I went to Salt Lake City with big hopes of making connections and learning something about blogging. I did that.

But then, about halfway through the conference, I started to feel this renewed sense of inspiration and creativity--an itch to get things done--which maybe I expected, but wasn't totally prepared for. It felt good. I sat down with Megan Silianoff, author of 99 Problems but a Baby Ain't One, and chatted about writing vs. blogging. I had a delicious meal and, later, a couple of cocktails with some wonderful people from La Crema. And I had the pleasure of listening to Ben Silbermann of Pinterest close the conference with totally eloquent words about work and failure and creativity.

There's a lot that I'm still processing, so I think I'll just leave you with a list of things I took away from my time at Alt Summit.

+ Your voice really matters. Be true to it. Be authentic in everything you do.
+ Strive to create something that's open, accepting, and filled with love.
+ Don't be afraid to try new things.
+ Sometimes you're going to have to work really, really hard.
+ Don't be afraid to fail--every other successful person has done it, will do it, is doing it.
+ The gap between where you are and where you want to be should get bigger as you do. Never stop growing.
+ Just be better than you were yesterday.

My bags are packed and I'm headed to Altitude Summit! I've been looking forward to this for such a long time, and I'm so excited to get there and take it all in. I love visiting a new place, and Salt Lake City has been on my list for quite a while.

I won't be blogging again until Monday, but feel free to follow along with me on Twitter and/or Instagram! And if you're going to Alt Summit, let me know--I want to meet you! Wishing you all a lovely rest of the week and a beautiful weekend!

A couple of months ago, my friend Jenna sent me and a few other Paleo-minded bloggers an email with an idea. 

"I want to start a website," she said, "and I want it to take what I always loved about my blog and make it into a magazine-style site that women go to for:

And there are days where I don't get a lot done. I feel panic about life and my decision to be unemployed during this time. I randomly apply for jobs. I don't write. I wonder where more Cave Girl clients can be found. I think about essays I want to get on paper and then practically watch them float right out of my head and to wherever it is that good ideas go to die. I spend a lot of time watching a capella groups on YouTube. I leave laundry in the dryer for a week. I don't plan dinner. I decide not to go to the gym and then beat myself up over all the time I have and how little I am doing with it. I feel like Rob and I are alone in this city and I hate my blog and there's crap all over the floor and I just feel so anxious.

I think the biggest struggle so far has definitely been in learning to be kinder to myself. In learning to accept this season as the huge blessing that it is. In trying to be successful, whatever that might mean; and trying not to feel like a failure, whatever that might mean. To feel lucky and blessed, but to do it without guilt.

Rob has been so wonderfully supportive. When I panic and apply for fifteen random jobs I find on Craigslist (this happens more often than I'd like to admit), he tells me that if I want to get a job while we're here, I should get one, but to remember that it might get in the way of my goals to do other things this year. And it's true. With the uncertainty of how long we'll be here and where we'll go next (not to mention the two weeks I'm planning to spend in Virginia for Thanksgiving, closely followed by ten days for Christmas), it's hard to be taken seriously in an interview.

I managed to get in touch with a staffing agency who is starting to throw part-time gigs my way, which will give me a reason to dress up and get out of the house while simultaneously making a little money. Offices need receptionists and copywriters, and I have pretty free afternoons most of the time. My blog has been paying my student loans since August, which was a huge goal I made before I moved and actually sometimes can't believe I'm meeting, but it will feel good to contribute something more to our household income.

Moving to Minnesota felt like it would be the end of a huge transition, but I'm starting to accept the fact that life is just a series of changes. One day I might wake up and feel like my feet are finally firmly planted where they're supposed to be, but I know it won't be tomorrow, and I think that's okay.

Hello from my apartment in Minneapolis! Rob and I landed late on Sunday night and I'm just writing this quick post before I hit the hay. I've had such a wonderful time over the past two weeks seeing friends, spending time with my family, having our engagement photo session, and seeing a college roommate get married. I can't wait to share some photos I took while I was away. It feels good to be back and I have a to-do list a mile long, so this week will certainly be busy!

Because I don't usually leave my blog unattended like I did last week, I wanted to take a second or two to link to my current sponsors and thank them for supporting me and my blog. While I get back to my regular posting this week, I hope you'll stop by their blogs and/or shops and say hello.

I share my life online, oftentimes without much thought, but I have to say that this post makes me nervous.

Every month, I post a link to my Sponsorship page and say, "I have some ad spots available for next month!" And I was going to do that again today, but we're just seven days away from the road to Minnesota; and I haven't told you the plan yet.

So, the plan.

The plan is for me to finish that recipe book I may have told some of you about over the winter, the one that I was so excited about and then ran out of time and energy to work on it. I need to find something that makes it feel more like an e-book and less like a Word document. It's going to have some recipes from here, but the majority of recipes will be new ones that you've never seen, and I can't wait to share it with you.

The plan is to continue on with Cave Girl Consulting--to use my passion for Paleo and help people tackle that lifestyle change.

And the plan is for me to write every day. Not just this is what I did all weekend, look at some photos, but also the real, honest-to-goodness writing that I haven't made time for over the past six months or so. Also weekly recipes, What I Wore posts, and a YouTube channel that consists of more than just videos of me taking tequila shots.

Am I supposed to tell you this? For a while I felt like I wanted to just move and start posting more frequently and with better quality content, and you'd wake up one morning and think "Wow, this girl is cool!" But at the same time, I feel anxious every day about being self- (or, rather un-)unemployed, and I want you guys to know that I have bigger dreams than simply becoming a stay-at-home wife.

So yes, I want you to sponsor my blog if you're looking for a place to advertise. But more than that, I want to know what you think. I want to know if you think I'm trying too hard, or if I come off as insincere in some way. Because I may want to do this, but I don't want to be an idiot about it.

Thanks for hanging with me. This blog has helped me transition through so many things, and I'm hoping to lean on it even more from now on. I wouldn't be the person I am if it weren't for the people I have met by blogging--there are three girls in my wedding party who can attest to that.

This is a life that I couldn't imagine not having.

Almost four years ago, I started a blog and had no idea what I was going to get out of it. I wrote, but no one really read. Then, later, people did read, and there were times when I would question myself. Do people care? Is it appropriate for one to put so much of their life on the internet? Is it worth reading? Is this a waste of time, a hobby, or something much more?

But then you meet three girls who also blog and take pictures of everything and want something much, much more out of life. You meet them and keep in touch for six months and then it's June and you're all sitting on your back porch together, laughing until you cry, and suddenly you realize that these are some of your very best friends.

My lovely friends Jenna, Melissa, and Whitney are just an hour away, and when they get here, we are going to have this amazing weekend that we have been planning for months! We'll be at the lake until Sunday, and then we're swinging by Para in Charlottesville for some of those pistachio milk lattes that I can't stop talking about on our way to Blogger Blitz DC!

Lots of cocktails, good food, pool and lake time are on the itinerary, as well as a tour around all my favorite Roanoke spots. I feel like they're all some college boyfriend coming to meet my family for the first time--I'm so excited to introduce them to everyone and show them around!

Talk to you later! Anyone else going to be at Blogger Blitz on Sunday?

Yesterday, Rob and I drove the two and a half hours to DC and met up with my cousin, Brendan for a late lunch at Busboys & Poets, which is this cool restaurant/bookstore. I left my camera in my bag while I scarfed down an amazing salad with steak and asparagus on it, so unfortunately you don't get to see any pretty pictures of food or bookshelves.

Then I put on a dress and some heels and headed to Urbana to meet all the lovely ladies at Blogger Blitz DC! I had so much fun finally meeting sweet blog friends like Sarah and AV in person, and then I got to make new friends with wonderful bloggers like Jenna and Melissa.