Writer’s Block.

I haven’t blogged in a couple of weeks. I’ve barely even tweeted. In fact, I found it hard to write something original in my boyfriend’s birthday card last week. I find that when I’m stressed, I find it very hard to write anything at all. I couldn’t even write a quick, rushed blog, which is a blessing in retrospect.

20120509-002025.jpg

I think I may have hit what can only be referred to as a quarter life crisis. I am approaching 25 and whilst I am happy freelancing, I am starting to miss human interaction and being out of my comfort zone. I’m too comfortable sitting at home working in my PJs all day.

I think I may be getting bored. I need challenging. I need a job that I can moan about at the end of the day, whilst secretly enjoying the responsibility of it. I want to be pushed to my limits and meeting new and interesting people every day. I want to use my language skills and chat to people all over the world every day. I want my writing to be on international posters and billboards and on websites and email campaigns that people see often. I want my name to be in a magazine alongside a stunning restaurant or hotel review.

I also want to have more in my bank account. I want to stop living like a student. I want my own place. I want to be able to happily afford the wedding that I’m going to in August in the USA.

I want a big reason to get up in the morning and head off to work. I want to take a coffee on the train and wear a blazer and my heels every day.

I want to reach my potential.

I want a career.

Busy times in Poland and London

The City of Wroclaw

I just got back from a great few days in Poland. I was on a bloggers’ trip with the Polish tourism board and three other bloggers.

Here they are:
Victoria from Pommie Travels
Paul from TravMonkey
Michael from Time Travel Turtle

Inside St Mary’s Basilica, Krakow

We visited Wroclaw, Zakopane and Krakow over 4 days which fun but completely exhausting. We slept on average about 3-4hrs a night. The Polish also love a couple of vodka shots in the evening and are fabulous hosts meaning that we just felt that it would be rude not to partake in the traditions. I’ve included a couple of pictures here. There’s a lot more to come. AND I’m still trying to get my WordPress site up and running. I just am finding it difficult to find the time to do it. There’s also something else in the pipeline that I’m keeping schtum on at the moment.

Vodka in Zakopane

Tomorrow I’ve spending a couple of days with my mum in London, which should again be fun but I’ll be spending all of next week catching up on work and blogging! Definitely worth it though.

Hectic Few Weeks…

After spending much of last week procrastinating and enjoying the sunshine and then much of this week watching the Samantha Brick phenomenon unfold, I have been spending the last couple of days getting up to date with deadlines and work. Why? Because I’m going to be everywhere in the next few weeks.

I’m heading to Venice tomorrow with my Mum for a little Easter break. Thank you to all of you who have sent me tips on the Travel Belles Community and on Twitter. I’m completely in love with The Travel Belles at the moment (and not because they have taken me on as a writer!). I urge you to check it out. It’s such a fun read. I’ll be in Venice for 3 nights. We’re simply planning on hanging out on gondolas, sampling the local pasta – based delights and checking out some sites such as the Lido and a few piazzas. Most people recommend getting lost in Venice, which sounds like a great non-plan to me!

On our return, I have to head to London on Thursday because I have an early flight to Poland on Friday for a Bloggers’ trip. Pretty excited for two reasons: I’ve never been before and I should be able to see my friend Kasia in Krakow. Remember she came to visit in February and we went to Lincoln?

I’ll be in Poland for 4 days before heading back up to London to sleep, and catch up on work and all of these travel notes I plan on making! Then, my mother will rejoin me for a girly couple of days. Steps at the O2 will be no1 on the agenda plus a few drinks and the obligatory shopping trip.

By the time the weekend rolls around, I hope to curl up with Mark, watch some movies and maybe enjoy a Sunday roast before major working out begins to work off my mammoth two weeks. Anybody fancy joining me back on the 30 Day Shred? It worked well for me last time!

Decision Made! Moving to WordPress!

After a lengthy debate, plus four more months of Blogger, I have decided to make the jump to WordPress. I will be doing this from April, however both my Blogger and WordPress versions will run side by side for a while until everyone is coming to the right place. The domain StefanieGrace.com will be moved across so this shouldn’t affect your bookmarks. However, if you are following me on GFC, it may be better to follow me a different way. As soon as I have this all set up, I’ll let you know! Hopefully, you won’t really notice the change. In the meantime, the posts will keep coming and I’m ever present on Twitter and Facebook.

Thanking you in advance for your patience… Wish me luck!

I’m on Foursquare!

Any of you that follow me on Twitter will have noticed that I have become a little obsessed with a little social networking site named Foursquare. I check in at dinner, at the station, getting coffee, in hotels, at home, in the supermarket and so on…

In elevator… going up…

To be honest, I have not yet worked out the purpose of this yet. I guess I’m just doing it for fun. What do you guys think? Does it raise your online profile? Do you get addicted to scoring more points than your friends? I’m struggling to fit it into my working life. I use Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr quite successfully to keep my profile up but Foursquare just seems to be a bit of fun for now.

What are your thoughts?

Fashion Fois Gras Tote at Coach

The latest in the Coach Blogger collaborations, this is the ultimate bag for bloggers. Designed by Emily Johnston of fashion blog Fashion Fois Gras, this tote has a section for everything. I cannot even believe how well it has been thought out: it has a section for everything: an SLR camera, your iPad/tablet, a removable clutch and you can even slide in your flats to rest your feet after a long day. Isn’t it just fabulous?

You can buy the bag here for $558 (about £348).

Hmm… to switch or not to switch?

This is what has been on my mind for a long time. I have used WordPress so much for professional projects and often notice that beautiful blogs are WordPress based, so I am starting to think that I should make the switch. In fact, last week I announced to my boyfriend that I was going to do this DEFINITELY. He wasn’t actually that interested to be fair, although he is already on WordPress for his poker blog so maybe it was just obvious to him.

Then, the other day a message landed in my inbox from International Fashion Bloggers claiming that WordPress was better for bloggers – amazing! I was sold from the outset. It was then followed by such outcry that they followed it up with this. Am I confused? You bet! I also have been reading Beautifully Invisible, recommended by many on the forums as a great resource for collecting your thoughts and then the steps to move forward. 
Ultimately, I think that I do want to make this move, but not until I am absolutely sure and have the time to do all of the extras. What do you all think? Have you done it? Are you considering it?

Hard Rock Hotel all the way!

Last week I was in the Dominican Republic with a group of people from Costa Rica for the Punta Cana Poker Classic 2011. I didn’t play it but I did live it up in the Hard Rock suite – all inclusive. It was literally one of the best places I have ever been in my life.

Jacuzzi in the centre of every room!

We weren’t on a direct flight to Punta Cana. We actually flew from San Jose to Panama City and then from Panama to Santo Domingo, Dom Rep before catching a 3hour shuttle and arriving at the hotel at around 1am. It then took them around 2hours to check us in under the right name and get us to our rooms. Moral to this story is to never rely on other people to book your travel for you!

Hello Caribbean!

The rest of the week however was filled with fabulous people, great sun (mostly!) and an open bar (ALWAYS the way to go!). I may not have taken part in the poker tournament, but I did play blackjack in the casino, partook in a little roulette (6 came in! My birthday is 6/6!) and I also absolutely dominated a particularly serious game of mini golf against the boys where we bet $20 a hole. I came out $190 on top! Also, Mark and I celebrated our 4th anniversary here – I have no idea how the time has passed so quickly!

Standing between Shakira and Elton John’s outfits!

One thing this holiday did give me time to do was reflect. If you follow me on Twitter, then you’ll know that I have decided to make some changes are throw myself back into writing and blogging. There will be big changes here and also big changes in my life, but I’m ready for them!  

I would definitely recommend this place as a place to chill and enjoy the fabulous surroundings.

For more info visit: http://www.hardrockhotelpuntacana.com/ 

Where are you reading from?


I have had page views from the Ukraine, Indonesia, Romania and Peru in the past week! That’s so cool! Welcome to all of you!


United States
354
United Kingdom
250
Ukraine
71
Indonesia
67
Romania
43
Peru
36
Australia
21
Germany
18
India
13
Canada
12
What are you guys coming to see? I notice that people mainly come here looking for “Kendall Kardashian” (she is a Jenner) posts. I guess she’s the next big thing according to the stats!

Who reads your blog?