1 midterm down, 4 more left. LET'S GO.

This is the song of the moment for me. Definitely a good song to listen to when you're having a rough day, week, or in my case.. a rough quarter.

First Stop.

We arrived to a very sunny, hot, and humid London, which was unexpected to say the least. And immediately my infatuation with the double decker buses, Union Jack flags, and British accents quickly turned to true love. Aimlessly walking around with no destination could not have been more amazing. As well as the culture and clothing, what stood out to me here was the architecture unlike any found in the United States. I fell in love with the brick buildings with white trim and colored doors. The tight spaces and ornate designs. I often found myself look up with my jaw hanging open, trying to take in as much as possible in the limited number of days there. 

While public transportation was a challenge at first, we quickly embraced it and made our way through the city fairly easily. I'd say we were able to squeeze in a lot of fun touristy things to do in the city in our three days. If I ever go back, I might just go back to St. James' Park with a good book and just sit in read with the rest of the locals. 

I love having that friend who simultaneously says the same sentence, word for word and in the exact same tone in almost every conversation with them. You know who you are. ♥

90's production

So I'm a proud 90's kid, who grew up watching the Fresh Prince of Bel Air and wore overalls a lot. And this was actually one of my favorite songs as a kid. And needless to say, when I first heard one of my new favorite bands doing a cover of it this morning, I was more than pleased.

It's just what I need to keep me positive during my weekend of studying. 

Long Overdue.

So I missed Europe a lot more than usual today. School has been tiring, though I've gotten pretty used to balancing my four econ classes and work and sleep. I just feel like I've hit this rut three weeks in, especially on days like today when basically every attempt at making plans with people fell through. Now all I've got is looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow for the first time in weeks, and hours of studying microeconomics.

Here are some pictures from my European excursion. It was seriously a dream come true for me, and I feel the antsy-ness of wanting to go back already. This will be my attempt at a mini series of my favorite pictures from my trip. Hope someone out there enjoys them.

This rut has honestly been a downer the last couple days.. So it cheers me up to look at pictures of me in some of the most beautiful places in the world. Is that really lame of me to say? It doesn't seem real looking back. Was I really in Europe? Did I really walk through Versaille and take the ride the canals of Amsterdam?

Confession.

These super cheesy pictures with questionable filters that look cool and hip because of the white fonts are my guilty pleasure. Specially on mornings like today when I could use a little motivation and good vibes.

The easy prayer: 

In the past 2 days, I've prayed for my friend, his father, sisters, family, and friends. I prayed for peace and justice. For support and for the closure they deserve. I prayed that she knew how much people loved her and that she is happy with God.

The difficult prayer: 

I prayed for someone I never met, who has brought so much pain, anger, and hatred and took the happiness out of so many lives. I prayed that someday, they could be forgiven and that they might find God in their lives. That they can turn their lives around and never cause this kind of pain for anyone ever again.


I know I don't have many readers. But for anyone that is out there reading..
On Oct. 5th, my friend's mom was found murdered in her home after she failed to pick her husband up at the airport. Their family car was also reported as missing. It's the only link we have to find these horrible people. If you see the car in the image below, a sky blue Subaru Outback, with IDAHO license plates #1A 1F680 , please call 911 or 510-724-1111.

Mug Project

So I've been wanting to try this project out for a while. According to a few sites, you can write on any porcelain mug with any colored sharpie, and it will stay on if you just bake it at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes. They've only just cooled down, and I want to wait before I try hand washing it. Hopefully it doesn't come off. I'll update once I find out..

Conclusion: As cute as the color is, it come off even when washed gently with a sponge. Not so great when giving as gifts. But the black lasts relatively well, again, as long as you wash it gently. I'm wondering if it can stick better if I wipe the mug with rubbing alcohol before I start to color. Gonna test again tomorrow and see.

YOLO

LOVE.

Neapolitan Love

So as a kid, the default ice cream flavor that my dad would always buy was Neapolitan, mostly because most of the family loved chocolate and vanilla, while one brother only wanted strawberry. After an entire childhood of it, I got pretty tired of anything associated with that trio. Well.. after many years and the discovery that In-N-Out will make Neapolitan shakes, I think it's safe to say that I'm a taad obsessed with the color combination, to the point where it influenced my latest project! Pictures to come, but these are just some of my influences when it comes to the sweet treat. 

I've been on the look out for good nail polish colors on sale, so I can do this!  I've been pretty tempted to splurge a few times, but it'll be worth the wait. And do you see that cake below?? I'm pretty determined to learn how to make a rose cake like this someday. 

Sources: [1] [2] [3]

Sigh.. 

Goals for the week:

- Play the piano or guitar at least once
- Wear a dress/skirt every weekday (probably the most pointless goal ever.)
- Do laundry
- Clean room
- Send out mail/letters
- Fix up dresses I don't like

I think I was a little overly optimistic for myself and this list. I'll be rather surprised if I finish half of it, which is kinda sad for me.. And all because I thought of the strange goal of wearing a skirt/dress every day. And why did I think of the goal in the first place? Because I was scrolling through Pinterest and realized that I am not a dress person. I naturally lean towards pants because it's in my comfort zone. But I figured I need to step out of that a little more.

Cannot wait for the end of the week because being reunited with your best friend is always something worth being excited about.

"Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly, and leave the rest up to God."

Ronald Reagan

HOW IS IT THAT I'VE NEVER SEEN THIS BEFORE?

I love.

I just died..

God is good all the time.

Seriously started tearing up in the school library when He reminded me of His goodness.

Ruche Inspired Decorative DIY Kites

So I've been wanting to make a kite like this ever since I saw them in the office during my winter break and thought they looked so incredibly cute. By the time I started helping out with the photo shoot props, all of the kites had been made already, so I just made the flowers. Anywaaay, I was very pleased at how easy and affordable this project was. 

Supplies: 

Fabric and various prints of your choice 

Thin wooden stick (found in any local craft store)

Glue 

Scissors

Tape

String

Step 1:  The stick cut very easily with scissors. I just attached them together with scotch tape. 

Step 2:  Lay the cross on your main fabric of choice and cut the general shape of the kite out (see the picture below)

Step 3: This is where I was a bit lazy.. I just folded the edges over and used white glue to adhere it.  If I had more time, I probably would've sewn it.  Just make sure you don't use too much or it bleeds to the other side.  

 This is what the front looks like when you glue the edges down. (Sorry  I forgot to take a picture of the other side.) 

 Step 4: Again, my laziness took over. (I eyeballed a lot of this step.) I took the contrast fabric and lined up the corners with the center of the kite and glue them down. Once it was attached, I cut the excess fabric and glued down the edges the same way I did with the base fabric.

3/4 of an episode of Game of Thrones later, and you have a kite! I just sewed on a string and tied knots with the scrap fabric I had to the end.  Ruche used ribbons rather than string shows up better in photographs. Like I said, I am rather pleased with the results. I was able to get all of the supplies for a little over $5. Secret: find the section of the craft store with the remnants of leftover fabric. You can usually find some really cute pieces and they're typically 50% off. 

Okay, I hope this wasn't too lame. Time for bed. Goodnight, world. :) 

Let's get rich and buy our parents homes in the south of France. Let's get rich, and buy everybody nice sweaters and teach them how to dance. Let's get rich and build a house on a mountain making everybody look like ants. You and I. You and I. You and I.

Determined to learn this song on the ukulele. 
I kinda really love belting this song when I'm alone in my house. :) 

Dying

Oh my goodness, Ruche and their new owl stuff!! I could die from it's cuteness. Definitely tempted to get the magnets and mug as additions to my kitchen. If anyone has seen it lately, you can kinda tell that it's on it's way to being overtaken by owl stuff. You can find the magnets and mug here and here!