I have as many blogger favorites as I do best friends...

I worked 1-8:30pm at JCP today. As usual, I'm exhausted and my feet hurt. Also working two jobs is why I haven't replied to any of the emails I've received in the last two weeks. But it's too early in the month to skip a daily challenge, so here goes nothing!



For a long time, the only buttons on my sidebar were of bloggers with whom I had swapped buttons. I had a bit of a sulky attitude, to be perfectly honest, about "featuring" someone who wasn't doing anything for me, especially if it was a blogger who accepted money for advertising. I know. Real mature. I'm not exactly proud to admit this. But I recently decided that I wanted to show off buttons of my favorite bloggers, regardless of their own blog policies. Bloggers who don't have buttons are listed underneath the heading "What I'm Reading." (Technically, Casey has two cute buttons, but they're too wide for my sidebar, and I've been too busy/tired to email her for a smaller one to include). 

I wish I could spend a few hours explaining why I follow the blogs I do, and which ones are truly the absolute best. But I can't stop yawning. So this will be short and sweet and without links or pictures at least until tomorrow when I'm actually awake.




Lauren blogs at Our Crazy After about her marriage to Jesse, their struggles with infertility, her life as a nanny, her doggies, and more. She is funny, honest, and one of my first blogging friends.


Emily blogs at Hopeful Wandering about her long-distance relationship with her English boyfriend Tom... Yeah, mostly that. Since I'm in a medium-distance relationship with Beau, after almost a year of being long-distance, I can relate. Also, Emily likes France, and she studied abroad there last year. Good enough for me.

Bonnie blogs at Life of Bon. She is probably one of the few "big" bloggers I follow. I currently have an ad on her sidebar, so you should go check it out and tell me how good it looks. ;) Bonnie writes about everything. Literally everything. Except her blog is very PG because her entire really big family and even some of her students read it. Even so, she's not afraid to admit to screwing up and asking her readers for advice/feedback. Also, she's Mormon. Jess blogs at Jessica Lynn Writes. My first-ever ad was with her. She's a military wife in Italy with an adorable newborn baby girl. Her husband is skinny like Beau is, but I haven't figured out yet if he's nerdy or not Jess confirmed it. He's totally nerdy. I knew it!


Ashley Marie has just returned to the world of blogging. A newborn, new hubby, and fixer-upper farm has kept her life busy! When she does blog, she muses about life and helps keep things in perspective. She posts cute fashion posts on outfits made with bargains, along with the occasional DIY project.

 
Betsy blogs at Betsy Transatlantically. I found her via Casey! Betsy is planning a wedding to be in England with her British fiancé while she lives and works in D.C... I know. Gurl be awesome. She is bubbly and spirited, but she can also be reflective. She inspired by post on my Christian Feminist beliefs!

Casey blogs at We Took the Road Less Traveled. My second-ever ad was with her. :) She's a military wife in Germany, and she blogs about their travels and their relationship. Her relationship with her husband is just SO romantic and SO sweet and if Casey weren't so genuine and humble and all that, I would be incredibly jealous. Even though my relationship with Beau is perfect, sometimes I wonder what it would be like if we had found each other earlier.

Melissa blogs at Pigtail Pals and Ballcap Buddies. She's a feminist mother of two who works to create a better, more creative, less limited world for her children.

Dani blogs at The Lacquered Lady where she provides make-up and other beauty reviews. When I bought a bunch of new nail polish last year, I went to her blog first to pick out my colors.

Lauren blogs at Sweet Southern Sophistication about her relationship, her faith, fashion, and food.

Elle blogs at Elle Sees about her weekly goals, her dog, and fashion, but mostly Elle writes about beauty. She has great beauty DIY tricks--check out all her suggestions for using free stuff at Starbucks! Elle is also great about answering beauty questions and interacting with her readers. I have no idea how she finds the time to do it all!

Soon to be Cat Lady blogs at Soon To Be Cat Lady. She shares hilarious stories of her adventures with online dating. Seriously, her blog has moved me to tears before... because I was laughing so hard.

Dana blogs at The World As Told By Dana. She writes about social issues, France, and personal reflections. She's teaching English in France next year, doing the same job I once did!

These are not all the blogs I follow, but they are my favorites. Yes, I have a lot of favorites. Just like I have a lot of best friends. That's how I roll!

Anyway, expect links to be included, along with pictures for each blogger, sometime May 6/7. But I am posting this, tweeting it, linking it up, and going to bed. Yes, the first thing I did this morning (May 6) is add pictures and links to this post. You're welcome.