High 5 for Friday!

I'm linking up with Lauren today for High 5 for Friday for my top 5 highlights from the week! I hope you had an awesome week and I can't wait to see your 5 highlights!

1. I ordered from Julie Ann Art for the second time, and I was NOT disappointed! I was so excited to receive my package. I was also antsy to start making lists (is that weird?)!

2. I treated myself again and got my nails done. I love the purple and the super sparkly silver! It feels so nice after they're done, and I feel more confident with myself. That is always a good thing!

3. I started making Valentine's Day gifts a little early this year. I've noticed that I am pretty much unproductive after work during the week, so I really only do things on the weekends...and that leaves not a lot of time to actually finish projects that need to be done. I'm telling myself that I'm being productive!

4. I officially have 2 pen pals now! I mailed off their packages on Wednesday and I can't wait to receive what they're sending me. I hope that one day, the 3 of us can meet in person. Receiving snail mail is so much fun (even with the stamp cost going up..!)

5. The hubs and I are trying to eat healthier and go to the gym. Well...we've been putting the gym off ALL week and on Wednesday night, we opted for a movie in bed with some junk food. Yeah, I'm pretty much useless during the week! Haha!

I also wanted to add a not-so-good highlight from my week. It's a highlight because it's stood out for me and hurts my heart. My mom bought a puppy for my younger sister and I about 8 years ago. The 2nd day that we had her, she started having seizures. She was so so small, that she fit in to the palm of my hand. That day, my mom let me stay home from school to take care of Izzy, and my friend's mom drove me and Izzy to the vet. The vet said she wouldn't make it through the night...but that was 7 years and 9 months ago! Izzy was a shiht-zu/toy poodle and was about the size of a kitten! She had hypoglycemia, hydrocyphilis (sp?), and she was mostly blind. Always the happiest dog, though we thought that she thought she was a cat sometimes...

She passed away on Wednesday night. She will forever be my Izbit <3

xo. Nicole

• Currently •

Working on: Eating healthier! Working at a school has been a huge blessing in more ways than one. I no longer drive off and grab fast food on my breaks, I just pack a lunch the night before. I admit, sometimes I just hate dragging myself in to the kitchen in the evening, but I appreciate it the next day when I'm not crashing from a sugar high or something.

Thinking about: Adding in some exercise on top of eating healthier. I've already noticed a difference from my eating habits, but I think it would feel amazing to just...feel better!

Anticipating: What to bake next! This weekend, I made gluten free banana blueberry muffins. Delicious! 

Listening to: No specific artist, just the radio on my way to work. But I did YouTube a rising country artist, Ray Gibson. She's amazing! I actually went to elementary school with her and her sister and it was so cool to see how far they've both come since then. One has her own business, iweartheheadress, and one has a music career!

Eating: Healthy! I've been *trying* to stop eating gluten, but failing miserably at that. My husband can't have gluten, and there's a huge chance our children won't be able to either, so I figured that I should just cut it out, too. It takes away the chance of cross contamination while cooking and such. Buuuut, I just ate Nutella and banana toast for breakfast, sooo....

Thankful for: Everything right now. My grandpa was allowed to go home from the hospital, but he has to get stronger for surgery. That's another bridge we'll cross when the time comes. I have a rewarding job, a wonderful husband, and a great family who are always there for us.

Planning for: We found a money saving chart thing that goes for a whole year, so we started it January 4th! You're supposed to have almost $1,500 at the end of the year, and we're both doing it, so we'll have almost $3,000. We plan on using it to finally go on a honeymoon!

Reading: Just magazines right now. I recently found my Kindle, so I've been looking around at what sorts of books I can put on there. Any suggestions? My favorite series' are Harry Potter, Something Borrowed, and Confessions of a Shopaholic...

Watching: We have become obsessed with the TV show, Raising Hope. It's hilarious! It helps us unwind at the end of the day while curled up in bed. I highly recommend it!

I came across Roxy's post on her "currentlies" and gave it a go! Check out her post to see what she's been up to, too! :)

1 more follower until a rad giveaway and I reveal the new blog name!

xo. Nicole

Glitter + Flowers

Lately, I've been obsessed with finding perfect wallpapers for my iPhone! I don't know what brought it on, or why I'm obsessing, but I am. So naturally, I went on Pinterest today and searched for a bunch of wallpapers. I came across so many pretty ones, but I only selected a few. I loved them so much, that I wanted to share them with you!

Source • Source

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Source (?) • Source

I hope you loved them as much as I do! 

Happy Sunday!

xo. Nicole

•• Note: I am aware that some links post to a Pinterest pin, but I couldn't find the actual source. If you know, please let me know and I will update it! My email is: nicole.franson1@gmail.com, and you're always welcome to comment on the post, or tweet me: @nicloemax!

Change for The Good

January has flown by! It's already the end of my second week of work, and I'm loving it! I'm very happy that I found this workplace, as it's helped me achieve something I didn't think I could do - eating healthy! I really didn't think I could change my eating habits, but working in a school has shown me otherwise. 

I hadn't planned on making any New Year's Resolutions, as I never keep them and it brings disappointment, but this year I might. My husband and I are both doing a money saving challenge so that we can finally go on a honeymoon, and I'm packing my lunches every night. So far so good!

It helps that I can't just drive away on my break and grab McDonald's. One, I don't have enough time, and two, I work in a different city so I have NO idea where anything is! I don't plan on finding out, either. 

I used to get super shaky and cranky if I didn't eat at work. At my current job, I have 3 breaks and I have time to relax and pay attention to my food, rather than scarfing it down. I admit that I've missed breakfast twice and the way I felt made me realize how important that meal is! Both times, I felt really low energy by the time it was my first break, and ate my meat and cheese so fast that I didn't even taste it!

I've tried participating in Jessica's #jigglefreejanuary calendar and it's fun! She's starting her own business and is posting 3 times a week with a yummy recipe, a post where she answers your questions, and she posts a workout on Fridays! I plan to do today's workout after work!

After I saw Christy's post on 10 things that she likes about herself, it sparked the little fire under my butt to get out my feelings on body shaming! (You can read that post here) I'm so happy that she shared a post about loving herself. We should all do one! 

And speaking of change, I'm going to be working with Allison on a blog redesign in the next couple weeks because...

I'm changing the name of the blog! 

I'm no longer a broke bride, and I've really always been more 'lifestyle' than 'wedding' here, so I'll reveal the new name in a fun giveaway when I reach 100 followers (only 1 more to goooo)!!

How has YOUR January been so far?

xo. Nicole

Real Talk • Body Shaming

There's something that's been on my mind for a couple weeks, and it's time for me to share it. I'm not good at putting my thoughts in to words, so bear with me as I try to type them out. I'm also not sure where to start, so here goes nothing.

I am sick and tired of seeing these ridiculous pictures being circulated on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and the general internet. 

How is this okay? How is it okay to compare women by their body type? I understand that the women on the bottom are supermodels, but nonetheless, how is it okay to say they're not beautiful? I think all the women are beautiful.

I argued with a friend on Facebook after she shared this photo, and she said "it's obviously anorexia." If it's obviously anorexia, then they need help. Anorexia is an eating disorder which needs attention. (May I point out, it's not obvious?) Regardless of whether they do or not, it's not right to shame someone's body who has an eating disorder. That can send someone in to an even further downward spiral. Why can't we help each other out instead of pushing each other down?

(Source Unknown)

Body shaming with pictures like the one at the top, or the ones that say "Real men love curves, not bones" are ridiculous! So, by sharing that, are you saying that your friend who is thin will never be loved by a man/woman? How do you think she feels when she sees you share a photo like that? In my field of work, I see little girls who have "G-Tubes" (where they are fed through a tube in their stomach) and they can't gain weight like the average woman. Are you saying they aren't beautiful? I worked at a clothing store that had a petites section, and women would come in thinking they hit the jackpot on pants but left in a low mood because they try as hard as they can to gain weight, but the pants are STILL too big for them. By sharing photos around that shame their bodies, you're telling them they aren't worth someone's love. To me, all of us are worth someone's love.

I have been guilty of also sharing pictures like this, but I stopped. I've grown up since high school and I realized how hurtful, cruel, and to be frank, stupid it is. I would hate it if someone used a picture of me or someone I knew in a picture like those. I hope you read this with an open mind and that I at least helped you realize how hurtful and unnecessary these pictures are. 

I'm sure I have more to say, but right now I'm going to leave you with some quotes that help you realize how beautiful you are.

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xo. Nicole

Also, please share your own stories and thoughts about this topic! I would love to hear from you!

High Five for Friday!

While checking out today's events on Jessica's #jigglefreejanuary calendar, she added in that she does a link up with Lauren about 5 highlights from their week! I'm going to try her workout tonight, and right now I'm going to participate in the link up!

My top 5 highlights from this week!

1. Starting my new job! It's the end of my first week, and I love it! I am an Educational Assistant in an elementary school, so I work with students who have special needs. It's very rewarding. The first two days were SO exhausting, but I've got the hang of it now. I also enjoy evenings and weekends off!

2. On Sunday, I finally felt better and had a spurt of energy (my husband and I were both out with a horrible H1N1 or Norovirus) so I went grocery shopping and prepared 3 crock pot meals for the week, omelette bites for breakfasts, and prepared lunches! I love being that organized. My goal is to meal prep every Sunday. It also helps us out, because we're both up at 6:00am and don't have the energy in the morning to make lunches or breakfast. I'll share the recipes with you soon!

3. I haven't had a vehicle for what, a month now(?), and I was told this week that I will have one again on Sunday! My sister-in-law and her husband are fixing up a car that she crashed. I am so excited to have my independence back, and it is so so nice that family help us out in the ways that they do. I seriously don't know where Rob and I would be without them.

4. The amazing staff at the school are all so nice, welcoming, and understanding. I've carpooled with 2 so far and it has helped me tremendously! A taxi one-way is $40, so if I didn't get the opportunity to car pool, I'd be spending $80/day in taxis. I am forever grateful for my wonderful coworkers.

5. This weekend, we are babysitting Rob's nephews and niece and getting my car! It's going to be a fun weekend :)

What were your top 5 highlights from this week?

xo. Nicole