Birthday Fun and a 30 by 30 bucket list

My 29th birthday was this past Sunday and I had a wonderful day! Actually, I was celebrating the next day, too! Thank you for all the birthday love y'all sent my way!! The emails, tweets, texts, IG comments were so appreciated!!

Sunday morning brought a fun trip to a local bakery, Queenies, with my sweet little family of 4. We enjoyed walking around Utica Square, followed by a delicious breakfast. After breakfast, we made our way to Woodward Park to take in the beautiful colors of Spring.

Later that evening, we celebrated with some of our best friends, Mia and Dustin. {Missed you Ang and Andrew!} I was so excited to go to Cheddars and enjoy a Cookie Monster! Have y'all had one before? You need to, they're amazing! I wasn't able to get a picture because the kids and I {though mostly the kids} inhaled it! Mmm, so good!

The next day, my mom made a delicious Cinco de Mayo dinner and we celebrated with my family. {Thanks, Mom!} I don't know what I was thinking because I completely forgot to take pictures. {I guess I was subconsciously going Hands Free :)}.

I was completely spoiled and received nearly everything on my wishlist and then some! These babies are mine and I am so grateful! I'm excited to put my Mamarazzi skills to use with my new lens! :)

So, the idea of turning 30 hasn't bothered me too much and I haven't really given a '30 by 30 bucket list' any thought. Until now... I think it might be fun to put together a list of big and little things I'd like to accomplish before I turn 30. However, I'm hoping y'all might have some fun suggestions. 30 things is a lot!

I've come up with a few ideas, but I'm wondering, what do you think I should add to my 30 by 30 list?!

Instagram/Twitter/Pinterest/Bloglovin'

Q & A with Mr. Strong

Several of my blogger friends {Mia, Maegan, Katie and others} have done the Q&A post with their hubby's and it is hilarious! I enjoyed them so much I decided to jump on board. So, while we were traveling to Chicago, I interviewed Robert. Let me just apologize in advance for some of his answers. He likes to be a stinker...:)

K:What does OOTD stand for?
R: I've never heard of that, I don't know. Hold on. {What he said next, I cannot even share. Embarrassing!}

K: What is the name of my blog?
R: kristalstrong.blogspot

K: What do I typically write about?
R: Silence. Then, the Strong family.

K:What do you know about Pinterest?
R: Pinterest? It's a waste of time.

K: What's a Hunter wellie?
R: Repeat
K: What's a Hunter wellie?
R: What?! Can you put that in a sentence?

K: What is our favorite thing to do?
R: {While giving me googly eyes} "Need I say"

K: What is my favorite TV show?
R: Guiliana & Bill or Parenthood

K: What is one thing nobody knows about me?
R: That's a stupid question. If I knew it, then I would know & therefore doesn't answer the question.

K: What would I order at Starbucks?
R: Half mocha latte frappachino (he was just making up "coffee" words)

K: What do I do when I'm home alone?
R: Vacuum

K: What do you do when you're home alone?
R: Watch tv and surf the internet

So there you have it. A little interview with the hubby. He keeps me laughing, that's for sure!

Instagram/Twitter/Bloglovin'/Pinterest

Joining the Tuesday Tea ladies: Sassy Wife/Classy Life, The Ledford Life, Frankly My Dear 

May Monthly Focus

I so enjoyed having a monthly focus last month, so I decided to do it again this month. I thought and thought over what I wanted to focus on and, in comparison to last month, I almost feel selfish for what I've decided to focus on this month. However, my monthly focus will enable me to fulfill last month's monthly focus. Ok, that was a lot of mumbo jumbo...if you're still reading, I'm sure you're thinking "Get to the point, Lady!". Well, here we go...

This month I'm focusing on taking care of myself. Specifically, spiritually and physically.

 

 

I love taking care of my family. Making sure all of their needs are met. But, many times that means I put my own needs on the back burner. And sometimes that's ok. But, my two areas of focus for this month require that I do not put them on the back burner. If I'm caring for myself spiritually and physically, I will be able to better care for my family.

Source

Being a busy wife and mother, I've had to get creative with how I put myself first spiritually and physically. I recently implemented a new routine for myself that involves waking at 5:30 to ensure I can spend some quiet time with the Lord and work in a little cardio before the kiddos wake up. Then later in the day, I'm able to do the rest of my workout. It's not always easy to get up early like that, but when I do, my day feels much better. Specifically, when I get up and spend the first part of my day with Him, my days feels much better.

So, this month I plan to be intentional with putting myself first, spiritually and physically. Y'all will have to keep me accountable on this, too. It's awfully easy to hit the snooze button. :)

Thanks, Maegan, for hosting such a good monthly link up!

Also, in honor of Cinco de Mayo, check out my favorite Mexican dip...that can also be a full meal. Mexi Dip!

Instagram/Twitter/Bloglovin'/Pinterest