Why I Changed My Blog Name

Welcome to TheLauraYoung.com! You might be wondering, why I changed my blog name to “TheLauraYoung” from “TwentyFivePlusFive”?

Why the change?

When I started blogging just about 3 years ago, I became “TheTwentyFivePlusFive“. It still surprises me how many people didn’t actually remember my first name. And, shocker, I was actually more like 25+5+2 when I began my journey into blogging. I picked the name, because it was catchy and fun. Truth be told, I decided I wanted to create a blog and decided on the name 30 seconds later. I secured the domain and never looked back. I can be impulsive like that.

For the past few months, I have felt a bit stale as I created content. I want to be myself, share what I love, but also be as unique as possible. I’ve matured in a lot of ways. My family loves to tease me about being ’25+5+4′.

Part of the process in the last year and a half has been morphing into Laura Young and becoming a wife. I couldn’t imagine not having the same name as Ben. I’m very old-fashioned when it comes to names. Changing your name is always a huge deal, and I felt it strongly given that I was referred to as Miss Barbosa on a daily basis in my job as a teacher. I still love when a former student will greet me with a “Hi, Miss Barbosa!”

Also, ‘Barbosa’ is an easily identifiable Portuguese surname. Without it, I often find myself disappointed when I tell someone I am Portuguese and they give a confused response, “Huh? Young isn’t Portuguese!”

While I’m still very much the same person I was at 30, I feel like I have changed a bit over the last four years. 2020 has taught me what is truly important, and I’ve made a lot of changes to my everyday life. I embrace a slower pace and proudly wear the badge “homebody.” I spend hours at the gym or Pure Barre studio, because I love it- not to shrink to a smaller size. I eat dessert whenever I feel like it, and add spinach to everything. (Well, maybe not everything.) Spending hours in the kitchen is something I truly enjoy. Saying goodbye to ‘friendships’ that were nothing more than gossip-sessions over a bottle of wine. I have learned to be more honest in the few true friendships I do have. I have tried to be there for the people I love and listen better. Less people-pleasing, more honesty. I recognize surface-level acquaintances and appreciate those relationships for what they are.

I have started practicing way more gratitude. As my husband continually reminds me, perspective is everything. Most amazing things in life are worth the hard work, tears, and wait. With that, I have started to become more patient with myself.