My Tea

Hello!! I'm currently just sitting and editing a few photos while watching Phineas and Ferb (yes I am five at heart and still enjoy cartoons). I finished my sister's Christmas present this morning! I am so excited about it! It looks really good, if I do say so myself haha. I won't post it until after Christmas though because I don't know if she reads this. She probably doesn't but there's always a chance haha. I think she'll really like it :). While I was painting, the roofers came to drop off some things so they could start fixing the roof. The dogs were baring like crazy! Oh my gosh it was crazy! My dog, especially, wouldn't stop barking. I thought he might loose his voice haha. That would've been kinda funny/sad. After all that commotion, I made myself a cup of tea and decided to take some pictures outside. It was actually really warm out especially for winter! I am loving the weather!!

Later tonight I'm going to see my high school show choir perform with one of my high school friends. I haven't seen the show choir perform since I graduated, which is probably bad because I was in it for three years haha. Time just gets away from you sometimes when you're on break, or I'm just not home when they're performing :/. Their theme this year is The Breakfast Club. So I'll definitely tell you how their show is tomorrow. It sounds super cool!

Hugs <3

Vegan Mac and Cheese Box Review

Heyyy! So for lunch today I decided to try some vegan mac and cheese from the box. I bought two different kinds, and I used the Daiya brand today. I'll save the Earth Balance brand for another day. To be honest I was pretty nervous about trying these because vegan and mac and cheese are completely opposite from each other haha. But there are a lot of really good vegan dupe recipes out there, so there was hope! It cooks pretty much the same as regular mac and cheese from a box (which was great!). I boiled the water, then added the noodles in and cooked those for 7-8 minutes. The noodles tasted like normal mac and cheese noodles. After the noodles were done, I strained them and added the 'cheese' sauce. It came in a packet like Velveeta mac and cheese. I will say, it didn't taste exactly like the normal cheesy sauce, but it wasn't bad once I got used to it. It was definitely more tart/sour than the normal cheese, but for a girl who loves sour things, it was all good. The consistency of the sauce was on point though! Haha it was super creamy and gooey. Mmm yumm!

This morning I ran some errands for myself and my mom. It was so nice to get everything accomplished by 11:30! I love getting things done ahead of schedule :). Today I think I'll take some pictures so I'll have some for this weekend and a few days this week. I got some new stuff over Thanksgiving break that I meant to show you the past week or two, but finals just sort of killed all my free time :/. It's pretty overcast out today so the lighting won't be the prettiest, but it'll have a 'winter vibe' right...?

Hugs <3

Sunrise and Life Update

Hello! It's been almost a week since I've updated the blog! This is almost unheard of for me since I've been blogging seriously haha. But finals week got the best of me, and my mom has been having me work on her new house all weekend. She bought a house a cute little house a few months ago. It was built in the late 1950s and nothing had been updated since! Ugh the kitchen was soo nasty when we saw it! But since I've been away at college, the kitchen has been completely gutted along with most of the house. The stuff that's been picked out is really nice! I love the drawings and fixtures in the kitchen, and my sister's and I's bathroom is going to have a super cool mirror and shower! But there's still a whole bunch of work to be done. So this weekend and today, I've been painting, sanding, and washing walls. It's pretty tiring stuff actually, but I can't wait to move in and see it all finished! And finally be back in a room that's all my own :). So that's why I haven't been taking pictures, unless you really want to see me in nasty painting gear haha. Hope you all had a lovely weekend!

These are some pictures from the sunrise this morning. I thought it was really pretty! (Also, can anyone appreciate the fact that it's December and I was able to wear short and no shoes outside?!)

Hugs <3

Raise Boys and Girls the Same Way

Hello! Today was another day of studying. Although to be honest, I couldn't even really tell you what I read. Text book reading is really hard sometimes... Ugh. Sociology is a really fascinating subject though! It makes you think about things in a way that you never would have, or questions things that we simply take for the way things have always been. Such as, why are boys not allowed to play with girls toys and vice versa, when both boys and girls will actually play with anything when they are young? It's just cool to think about. We are socialized to play with gendered toys when we are young; girls with dolls, boys with sports. There's a sort of popular t-shirt that says 'Raise boys and girls the same way'. And I never really thought about how differently we are raised as kids based on our gender. I do actually agree with the t-shirt that says we should raise boys and girls the same way because I think it really would solve a lot of problems. We would be able to understand each other as human beings, not as just boys or girls. It's a really fascinating thought. I didn't mean to go on a rant about that haha. But maybe it'll spark some thoughts in you as well??

Tonight's sunset was beautiful! I'm so happy I was able to capture it on camera! Oxford seriously has some of the prettiest sunsets I've ever seen. It's sometimes better than the ones on a beach... sometimes.

Hugs <3

Flowers

Heyyy! So this morning I took my organic chemistry exam (that's why I've been MIA all weekend). I have the next two days free from exams, and then two on both Thursday and Friday. Organic chemistry was my really hard exam for the semester, so really I'm just glad to have it over with. It's a bit of a relief. The rest of my exams are manageable :). But I went to work off some of the stress by running on the treadmill at the rec, and they had people giving out these cute flowers! It actually did brighten my day haha. They are so cute! It makes me happy :) The bright, sunny yellow is a great addition to my room as well haha. At least my desk will look nice when I'm working on it. That's my quick update for the day. I'm sorry I really haven't been doing anything interesting with my life. But finals, they really kill your free time haha. Have a great day!

Hugs <3

Skincare Routine

Hello!! It's getting to be the Christmasy time of year again, and I must say, I am super excited for the holidays this year! There just seem to be so many good things going on :). Yesterday, I had Christmas music on while I did my laundry and some easy homework. Michael Bublé's Christmas album is definitely my favorite (in addition to the classics). I love the original versions of the Christmas songs compared to the new ones. I just don't think they have the same sentimental value, you know? I went to dinner with two of my best friends yesterday after we interviewed a girl for an open spot in our apartment for next year. I am so so so excited to not live in a dorm! Being able to cook, living with my best friends, having my own room... Just thinking about it makes me smile :). But I am seriously so lucky to have some of the funniest and weirdest friends there are haha. I've been feeling a little slumpy lately, and a few hours of laughing at nonsense with them just put me in the best mood :). Finals suck guys haha (in case you didn't know haha).

So now to my skincare routine! I recently updated it with the purchase of a few new items. The first one being the Boscia MakeUp-BreakUp Cool Cleansing Oil. This makeup remover was recommended on YouTube by Alex Centomo (she's basically my favorite person on YouTube). It's kind of weird because you squirt some in your hand and rub it on your face while it's dry. Then you rinse off the oil with water after you've scrubbed it for a bit. It is amazing at taking off makeup! And it isn't harsh on my skin at all, which is perfect for winter because my skin gets super dry! The second thing is a homemade coffee scrub I bought from one of my sorority sisters. I use this in the morning to wake up my face and gently exfoliate. It feels and smells soo good! After I used it for the first time I could not stop touching my face because it was so smooth haha. After, I just follow up with a moisturizer, and I'm ready for the day :).

Hugs <3

Brandy Melville T-Shirt

Heyy! I have to run out the door to go to Spanish in a few minutes, but I thought I would update you before that. Today was nice because I got out of microbiology lab an hour early. We had our exam today, which wasn't too hard, and only took up half of the class time. All of my big projects/exams this week are done now so I can focus on the homework I have put off until now. I hate having thing hanging over my head. So here are some pictures of my outfit today. I got this t-shirt over break, and I really like it! Like pretty much everything from Brandy, it's so so so soft and stretchy. Ugh I just love their clothes. I actually threw a loose, cream cardigan over it because it's pretty cold today, but I wanted the t-shirt to be the main focus of the pictures :).

Hugs <3