Snail Mail Collective

Hello everyone! So, today I have a question for you all and I'm going to be sharing some pretty rad news with ya.

Question:
Am I alone in LOVING actual mail? Like the good old-fashioned paper kind (so long as it isn't school loans, amirite? ;)) because there is just that excitement of opening something someone PHYSICALLY sent to you with their own two little hands vs. email.

I love getting mail from friends and am a card hoarder. Fun fact about me, if you send me a card I will never, ever, ever throw it away. EVER. I keep all the cards people send me in a semi-organized pile/on the fridge so I can go back through them and re-read all the sweet words friends and family have sent me. I've always been a card hoarder, but I have become borderline militant about keeping physical mail since I've been feeling all kinds of homesick and seeing familiar handwriting is like having a little connection with home.

News:
If you are like me and card-hoard, let's be friends and hoard together! I'm announcing the brand-spankin' new Snail Mail Collective! The talented and beautiful Melyssa @ The Nectar Collective and Chelsea @ Lost. In. Travels have put their clever heads together and have created a great opportunity for people to connect via mail.

Here are the rules straight from Lost.In.Travels:

Rules & Information

In order to participate in the Snail Mail Collective this July, please fill out this form. Filling out the form means you commit to actively participating and following the rules below.

1. You will be paired with one new person. We will do our best to make sure this person is from a different country, or at the very least, a different area of your country. We will strive for you to make international friends, but it's also nice to get to know the different parts of our own homeland.

2. Each month's gifts will have a theme. The first theme (for July) is to introduce where you live - what's special about it?

3. Each month, we will be taking sign-ups until the 7th day of the month. After that, the pairings will be posted on our blogs on the 9th or 10th of the month. Please check Lost in Travels or The Nectar Collective to find out who you're paired with.

4. You will have 72 hours to contact your partner (both partners must communicate together). If you're partner does not respond within 72 hours, please e-mail Melyssa or Chelsea.

5. You will have about two weeks to get to know your partner. After that time, your gifts must be sent by the 22nd of the month.

6. Gifts: Your present(s) should not total more than $5. We want this project to be affordable for you, so think small, but meaningful. Also, all packages must include a postcard (preferable) or a letter to your partner. Motivate them, tell them all the beautiful things you learned about them this month, and make them feel special! We could all use a little encouragement, especially from our new friends.

7. Once you receive your gifts, we highly encourage you to write a blog post about your experience. Share what you gave, received, and learned through participating in the Snail Mail Collective and meeting your new buddy.

8. At the beginning of each month, we will hold a link-up on our blogs (The Nectar Collective & Lost in Travels) where you can share and link-up your SMC blog posts. This way, you can see how people around the world interpreted the theme, learn about other cultures, and meet even more new friends.

A little peek at what Melyssa sent out to all of her participants during a recent postcard giveaway.

So I'm pretty exited to get in on this Snail Mail business and I can't wait to see who I'll get paired up with for the month. I am so ready to get some adorable Korean cuteness ready to send out into the world and if you are up for making a new friend abroad then join up with the Snail Mail Collective because you are going to be in great company!

Have a wonderful day and maybe I'll get to send you a piece of mail soon! ;)

Weekly Wishes

It's time to stop the chatter and listen!

Hello everyone! Today's post is all about hopes for the week and I'm excited to post my second Weekly Wishes link-up with Melyssa @ The Nectar Collective.

Last week, I decided to focus on being completely present in the moment and I'm happy to say that I feel like I rocked it! I spent much of last week in beautiful Boracay and so focusing on the moment and really embracing everything around me was just what I needed. People have been telling me that I look more relaxed and carefree and I know it's because I have been working on just enjoying the now, and not stressing about where I'm supposed to be in the next few hours.

This week's wish is:

Listen to myself, and listen to people.

When I say listen to myself, I really mean listen to my body. I'm a fitness nut and I have been nursing an injured knee for almost 2 months now. I can't seem to completely get over it because I refuse to give up my Taekwondo, but I'm going to try and do better for my body...hopefully. >.> I don't want to be 50 years-old with a crazy injury because of something that I did foolishly in my 20's.

I want to be able to listen to be people better. I won't lie because I love to talk, but I love hearing interesting stories and making the person I'm listening to feel important. I can't stand being in a conversation where I feel like the other person is just waiting to speak and I always want to ask them to repeat what I last said. I am going to strive to be more of a listener this week and I hope that by doing so I'll gain a new perspective on conversation and relationships.

BTW, how adorable is that pretty little baby? Her name is Amy and I went to her first birthday, which is a massive deal in Korea. Amy loves to play "telephone" with her foot, and has all kinds of conversations with her very stylish self. Amy dismayed her grandfather when she picked a microphone up out of the items she was presented with for her birthday. In Korea when a child turns one they are presented with 3 items, which they "pick" from (basically whichever item ends up in their hot little hands OR mouth) and this item will indicate what kind of life the child will have. For example if they choose a gavel then they will be a lawyer/judge, or a sack of money means they will be rich. Amy likes to jam and snapped up the microphone in .5 seconds so apparently Amy is future K-Pop royalty!

If you want to get in the Weekly Wishes link-up action then here Melyssa's rules straight from The Nectar Collective:

1. Share your posts about your goals, challenges, and wishes for the next month, week, or year! Posts completely unrelated to the theme will be deleted.

2. Link back to this site so others can get their goal-setting on, too (You can use the button below)

3. The most important rule of all! You must visit the person's blog who linked up before you and leave them some motivating comment love. This is non-negotiable and is such an important part of this link-up! We are here to encourage each other to accomplish our goals. Let's do this together! Can't wait to visit your blogs and see what you are wishing for this week!

BEDM Challenge: Day 26 Adventure Guide!

I am so excited about today's blog post and it isn't just because I'm almost done with the BEDM challenge, although it is pretty awesome that I have managed to stick to posting once every single day this month! Hurray! Day 26's blog prompt:

"Something you read online. Leave a link and discuss, if you'd like."

I was going through some of my favorite blogs when I came across EXACTLY what I wanted to share with everyone. Since moving to South Korea, I have had the great fortune of going on a pretty awesome adventure that I never imagined would happen when I stepped off the plane. I've also come into contact with so many great blog readers who have expressed a great interest in traveling abroad, but have never had the opportunity. So, when I was reading one my new favorite blogs, The Nectar Collective, and came across Melyssa's DIY Guide to Adventure I knew that I had to share it!

Melyssa is a California lady living in Tokyo, Japan and her blog is full of amazing inspiration, DIY's, and wonderful downloads to get you smiling. Since I have found The Nectar Collective, I am always eager to see what new awesome things Melyssa has put up and I am never disappointed with her content.

The DIY Guide to Adventure is a practical guide that will help get you on track if you are rearing to go on an international adventure. Melyssa's guide helps you calculate not only where and when you want to take your trip, but also how a financial timeline should happen to get you there. I know that I wish I had a guide like this when I left home for England when I was 19 years-old and clueless. Take a look at the guide and let me know what you think and don't forget to send Melyssa some love for her wonderful resource!!

I have had travel on the brain lately because of all of the travel planning that I have been doing for my upcoming trip to the....THE PHILIPPINES! Yep, you heard me! How exciting is that? I know that I can't wait for my trip and a lot the questions that Melyssa put in her guide are the very same questions that my husband and I asked ourselves when considering when and where to take a vacation.

A shot of where we will be staying in beautiful Boracay!! I can't WAIT!

 If you could take a trip anywhere in the world where you would go? How long would you stay? And if you have taken a trip that you dreamed about how did it change your perspective?

Find the DIY Guide to Adventure, here.