A Little Bit of Indie

Hello dear readers! Today was super exciting! I went to a restaurant called Brio to meet with a photographer to discuss an upcoming photo shoot! I am not sure how much I am allowed to tell so I will leave it at that. You all can look forward to seeing some exciting news in the next few months :D. Lunch (well breakfast for me because I got eggs and toast and potatoes. Mmm it was so good!) was so much fun! Not only is my photographer super nice and punny (combination of pun and funny haha), our waitress was soo funny. Oh my gosh guys, I actually wanted to be her friend haha.  After a fun lunch with many laughs, I went shopping with my mom and sister. I picked up a few really cute summer clothes. I cannot wait to show you guys! I did take some photos in two of the accessories I got. This felt hat from Urban Outfitters is something I am completely obsessed with. I don't even care that most people where I am from aren't fashionable enough to wear something like that. The world is my runway haha. And these super cute booties from Windsor. I've been looking for the perfect pair of heeled booties to wear with shorts in the summer, and I finally found them! But now I am super exhausted. For some reason shopping always makes me really tired. Does that happen to any of you because I feel super lame saying that shopping tires me out so much haha.

Feeling Green Today

Hello lovely readers! I am back home, finally, after a year away at school. Althogh, I already miss my friends from school :( and cannot wait to see them again! But I am so ready for summer! Some R&R is definitely needed here for sure. Today I woke up, scrolled through Instagram, and threw on some comfy clothes. Then I went downstairs to have some breakfast. And I decided to make myself a green smoothie. Honestly, the only green thing in it is spinach, and you can't even taste it haha. So I threw in a whole banana, a handful of spinach, an entire apple, and some pieces of pineapple. I decided to put it in this cute mason jar because sometimes I like to pretend my life is like tumblr haha.

You can't really tell it's green because the jar is pink, but I promise it's green haha. 

After breakfast, I decided to kick my summer off with a hair mask I like to make to hydrate my hair. My hair is really long now and I want to be sure to keep it long and healthy :). This is actually a really easy recipe. I used 1/2 an avocado (I would use 1/4 is your hair is short), about 1/3 cup mayo (I would use 1/4 cup if you have short hair), 1 egg, and 1 tablespoon each of olive oil and honey. I first smashed the avocado with a fork in a bowl. Then, I added the egg and mayo and mixed it until it was creamy. And finally, added the honey and olive oil, and then stirred those in as well. Now comes the tricky part: applying it without making a total mess haha. I would definitely do this over a sink or in the shower, and make sure to wear a shirt you don't care about. I start from my roots and work the mixture down until I reach my tips taking small handfuls of the mask as needed. Don't be shy with applying it! After that, I take a hair tie and place my hair in a bun on top of my head. Then, I just let it sit for at least an hour and wash it out. It really makes your hair shiny and soft :)

Braids

Hello! Today has been just gorgeous out! I wish I was able to enjoy the beautiful weather, but I'm inside studying for finals and finishing up some end of the year projects. I am so jealous of all you who are finished with school for the summer. I can't wait until the end of next week when I will be able to enjoy the gorgeous weather and the company of good friends all day. Seriously people, summer is my favorite season ever!!! Hearts in eyes for sure haha. One of the things I have been loving to do with my hair, especially because it's so hot out now, is a braid. I just think they look so pretty especially with long hair (since mine has finally grown out and they're super practical girls haha). It keeps my hair out of my face and neck which totally helps with the sweating (so gross I know, but it happens :P).

So on a side note, I just went to Kroger with two of my good friends Hanna and Ilaria to pick up some things and get sushi. I had never had Kroger sushi before and didn't really trust it because Kroger is a grocery store. But I was so hungry I ate it all on the way home, and it actually tasted really good. I was impressed. It was a much needed study break and girl time. I miss hanging out with my friends since I've been studying and doing work :(. Tomorrow night we're doing pizza night in my room which should be super fun!

Hugs loves! <3

Body Language

Hello readers! Here is my English project I introduced to you a few days ago. I decided to write a post on my blog about body image and the language we use to talk about it. I think this is an issue facing many of us today, girls and guys alike. I know I struggle with it sometimes myself too. Also, I apologize for the length. I had more to say than I thought I would haha.

I know there has been a lot of talk about this topic on all forms of media lately; magazines, blogs, Instagram, etc. I have noticed that most of these debates have been going on on platforms that involve pictures. I personally love looking at pictures and taking pictures (I mean I willingly take pictures of myself probably looking foolish in front of all my neighbors haha). And I am totally addicted to Instagram (no shame guys no shame haha). It is by far my favorite form of social media. Pictures can be amazing sources of inspiration, whether it's for outfits, decor, even workout motivation. But I find that so many of these beautiful pictures people have the courage to post of themselves or something they did, get torn apart by so many people. Often times these people writing the comments don't even know the person, except through social media. I don't pretend to understand how people could do this to others or why they do this. What I notice is that there just never seems to be a perfect.

This is the language that surrounds us everyday about how we look. I know language isn't the kind of thing that just goes away. It's something that takes years to change. But maybe we can change the way we personally think about ourselves and others to. And maybe that will be the kickstart to a whole new way of thinking about our bodies. 

One of my favorite, actually she's my favorite blogger haha, Kristine Ullebø, had a girl comment on her blog about the girl's own body image. Now keep in mind Kristine is an extremely skinny girl, but it's not just that that makes me continually revisit her site. Not only are her pictures beautiful, her content is something I relate to. She is a fun loving girl with a great group of girlfriends, who also cares about school. And somehow she still manages to run an extremely successful blog. Kristine posted awhile ago, "The other day I read this comment from one reader of my blog which surprised me a little: "I'm too fat to wear shorts."" Kristine went on to write an entire post about body image, saying some of the same things I am now. Over the few years that I have followed Kristine's blog, she has written several posts about body image and body bullying, as she is the subject of a lot of body shaming on her social media. I have scrolled through some of the comments on her Instagram account and they can get quite nasty. For example, many users have commented, "Where are your boobs?" This comment also brings me to another topic surrounding body image for girls. The language many use when talking about body image, especially for girls, objectifies us. We not only need to be thin, but have boobs as well in order to sexually alluring. A combination which doesn't come naturally for most of us (and for you lucky ducks who got that genetic combination, work it girl!). I guess this just goes back to my image above, there never seems to be a perfect.

Here is Kristine with her older brother Hakon. I chose this image because it shows how thin she is, but also because it shows her having fun goofing around with her older brother. 

I guess I just want to ask, why can we not stop applying these labels to ourselves, and by extension, to others as well? I am still struggling with accepting myself, and maybe it's a lifelong struggle. But maybe if we can accept one thing about ourselves, we can accept one thing about others as well. And maybe that one thing we can accept will be able to overshadow those things we can't accept. Maybe I'm just a silly girl with a blog, but I hope that this will inspire someone.

Summer Wishlist

Hello! Summer is almost here, and I have a few things on my wish list before this wonderful season begins. This first are these super nice strappy heels that tie in the front from justfab.com. Unfortunately, when I went to purchase them they were sold out in the tan and only had red :(. Hopefully they will restock these soon so I can purchase them, because I have been drooling over strappy heeled sandals for forever.

The second item on my wish list are these amazing shorts from Runwaydreamz.com. They are the Dangers shorts in the lightest wash, and I am obsessed with them. Honestly, I have wanted these shorts since last summer, but they are just so expensive :'(. Maybe one day...

The last item on my wish list is this amazingly cute romper from IvyRevel.com. Ivy Revel is designed by my second favorite blogger, Kenza Zouiten. All her clothes are super sleek and simple, yet highly fashionable. I think I fall in love with almost everything on the website. This romper comes in white and pink. And I just can't seem to make up my mind on which color I like better. The white is super pretty and would look amazing with a tan, but the pink is super fun and flirty. Ugh decisions haha.

Have a lovely day readers! Hugs <3

Tanning

Heyyy! Today has been really good and really bad. I'll start off with the good because it's my favorite thing ever! It is sooo warm and sunny today! It honestly feels like summer outside, and I could not be more excited. I loooove summer (in case I haven't mentioned it enough already haha). The sky is so blue and the sun is so warm, so clearly it's going to be a good day. And the best part is that I got to lay out in a bikini. Warm sun on the skin, cute bikini on, with a soft, cool breeze blowing...there is nothing better in my opinion. Although you can sort of see in one of the pictures that my back got a little burnt. I didn't have any sunscreen, and I usually always wear sunscreen. So I will probably suffer the consequences. I just hope it's not too bad. Now for the bad. I managed to get a 64% on my biology exam, which equates to a D here. Which really put a damper on my day. I am a person who takes my grades super seriously, and when I don't get a good grade it just completely reverses my mood. Unfortunately all I can do now is pick myself up and do really well on the final to hopefully balance out that bad grade. What do you do when you get a bad grade?

Here are some pictures through my mobile phone from today.

You can kinda see my burnt back :'(. I hope it won't hurt too bad. Have a great day! Hugs <3

Goodmorning!

Hello! Yesterday I decided to skip my workout in the morning (I did go later in the day. I couldn't completely skip it) and sleep an extra hour. It was amazing! I was so well rested and refreshed. Which was much needed after a crazy weekend with good friends :). I didn't have to rush to get dressed and put on makeup. Which is amazing let me tell you. I'm always rushing in the morning because I have no idea what to wear. I'm just so indecisive. Do any of you have this problem haha? It never fails to stress me out in the morning. Since I was ready so early, I thought it would be nice to read a magazine with my yogurt and get some coffee, because well coffee is amazing people. I definitely don't drink it everyday because it is a drug and all, but it's just one of those things that when you have you know it's going to be a good day. So I settled myself at a hightop table in the library with my coffee, Chobani greek yogurt, and Vogue. It was a very relaxing morning if I do say so myself.

Oh! And I do have an announcement to make. For English we are doing a project that will involve us making some sort of mass communication media, like a website. I thought it would be a fun thing to post here on the blog, because being a blogger, I just had to do something involving my favorite form of communication haha. I think I want to do something about body image pressures involving fashion bloggers today. Let me know what you think about this in a comment! (Seriously though if you guys don't want to read my English project I definitely won't post it here. Just thought it would be a different kind of post than I normally do.)

My favorite breakfast! So yummy! Just hearts in eyes :)

Coffee=love. And the flowers in the background are pretty haha.

My beautiful view yesterday! And they smell amazing! It's like walking into a bouquet every time I step outside my dorm.