Guest Post// Kenzi Staples// & a Winner!

My name is Kenzi. I am the author of the blog Love Me Some Lemons. You can check out my blog here.  I am a 22 year old {single} student, and working on being happy in the relationship status that I am in, or lack thereof.  When it comes to dating I have had my fair share of bad experiences, awkward dates, and red flags that were overlooked which then, of course, turned into heart break.  With these experiences under my belt I would like to share with you some personal experiences (unfortunately), and the experiences of those I know, that scream to Get The Freak Out {GTFO} of a relationship. Unfortunately, we sometimes overlook those red flags because we are so blinded by our rose colored glasses.

When it’s time to get the freak out;

-          You feel bad for how expensive the food is when you are on a date with your boyfriend, so you apologize and he lets you repay him by buying his carwash (his idea), GTFO.

-          Oh, and then he complains because you buy him the cheapest car wash. Seriously, get the freak out.

-          Your boyfriend tells you “there’s just a little voice inside my head saying you’re not good enough.” GTFO! Ladies-your man should think you’re the dang bee’s knees.

-          Your man tells you “babe, you’re just big boned.” GTFO. Your man should help you to feel beautiful, and he definitely should not bring you down.

-          If you have a “friend” that only calls you late at night and those late night encounters turn into non-committal kissing, GTFO. It will only cause you heartbreak in the end.

-          If you find out that the person you are engaged to cheated on his former wife and has been divorced a time more than you thought (true story, unfortunately), GTFO.

-          If you’re engaged and find out your ring is fake (I’ve known multiple people who found out after their engagement was called off), GTFO.  Fake rings are great-if you know it’s fake and it doesn’t bother you.

-          When you don’t feel the urge to be a better person when you are with your significant other, GTFO.

-          If you are in a long-distance relationship and you are the only one doing the traveling so the two of you can be together and the effort is not reciprocated, GTFO.  

-          If a boy is kissing you but not taking you on dates, GTFO. Unfortunately, he is probably using you.

Although there are many more GTFO moments, I will end there. Hopefully this helped you, made you laugh, or made you grateful for the relationship you are in. Until next time. 

AND we have a winner of the bracelet. It's Amanda Peterson. Email me at izzybugg@gmail.com so I can get it shipped out to you!

(Winner selected by random.org)

Keep it real.

Guest Post // Felica

oh miss slizzzzyyy slizzerton. where the heck do i even begin this intimate tale of friendship?!

there is no better way to begin a friendship than a road trip; fact. i met my hubs on a roadtrip to mexico.

and i met two of my best girlfrannns on an impromptu car ride to lake powell, aka h e a v e n. 

liz pulled up to my house in her little not quite a car, not quite and suv, one of a kind zippy little kia thing blastin' her roadtrippin jams + i was in love. 

she is a fun, feisty thing who knows what she wants and isnt afraid to tell you. we bonded over sunshine, foam dance parties and fire engulfed jump ropes (if you are wondering, video below)

and unlike most MTV love stories, our friendship did not die after the bags were unpacked. 

oh no no no. on the contrary we have grown closer ever since. 

now im an old maid now, all married + not in the "scene". and happily not in the scene. you could say i was never the best at dating. probably because i mostly hate it. in utah its a contest to see how many dates you can land... in like a day. 

i have this phobia- of dates with people i dont know. s o w e i r d.  and as much as i shouldn't admit this i am going to; except for a couple "i need you to go out with his friend so i can go out with him" exception; i never went on a date with a guy i didnt already really like. and i would say that was a mistake if i hadnt finally met my super amazing sugar daddy. 

but i digress. the dating world is a smelly tar pit. men just aren't  gentlemen anymore and chicks are the new frickin' dudes. we need to check our gender roles people. (myself included, this isnt a lecture)

so, while i pray for all my single friends every night to find their hubs in shining armor. i need your prayers too! marriage is, woah. how do i even describe it? its like everyyyything you LOVE + then all the stuff that drives you n u t s rolled into one giant hug. it just engulfs you in all this newness and all this happiness and leaves you to sort yourself out. 

it is so perfect + so completely messed up. and i love it that way. when you find the person you should be with for eternity your life will change (in every way) for the best. 

so my advice, is to always go with your gut. 

my hubs teases me for this. he always says "you make such fast decisions" and yeah, sometimes when im too impatient to try on those jeans it bites me in the butt. but with those heart decisions; it truly works (and the hubs knows that, how does he think he married me?;)

powellooza 2011 (our glory days.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nx-E5iKMwLc

felica is the creator of alwaysfelica.com. a blog about nothing + everything all at the same time and food, yes sweet sweet food. check out her journey from seriously confused and single to more than happily married here.

Timpanogas Date

So, seeing as I haven't been on a date since Christmas I had to get this take from my vault of weird dates I've been apart of. This date was with a boy that I had been on a few dates with. He said we were going to go on a hike with some of his friends and their girlfriends. He said we were going to hike Mt. Timpanogas. If you aren’t familiar with this hike there are two sides. The front side is nice and paved and leads to some caves. Then there’s the back side. A straight up hike from you know where. In my mind, I thought we were going to be doing the nice paved one, because that’s all I had ever done. So being the nice girl I am, I packed a little back pack of two water bottles and two granola bars; one for each of us. I was certain that would be enough until we got back down from the hike. Anyway, homeboy came to get me early the next morning and we drive to the place and that’s where I learned that we would be hiking the backside of Mt. Timpanogas. I had zero idea what I was getting myself into.

About 5 hours into the hike I was worn out. I had already had my water bottle and eaten my granola bar. The girls that had come along were babies. They stopped every five minutes because they were too tired. I was quickly becoming annoyed and just wanted to get to the top so I  just went on my own. And in another two hours I made it to the top. I waited for my guy to get to the top and we sat there for about 15 minutes and decided we weren’t waiting for anyone else and we got up and literally ran down the mountain. It took 3 hours to get down the hill running which brings us to a whopping 10 hours of hiking. Because my date was the one who drove everyone we had to wait for the rest of the group we had to wait in his car. And to add the cherry on top of this 10 hour ordeal, while we waited in his car the guy realized his tank was on empty so we couldn’t turn his car on for heat. By the time I got home I was frozen, hungry and grumpy. Needless to say, I haven’t done that hike since then.