Before we get to Arizona, can we please talk about Bachelor in Paradise?! As a verrryyyy loyal Bachelor Nation fanatic I have to say I am pretty damn bummed. Yes, BIP is middle sibling of Bachelor nation, often ignored. Not as many people appreciate the humor and  pure entertainment  BIP provides. I for one, am obsessed. Half drunk bachelor castoffs prancing around the beach pretending to be in love? Sign me up.

Here's where I'm struggling with this news. I'm about to get a little deep/preachy. Skip to Arizona if you want. For those that don't know what I'm referring too, there was an incident being investigated. From all the sources I read yesterday, there was some "sexual misconduct" filmed and then brought to the attention of the contestants. The contestants in question are Corrine and De Mario. Here's my thoughts on Corrine from a previous post and De Mario's is here.  

It's not secret I do not like Corrine. I didn't like the attention she brought to Nicks season and while I think she's hilarious, I kind of found her to be a sad character to watch. However, this sexual misconduct  Warner Bro's has referenced in their statement is what many of us refer to as rape, drunk beyond control, not able to consent rape. I sure hope this investigation actually occurs and instead of blaming Corrine, we get to the bottom of what happened and provide the poor girl some justice. And while we're at it, leave the girl alone. 

Whew. Alright, let's get back to our regularly scheduled programming, shall we? Arizona.


I've been an Arizona girl since I was 3 years old. I grew up there, went to school there and it's still, to this day the place I call home. When Adam asked what I wanted to do for my 30th birthday, we discussed a lot of options. Should we take a big trip? Grand Cayman? The Mountains! Go somewhere new? Fiji? Telluride?

At the end of the day, all I wanted was dinner with my family and best friends and it's exactly what I got.

My actual birthday was Thursday. It was full of presents, pure barre, work, chick-fil-a and a late flight home to Arizona. We were greeted with my parents and some chilled wine. We sat around and chatted until late. The perfect end to the best birthday. 30 is pretty damn awesome.

30, the number made me nervous. I won't get in to those details, see here for that. But I was nervous about what 30 meant to my life. But I realized, if 30 is me, surrounded by friends and family, eating delicious food, then 30 is the best year. There is nothing to be nervous about.

Friday, we slept in, brunched with my dad at the cutest breakfast spot, Hash Kitchen, I got my hair did and then we enjoyed the best pizza from Oreganos, Friday night with my family, Coti and Matt.

My family has come to expect when I come to Arizona, there are two things I want to eat. Oreganos pizza and In-n-Out Burger. I'm a fairly simple girl.

Saturday, I got to spend most of the day with my adorable nephews. My oldest nephew Tomas is the baseball king, and my younger nephew Leo, crawled for me. It was a huge morning in our house. I spent the day watching baseball, throwing fake ones and bouncing Leo. Add in some champs with my sister-in-law and it was my favorite day.

Saturday night, Adam planned a nice dinner with my best friends and family. Complete with a limo to take us to dinner. We went to El Chorro, the place we got married. It was so special. I got to go back to the best place in my world with my favorite people. Call me lucky.

After that, the youngins' went out for some cocktails, dancing in a limo to 2Pac and the best of dive bars. Sunday was complete with breakfast and the airport. I always tell my husband how much I love Arizona and I'm so lucky we had the chance to go back.

To my hubs, you are the best human, thanks for planning my special day and being the best husband ever. 

To my family and friends, thanks for letting me take your entire weekend to celebrate and thanks for being the best. 

I love you all. 

PS. Tomorrow on the blog, all the details on my top favorite Denver locations and a West Elm Collab! Happy Tuesday friends!

Happy Birthday to me! The big 30. I've been prepping this post for a while now and I'm been hinting to everything on Instagram and it's finally here. I am finally thirty. (PS. how many times do you think I can say thirty in this post?) I'm shooting for at least 75.


I put a lot of stock in turning 30. It's safe to say I've been thinking about turning 30 since I turned 25. When I was 25, I did not want to turn thirty. In my head, turning 30 was a deadline, a momentous occasion, something to work towards. I had all these ideas of what 30 was supposed to look like, what I was supposed to look like, where my life was supposed to be. I placed a lot of value in turning 30. I thought my twenties were the best time of my like and why would I want to leave them?

A year ago, I wrote a bucket list for 30. I had a countdown to thirty starting at 400 days out! I had everything in my head I wanted to accomplish before 30 or else. Or else what? My life didn't hold the meaning it would have if I'd completed such list?



For the record, I didn't buy a new fridge, instead, we bought a dog. Adam and I haven't gone on any crazy fabulous trips, but we've watched our siblings get married, we've celebrated with friends on their bachelor and bachelorette parties and we've spent time together. I realized instead of putting stock in the number 30, I should put more stock in me.

I think the weirdest part about turning 30 is saying goodbye to my twenties.

My 20's were incredible, they were wild, beautiful even, but my 20's were also a lot. I was in college, I loved, I was heartbroken, I made great friends, I learned that friends will break your heart worst than boys will. I drank too much, I didn't travel enough, I made mistakes, I graduated college. I moved home. I bought Henry. I moved states 3 times in my twenties. I was a bartender. I went to law school, I met my best friends. I met the love of my life. I turned into we for the first time ever. I failed. We passed. I took the bar (a few times...). We got engaged, we got married, we honeymooned. We moved to Colorado. I got hurt. We picked things up. We bought a house, we bought another dog. We traveled. We vacationed. We love and live.



When I put my thoughts to this page, it's hard to imagine a decade can cover so much life. So much happened in my twenties. So much life. Now, here I am, the night before a new decade. Am I the only one who understands the gravity of that. I cant stop it, but I can welcome it. Why is turning 30 such a big deal?

30 is a big deal. 30 is a new decade. 30 is a new group of years.

I've never been more excited for my 30th year. If my twenties covered that much life, I can only imagine how much life my 30's will cover. There are so many incredible possibilities my thirties will cover.

In my 30s, I will:

• Thank my body for getting me through my 20's. I was harsh to it. I drank too much, I ate packs of Oreos when I should have been eating salad. My 30's will be about making the best of my body. 
• Continue to learn how to say no. I am not good at telling people no. Friend guilt is real. I'm learning that strong relationships are better than lots of relationships. 
• Never forget the people who got me through my 20s and stuck with me into my 30s. Life changes a lot in 10 years and the ones who stick around are the ones worth holding tight too. You know who you are. 
• Grow my family. I cannot wait to have a family with Adam and here's hoping my 30s are the years that I can provide that. 
• Still write thank you notes, send birthday and anniversary cards and call people on the phone. 
• Show up. I will show up for my friends, for my family, for my job, this blog and all the other things that are important. I will make people feel important. Relationships are key to my happiness and I will continue to cultivate those. 
• Still love my dogs more than most humans. 
• Still eat ice cream, drink wine and complain about working out. I will will continue trying to make 6am pure barre classes. 
• Do what I want. I will do what's best for my family. I will do what's best for me and Adam. 
• I will continue to live this beautiful life to the best of my ability.

It's no secret I'm turning 30 this week. If you're not following along, I've been talking about my 30th birthday for like the last year. It's a new decade, a whole new 10 years. It's huge. And, I'm always down for a party. However, this may come as a shock, I'm not the biggest fan of my own birthday. I'm not sure why I don't love my own birthday, I would just rather celebrate everyone else's than my own. But I'm learning to embrace change, new ages and new adventures.

In the process of becoming 30, I've been looking back on my 29th year. It was such an amazing year. There was so much joy, so much growth and so much happiness. I traveled, I laughed, I took thousands of pictures (I wish I was kidding) and I learned so much. Before I leap full force into a new decade and a new year, it's time to look back on the good stuff. Ps. Today is my engage-aversary! So here's to that as well!


In no particular order, lets recap.

ONE: I became an Aunt to three delicious nephews. Leo, Otto & Jack are the newest little loves in my life. They're so precious. Also, watching my sister-in-laws become moms (some twice and three times) is one of the greatest things ever. I'm an Aunt x6 and I'm obsessed.

TWO: I watched my best friend marry her love in the most amazing ceremony in Virginia. There is no greater joy than watching your best friend find her forever. I am so lucky I was able to stand next to her and it's a memory I'll cherish well into my 30s.


THREE: Welcoming Lola into our world. It's been a crazy one, but the best one. She is the happiest dog I've ever seen and our little family is complete. Don't worry mom, just complete with animals, there's always room for babies (no, I'm not pregnant). PS, Lola turns ONE tomorrow, so stay tuned for all the pictures.

FOUR: Surprising Adam on his 30th birthday by throwing a huge crawfish boil with all our friends and family. The bad part about this?? Lying to my husband for months. It's so hard! We ate crawfish, drank keg beer, ran races in the yard and enjoyed the company of our friends and family. His birthday is in a little over a month and I really have to start planning.

FIVE: Celebrated two of my best friends bachelorette parties. I had the chance to go to Austin and Calistoga and spent the weekend hanging out with some amazing woman, drank great champs and enjoyed the best company. Their weddings are going to be amazzzzing. They're this summer so stay tuned for the good stuff.

SIX: Grew this space. I hit 1.6K followers on Instagram, was approved by LiketoKnowit, got to work with some awesome companies like Tobi, Nip + Fab, Ellie Kai, Freebird Shoes and met some amazing blogger friends. This space is one of my favorite things in the world. I'm thrilled by it and I hope you are all too.

SEVEN: Crossed the Adele concert off my life bucket list. Danced to Jason Aldean in the summer heat. And slow danced to Chris Stapleton with my hubs. Live music is my love language and luckily Adam loves it too. Here's hoping 30 is full of lots of great concerts.

EIGHT: Tahoe with my family. We were able to get my entire Englert side together and spend 5 amazing days in the sunshine together. We drank rum runners, boated, took group pictures in matching shirts and stayed up for hours laughing. The Englert family reunion is one of my favorite memories for my 29th year and I cannot wait for more reunions.

NINE: The quite moments. Adam and I love to travel, but our most amazing moments are the ones where its just us two. Laying in bed or on the couch, Adam reading the Wall Street Journal and me blogging next to him watching our shows. Those moments are where I really realize how incredibly blessed I am for this life, especially this life with him.

TEN: Ski trips with my in-laws. I've said it before, but I'm so lucky for the amazing relationship I have with my in laws. This last December we spent a wonderful, snowy weekend in Vail. We shopped, they skied and we spent some great QT together.

ELEVEN: I pushed my activity level and really came to appreciate my body. I haven't always been easy on this bod of mine. I tore my ACL, I complain about my weight or my skin but this year I really started learning to love my body. My 29th year was my first year post knee surgery and I finally felt myself coming back. Adam and I ventured out into our new neighborhood and really experienced this amazing city. We went on tons of hikes, I hit 200 pure barre classes and I started running and riding bikes. Here's hoping my 30th year is my healthiest year.

TWELVE: Adam and I surprised my pops for his 65th birthday and spent some really fun days in Arizona. There is no greater time than family time. I'm really lucky to have a great family that I crave time with. See ya in two days Zona!


THIRTEEN: Crafted some delicious recipes for EG. I tried some new dessert recipes, new dinner recipes and even some cereal. This blog is always a work in progress, but it's the best kind of work. I promise that in my 30th year, there will be more recipes. Let's get back to where EG really started.

FOURTEEN: Had the BEST girls weekend in Denver. I love this city and I love showing it off to my friends and family. We fit more into three days than I usually do in a month. We ate the best food, drank the best wine and enjoyed the best kind of company.

FIFTEEN: In this last year, I failed hard and I learned God's plan is not my plan. I learned sometimes the things you thought you wanted to do are not always in the ultimate plan. But, in challenge comes progress and in change comes things greater than expected. So while, my plan might not be where I'm actually heading, I have a great feeling things are going to be so much greater than I could ever imagine.

SIXTEEN: Watched my Denver Broncos beat the Chargers butt with my hubs and my parents at Mile high. I love having my parents in town. It's so easy, it's so fun and it's always such a blessing. We were lucky to have three visits from my parents this year. Every trip is even better than the last. One thing the Englert's know how to do well is eat. I swear our trips are focused around great food and great conversation.

SEVENTEEN: I spent thanksgiving with my Omaha family, spent the AM with my best friend (who also does thanksgiving in omaha), watched Christmas lifetime movies with my MIL and spent so much quality time together. I love getting 5 long days on holiday in Omaha.

EIGHTEEN: Found my newest obsession in face masks and bubble baths. I know Lush has been around forever, but I just recently discovered them. Turning 30 means its time for more self-care. I learning that I'm only my best self, wife and friend when I'm taking care of me. And, I'm learning that a great bubble bath, wine and quite time is perfect for my soul.

NINETEEN: Had my first blog photo shoot, and then had another and another and another. I'm learning to jump out of my comfort zone and I actually LOVE a good photo shoot. Basically it means spending the day with my friends taking pictures in great clothes. This was my first year of doing the "Fashion" blogging thing and it's hard and its a little nerve wrecking, but I love it.

Here's to many more photo shoots in the future.

TWENTY: I found my favorite outfit and I wore it a lot. Here, here & here to be exact. I learned that when stuff goes on sale, you have to buy it and you should probably buy three.


TWENTY-ONE: I 'm currently still working on becoming a morning person, but I am loving my 6am Pure Barre routine and I'm loving the extra bit of energy it brings to my day. I love the little espresso jump shot it gives me to my day.

TWENTY-TWO: I blogged my SIX bachelor/bachelorette seasons and just when I think I don't like it, I love it and am reminded about others who love it. Thanks for supporting me and the love of this blog and all things bachelor!

TWENTY-THREE: I found my new found relationship with God. I've always been very comfortable with my relationship with Him. But I think comfort breads complacency. I purchased the She Reads Truth Romans Study Book and I'm obsessed. It's such an amazing way to spend time in the Word every day. It brings this joy back to my heart I didn't realize I was missing.

TWENTY-FOUR: Adam and I spent our first Christmas in our house together. We decorated our new home, started new traditions and had some amazing dinners with friends. Hosting in our house together is one of my favorite things to do with Adam. Sharing meals with our friends is such a blessing.

TWENTY-FIVE: I made great new friends, created stronger relationships with my current friends and figured out some of my harder friendships. I read this post the other week that said, the best thing a friend can do is show up. It's such an amazing thought. In a world where so much is focused on gifts or showy acts of friendship, the most amazing thing we can do is show up. Be there. Make the phone call, send the text and be there. 29 was learning about those kinds of relationships and how thankful I am for my friends that show up. My 30th year is dedicated to being more present. I want my friends to be able to say I showed up for them.

TWENTY-SIX: Christmas in Arizona, watching my nephew get baptized, coach house with my best friends and lots of family time. Spending time in Arizona is what brings my heart the most joy. hence why I'm heading there for my birthday weekend. But, I love getting to spend the holidays surrounded by my family in the heat of Zona.

TWENTY-SEVEN: I watched my husband succeed beyond measure in his career. It's so wonderful to watch my husband kill the game in his career all while being a supportive present partner in life. He works harder than anyone I know and I love watching his hard work get appreciated. If anyone deserves the credit, its Adam.


TWENTY-EIGHT: I watched the marriage of my youngest brother-in-law and new sis in-law. They are such a wonderful couple to be around and it was an absolute joy to stand next to them on their wedding day. Welcome to the fam Nico, it's the greatest.

TWENTY-NINE: I found a sense of self. I found my place in my job, my blog, my body, my friendships, and my marriage. I think it's true what they say, once you're 30 you stop caring as much about what other people think of me. When people do think of me, I hope its with a kind heart. I'm learning to love myself and be myself. I'm learning that the joy of others is what really makes me happy. That not being in 100% control actually makes life a little more fun, albeit scary, it's interesting. I'm learning the best thing in life is to hold on to each other.

29 was a really great year, but I have a sneaking suspicion that 30 is going to be even better. I cannot wait to see what's in store for me. See ya in 2 days 30, I'm ready for you.

Happy Monday folks! I hope you had the best weekend. This weekend I was is in Omaha celebrating my brother-in-laws wedding! It was so darn fun. I'll have a full recap of the weekend on the blog later this week.

This post is 51% honest and 49% humor. So please take my sarcasm as it's intended. Recently I have been in a shopping mood. Maybe it's Instagram, maybe it's spring or maybe it's all the random shit I find online that I need right now. But whatever it is, all I want to do is shop, spend money and shop some more.

And, I'm turning 30 soon. I know I tell you that a lot, but it's a big thing over here in Kristen-land. I've been thinking about what I really want for my 30th for a while.  For those of you who are 30, whats it like on the other side? I'm actually super excited to be thirty. I loved my 20's, but I'm ready to say sayonara and hello to a new decade.

Recently, my entire family has been asking me what I want for my birthday. While I don't think I'm a hard person to shop for, I've been told otherwise. I'm learning in my life it's easier to tell people what I want instead of getting something I hate  don't love and trying to return it. I'm trying to make it easier peeps. I would hate for people to think I'm like Rachel on Friends where she returns everything. I don't return things, I just shove them into my closet and find them when I move. Brutal honesty folks.

When I think about my 30th, I want things like, world peace, sunshine, happiness, acceptance, lots of love and lots of wine. But, since my family can't wrap sunshine in a box, I figured I'd better come up with some ideas.

So, to my fam-bam and whoever else wants to buy me gifts (see the 49% humor above) here is my







1. This Vacation Shirt from Madewell this ruffle dress and these mules. I'm so ready for a vacation somewhere, but it seems looking at vacation clothes is as close as I'm gonna get to an actual beach anytime soon. And, I am currently obsessed with mules. I legit wear mine every chance I get.



2. I really dig this boot butler. I mean, I don't have cowboy boots, but I'm sure my Frye's would love hanging around. That was a pun. When we first moved in to our house, we were so pumped with closet space. Welp, a year later, our closet is full. I think this would be a great remedy that way I don't have to fill up both guest room closets. In my defense, Adam loves clothes too. And shoes. So there, it's not just me.

3. This copper wire letter sorter. I don't really get letters, but I LOVE the copper, so I would totally put it to use. We're trying to re-do our kitchen and I want to add copper accents and I think this $10 letter holder would be perf. Now, can you guys start sending me letters? I'd love ya forever. Birthday cards are my favorite.






6. Wine all the time. This would totally come in handy. My fridge always has a bottle (okay, more than one) in it and this would totally organize my life. Anyone? This really does need anymore explanation.



7. These Gucci Princeton Slippers. They're on $995, so I figure one of you will buy me these right? I am a size 9 and really love the black. But the ones with the snake on the front would be good too. Thanks in advance! Oh and yes, I would totally wear these out of the house. Thanks!



8. This iPhone Nub holder. I love taking selfies and snapchat videos, ect. This would be so awesome because then I wouldn't drop my phone every other time I try to take a picture.