Mandy Spivey

Hello 2015: Ways to Stay Motivated in the New Year

Written by Mandy Spivey | January 12, 2015

Happy New Year Lake Travis! I love the energy burst you get on January 1st, even more-so when when I wake up well-rested and hydrated. It’s easy to make the pledges and resolutions on December 31st, but it’s the next day when the rubber meets the road and your plans are set to get off the ground.

I know a growing collection of friends who are avid New Years Resolution Makers, but fewer New Years Resolution Keepers. You can say you’re going to the gym five times a week today, but when the weekend calls are you lacing up or going out for a margarita? (depends on the time of the year). My resolutions are always vague, and I like them that way for a reason, but I am intrigued by the goals people set for themselves. So I was ready to hear about what top experts had to say about the whole phenomena.

Re-Gift or Return? The Fine Art of Purging Gifts After the Holidays

Written by Mandy Spivey | January 6, 2015

We all know the feeling. A longtime friend visits home and brings with her the newest scent from her grandmother’s candle collection in a fruity scent — and you’re a floral-scent kind of gal. A boyfriend gives you a surprise for Christmas, that — surprise! You have already bought yourself (Ooof!). A coworker gifts you a shirt from Tommy Bahama because she overheard you talking about your childhood dream of owning a surf shack (true story).

What once was meant as a meaningful gift to you sometimes ends as clutter in some area of the house. Don’t let it go to waste! Whether you are a practicing re-gifter or shun the idea altogether, there are ways to re-purpose and organize otherwise useful items that we may just, well, have no use for.

Let’s be honest for a minute before we get to the nitty gritty. Some gift giving fiascoes are a product of good intentions — trying to fill in parts of our personalities with what they know about us led to the Tommy Bahama beach shirt situation. Others are due to a lack of trying — like the year I was given a used curling iron at a youth group game of White Elephant one Christmas. And some are done intentionally to send a message, like sending you a vacuum cleaner when you move into your first apartment (yet I still use it, thanks mom!). You have to give them credit for trying.

Joy to the Weird: Austin's Best Tacky Lights

Written by Mandy Spivey | December 23, 2014

It’s a yearly tradition in my family to venture out on Christmas Eve to see our town’s best Christmas lights. Over the years, I have had the chance to witness and view some of the most colorful and sometimes outrageous light displays around Texas, in Dallas and Austin alike.

Living near Lake Travis has put a fun spin on outdoor decorating, and like anything in Austin, it’s going to be a little on the weird side. When it’s time to grab the winter coats and head out for an evening of taking in Christmas’ electric glory, it’s always more fun to have a welcoming and well-decorated neighborhood to visit! That’s why this year I’m officially on the hunt for Austin’s best tacky lights, near and far.

Mandy Spivey

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