I’ve been a regular customer of Sun Dawg Cafe for five years now. I found out about them through friends at my old home church, Greensburg Alliance Church. They went into business in 2012 and their first location was under Westmoreland Ballet Company (where Yumzio Bistro is located now).

They moved to their current location in 2016 and have been growing ever since. Their space has grown, they’re open for dinner four nights a week, added more dining, and the owners are planning another venture. The El Diablo Brewing Company and Wood Fired Kitchen is under construction and hopeful it will open soon. It’s going to be located in Greensburg on US 119 S near Sheetz and Lynch Field.

I had the opportunity to eat breakfast there this morning and I’m a regular customer at Sun Dawg. The staff and owners know me well.

Let’s start with the meal. You get a lot of great choices for breakfast and you can order online or off the menu. They also have special features they post on their Facebook page and in the restaurant. I took advantage of that and ordered the Salmon Cake with home fries, bacon aioli, an over easy egg, and scallions. I got my money’s worth of breakfast today. I always get the bottomless coffee and it is top notch. Their cocktails are great as well. Grade: 9.5/10.

Next up is service. I was taken care of very quickly. I found a great seat near the window. My server took my order just like that and made sure I was ok. I got my breakfast in ample time and staff checked up on me to make sure I was ok. Rachel, the owner, even stopped and talked me and asked me how I was doing. She wished me a happy 40th birthday and told me that I was looking good in light of my health. The staff here is very personable and make your dining experience great. I’ve definitely formed some great friendships here as well with the hard working staff at Sun Dawg. Grade: 10/10.

The ambience here says a lot and it tells you that you’re going to be in for a great dining experience. When I come in (usually on Saturday mornings) it’s always busy and in this post-pandemic era, that’s good. In the warmer months, you can even eat outside. I recommend the features they post. Try the pancakes for breakfast or grab a cheesesteak for lunch with a black mango iced tea. The decor, as well, makes this cafe a very happening place. 9.8/10 for the ambience and 4.8/5 for the decor.

If this is ever your first time coming to Sun Dawg, then I hope reading this review encourages you to come back.

I have no suggestions for improvement because they’re doing great and they’re growing every day with all the additions they’ve made (more room for dining, more hours, and the new nanobrewery coming soon). I have no new challenges to offer. Keep up the good work, Ray, Rachel, and staff.

Sun Dawg is open 8-4 for breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday, and 4-9 for dinner Wednesday through Saturday).

Be sure to tune in next week to Stylish and Hungry when I visit El Vaquero Mexicano.

Recently, the Greensburg Club finished the year with Presidents Distingished honors. The dedication and hard work of the members helped lead them to success. We’re already off to a banner start in the 2021-22 Toastmaster year with a great meeting Wednesday night. To quote our VPPR Marissa Wallace, “I think we’re off to an excellent start. Today’s speakers talked about learning styles and big changes coming for our club. To top it all off, our table topics had an amazing turnout with so many people engaged. What a way to kick off the new Toastmasters year!”

Recently, our friend and Distinguished Toastmaster Dana Mitnik became the District Historian and he’s come up with some amazing factoids about District 13 that he has been sharing on the D13 Facebook page. Here is his latest and it tells us that there was another Greensburg club in the early days of Toastmasters.

Here is another interesting piece of Toastmasters nostalgia. This one covers the chartering of the Pittsburgh Club 144 in 1939.

Look for more exciting throwbacks from Dana, which I will also be posting to the blog during the summer and throughout the Toastmasters year.

My third 40th birthday celebration in as many days was today. This time I would be joined by the Nicholson’s, and Aunt Sue and Ben. They all made their arrival around the 2pm hour. It was officially a party 🎊.

Mom made enough food to last us a week. Meatballs, sausage, watermelon 🍉, Mac and cheese, and plenty of drinks to go around.

It was perfect weather for swimming, which is what the younger ones all did. After we ate, I showed off my Coach bags to family. My friends and coworkers all saw it. Now it was time for everyone else. I’ve been feeling insecure at home for so long over I am and worried about being disowned by my family for being different. Not to worry because it was a smooth transition. Even Liz and Olivia loved my Coach purse I had with me Wednesday night.

For the first time in a long time, I felt confident even at home. That same confidence that I exhibited when I walked into the Coach outlet back in February. I also showed everyone the gift bag that Sara and Paula put together for me. We celebrated with ice cream cake and then I opened my bag from Katie, Matt, and Annabelle. I loved the Gilmore Girls theme that they came up with.

We all parted ways soon after. It was so nice to see Katie and Brendan and the boys and we will do so again in October for a big family reunion at Laurel Hill on the first leg of Columbus Day weekend. It’s going to be a busy one as Sara and I also have plans to attend Fort Ligonier Days.

I’m going to close off the blog by talking about how great it was to have a picnic at the Gaffron farm on Saturday night. Last year due to COVID it was cancelled. We tried to reschedule it for September and even later in the Fall, but to no avail. It was so great to get out and see everyone whom I hadn’t seen since 2019. We ate good, we sat around and talked (and laughed), and we got to enjoy some great fireworks 💥. It’s not often I get to see my parents having a great time. I’m glad that they got to enjoy themselves. I’m also pumped Sara and I got to catch up over lunch yesterday at the Olive Garden. I’m grateful that Paula and Sara have adopted me into their family as well and make me feel loved 🥰.

That last sentence I wrote with tears coming down my face because it means the world.

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.

Sara asked me if I was free Saturday. I said yes. Therefore, we met for lunch at the Olive Garden in Greensburg.

Both of us had come off big victories this week and were looking forward to catching up for lunch. She came to me asking what my plans were and I eventually decided on the Olive Garden.

We ordered our drinks and our starters 🥗 🍲. One of the male servers complimented me on my outfit. First time I got a nice remark from a man regarding my outfit or my bag. I showed off my sash and tiara with all of their glitter and bling ✨

It looks like Sara is on board with going to ULTA Beauty and Target on July 31. Her bestie Abigail might join us too. Sara and I agreed on going to the Settlers Ridge location and then later the Target at the Pointe at Robinson. I’m in search of makeup.

We’ll decide somewhere to grab a meal and I’ll pick up the tab for Sara and myself. Bahama Breeze sounds like a good choice (Katie and Matt ate there after a trip to IKEA and liked the service. Plus it’s a good restaurant blog on top of the beauty blog. They’re located near the Mall at Robinson).

We also made plans for the Fall. We are going to attend Fort Ligonier Days in October on Columbus Day weekend. Once they move to Johnstown, we’re going to take a trip to Ebensburg and shop at Sandy John’s, a floral shop and boutique Sara told me about this past Spring.

We enjoyed our lunch. I had Shrimp Scampi and she had Fettuccine Alfredo. I had a free dessert because it’s my birthday. I ordered the Black Tie Mousse Cake. Afterwards, Sara gave me her gift bag that she and her mom put together. I’m very grateful for my relationship with the girls.

I’ll close off the blog with pictures from the gift exchange.

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.

On Wednesday, I turned the big 4-0. I spent most of Tuesday night and Wednesday reading everyone’s post and thanking them for all the birthday wishes. It’s been an emotional few days leading up to my 40th and, I received a couple of gifts that you can’t buy.

The first one was Toastmasters related. I sent in my Level 1 for my Path at the Eleventh Hour. This got us to Presidents’ Distinguished honors. Along with Achievers and Monroeville, the success of these clubs helped make our area Select Distinguished.

The second one was the news that my adopted mom’s divorce from her ex husband was final. When I read Paula’s relationship status had changed, I was crying tears of joy. I was so happy for my adopted family Tuesday night. From there, Sara wanted to make plans for us to get together on Saturday. We’re going to have lunch at the Olive Garden and celebrate my birthday.

While eating dinner on Wednesday night at the Jean Bonnet Tavern, I came across a post from Sara that brought me to tears. Here’s what my Coach buddy posted. The pictures were from Rob and Sara’s wedding in May of 2021.

Paula posted a few things as well that brought me to tears. Is it any wonder that they mean everything to me? We cry tears of joy at each other’s posts because we’ve had our struggles.

I worry about people treating me different because I am different. I worry that I’ll be disowned because of my lifestyle. I worry that I’ll be shamed because I carry a bag and dress a little different.

Just like the girl whose parents pushed her away because she wanted to date other girls, I fear (even at age 40) the same thing would happen to me. But it looks like I’m getting support from everyone around me. My church, my colleagues, my Toastmasters family, even my own extended family (aunts and uncles and cousins) is cool with it. It’s just hard because I want everyone to be on board but I understand that some are going to be old school about it.

This is why I have to explain myself sometimes but I know I need to stop apologizing for being me. This is why I’m so thankful for Sara and Paula and others because I feel they accept me. Even my own cousin Olivia loved my bag Wednesday night.

Can’t wait until tomorrow when my family helps me celebrate 40.

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.

Last night was as good as advertised.

We celebrated my 40th birthday last night at the Jean Bonnet Tavern. I heard great things about this place from my Berlin Gaffron cousins. Aunt Sue and Elizabeth suggested this place and I’m so glad they did. The experience was great.

Like Toastmasters, I’m going to give my feedback of the great establishment. The Jean Bonnet Tavern is located on the Lincoln Highway in beautiful Bedford. It’s a tavern and also an inn. Rumor has it there are spirits 👻 haunting the place as well.

They serve all types of comfort food, from burgers and sandwiches to entrees (ribeye, chicken parmigiana, and filet mignon) and specials (my cousin had the tomato gnocchi). I ordered the loaded potato crisps as my appetizer and a raspberry margarita for my drink. For dinner, I had the chicken parmigiana with a house salad.

Overall I thought the dishes we ordered were well worth the price. I felt we had excellent service. Our waitress took great care of us. It wasn’t a long wait between ordering apps and dinner. We were too full for dessert but that’s a good thing. An A-plus on all three of these.

The atmosphere was really nice. They had a table for eight set up for us. My cousin called ahead to make sure we’d have a great experience. I didn’t pay much attention to the decor other than the fireplace. I was enjoying myself and my time with family. At the end of the night before heading home, I got to see the goats 🐐 and my cousins fed them but I was a little bit squeamish to do the same myself. An A-minus here to balance it out.

This experience would have been made better if we were able to eat outside on the patio, but you can’t control the weather. Maybe next time. Also the spiral staircase can be a little bit tricky if you have a lot to carry.

To challenge myself, I’d like to come here during the Fall Foliage Festival or at Halloween. I’d also like to bring some of my friends here to experience this place. It’s worth spending a night or weekend here too if you want to get away.

Overall grade: 9.4/10

I’ll close off this review by talking about my gifts I received. From Megan, I got an Amazon gift card. I’ll use it on some amazing fashionwear or some lip balm or other cosmetics or even a cardigan. The possibilities are endless. But how sweet is the gift card I got from Aunt Sue and Elizabeth? It’s for this hair and nail salon (AristaCuts Hair and Tanning Salon) 💇‍♀️ 💅. I can’t wait to use it.

I think I’ll go for a mani/pedi and a facial. I should try out Clarabella or Salt Beauty Lab sometime too. Both are local. Salt will be moving to the Greensburg area in the near future.

I plan on doing the ULTA Beauty/Target blog at the end of July. Maybe I’ll get my hair done there (or pay my usual visit to Sport Clips).

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.

My 30’s began at Kennywood Park on June 30, 2011. We celebrated my birthday and my cousin made me the most scrumptious cake ever. It had blue icing and weather icons on it. Turning 30 was a welcome change after my late 20’s brought me misery and heartache. My late 20’s were just a dumpster fire 🔥.

Turning 30 did bring me Toastmasters, which I’ll discuss later on in this blog. But despite the slight improvements I had in 2011, I really wasn’t out of the woods yet. Five years after college and at age 30. Go figure.

Eventually, I put my back to school dreams on the back burner for good and accepted my past college experiences. The day of Gary’s memorial service was a turning point for me. But even in 2013, I still had a long way to go before I would be in the clear.

I still struggled with not taking stuff personally. This turned into a huge problem at work and it also became a big distraction when I started taking on bigger leadership roles in the District. I followed political pages on Facebook but the views and opinions of others brought me down. Even things that happened years ago were still bothering me.

That epiphany that I had in the Spring of 2013 was feeling more like a wasted opportunity as I reverted back to my old ways. Going back to school seemed like a good idea, but for me it wasn’t for the right seasons. Even going back to learn my field of study on my own was a challenge. I’d been out for so long that I just didn’t have the motivation anymore.

It would take until 2018 for me to finally stop living in the past and move on with my life.

My 30’s brought a lot of Toastmasters memories. I had plenty of magical memories at Disney in 2015. I launched the blog in 2019, dealt with the pandemic 😷 in 2020, and had a health scare earlier this year.

I attended plenty of great Toastmasters events in my 30’s and want to continue the trend into my 40’s. One of my best stories from TLI came at our last in person training before COVID-19 hit. It was one of our most well attended sessions and everyone was asking me about my blog and complimenting me on my stylish attire. Last year’s virtual Winter TLI had us who won the Spirit of Toastmasters participating in a panel discussion. I hope we can meet in person soon.

This past Spring, while at my doctor’s appointment, I found out that my blood pressure was through the roof. I was at heart attack/stroke level and wound up in the hospital for four days. All this to get that bump on my head removed. I came home the day before Easter. I went to my Cardiologist later that week and scheduled an appointment with the Dermatologist. A week later I finally got my cyst drained and removed.

Since then my blood pressure has gone down and I am feeling a lot better than I did when I made that trip to the Emergency Room. I’ve also had a great support system in place and lots of great friends who have reached out to me.

In October 2017, we witnessed the end of an era with the Fall Conference coming to an end. It would be replaced with the Fall Symposium the next Fall. In October 2018, I ended the long-standing tradition of attending Homecoming at Slippery Rock University. It was fun for a long time, but after so many years and having been out of college for a decade, it just got too stale and was dated. My new Fall tradition would be that Fall Symposium the next year. Tonight is the last night of my 30’s.

My 30’s brought the light at the end of the tunnel. But for a while those lights were from oncoming trains 🚆. Patience was a virtue even well into my 30’s. My 20’s were about academia and later on, I paid the price for my education and lack of work experience. My 30’s were a slight improvement, but I was still feeling the effects of the previous decade for a long time after.

The latter half of my 30’s brought a lot more happiness than the stagnant first half which saw me going nowhere chasing an education I did not need. 2019 was a sad year as I mourned the loss of loved ones. But it was also a standout year for me in Toastmasters, as well as launching the blog, and thinking about dressing nicer. A girl in a cute pink cherry dress can do that to you. 2020 saw me learning to support my local everything and falling in love with my hometown. I won the Spirit of Toastmasters award at the Fall Symposium. I started carrying a bag and wearing patterned scarves and worried I would be shamed but I had the love and encouragement of my friends and adopted family.

2021 is where I will end this blog and I will talk about the two biggest stories. I became more confident about myself and attended a great wedding. In February, I went to Tanger and bought some awesome bags from the Coach outlet. This is me being confident. I broke gender norms and rocked some pastel blazers and a leopard print cardigan. What’s next? Headbands, scrunchies, fashion jewelry?

This past May, I attended the wedding of my dear friends Rob and Sara at the Greensburg Country Club. Sara is one of my biggest encouragers and it was a pleasure to attend her wedding and reunite with her and her family. She loves my fashion sense and the blog. I’m her own personal Harry Styles. I always look forward to us hanging out when our schedules allow and hope to do more with her family soon.

As we begin to have more social gatherings, I’m able to talk more my lifestyle changes and the blog. Speaking of, the blog continues to grow and I have some exciting content that’s coming this summer. I have an ULTA Beauty/Target trip planned for July. That might have me buying… cosmetics. I’m also planning a back to school blog for the middle of August and another Outlets trip. That might happen around Labor Day weekend.

Lots of fun things are happening in Toastmasters as well. A dinner planned on July 24 to honor all that the District has done during this trying time will be held at WCCC. Dates have planned for the Fall Symposium and Winter TLI. I’ll cover these as they get closer. For now enjoy summer.

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.

It’s that time again. Time for our officers to get trained in the roles for the upcoming Toastmaster year. It’s Summer TLI (Toastmasters Leadership Institute).

We started at 9 o’clock this morning. Our incoming District Director Bob Johnson gave the introduction and led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. He then introduced the new members of the trio. Dr. Elizabeth Carter for Program Quality Director, and Stephanie Scott for Club Growth Director. All three belong to exceptional clubs in the Cranberry area, so it goes without saying Cranberry Township will be well represented.

Our morning Toastmaster, incoming Division A Director Julia Wick, recognized past and present District Leaders and our International Director Melissa McGavick. Our current District Director Patti Thor installed new leaders for 2021-22. She also looked back on the current Toastmasters and her role as District Director. We’ve come a long way virtually.

We have an exceptional team of Division Directors and other District leaders coming in for 2021-22. Kat Licause moderated our Spirit of Toastmasters panel discussion and I know she’ll rock that Public Relations Manager position. Bob also introduced an exceptional slate of Area Directors. Afterwards Julia introduced our keynote speaker, Lance Miller.

Some of the things that I took away from Lance Miller’s keynote speech were the four areas of growth and the three reasons why clubs fail. Also, he mentioned that a Toastmasters membership is like a gym membership and that you want to build your club to be the best.

Isabelle Billig and her team led a great session on quality meetings. It means you don’t want to miss this meeting, and it means that members will be coming back after they’ve attended one. Quality meetings go a long way in determining success. Also, plan your agenda, plan your meeting roles, and plan for contingency.

Marci Antion and Carol Snyder taught us the importance of Member Engagement and Retention. We learned about some of the Soutb Hills members and how they’ve benefitted from joining Toastmasters.

Diana Lomelin led a panel discussion on the Pathways mentor program, and Joe Arnold led our Division breakout.

He made sure everyone got called on. He discussed the importance of the club success plan, highlighted clubs that were struggling (Penn Hills comes to mind as Nate Stephens resurrected the club from Extinguished to Distinguished). Joe also hit on evaluation. Mike Dalton provided the best answer to the question when discussing how he does evaluation. I think, as Toastmasters, we should follow his example of writing out an evaluation and saying something different for the oral evaluation.

We ended the afternoon with a club officer training session. Dr. Elizabeth Carter and Chad Hudson taught us incoming Vice Presidents of Education how to do our roles. It’s a lot more technical now with Pathways. I learned a lot in the session and am confident I can do my job well. I like the tips that Liz provided. In the next few weeks I plan to design a chart showing off our education goals and where we stand for the Distinguished Club Program.

We concluded with words of encouragement from our trio. I’m excited to see what they do for our District in 21-22. We have some great leaders coming in next year and I’m excited to serve as an officer under this exceptional group of Toastmasters. I leave you with our 2021-22 District Leaders.

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.

The TLI blog will be released after the event has ended, but until then let’s look back at some other milestone birthdays and preview next week. It’s not just any birthday 🥳, it’s my 40th. Wait until you see the one that’s coming in ten years.

I’ve been making kind of a big deal about the event more than I should. As I turn 40, I’ve come to realize that I’m at a good place in life.

I have my blog which is growing. I have my love of fashion and style that’s just getting better with every passing day. I’m looking forward to TLI on Saturday and this new Toastmaster year coming up on July 1. I belong to a wonderful church home.

Back when I was 25, I worshipped higher education. I’d do anything to go back to school even if it was for a useless post baccalaureate degree. In 2006, I was sitting at home unemployed and taking care of my sick grandmother. I was a dumpster fire and it would be a while before that flame would be extinguished.

These days I think college is overpriced and overrated. I have Toastmasters and my blog. I have my love of fashion, and I have my friends and I enjoy following their Instagram pages and learning about their businesses.

As I turned 30, I was a few years into posting the weather on Facebook. I was crazy about politics but eventually it chewed me up and spit me out. I joined Toastmasters and was still longing to go for a postbac degree. I quit the politics and chasing that higher education and accepted my time in college after years of doubting that it was the right choice. I was getting better but still had a long way to go.

When I turned 35, I thought about getting back into my field of study. However, being away from it for so long hindered my performance and I couldn’t stick with it. I eventually retired my longtime tradition of attending homecoming at my Alma mater. By 2018, it had become really stale and I regretted missing the first Fall Symposium that my Toastmasters District held.

Which brings us to the present day. I have my blog which is doing well. Long gone are the times when I would live for the good old days. I’m looking forward to being Greensburg’s Vice President Education in July. I wow my friends and family with my fashion and stories on social media. I learned to support my local everything when the world shut down last year.

I’m looking forward to a great long birthday weekend. My aunt and cousins have turned me on to the idea of exploring the shops in Bedford and then having dinner at the Jean Bonnet Tavern. I think this may just eclipse last year’s Ligonier Tavern dinner with Rob and Sara. It’s just the start of what will be a great time.

In just a week I’m going to be fierce, fabulous, and 40.

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.

This morning at 11 I had a meeting at church. It was for frontline workers. Pastor Mark Pastoria provided the Chick Fil A nuggets, and we had an amazing spread. It was a short and sweet meeting and we were done before Noon. Time for my Target run.

I knew I needed some groceries but I also wanted to pick up a gift card for my dad for Father’s Day. Instead of going to the Target right by my house, I decided to take a road trip and shop at the one in Monroeville. By now I’m fully vaccinated so I didn’t need a mask 😷.

I prefer the Targets with more of a grocery section because I can get more. I bought my usual stuff for lunches (gotta fill up that cute Bando tote). However, I’m starting to buy more HBA products at Target as well.

I’m stocking up on body wash. I like this stuff by OGX that I’ve bought on Amazon but now I’m starting to buy it in store. Right now I use the coffee coconut 🥥 body wash. I bought the sea kelp scrub as well as rose water and pink sea salt body wash to use for future spa 🧖‍♀️ or shower 🚿 days. I continue to wash my hair with the tea tree mint shampoo 🧴 and conditioner. I got hooked on this after they used it on my hair at Sport Clips.

I also bought moisturizer because I want to use it more. I bought two 6 oz tubes of St. Ives scrub and can’t wait to use them. I’ve really begun to emerge from my shell and don’t feel embarrassed, but proud. Remember, fashion is nothing to be ashamed of. I’ve really come into my own with all of my Amazing Fashionwear 👗 👠 purchases I’ve made.

After spending an exact $100 on my Target run, I drove through Miracle Mile and passed by ULTA, gaining some inspo for a future blog I’m doing where I shop at ULTA Beauty and Target. The stores look very spacious and have a lot of product. I even saw the salon 💇‍♀️ in the back of the Monroeville location. Don’t worry friends, I still support my local everything and that includes my friends who are stylists and hairdressers.

I plan to do this blog in mid to late July and looking at a Saturday. I might even include a trip to Old Navy as well. I also want to have dinner to cap off the trip. Lots of great places in the suburbs to grab a meal. Monroeville looks like a feasible location but I’m also interested in Cranberry, North Hills, South Hills, and Robinson. All have a decent size Target and an ULTA Beauty nearby. I have even gotten my fashion buddy interested in going with me too.

Last night I hit 200 blogs on Stylish 👢 and Trendy 🐰 after I ended my epic “Who’s the Inspo” series. I think the blog is a lot better with just weekly content (this week was an exception). I’m beginning to worry a lot less about people’s opinions of me, and that’s a big win.

Bye everyone. ❤️ you.