Here’s a little piece of my heart in a video I created for my younger brother to commemorate his healing and growth over the past three years and to encourage him to continue choosing courage over fear.

I’m not real big on Hallmark holidays, especially Valentine’s Day, but since the word love is in my ministry’s name, I thought I’d write about it.

There are so many types of love: love between family members, love for friends, romantic love, self-love, a love of life, etc. The dictionary defines love as an intense feeling of deep affection.

In my opinion, love can’t really be defined. It means something different for you and for me.

Here’s what I think about when I think about the concept love… here’s my definition.

Love is sacrifice. It’s putting someone else’s needs before our own. Love is wanting the best for the people in our lives.

I heard somewhere that we like because, and we love despite. Meaning that I like my best friend because she is kind, beautiful, etc., but I love her despite her flaws and imperfections.

Love is more than a four-letter word. It can be seen through our actions. It can be shown everyday, not just on Valentine’s Day. Love is more than saying “I love you.” It’s the little things like, “here’s an umbrella, it’s raining,” “hurry back,” and “watch out.” There are some ways that people show love you to you that you probably don’t even notice.

This isn’t school and there’s no right or wrong definition of love, so comment down below and let me know what your definition is.

Don’t forget to love your first!

Love and hugs,

Julia

This week on the IRL Blog with JRN, I thought I’d share a few of my favorite allergen-friendly options as we settle into February.

I have multiple food intolerances and sensitivities to a wide variety of foods, the two biggest culprits being dairy and gluten (but there are lots of other foods, too), and I have been so grateful to be able to find such great options on the market today. Even if you don’t have food allergies, intolerances, or sensitivities, these are still pretty great options worth checking out, so here are a few of my favorite foods.

For breakfast lately, I’ve been having a smoothie bowl containing a frozen açaí base, a frozen banana (tip: peel them before you put them in the freezer… trust me, you don’t want to learn that the hard way), frozen berries, fresh kale, and vanilla almond milk topped with pieces of a honey oat Kind breakfast bar. I also love eggs and gluten free, dairy free, and soy free toast topped with Earth Balance vegan butter. If I’m tight on time, I typically just grab a Kind breakfast bar.

As a morning snack, especially at school, I normally grab a banana (if I didn’t have one in a smoothie) or a Nature’s Bakery gluten free blueberry fig bar.

My school lunch typically has fresh berries, carrots, guacamole, tortilla chips, and a couple slices of turkey.

When I get home from school, I usually grab a quick snack straight from the fridge or pantry.

My favorite dinner is probably salmon with potatoes.

When I eat out, I can usually find something to modify on every menu. If you ever go out to dinner with me, you’ll probably see me eating a bun-less burger with sweet potato fries or building my own gluten-free pizza with vegan cheese.

For dessert, I’m a sucker for vegan ice cream (to the point where my little brother drew me a picture that says “I scream, you scream, we all scream for dairy-free ice cream”), vegan chocolate, Goodie Girl cookies, and Homefree Treats vanilla cookies.

Locally to the Jacksonville area, I have been able to discover some amazing products at Native Sun and Grassroots. I know Earthfare is another great option. On a larger scale, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Fresh Market, and even Publix have great allergen-friendly options. I’ve had decent luck grabbing a few things in bulk at Costco, too.

Some restaurants are more accommodating than others. In Jacksonville, I love Sweet Theory Baking Company. Mellow Mushroom is not my favorite place for vegan pizza, but they have some good options, too. Personally, if we’re talking pizza, I really like Blaze Pizza and Your Pie, which have locations in various cities. I also really like True Food. In almost every circumstance, I can find something to order off of every menu, even if that means I have to modify the dish a little bit.

If you ever have any questions about food allergies, sensitivities, or intolerances, I’d be happy to try to answer them, and you are always welcome to send me a message, but also know that I am not a professional, and I definitely don’t know it all.

I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about a few of my favorite allergen-friendly options. Happy February! I hope you love to live and eat good food. I will try to do a blog post on how I discovered my food intolerances soon, but until then, you can learn more about me here and connect with me over on Instagram.

Love and hugs,

Julia

Hello beautiful! I’m so glad you stopped by my corner of the internet. In case we haven’t met before, or even if we have, my name is Julia, and you can read more about me here.

If you want to get to know me a little better, I’m going to answer a few random questions down below…

1. What’s on your bucket list this year? My bucket list is insanely long, but this year I’m hoping to take some trips this summer and live out my 2020 vision.

“I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list.” ~Susan Strong

2. What would your perfect day look like? I don’t know if I could really plan the perfect day, but I guess it would entail waking up to watch the sunrise with a camera, a journal, and a smoothie by my side. I’m not sure what the rest of my day would look like. I think planning a perfect day is more about creating beautiful moments. I have no idea where I’d be or what I’d be doing, but I think a perfect day isn’t overly planned. Maybe I’d go on a little excursion – take an adventure in whatever place I was staying, even if that’s just walking down the street, looking around, and smelling the flowers. I’d probably grab lunch at a local restaurant. I guess I’d just go along with whatever the day brings. Maybe I’d be exploring with family and friends in a really cool place just enjoying every moment. I’d watch the sunset from the top of the hill, mountain, or cliff. I’d get cozy underneath blankets. I think a perfect day is less about what you’re doing, where you’re doing it, and who you’re with, and more about living in the moment.

3. What takes up too much of your time? I spend too much time overthinking insignificant things.

4. What’s your favorite podcast? I currently love listening to Jenna Kutcher’s Goal Digger Podcast, the SHE podcast by Jordan Lee Dooley, WHOA That’s Good podcast with Sadie Robertson, the Rise podcast with Rachel Hollis, and more.

5. What’s your dream car? I’d have to say a Tesla or a white Range Rover.

6. Why do you blog? I blog because for me writing is a creative outlet. I’ve always loved writing. English has always been my favorite subject in school. I started Love to Live Ministries as a way of cultivating a community. It’s always been a dream of mine to have a platform to share my thoughts and connect with others. I guess the real answer is, why not?

7. What’s a strength you have that has made blogging easier? I happen to love writing and photography. I really like design, too. Something that I think has been really helpful is the fact that I’m passionate about Love to Live Ministries. Also, for some of the things that I’m not great at, I ask others for help with. My mom works in marketing and communications, and she also happens to be a great editor, so I tend to consult her for help. When I’m lacking inspiration, I reach out to friends and family or find some from bloggers I follow.

8. What advice would you offer to someone thinking about starting a blog? I would say to really think through what you hope your blog will be. After you’ve decided what you hope it’ll look like, know that it probably won’t turn out just the way you imagined it. I think what’s really important when starting a blog is your reason for starting. Let your blog represent who you are as a person and the message you are trying to get across. Take inspiration from your favorite bloggers, but don’t copy them. Make your blog your own little corner of the internet. Also, don’t start blogging to gain followers or make money – those things may come later, but what’s really important is that you’re doing something that you’re passionate about (something you love). And just to clarify, I need those reminders just as much as you might.

9. How do you overcome insecurities with regard to publishing blog posts or posting on social media? I don’t think I’ve fully overcome the insecurities – very few people probably do. What’s been really important to me is hoping that when I put myself out there someone will get something out of it. Also, I think it’s really important to care less about what other people think, and publish blog posts you want to publish and post things you want to post, and if other people judge you, and they will judge you, well there’s nothing you can do about it, so just move on.

10. What does your blogging schedule look like? I try to post weekly, and the day will depend on the blog post. Read more about when I post here.

Feel free to comment down below your answers to these questions – I’d love to get to know you. Also, if you have any questions for me, I’d be happy to answer them if you comment on this post or reach out to me.

Thanks for reading! I’ll see you again next week on the blog, but until then, come hang out with me on Instagram…

Every year for Christmas, my mom suggests my brother and I ask for something we want, something we need, something to wear, something to read, and something to eat.

Just in case you didn’t get all of your shopping out-of-the-way for the holidays, I’m going to share some of my favorite gifts.

I was in need of a new backpack, and I fell in love with this one.

I really wanted a GoPro, and I am over-the-moon excited about my GoPro Hero 7!

I actually bought myself a Christmas present that I’m getting good use out of…a denim skirt from Madewell.

I got what might just be the best book ever – Girl Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis. I would most definitely recommend this!

Last, but certainly not least, I got some amazing chocolate. My favorite is Enjoy Life – it’s allergen friendly and delicious!

Happy shopping sweet friend. I’ll see you back on IRL with JRN next week!