Update + 4 Random Things

Hi friends! Well that was an unplanned little break in there! Long story short, I've been having computer issues which have been a big pain. But thankfully, my computer's back in action so I am too! Sooo, I just wanted to update y'all on things going on in my life!

1 / I have been spending lots of time in Scripture and it's so wonderful. There's a new app from Proverbs 31 Ministries called First 5 that I really love. In the app, you can set an alarm and then as soon as it goes off in the morning, it prompts you to read through a short scripture reading and devotional. It makes for such an easy starting point to get some Bible reading in every day. I'm going to write a post about my favorite Bible/faith apps soon but for now, y'all should check it out!

2 / I really want to get a hedgehog this fall. I know, I might be crazy. But seriously guys, I've been thinking about this for ages and I just want a little prickly friend. Plus, you can't say no to this. It's just a little tricky to have a pet when I'll be back and forth between Florida (college) and North Carolina (home).

3 / I've decided that stamp collecting isn't just for weird old men. In case you don't believe me, just look at these beautiful coastal bird stamps for postcards. Or these, these or these. Also: did you know you can get stamps mailed to you? Anyone else think that's weird?

4 / I've been loving the global marketplaces that instagram has been featuring. When I was in Provence, France, my favorite thing was always to go to the market every morning. Like the colors and the smells of fresh bread and produce was the happiest way to start off your day! The Souks Market in Marrakesh, Morocco was my favorite!

Alright. There's your daily dose of randomness! I'll be back with some normal posts soon, I promise. Stick around ;)

Curated Weekly / 16

Helloooo friends! As you may know, I'm just messing around and trying some new things for the blog (I'd love if you'd take the one-question survey!!) and so I thought I'd spend a little bit more time recapping my week, in the form of a list.

1. On Saturday, after H and I had a nice visit at his school, we drove home to our hometown and had some time with our families. Sometimes I don't realize how much I miss my family until I'm back with them.

2. Sunday night (late) I had to fly back to Florida for school. I personally don't mind airports and flying but it really took it out of me to have my flight so late and that's really thrown my sleep schedule off all week. That and stupid daylight savings!

3. This week, I've been busting my booty to study for my chemistry exam on Wednesday that I honestly should have started studying for before spring break. But it's over and done. Just gotta wait for the grade now. 

4. Last night, I taught almost a full kickboxing class on my own! That was way exciting. I seriously never realized how hard it was to teach group fitness classes until I had to put on the mic and do it myself! You have to know all the moves, do them well and with good form, while teaching and motivating and encouraging your class and while listening to the music to know what comes next. AND the mic picks it up when I'm all out-of-breath so there's that. But it's really fun and I know I'm getting better at it.

5. I'm feeling a little bit of a burn out with this blog, which naturally comes every once in awhile. I'm not sure if I'll plan a short little break or try something else. If you're a blogger, how do you deal with burnout?

6. I started watching a new show on Netflix called Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and I can't quite decide, but I think I really like it. It's so odd! It's a comedy about a woman who gets rescued from an underground apocalype cult and has to figure out life in New York. Let me know what you think!

And I'll leave you with a couple links to read this weekend...

• Signs you need to declutter your digital life 
• Four breakfast tartines (open-faced sandwiches)
• Beautiful desktop backgrounds
• Ten affordable investments for better blogging

What have you been up to this week? Thoughts on this format of the Curated posts?

Curated Weekly / 7

What a wonderful, whirlwind of a week! Two hours after I published the Curated post last week, I went in for my wisdom tooth removal surgery + successfully got all four removed. I've been anxious about it, I kid you not, for almost a year and I'm so glad to have it done with. Compared to what I was expecting, it was a breeze. I don't remember anything until I got home + then I felt totally mentally alert, which was great since I was dreading the uncertainty of coming off anesthesia. I actually (tried to) do a sudoku as soon as I got home! I didn't get that far though haha!

So mentally, the recovery was great, but the pain is still here though I've weaned myself off the medication. A big thank you to all of you for being patient while I went MIA. :)

Other than that, it was just a normal, happy Christmas. My grandmother always spends it at our house + it's nice to have all the siblings back together. We play card games and bake and eat so much sugar, it's ridiculous. 

Early early early this morning (this post is scheduled), my family left for Michigan where we have family and friends. I'll be there for the next week, spending time with friends and hopefully seeing some snow before I go back to Florida for classes. What's going on in your world?

+ A foolproof guide to getting things done

+ A 90-day goal planning worksheet

+ "Every Day Matters"--an inspiring planner for 2015

+ 12 spiritually uplifting rituals to try

+ Beautiful botanical-themed desktop wallpapers (I love ferns!!)

+ A minimalist holiday tradition

+ How to build a capsule wardrobe--have any of you tried this?

+ How to forever cure your lack of motivation

+ A 10-minute workout that's totally doable (even on Christmas...not that I did it)

+ 7 reasons why you don't start until it's too late

+ 10 cult classic novels you should read (in 2015?!)

Okay, I'm sorryyyy, but I have more Christmasish music. I've been finding some sort of eclectic holiday/wintery songs and I just don't want them to end. I mean, these are mostly winter-themed so I still think it's okay. My favorite on this playlist is the first song--Blood Oranges in the Snow by Over the Rhine. But the new rendition of Auld Lang Syne is really beautiful and festive sounding too. In case you didn't know, Auld Lang Syne is actually traditionally a New Year's song, sung at midnight to say farewell to the past year. I never knew that! Thanks, Wikipedia. Anyways, listen to the playlist.

I've just begun it, but I'm inspired by a book that my mom gave me called The Best Yes by Lysa TerKeurst. It's a Christian book, but I seriously recommend it to anyone regardless of faith. Like I said, I've only just started reading the book, but the general premise is that our culture today glorifies being busy and "doing it all" but when we say yes to everything--even good things--we aren't able to say yes to the best things. I'll talk way more about this in the future, I can already tell. But as a lover of busyness, it's a lesson I'm seriously thinking on. 

A week from today, I will be seriously in the throes of preparing for the semester--revising my schedule, ordering textbooks, packing my life into two suitcases. Between now and then, my goal is to seriously relax, but also look forward to the semester. I'm taking on a lot of new things this semester, from a big research project, to working on my fitness instructor certification, to a BIG announcement coming in the next few weeks, not to mention tough classes (omg genetics)!. I want to set plans for how I'll manage it all + do some serious work on getting what I can done now so that I'm less stressed once classes start.

Oh, and I'm only halfway through one book of my two book goal for the Christmas break. Poop. 

Relax. Plan. Read. (Doesn't sound half bad!)

What does your upcoming week contain?! I hope your Christmas (or just the day, if you don't celebrate it) was lovely!

Checking In

(source unknown)

To say it plainly, this is a short post to let you know that your regular Tuesday post is not happening today.

Last night, I got a piece of bad news. In the grand scheme of things, everything is fine. But the truth is, I'm hurting right now, over something that I don't even want to care about. But that's just the way things are--rejection comes.

So this is just a short note to say that if you are hurting, wherever you are, for whatever reason, I'm thinking of you today. Sending a mental hug, so to speak, if you are the hugging type.

Have a happy Monday, you guys. Take care of yourselves. 

Curated Weekly / 2

Curated Weekly is a new series with installments posted every Friday where I share a variety of moments or interesting things (like links or photos or songs) that I've collected over the last week. I hope that this series gives you a snapshot into my world and my brain!

Once again, if you have not yet taken the reader survey for fall 2014, I would appreciate it so much if you would! It's just a few short questions about you and your goals and plans so I can get to know you better! 

These week was so uneventful...it was a nice little breather from last week, which was insane! Tuesday, I had the day off for Veteran's Day (THANK YOU veterans, and not just for the day off). My current roommate and I and another friend of ours spent a good bit of the day looking at apartments for next fall. It's actually impossible to find an apartment within walking distance (I like walking), with a balcony (I like plants) and that's pet-friendly, without paying over $2500 a month. Who knew apartments were so expensive?

I've recently decided to look into getting a minor in French, which no, has absolutely no practical application with my major (Plant Pathology). But I've always enjoyed French and wanted to live abroad so I'm really considering it. I'm on track to graduate a year early and I'm not in a rush to get out of college, so why not?! So last night, I took my placement test to see if I actually retained any of my five years of French (probably not). I'll get those results sometime today!

+ 3 simple ways to be (slightly) less obsessed with your phone.
+ crazy yummy lemon bars
+ 10 Bible verses for an anxious heart
+ make a diy iPad sleeve
+ a collection of top-notch skillshare classes
+ 5 easy lifestyle changes to make in a month
+ creating personal rules for blogging
+ An anthem of hope: four ways to recharge.
+ 5 ways to clean up your blogger template
+ The "I don't want to work out" workout

I'm trying out a couple new methods for linking to music. I asked about it in the survey (linked above) but if you have any additional comments as to which methods are better for you (i.e. grooveshark like last week or a link to 8tracks like this week), feel free to leave them below. But I'm trying to make sure I don't use any methods that require you to have an account or sign in. So for today, I'm using 8tracks, one of my favorite websites for playlists. LISTEN TO THE WHOLE PLAYLIST HERE. Here's the list:

Where Have All the Flowers Gone / Peter, Paul and Mary
Goodnight Irene / The Weavers
The Circle Game / Tom Rush
Lady Came from Baltimore / Tim Hardin
Always Something There To Remind Me / Naked Eyes
This Land is Your Land / Woody Guthrie
Make Your Own Kind of Music / The Mamas and the Papas
(Don't Fear) the Reaper / Blue Oyster Cult

 

These beautiful deconstructed embroideries by Sophia Narrett.

Last week, I felt like I did a pretty good job of managing my time. I focused specifically on not wasting time on dumb things, especially when I had tasks left to do. This week, my goal is to go above and beyond my tasks and start reviewing notes and material for my exams. I've learned the hard way that most exams cover too much information to review in just a few days so I'm planning on starting early!

What are your goals for the week? What's going on in your world?

Curated Weekly / 1

Curated Weekly is a new series with installments posted every Friday (even though today is Saturday!) where I share a variety of moments or interesting things (like links or photos or songs) that I've collected over the last week. I hope that this series gives you a snapshot into my world and my brain!

First off, I'd really appreciate if you'd take the reader survey! The questions are different than most surveys but I wrote them specifically because I really want to get to know you and what you love and what you need out of a blog. Thank you for taking two minutes to fill it out!

Naturally, this week I was very focused on getting all ready for the launch yesterday! If you've been around long, you know I like my life busy and busy I was. I signed up for some of my classes for next semester and I'm really excited about a few of them...along with chem 2 and a few other required classes, I'm pumped to be taking entomology (bugs) and fungal pathogens. If you're new, let me explain and say that I'm a college student studying plant pathology, which pretty much means I study bacteria, fungus, insects, and viruses that harm plants. It's fun stuff!

Yesterday was (you guessed it) pretty busy as well. I met with my wellness coach (more about that another time) and we discussed my goals for the semester as far as working towards better sleep habits, time and stress management, and overall health! If you're in college, I highly recommend looking into resources in your counseling and wellness center. My school has so many amazing, free resources and I'm so thankful for people that want to help me succeed!

And to wrap up a busy week, today is actually my sorority's semi-formal at Disney so I will not be responding to comments today! But for those of you who left them yesterday, thank you. I'm so glad you're here!

DIY morse code bracelets -- what a creative way to carry a message with you!

Cat Ipsum and kitty image placeholders -- in case you can't decide if you like design or kitties more.

Compliments that aren't about physical appearance.

How to diffuse conflict + make angry people calm down + be cool.

Tribal nail art -- just for fun!

6 top ways to improve your daily routine.

Sticky garlic chicken and broccoli -- holy yum.

7 style tips to trick people into thinking you made an effort

A day in the life of a college student

10 steps to uncover wisdom in your anxious thoughts

This beautiful marine-themed moodboard in honor of Rachel Carson

(images by Danielle Kroll)

For some reason, I'm really into Hawaiian folk these days. Seriously! If you're having a busy day and you want some thing calm and soothing but still thoroughly happy, this is the way to go! Plus, it always reminds me that I need to work harder so I can graduate and get a job that pays enough so I can get to Hawaii. Logic, right?!

This week, I intend to work really hard at prioritizing how I use my time. I've talked about this before and I'll talk about it again...I'm a big believer in wasting time intentionally. If you're going to procrastinate, do another important (but less unpleasant) task while you gear up to work. If you're going to rest and relax, do something you really enjoy like reading a book or blogging or watching your favorite movie instead of being a potato and watching that same episode of House Hunters for the third time because there's nothing else on. 

Something that I definitely don't prioritize enough is SLEEP. Whenever more tasks get loaded onto my ever-full plate, I always think to myself, "oh it'll be a late night." Because when something needs to get cut, I cut sleep. Instead, I'm going to work on cutting Facebook or other social media and Netflix before I cut my sleep.

What have you been up to this week? (And yes, I actually want you to answer that question!) What will you prioritize this week?

6 Good Things Right Now

(photo by Nick West for Unsplash)

Guys I've been so pouty today. My head hurts, my room is messy, I miss H and it's everyone's fault but mine. Even though he only visited me for five days, H leaving has really thrown me for a loop and I'm still in that short-term depression stage that comes right after visits in long term relationships. Sigh. 

Anyways, I'm gonna be an optimist today and talk about a few things that are awesome right now, even when a few things aren't. Really, life is pretty good. 

1. I got two really exciting hand-lettering jobs. One is making hand-lettered chalkboard signs for someone's 40th birthday....

2. ...and the other is even cooler. I'm working to calligraph a design for a girl's tattoo! Ever since I saw the tattoo that Rebecca Caridad did for her brother, I've loved the idea and I'm so excited to work on it!

3. Work is going smoothly. The 4th of July week is the very peak of renter season in my town on Lake Michigan and naturally all of those tourists flock to my ice cream shop at night to cool off. Good for business but not for my stress levels, so I'm glad that things are calming down a little bit.

4. I'm having a lot of fun working on my note card + print line (which will hopefully be out in the fall). I'm constantly scanning Pinterest and the internet for short, new quotes. I really like using short, simple maxims that you can remember easily. Some of my favorites for prints are...

"Good things take time."

"Wherever you are, be all there." (Jim Elliot)

"Do what you can, where you are, with what you have." (Teddy Roosevelt) 

5. It sounds a little mean, but now that H isn't here, I have more time to read. Seriously, just trying to look on the bright side! I'm currently reading Revenge Wears Prada, the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada.

6. My tablet. It's an Android Venue and Android drove me crazy for a little while but now I have to say, I'm kind of obsessed. I got it as through a Dell promotion and it cam free with a laptop I was going to buy anyways. It's so much fun to use it for my hand-lettering and keeping my documents organized for work and all. Also, Netflix is so much better on a tablet than on an iPhone. Yay!

What good things are going on in your life?

Snippets 03.

1 // The weather here in southwest Michigan has been so spooky this last week. Normally around this time of year, it's sunny and perfect beach weather with the high in low 80s. I was sitting in the Tabernacle for service on Sunday morning and I looked out the windows to see this crazy thick fog that you could see rolling in. If it had been moving up, instead of towards the ground, I would have thought the church was on fire! 

From what I've heard, the middle of the lake (my town is on Lake Michigan) is still super cold, like almost with ice on it, and it keeps blowing off towards the warmer coasts and creating that weird fog. Way weird. But I'm still enjoying the cool and the mist before everything gets hot!

2 // I've been taking advantage of this cool weather to get some yard weather done before it becomes completely sweltering out. My backyard is two levels (because my house is on a dune) with terraced gardens in between. Even in the month it's been since we were here and did yard work, the gardens are filled with those little weeds. But as far as yard work goes, I don't mind weeding. I actually enjoy the cathartic experience of pulling out all the things that stifle our plants so that they can grow and thrive. I don't really enjoy accidentally picking up worms though. #ew.

3 // I'm still reeling from all the gorgeous views that I got to witness on my CA trip earlier this month. Honestly, it just blows my mind how such high mountains such as these cliffs in Yosemite could be formed by rivers and glaciers over thousands of years. 

What's going on in your life lately, friends?