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:

Dreamy Santorini, Italy.

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

Italy is beautiful, apparently.

Italy, again.

Beautiful views in Montana.

On the beach in Portugal.

A fern canyon in the California Redwoods.

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.

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:

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

I need this in my home. So beautiful.

A pretty wedding in Arkansas. I love my state.

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

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

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!

These colors are pretty. Found via this Tumblr.

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

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!

I'm twenty-two!

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).

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.

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.

Things.

Things I'd rather be doing than working right now:

*cooking Pioneer Woman recipes. Specifically this or this.

*repinning pretty pictures on Pinterest.

*reading my favorite blogs.

*eating a Big Mac. Yes.

*playing Super Nintendo with my lover.

Things I'd change about my life right now:

*I want crisp fall weather and chilly snow days, not this 110+ degree junk.

*I want more time to study the books I found at the library about where I'm from. What a nerd, I know.

*I also want more time to read magazines.

*And, I want more time to go to the gym or do yoga, too.

*nothing else.

Journaling.

I'm terrible at keeping a journal. And believe me, with all the opportunities, excitement, drama, and craziness that's come along during my 21 years of life, I should have been keeping one. I tried buying pretty, fancy journals, but I'd only write in them once or twice and then retire them forever. I tried keeping a personal blog, but that didn't work either. I tried writing little snippets of what I did each day on my calendar, but somehow, that even seemed to take too much time.

I'm a writer. I plan to spend my life writing for a living. I love to write. So it doesn't make any sense that I haven't been keeping a journal all these years. And I really, really wish I would have.

Right now is the start of a really big year for me. I'll be 22 this Saturday (eek!). I'm starting my final year of my undergraduate degree. I'm working as an assistant editor for a newspaper. I'm only a few months from entering the real world, getting a real job, buying a house, doing grown-up things. Things are about to change a lot.

On that note, I'm going to attempt to blog regularly, at least 3 or 4 times a week, even if it's just a picture or a quote or a few words detailing what happened that day.

But not this week! I'm leaving town tomorrow to celebrate my birthday all week... Look for me next week! ;)

Happy birthday, Arkansas!

It's no secret that I love Arkansas. I've traveled all over the country and in a few other countries, too, and nothing compares to this place I call home. No, I don't believe Arkansas is the prettiest place in the world (although parts of it are absolutely gorgeous), and I know it's not the most exciting. But it's my home state, and no matter where I go, my heart will always be with the people and places I love so much here.

Today is this beautiful state's 175th birthday, and to celebrate, the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism released a list of the top ten places to visit here. I read this list, and while I agreed with part of it, I decided to make my own list.

Here are my top 11 (I couldn't narrow it down to just ten!) favorite sites in the state:

My very favorite: Sunset Point on Mount Nebo in Dardanelle. Two of our best friends live at the base of this mountain, so we're able to go there a lot. And that makes me really happy. Sunset Point makes me happier than just about anywhere else on this earth.

Downtown Eureka Springs. There's nowhere in the world like it. I especially love the Flat Iron Building.

Bathhouse Row in Hot Springs. Most of the bathhouses are no longer used, but it's so fun to think of how packed this place was in the early 1900s when people believed the springs had magical healing powers!

Mount Magazine in Paris. It's the tallest mountain in the state, and it's my favorite place for long drives in the fall.

Walton's Five and Dime. Aka the original Walmart! This is in Bentonville, where I live. This place is so cute and old fashioned. Living in the same town as the Walmart Home Office means lots of opportunities to meet all the celebrities who are always in town. That's my favorite thing about living here!

Twin Falls in Jasper. There are just no words for the beauty of it.

Thorncrown Chapel in Eureka Springs. I adore this place! It's so peaceful and gorgeous.

Arkansas-Texas state line in Texarkana. Taking a picture in front of that sign never gets old.

Petit Jean State Park in Morrilton. The history of Petit Jean is so rich, and the views from the mountain are breathtaking.

Haw Creek Falls in Fort Douglas. I have so many wonderful memories of picnics with my Nanna and Poppa here. It is lovely.

The State Capitol Building in Little Rock. Oh, it's pretty!

And here is one to grow on (that makes 12, oops!):

The University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Old Main is my favorite (and the most famous) building on campus. And there's nothing like Razorback football!

What state or country do you live in? Have you ever been to Arkansas? If so, what did you think of it?

*Photo credits: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13.

Summer via my iPhone.

Hydrangeas. Weddings. Coffee smoothies/iced coffee (I might have a coffee problem). Night swimming. Sweet tea in Mason jars. Lemon meringue pie. Flea markets. Road trip planning.

I'm enjoying this summer so much already! ♥♥♥