hello.

yes. yes. yes. yes. yes times infinity!

i can't wait to meet you 2014!

merry christmas from our house to yours.

staying true to me, here is my very, very, very late christmas post. 

i hope you & yours had the merriest of christmases! i can't seem to get over my love for this time of year & have not been able to wipe the smile of my face since! christmas definitely left just as quickly as it came, but as i write this there is still a sparkly christmas tree in front of me so i'm not ready to say goodbye quite yet! 

this christmas was spent at my house as always with my grandparents, aunt, uncle & cousins. this has been the tradition for as long as i can remember. this year though, my sister's fiancé (i refer to him as my brother) joined us for the festivities & i couldn't help but think that this is how it will be for the rest of my life! can't wait for them to tie the knot! i just get giddy thinking about it. as my grandma's memory is slowly slipping away, i cherish the times that we are able to have the family together in the same place.  

i hope you keep the spirit of christmas alive in your heart for the whole year.  it truly is a wonderful life. 

^^ my sister's a babe. ^^ 

the year in review.

wow. the year is almost over? already?! i feel like we say the same thing every year & i do in almost every post, but man they really do fly by!

as i think back on this year, it's all kind of a blur. it came as fast as it's leaving! so many fun, crazy, & happy things happened! of course this year came with it's struggles. my strength & faith was tested more than years past, but i do believe this is all god's plan for something greater than i could ever imagine or plan. which brings me so much peace.

here's my year in review to the best of my memory's capabilities:

january: rang in the new year with some very good friends. also had a fun winter photoshoot with mom. it's crazy how much i've changed in a year.

february: this was a hard one. my then boyfriend's dad passed away of cancer which was a very emotional time for him & his family. it was so hard to watch someone that i loved go through something so painful. in the short months that i knew frankie, he proved to be a true inspiration. i'll always keep the "orange" (the color of his fight) in my life & only try to live life like he did.

march: i turned 18! i'm officially an adult! my cute dad bought me roses! love him.

april: here come the "lasts." my last prom was perfect. i had the best time with the best people & i absolutely loved my dress! i'd wear it everyday if i could. (ps: notice the snow on the ground?! that's wisconsin for you)

may: the last dance recital. this was especially a sad one for me. dance has been such a fun thing to look forward to for the past eleven years. our dance teacher also announced that she was retiring which made it extra special to be her last class.

june: i graduated. (what?!) it still seems strange that high school is now a thing of the past. as much as i wanted school to be over with, i do miss kinda miss it. (wouldn't go back even for a day, though.)

july: i died my hair! i know this isn't huge news, but it was for me. i've never done something that drastic to my hair before. it was liberating.

 august: i went to college! i was so nervous, but even after the first night i knew mankato was the right decision for me. college is so fun. here is a messy shot of my desk right after move in.

september: adjusting to college life is what mainly took place this month. i was lucky that it happened quickly. i spent this month enjoying meeting new people & figuring out how "to do" college.

october: halloween was the big event. i'd say forrest & jenny won for creativity. that may just be biased though.

november: i was able to spend thanksgiving at home with my family. it was a nice little break from the hustle of school & it was so nice to have a delicious home cooked meal. the food from the caf just doesn't cut it for me.

december: well this month is halfway over and i already accomplished my first semester of college! i'd day this was my biggest feat of the year. currently i'm enjoying my month off from school relaxing at home. it truly is the best time of year. here's one of my favorites from my photoshoot in the park with my best friend.

2013, you sure did bring your a-game. i was given my fair share of trials & tribulations but i can definitely say they made me into a stronger & happier person. i can't wait to see where 2014 takes me. i hope you'll join me for the ride.

all my love, xo

today.

hi to all ya'll night owls! i always seem to write these in the wee hours of the morning!

do you ever have those days that are filled with so much joy & fun you can't even take it?! well, that was today!

for christmas this year kayla (my bestest friend in the whole world) & i decided to have a photoshoot as a present to each other! there's nothing more girls love than getting dressed up for fun! which is exactly what we did! kayla came over & curled my hair before because i lack in this department & we put on our matching red lips and dresses! my friend ali who took these pictures had the same dress i had & she was nice enough to let kayla borrow it. we were a little concerned how cheesy matching dresses would look, but they couldn't be cuter.

we went to the park to get our models on & boy was it cold! wisconsin sure doesn't joke around in the winter! walking in the snow in heels is hard enough as it is but add in numb feet & you've got yourself a real struggle. i'd say we at least managed to smile through the pain.

ali is still working her magic on these, so i'll only share a few for now! much more to come later! but this was such a fun day & we'll cherish these for a long time.

life is much better with a best friend.

 ^^ dancing, because what else do you do in the middle of the road? ^^ 

ketchup.

i have been mia this past two weeks because of one word: finals.

i have never studied that hard in my whole entire life. hard work does pay off though! i can count my first semester off college in the books! the first semester has flown by & i can't imagine how fast the next three years will. college has definitely been an adjustment, but also one of the biggest blessings. 

i can't begin to describe how much i love college life. i have been blessed with meeting some of the greatest people who are already showing to be life long friends. i've also learned a lot about myself. as cheesy as it sounds, you do find out who you are in college. school is a job in itself, but the study breaks & fun times on the weekends make it all worth it. 

 i'm ready to enjoy a month off break before the craziness of school starts up again. i can't wait to spend the holidays with my family and friends. most of whom i haven't seen for months.

here's the view from my room on the last night before break. so peaceful. god is good. 

tree shopping.

today we made the trip out to the tree farm to pick out the christmas tree for the year. it's one of my favorite traditions. this year was a little odd with no snow, but we also we able to get a full view of our perfect tree.

it was a wonderful day.

full hearts & bellies.

happy thanksgiving! (better late than never right?!)

i hope all of you had a wonderful day with loved ones. it is so nice to be back home. it always reminds me of how much i actually miss being here.

here's my list of what i'm thankful for in simplest terms:

1) God

2) family & friends (especially the friends that are family)

3) my puppies

4) laughter

5) ice cream & curly fries

6) i love college

7) the holiday season is around the corner

8) grey's anatomy

9) my health

10) my wonderful mess of a life!

^^love my puppies even though they don't really know how to pose for the camera.^^ 

tis' the season.

welcome back cold season! can't say i've missed you. as you can imagine, living in close quarters in the dorms doesn't really help my situation. i feel like getting the sick germs is inevitable. i've been trying to get rid of this nasty thing for the past week, no luck.

don't think i've drank more hot chocolate or nyquil in my life. this is also the first time in my life i've had to figure out what medications to take without my mom. times have changed, folks!

here's to a better week!

my favorite fall looks.

now that winter is on its way, i thought i'd share with you some of my favorite looks from fall. as you know, fall is all about layering & i took full advantage. i've always loved the preppy look of layers. i also live & breathe in my three dollar thrifted cozy sweaters. 

as the leaves changed, i did too. my first fall at college was nothing short of amazing. as always, there were some bumps in the road. but i am so blessed that i have already made life long friends here. &, for having a roommate who voluntarily takes my outfit of the day pictures without complaining.

hello, november!

i know we're only a couple days into it, but november is already proving it's going to be great!

we got our first snowfall last night & i was oozing with excitement! so glad i got a chance to play outside a little with my girls.

 these are my favorite kinds of study breaks.

halloweekend.

hey, folks! hope you all had a very happy & spooky halloween! i love celebrating halloween, & this year i got to dress up twice! the best part was, i already had most of my costumes in my closet!

i know i'm a little late, but here are some of my favorite snaps from this years festivities.

forrest and jenny gump. 

                                                               

i love you, jennayyy.

the girls: an indian, genie, jenny gump, and minnie.

& the best costume of the year goes to napoleon dynamite! 

this was perfect! 

life, currently.

the only thing that can get me through my all-nighters these days is writing little motivational messages on my coffee.

papers on papers. exams on exams. sometimes i wonder if all of this is even humanly possible. college, i love you. but you really know how to take the energy right out of a girl.

new favorite thing.

hats are my newest obsession for fall. especially great when i roll out of bed twenty minutes before class starts. even better, scored this one on clearance at target for ten bucks. swoon. 

box hair dye virgin.

at the end of june i decided on a whim that i needed a change. in hindsight, i think my heartbreak a couple months prior had a little something to do with this. i have never been too adventerous with my hair. the riskiest thing i had ever done was put a couple layers into it. better safe than sorry was my motto.

i marched myself to the salon that day, & said as-a-matter-a-factly, "CHANGE IT!" with a little mixing of the colors, i went from sandy blonde to full out chocolate brunette. i loved it. it was empowering!

fast forward four months later. this is when the "you're going to have to keep up with it" that i kept hearing after i dyed it, couldn't have rung more true. my roots were an embarrassing shade of gray & my rich chocolate color was looking a little depressing. & being the broke college student i am, the box dye route it had to be. a trip to walmart, and eight dollars ( what?!) later i was ready to go. i asked haley, one of my closest friends on my floor for help. she had died her hair many times out of a box, so i figured i'd be in good hands. as the dye is half way in my hair, haley exclaims "you know i've never done this on anyone else before." ohhhh lord, i was freaking. i probably said "make sure you get it all" about thirty times. but in the end it turned out great.

moral of the story: change is good. trust your friends. & hair dye out of the box is a breeze.

fall time is the best time.

hometown apple orchards win, hands down 

mom's chili does too

oh, fall. why do you only come once a year? & leave as quickly as you go?

all my favorite things happen during this season. we've got colorful leaves, caramel apples (which why do these only exist in september? i could go for january, february, march, april, may... you get the point), hunter boots, layering, football & pumpkins.. the list goes on and on.

this is the first year i haven't been home for this season & i miss it terribly. i live very close to the apple orchards & we make multiple trips each year. so glad i made the the trip when i was home a couple of weeks ago. i came back to the dorms with apples, apple butter, and apple crisp! yum, yum, yum. also, mom made me chili & i could have eaten it by the gallons. i miss homemade cooking, too.

& now i'm off to go enjoy the last weeks of the best time of the year.