And just like that we back!

So lets talk about how long its been, I honestly thought I might never return to this little space of mine and what has surprised me a ton is I was viewing my analytics and was kind of shook to see how many people still pop by to see if there is any new content and for the lack of content  I truly am sorry and more importantly thank you for showing the love even after such a long hiatus. 

I guess the more pressing question will be why have I returned ? where the heck have I been? I know a few loyal readers do follow on instagram where I'm more into stories but something that really got me thinking hmmmmm (insert the hand on chin emoji) maybe I do still have something of value to share here and even with such a long hiatus at least a few times a week I get some sweet collaboration offers all of which I have declined based on the fact that I felt can I still call myself a blogger or dare I say it"influencer" this word makes me cringe a bit. 

Plus there is such a burning desire to find out what this new chapter will look like, fellow bloggers can relate to this you go back into the archives and like you just more evolved or there is moments you are like gees I forgot how much I enjoyed this hobby there is a lot of memories that is captured in this beautiful blog world.

So with all that said , I look very forward to creating more content for you and me and thank you very much for visiting the blog today.

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Art is therapy

Hi all,

I'm so thrilled to be sharing  this fun collaboration. I have been saying for ages I wanted to brighten up my bedroom. I wanted a fresh new vibe to my very classic all white bedroom with nude accents. Finding the perfect pieces for such a sacred space is often daunting but with the awesome people of Photowall its was easy peasy lemon squeezy. 

The process was nothing shy of seamless. The choices were endless, but the site filtered beautifully to what you were searching for whether it was countries, colour, posters, wall murals... all available in 48 hours delivered to the comfort of your home.

I chose the beautiful Santorini church. It included the gorgeous crisp white aesthetic I adore but was vibrant enough to be very different and a breathe of fresh air.  Putting it together took less than 30 minutes. With perfectly explained directions.  Needless to say I highly recommend them to meet your decor needs.

Let me know what your thoughts are on the piece I chose.

Till next time

xo 

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Happy New year 🥂

Hi everyone, happy New year hope the year has started off perfect for you.

So officially my 2019 starts 1st of February. January was totally a trial month  and holiday month for me, spent majority of it in Portugal just having some R&R.

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How to keep costs down with small changes that can change your finances completely!

Sometimes we think with our hearts and not with our heads. Making New Year’s resolutions can often be disastrous, with 80% of people failing by February or not even putting it in motion at all and regretting it instantly. I have been there, done that on several occasions. One of the most common New Year’s resolutions is to cut down on spending, and although this sounds achievable, if you don’t have a fully-pledged strategy in place, the likeliness of failure spirals out of control. When I spoke about simplifying my life finances was a huge factor too. The unnecessary expenditures had to come to a halt. But it already seemed so daunting but there are several small changes you can make that can create a lot more financial freedom.

I understand that people can be victim to an unexpected expense — whether this is a home appliance breaking , a sudden death, urgent travels, making that third trip on a bus with only a return ticket. It all adds up. For that reason, I’ve made some assessments on how those extra savings can come in handy if something like that was to occur. This is such an important post and I hope you enjoy finding some solutions to some financial hurdles. So to make it easier I will be breaking it down into groups for you. 

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Elevate your living space with some greenery!

I remember traveling through Belgium a few years ago and staying at the most awesome little AirBNB, the place was not huge but it had such a gorgeous vibe to it. Picture an all white bedroom, airy view of the city and tons of greenery. Holiday heaven!!! the touches of greenery changed the entire ambiance of the place. It added freshness and colour to an otherwise plain space. 

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Can we talk witchy for a minute ?

So witch hazel has been a part of my bathroom cabinet for ages, but whenever I tell anyone how awesome it is they like what on earth is witch hazel. It sounds terrifying.

No its not brewed by a witch, its actually one of natures best healing agents. Its made from the witch-hazel shrub and is one powerful astringent. I swear I've seen acne disappear in a week, cuts healed super fast and that's just to mention a few. One might even say its got some magic powers (or maybe that's just me).

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This weeks update | Matteo's first Easter and more

There is something about holidays that doesn't make Matteo so happy. It might be the busyness or just whatever's in the air but Matty was not a happy camper this weekend. His mood happened to change when my parents showed up with Easter eggs though. We didn't do much for Easter besides eating tons of pickle fish and having way to many Easter eggs. It was great catching up with my siblings because they are always working 12 hours a day or more. Other than that here is a few updates of the past week.

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March favorites. Food | books | baby products and more

I absolutely love favorite videos, I haven't actually read many favorite posts though and even though I have been wanting to start a YouTube channel, its been a hassle finding the time. So I decided to post about my monthly favorites right here.They include a variety of hair care, baby product, books, Phone friendly video editing apps and more..

Without further delays these are my March favorites. (See what I did there ;)

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Lets talk winter fitness,preggo friendly workouts and more!!!

Can we be real for a second?

We all know there is summer fitness, where you are at the gym at 5-am, eating salads, your favourite sweet is fruit, and life is a full-on health and wellness advertisement. Then we have the daunting winter fitness, where every single move you make is a struggle. It doesn't have to be though, which is why I teamed up with  Dialdirect, one of the life insurance companies, to talk about sticking to a fitness routine during winter.

You know by now that I am full on preggo-huge belly and heavy breathing preggo. And, if I can keep moving during the winter season, so can you. It's so crazy how responsible you become the minute you find out you’re expecting. You start stressing about things like insurance and keeping fit. It doesn't have to be a tedious task though. Today I will be sharing my favourite pregnancy at-home workout, three of my "I ain't pregnant; I need a harder workout" at-home workouts, and my top tips for feeling energized during winter, because we all know summer bodies are made in winter.

So working out while pregnant doesn't (in my very humble opinion) offer tons of options; everything is modified and easier which is great for those exhausting days. Your body is going through plenty of changes, so take it easy. However, sometimes you just want something challenging and this is why 10 Minute Solution is amazing. It is challenging; it covers everything--booty, abs, arms and flexibility. I have tried many workouts and this is my absolute favourite.

Now for my non-preggos, you lucky fineapples, you have a ton of choices. Let me introduce you to some YouTube videos that I am obsessed with; I seriously cannot wait to give these a go post pregnancy. These tighten and tone all the right places and leave you feeling extra sore the next day--hello gym swag. These workouts are by my favourite duo, Karena & Katrina, and their workouts are hard but so much fun.

On the real though, other than Zumba, no other workout is more fun than TIU workouts!

From top to bottom: Total body, HIIT & Booty

Now for those curious on why I have chosen all these indoor workouts, it’s simple:

If you can roll out of bed and not even brush your hair, get an amazing workout in and still be warm and comfy,would you complain about working out? Nope, you will easily just get in that much needed 30 minutes of activity your body craves and needs.

But let’s not only talk about indoor activity; getting out and about in our gorgeous winter sun is a must in my life. I just cannot sit indoors all the time. We have the most amazing nature and winters here in South Africa,--take advantage of it. My favourite outdoor winter activity is taking my three dogs on walks. These days they’re pulling me up the hill, but it’s still a great way to stay active.

For my shopping addicts: get to your nearest mall and try not to sit down for 30 minutes; just keep moving and browsing, and you will be pleasantly surprised at how many steps you take in that 30 minutes. The goal is around 10,000 steps.

The bottom line is just keep moving.

When it comes to dieting I must confess that I have had my cheat meals far too often but, in all fairness, if you can’t cheat a bit during pregnancy then I don't know when you ever can. This is just a time in my life when I'm craving the bad stuff more often. The perk of it being winter though is those delicious vegetable-filled soups. Nothing beats a good soup in the colder months, right?

Hmmm now I'm kind of craving a good butternut soup.

Let me know what your favourite soup of all time is in the comments below, and also do tell how you’re keeping up with your fitness regime this winter.

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Advice for my sixteen year old self

Hey young Megs, 

I know you seriously can't wait to be done with school at this point, you just want to work and travel already. There's a burning desire to escape your current reality and you wondering what colour to dye your hair next. You also wondering if you should start having a boyfriend behind your dads back or if you will ever have really big boobs. 

Is Christina Aguilera's hair is your spirit animal or will it be a disaster like when you dyed your hair red to fit in with the cool kids?. 

You wondering if your friends will still be your friends 10 years from now and already fantasizing about what being on your own will be like. There's no doubt you will be a super famous something, not quite sure what yet but you will change the world. You also feeling crazy shit right now, you don't quite fit in anywhere and life is just not as easy anymore. 

I have some interesting things for you to consider, some will blow your mind ;)

love 

31 year old Meghan

10 random tips and lessons for my younger self:

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The thought of Mother hood has fueled my goal hunting

The idea that life gets real once you find that positive sign on your pregnancy test is real. Some people are easy going and others are natural go getter's from birth.

I have always been somewhere in the middle. Hard working and risk taking at times but also very comfortable and content. But the minute I found out I was pregnant my train of thought and determination went full mode "lets make shit happen".

I know moms who pre-pregnancy had 9-5 pm jobs and were just coasting by but are now business owners and goal driven. That's motherhood for you, its a crazy combo of love, protectiveness and determination. You got a legacy now, you got someone to be a role model to.

My list of goals have somewhat gotten smaller, but the goals have become gigantic. Does that make sense?

Trust me when I say this, once you have your eye set on a specific goal nothing can stop you. We also live in an amazing time where people are creating their dream lives from ways that didn't exist before. If you passionate about it you can create a career around it. 

There is no stopping you.

If you a mom or pregnant did your passion for success get ignited ? I'd love to know.

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#CurrentlyCoveting

peep toe boots | Minimalism series |  breadboard with crumb catcher | Galactic birkin dress

Welcome to my new 2016 series, #CurrentlyCoveting. Here you will find an array of things that I am currently obsessed with from instagram accounts to fashion pieces. Hope you guys enjoy this new addition where the pictures will do all the talking.

love,

Meghan

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Midweek reading

Dudettes !!!!

Why is time flying already, usually January is the longest month ever right, but we already on the 13th... whaaaat?!. I have to say I am glad that we going full speed into the new year it keeps me on my toes. This is a serious reminder that there is no time to waste this year and no time to be lazy too. Do you feel the same way? 

Anyway onto today's list of great reads shall we...

• The budget is usually tight come mid January so very appropriately here is 50 of the best shopping sites for ladies on a budget. (stylecaster.com)
• Get the low down on all those yoga symbols... namaste ;) (yogiapproved.com)
• The 10 cookbooks any home cook should own. (mydomaine.com)
• 13 tips for first time car buyers (mydomaine.com)

Hope you found one or more posts to check out today!

xo

Meghan

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Healthiness on fleek

I've been sharing more about my fitness routine on snapchat and I must say getting back on track has been really amazing. I have definitely been more a yo-yo fitness person. But I started tweaking small habits daily and eventually now have build myself a 80% healthy lifestyle. It works for me because I do love indulgences but if I know I have eaten fairly clean all week, I don't see the point of depriving myself from enjoying a glass of wine or even from having a slice of pizza.

4

Lets talk hair masks

I seriously cannot live without hair masks.

Many moons ago I went to hair salon and was told never use the same shampoo and conditioner all the time, you have to switch it up. If you didn't know now you know ;).  Two faves of mine in the mask department has to be these two. Both serve me with very different purposes.

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