'Tis the season to be crafty and make Christmas ornaments. I scored Pinterest to find a cute little ornament that was inexpensive and I found an adorable one. It's called an onion ornament and you'll understand why when you see what it looks like. It's extremely easy to make. I'm planning on making more and hanging them in front of my windows. Also, here's the great tutorial that I followed. Happy crafting!
Hot cocoa is probably one of my favorite beverages. So, tonight I curled up in bed with a hot cup of cocoa and watched Sex and the City. It was the perfect end to a long day. :)
Hi all! I ended up not blogging after I skyped last night because I was exhausted and feel asleep almost immediately after ending the call. I ending up skyping with one of my dearest friends, Emma. We talked about what we're planning on doing when I visit for New Year's Eve - I'm so excited!! - and what's been going on in our lives. It was so great to skype with her. Emma is the kind of person who knows what say when you're having a rough time and knows exactly how to make me laugh. Do you have a friend like that? :)
Hello! Today's link is a little difficult to read, but it says "Do the Hoedown Throwdown." I know that's totally high school, but it's still a lot of fun to do. I thought I'd still be at school, so I was excited to do this with Jen, but I'm home and had to do it by myself. Let me just say that it wasn't as fun because no one was there to laugh with me and make fun of ourselves. Oh well. I had to run through the combination several times and found a great tutorial by Miley Cyrus herself a couple of months ago. Enjoy!
Today was my only day of finals, meaning I was able to start my Christmas break early; the task for today was the perfect sending off for me too. I took a picture with one of my closest friends, Jackie. Our friendship started only a few weeks ago and it grows stronger and stronger everyday. We had a class together last year and would talk every once in awhile. The funny thing: we both had a huuuge friend crush on each other. I thought she was hilarious and wanted to be her friend, but didn't know how to make that happen; it was the same way with her towards me.
Our friendship was unexpected this year. We would see each other around campus and say hi with some small talk, but nothing major. Then, she invited me to see Breaking Dawn with her, her roommate and another friend - I said yes, of course! That night we found out that we had a lot in common and we became friends. A few weeks later, I was in the lobby studying with Cassi late at night and Jackie came in. She sat down and decided to study with us. BAM. We clicked. I'd like to say that we studied most of the time, but that would be unrealistic. The truth: We talked about everything and I loved every minute of it. After that, we started studying together and actually got a lot done! About two weeks ago we averaged three hours of sleep a night because we would be up until 5 or so studying and bonding. Honestly, I'm glad that happened because an incredible friendship came from it.
Jackie and I have talked a lot about our friendship and it's strange. We're both outgoing people who could talk for hours and we love to have fun - those are only two of the many similarities. The thing that we both love the most is that our friendship has been incredibly natural. We click together in a way that I, personally, haven't clicked with another friend. Granted, a have several other good friends and there's something special with all of them. Jackie is the kind of person who is incredibly caring, will always make you laugh and is there for you no matter what. Everyone deserves a friend like her. My only hope is that you're able to find friends in your life who will stand by your side no matter what. Now that I've practically written a novel, here's a lovely picture of us:
I'm not one for wearing mix-matched socks and I never have been. It's just never really been appealing to me, but Jen and Cassi insisted that, for one day, I wear mix-matched socks. So, today is that day. Do you wear matching or mix-matched socks?
P.S. For those of you who are devoting today to studying for finals - like me - good luck! :)
Stargazing is probably one of the most peaceful things anyone can do. There's something calming about looking out a window or laying down and taking in the sheer splendor of the stars and moon. Tonight, I was only able to look our my window because it's freezing outside, but that was good enough for me. While there weren't very many stars out tonight, the moon was huge! Take a look!
Towards the beginning of this endeavor to happiness, one of my tasks was to create a playlist for a friend. One of the things I said in that post was that I love being introduced to new music. Music is the gift that keeps giving and it speaks volumes - no pun intended. "Where words fail, music speaks" (Hans Christian Andersen). He was right and that's why I love music so much. While I enjoy writing, there are just some moments in life when I'm unable to write. So, instead I listen to music and sing at the top of my lungs.
Earlier tonight, I was listening to a song by one of my favorite bands, Poema, called Love of My Life. While listening to the song, I scrolled through the suggestions on the side bar and found this little beauty:
Airplanes
By Local Natives
The desk where you sit inside of a frame
Made of, made of wood
I keep those chopsticks you had from when you
Taught abroad in Japan
I love it all
So much I call I want you back, back, back
You back
I did not know you as well as my
Father knew you
Every question you took the time to sit and
Look it up in the encyclopedia
I love it all
so much I call
I want you back, back, backYou back
I love it all
So much I call
I want you back, back, back
You back, yeah
It sounds like we would've of had a great deal
To say to each other
I bet when I leave my body for the sky the wait
'Tis the season to go shopping and while most people are grumpy because of the long lines and crowded stores, one guy brings a little Christmas cheer or . . . confusion . . . to those around him. Enjoy!
I'm hella excited about this task!! Tonight, Jen, Alaina and I rang the bell for the Salvation Army at the local Walgreens for two and a half hours and it was sooooo much fun. I didn't think it would be fun because the people always look so gloomy, but we had an incredible time. We danced around, sang a ton of Christmas songs and talked to several people. Also, the most incredible thing happened. Ready to hear about it? We had been ringing the bells and singing for about an hour and this sweet lady left the store, smiled and said that we were doing a great job. We smiled, thanked her and wished her a Merry Christmas. She left and we continued doing our thing. Half an hour or so passed and we were really starting to get cold and began talking about getting hot cocoa when we got back to the dorms. We started to sing again and while we were singing, the lady came back and brought three hot chocolates from McDonald's. Our jaws dropped and then we had huge grins on our faces. She said that our singing and happiness blessed her, so she wanted to repay the favor and give us a little something to stay warm. Best. Woman. Ever. I was completely dumbfounded and we thanked her several times. She said it was no problem, to stay warm and to have a good evening. We thanked her and she was off. The rest of the night was filled with joy and disbelief. People like her understand the true meaning of Christmas. It isn't about the gifts and money. It's about showing kindness to others, helping others whenever you can and spending time with your loved ones. Sigh. That made my night. People like her give me hope.
This task was difficult because of everything that's been going on lately. I've been emotionally exhausted for awhile now and at the moment I've basically been on an emotional plateau. Writing the letter was definitely therapeutic and interesting. It made me think about what I'll be doing in nine years from now - that doesn't seem that far away! Will I be married and have a family? Will I have a job that I enjoy? Where will I live? All kinds of questions came to mind and I wrote them all down. I'm sure that I'll laugh when I read the letter once I turn 30, but I'll also be interested to see how much of a change I'll make in the next nine years and where I'll be in life. Try writing a letter to yourself that you have to read in a couple of years. Happy writing. :)
One of my previous tasks was to hug twelve people and on December 5 I ran up to Jen and have her the biggest hug. We're both huge huggers, so this task was perfect for us. Now, stop whatever you're doing and go hug a friend. Gooo! :)
This should be December 4's task. I generally have a natural look to my makeup, using a brown toned eye shadow and a charcoal eyeliner. To mix things up a bit, I bought a new type of mascara and I love it! Usually, I wear Maybelline's Define - A - Lash Waterproof, but I decided to try Maybelline's Falsies and it's wonderful! I highly recommend trying it. My lashes looked fuller and flirtier - always a good thing.
Ice cream solves a girl's emotional problems. Ask any girl out there and she'll agree. When heartbroken or upset, there are few things better than curling up on the couch watching chick flicks and eating ice cream with your closest girlfriends. Sadly, I wasn't able to complete this task either. Lack on funds kept me from getting ice cream. Although, if I could make a new concoction, then I would have vanilla frozen yogurt with frozen blueberries and strawberries and crushed up graham crackers. Doesn't that sound deslish?! Mmm . . .
I. Am. OBSESSED with DIY crafts. I sit on Pinterest for hours a day looking at different crafts and add them to my To Do List, waiting for the day I can do them. I'm super excited about the crafts I did; they're DIY crafts for Christmas and I adore them! Ready to see everything? I thought so . . . :)
Craft #1: Hang ornaments from yarn/ribbon on a tension rod - super cute!
Hi everyone! I did it again . . . I'm about a week behind, - eek - but I'm back and ready to get us up to speed! Ready!?
On November 31, I was supposed to go to my school's Fine Arts building and play the piano. I took lessons my senior year of high school, but haven't played much since. I'm fully aware that I'm not a pianist nor ever will be, but I still enjoy tinkering around. Unfortunately, I was unable to make it to the practice rooms to play. Sad day . . . Unfortunately, I failed this task. :(
Creating playlists on iTunes is a speciality of mine. I have dozens of playlists based on a particular mood, event, season or favorite songs. Music is something that I truly care about and can never get enough of. I'm always learning about new artists via friends, Pandora, YouTube, the radio, etc and I looooove getting new music, but I also thoroughly enjoy giving new music. It's better than most other presents anyone could ever give. I created a playlist today and had so much fun clicking on songs, singing them a little bit and then deciding whether or not they made the cut for my uplifting CD. Who did I give my CD to? Whelp, that would be my wonderful roommate, Ashley.
Hi everyone! I'm so so so sorry I haven't updated my blog is several days. Life has gotten extremely crazy with finals coming up and such, but I'm back and this blog is going to be stocked full of the past couple of tasks. Ready! Set! Go!
BREATHE!!!!! This is something that I've had to remind myself to do for the past week. In fact, I'm reminding myself to breathe while I write this blog. My brain feels like it's on a caffeine overload and simply won't stop, no matter what. Sleeping, relaxing, watching a movie, eating, exercising. They haven't exactly been working lately because my brain has been too overwhelmed with all of the things I need to do instead. This message is for anyone else who is feeling overwhelmed and myself: Stop. Take five minutes - or five seconds - and just breathe. Everything is going to be okay. Deep breath!
The Cupid Shuffle is probably one of my favorite dances. Several times throughout this semester Ashley, my roommate, and I have either done the shuffle in our room or in the hall with the other girls. We're always laughing and it's an easy way to let go of a little stress during those highly stressful moments of college. If you've never done the cupid shuffle - WHOA! - you should probably do it, which is why I posted a video for you. For those of you who have done the cupid shuffle, I recommend doing it again simply because it's a lot of fun.
I'm not a very good painter, but I still enjoy doing it. Although, I was unfortunately unable to paint anything while I was on break, but I'll hopefully be able to make up for it this weekend - that's the plan anyways. I'll upload the painting when I complete it. Hang tight! It's coming! :)
I was on Thanksgiving Break during this task, so I was unable to walk through a cemetery with Jen and Cassi, but I did take a walk with a friend from home. We walked around the neighborhood and talked about what was going on in our lives. While it was cold, it was also a lot of fun and that's what matters, right?
It's said that laughing cures everything and that saying proves to be true every time I laugh. So many things make us laugh from our friends and family to movies and jokes. While I didn't laugh until I cried, I did laugh until my sides and cheeks hurt. Becca and Rosemary were cracking me up today and then I watched Nick Swardson's comedy Seriously Who Farted? It's probably inappropriate, but also hilarious. Also, YouTube is a perfect source for comedy and I've posted y favorite one below. Enjoy!
Happy Thanksgiving! Okay, so it's 1:30 A.M., but better late and never, right? Today's task was kind of a fail. First off, I'm on Thanksgiving Break right now so I'm nowhere near the girls in my hall. Secondly, the stores were closed today so I was only able to make cookies from a package. Lame! I went ahead and baked the cookies, but decided that I'll make homemade cookies for the girls on Sunday before I head back to campus.
I hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving and were able to spend it with your loved ones. I went to my great - grandma's where I ate, played Life with two of my cousins and Becca and met two of my baby cousins for the first time!! Oh, how I love babies! I usually don't like being around my family because I don't feel like I fit in, which means I dread family functions. To me, my friends are my family because I don't have the best relations with my blood family and that's my decision. However, I actually enjoyed spending time with my blood family today - for the most part. It was probably because I was able to see two of my cousins, Rosemary (14 years old) and Madison (6 years old) and I got to hold Allison, one of the babies, to my heart's content. Rosemary and Madison make me laugh and we always have a lot of fun together. Plus, Madison was super clingy today and I thoroughly enjoyed the excess amounts of affection.
After a few hours, Rosemary, Becca and I went back home where we munched on food and watched TV. Now, it's back to watching a movie with Rosemary while Becca is zonked out on the couch. She's resting up for our late night! We're going to Starbucks at 3 A.M. and it's a 25 minute drive, but it's Starbucks and it's totally worth it. I hope you all have a wonderful night. If you're going shopping on Black Friday, take care of yourself. People are crazy! :)
No, they aren't very pretty, but they still taste good.
It's 2 A.M. and last night's - November 23 - task is a little hard to read. It says, "Talk to someone you haven't talked to in awhile." Tonight, I went over to Aubrey's house. Aubrey and I became best friends Senior year of high school and she is one of the funniest and most caring people I've ever met. I love her to death, but this semester we've both been crazy busy and have sort of lost touch. Luckily, we were able to reconnect tonight. We walked to the park at 10:30 P.M. and talked while swinging - yes, it was freezing. After we could no longer feel our fingers, face or anything else for that matter, we walked back to her house. We each grabbed a cup of hot cocoa and talked for awhile longer.
Can I just say that I had such a wonderful time? I was really missing her and it felt so good to catch up, laugh, vent, drink hot cocoa and just enjoy each other's company. The two of us have been through a lot together and life has been getting me down a lot lately, so I definitely needed tonight and one of my closest friends. There's just something about spending time with someone who gets you and doesn't care how many times you vent about the same drama over and over again. They're still there, willing to listen and help you through your pain. That's a friend and I'm lucky to have people like that in my life because they're a rare treasure in this world.
I hope you have someone who you can go to in your time of need and when you need a good laugh. Some lessons I've learned/ am learning about friendships are:
Friendships should never be taken for granted.
Friends come and go; it's never easy to lose a friend, but there's always a lesson to be learned.
If a friendship ends, but they unexpectedly come back into your life down the road, then they're probably supposed to be in your life. In my experience, you both needed time apart to grow, which only strengthens the rekindled friendship.
People are going to let you down, that's part of human nature, but that doesn't mean you end the friendship. Don't hold grudges.
Friends are another form of family.
Above all, love your friends because they're the ones you'll be able to call in the middle of the night when you're crying and feeling completely alone.
Here we are at the Maroon 5/Train concert over the summer
As you can see, I edited todays task, but it wasn't because I didn't want to do it. I realized that I accidently had the same task twice - look at day two - so I decided to change it up. Watching new movies is something I enjoy doing anyways, so it was perfect. Becca and I ended up watching The Green Lantern and it was pretty good. The movie has action, a little romance and a sexy man - Ahem, Ryan Reynolds. I recommend the movie if you want something action packed to watch. Have a lovely night!
Receiving snail mail is probably one of the greatest feelings in the world. Knowing that someone actually took the time to get out a pen and paper rather than whipping out their phone to text you feels special and letter writing is becoming a lost art. Katie, Cassi and I attempted to pull an all nighter - Cassi was out at 2:30; Katie at 4 and me at 5. Almost made it! Oh well. Anyways, Katie asked what my task was and I read it to her. "Hm, that's two easy. Write nine friends, instead. Ooooor you could write 18 friends!" Challenge accepted. So, at 3 am I was writing letters to 18 friends - some close, others I've lost touch with. I wrapped up letter 18 with tired eyes and an achy hand, but the smiles will be well worth it. :)
18 hand written letters. I wonder who will get one?!
