https://www.melissasbest.life/blog daily 1.0 2022-06-07 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/bde-bigdecisionenergy monthly 0.5 2020-11-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1605196283875-1PN7Q9G6FO6CRDQ66NCQ/97AC34D3-0123-40F9-A328-C80366171EB6.JPG Blog - BDE - Big Decision Energy Rooftop views always help me clear my mind and think about the big picture. https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/dear-grandma monthly 0.5 2020-11-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1605760019207-CIMYO0VFM7FE8VTP4PZG/melissa+and+Grandma Blog - Dear Grandma, I still love cornbread - My grandma and me. Margaritas to celebrate my college graduation. … and a New Year’s Eve vibe. She and I were tipsy off of Moscoto that night. It was a simpler time. Rooftop views always help me clear my mind and think about the big picture. https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/recovery-and-resolutions monthly 0.5 2020-12-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1609451585412-JEVHPZQP0WD0H3U28PCW/hospital+pic.jpg Blog - Recovery and Resolutions https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/looking-for-love-in-a-pandemic-online-speed-dating monthly 0.5 2021-01-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1610500353070-T9MS7XA0TS5CXSAPHJJK/Image%2Bfrom%2BiOS%2B%25281%2529.jpg Blog - Looking for love in a pandemic: Online Speed Dating - Even though it’s an online event I made sure to put my best face and hair forward, and that the girls were sitting. https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/it-all-falls-down monthly 0.5 2021-09-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1632621455366-1HOV9775VOOAOX6VK49N/IMG_8079.jpg Blog - It All Falls Down - I was glowing the night of my birthday. Looking across the table at him, I was having the perfect night. https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/so-you-want-to-date-online monthly 0.5 2021-11-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/37b40f47-b09f-4995-9b60-c5eb4e13c772/dating+apps+pic.png Blog - So, you want to date online? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/113020 monthly 0.5 2021-12-03 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/its-been-a-minute monthly 0.5 2022-04-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/60c6ca9f-e1f9-48da-bc5e-0c32fcbfbfcb/IMG_2514.jpg Blog - It’s been a minute - I call this: happy. Last month, we went to Atlantic City for the weekend with a group of my friends, all of whom are either married or in long-term relationships. It was a great weekend! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/3329e96e-4d1c-46f7-acdf-51e40a629697/Groups_009.jpg Blog - It’s been a minute - the future is female and Black AF While I didn’t set out to hire two Black women for open roles on my team over the past year, God has a way of fulfilling dreams you didn’t even know you had. Not pictured here is our part-time colleague who works remotely and is also a woman of color, representing my Latinx fam. Altogether, my team is the future of the nonprofit sector, women of color who will do and are currently doing amazing things to make this world a better place. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1d88fbc1-4d14-47ae-9357-358c34b23d89/Image+from+iOS+%2822%29.jpg Blog - It’s been a minute - Online therapy has been amazing! Click here to try it out free for a week! https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/so-im-engaged monthly 0.5 2022-06-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/0f3acd54-aac9-4183-8531-b8a7d66cde27/engagement+2.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - Let the ugly crying commence! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/a47b3a73-3a41-4cb6-b418-11fc0e25fb9b/engagement+6.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - And there it is! Officially engaged!! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/9b9f3f06-c886-4eee-9ced-b8dfc6e90e9b/engagement+3.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - Obviously I said yes! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/42af854f-1aac-43dd-b001-9b096414d8a2/engagement+5.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - Don’t really know how to describe this picture, other than love. I just love this man so damn much! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/4d157170-162d-412b-9ba7-e597fac03d16/IMG_3038.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - Needless to say we had an amazing day. May 28th will go down in history as one of the best days of my life! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/d584b96c-825c-46f5-9742-93e8ff657fe3/IMG_3035.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - Had to give you a ring shot! For years I thought diamonds were too expensive but after seeing some alternatives that I thought I would like, as well as learning more about diamond pricing, we realized this was actually more affordable than the amethyst I was considering! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/c1382c74-b79a-4592-9d38-bc21a6072407/67546224843__0574A351-9B19-42A2-9C07-34CE101EF8A3.fullsizerender.JPG Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - So of course once we got to the restaurant I called my close friends on Facetime looking much like this when they answered lol https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/31b7f4c1-3226-44e6-8e83-7b84bc2f64ae/IMG_3036.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - After dinner, we came back to the Bronx, changed clothes, and went to Sangria Cafe for drinks and dessert. This Co-Op City neighborhood restaurant was where we had our first date. Once I told the bartender we just got engaged and that we had our first date there, she told the DJ and he gave us a shout out! Then the bartender gave us a free round of drinks, and two other customers at the bar also bought us drinks. Then to top it off, they wrote this on our dessert plate. It was awesome! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1d488ba0-90d3-49ec-8dca-aa9c75e405f5/engagement+4.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - Still in emotional shock that this was all happening! lol it also started to rain again, so some of that water on my dress is rain, but there’s definitely my tears mixed in. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/4dd254cd-8604-4bcb-a6c4-84c4c22508e4/7BC78368-BB28-4F14-B191-5AEA3C6CDC7F.JPG Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - It was a race to dodge the rain that day, but I snapped this on the way to the photoshoot at a stoplight. In my head we were celebrating the completion of my leadership program, a successful benefit season at work, his hiring to a basketball camp at Duke, AND our anniversary! Didn’t know he had more in store! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/c927e706-82a8-4628-be46-9c3b3db8e817/engagement+1.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - So we finally arrived to the spot that he and the photographer agreed on, Liberty State Park in NJ. At first the photographer asked us to take a few shots, then he asked us to face each other for some more pics. Cecilio then said, “I love you so much.” And I, being a dork and awkward about direct eye contact, was like “Love you too babe,” like it was nothing lol. Then he said, “You know I’m not one for speeches…” and proceeds to take a box out of his pocket and get down on one knee. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1d8d2468-7cc3-4a4f-842d-bbed64fa44a6/IMG_3018.jpg Blog - So.. I’m engaged! - Two days before he proposed, Cecilio surprised me and shared that for our anniversary he booked a couple’s photoshoot near the restaurant we were going to eat at that day. I was shooketh. I didn’t feel like I had clothes or the makeup skills worthy of a photo shoot but I gave it my best, and pulled something from the closet and made it work! https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/category/Travel monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/category/Health monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/category/family monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/category/Dating+and+Relationships monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/category/Career monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/fibroid+surgery monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/Travel monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/holidays monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/mental+health monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/fibroids monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/speed+dating monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/health monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/resolutions monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/dating monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/family monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/surgery monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/blog/tag/online+dating monthly 0.5 https://www.melissasbest.life/about daily 0.75 2021-10-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5faca5fca363746603c05a1b/1633128430457-WJM8KWSLEVIXEAHZC10U/image9.jpeg About - Welcome! I’m Melissa. I’ve always enjoyed writing. Nearly ten years ago, I started a blog where I mostly wrote about my dating experiences, but between grad school, changes in my personal life, and just life in general, I lost my drive for producing that kind of content. Still, the interest in sharing my thoughts and experiences never went away. I briefly attempted to try vlogging on YouTube, but the editing… chile.. it was a lot! So I came back the idea of blogging again, but this time, it would be on broader topics.. not just dating, but other areas of my life that I think could be equally interesting to explore. So I created Melissa’s Best Life. This will be a space where I can share what I know, what I don’t know, what I’m learning along the way, and hopefully we can learn from each other. I’ll be talking about self-care, physical and mental health awareness, dating, food and travel, plus-size fashion, and fun...all the things that will hopefully help me lead my best life now! A Brooklyn girl to the core, I am currently a reluctant gentrifier in central Queens. Fundraising pays the bills and gives me purpose by connecting good people to causes they can be passionate advocates for. You can find me on Instagram at @melissasbest.life.