SIX SHOTS DURING QUARANTINE

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1. BABY ENYA VIBES

I have always wanted to do a newborn baby photo session! I finally had my chance recently when one of my best peeps had a bun in the oven! We got quite a few fun shots but this is one of my favorites because of the shape she is laying in. It’s natural but fun. Honestly those shots that they manipulate into weird positions freak me out. I was happy to have something fun to edit during the beginning of our quarantine days! Editing a lot of photos takes hours that I usually do not have, so it was great to have the spare time to work on something meaningful to me!
2. SILKIE VIBES

We are kind of in unprecedented, apocalyptic times so I want chickens! I took the time at the beginning of our coming quarantine time to buy a few Silkie chicks! We are in a state of National Emergency, so I am pretty sure I would win any dispute my HOA could throw at me. I’ve always wanted chickens, so I decided that Silkies seem to be the best “petlike” chickens. I am raising them from chicks so that they are tame and will respond better to my presence as they grow. Here is the thing…as I was shopping for all of my chicken paraphernalia, I kept hearing from people how all the chicks, all the feed, etc were being bought up as fast as they came in. People were quietly prepping! As far as not living on a farm, but getting chicks, I feel that as long as they are kept in a clean, cute space and as long as I do not keep roosters…nobody will care. we shall see how this goes! For now, they all have gender fluid names since they are too young to sex at this point. This one is Baxter! I don’t know that my chickens appreciate the beautiful like I am building for them yet, but I am hopeful! I also chose Silkies because I am in hopes that Blanca thinks they are white puppies when they get older and she won’t want to bite their heads off!
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3. WORK FROM HOME VIBES

I am one of the lucky ones that still has a job! I’ve been forcing myself to get presentable each day for our video conferences so that I can still feel functional. Preparing yourself for your day goes a long way towards helping mentally to feel that you’ve got it together. My husband loves it when I wear my fabulous Johnny Was kimonos, and can’t believe that I brush my hair, bathe, and put on lipstick most days just to be at home. My office is my favorite spot in the house because I can shut the door, sit quietly and read, learn or work. My Bosscat Beauty orders still roll in online. They keep saying on the news that quarantine time with your spouse is where the rubber meets the road. I would say that getting him to realize that I need my quiet time has been the only real struggle. Other than that, we cook dinner together every night, we have movie night every night and we are intentional about our time. I can say, “ I have work to do so I will meet you in the movie room at 8 and until then leave me the hell alone!” We laugh and he gets it.
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4. COUNTRY GIRL VIBES

I decided to buy a farm. My husband thought I was crazy, so it was my personal thing and somehow he jumped on board with the idea. It’s a run down farm with a house that was probably built around 1900. My plan is to clean it up, and take all of the cedar from the inside of the home’s walls to recreate the fence lines. I’ve been able to sneak away and drive up to map and plan since it’s basically in the middle of nowhere and I’m not around people. After that we will see what inspires me but it feels so good to have a project! After the stock market crashed last month, he saw that land was a great opportunity to invest and build for the future so that’s why he jumped on board. I am super excited and will post updates as things change!
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5. QUARANTINE VIBES

I had to include this weird and funny photo! The other day, I was going to sit outside and get some sunshine. As I cranked our outdoor umbrella up, I saw this. These guys were sitting in the umbrella sockets, having their own family quarantine time! This showed me a lot about frogs. Now I will be super careful about the umbrella so I don;t harm them. They keep going back every day to sit in their same day spots. Crazy!

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6. MING DYNASTY VIBES

I had to share this sculpture! As I had mentioned above, I bought a farm. Nothing fabulous, but a run down farm. Basically, there is shit everywhere! I was looking around and seeing what needed to be thrown away, and this filthy old horse stature was sitting on the dusty, dirty floor. Once I saw how heavy it was, I decided to take it home and clean it up! It could likely be from a cheap home store like Kirkland’s…but I prefer to believe it’s a lost Ming Dynasty horse sculpture worth $30,000 ! Either way, I love him! It still needs more work and scrubbing but add that to my list of quarantine projects!
I think it’s important to stay busy with dreams and accomplish what we can during these times. We don’t want to look back and think about the time we wasted. I have started my garden, done some landscaping, started my chicken dreams, altered my budget for tighter times ahead, etc. When things do ever return to normal, I want to have a clean slate and know I spent my time wisely. I am looking at this time at home as a blessing.
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WYOMING

Jackson Hole travel

Traveling to Wyoming was never on my bucket list. I was ignorant as to the beauty and majesty that existed there. After deciding to postpone a trip to Italy and Spain, my husband came up with the idea of Wyoming. I’d had been wanting to go glamping so I set out to quickly find a cool place to stay.

I came up with the Rustic Inn at Jackson Hole. They have beautiful luxury cabins along a creek. I decided on staying there after seeing their web cam posted outside facing the creek area. While I have seen video of moose walking through the cabins, that didn’t happen during our visit!

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We flew in to the Salt Lake City airport early in the day so that we could enjoy the road trip to Jackson Hole. Once in Jackson, we freshened up and went out to a nice dinner before crashing early!

The altitude hit us hard, so we were tired by 8 pm! We got up early the next morning to enjoy the buffet at our hotel (yes it was actually really good!) Then we headed out to do some exploring! This was on a Friday and Yellowstone National Park was actually closed and only had one more day to the season and that would be the following day.

We drove carefully through the ice and snow, and we worked our way up the mountain – or volcano actually. We had no cell reception and no map! We literally drove for hours. We would stop here and there to take video and enjoy the beauty. we would only see a random car drive by every now and again.

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There was even a messed up, eyeless snowman that we decided to help out with some new gummy bear eyeballs and arms! We restored him to his glory and went on our way.

We checked out the maps on our phones once we got back to our hotel that night, and realized we were 10 minutes from Old Faithful. We were left with no choice but to go back again the next day! How could we go home having been so close to the American landmark, but not have actually seen such a thing with our own eyes?

Basically you are standing at 9,000 feet and on top of a volcano/mountain however you’re wanting to look at it… that is boiling water. The altitude kicked our asses! Especially me! I was tired, bloated, had high blood pressure and was constantly looking out for Emergency Rooms in case something happened. I didn’t want to alarm my husband but it was pretty bad. I took an extra blood pressure pill and hoped for the best. Had I bothered to do any research, I could have done a few things to prepare.

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We both had bought Iphones right before the trip, so I decided to leave my camera at home and see how good we could do with just the Iphone 10 and 11 models. Had we been better Canon Rebel photographers, the difference may have been bigger.

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The hotel we chose had a quaint view of a creek from most of the luxury cabin rentals. Being surrounded by nature was amazing and relaxing. Oh, and that’s the only bear we saw.

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Although we never saw a live moose or bear…we had fun trying. The second day we went to Yellowstone they were actually open. As we paid the lady in the entrance booth, I asked her, “Will there be bears today? I need to see bears.” To which she replied, “There are bears, but they are wild.” She responded as if I was hoping to feed Cheetos to the bears by hand. She refuse to accommodate my humor.

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We enjoy checking out real estate whenever we go on vacation. The median home price for Jackson, Wyoming was $850,000. Lord. If you compare that to the Houston average of $284,000 you can see the stark comparison. You are paying for the unspoiled beauty. The nature. Old World Americana. Rich scenery. And mainly just being a world away from the trash that has become a part of acceptable city living in today’s world. You do not realize how bad things are on the daily until you remove yourself.

This is what is real and good. Nature and people living in tandem without destroying each other. Living off of the land without destroying and blackening the air.

The majesty was surreal. On the way back to the airport, we had decided to head south through Wyoming in order to see more during our road trip. Hours and hours of beautiful land, with very few people and small towns sprinkled here and there.

Rustic Inn breakfast

The bar was cozy at our hotel. I will not pretend that we drank and partied until the wee hours because we did not. The altitude put us to bed each night by 9 pm.

Rustic Inn Hotel in Jackson Wyoming, best Jackson Hole hotel

Towns such as Diamondville, Wyoming were fun to stop briefly and learn about.

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The air was clean. The skies were blue. It is the most conservative state in the country. Wyoming has not one Planned Parenthood in sight. Wyoming by far has the lowest abortion rate in the country and the highest gun ownership. One can only hope that as rich liberals move there, they hopefully do not take their crazy, state ruining ideas with them so at least the rest of us have a place to go visit and remember what the country used to be.

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Daughter of the Most High

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You never know how your words and actions can positively affect those around you. This is a post that I have been wanting to share for quite some time.

I had taken the photo above on Laguna Beach over a year ago. I occasionally jaunt there if I have to go to Los Angeles for work. Laguna is amazing. I have been a few times alone but it’s a place I can sit quietly and think in peace and plan goals. There are tiny little hummingbirds that I get up for at 6am to photograph in the sunrise. They flicker around in the shrubbery as the waves crash in down below the cliffs. It’s my Happy Place. I have a favorite hotel and eating spot. Laguna Beach is my jam. But I digress…

I had been treated poorly by a person or two in the weeks before my trip to Los Angeles. Beware miserable people because those are the ones who will spread lies and try to undo your joy and success. Unless they are well-minded they just can’t help it. Misery loves company. I had sat back quietly, and watched as the whole thing unfolded. I do not want to go into too much detail but I will say this…. when someone tells you something scandelous about another person, be wise and verify before acting upon the intel.

I received a phone call which really hurt my feelings. This third party individual, was not operating with any level of reasonable discernment so she acted on on the bogus intel and said very hurtful, untrue things. I was in the middle of this episode when I had to take the mainly work focused trip to Los Angeles. After work meetings for days, I treated myself to some personal time in Laguna. I recalibrated, yet was a little depressed from that as well as weeks of chronic neck pain from a recent car incident so I wasn’t doing my best.

On the plane trip home, I was my typical quiet, no-eye contact self. I do that to not get tied up. I find once I make eye contact…people think it’s a ticket in. Next thing you know, someone is trying to sell me into joining their multi-level marketing thing or buying $2,000 skin care system or whatnot. I am also shy, so it’s a defense mechanism. I had very few friends in school – actually, none so I grew up accustomed to being alone, and ignoring others who were rude or mean. I wasn’t the cutest girl, so people were mean. Whole other story for another time. It comes off as rude now, so it’s something I am working on but that’s where it was born.

In the two seats next to me wear 2 black girls. One had pink hair and bright green clothing on, the other looked all business. Pink hair girl started talking to me so I offered some of my gummy bears. I travel well prepared. Are there any other grown ass women that carry gummy bears while traveling? Maybe not, so she thought it was funny. Pink hair and I had a nice chat in which I learned she was a college educated person who hated her job so she quit for one year to pursue dancing and acting. She was a Christian because she made reference. She had gotten a call for a major dance audition, which was her reason for pink hair and the trip to Los Angeles. She was super sweet and I would have enjoyed her friendship long term. The other girl was an executive in her field and had taken vacation time to see family. I thought it unconventional that she traveled in a suit in today’s world of pajama travelers. She was old school class from another dimension. Her job was boring and stuffy. She was soft spoken about her accomplishments. Both girls were impressive. They could carry a conversation about the arts or business and social issues. They were focused and genuine and if there were a plane crash, I’d want to be with them and go where they were going afterward.

Business suit girl was busy writing in her notebook during the journey. Lord, she was a success and imagine that! People who write shit down are always the leaders. Randoms who live by the seat of their pants are rarely successful or live intentional lives. This is a constant conversation in my life because as I try to train and develop people at work or in life…this is a constant issue that holds people back from living their best life. However, to get back on point…after business suit girl finishes some of her writings, I get a small, two page letter passed to me from her window seat.

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Can you say uncomfortable!?! What was this!?! The letter started off with… “Daughter of The Most High God, for you are such a Jewel in the Heavenly Father’s eyes. Many have misunderstood you and because of this they did not know how to love you or embrace you but the Father has chosen you and created you to be unique on purpose…”

I won’t share the entire thing because it’s sacred to me. The point is that her little gesture meant a lot to me at the time and was a reminder that I needed right at that moment. I have never fit in, and have never had a desire to. It’s not who I am. I am different. I am interested in many different types of things. I am not one dimensional. People are not used to that. When the incident happened, I was disturbed by it because it was so mean spirited. My appearance was insulted, my integrity and my business acumen. The worst part was that it was all lies. I can deal with a lot but I can not stand it when people lie. When you are a liar, you are nothing. Your word is meaningless and you do not exist in the spirit of reality. Sick people think simply saying something out loud makes it true. I loathe the term my truth is that…such and such. People that use that term kill me. What you believe has zero effect on reality. People often give their viewpoint, but when I ask what research they did to come up with their viewpoint…I typically get a blank stare.

My point here is that something is really wrong with people who make things up. I was really down about the event of meanness. I was basically told there was something unpleasant about my face and that I was offensive. It’s the only face I have so I was hurt to say the lease. The funny thing, is the person who started the whole attack, was really weak in the looks department. So after I got over my initial hurt and shock, I realized the source was a bitter, unhappy person who didn’t have a lot of joy in their life. Other things about my existence were attacked, but the point is, I was just in the middle of dealing with hurtfulness…and this sweet girl gives me this special letter which warmed my heart.

I want to be more like her. We all should be more like her. The world she be more like her. With the direction the world is going, that is doubtful. I am a Christian. That means that I believe in God. It does not mean I am perfect or Christ-like. It simply means that I am a believer. The other stuff still needs some work. A day will come where we can’t say that out loud or on line. Bloggers certainly shouldn’t have a deep opinion about much of importance or then you are cutting out a percentage of your possible base. I don’t care. I am proud of my belief but I don’t beat people over the head with it unless they ask. Being loving is what we are here for. Nothing else. That is why this girl’s letter to me was and still is so important to me. She wanted nothing. She expected nothing. She took a moment to get outside of herself and somehow know that a stranger needed encouragement.

But whoever does not make Me known in front of men and acts as if he does not know MeI will not make him known to My Father in heaven. MATT 10:33

The mean girl who started all of the hateful drama? I needed to realize that my life looked really good to someone who was struggling with day to day. My biggest problem from the outside was trying to agree on where our next vacation would be. What she didn’t know was how bad my neck pain was and that getting out of bed in the mornings was a job within itself. We all have our burdens. We had a new house, a recent vacation to Paris and I have a really nice looking husband that loves me. That’s what she saw. The sort of Instagram-perfect life. It takes a lot of planning and work to get to point where your life doesn’t suck. I can only assume jealousy and insanity are why she lied all the time about me. Meanwhile she was doing all the types of things she accused me of – sort of like a Democrat. Sorry. Not sorry.

I really have wanted to share that story. The letter is still posted on my fridge today. I always thought people were saying that they were better than others by the term, Daughter of The Most High God. I get it now. She was a Daughter of The Most High. Without a doubt.

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#extra

Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, Houston bloggers, Luxor Living and Style, stylist in The Woodlands, over 50 bloggers, Michele watch, Forever 21 hat, black hat, summer style, Johnny Was in The Woodlands, Texas, shop in The Woodlands, Bosscat Beauty lashes, lashes, morange lip color, Mac lipstick, white blonde, black earrings, clip on earrings,
Stephanie Dawn Sjoberg, Houston bloggers, Luxor Living and Style, stylist in The Woodlands, over 50 bloggers, Michele watch, Forever 21 hat, black hat, summer style, Johnny Was in The Woodlands, Texas, shop in The Woodlands, Bosscat Beauty lashes, lashes, morange lip color, Mac lipstick, white blonde, black earrings, clip on earrings,
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Hey everyone! Just a quick shout to say hello and touch base! It has been a super hot summer and it’s a part time job just keeping my plants alive in this heat! And hair?!? How are you expected to have a cute hair style when it’s 100 degrees and humidity is at 75% ? For me, I decided I could wear a hat or two during the week to combat pointless time and effort spent on hair styling!

Although the top and embroidered shorts are from Johnny Was, the hat was from Forever 21! The interesting thing about that, is that I noticed the store was not as full of product as normal…so I asked the Assistant if they were by any chance closing down. He seemed confused and clueless as to why I would think that. I explained that I have worked in retail for years and whenever the product levels decline sharply, it’s typically a huge red flag. He dismissed my theory and mindlessly rang me up and sent me on my way. Here we area a few weeks later and news is leaking that Forever 21 is more than likely filing for Bankruptcy. The China tariffs are the kiss of death for retailers that were already struggling although I agree with the action. For those retailers with not a lot of margin – good luck. The other issue affecting retail is online shopping. When I remodeled our new house, I went into the Z’Gallerie store closest to me, to buy or order my merchandise…sofas, chandeliers, mirrors, etc. Apparently enough people didn’t do the same, so now there is now not a Z’Gallerie near me anymore due to bankruptcy and store closings. I buy from stores when possible and online is my second choice. I hope the Forever 21 news is wrong because who doesn’t love cheap extras now and then!?!

I’m not trying to be cute, I am trying to survive life! My boss said to me at the start of summer…what are you going to do? Wear a top knot every day? She said this after experiencing the humidity in our city and having a series of bad hair days. I try to have fun and would like to think that I have turned surviving humidity and heat into an art form.

Fun things are going on lately. I had ordered a new condo for my dogs (really it’s a custom built kennel) a year ago and it finally was delivered! I have not shared it here yet but I just posted a few pictures on my Instagram. My dogs love it and the quality is much better than I had expected! Wire kennels in my house were killing my soul!

The jury is still deliberating as to whether or not we are taking a vacation later this year. It seems we are insanely attached to our dogs and are reluctant to leave them. When we do go out of town we pay someone to house and pet sit so finding a candidate is sometimes a challenge. Not only that, i had a panic attack like a nut on our way back from Hawaii and I thought they were going to make me get off the flight if I didn’t calm down! I had a neck injury a couple of years ago, and it’s hard to seat in a crammed seat without being able to move very much. I think my mind was anticipating pain and discomfort . Luckily, I had some CBD oil with me for the flight so I took some and was able to get a hold of myself and survive the flight without further incident. Of course the mom thought I was a loon but I explained how my seat had gotten changed and that I typically have to sit where I can move and stretch. Either way, I know that I am having issues wanting to board another super long flight unless it’s first class and I’m properly medicated! We shall see what we decide to do!

My Bosscat Beauty lash orders are trickling in still, and although I can’t support myself with it, I am very proud of each box someone buys, because that is one less dollar for the mink lash industry, since my lashes are animal free!

That’s what I have going on this summer! Just enjoying the spare time I have and trying to set goals for the future!

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Hair by Formulate

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Formulate, shampoo review, hair, custom hair system, white blonde, Luxor Living and Style, over 50 style ,over 50 blogger, over 50 hair, Bosscat lashes, The Woodlands bloggers,, Tommy Bahama rash guard
Formulate, shampoo review, hair, custom hair system, white blonde, Luxor Living and Style, over 50 style ,over 50 blogger, over 50 hair, Bosscat lashes, The Woodlands bloggers,, Tommy Bahama rash guard

I was lucky enough to be asked to try Formulate! I was able to go online, and choose my preferences for my own personal hair needs.

My hair is bleached. It is long, and I live in a very humid city! Oh…and I’m over 50. Any good hair day is an accomplishment so having the best shampoo and conditioner is a must! My hair sucks in moisture so it’s very hard to survive those really wet days! It’s also hard to keep it somewhat healthy and presentable on the daily! I answered a few questions about my hair, and I love the new formula that was specifically for me and my hair challenges!

In these photos, you can’t it, tell but it’s high humidity and heat, so the fact that my hair doesn’t look like a used Q-tip is amazing!

The link to their website is above and you can go there and read more! On this page you can other people’s reviews and stories!

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SILK

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Hi, y’all! People always ask about the different ways to wear a Johnny Was scarf and I am always quick to tell people that I sometimes wear them as a bikini top! Because the scarves are silk, people assume they must be dry cleaned, which isn’t true! While chlorine isn’t probably great for them, I have some that I keep for the swim wear purpose and I have not had an issue yet!

I water my plants a lot during the summer, so it’s a perfect quick top to throw on and it keeps me from getting swim tan lines on my shoulders. I do not enjoy bikini tops that wrap around the neck because it is not comfortable long term.

I really don’t have the type of skin that is sun friendly so I prefer to wear cute things that cover my skin from that big ball of fire in the sky. You will come to the same conclusion about the sun once you have a cancer spot dug out of your chest! I also decided that my short kimono – which is made out scarves, makes a beautiful and comfortable cover up.

I just wanted to share photo of one of my scarves as a bikini top since it always comes up in conversation! I have a terrible Johnny Was scarf addiction and I keep telling myself this is the last one!

They have videos on How to Tie a Scarf because there are a lot of different ways to get use out of them, this is just one of my favorites! What do you think?

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