There's all this talk about Santa Claus, but see, love will rule supreme.

1. Heart-filled Martha Stewart Living. 2. Tulips from my fiance.
3. Love note to Mark (from me) in the paper. 4. Little box of peppermints.
5. Raspberry linzers from the best bakery in town.

I am going to spend this morning treating myself to donuts and a tiny splurge at Anthropologie (which isn't exactly a splurge since I am using a gift card). When Mark gets off work we're going to dinner and then I might challenge him to a game of Scrabble.

However you're spending the day, I hope it's full of a lot of love and a little adventure. Maybe you could have a dance party to this funny song. Happy Valentine's Day! xo

Recap: Christmas.

Hi, guys! I feel so sluggish from the holidays. The past week my life has consisted of board games, puzzles, reading books, watching movies and eating all of the food in the world. Peppermint bark? Why not? Goat cheese + pesto on toasted baguettes? I'll have three. Sausage wrapped in maple bacon? I don't even like bacon, but sure, I'll pig out (bad joke) on them. Does anyone else want to run a bajillion miles and soak in fifty hot baths, or is that just me?

Christmas was gorgeous. I love being surrounded by family (and a ton of food, as I mentioned). Not one fat, fluffy flake of snow fell; it was almost sixty degrees the afternoon of Christmas. This year I could not think of one thing I needed. I had more fun giving and wish I had more money to spend on giving.

Even though I didn't need anything, I received several lovely things. Perfume, a gift certificate for a cooking class, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling, and The Perfectly Imperfect Home: How to Decorate & Live Well by Deborah Needleman (pictured below). (My sister thinks I look very awkward twisting out of the picture in my mismatched pajamas. She is right.)

Did you get anything neat over the holidays? Do you have any traditions?

Our main Christmas traditions are: Christmas pajamas, making and devouring spritz cookies, a talent show between cousins, and watching The Best Christmas Ever, the worst-but-emphasis-on-the-word-"best" movie ever made. (We love it in a very ironic way.)

Next year I hope to have an apartment to decorate (currently living in my old bedroom at my mom & step-dad's house) and a gajillion dollars to spend on crafts to decorate with. Amen.

It's time to regroup. I am looking forward to organizing my life and creating goals for 2012 this week.

That, and snort-laughing through Mindy Kaling's book.

When it snows, ain't it thrillin'?

On the first day of every month, my dad will call just to chat. "Haven't talked to you this month, so I thought I'd call and say hello," he'll say, laughing.

Well, guys, I haven't blogged this month, so I thought I'd pop in and post.

It is officially December: the month I graduate from college. One paper and four final exams stand in between me and The Big Day. Let the freaking out commence. (Ha!)

Here are a few delicious links to check out instead of writing a paper/going to the gym/doing anything productive whatsoever.

Pretty handmade ornaments that make me say, "Why didn't I think of that?"

A sparkly holiday dress. A flute of champagne, anyone?

Have a girlfriend that's impossible (read: really picky/has everything/style changes often) to shop for? Use this brilliant Gift Finder from Anthro to get her the perfect gift.

Holy best holiday cookie ever, Batman! Sweet, crunchy peppermint + soft, sugary cookies.

Crap. This is not the website to discover ten days before final exams. Everything is so lovely!

Nor is this Anthology winter issue via Jordan. See ya, productivity!

Adorable print that I would love to hang in the kitchen during the holidays.

Hope you guys enjoyed this little holiday list! The picture is from my little sister's bedroom back home. Every year our aunt gives us snow globes; we have quite the collection. I love how my sister arranged her snow globes.

If you have fun winter-y links you'd like to share, leave 'em in the comments section! Have a fantastic Thursday and first of December.

Thankful for relaxation.

I hope you all had a blessed & thankful Thanksgiving. It is lovely to have a holiday focused on what we are thankful for.

And a holiday dedicated to stuffing our faces. Slightly joking.


I had five days off from school (including the actual weekend), and since it's my last official break as a student, I really soaked it up.

There was the traditional rosemary-stuffed turkey and pecan pie, the fat cat naps on the sofa, and lots of football watching.

But there was also:

- A trip to a new, brilliant museum
- Eating lots of no-bake cookies
- Watching Cedar Rapids (crappy) with my mom & step dad
- Watching Ghostworld (awesome) with my little sister & Mark
- Manicures with the girls (thanks, mama!)
- Several rounds of the board game "Smart Ass"...which, coincidentally, made me feel dumb
- Picking out a Christmas tree for our family; decorating the tree
- A sushi lunch

What did you do for Thanksgiving? Is anyone excited for Christmas? Sure hope so, because I have a lot of Christmas posts coming up this week!!

My laptop isn't exactly working, but I kind of miss blogging and wasting time on Pinterest, so I'm going to be posting anyway and keeping my fingers crossed that my computer doesn't totally zoink on me.

This week I've got a few small papers to write and, of course, jobs to search for. I have six official days of class left, not including final exams. So keep your fingers crossed that my laptop doesn't completely quit and that I finish strong in school.

Blessed + thankful.

A list of a few things I am thankful for this year:

- Earning a Bachelor of Science (December 2011).
- Getting a new car after my piece-of-junk lemon fell apart one too many times.
- All the opportunities I have had to travel this year.
- Stuffing + mashed potatoes. Enough said.
- My health. And that I can walk or run or sit anytime I please.
- A gracious family.
- Hot showers. Chapstick. Vaseline lotion.
- The opportunity to watch lots of football and Home Alone this weekend.
- Big, fat pillows and thick blankets.
- My vision, my hearing, my ability to smell.
- Holiday cookie cutters. Garland. Peppermint mochas.
- Red lipstick. Sparkly tights. Wool coats.
- Forever friends + funny boyfriend.
- Waking up everyday: blessed + thankful.

Hope you all have a fantastic Thanksgiving with family and friends!

(Source: here.)

Deck the blog with boughs of holly.

Hi, guys! Did you all have a good weekend? Mark came to visit so we snuggled a lot and went to the theatre to see J. Edgar. Very cozy weekend.

Here is a happy list - inspired by the holidays. Indulge me, will you?

Lovely earrings to pair with a neutral-colored pea coat.

I am the Eggman. I am the cutest Christmas ornament on earth, coo coo ca choo.

This beautiful artwork found here. Don't you want to hang this print in your hallway near the coat rack? (I don't have a coat rack, but I do have dreams.)

These three books: one, two, & three; holiday reading suggestions via e-mails from Anthro. (Yeah, that's right. Anthropologie e-mails me. Fine, Anthropologie e-mails all of us.)

I am going to make these whimsy snow globes over Thanksgiving break.

Old school Refinery29.com beauty advice: wintry version.

Having a hard time narrowing my wish list to one pair of Steve Madden booties when there are easily fifteen pairs that I love.

This sheet music is gorgeous. Swoon.

I don't even like squash (I've tried it several times), but this recipe looks amazing.

What are some of the things on your Dear Santa list? Spotted any delicious holiday recipes? Any great Christmas music you've been listening to? Let me know in the comments below!

Happy Halloween!

Well, a Halloween post an hour-and-a-half before Halloween is over is better than no Halloween post at all, right?

This past weekend was Homecoming & Halloween all rolled into one. It was almost as magical as Christmas!

We won our Homecoming game and became the only undefeated team in our conference. My friends and I spent Saturday afternoon munching on nachos and cheering until we were hoarse.

After the game we put our costumes on and went out. I was a deviled egg and went out with another deviled egg and a cavewoman. We met up with a few other friends who were a hippie, Superwoman, an 80's ski instructor, Keith Stone (from the Keystone commercials), etc. We spent the whole night dancing and laughing at all the costumes. At one point, everyone on the deck was in a circle and singing "Don't Stop Believing" (a karaoke dream, remember?)at the top of their lungs, including a Lego Man and a guy dressed as a bottle of Sriracha sauce. My favorite costume, though, was Garth from Wayne's World. I was all "Party time - excellent!" and he goes, "Oh my gosh, THANK YOU. Everyone thinks I am Joe Dirt!" And that made my inner-90's girl sad.

For the actual day of Halloween, I applied for jobs, worked, went to class, and munched on this adorable candy.

I hope you all had a very happy Halloween!

July 4th.

I had a beautiful 4th of July weekend. One day, I would like to spend the 4th in Washington DC, or on the lakes of New Hampshire (I may or may not be watching What About Bob? and craving the clear, crisp waters).

Sunday I had lunch with my dad, went to the theatre to see Transformers with M, tried a new local German restaurant, and went to a fireworks show on the river, where we enjoyed ice cream and people watching.

Monday M and I went out for Chinese food and then brought flowers to his grandma, who recently fell and is currently in a rehabilitation center. After visiting with her, we went home and watched Star Wars: Phantom Menance and then went to our friend J's house for a cookout.

I wish everyday consisted of children playing on the splash pads in the park, a pair of friends having a lemonade stand, the smell of fireworks after they've danced in the sky, and the taste of frozen treats on your tongue.

Hope you all had a lovely 4th!

Happy Valentine's Day!

So on Thursday, my boyfriend surprised me with roses on an otherwise crummy day. (He even gave me a foot massage Thursday night!) He spent the weekend with me, and we had a really good time.

On Friday, M - my boyfriend - picked me up between classes and took me to lunch. We spent Friday evening snuggling - or as we call it: snuggin'. Saturday morning we went out a donut date, and then we went to a nearby park and had a little photo shoot with a Valentine's Day balloon. M wasn't a huge fan of posing with the balloon, but we had a hilarious time.

Saturday evening we went out for a steak dinner to celebrate Valentine's, and then we rented a couple movies and bought a bottle of wine. Sometimes when he comes we do a lot, but sometimes we just eat, snug, and repeat.

Sunday morning I made pancakes and together we fantasized about our lives post-college.


That's how we celebrated Valentine's Day: food & cuddling. Just the way we like it.

I hope you all have a fabulous Valentine's Day, whether it's with your boyfriend, sister, best friend, mama - whoever. Celebrate the ones you love.

Love you all & thank you for reading!

(If you've just started reading, my boyfriend and I met at the university we attend(ed); he graduated last December and moved back to his hometown and I still have a semester and a half left, so I'm living in the college town where we met. The distance sucks but we know it'll be worth it.)

Happy 2011!

2011 sounds really futuristic to me. But I am very excited to watch the year unfold. So far, 2011 will bring:

A trip to Denver, Colorado; a week in the cold mountain air is the perfect way to ring in the new year.

A Lady Gaga concert with some girlfriends. Perhaps the best place for people watching (aside from airports).

My first half-marathon.

It's still being discussed with ol' mom and pop, but if I can get enough scholarships, then I might be doing a 5 week study abroad program in Europe in the summer of 2011.

Boyfriend M will turn 25! Oh my gosh. There will be a huge celebration!

I will graduate from college with a BS in Hotel and Restaurant Administration.

There are so many possibilities for 2011. I have made a few resolutions:

1. Be healthy! I'm going to eat better and exercise more. I spent 2010 doing this, too, and have improved a lot since 2009. I want to be my very best, though, while I'm still young and capable.

2. Create and sell greeting cards. I sent out Christmas cards and got great feedback, so in 2011 I'd like to make more - for all occasions - and sell them locally and online.

3. Develop my blog more. It's still a baby blog, but I'm excited to see what 2011 could bring. (I have loved being able to look back on most of 2010 because of this little journal I keep!)

4. Say "no" less and "yes" more - take on challenges, go on adventures, and fill my plate with exhausted happiness.

5. Save money. Since I'll be graduating in December 2011, I need to begin a post-college savings fund.

And just to kick the New Year off right, here's one of my favorite quotes from the movie "Back to the Future" -

Marty McFly: Whoa, this is heavy.
Dr. Brown: There's that word again. Heavy. Why are things to heavy in the future? Is there a problem with the earth's gravitational pull?

Cheers to a futuristic year that is heavy with support, goals, dreams, and growth. May you all have a fabulous New Year's Eve and New Year's Day! (Eat your black-eyed-peas.) See you in 2011.

I don't have the source for this photo. Anyone know the source?

A little Christmas update.

Hi, blogworld! I hope you all had a lovely Christmas. I've spent the last week having coffee with my sister, singing karaoke at the bar with my two hometown best friends (MA & ADP), Christmas shopping with my mom, celebrating my sister's 19th birthday on the 23rd (happy birthday, H!), performing in my family's Christmas Eve talent show, baking, and bowling with MA, ADP and her husband GP, and boyfriend M. I am having a fabulous winter break! Here are a few pictures I've taken with my new camera:



For some reason, all the pictures are jumbled up, but you all get the idea! It has been a festive weekend filled with delicious goodies, laughter, and lots of squeezes and hugs. Hope your holiday was merry and bright.

Christmas ramblings.

Throughout December I listen to "Happy Christmas" by the Beatles on repeat. And I'm not ashamed to say I also really dig Hanson's "Snowed In" album. Like, every song on that album.

I love the movie Home Alone; it's my favorite Christmas movie. My favorite quotes in Home Alone are "Silver tuna tonight!" - which I sometimes say in real life conversations - and "When I grow up and get married, I'm living alone!" And yes, I know it's probably the cheesiest movie ever. I also immensely enjoy It's a Wonderful Life, Elf, A Christmas Carol, and A Charlie Brown Christmas.

When I'm walking around downtown and I see garland woven with white lights wrapped gaily around lamp posts, colored lights strung on every store, and lit-up Christmas trees in the display windows, I almost cry because it's so beautiful.

The scent of freshly cut firewood, hot apple cider, and holiday-scented candles will never grow old.

All year long I crave the taste of the cranberry + Sprite punch served at Christmas Eve, so when Christmas Eve comes I have a glass...or seven.

I love Christmas-colored tulle and I am going to tie it around all the gifts I give this year.

And when I come home for Christmas and see the tree with mom's collection of Christopher Radko ornaments and peacock feathers on the very top, my heart will swell.

The perfect Thanksgiving.

I'm back from Thanksgiving break! And a break from the ol' blog. (So I'll see you all back here tomorrow!) I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving.

My break included:

-Huge squeezes/hugs Tuesday at midnight as everyone arrived at our house
-Singing Weezer with my little sister at the top of our lungs
-Discovering "You and I" by Ingrid Michaelson via little sister
-Small shopping trip with mama (thank you, mom!)
-Grandma's famous chocolate pie
-A giant sleepover: fourteen people stayed in our house
-Pick up football game in the front yard while mama cooked
-Mom's Thanksgiving dinner for 25-ish people (we had 6 pies!)
-Playing board games every evening with my aunts, cousin W, mom, sister, and boyfriend M; pictured above is my mom and cousin W playing a game of Sequence
-Three trips to my favorite coffee shop
-Laughing: silent laughter, crying laughter, snort laughter.
-Our family was dubbed the "One-Liner Family"
-Sad squeezes/hugs before we all parted ways

What a blessed Thanksgiving. I am eternally grateful for my education, health, beautiful friends, sweet boyfriend, and the best family in the world.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Good evening, loves! The weekend ended yesterday...and will start again tomorrow. Amen.

My mom has a many brilliant philosophies and rules. One of them is no Christmas decorations, no Christmas music, and no Christmas baking until post-Thanksgiving. Ever since I can remember, that's how it has been.

But the dessert shop where I work has been celebrating Christmas for a couple weeks already. We've been making peppermint bark. And shipments of reindeer suckers and eggnog truffles have arrived. And the store is decorated with red tablecloths and tin Christmas trees. And soon we'll be wearing Santa hats.

So I want to listen to "Happy Christmas (War is Over)" by the Beatles. And the entire "Snowed In" album by Hanson. And "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" by She & Him. And several goodies from Ol' Blue Eyes...and Mariah Carey.

And I want to spend the day watching Home Alone, It's a Wonderful Life (ooh, James Stewart is so dreamy), the original A Charlie Brown Christmas, the original [The] Grinch, and - of course - Elf.

And I want to go ice-skating. And bake mint-y, fudge-y chocolate cookies. And eat 100 gingerbread cookies. And drink sparkly cranberry punch.

However - like always - mom has a point.

If I listened to (too much) Christmas music, and watched all my favorite Christmas movies, and ate Christmas treats, and did Christmas-y things, I would miss out. I would miss out on squeezing my family when I see them in 24 hours (!), mom's delicious stuffing, Grandma's famous chocolate pie, watching football with my cousins, taking fat cat naps, and having leftover turkey on sandwiches for the next week. Despite being a little obsessed with Christmas this year, I am simply not willing to miss the chance to snuggle up with my family and pig out.

Not to end this post on a heavy note, but:

Nine years ago today my uncle passed away from pancreatic cancer. We had been at the hospital all week - he was due to go home Friday the 23rd (of 2001) - and mom decided the cousins (and my sister and I) needed a break from the hospital. She took us home and made us a Thanksgiving meal. When we got back to the hospital, I parked my twelve-year-old-self in a faded mint green hospital chair and watched TV. An hour later it was pronounced my uncle had gone to Heaven. This holiday is always a little difficult for my dad's side of the family, but we always light a candle for uncle D and thank God for the time we had with him.

I don't want the end of this post to be gloomy. So! I can't believe around a year ago I was:

Celebrating ADP's marriage to her love GP. About a year ago we were going to their around-the-world dinner and ADP's bachelorette party! Love you two very much!

I probably won't be blogging for the rest of the week. I hope you all have a beautiful Thanksgiving. Hug your family, eat too much food, and take turkey-induced comas in front of the TV.

Christmas is coming,...

...the goose is getting fat. (I'm the goose.)

If calories and guilt were not objects, I would spend an afternoon eating and drinking:

Panera's mint crinkle cookie (fudgey cookie with mint and powdered sugar)
A salted caramel hot chocolate + double espresso from Starbucks*
A gingerbread latte from Starbucks*

I can think of many more, but I don't want to embarrass myself.

*I'm done denying that I don't kind-of love Starbucks. (Don't be mad, mom!) As I've mentioned a few times on here, I'd rather buy food/treats that will support my city and keep my dollars local. However. However. Starbucks has a superb list of creamy, buttery holiday drinks. And they come in red cups with snowflakes on them. And sometimes the guy in the drive-thru has a bedazzled microphone that he uses to take orders. I'll be back at my regular coffeehouse post-holidays. (And when I'm home for the holidays, I'll get to drink coffee from my original favorite local shop! That place will definitely keep me away from chain-coffee.) (PS: I will also occasionally spend my money at Panera because, well, let's face it - it's too good not to.)

Also, it's not edible, but I'd really love to have Glee's Christmas album. And I adore this picture from Anthro's "evergreen adoration".

Tomorrow I'll be posting a story from my sophomore year of college. If you missed my first story (still haven't thought of a clever title for the series!), you can read it here.

Happy Halloween Weekend!

What are you doing for Halloween? Going to a haunted house? Staying in and watching scary movies?

This weekend I'll be making these delicious cookies and going to Halloween parties! (My friends and I might also go to a karaoke bar costume-clad!)

I haven't found a costume yet, so I'm off to dig through the picked-over Halloween bins. (I'll let you know Monday what I came up with!)

Hope you all have a spook-tacular Halloween weekend!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to my gorgeous, goofy, smart mom who: owns more shoes than a department store, can eat ice cream every night before bed and still look fabulous, cries in church, supports local restaurants/shops, always blasted "Bitch" by Alanis Morissette in her beat-up BMW when she picked me up from elementary school, has the best potato soup recipe that I crave every winter, gave me piano/guitar/voice lessons while growing up, dealt with all my childish antics, and thinks everything my sister and I say is absolutely hilarious. Cheers, mama - I love you.

Happy Earth Day!

This picture is neat, huh? The stamped prints are so cute!

I would have preferred to bike to class, but my bicycle is back home with a broken chain collecting dust in the garage. (Sad, I know.) Instead I carpooled to class with the windows down and the Beatles blaring. I am going to celebrate the rest of this day by taking a walk around the lake and playing some 1-on-1 basketball with boyfriend M.

Easter weekend recap.

Back in one of our favorite booths sipping iced mochas with roommate H. How was everyone's Easter? I adored my hometown getaway!

Friday evening I met up with my dad and cousin (who was visiting from Minneapolis) for pizza and froyo. After dessert we headed back to my dad's house and listened to old records while showing my cousin pictures from our European vacation last summer.

Saturday morning I woke up early and went to the first Farmer's Market of the season. Bliss. The weather was awesome - low 70's with lots of sunshine. The Square (where the market is held) looked beautiful. There were farmers selling spring bouquets wrapped in paper, children holding bright red balloons, buskers strumming the guitar and playing drums on a bucket, coffee being made fresh in a white tent, homemade jewelry displayed on tables, and lots of happy families with dogs, smooching couples, and sweet little old ladies gossiping near the beets.


Elephant exhibit @ the market


While I realize this is not creepy in my opinion extremely creepy, I couldn't resist snapping a picture of this bright, curly red-headed cutie with chubby freckly cheeks.

Then, Saturday afternoon I went for a 15 mile bike ride. In the evening I went shopping and out for sushi with mom and little sister H. We sat on the patio with the live band laughing hysterically at our own jokes and eating gyoza. Later we went to Target (mom got me the cutest scarf!) and out for coffee. Around 10 we went to go pick up my step-dad, who was returning from Washington, at the airport. Aside from the PDA between my mom and step-dad (okay, to be fair, they hadn't seen each other in a week...and it was kind-of cute), my Saturday was perfect.

Sunday was Easter - duh. I went to a church service with my dad; at the end of the service a man played the intro to "Amazing Grace" on the bagpipes. The band sang the first verse (while the bagpipes played) and then the congregation joined for the rest of the song. It was powerful and made me cry. For lunch I met up with mom, my step-dad, little sis H, my step-sisters, and my grandmother. We shared bowls of black bean dip and queso; for lunch I had a lox bagel sandwich - yum. I wasn't ready to leave when lunch was over but I was excited to get back to my apartment and see my roommates and boyfriend M.

My week is going to be super busy! Lots of tests and papers, internship interviews*, ice cream date with boyfriend M, roommate J's 21st birthday, and Chef Event**.

*I already scored an internship but it is not paid and I need to make money for bills, etc., so I am keeping my eye out.
**The chef who will be cooking for the event is from Switzerland. I am excited.

Roommate H. and I are off to shop for roommate J's birthday gifts. Happy Monday!

Happy Easter!

Hello, dears. What are your plans for Easter weekend? A spring picnic with your love? Dying eggs with your children? Attending an Easter church service with friends?

This weekend I am traveling to my hometown. I have plans to go to the Farmer's Market (with my little sister!), ride bikes, go out for sushi, attend an Easter church service with my father and have Easter lunch with my mom and step-dad.

And when I return to school on Sunday evening, I'll be making strawberry shortcake in honor of my grandma, who makes it for me every Easter. I can't make it to her house this Sunday, so making my own strawberry shortcake is the next best thing. (I'll miss ya, grandma!)

God bless. Enjoy your Easter weekend!