Out Now: @kylieminogue ‘The Abbey Road Sessions’: {New #Music #Review}

Kylie The Abbey Road Sessions Album Cover Art

I may be 'The Official #TwitterPartyDJ' but nothing thrills me more than actual CD's. Don't get me wrong, I love my iPod, I love having all of my music library at my fingertips, it makes long commutes that much more fun and a bit shorter and plane rides more bearable. But an actual CD and jacket, pictures and lyrics are still my favorite way to hear new music.

On her latest album The Abbey Road Sessions, Kylie Minogue slows things down and allows us to reflect on what makes her great and one thing becomes very clear - stripped of her high-end pop production, the emotional resonance of Kylie’s songs has never been clearer, and her voice has never sounded better.

The album features 16 tracks, which span Kylie Minogue's 25 years in the music industry, as well as a new song titled "Flower", which was released as a single to support this new album. The album was recorded at the famous London's Abbey Road Studios with Minogue's band and a full orchestra, the album has a orchestral 'jazzy' vibe that allows you to just get lost in the songs, think romantic dinner for two, late night jazz club with a glam Torch Singer on the stage. With Kylie being so strongly associated with pop and dance, this album is a nice departure from her norm, and not just another 'greatest hits' milestone album.

Track Listing:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - All the Lovers

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - On a Night Like This

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Better the Devil You Know

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Hand on Your Heart

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - I Believe in You

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Come Into My World

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Finer Feelings

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Confide in Me

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Slow

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Locomotion

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Can't Get You Out of My Head

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Where the Wild Roses Grow (with Nick Cave)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Flower

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - I Should Be So Lucky

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Love at First Sight

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Never Too Late

Sadly the only track that fell short for me was the song I actually like from her the most, 'Can't Get You Out of My Head', the way this track was re-worked made it sound sort of like a 'Dancing With the Stars' version of it. I think the original is way better than this version. The duet with Nick Cave I'm a bit mixed on as well, my inner DJ says it just doesn't flow with the rest of the album, and it definitely doesn't seemed well placed after "Can't Get You Out of My Head", however, "Flower", the new track and the single for this album I greatly enjoyed!

Bit of trivia for my Kylie Die Hards:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Australian Bonus Track: 17. "Wow"

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Japanese Bonus Track: 17. "In My Arms"

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Me and Kylie share the same middle name - Look it up! :)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Minogue has achieved worldwide record sales of more than 68 million!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Kylie, a Breast Cancer Survivor, is currently working on her twelfth studio album which is expected to be released in 2013.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Kylie's latest single "Flower" is a song she wrote several years ago following her battle with breast cancer, to the child she wishes she might one day still have.

Get Social with Kylie:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow Kylie on Twitter @kylieminogue
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - 'Like' Kylie on Facebook
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - *don't forget to tell her you saw "The Abbey Road Sessions" Featured on Ascending Butterfly!*

My Take:

My iPod is basically a 'best of' by every singer/peformer you can think of, with songs that span not only chapters of my life, but it's a collection that is so big, that to get new music in, songs have to come out, it says a lot when a song or artist survives my 'iPod Purges' which tend to occur monthly. Kylie has long remained in my playlists and I recommend Kylie The Abbey Road Sessions, I commend her for not just regurgitating old songs but actually re-mastering them and giving them a whole new mood and feel.

Gotta Have It? Get the Deluxe Album on Amazon:

What is your favorite Kylie Minogue song Butterfly? Why? What time of your life does it remind you of?

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FTC Disclosure: I am a Member of the One2One Network,  they have provided me with a product sample for editorial consideration, however all opinions expressed herein are 100% my own. There is an Amazon Affiliate Link in this review.

Purex with Oxi and Zout Stain Remover! I can't give you Laundry Service, but I can give you a Free Product Coupon {#Giveaway}

Purex plus Oxi with Zout Stain Remover

We are a week away from Thanksgiving, and you know what that means? Getting the house ready for in-laws, clearing out some drawers and closet space for houseguests. Let's not forget swapping out the stuff in the closet and taking down the sweaters and extra blankets. All this leaves you a flurry of extra wash to do. And as much I'd love to provide you all with a Merry Maid as a holiday gift, I haven't quite hit the Powerball yet.....

But since I know you are all on Santa's 'Nice' list, I can share that I have hit on a detergent that takes the extra prep work out of heavy duty laundry loads and tough stains!

ABOUT PUREX OXI PLUS WITH ZOUT STAIN REMOVERS

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Purex^® plus Oxi is so powerful, it works against over 101 different stains!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - The three stain-fighting enzymes in Purex plus Oxi each work against different types of stains for the most Purex stain-fighting power you can get.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - For ALL Machines, works with both Front and Top Load Washing Machines! (I have a very old Top Loader that is on it's last legs, so it's super helpful to have a powerful detergent because with my machine I now have to use more detergent than I normally would to get the results I like).

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Sensitive Skin? Purex Plus Oxi is hypoallergenic!

My Take:

I love that this can be used as a pre-treater as well, it saves you from buying extra product, and it works for all machine types! I really do think there is something behind the extra bubble power of the Oxi that helps to fight tough stains. You are getting triple the stain fighting power for a much more reasonable price point than the 'leading brands'. The one amazing thing that has come out of blogging for me is that it has made me way more flexible and open to try new things. I have to admit that shopping for some things at times can become a bit rote and routine and I end up doing it on 'Auto-Pilot' and tend to stick to the same old same old, but now that I've tried this one, I would continue to rebuy it, I look forward to this particular Triple Action being offered in a wider variety of scents, it's currently only available in 'Fresh Morning Burst'. I have a tendency to get 'un-scented' Laundry Detergents so I can leave the final scent to the Fabric Softener, so I hope they offer this one in an un-scented soon. I do like the scent, but like having the option! :)

Win it:

I can offer 2 lucky butterflies a Free Product Coupon so you can try out Purex plus Oxi with Zout Stain Removers for yourself! And maybe we can something about the Laundry Service after all, Purex is hosting a $1,000 sweepstakes on their website! You can enter their contest daily to win $1,000 cash or 1 of 250 gift cards! That can certainly buy you some Laundry Service and then some! Who Loves YOU Butterfly?

Enter using the Rafflecopter Form Below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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FTC Disclosure: I am a Member of the Purex Insiders Program. Purex has provided me with a product sample for editorial consideration, however all opinions expressed herein are 100% my own. The sponsor is fulfilling directly to prize winner(s), this in no way influenced my opinion of the product. Once a winner is selected and their information has been forwarded to the sponsor, the responsibility of prize fulfillment rests with the sponsor. Ascending Butterfly and our giveaway sponsors are not responsible for lost or mis-directed mail.

Wordless Wednesday: Visit to @AudubonZoo during #NicheMommy12 Part 2 of 2! #NOLA

Asian Domain in the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, Louisiana

I am back to our Wordless Wednesdays from New Orleans series! During the NicheMommy 2012 Blogging Conference in New Orleans I got to sneak in a little time to visit the Audubon Zoo. They brought some of the animals to us, and gave us the opportunity to also visit them! A group of intrepid bloggers headed out for a fun adventure to the Audubon Zoo! We tweeted the Audubon Zoo from the bus on the way over and they tweeted us back! I couldn't fit all my zoo pictures into one post, so I split them and today's focus is on the Asian Domain in the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Check out the cool Elephant Fountain below:

Check out the three elephants in the Asian Domain Area picture below, cool Decorative Fountain!

Close up of one of the Elephant Statues in the Asian Domain area of Audubon Zoo, New Orleans,  Louisiana

Found a lovely spot to Meditate:

Meditating Buddha Statue, Asian Domain, Audubon Zoo, New Orleans, Louisiana

Left: Meditating Buddha Statue, Asian Domain, Audubon Zoo, New Orleans, Louisiana Right: Ascending Butterfly enjoying a moment of reflection!

The Wordless Wednesday series from New Orleans will continue, we still have the Insectarium, some street signs, some supernatural, and some amazing eats to feature from our Journey to New Orleans! And slowly but surely, all of the pictures taken in New Orleans during Niche Mommy 2012 are being added to our Pinterest Page as well so be sure to check them out. On Pinterest you can see them in their original sizes!

Happy Wordless Wednesday Butterflies - Bloggers feel free to link us up to your post too in the comments section below! I look forward to seeing everyone's photos!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post, no monetary compensation has been received to post my recap of my day at the Audubon Zoo. However ALL bloggers in attendance at the Niche Mommy Blogging Conference were offered tickets. I attended the conference as a guest of Britax. I am a Britax Hispanic Digital Marketing and Outreach Blogger and Blogger Brand Ambassador.

Which way is this week going to go? #Motivation Monday

Just remember, the choice dear butterfly is YOURS!

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FTC Disclosure: Um, seriously, this is NOT a sponsored post!

Celebrate A Vet! Veterans Day 2012

My Grandfather earned a Purple Heart serving our country, to him, and all our Vets, THANK YOU for your courage, your bravery and your sacrifices, we appreciate you! 

 Celebrate a Veteran Today Butterfly!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post!

A win/win way to help in the #HurricaneSandy Relief Efforts via @Sakroots!

Like most of you, I get tons of  'PR Noise' in my inbox (especially at this time of year) and I rarely share emails I receive in their entirety here, but this one was too good not to share. Since 2009 I have been sharing about Brands that give back. In fact for my first year of blogging I wasn't even PR friendly, I wanted collaborations to be meaningful in ways that are bigger than the obvious, and one of the first brands to ask what if what I was asking you to cover was part of a give back initiative? That's when a light bulb clicked and I made my first brand collaboration. The same still holds true now, you have never once seen a 'what the celebs are wearing' post here. I live in New York and cover Fashion Week as an iconic part of what being a New Yorker City based Lifestyle Blogger sees, but what celebs wear, don't interest me, unless it's something they wore when they were giving back.

Ascending Butterfly has come a long way since 2009, we have collaborated with numerous brands, but a select core group are featured more often by us than others. The long term relationships I've built with some brands is because I believe in the quality and durability of the products they offer and that I respect and admire the company's principles. I love Brands that give back, especially ones that do so year round. And when a Brand I love does something that helps MY own community, I have to help them spread the word!

I tried to enlarge the graphic in the post, but it goes beyond the screen width for text so even though you can press on it to make it bigger, I wanted to share the message so it didn't get lost! The Sak Brand Group (who have collaborated with us often throughout the years for our regular feature 'Featured Monthly Handbag in the Spotlight'), is a New York and New Jersey based company, to assist in the Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts, they are donating 10% of online sales to the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City, where 100% of donations are dispersed to relief efforts and organizations! How cool is that? You get a fab brand new handbag that you wanted anyway AND you get to make a difference for people who really need it. Right now there are so many New Yorkers in Shelters after getting hit by BOTH Hurricane Sandy and the Nor-Easter snow storm 'Athena'!

My Take:

People think of New York City as the 'Fashion Capital of the World', and I can tell you waking up in a shelter doesn't feel so 'fashionable', but helping people in such a simple way certainly is. Please consider The Sak, sakroots and Elliot Lucca for your holiday gift giving this season. You are getting your family and friends amazing gifts they will love and that will last (let's face it accessories not only make the outfit but expand your wardrobe), but you will also be making a real difference!

Get Social With It: 

Not buying right now but still want to help?

They have posted this message on their Facebook Page and Twitter Stream @Sakroots, please consider a social media share to your own networks, the more we spread the word, the more help displaced families due to Hurricane Sandy can receive.

Let's call this Give Back Friday Butterflies! I thank you in advance for spreading the word about this message!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post. This post has not been compensated, nor am I Brand Ambassador! We collaborate with the Sak Brand Group on a frequent basis, however all opinions are 100% my own and we have featured brands with giving initatives since 2009.

{CLOSED} @McDonalds 'CBO' (Cheddar Bacon Onion) Sandwich - Review and Giveaway!

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This giveaway is now CLOSED. Thanks so much to our wonderful sponsor McDonald's! (We look forward to working with you again.) Entries are being processed. Once the winner has been notified and upon winner confirmation, follower name will be posted both here and on our homepage. Remember: There are great giveaways active on the upper right hand side of the page!

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Mother Nature has been battering us here in the Northeast, 'Frankenstorm Sandy' aka Hurricane Sandy was followed by a snowstorm called NorEaster 'Athena', and with the cold and snow thoughts of meals that stick to your ribs start to come to mind. Over here, Fall speedily switched to Winter and with the advent of holiday shopping season upon us we open up our Holiday Buying Guide with a unique giveaway for you! I figure if you are anything like me and shopping invariably exhausts you and makes you hungry, and you don't have much time, a tasty fast food break between your holiday shopping marathon would be welcome!

Left: McDonald's Crispy Chicken Cheddar Bacon Onion Sandwich, Right: McDonald's Angus Beef Cheddar Bacon Onion Burger

Added to McDonald's Nationwide menu for fall, the Cheddar Bacon Onion - or CBO, can be ordered in the Angus burger OR as a grilled or crispy chicken sandwich. The sandwiches are topped with white cheddar and grilled onions, and combined with McDonald's existing hickory-smoked bacon. It is topped with a creamy mustard sauce.

For me the beef and crispy chicken are equally tied for first with the grilled chicken variety coming in a close second. At only 480 calories, the crispy chicken is super satisfying and not too much of a cheat which is great!

While I'd love to take you all out for a burger, I didn't get quite enough coupons to do that, but I can treat 2 winners and a friend to a CBO!

Win It - Use the Rafflecopter Widget below to win 2 Cheddar Bacon Onion Product Coupons you can redeem at your local McDonald's, there will be two winners!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Yes Butterfly, YOU deserve a Break Today!

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FTC Disclosure Info for this Giveaway: This is not a paid insertion. This is a non-compensated post and all opinions regarding the products are expressly my own experiences. I was provided product to facilitate my review and for the giveaway. The sponsor is fulfilling directly to prize winner(s), this in no way influenced my opinion of the product. Once a winner is selected and their information has been forwarded to the sponsor, the responsibility of prize fulfillment rests with the sponsor.

Wordless Wednesday: Visit to @AudubonZoo during #NicheMommy12 Part 1 of 2! #NOLA

Entrance to Audubon Zoo, New Orleans, 2012 Credit @Ascending Butterfly

I am back to our Wordless Wednesdays from New Orleans series! During the NicheMommy 2012 Blogging Conference in New Orleans I got to sneak in a little time to visit the Audubon Zoo. They brought some of the animals to us, and gave us the opportunity to also visit them! A group of intrepid bloggers headed out for a fun adventure to the Audubon Zoo! We tweeted them from the bus on the way over and they tweeted us back!

Dave from The Audubon Zoo shows bloggers in attendance at Niche Mommy a Spider! Photo Credit: @Ascending Butterfly, 2012. Niche Mommy 2012 was held at The Roosevelt, a Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New Orleans.

Dave from the Audubon Zoo was showing Spiders and other assorted creepy crawlies, he was very close to where I was eating my Seafood Gumbo and I was afraid one of them would jump into my bowl! You can tell how close he was to where I was sitting by the shot, I was seated, and did NOT use zoom to take this picture!

Rose from The Audubon Zoo shows off an Alligator from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans!

Rose offered to let me touch it, but despite that sweet looking smile, I declined! It was lunch time and I figured the smell of food all around might make it hungry and it would confuse my hand for chicken fingers!

Rose from The Audobun Zoo shows off an Alligator from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans!

Thankfully Founder of Niche Mommy Nadia Jones husband wasn't as squeamish and he touched it instead! And to think I once had a Reticulated Python as a pet!

Rose from The Audubon Zoo shows off an Eagle from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans!

Now this guy I wanted to pet, but they wouldn't let us! This Eagle had so much personality!

Rose from The Audobun Zoo shows off an Eagle from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans!

The Eagle was totally taking everything and everyone in!

Rose from The Audubon Zoo shows off an Eagle from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans! Left: Ascending Butterfly, Right: Rose from Audobon Zoo holding an Eagle

Right before this picture was taken, The Eagle looked at me and I moved my head back and then he moved his head back and we were all laughing!

Rose from The Audubon Zoo shows off an Eagle from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans! Left: Maria from http://bloggingbabiesandthebayou.com, Right: Rose from Audubon Zoo holding an Eagle

Maria got to snap my moment with The Eagle and I got to capture hers too! The poor Eagle was probably getting Flash Blinded from all the bloggers getting pictures! He must have felt like a celebrity and thought we were all paparazzi! The zoo offered bloggers at the conference a chance to visit the zoo, aquarium and insectarium too! So Ascending Butterfly and some intrepid fellow bloggers decided to take the city bus to the zoo and check it out! 

Left: Ascending Butterfly making Peace signs! Right: Christina from http://bluekittycool.org/

Here we are hamming it up on the bus and we also tweeted the Zoo to let them know we enjoyed seeing the Animals at Niche Mommy, and that we were on our way!

Left: Maria from http://bloggingbabiesandthebayou.com, and right: Laura from My Three Ring Circus: http://kileigh7.com/

We were super stoked when the zoo tweeted us right back! New Orleans companies have great Social Media community Managers, because when Maria and I visited the Harrahs Casino in New Orleans, they tweeted us right back too! Pretty Impressive!

A beautiful sunny August Day at the Audubon Zoo, New Orleans!

First up: Flamingo Cafe, we arrived thirsty!

The first animals we see near the Flamingo Cafe? The Flamingos of course! 

I love watching them balance so gracefully on one leg!

Cute Duck Statues!

Disccovery Walk at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans!

It's like 3D Elephant Art at the Audubon Zoo, New Orleans!

We tried to wait for the Elephant to come out from there, but instead I had to zoom in to capture him.  Audubon Zoo, New Orleans!

This guy wouldn't quite turn around either! Audubon Zoo, New Orleans!

Everyone stayed here the longest, this Orangutan truly loves people and hammed it up the most for Christina, I wish I would have filmed him! This pic was shot with my iPod, so no zoom! Audobon Zoo, New Orleans.

Finally got a perfect shot of an animal facing the camera! Isn't this Siberian Tiger just gorgeous? Audubon Zoo, New Orleans!

My mom saw this picture and said it reminds her of ME! LOL Siberian Tiger,  August 2012 Audubon Zoo, New Orleans, USA.

We all needed a break and stopped off for some snacks! This sign was in view from the bench where we sitting! Audubon Zoo, New Orleans, August 2012. It's like they knew Ascending Butterfly was coming, LOL :)

The sign reads:  English: The Monkey is Weaving - a thread of insatiable lusts - on the margins of morning -  he topples a pollen-fall - startles the violet flight - of the butterfly.

I love that it was also translated and posted in Spanish: Los Monos trenzaban un hilo - Interminablemente erotico - En las riberas de la aurora - Derribando muros de polen - Y espantando el vuelo violeta - De las mariposas de Muzo. 

You know if there a butterfly sighting, even if it's just the word butterfly I had to have a picture of it!

We had to hit the gift shop, and this cute elephant was right outside! Audubon Zoo, August 2012, New Orleans.

Saw this sign at the Zoo and had to snap a picture of it! This intrepid group also visit The Insectarium, but that's a whole another post!

There was so much to see and do at the Zoo, that I had to break this into two posts, because I didn't have time to optimize and watermark all the photos in one sitting, so next week will be a whole section of the zoo I visited unto itself, but this last picture was a sign at the zoo, that speaks to another Wordless Wednesday from New Orleans series post, you guessed it, The Audubon Butterfly Garden and Insectarium. But that one will post after the part two for the Zoo pictures!

Don't forget to post a link to your Wordless Wednesday Links here, Happy Wordless Wednesday Butterflies!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post, no monetary compensation has been received to post my recap of my day at the Audubon Zoo. However ALL bloggers in attendance at the Niche Mommy Blogging Conference were offered tickets. I attended the conference as a guest of Britax. I am a Britax Hispanic Digital Marketing and Outreach Blogger/Ambassador.

#Election2012 Let's all pull up our American 'Big Boy Pants' and RUN, not walk to the polls today! - Your polling place may have changed, here is where you can check! #VOTE

For those of you who have been around here for awhile, you know I don't discuss my political, religious or sexual beliefs here. Not that I won't answer questions about the above to those who ask, but this blog is NOT intended as a politics or religious forum for that matter. My mission when I began in 2009 still remains the same to this day 'To seek out and share the best inspiration both on and offline'. We are an empowerment and lifestyle community. Period.

Today is election day, and I am NOT, repeat NOT telling you who to vote for. Only YOU can decide which candidate will affect the best change for you. I am not telling you which party to side with, that's up to you, but I want every single person that is reading this to seriously pull on their 'American Big Boy Pants' and do what in some places is still a privilege and not a right, VOTE! Your vote is your voice butterfly, today I highly encourage you to use it.

Another reason I felt it was super important to check in with you on this issue, is that post Hurricane Sandy, many polling places in New York City as well as New Jersey have changed, I don't want anyone using that as excuse not to vote! The Board of Elections In the City of New York has released a list of PollSite Changes Post Hurricane Sandy - New Yorkers click to check if your polling place has changed, remember many schools are currently being used as shelters to house people that were displaced because of Hurricane Sandy. Your voting place may change this year because of this, so take a second to read this list to see if your polling place was indeed changed. This way you avoid confusion! 

I read an article entitled: WillLatinos Rock the Vote? Sure, But When? by Giovanni Rodriguez on Forbes, that mentioned that despite the fact that every 1 in 6 Americans are of Hispanic descent, a very small percentage are actually voting, I don’t know that I agree with everything the article mentions, particularly about Hispanics being purposely ‘intimidated’ at the polls and that is one of the factors discouraging Latinos from voting, but I do know it’s important for ALL Americans of EVERY descent to get out to the polls and vote today! As a Latina who is born and raised in the US, as was my mother and grandmother, (and a Grandfather who was a decorated Vet) I take voting very seriously and as soon as I was eligible to go vote, I did. I certainly hope that all Latinos eligible to vote go out there and do so today! I for one will be at the polls as early as possible!

I am not turning off comments for this thread, but they will all be moderated before being posted, please do not respond to this post with WHO you are voting for, it will NOT be posted, who you are voting for is your decision, this article speaks to the importance of actually voting. Remember if you DON’T Vote, you don’t get to complain to anybody about how this nation is progressing or not progressing! Let your vote, and not just your words actually make change today!

What are you still doing here, GO VOTE NOW BUTTERFLY!

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post. No monetary compensation has been received. I feel it's important that regardless of WHO you end up actually voting for, that everyone get out there today and Rock The Vote! Just Do it!