Dear Simone,
(Yes, I’m talking to myself.) Today you turned 26 years old and you should be thankful. Another year you’ve survived and conquered. Yet too often, you’re too hard on yourself for your mistakes. You don’t allow yourself to reflect on your growth appreciate your wins. Every mistake you’ve ever made was overcome with a story of perseverance and strength. Be proud of the woman you’ve become and are growing into, because the best is yet to come.
So all we’re asking for this year’s birthday is to love yourself more than you ever have. Make the best decisions you can and be transparent with those who are rooting for you. Year 26 will be your year of allowing yourself to win, fight for what you love and we can’t wait to see the journey! Be kind and courageous this year.
-Love,
Simone
It’s no secret that I’ve been super MIA with content for GGGF. I wish I had a great reason for why I haven’t blogged but honestly, I just didn’t feel like it most days. I was burnt out with life and stress and instead of using blogging as a release to pick myself up, I abandoned it. But here I am with another blog post within a week and I see why I fell in love with creating content. So this birthday blog post is to recap with some of my highlights of the past year, to show you what you missed!
- November 2018: I was honored by Femology as one of Detroit’s Top 100 Female Bloggers! I know I blogged about this but this was a great feeling for year 25! Read about it here!
- December 2018: Three of my closest friends and I celebrated our inaugural “Sis-Mas” event with drinks, food, music and Christmas pajamas! The best part about the night was the laughs and Secret Santa gift exchange! Girl time is always the best.
- February 2019: Matching tattoos with my boyfriend. *gasps* This highlight in itself needs its own blog post because it was a meaningful moment in our relationship. Six months later, I still get butterflies looking at the tattoos. Both tattoos are a representation of ourselves and how we view our relationship. He’s my King and I’m his Queen. Very cliche but also very much just the honest truth. He loves superhero shit so he was adamant about making sure it was something that was true to himself. And of course, I love beauty and glam so my tattoo is my take on a beauty queen. Random Fact: I have 4 tattoos now!
- April 2019: Beautycon NYC in hindsight was the least exciting part of the New York City trip. I slayed severely but the event itself was lackluster. You can read about the event here! Aside from Beautycon, NYC was a quick yet fun girls weekend in the city! Can’t wait to get back to NYC to visit family and friends, shop and explore. If you’re a seafood lover and you’re in Manhattan, check out The Boil! It’s delicious af. We also visited the Museum of Sex. Yes, it’s a museum filled with photos, videos, items, exhibits all based on the nature of sex. The souvenirs I brought home for my boyfriend were all from here. 🙂
- May 2019: I improved my smile! One of my biggest insecurities in life has always been my teeth. I’ve had braces to correct them but I’ve always had a small tooth, called a peg lateral. So this year (with the help of great insurance) I promised myself I would invest in fixing it. It’s not something I’ve shared too much but it has helped my confidence more than ever! I love my new smile. 🙂
- July 2019: My first time leaving the country and it was just lovely! Cancun, Mexico with 5 girlfriends at a luxury all-inclusive resort, looking fine and living my best life– I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect girl’s trip! This trip was also the first time I got to appreciate my body transformation. I felt invincible in my swimsuits, which is a feeling I never felt before! But I think the highlight of the trip was Parasailing, something I never imagined myself ever doing. The whole time before we got into the air I was extremely nervous but once we were hundreds of feet above the water, it was relaxing! Taking in the fresh air and just being at peace is an underrated much-needed activity. Another fun moment was exploring the sea on a catamaran boat tour! I got seasick once we were off of the boat but before then it was lit. Cute photos, unlimited drinks, and good music with my friends!
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So here’s to year 26 being even more adventurous and filled with more great memories!