In early October, I mentioned that I was in the midst of making lemonade. As much as I wanted to spill my heart out and give you the juicy details, I simply couldn’t. I was relieved yet anxious, happy yet sad… I needed time to reflect and get things in order.

While I still won’t divulge all the secrets of the storm (oh yes, it was quite the thundering storm), I can safely say that it was a turning point in my career.

Leading up to the storm, I spent 3+ months questioning my purpose, strengths and abilities–and it wasn’t pretty. And now that the storm has passed and I’ve had a month or so of thought and action, I know that I shouldn’t have questioned myself one bit. I feel re-energized, renewed, confident and content.

And I’ve made some sweet, sweet lemonade.

You haven’t heard much from this little part of the blogosphere lately–and that’s because I’ve been busy. Busy still getting settled in San Antonio. Busy with wedding stuff. Busy with work. Busy with life.

But today, something happened that threw me quite the curveball… a blessing, if you will. When life hands you lemons, make lemonade, right? So, I’m going to make lemonade, lemon bars, lemon drop martinis, lemon meringue pie and plant lemon trees.

I’m also going to catch up on the 949 blog posts that are staring at me in Google Reader (I wish I were kidding). I’m going to get organized around the house. I’m going to live. I’m not going to divulge any specifics, but I feel good putting this on paper. Or well, the Internet. So yeah, lemons.

In other news… What are you up to?

Taking chances is usually not in the cards for me. As I’m sure you’ve discovered by now, I’m a planner. A perfectionist. Someone who likes to have every single detail nailed down, engraved in stone. But I’ve come to realize that when you’re in a long-distance relationship, planning a wedding and figuring out your lives, there needs to be some give.

As much as it’s been killing me, there are so many what-ifs lately. And for someone who worries about every single thing, that’s really out of my comfort zone. Nonetheless, I’m learning. I’m learning to be patient and trust that things will (as they say) “all happen for a reason.”

Without getting into specifics, let’s just say that at the moment, I’m dealing with some heavy decisions and it’s really getting down to the wire. Big decisions will be made very last minute–and I just have to be okay with that, regularly reminding myself of the bigger picture.

This morning I came across a beautiful post by the lovely Lauren from Texas. She writes:

Through ups-and-downs, through struggling to get to the light at the end of the tunnel, sometimes straining to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Through fighting so hard we forget what it is we’re fighting for, and that we’re on the same side, then finally coming up for air only to realize that it’s all worth it to fall asleep every night next to someone who loves you in spite of everything and thinks you’re worth the fight.

This immediately resonated with me. In the midst of all the what-ifs, planning and small details, the “what it is we’re fighting for” is the most important thing. The logistics will work themselves out. The decisions will be made (even if they’re last minute). The plans will come together. The details will all get ironed out.

So no matter how anxious I may be at the moment or how nervous I get along the way, I have to remember the sweetest thing of all… I get to marry my best friend in 367 days. And that’s definitely worth taking some chances.

Tomorrow marks two weeks since my last blog post. And I’m pretty sad about it, actually. You see, I want to write. I love blogging. It’s my heaven, my therapy, my getaway, my breather.

I don’t need to explain how busy I’ve been or what I’ve been up to lately. (You already know those exciting details.) The thing is, even when I try to set aside time to blog (which is incredibly hard to do at the moment), I end up falling asleep on the couch, catching up on emails or snuggling with my pup and iPad.

Just last night a friend of mine told me that she misses how often I used to blog. She’s not alone either… I miss how often I used to blog, too. And it’s not that I don’t think of blogging as a priority–I do. I really do. There are just more priorities at the moment than I can count, and I’m still learning to juggle them all without letting anything drop.

Thank you so, so much for all the sweet, congratulatory messages and happy emails that I’ve received lately. This is certainly one of (if not the) most exciting time of my life.

In the meantime, sit tight. I’ll be back in full force soon friends, promise!

While I’m out gallivanting around Las Vegas, I figured I’d have my dear friend Allyson stop by for a quick Q&A session. We go way back and she’s the sweetest lady around. Please join me in welcoming her to LaurieSteiner.com!

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Hey everyone! Just a little bit about me so you know who the heck this girl is Laurie asked to guest blog today! I live in Springfield, MO but come here by way of many different places. I graduated high school in Roswel, GA outside of Atlanta and moved there from Dallas, TX where I lived for 12 years. Laurie and I actually met when we were quite young at a camp in Texas where we thought we might be related… only to find out we were in fact not! I ended up at Indiana University where I graduated with a degree in journalism and a minor in history and political science. I started working first in Atlanta, GA as the assistant director of the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization and after two years took my dream leap to Washington, D.C. I worked at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in a number of capacities there in marketing and event planning, and it is through one of my jobs at the Chamber that I met my now husband at a conference in L.A. It’s a great story, but way too long to put here. After a year of long distance dating, I packed up my life in D.C. and moved to a smaller town in the Midwest. We live “out in the country” right outside the city limits of Springfield and here I am today. Married, 2 dogs and searching for that dream job!

Allyson and husband Chris on their honeymoon

Q: From marriage and relocation to starting a new job and your current job search, you have experienced many milestones in the past year. Tell us more about them!

A: The past year and a half have been a whirlwind! I moved to Springfield, MO from Washington, D.C. (quite the change) to be with my then boyfriend, turned fiancé, turned husband! He is amazing and although its been difficult adjusting to life in Springfield, he has helped make it that much easier. I spent the first 6 months in Springfield looking for a great job and finally found one at the Springfield News-Leader as a promotions coordinator, working with organizations on events we were sponsoring, special events, and marketing. It was fantastic. I loved the job and the people I worked with until one dark day in December when I got the dreaded call into my boss’s office… our corporate offices were slashing my position across the country.  So here I am again, searching for that fantastic job once more!

Q: Of course, single life is drastically different from marriage. How has your life changed since you got married?

A: I am definitely more responsible. Fiscally, my husband is a lot smarter than I am so I have learned to be smarter in my spending habits. He and I both love to spend, but whereas I tend to be more adventurous with my bank account, he is a little more conservative. Joint bank accounts sure make a girl honest! I also tend to not go out as much. We love the piano bar in town and some of the great restaurants, but my days of dancing and staying out until after midnight are long gone. Apparently getting married makes me an old lady, but I’m loving a “simpler” life. It’s perfect!

Q: You recently worked for a newspaper. Since you are now in the process of looking for a new job, are you hoping to stay in the same industry? If not, what are you searching for?

A: I worked for the paper in the marketing side. I wouldn’t mind a great marketing job, but my dream is to be in the non-profit/development/fundraising/special events field. It’s what I’ve always wanted to do and have done quite a bit in my first few years in the professional field. I would love to one day become a development director for a non-profit!

Q: Congratulations on joining the blogosphere! What made you want to start a blog of your own?

A: I’ve always wanted to start a blog but have never had the time or knew exactly what I wanted to talk about. My life, in and of itself, isn’t too exciting. But when I started having to live on a budget and find new, inexpensive ways to do things in order to keep life “normal” I realized I wasn’t the only one out there like that. Thus, the idea for the blog was born. I have some time now since I’m job searching and realized it was a way to keep me productive and sane at the same time!

Q: What are some of your current passions?

A: I love sports. I’ve always been a bit of a tomboy like that. I love the Indiana Hoosiers, Indianapolis Colts and Atlanta Braves.  My husband loves the fact that he can sit and watch football with me, and sometimes I can even outlast him in front of the TV on game days! And I love my work. I’m one of those people who puts 110 percent into everything I do, which is why I won’t settle for just a “job” right now. I hate working on something I’m not passionate about. It’s not fair to me or to those I am working with.

Q: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

A: Haha, my husband saw this question and immediately said “with 2 kids running around.” So let’s go with that. In 10 years I’d love to see myself with 2 kids and in a great job, hopefully as development director of a fantastic non-profit. By then we will have had time to travel with and without the kiddos and spend lots of time with family and friends. So much can happen in 10 years. It’s so hard to imagine. Ten years ago I was a second semester freshman at Indiana University, pledging a sorority. Who knew where my life would have taken me!

I don’t always have good days. I have times of sadness, frustration, loneliness and anger–just like you. I have moments when I feel regretful, conflicted and just plain lousy. And as I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned that the best thing I can do for myself in these moments is to do something to ease the pain.

For the past day or so, I’ve been in a pretty big rut. After what started out as a great weekend with family and friends, it all came to a screeching halt. Some tears were shed and my eyes were puffy, but in the large scheme of things, I had to keep telling myself that a) it’s going to be okay and b) life will go on.

So what did I do? I baked.

The music was blasting and I was in the middle of my own little happy moment. And when I licked the sugary goodness off the spatula, no one was there to judge me. And when I had a spontaneous dance party in the middle of the kitchen with the whisk as my microphone, I was the rockstar.

Now I’m exhausted from playing baker and feel happy and rejuvenated. I don’t feel sad or angry or any of those things. I see that tomorrow is a new day and today, I helped myself get there.

I guess sometimes all you need is a little bit of frosting and a whole lot of dance party to remember to smile.

- L