I’m going to tell you a little story about following your dreams without letting fear and obstacles get in the way.

Two months ago, I was sitting at a dinner table in Portland, Oregon with some blogging friends after the wonderful Indulge Conference. Somehow our conversation turned to what’s next for all of us. What are our dreams? Is blogging our end game or do we have goals and aspirations beyond that? Truthfully, I admitted that right now, blogging was my current end game. Sure, I’d hope to start a podcast as a passion project, but to me, blogging can very well be an end game. I’ve worked really hard over the past 10 years to get to where I am with my blog. I really just want to enjoy where I’m at for a bit.

When we got around the table to my friend Julie from the blog Julie’s Eats & Treats, I was so inspired by her passion. She expressed an interest in having a product line. Specifically, she wanted a store front of some kind to share and sell housewares she loves. Julie has a full time job, a very successful blog as well as two kids, a husband and home to tend to. She was really struggling with how to make her dream come true, all the while balancing the other responsibilities in her life. We all chatted with her a little about some options and found her passion to be contagious. We all really wanted to see her make her dreams come true!

Fast forward to a little over a month later and I get an email from Julie announcing to me that she had opened an online storefront called Drops of Sunshine. She came home from our dinner conversation, talked with her husband, and immediately put her goals into action. What has resulted is the cutest little online storefront you ever did see! I’m excited to be introducing you to Julie’s new store, Drops of Sunshine. In addition, we’re offering a $100 giveaway to win some of the chic and rustic housewares she has available.

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Christmas music is playing, my daughters have been busy in the kitchen making our favorite cutout Christmas cookies (recipe here…you’ve gotta make these) and I feel like I’m wrapped in a blanket of holiday bliss. It’s been a low key kind of Sunday, just what we’ve needed amidst the hustle of the last few weeks. I thought it’d be a great time to write a happiness report and share what’s been making me happy lately!

Last week on my daily “Coffee Talk” on Snapchat (I’d love to snap with you – I’m dineanddish there), I shared that I’d been taking an amino acid vitamin supplement for the past month and I truly believe it’s really, really working. So many of you snapped me back asking for more information! I’m not involved with Happy Calm Focused in any way… I have just been really pleased with the product and wanted to share.

Happy Calm Focused was my last resort before I headed to the doctor to see if I had ADD or something. For the past year I have felt so incredibly unfocused, tired and irritable. Overall, I felt like an absolute scatter brain and it was driving me crazy. I’m normally a very organized, on the ball person, but something was happening and I had changed. I felt like my brain was constantly going in a million different directions, I couldn’t focus or remember ANYTHING, and I was really tired, despite getting a good nights rest. Every day required an afternoon nap for me to get through the day. I assumed it was hormones, ADD or something, but wasn’t sure….

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Hi friends! I just wanted to take a moment out of the holiday weekend to say I hope you all had a truly wonderful, family and friends filled, Thanksgiving. As I counted my blessings this week, you were among those – right up near the top. I am so thankful to each and every one of you who make Dine & Dish – the recipes, travel, and full on life posts – a part of your own life. It truly means the world to me every time you click through, leave a comment, send an email, or share one of my posts with your friends.

For those of you who survived the craziness of Black Friday shopping, or for those of you who made it through Thanksgiving without ticking off someone in your family, I have a special recipe for you! This Pineapple Hard Cider recipe will keep you warm from the inside out – and has just enough of a little kick to to help you relax after the hustle and bustle of the day….

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I love love love being able to shop online!!!

In fact, I’m pretty sure getting out in the bitter, cold temperatures to do Christmas shopping is more “roughing it” than I care to experience. That is why I am so thankful to live in a time where I can do every single last bit of my holiday shopping from the comfort of my own home.

How cool is it that we can sit at home and still get amazing Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals? It kind of makes those people standing in long lines all night long seem like suckers, doesn’t it?

Well, just to make our “we’re so lucky to live in this century” life even more exciting, I’ve partnered with Overstock.com to bring you some of the best Black Friday and Cyber Monday Deals around. Plus, I’m sharing a few of my favorite Kitchen & Home gift ideas in this guide guide…perfect for a variety of people on your list! Party hosts, aunts, sisters, moms, dads, friends… or you can even take a little time to shop for yourself. There are deals here for everyone!

To make things even better, Overstock.com is giving one lucky Dine & Dish reader a $250 gift card to spend on their site! Imagine all the great stuff you can buy with $250 at Overstock.com! Details on the giveaway are at the bottom of this post, but first, check out these awesome gift ideas!…

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I don’t know about where you are, but it’s been down right chilly in Kansas! Not the kind of weather we’d expect for the first part of summer break.

That’s not stopping me from enjoying summer cocktails out on the deck though! We may have to bundle up and have the fire pit roaring, but I’m not going to let a little crummy weather steal a second of my summer. …

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So far on Dine & Dish I’ve shared with you some great hostess gift ideas from HMK as well as some great gift ideas for friends, but I haven’t shared with you some of my favorite selections of kids gifts from HMK! As a mom, aunt and friend of people who seem to be always having babies, I’m always on the lookout for great gifts geared towards kids. Here is a list of a few of my favorite kids items from HMK.

Customized Books for Kids

My kids get a kick out of anything that has their name or likeness in them. I think most kids do… I remember growing up looking all over for pencils with the name “Kristen” on them. Every one else had a pencil with their name on it, but since my name at the time wasn’t all that popular, I could never find any personalized things for me! Well, HMK has solved the “I can’t find my name anywhere” problem by creating these amazing customized hard cover story books! Customize the lead character’s name and likeness to a kid you love and the story is transformed to make them the hero. The best news is, you can have the book printed and bound while you wait!…

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Finding the perfect, and let’s face it… unique, hostess gift can be hard. I don’t know about you, but I tend to always just go for a bottle of wine and a card. However, isn’t that what everyone does? Wouldn’t you like for your hostess gift to stand out and be memorable? Well, HMK, the newest boutique concept store by Hallmark, has pulled me through my hostess gift buying rut. They have a plethora of truly great, unique ideas to give to the next hostess with the mostest you encounter! Here are a few of my favorites!…

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