How To Grow Your Instagram FAST

I'm too lazy to do this research, but I'm fairly certain that was the longest break I've ever taken from blogging. For the past two weeks, we have been moving warehouses at work and I have been so dang tired when I got home that I just had no energy to get out the laptop and start typing. 

I also have a confession to make. I've really turned my focus to building Dallas Love List and let VTIM take a back seat, both on Instagram and on this blog. It is just so darn fun to build up Dallas Love List. It grows so quickly and quite frankly... it is pretty easy. 

Did I mention that I think everyone should start a local instagram account for your city???????? 

As a bit of a catch up, seeing as I've pretty much been MIA for a month, CB and I decided to do a NO SPEND NOVEMBER. We knew December was going to be a doozy as far as expenses go (oh, hi, I'll be in NYC by 11pm tonight) so we made a deal to not spend any money in November.

We did SO MUCH FUN STUFF though. How, you ask? Well, in our No Spend November deal (let's call it NSN) we decided that we could only do something if it was free. Although I am getting a few invites for Dallas Love List here and there, they certainly aren't flying in for me. So, if we wanted to go have fun, I had to go out and ask for it.

Here are just a few of the fun things we did in November -- THAT COST NO DOLLARS.

Ate Free Oysters at Cook Like a Texan Event

#DallasLoveList 186 || The oysters from @chef_hugo65 at the @texasmonthly #CookLikeATexan event @klydewarrenpark were OUT OF THIS WORLD 🌎 tasty 😋

A photo posted by Dallas Love List (@dallaslovelist) on Dec 4, 2016 at 4:16pm PST

Played dress up at an OPEN BAR charity event and even got to give tickets away

🎉🎉GIVEAWAY🎉🎉 #DallasLoveList 181 || I've got a CRAZY good giveaway for you today, and it involves an open bar🍾, a great cause, playing holiday 🎄dress 👗 up and delish 🧀 hors d'oeuvres! Have I piqued your 🤔 interest?! Thought so! ------- Two tickets ($150 value) to Saturday Night's @MiracleonMckinnon at the beautiful @mariegabrielle_ garden benefiting the Children's Medical Center Foundation 🎈 are up for grabs! ------- To Enter: 1. Follow @dallaslovelist + @MiracleonMckinnon 2. Tag a buddy! Each buddy you tag is an additional entry! ------- 🎄Event Details🎄 📍Marie Gabrielle Restaurant and Gardens 📆Saturday, Dec. 3rd 9pm-1am 🎟Ticket link in bio 🎁 Please bring an unwrapped toy for a patient @childrens.health I'll announce the winner Friday at Noon! ------- Per instagram rules, I'd like to acknowledge that this giveaway is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Instagram, Inc. By entering, entrants confirm they are at least 13+ years of age and release instagram of responsibility and agree to instagrams terms of use. #giveaway

A photo posted by Dallas Love List (@dallaslovelist) on Dec 1, 2016 at 8:33am PST

Went to a Mavs basketball game

#DallasLoveList 175 || I'm liking the vibes 🏀🏀 in here right now. I'm not sure if it's because @swish41 is finally back or if it's all the bad juju this crowd is sending @deandrejordan6 but I think the @dallasmavs are DUE FOR A WIN tonight @aacenter 🙌🏻🙌🏻#gamedayvibes

A photo posted by Dallas Love List (@dallaslovelist) on Nov 23, 2016 at 5:54pm PST

Ate Free Crepes at Whisk Crepes

GIVEAWAY CLOSED #DallasLoveList 165 || The Raspberry + White Chocolate 🍫 crêpe from @whiskcrepes! . Want to win $20 to spend @whiskcrepes??! To Enter: 1. Follow @dallaslovelist + @whiskcrepes 2. Tag a friend you'd eat crêpes with! Each tag is an entry! Gift card valid through Feb 2017! Winner announced tomorrow at noon!

A photo posted by Dallas Love List (@dallaslovelist) on Nov 10, 2016 at 8:42am PST

Drank Unlimited Beer at 5 Years of Beer Party

#DallasLoveList 163 || Happy 5 Years @deepellumbrewing 🍻🎉Had the most fun celebrating the occasion with @ishimusic last night!

A photo posted by Dallas Love List (@dallaslovelist) on Nov 6, 2016 at 5:22pm PST

Drank unlimited Beer at Untapped Beer Festival

#DallasLoveList 166 || Pretzel Necklace Vibes @untappedfest

A photo posted by Dallas Love List (@dallaslovelist) on Nov 12, 2016 at 3:30pm PST

Drank Rose All Day for Free at Park and Palate

#DallasLoveList 150 || #ParkAndPalate event @klydewarrenpark is next level fabulous 😍 #RoseAllDay

A photo posted by Dallas Love List (@dallaslovelist) on Oct 22, 2016 at 2:50pm PDT

Played Dress Up and drank free Margaritas at the Margarita Ball

So what's my big secret??? Well, I simply just asked, and they said yes.
BUT how do you know WHAT to ask? And WHO to ask? And How to ask it?
Well, now that I do have a secret for!
I actually took my pal Helene's Instagram for Success Course.  
I took Helene's course before starting Dallas Love List.
Are you ready for a recap of how quickly that has grown?

I started Dallas Love List on June 2nd.... It's now been 6 months and I've grown from
0 to 7,412
I'm blown away by it's success and also with how much fun I'm having growing that account. It was so easy to find my voice, my personality I wanted to portray and to carve out my nook on Instagram strictly because of Instagram for Success.

Here are a few things that you will learn are guaranteed to help you grow.
The best way to beautifully edit your photos

Increase engagement with the RIGHT hashtags

Monetize your account

Master the Flatlay

Learn how to effectively approach brands you'd love to work with on instagram. 

Beat the instagram algorithm

Plus, one of my favorite things is in one of the bonuses that Helene is offering right now. She's going to give you a social media content calendar for the entire year!! That's over 2,000 ideas for Instagram. That is priceless to me, because I swear I get writers block (you know, so to speak) on Instagram!

That bonus offer ends Monday.

That not enticing enough for you?? Just to sweeten the deal...
If you purchase through my link below, I'm going to email you directly 30 of my favorite holiday hashtags to use this season, as well as a second list of 30 hashtags targeted specifically to YOUR Instagram account!

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The Best Holiday Apps For Your Smartphone

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and Walmart Family Mobile. All opinions are mine alone. #TheGiftOfData #CollectiveBias

Streaming football games when I'm riding in the car. Checking my fantasy football score (one hundred and fifty seven times a day). Scrolling Pinterest aimlessly for hours. Streaming holiday music and singing at uncomfortable volumes for all to hear. Watching youtube clips of dogs doing funny things. Showing everyone I encounter the NFL spoof, "Bad Lip Reading." 

Wait, have you seen bad lip reading yet?! There are several editions, including this one too. I can't watch Dez play anymore without thinking, "SOMEONE BRING ME MY FUNYUNS."

See, I use a lot of data on what some might consider to be "silly" things. I personally view it as a good investment of my time. Lucky for me, and every other smartphone owner in the American population, Walmart Family Mobile is now offering their Unlimited Talk, Text & Data service plan for $39.88 a month (for the first line), which now includes up to 5GB of 4G LTE data.

I've gotten to test out Walmart Family Mobile's service and phones in the past, and was excited to get to use the Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime ($149) smartphone this holiday season.... you know, so I can now watch even more hilarious videos of cats getting spooked!

Disclaimer: All prices for phones and plans included in this post are accurate as of the date of posting; however, these prices are subject to change. Please refer to http://cbi.as/186mm or your local Walmart for current pricing.

Ok ok, so say you didn't want to sit around and watch Buzzfeed Food videos where they make delicious, must-have dishes like this Pizza dip that looks so good I could cry... what would you use that extra data on this holiday season? Have no fear, I have some suggestions!

For Tunes: 

Spotify's Turkey Timer

Time your turkey to Spotify's freshly baked playlist. Turn up the temperature, then turn up the volume.

Step One: Select Turkey Weight

Step Two: Select Genre

Step Three: Cook to tunes that will run the exact length of your turkey cook time! 

For Family Gaming: 

Bloop

This game is kind of like twister for your fingers, and will be great for the family on Christmas Eve. Bloop is a fast, frantic touch game for Android. Two, three, or four players race to tap the most tiles...at the same time! Easy at first, but soon the tiles shrink. Hands collide. Fingers cross. Fireworks!

Heads Up

If you've never played Ellen's smartphone game with friends or family, you're majorly missing out. Anytime we have a party, someone always ends up requesting Heads Up.  From naming celebrities, to singing, to silly accents -- guess the word on the card that’s on your head from your friends’ clues before the timer runs out! You can purchase extra decks for just 99 cents, so you never run out of clues.

Reverse Charades
Reverse Charades is a hilarious twist on a classic stand-by (where one person acts out words for the team to guess-boring)! With the Reverse Charades app, the entire team chooses 30, 60 or 90 second rounds to act out as many words as one person can guess

For Cooking and Entertaining: 

Yummly

Search recipes (including cocktails!) and easily make grocery lists from those recipes. Featured on the Today Show, Yummly matches over 1 million recipes to your cooking lifestyle’s nutrition, diet, food allergies, and favorite cuisines. Kind of like Pinterest, only much more targeted!

Vivino Wine Scanner

Take a photo of any wine label to find pricing, ratings, reviews, food paring suggestions and recommendations. Get to know any wine within seconds just by scanning the label.

For Fun: 

Elf Yourself

The annual holiday tradition allows you to “elf” yourself and become the star of a personalized video featuring your photos on holiday dancing elves. Simply upload up to five photos of you, your friends, family and more from your camera roll or Facebook. Select a dance theme, and the app will generate a custom ElfYourself video that you can share via email or post on Facebook.

Santa Tracker
Man what I would have done to have this when I was a kid. Santa tracker, as the name suggests, allows you to find out exactly where santa is at any point in the night on Christmas Eve. You can also play games with elves in jetpacks, rolling gumballs, sleighs powered by rockets and Google Cardboard. Once the 24th arrives, follow Santa in his journey around the world.  

For Travel: 

Turo

Rent a car from an actual person rather than an agency, and know exactly what type of car you're going to get. Across the country or across town, travelers choose from a unique selection of nearby cars, while car owners earn extra money and help fuel the adventures of travelers they meet along the way. Whether it’s an F-150 truck to help out on moving day, a Tesla for a luxurious weekend away, or a classic VW bus for a picture-perfect road trip, travelers rent the car, and own the adventure.

Audible

I'm an Audible addict. I'm not one to sit down and read a book cover to cover, but with I use all the free time I have sitting in traffic to read the country's best selling novels. I just started Pretty Girls, and I think I'm about to explode with sadness every time I have to get out of the car. 

Bring Fido
Looking for a pet-friendly hotel? How about an awesome dog park, trail or beach? BringFido.com is the world's leading pet travel website and the #1 trusted resource for dog owners looking for the lowdown on the best hotels, attractions, and restaurants that welcome pets.

----

Walmart Family Mobile can be found in-store, as shown in the photo below. To learn more about WFM and giving #thegiftofdata, be sure to check out their Tumblr page, here! 

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The Best Wines Under $10 To Bring To Thanksgiving or A Holiday Party

It's that time of year when you're constantly needing a wine to bring to a party. This week, you'll need a wine to serve at Thanksgiving. When you're serving a crowd, those really nice $20 bottles may not be an option. Here are my picks for the best wines under $10 to bring to your next party, or to serve with Thanksgiving dinner. 

1. Jacob's Creek ~ $6

If you come to my home, there's about a 76% chance you'll be handed an Australian wine. Australian wines are absolutely delicious and generally run cheaper than most other wines on the shelf. I've tried nearly every type of Jacob's Creek, and while I like most of them, the Shiraz-Cab blend is my go-to recommendation for Thanksgiving!

Plus, they're all screw caps. This is a plus for hotel rooms, just an item I find important to note.

2.  Penfolds ~ $9

Another Australian wine, Penfolds has a few different collections that vary drastically in price. The Rawson Chardonnay or the Thomas Hyland Cabernet will only set you back about $7-$9. 

3. Mirassou ~ $9

Hey look, California.... not Australia! Mirassou Pinot Noir is my absolute favorite wine for the price point. My favorite wine is Estancia Pinot Noir, but it unfortunately misses that under $10 mark, usually costing about $17. If you love pinot noir, you'll love Mirassou's, especially for just $9. 

4. Bogle ~ $8.50

Bogle is a Californian wine that I actually tried for the first time with my mom in Virginia Beach. I couldn't believe how delicious I thought it was, especially for so cheap. I personally really like Bogle's Chardonnay, which receives excellent reviews from wine critics.


5. Estancia (White) ~ $8

I mentioned California's Estancia Pinot Noir in reference to Mirassou, and while it is generally in the range of $15-$17, Estancia's white wines fit into that <$10 price point. 

6. Belle Ambiance ~ $9

Ok, OK, ok.... you got me. The first time I bought this wine, I only picked it because of the label. I never said I was some expert wine snob over here. I'm really glad I did though, because this Californian wine is fantastic, and not just because of that pretty blue label.

7.  Dark Horse ~ $7

Their red blend is actually a global wine, made from a variety of grapes from Argentina, California and Australia. The packaging is very sleek, making it look much more expensive than it actually is.

8. House Wine ~ $7.25

I'm embarrassed, this is another one I picked because I loved the label. Just kidding, I'm not embarrassed, packaging is everything right? The packaging might have sold me the first time, but the taste of this Washington wine was so good that I grab this one anytime I see it at the grocery store. Even better, they now package this wine in a box... SCORE!

9. Apothic ~ $9

I honestly don't think this wine needs a description, as I'm sure you've heard of it. This Californian wine is wildly popular, and quite frankly the perfect wine to bring to Thanksgiving!

10. A Good Trick

For number 10 I'm going to give you a trick that I do at the grocery store. I'll look for the biggest discounts. Sometimes there will be a big cart filled with closeout wines, don't ignore that cart. I'll also check out the shelves and find new wines to try based on the deepest sales. For example, that Seven Daughters wine shown above, was a fantastic $19 bottle of wine that I got for just $9. When I'm needing a wine to bring to a party, this is the approach I'll take!


So that's my list of suggestions, what do you think? Have you tried any of these wines?
What is your favorite inexpensive wine?

Oh, and get some goat cheese while you're at it.
Every wine goes with goat cheese.
Everything goes with goat cheese.

Goat cheese for president 2016. Gouda for VP.

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30 More Instagram Hashtags for Bloggers That Will Triple Likes

When you write a post that does well, a post that people find immensely helpful, it makes it hard to not want to make another post like that again. In my first post, Instagram Hashtags for Bloggers that Will Triple Likes, I found 30 hashtags (the limit on Instagram) that I actually tested on an account that had zero followers. They worked, and I proved it to you. Today, I have 30 more Instagram Hashtags for bloggers to use, that work just as well and some maybe even better. I've included a wide variety of topics from the best dog, pet and cat hashtags to use on instagram, the best food and cooking hashtags to use on Instagram, and the best lifestyle and fashion blogger hashtags to use on instagram.

You might also like:

Instagram Hashtags for Bloggers That Will Triple Likes (And I'll Prove It) 

Hashtag Number One

#postitfortheaesthetic || 107k
Hashtag Creator: @postitfortheaesthetic + @andreaxxdianna || 17k followers

  Website: Andreadianna (Tumblr) Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  YES!
Images appropriate for this category?  A collective space of lifestyle, art, design, nature, travel and everything in between.

Hashtag Set Number Two

#soloverly || 36k
Hashtag Creator: @loverly || 193k followers

Blog: Lover.Ly  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  YES!
Images appropriate for this category? Mostly wedding related, but anything pretty and feminine

Hashtag Set Number Three

#lovelysquares || 299k
Hashtag Creator: @lovelysquares || 4k followers

Blog: None That I Could Find Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Not Anymore
Images appropriate for this category? Anything feminine, pretty, creative, colorful... etc.

Hashtag Set Number Four

#GatheredStyle || 21k
#aquietstyle || 6k
Hashtag Creator: @aquietstyle || 65k

Blog: Aquiet Style  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes for #aquietstyle, No for #gatheredstyle
Images appropriate for this category? Moody, quiet, beautiful images

Hashtag Set Number Five

#marthafood || 13k
#MarthaStewartPets || 31k
#MarthaBakes || 12k
#FridayFlowers || 13k
Hashtag Creator: @marthastewart || 673k

Website: Martha Stewart Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? They are pretty self explanatory for each category, and widely used.

Hashtag Set Number Six

#SoBestFriendsForFrosting || 7k
Hashtag Creator: @bestfriendsforfrosting || 62k

Blog: Best Friends For Frosting  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Flowers, Cooking, Cocktails, Home, Pretty, Colorful, Friends, Beaches, Anything Girly

Hashtag Set Number Seven

#colorcolourlovers || 21k
Hashtag Creator: @xantheb || 41k

Blog: Xanthe Berkeley  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes, on the blog
Images appropriate for this category? Anything images that are colorful. Occasionally run specific color challenges as well.

Hashtag Set Number Eight

#bloomyellow || 15k
Hashtag Creator: @yellowconference || 14k

Website: Yellow Conference Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Photos/Messages that empower women

Hashtag Set Number Nine

#solovelysofree || 15k
Hashtag Creator: @thefreewmn || 3k

Website: The Free Woman  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything that celebrates the FEMALE! 

Hashtag Set Number Ten

#TheDulcetLife || 21k
Hashtag Creator: @dulcetcreative || 8k

Blog: Dulcet Creative  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Per @dulcetcreative's definition: sweet, pleasant, agreeable to the eye of feelings

Hashtag Set Number Eleven

#TheKitchn || 142k
Hashtag Creator: @thekitchn || 153k

Website: The Kitchn  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Food and Cooking

Hashtag Set Number Twelve

#ohwowyes || 9k
Hashtag Creator: @buzzfeedweddings || 10k

Website: BuzzFeed Weddings  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything wedding related

Hashtag Set Number Thirteen

#photosinbetween || 4k
#dogsinbetween || 295
#ExploreInBetween || 531
Hashtag Creator: @heleneinbetween || 13k

Blog: Helene In Between  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes! Images appropriate for this category? Flowers, Cooking, Cocktails, Home, Pretty, Colorful, Friends, Beaches, Anything and everything! I tag every picture with this hashtag.  The pup and explore hashtags are self-explanatory! 

Hashtag Set Number Fourteen

#yahoofood || 68k
Hashtag Creator: @yahoofood || 33k

Website: Yahoo Food   Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Foooooooooood pics!  

Hashtag Set Number Fifteen

#buzzfeast || 79k
Hashtag Creator: @buzzfeedfood || 619k

Website: BuzzFeed Food  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything tasty and delicious!

Hashtag Set Number Sixteen

#huffposttaste || 164k
Hashtag Creator: @huffposttaste || 39k

Website: Huffpost Taste  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything food related 

Hashtag Set Number Seventeen

#huffpostgram || 1m
#ruffpost || 152k
Hashtag Creator: @huffingtonpost, @ruffpost || 447k, 36k

Website: The Huffington Post  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? A Lot of adventure photos, but any photo is really ok in this category  Ruffpost is for doggie images

Hashtag Set Number Eighteen

#bareaders || 32k
Hashtag Creator: @bonappetitmag || 964k

Website: Bon Appetit Magazine  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Not that I could tell, but lots of regrams from Bon Appetit employees. 
Images appropriate for this category? Anything Food related

Hashtag Set Number Nineteen

#oneofthebunch || 26k
Hashtag Creator: @bunchmagazine || 19k

Website: Bunch Mag  Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Any images that inspire creativity

Hashtag Set Number Twenty

#weeklyfluff || 2.5m
Hashtag Creator: @instagram || 107m

Blog: Instagram's Blog Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything pet related

Hashtag Set Number Twenty One

#barkpack || 169k
Hashtag Creator: @barkbox || 977k

Blog: Bark Box Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything Doggie Related

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Two

#candyminimal || 95k
Hashtag Creator: @candyminimal, @mattcrump || 33k, 118k

Website: Matt Crump Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Think images filled with bright NEON, colors

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Three

#thecandyrainbow || 792
Hashtag Creator: @violettinder || 17k

Website: Violet Tinder Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? A bright array of as many colors as you can fit into a frame

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Four

#popyacolour || 233k
Hashtag Creator: @_popyacolour || 15k

Blog: None that I could see Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Images that have a variety of striking colors

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Five

#ihavethisthingwithcolor || 7k
Hashtag Creator: @ihavethisthingwithcolor || 652

Website: One Behind Thirty Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? COLORRRRR, duh  

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Six

#pawstruck || 261k
Hashtag Creator: @pawstruckpets || 24k

Website: Pawstruck Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything pet related

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Seven

#awwfeed || 68k
Hashtag Creator: @awwfeed 35k

Want more pet hashtags? Also Try:
#topdogphoto || 329k (@topdogphoto)
#bestwoof || 742k (@bestwoof)
#pawpack || 273k (@thepawpack)
#dogscorner || 1.8m (@dogscorner)
#emwng || 19k (@emwng)

Website: Fuzmo Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? Anything pet related  

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Eight

#theeverydayproject || 106k
Hashtag Creator: @rosemary_wild 9k

Blog: Rosemary Wild Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  I don't believe so
Images appropriate for this category? A picture a day, anything that you want documented in your life

Hashtag Set Number Twenty Nine

#handsinframe || 171k
Hashtag Creator: @handsinframe 54k

Blog: Hands in Frame Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Yes!
Images appropriate for this category? If you hand(s) is in the picture, tag it with this hashtag

Hashtag Set Number Thirty

#gamedayvibes || 271
Hashtag Creator: @iamsarahwebb 3.6k

Blog: Venus Trapped in Mars Regrams Images Using Their Hashtag?  Will feature on blog
Images appropriate for this category? I had to pimp my own tag out right? Anything SPORTS related, like tailgating/watching/playing, use this tag.

------- Just like last post, that was the hardest work possible on a blog post. Time for another nap. Pay it forward, pin it + save it on blogger!
Follow me on Instagram if you want, I wouldn't hate it.  Have your own hashtag that you'd like featured? Submit it to me to be included in future lists! 

You might also like: Instagram Hashtags for Bloggers That Will Triple Likes (And I'll Prove It)

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A Celebration of Phenomenal Women

As you know, over the Summer I was picked to be a Phenomenal Ambassador for one of my absolutely favorite companies, Lean Cuisine. In my first post for Lean Cuisine, The 696 Times I've Weighed Myself, I wrote about what I wish people would weigh me on, my dedication to this blog. A month later, I shared the story of my Grandma, Nan, who is The Definition of Phenomenal in my eyes.

To celebrate my time as a Lean Cuisine Phenomenal Ambassador, I was given the incredible opportunity to throw a dinner party -- for the very first time in our new house, might I add -- for some of the phenomenal women in my life. The phenomenal women I chose to invite, were a few of my girlfriends that I've met since moving to Dallas. 

These ladies are such an inspiration to me. These women have worked their tails off building their careers, and are homeowners all on their own, without the help of anyone else. But that's not the biggest reason I find them to be phenomenal. I find them to be phenomenal because they are some of the kindest people I've ever met. These women befriended me without question, eager to grow a friendship with this girl they'd never met. 

At a certain point, it's easy to get comfortable and content with the friendships you already have. It takes a phenomenal kind of person to always be open and willing to welcome new friends into your life. I will forever be grateful to these ladies for all of the girl's night invitations, the text messages and the phone calls they sent my way when I needed friends here in Dallas the most. I knew they were the perfect crew of phenomenal women that I wanted to thank, with a dinner party at the new house!

For the appetizers, I had an assortment of fruit and cheese for grazing, as well as a wedge salad. I'm obsessed with wedge salads, and this is the first time I've tried making one at home. I was shocked at how simple it was to put together. Dare I even say it was easier than one of those salad kits you get from the grocery store!

For the main course, Lean Cuisine was kind enough to send me samples from their new Marketplace line. Lean Cuisine recently reorganized their line of dishes into sublines that are more reflective of the way women make food choices. The Marketplace line was developed for the times when women seek modern, chef-inspired dishes. We tried the Cheese Tortellini, the Vermont White Cheddar Mac & Cheese, the Sweet and Spicy Korean-Style Beef and the Spicy Beef and Bean Enchilada. I'm not kidding when I'm say they were so dang good. The Vermont White Cheddar Mac&Cheese, made with organic butter and no GMOs. It will for sure be a staple in my Lean Cuisine rotation. Here is the Lean Cuisine product locator so that you can see where exactly they sell these specific dishes in your area!

I shocked myself with how much I loved the planning and decorating that goes into throwing a dinner party. I never thought I was that kind of girl, but I should have known better, since I've obviously never met a party I didn't like! I think it's safe to say that our night was a total success, thanks to the help of Lean Cuisine, who made it so easy on me. You can also connect with Lean Cuisine on Facebook and Twitter. 

Who are the phenomenal women in your life? Leave a comment for a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift Card, thanks to SheKnows.   

Entry Instructions: 
No duplicate comments. 
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

1. Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
2. Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
3. Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
4. For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry. 

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older (or nineteen (19) years of age or older in Alabama and Nebraska). Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. The notification email will come directly from BlogHer via the sweeps@blogher email address. You will have 2 business days to respond; otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here. 

This sweepstakes runs from 10/21/15 – 11/15/15.

Be sure to visit the Lean Cuisine brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ posts!

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