A Fashion & Lifestyle Blog by Kelsie Bynum
Now that we’re a few days into 2020, I finally had time to stop and think about my resolutions for the new year! Like I mentioned on Stories, I hit such a holiday slump between Christmas and January 1st! I felt like my brain was in a haze, and I wasn’t sure exactly what I needed to be doing! Lol. So, I just stopped worrying and spent lots of time with my family and friends! I had an extremely busy, yet successful year with Sassy Southern Blonde, and I figured I deserved some grace. It’s crazy because once New Year’s Day hit, I was back on my game and ready to take on 2020! 🙂
One of the things I love about a new year is all the hope, anticipation, and excitement for what’s to come! It’s a chance to start fresh and reset your focus. I enjoyed reading my resolutions from 2019 (HERE) to reflect and also inspire me for 2020!
A few months ago, I saw this quote on Facebook, and it basically said every time you’re worrying about something, pray about it instead. Now when I’m stressing, I almost always think of this quote and I will switch the worrying for the praying. It has made a HUGE difference and is something I am definitely bringing with me in 2020!
I pour so much time and energy into Instagram, but I want to make sure Sassy Southern Blonde is receiving the same attention. After all, my blog is the only thing I own and can 100% control! Instagram, not so much. My goal is to make SSB the one stop shop in 2020!
If I tell someone no or that I can’t do something, I feel guilty for DAYS. Then, I think they could be mad at me when the other person probably didn’t think twice about it. I don’t like disappointing people, but I also have to make sure I’m not pushing myself too hard. In 2020, I want to say no with zero regrets!
My friends were so good to me in 2019 whether it was lending an ear or buying through my links! I wouldn’t survive without them, and I hope they know how much they are appreciated. The older you get, the more you realize who your true friends are, and I’m glad I’ve found mine!
This is a goal I started a few months ago, and I’m happy I got a jump start on at least one of my resolutions! I have been slacking the last two weeks from the holidays, but I will be back at it on Monday. So excited to continue my fitness journey and share it with y’all!
For me, this is easier said than done! I feel like it’s something I have already gotten better about, but there’s always room for improvement! Of course I find myself wondering and wishing for the next big thing, but I know I must trust God’s timing. That means praying for patience and understanding in the process! 🙂
Even though I love my photos, I want to create quality content that I’m proud of! My goal is to invest in a better camera and find fresh inspiration on Pinterest!
2019 was a huge travel year for me, and I hope 2020 brings me as much adventure! I didn’t even realize how many trips I planned. It just happened that way! I visited SO many new, incredible places like Palm Springs, Portland, and Austin. I cannot wait to get the ball rolling this year! A few places on my dream list are Banff, Hawaii, Lake Tahoe, and Santorini!
XOXO
Kels
Last January, I posted a recap of 2018 by each month, and I decided to do the same thing this year! (If you want to check it out, linking HERE) Even if I’m the only one who enjoys reading it, I like to keep track for my own memories! Lol. 2019 was an insanely busy year for Sassy Southern Blonde but in the best way possible! I traveled to many new places, accomplished huge goals, and moved to a new city. God blessed me big in 2019 and I know there’s only more amazing things coming for 2020.
JANUARY
I started 2019 in Nashville with my best friends for the third year in a row, and it was an amazing time per usual! Like most Januarys, it was a slow month, but I was fine with it because my travel schedule was crazy for rest of the year. I traveled more in 2019 than ever before, and now I can’t stop! 🙂
FEBRUARY
My first stops of the year were back to back trips to Nashville! (Can you tell how much I love that place? Lol) I stayed with my friend Karrah for the Super Bowl and then came back a week later for the Lauren James event. I think attending that party was a turning point for me because I met many online friends for the first time in real life! Networking is important in our industry, but it was so much more than that. I formed real friendships with those girls! And it never would have happened if I didn’t start my blog! Wild to think about! Haha.
I also experienced my first big girl purchase (my car) and did a weekend trip to the Mississippi Gulf Coast with a girl I had only met once before. Now, Meagan is one of my best friends! It’s so cool to see how everything unfolds! 2019 definitely brought me amazing new friendships!
MARCH
I can now say I experienced a true Mardi Gras weekend in NOLA, but I don’t think I could ever do it again! It was a lot, even for me. After a wild New Orleans trip with my friends, I headed to Palm Springs, CA with Pink Possum Boutique for the first time! This spot had been on my bucket list for years, and it did not disappoint. I will say traveling there in March was better than June but more on that later! 😉 I also landed a dream collaboration with Walmart! March was good to me! 🙂
APRIL
Another month, another trip! Just how I like it, though! Haha. I boarded my plane for Texas for a blogger trip where we partnered with Fairmont Austin, and it’s definitely one of my favorite memories of 2019. Even in such a short period of time, I felt like I had known the girls on the trip for YEARS! We all instantly clicked, and some of us hadn’t even met before. Everyone was so kind and just wanted to have a fun time! We all stay in touch and are planning our 2020 trip as I type. We want to make it an annual thing! 🙂
At the end of the month, I headed to Seaside, Florida for blogger trip #2! We got incredible content and had a fabulous time. Like I said 2019 was the year of travel, but I also built friendships with women from all across the country!
MAY
Maybe I’m partial since it’s my birthday, but May is the best month! The weather finally stays warm, and it’s the beginning of summer. I spent my birthday weekend in Charleston, and it was perfect! Year 24 has been good to me. The rest of May was filled with bridal showers and bachelorette trips! It was a blast celebrating my girlfriends. Business wise, I landed a huge partnership with Budweiser! One of the coolest collaborations yet!
JUNE
If you thought I was busy the other months, just wait. No joke, I had something happening every weekend of June! But again, I really didn’t mind. I went back to Palm Springs for another blogger trip, and it was HOT! I don’t know how I was lucky enough to travel there twice, but I definitely preferred the weather in March! Haha. I then headed to New Orleans to meet up with some blogger friends from previous trips! We missed each other, so we planned a weekend getaway! Since I live 2 hours from NOLA, it was an easy drive for me. It was great experiencing New Orleans with them because we did the touristy things and ate at popular restaurants! Next, I went on another Pink Possum trip to Orange Beach, AL with other Mississippi bloggers. We had a blast! The month ended with my best friend Parker’s wedding. 🙂
JULY
July was when I knew I wanted to move to Jackson! The majority of my friends live there, and I was always in town for something. Plus, it’s still super close to my hometown. It’s not like I was going far! Lol. I spent July 4th with them on the reservoir and then headed back to Orange Beach for my other friend Caroline’s bachelorette trip. A highlight of this month was going to and meeting Cole Swindell! I LOVE his music (more than Luke Bryan who was the headliner haha) I went back to Nashville for another girls weekend with my blogger friends, and boy did we have fun! Also, I got to collaborate with Walmart again, which was incredible!
AUGUST
I finally caught a slight break at the beginning of August, and then Caroline got married! It was wedding season this summer! 🙂 The next weekend, I hopped on a plane to Chicago with my friend Andrea. As soon as I made it home from there, I went to Nashville AGAIN for Pink Lily’s fall launch party! You would think I was tired of Nashville by now, but it’s not possible! Lol.
SEPTEMBER
I got to live my DREAM of attending NYFW (more on that HERE)! It was an incredible experience that I will cherish forever! I took a much needed break the last few weeks to recover from the months of traveling and to prepare for a busy Fall.
OCTOBER
As soon as October began, I packed my things up and moved to Jackson! Luckily, I adjusted really quick. Even now, I’m so happy I made that decision! It was good for me to go out on my own and start adulting! Haha. Football season was also in full swing, so my friends and I went to the MSU/UT game in Knoxville! And since the fall foliage isn’t great in Mississippi, I flew across the country to Portland, OR to meet up with my friend Maxie! (She has become my travel buddy lol) Portland had amazing scenery AND food! 🙂
NOVEMBER
This month started all things holiday aka the best time of the year! My friends and I dressed up super fancy and went to the Mistletoe holiday gala. Any excuse to buy a long dress! 🙂 I continued working out regularly and I noticed a huge difference in how I felt. I think I’ve stuck with it because I actually enjoy the place I go and the people I work out with! Who would have thought this would be me! Lol.
DECEMBER
My last trip of 2019 was back to NYC for Christmas! If there’s one place you need to visit, it’s the city during the holidays. Meagan planned the itinerary perfectly! We were never wandering around wasting time at any point, and we fit in SO many great spots! (Like Mean Girls on Broadway, Tavern on the Green, etc) And I know I still haven’t recapped the trip, but that post is coming soon! Promise!
All in all, 2019 was probably my favorite year yet! I felt like I had great consistency/stability both in professional and personal aspects of my life. That was a huge goal for me at the beginning of the year! I’m also going to be sharing my new year resolutions soon. I’m still trying to decide on those! Until then, you can check out my goals from last year HERE! 🙂
XOXO
Kels
TOP | PANTS | HEELS | BAG | EARRINGS | HEADBAND | BRACELETS
Happy Wednesday!
We are officially ONE week away from Christmas, and my mind is blown! To be completely honest, Christmas being so close makes me sad because once it’s here, it’s over just like that. I love the anticipation of the holiday season, and it goes by too quickly! But I am excited to head home and spend time with my crazy family! 🙂
I can’t stop won’t stop with these holiday outfits! Unfortunately, this is the last one, but it might be my favorite yet. I mean look at these hot pink velvet pants! I saw them and purchased within 5 minutes. They have been so fun to style! Any neutral top matches. I actually paired them with a white puff sleeve sweater a few weeks ago! This time, I switched things up with a black metallic number. Or sparkles? Either way, the final holiday look on Sassy Southern Blonde would be perfect for a classy NYE party! Most of my NYE memories are less than classy, but a girl can dream. Hahah! I’m wearing a small in the top and 00 petite in the velvet pants. Thanks for reading!
PS: There is still time to shop for presents before next week! Check out my gift guides HERE! 🙂
XOXO
Kels
SWEATER | SKIRT | HEELS | EARRINGS | BAG
As I mentioned in last week’s blog post, I just really love styling fun looks for the holidays! 🙂 I’ve already gotten more wear from this sequin skirt than I thought I would. It made its debut at the Cartier building in NYC on my Instagram with a white sweater (my favorite Hollister one) and over the knee boots. I then paired the fun number with this red sweater and red heels above! Both are great options for the holidays! If there was such a thing as a staple sequin skirt, I do believe this would be it. Absolutely fabulous! I can only find the skirt linked at one retailer, so get it before it’s gone! Wearing the XS, I think it runs somewhat large.
I just read the first paragraph back, and I’m laughing at some of the proper sounding phrases! I blame The Crown because I’m currently binge watching while I type. If you’re looking for a new series to watch, I strongly recommend! The royals have always been super fascinating to me, but this has brought on an entirely new obsession. I catch myself googling the accuracy of the show’s portrayal of the real royals constantly throughout each episode! History was also my favorite subject in school. Surely that correlates?! Lol.
XOXO
Kels
