focusing on simplicity

1 / 23 / 22

I always choose a word of the year to focus on and apply to each week, and this year I was struggling to come up with what word to pick. I was going back and forth about a few, and one morning when I was doing my quiet time, it came to me: simplicity. This word applies to me in a lot of different aspects, and I’ve started to notice more and more throughout each day how much I fail at it, haha. I just started noticing how anxious I get when I’m at school and how easily I get stressed. A big reason for this is I let myself get so overwhelmed with dozens of tiny details and tasks instead of focusing on one thing at a time. I could write for pages about this topic, but I wanted to touch on the topic of simplicity and a few aspects of my life where I’m looking to apply this concept!

my 2022 reading list

1 / 10 / 22

It’s a new year, but I’m still just as into reading as ever! Last year I read 84 books, which honestly I’m surprised at myself for, haha. I didn’t think I had enough time to read that much, which just goes to show that it’s about making time, not waiting until you “find” time. I read a lot of thrillers last year, which is probably my favorite genre. As I was coming up with this year’s reading list, I wanted to branch out and read books from new authors and new genres. Some genres I haven’t really explored are historical fiction, self improvement, and memoirs, so I definitely want to read more of those this year. I came up with a list of books that I want to try to tackle over the next few months. Knowing me though, I usually get hooked on an author or series and then read whatever I’m feeling, haha. Even if I add more books to the mix, I do really want to try to check these off my list this year!

2022 goals + intentions

1 / 6 / 22

Happy 2022! It’s weird, because I usually get really excited and build myself up for the coming of a new year. I have all these big changes I want to make and start thinking about how the old “chapter” of the year before is closing. I honestly didn’t really feel that for 2022 though. Not sure if that’s a good or bad thing, haha, but I feel like it hasn’t really hit me that 2021 is over and a new year is upon us. I definitely have some goals for the year ahead and some changes that I want to make in my life, but it doesn’t feel like this extreme, looming pressure to become a whole new me or do a complete 180. The week after Christmas was spent working, doing my online class, and spending time with family. Then January 2, I went to Passion Conference for three days, which was such a great experience. It feels like I’ve only just now had time to sit down and reflect and create the routines that I want to adopt for the new year, almost a week into 2022, haha. Today I wanted to reflect a bit on 2021 and go into some of my goals for this year!

my current skincare/makeup routine

12 / 29 / 21

If you know me, you know that I’ve never really been into makeup. I rarely ever wear it, and “getting ready” usually means swiping on some mascara and brow gel. Thankfully, I have pretty clear skin, and so I kind of just let my skincare routine slip and never really put much thought into trying new products. But for some reason, over the past month or so, I’ve started to get more into makeup and taking better care of my skin. I think it’s because since I’m back at home, I’ve been working at a boutique almost every day. It’s fun to have something to dress up and get ready for, and I’ve started to develop a makeup routine (even if it’s very minimal haha). Today I wanted to share some of the products I’ve been using recently, plus some that are on my list to try in the future.

christmas brunch menu

12 / 22 / 21

How are there only three days until Christmas? The holiday season has flown by. I’ve been home for a little over a week now, and it’s been so nice to relax for a bit and spend time with family/my hometown friends. I’ve been working a lot at a local boutique, finishing up my Christmas shopping, working on my online class, and doing lots of baking! Yesterday, our family went to Memphis to see Hamilton at the Orpheum- it was so good! I was curious how it would compare to the original, since it’s a whole new cast. It was really similar, but each character put their own twist on their lines, which was cool. It was such a fun Christmas outing. With Christmas coming up so soon, we’ve finally started planning the Christmas brunch menu. Every Christmas morning, my grandmother, uncle, and cousin come over and we all have a huge brunch, then open presents. We have a few items that we have every year, like monkey bread, but we’re trying a few new recipes this year too!

fall semester recap + winter break goals

12 / 15 / 21

I’m officially done with fall semester and out for winter break! I don’t think it’s really hit me yet that fall semester is over, it seriously flew by. It feels like one month ago that I was moving into my apartment and starting classes, not four, haha. I don’t have any crazy plans for winter break, but I want to focus on relaxing, spending time with friends and family, and having more time to work on my side projects. I can’t believe Christmas is less than two weeks away, how is it coming up so soon? I feel like I’ve been so focused on school and finals that I haven’t felt as in the Christmas mood like I usually am. I wanted to write a little recap of my junior year so far and brainstorm some fun things to do during the break!

winter reading list

12 / 8 / 2112 / 16 / 21

It’s a chill Wednesday night as I’m writing this, and I have one more exam tomorrow before I am officially done with my fall semester of junior year! This semester flew by, I can’t believe it’s already December. This week started out super busy, because I had a big presentation and an exam back to back on Monday. Thankfully though, my other two exams this week haven’t required too much studying, so I’ve been able to chill and spend time with some friends before we all go home for break. I feel like I haven’t really been in the Christmas mood because my mind has only been consumed with finals and tests and projects, so I can’t wait to get a break and enjoy the holiday season. Today’s post is my winter reading list, which was so fun to create! I did one of these a few months ago for fall, and I checked a lot of them off. Now that I’ll have more time to relax, I’m excited to start reading and tackle this list.

my 6:30 a.m. college morning routine

12 / 2 / 21

Happy December everyone! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and enjoyed time with family. I’m back at school for another week or so for finals, and I’m so ready for Christmas break! Thanksgiving break was so fun, I got to go home earlier than I expected and spent the week relaxing and spending time with my fam. I took a few shifts at the boutique I’ve worked at since high school, baked lots of goodies for Thanksgiving, played card games with my siblings, and had lots of movie nights. We set out Christmas tree up and decorated the house, which really got me into full holiday mode. Not going to lie, it’s always tough to come back to school for finals after Christmas break. I was in such a relaxed, holiday mood and now I’m stressed with papers and exams and final projects, haha. Anyway, today’s post is all about my recent college morning routine! I’ve been consistent with this routine for a little over a month now, and I feel like I’ve finally found a routine that works for me and my schedule.

holiday gift guide: amazon faves under $50

11 / 20 / 21

amazon gift guide

It’s so crazy that we are over halfway through with November, it literally feels like it was just the first of the month like a week ago. Thanksgiving break is coming up, I have about two weeks left at school for exams, and then I’m off for Christmas break! So many family members have already started asking for Christmas ideas, and I love online shopping to browse for gift guides. Today’s gift guide is a roundup of my Amazon faves, all under $50! Some of these things I have and love and some of them I’m asking for myself. Not going to lie, making this put me in such a Christmas mood. I know it’s not even Thanksgiving yet but I’m already so excited for the holidays!

my top ten thriller recs

11 / 13 / 2112 / 16 / 21

I used to never be interested in thrillers or mystery books. I mainly gravitated towards young adult contemporary fiction, a little fantasy, or rom coms. But over quarantine, when we were home for so long and I started reading more, I discovered I really like thrillers. It has definitely become my favorite genre. I started out with more YA mysteries, then slowly worked my way into the more “adult” (if you would even call it that?) thrillers, and I always get so sucked into them! I’ve read dozens of thrillers over the past couple of years, but today I’m sharing my top ten picks. I have a huge Goodreads list of more thrillers that I want to read, and definitely let me know if there are any of your favorites I need to add to the list!

current cookbook: fall recipes to try!

10 / 26 / 2110 / 26 / 21

Something about the weather cooling down and it getting colder just makes me want to bake and try new recipes. I like cooking and being in the kitchen in general, but I absolutely love the feeling of baking cozy fall recipes and cooking with friends or family on a cold day. I think a lot of fall recipes are geared towards all things pumpkin and apple, which I love, but I also love making cookies, soups, pasta recipes, and using fresh vegetables for harvest salads and things like that. Today’s post is a big roundup of some delicious fall recipes I want to make over the next few months!

nyc recap + photo dump

10 / 23 / 2110 / 23 / 21

It’s been a few days now since I got back from New York, but I am still missing it so much. It was a quick trip, but we really took full advantage of our time in the city and fit in so many fun things! My mom, sister, and I went to New York and met some friends there for a long weekend. Thursday afternoon I drove home from college and we drove to the airport, had two flights through the night, then made it to the city at around 2 a.m. Friday morning. We slept in a bit on Friday, then started our day and explored the city as much as we could! I had been to NYC the summer after I graduated, back in 2019. I really enjoyed it, but I think this time my trip was even better. I just fell in love with the city and everything going on there. I loved how we explored so many areas and we didn’t even see a fraction of all there was to see.

september recap + october intentions

10 / 4 / 21

Happy October! I can’t believe there are only three months left of the year… that’s crazy to me. October really crept up on me, I didn’t realize how fast September was flying by until like the last three days of the month haha. I wasn’t feeling very motivated at the beginning of the month, to be honest. October first I was feeling kind of bleh and uninspired. But yesterday I really took the time to reflect on September and write out some intentions and goals for the month ahead. I love browsing Pinterest to find good journal prompts and ways to prep for the month ahead. I took 30 minutes to sit down, put some music on, and really brainstorm. It actually made me so motivated and excited for October! I really want to work on personal growth and discipline this month, and I’m excited to challenge myself to stay consistent with my goals.

current thoughts vs. goal thoughts

9 / 30 / 21

I’ve been learning a lot recently about the power of our mindsets and how important our thoughts are for good mental health. It’s so crazy to me to realize how much our thoughts and mindset towards our situations change how we look at things. If we have a positive attitude and see each day as something to be grateful for, we are inclined to look for the good in every moment and find more things to be happy about. If we instead wake up every day bracing for the worst and finding negatives about every little thing, our days will always be sad and upsetting. Our thoughts have so much power over how we experience life. By changing our thoughts and choosing to have a positive outlook on life, we are literally changing our reality. We are choosing to find the good in every situation and be grateful for our lives, instead of focusing on the negatives. How cool is that?!?