched her for me. She can be quite the pain but she's adorable.

We all met at The Shrine at 9:00 AM to carpool. I was in a group with a lot of great people who I got to become close friends with over the weekend which was awesome.

We arrived around 4:00PM on Friday and by then I was exhausted. Or so I thought.

The moment we walked in on Friday night after rushing around from dinner I was already in love. My energy came right back immediately. When we first walked in I had that "Woah, what did I just walk into" moment. Everyone was having so much fun, dancing, singing, the music was amazing, it was like being at an awesome rock concert for Jesus.


After praise and worship and talks from different leader came adoration. Now I'm going to be honest with y'all. I'd never actually been to an adoration where I felt something. I always got distracted and couldn't completely focus. But this was different than any other adoration I had ever been to before.

I don't exactly know how to put it into words, but you could feel Christ's presence in the room, and everything was so quiet and still. Like everything just fell into place, and I just thought in my mind, "Wow, how could anyone not believe in God when you can feel his presence so strongly?"

It was amazing. I wish everyone could experience the feeling.

After that, around 11:30 PM, we had small groups. I wasn't a big fan. Probably because I'm shy, a bit reserved, and I'm not usually open to sharing my feelings with complete strangers.

Saturday:

Bright and early at 6:30, we were ready to start the day. Here's a photo of Kathleen and I getting hype for day 2 at the hotel.


On Saturday we had mass in the morning, which was amazing. They went through all the steps of the mass beforehand just talking about what everything meant for people who weren't Catholic. Even though I am Catholic, I found it interesting and useful to hear a refresher on what everything was for. 

Saturday was filled with workshops, singing, and bonding with friends. It was so much fun. One of my favorite workshops I went to was about Social Media. If you know me, you know I'm extremley addicted to social media and usually spend 40% of my day on my phone (not good, I know).

One of the things I remembered from the social media workshop that I wanted to share with you all is this little tip on making yourself a more positive person:

I challenge you all to unfollow every person who posts negative things from Snapchat/Instagram/Twitter (literally all social media sites you use), and for every person you unfollow, follow someone who will be a positive influence. 

I've already started doing this and it helps a TON! Seriously, please do it! You'll be so happy you did. 

We also went to a workshop just for girls and that was awesome too. Katie, the woman who was leading the talk, was absolutely amazing. She told us all this really amazing story about her writing to her future husband when she was in high school, and later found out that he came to God the same day she wrote the letter. No joke. You can check out her talk here if you'd like. 

Saturday night we had another night of adoration, this time even better than the first. I won't go into a ton of detail, but it was honestly just amazing. I don't really have any other words to describe it. I felt like I became even closer to my friends and Christ. 

You can also watch the whole Saturday night live stream here, including our awesome singing and dancing to Livin' on a Prayer and Let it Go. Yes, I'm serious. 


Sunday:

Sunday was sadly the last day. We started off the day with Sunday morning Mass, and more talks from leaders. Pretty much wrapping everything up.

At the end, they asked everyone to stand who would be interested in someday becoming a priest or nun if God was to call them to do that, and it was pretty moving. So many more people than I thought would stood up. Looking around, it made the Catholic church's future look very bright. 

Then it was time to leave.. and I guess that's all to say...



Overall, I had an AMAZING  weekend. It was moving, life changing, and brought me so much closer to my friends. The things I learned this weekend will help me make big life changes to help me become a better person and a better follower of Christ. I cannot thank everyone enough for the encouragement.

Thanks for reading through all of this! Hopefully there will be another post about 2018 Steubenville from either Kathleen or I next year!

-Emma