12.13.2011

I love this week.

Vanilla honey latte

Momma and the Christmas tree

Let me tell you why:

I've been listening to a lot of Christmas songs, and that always puts me in a great mood. Our favorite local radio station has been playing Christmas music nonstop, and last night I may have downloaded 55 Christmas songs... Here's the ones I got: A Very She & Him Christmas by She & Him (after listening to it for months on Spotify), The Christmas Sessions by MercyMe (maybe my favorite... it's got all the classics), Hey! It's Christmas Vol. 1 and 2 and Carol of the Bells by BarlowGirl (my favorite version of this song right now).

My sister came up for a surprise visit last night and was able to spend the night with us. We ate really good food, drank coffee (umm... three times... I'm a little embarrassed to admit that) and had really good conversations. And tomorrow, I get to drive down to her house to stay a couple of days.

On Friday, my love and I are going out of town for the weekend to visit some of my very favorite people. I'm so excited. Our weekends at their house are usually spent around the campfire, making s'mores and eating great food, shopping and thrifting, discovering new movies, talking about old times and having really wonderful late night conversations.

Tonight my little sisters, our mom and I finally saw Hugo. I thought it was brilliant and so beautiful! And it was the best 3D movie since Avatar, if you ask me. I can't wait to see it again already.

On Saturday, we spent the morning serving our city's unfortunate families, providing Christmas gifts and food to help them make it through the holidays. Serving others is so important to me, and the whole thing was very humbling. After, we met up with my Grandmother and lots of ladies from her hometown at Crystal Bridges, and then Mom, Richard and I discovered a really great new coffee place. I'm obsessed with their vanilla honey latte!

I hope your week is going as well as mine! I'm so happy and thankful right now. It's a good point in time for me. :)

12.11.2011

Our Christmas tree

It's been 13 days since I last posted? How did that happen? I guess time flies when you're as busy as I've been these past few weeks. I've been busy with school work and finals, family events, Christmas shopping, Christmas decorating, a short road trip and just all the things that go along with day to day life.

Tonight I downloaded 54 Christmas songs. I guess you could say I'm really in the Christmas spirit this year. Last year, it just seemed like Christmas snuck up on me and then flew by. I loved it, of course, but I just didn't get very into it. So I'm making up for that this year by keeping up with old traditions, starting new ones, spending every day with loved ones and making every moment special. There are so many things I want to do this season! It feels like it's moving by so quickly, but I'm determined to squeeze in everything I want to do. I'm really, really happy right now.

Here's a peak at my Christmas tree. I never thought I'd be one of those people with a themed Christmas tree, but purple and silver sounded like a great idea, and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I'll show you the details of our tree and some other Christmas decorations around our apartment soon!

11.29.2011

Christmas trees
I've been sick this week, but my family's pretty Christmas trees (yes, that's trees with an "s." One tree is not enough in this family) made me smile yesterday when I popped in for a visit. Our family does Christmas really, really big. My mom is big into decorating the inside of the house, and my dad, brother and Richard go crazy with Christmas lights around the house and yard. There is something so peaceful about Christmas decorations. I love the look of a lit, decorated tree with presents piled underneath, garland, ornaments and all of the creative decorations my mom has put around my family's house. Everything looks so cheery; this is truly my favorite time of year!

I'll post about my Christmas decorations this week, too. Do you celebrate Christmas? If so, do you go all out with decorating?
Trees!
Christmas tree #1
Carousel ornament
Old Pizza Hut ornament!
Stockings
1. What you see when you walk in the front door!
2. The big living room tree. 
3 & 4. Cute ornaments from my childhood.
5. Stockings on the mantel for my siblings and I and our pets. 

11.27.2011

Please excuse the mess.

mess

We just got back from a week-long trip two hours south to visit our families. We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving week, despite the fact that Richard's hometown flooded Tuesday night and many houses and businesses around town were damaged. We had the best time visiting with our families and friends. We ate so much good food (specifically Grandmother's cranberry sauce, Aunt Rin's sweet potato casserole, and, of course, my dad's deep-fried turkey). And, as you can tell, we did way too much shopping. (I'm not even sure how all of this fit in our car on the drive home!) 

I'm glad to be home, and I'm even more excited about the fact that I only have two weeks left of this semester. But I came home sick and am very worried about how I'm going to manage to accomplish all the things I have to accomplish this week when all I want to do is snuggle up on the couch with a blanket and a box of tissue.

How was your Thanksgiving? 

11.17.2011

Red cup.

Red Cup

I'm officially in the Christmas spirit, thanks to this little red cup and A Very She & Him Christmas. We've finally started our Christmas shopping, and I love bundling up, grabbing some coffee and heading out into the cold with my love to shop for our family and friends. It's such a happy time of year!

If you're wondering why I haven't been around lately, let me tell you. I had four tests and lots of homework. I have been working on three articles for the paper. My best friend came to visit for the weekend. We went to the opening of a world-class art museum, which opened in my town last weekend (more about that later); went to Eureka Springs; ate lots of good food and shopped for books; spent hours in my bed, talking and laughing about old times and reading David Sedaris stories to each other and drinking wine; and just had a really great time together. Basically, I've been super busy. It's that time of the semester when everything starts getting really stressful, and hard tests/projects/papers become a daily occurance. Sigh! Thankfully I will be done with this little thing called college in May.

How are you?

11.08.2011

I feel bad for people who don't like football.

There is nothing like college football (and more specifically, SEC football). Nothing compares to cheering on your favorite team alongside 72,000 fans, calling the Hogs and participating in all the other fun, silly traditions that countless University of Arkansas students and Razorback fans have been participating in for so many years. I'm so proud of where I go to school, our football team and the many traditions that are so important to our student body!

I went to the Razorback game with my mama on Saturday. We played South Carolina, and we killed 'em, 44-28! Although we were ranked 7 in the nation last week and beat a Top 10 team, our ranking is now 8. I don't understand that reasoning at all,
but I guess we'll take it. It was sooo cold, and we didn't have very good seats, but it was still so, so, so much fun!

So, the point is, if you don't like football, I feel bad for you. You really don't know what you're missing out on. Just saying. ;)




*I haven't charged my camera in over a month, so I apologize for all the poor quality iPhone pictures you've been seeing over here lately!

11.03.2011

treeeee

This week was so rough. It seemed like everything went wrong, although now I realize that it certainly could have been much worse. Still, it was a tough week for me. But I prayed a lot. And you know what? Those prayers were answered in ways that I couldn't have imagined, and for the most part, everything ended up working out. It was a hard few days, but it served as an excellent reminder that I'm not in control, and I need to be more faithful and trusting.

One thing that did make me happy, though, was walking out on my balcony and seeing how beautiful this tree is right now! I don't know how I didn't notice it until just yesterday. (And I didn't edit that picture at all... it's really that bright!)

11.01.2011

Happy November!





Can I just say how happy I am that Halloween is over? I never get really into Halloween, but this year, I was feeling it even less. I didn't dress up or put up any Halloween decorations or do anything exceptionally fun. But I can't tell you how happy I am that it's November! That means Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away, which means I'll get time off from school and get to see my wonderful family. That also means that Black Friday is soon, and I'm one of those weirdos who gets sick enjoyment out of that. It means the end of the semester is coming up! And most importantly, Christmas is right around the corner, which means I can finally start listening to the She & Him Christmas album loud and proud without worrying about being judged. 

1. Driving home from Branson, Missouri last weekend.
2. My poor little panda sister sprained her ankle the day before Halloween.
3. Pretty leaves and watching the sunset from Mount Nebo.
4. Scattered leaves on the Senior Walk.
5. Sparkly pumpkins and homemade caramel apples.
6. The entrance to my parents' neighborhood is gorgeous right now.

10.28.2011

Beirut



I'm in love with Beirut right now, and this song (Goshen) is one of my favorites. It's beautiful and magical. What bands are you really liking right now? I'm always looking for new music!

10.27.2011

Guess who's going to graduate in May!


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{The trees on campus are so pretty right now! I'm going to miss this place a tiny bit.}

Tonight I applied for graduation! I can't believe I'm finally going to get out of here! (I kind of didn't really think it was ever going to happen.) It's such an exciting, scary, unsure and overwhelming feeling. It's terrifying to think about moving on and leaving behind the routine that's become my life. It's even more terrifying to think that I probably won't be in this town a year from now; who knows where I'll be? But I know good things are going to happen.

It amazes me how quickly my college years have passed by. Four years ago, I was a freshman at Missouri State University in Springfield. It was a campus where I knew no one, a town that I knew very little about, and it was 12 hours from my home in Auburn, Alabama. The two years I spent in Springfield were incredibly full of ups and downs. It was thrilling! It changed me so, so much. It's where I fell in love for the first time, got my heart broken for the first time, lived away from my parents for the first time, made friends with people I'll never forget and experienced my first taste of true freedom.

By the end of my sophomore year, I knew I didn't belong in Springfield anymore, so I transferred to the University of Arkansas, which was only 30 minutes away from my family's new home. I love it here - it's where my family is and where I met the love of my life, after all - but I've never felt like I belong here. It's been a great place to study journalism and spend my early 20's, and I'm thankful for the time I've had here. But I'm ready to move on to the next stage of my life, with this wonderful man by my side.

So yeah, I applied for graduation tonight. I guess it hasn't really hit me yet that I'll be out of here in May. The next few months are going to be a wild ride, but I'm so ready!

(Also, look at my pretty new blog design! Camilla over at Champagne Bubbles made it for me, and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. She was such a joy to work with! I'd recommend her to anyone who wants a pretty blog makeover. :)

10.20.2011

Hi! Ten facts:

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{Pretty roses in pink paper for my sisters.}

1. It's been cold here. By cold, I mean 20 something degrees in the morning and high 40's/low 50's for highs. And while everyone else is complaining about the drastic change in temperatures, I could not be happier. Hello, scarves! Hello, sweaters!
2. This week was my fall break. I spent it in a tiny town in Missouri with my love, where he's on a three-week business trip. I pretty much locked myself in our hotel room and got lots of things done. It was so nice.
3. I've started doing yoga pretty much everyday. Well, at least one sequence of poses each day. My arms are getting more toned; my body feels so much stronger; my posture is improving; and, most importantly, I'm learning to let go of tension in my muscles. It's truly the best feeling!
4. I got a 108 on my first test in Editing. Then I got a 95 on my second one and was disappointed. Too bad I can't borrow some points from that class and send them over to my Biology class!
5. I finally enjoy and am somewhat good at thrifting.
6. Tomorrow I'm filming a TV show. Let's not talk about it.
7. I've been traveling a lot lately. More about that later.
8. I discovered that I really like hiking.
9. I really love the people in my life.
10. I plan on spending the rest of tonight in my bed with iced coffee and all the magazines I've neglected over the past couple of months. Hooray!

9.23.2011

Wanderlust (again)

Australian independent filmmaker Rick Mereki spent 44 days traveling through 11 countries, and these beautiful short films document the places he visited, the things he learned, the people he interacted with and the amazing food he ate. A few weeks ago, I talked about having some major wanderlust. I always, always have a case of wanderlust, but after watching these videos, I think it's possibly even worse.

P.S. Isn't Rick Mereki handsome?
P.P.S. Found via A Cup of Jo.

9.18.2011

Life in Instagrams

Life has been treating me really well lately. I have nothing to complain about. School and working at the paper are stressful, of course, but both are incredibly rewarding. Want to see a little bit of what I've been up to lately? Here are some of my favorite Instagrams from lately:

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We went to the beach. Here's the rides on the boardwalk from like a bazillion feet in the air.

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The beach!

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The view from the bayhouse we stayed in. It was lovely. And would you believe that a tropical storm came along and blew all that water away from the shore the next day? It was so crazy.

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Packing for a weekend getaway.

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The most beautiful candy store!

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I love head scarves. Even when I do put them on crooked.

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I'm writing a fashion column at out paper. It's wonderful to get paid to do what you enjoy!

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Sheldon loves sweet tea. We love Sheldon. ♥

9.01.2011

I love Fayetteville!

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Today I'm over on Bucket List Nation, a blog about wanderlust and travel and Kalyn's really beautiful bucket list, talking about just a handful of the things I love about Fayetteville. You should read it, and all the other posts on BLN. It's one of the most inspiring blogs I've ever come across.

8.23.2011

Today in numbers.

Number of flights of stairs I climbed: 16.
Number of dollars it will take to fix my car, which broke today: 165.
Number of dollars I spent on parking: 12.
Number of dollars I spent on breakfast and lunch: 11.
Number of classes I had: 3.
Number of stories I edited or wrote today: 4.
Number of times I laughed because my PR teacher is Dolly Parton with dark hair: 15+.
Number of hours I worked: 5.
Number of hours I slept last night: 6.5.
Number of hours I'm going to sleep tonight: 10.

I hope tomorrow is better, less tiring, and filled with more things I want to do and less things I have to do. But I'm pretty sure that last part is impossible with my school + work schedule this semester. Sigh.

8.22.2011

We live in a beautiful world.

I've had some major wanderlust lately. This isn't good, because I just started my final year of school and a new job, and I need to be concentrated on where I am right now. But this world is so overwhelmingly beautiful, and I can't stand the thought of not exploring as much of it as possible. I've never been content with staying in one place (even though I love where I live). I want to see it all. Here are some things that I'd love to do or see:

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Dreamy Santorini, Italy.

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Tubing in Colorado. I've been to Colorado twice, and it's possibly my favorite state.

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Italy is beautiful, apparently.

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Italy, again.

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Beautiful views in Montana.

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On the beach in Portugal.

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A fern canyon in the California Redwoods.

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Canoeing in Slovenia. Gorgeous.

And yeah, I'm hoarding all of these images (and more!) over on my Pinterest. See, I told ya... I'm truly obsessed.

8.15.2011

And then I got Pinterest and was never productive again.

Do you have Pinterest? I'm addicted and completely smitten. I've always hoarded pretty images of food, fashion, homes, and people on my desktop, and I'm very happy that Pinterest allows me to have a massive organized collection of photos online rather than in random folders on my computer. My desktop is happy and thankful for Pinterest, too. Here are some of my favorite images that I've pinned:

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I think this is the prettiest outfit ever. I would wear that skirt everywhere.

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I need this in my home. So beautiful.

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A pretty wedding in Arkansas. I love my state.

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This is next up on a list of DIYs for our apartment. Found via this blog.

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This is one of the prettiest headboards I've seen.

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This is a photo of the Grey Dog vintage boutique in Fayetteville, which is in a 1973 Airstream camper. I discovered it while writing an article on it for our newspaper. It's such a perfect, inspiring shop, and the owner, Molly Clark, is the nicest girl I've met!

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These colors are pretty. Found via this Tumblr.

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This bed looks comfy, and those colors are so pretty.

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I've never been a beach gal, but I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be than right here, right now.

If you don't have Pinterest, sign up, follow me, and I'll follow you back. It's fun!

8.10.2011

I'm twenty-two!

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This past Saturday was my 22nd birthday. And it was my best birthday ever. That's saying a lot, because I've had some really good birthdays (for instance, my friends threw me an insane 17th surprise birthday party, and I turned 18 on a cruise ship in Mexico with my very best friends).

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It was so good because I got to spend it with most of my favorite people: my family, my friends, and my love. On Friday, I went up to Springfield to hang out with Ashley and other friends. We ate good food and danced. On Saturday, we went to Red Velvet (!) and I ate a red velvet cupcake and drank raspberry bubble tea... and it was so good, I may have ordered peach bubble tea immediately after. Elsie even gave me red heart shaped sunglasses for a birthday present! Then we came home, and I got to go to dinner with 12 of my favorite people on this earth. And I finished off my birthday by opening sweet, unexpected gifts, eating a cake that was as beautiful as it was delicious, and listening to live music with my favorite girls. It was the best! I'm a lucky girl.

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Photos:
1. The adorable Sweet Shoppe at Red Velvet.
2. My birthday cake was made of buttercream white roses. So pretty and tasty.
3. The sunglasses Elsie gave me for my birthday! And the letters I made for Richard and I, which sit on our dresser.
4. Raspberry bubble tea + red velvet at Red Velvet.
5. Card from my little sisters! I'm not sure why it's upside down.
6. Nanna made me cupcakes!
7. Vintage ballet flats from Nanna (she also gave me a Polaroid camera!).
8. Chandelier above the dance floor.