4th of July

I'm taking a break today from my Alaska posts to write about last week and the 4th of July!

Getting back into the groove of things after coming back from such a long trip took a little while to get used to, and I had a busy week on top of it.

Last Tuesday I went swimming with my cousins. I definitely feel like the older I get the less time I have to swim in the summer. I can remember years where I went swimming at least once a week, but I had only gone swimming once prior to Tuesday. So crazy!

On Wednesday night I went to dinner with some friends. We've kind of started this Wednesday night after work dinner/hang out thing. It always makes the work day go a little faster when you know you have a night with some friends ahead of you. We stopped at Yagoot last week, which was even better ;)

I snapped this picture of a deer out my front window at home. I walked by the window, saw something out of the corner of my eye, and when I did a double take, I saw a deer just staring right back at me. I thought deer were supposed to be afraid of people?!

I decided kind of last minute to make some 4th of July cake pops for a party we were going to. I figured I had a bunch of red, white, and blue sprinkles that I might as well take the opportunity to use them. I worked on the cake pops Thursday afternoon, and I thought they were very patriotic!

That night, we went to a local fireworks display that we go to every year with family friends. There is just something about fireworks that makes it feel like summer.

Coco was my patriotic puppy on the 4th with her bandanna!

I had such a great 4th of July. My family and I went over our friends' house and relaxed by their pool all day. We were the only ones over there, so I spent a lot of time getting a tan and cooling off in the pool. We grilled out and had a ton of yummy food. In the evening, we had our annual Uno competition, sat around a bonfire, shot off Roman Candles, and did sparklers. It was absolute perfection!

On Saturday my family took a last minute trip down to Findlay Market. I love going down there because they sell the best stuff! We shared a waffle down there and just walked around. Such a fun thing to do in Cincinnati during the summer.

I also picked up a cookie that I enjoyed later. I'm a sucker for sweets ;)

I spent pretty much all day Sunday at home getting a lot of stuff done. One of the things I finally accomplished was transferring a bunch of dates to my new 2014-2015 life planner!! The nerdy/organizational side of me was so happy about that. Ha!

Such a fun summer weekend back at home!

Easter 2014

I'm just now getting around to posting about my fabulous Easter!

I made cupcakes on Saturday and they turned out to be both cute and yummy.

I woke up to an Easter basket filled with candy - you're never too old for an Easter basket, right? ;)

My family went to church and then stopped home real quick to take a few pictures.

My mom and I both wore our Lilly dresses!

We went to brunch with my mom's family at a restaurant called Market Street Grille. We used to go there all the time a few years ago, but it had been awhile since I'd been there. It was nice to go somewhere different because the place we usually go was all booked up by the time we tried to get a reservation.

Later that day I went over my aunt's house to celebrate Easter with my dad's side of the family. I don't have a single picture from that, but it was so fun. All of my family was there, and I just love it when we all get together!

I hope you all had a great Easter - I know I did!

Days of Nothing

Tomorrow reality hits.

It's back to school, back to homework, back to being busy, and back to being sleep deprived. I'm really not looking forward to it. I'm excited to see my friends, but I'm less than thrilled about everything else.

You want to know what I'm really not looking forward to tomorrow though?

The fact that the temperature is going to be BELOW FREEZING.

Nothing says welcome back to school and getting up early with sub-zero temperatures.

Anyway, I just looked back at my posts and realized that there a few late December/early January things I hadn't quite blogged about yet, including my New Years Eve!

First off, if you have a pair of Hunter rain boots, you have to get these Fleece Welly Socks. I bought them a few weeks ago and am already in love. Now I can wear my Hunters when it's snowing out too so my feet stay dry and warm.

I have always been a fan of Cheryl's cookies (if you've never had one - you need to look them up!), but this one was SO good. I always pick up a cookie when I'm at Easton, and I just had to try this seasonal flavor. So yummy!

Oh! And another thing you have to try (apparently this post is just turning into my recommendations - ha!): Panera's Hot Chocolate. I had never had it before, but I met my friend for dinner at Panera earlier this week, and she told me how it good it was, so I just had to get it. What sold me was the fact that their hot chocolate has CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE MARSHMALLOWS. Who know that existed?! They were so amazing. Plus they drizzle caramel in your hot chocolate too. It's $3 for a pretty big size (probably a Grande at Starbucks) - you have to try it.

My New Years Eve was kind of uneventful this year. My mom and I tried out a new place for lunch, and I got watch New Years Eve (such a cute movie!). Then I went over my aunt's for dinner. I played with my cousins for a few hours....

My parents went to a different party for a few hours, so we all met back home before midnight. I got home a little earlier than them and got to cuddle with Coco.

We ended up just making some party food and ringing in 2014 together. This was the first year in ages that we haven't gone to a party. Kind of weird, but it was nice to welcome 2014 very peacefully :)

New Years Day was super relaxing as well. In fact, the entire second half of my Christmas break was very relaxing. The first half was crazy busy, so it was nice to balance it out with a few "nothing" days.

I did more relaxing with Coco. She's just the cutest thing!

My family went out to dinner that night with some friends. We were planning on going to Cheddar's but ended up passing a place called Sakura on the way. Everyone was talking about how they've never gone there but have always wanted to try it, so we ended up eating there instead. It was really good! They cook your food at the table, so it was something a little different.

Thursday was the ultimate relaxation day! I never left the house at all. I stayed in my pajamas all day except to change into a different pair of pajamas. That is what I like to call success :)

I even took a nice relaxing bath. I don't usually take a lot of baths, but ever since I've discovered Lush's bath bombs and bubble bars I've been doing it more. I still don't take baths too frequently, so it's always a treat when I do. I had a rose-scented bubble bar that turned the water pink. It was so relaxing and it seriously smelled so good!

I then finished off my day with a mug of hot chocolate and a movie. The number of movies I've watched over this break is probably unhealthy ;)

I cannot believe that the Reese's eggs are already in stores. Easter isn't until April 20?!? I'm not complaining though - the eggs taste the best!

After a few low-key days, I was dying to get out of the house yesterday, so my dad and I stopped at the store, and I was thrilled to see that Target has bathing suits out. We're still far from needing swim suits (did I mention it's going to be below zero tomorrow?), but it still made me extremely happy.

I also went to dinner with my friend Danielle at Don Pablos and saw Frozen again. Such a fun way to end Christmas break.

Today was yet another relaxation day. I've been trying to get some stuff done for school tomorrow, and I also made some super yummy Cake Batter Bars since it's going to be cold and snowy these next few days (I look for any excuse to do some baking - ha!).

Overall, this was a fabulous Christmas break filled with a good balance of fun and rest. I made so many memories with my family while also having a lot of time to catch up on some sleep.

Now begins my second semester of college! I'm excited for no classes on Fridays (hello three day weekend every weekend!), a fun trip later this month, and a study abroad trip at the end of the semester.

I'm off to take a shower and watch one last movie before the end of break!

2014.

Happy 2014!

via

I'm not one to do New Years Resolutions. However, this year I'm thinking of doing something a little different. This afternoon I may go through my planner and write in a little goal for each week. Even if it's something simple like take a walk at the park, text a friend I haven't heard from in a while, or set aside more time that week to pray. I think I would actually be able to stick to goals like that, but I feel like they would still enrich my 2014 year!

I'm also still planning on doing my Project 365 in 2014 where you take a picture every single day of the year. I've done it the past 2 years now and still just love doing it.

I also downloaded an interesting app yesterday called 1 Second Everyday where you take a 1 second video each day and then you can make them into a video at the end of the month or the end of the year. I want to at least give that a shot too.

I saw this on Pinterest, and I think these goals are pretty neat. I want to incorporate some of them into my weekly goals this year.

via

I'm so excited for 2014. I don't know if I've ever been this excited about a year before!

Here are some of my predictions/things I'm looking forward to in 2014.....

I'm traveling to South Carolina very soon. My friend goes to school there, so I'm going to visit Clemson before we take a little trip over to Charleston for a few days. I am predicting that we will have so much fun. I mean seeing the beach in winter? I can't think of any other way to start off my 2014!

I'll finish my second semester of college in April. It's so crazy to think how fast college is flying by already. I hope to continue to do well in school, and I'm also hoping to get more involved in my sorority!

I'm taking a study abroad class this upcoming semester, which means that I'll end my first year of college with a trip to Montreal with my KBS freshman class (which are the people I have pretty much all of my classes with). I'm so excited for it.

I'll turn 19 in May. I feel like 19 is such a dumb age, but I don't want to rush through being 19 either. It's just crazy to think that this is my last full year of being a teenager before I'm in my 20s. Yikes! I'm anticipating a very low-key birthday, as most of mine are. I'll be out of school, so my college friends will be heading home, but a lot of my high school friends will just be starting to come home around then, so a nice dinner out with my family is what I'm anticipating.

I'm hoping to continue to grow my baking business this year. I'm contemplating starting a little website/Facebook page for it this summer :)

My family is taking what I predict to be the best vacation of my life this summer when we travel to Alaska. It won't be our traditional sun and sand vacation, but I am looking forward to it like you wouldn't believe. We've been planning it forever, so I'm excited that the year is finally here!

My cousin is getting married in Georgia this summer, which means another trip. 2014 is going to be the year of vacations, and I am absolutely ecstatic about that.

I'll start my second year of college in the fall. I don't know what that will hold for me, but I'm excited nonetheless. One of my predictions for this year is that I will change my major. I know I want to do business, but I don't think I've quite found my niche within it yet. I'm hoping I find it this year!

Overall, I'm super excited about all the holidays, vacations, celebrations, shopping trips, and time spent with family and friends that lie ahead in 2014.

I'm hoping to be a better person this year and further deepen my faith as well.

I'm happy that I have lived to see another year. I love the fresh start that a new year brings. I have so many fun things planned this year, but I also can't wait to see all of the unexpected things that happen as well.

I hope you all have the best year yet!

2013.

Two thousand and thirteen.

A year of change.

A year of new experiences.

And, quite possibly, the biggest year of my life so far.

I think that when I'm older and look back on my life, 2013 will be a year that stands out. It will be a year that won't be quickly forgotten.

Sometimes I find that as you grow older, the years start to blur together. Questions like "What year did we take that trip?" and "What year did that happen?" aren't uncommon. But then there are the years that you center things upon, and 2013 will be one of those years for me.

So like I've done for the past three years (2010, 2011, and 2012), on this last day of 2013 I'm doing a little recap of some of the best things that happened this year.

I made a super short video of pictures from this year that I thought you might want to see!

In 2013......

I had my last Father/Daughter Dance.

I made homemade French macarons, something I've always wanted to do.

I decided officially where I would be attending college.

I ate Rita's several times!

I celebrated Easter with my family.

I started an awesome new job in the Registrar's Office on campus.

I went to my Senior prom!

I celebrated my 18th birthday.

I took my last AP test ever. Wahooo!

I designed, baked, and decorated a 3-tiered wedding cake all by myself. That was one of the prouder moments of 2013 my life.

I spent the last day of high school on the roof :)

I spent a lot of time being sad about my high school graduation.

I graduated high school.

I took a senior trip with my friend Danielle to Savannah and Tybee Island (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3), where we ate some of the best ice cream....

....met Paula Deen.....

....and enjoyed Paula's Southern buffet!

I celebrated my graduation with a party in June (Part 1, Part 2).

I vacationed in the Dominican Republic (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4)!

I got to see the Jonas Brothers in concert one last time.

I spent a lot of time downtown.

I said goodbye {temporarily!} to friends leaving for college.

I made princess cake pops along with so many others!

My family went to Steak & Shake at 2 AM for shakes - ha!

I officially started college at the University of Cincinnati.

I joined Kappa Delta sorority.

I got to enjoy Moerlein's blueberry cobbler several times throughout the year!

I met the Pioneer Woman for a second time.

I enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving with my family.

I baked Minnie Mouse cake pops for my goddaughter's second birthday!

I gave part of a presentation on our SWOT semester-long project and then celebrated finishing it with a trip to the Cheesecake Factory with some friends!

I made about a bazillion Christmas cake pops. And I loved every minute of it.

I celebrated the birth of Christ with my family for what was an awesome Christmas (Part 1, Part 2).

Some other things that happened in 2013.....

I read 18 books.

I wrote 170 blog posts.

I flew on an airplane twice (both in the month of June!).

I traveled out of the country.

I sold approximately 275 cake pops.

But most importantly, I grew in my faith, spent a lot of time with my family, and made a lot of new friends!

..............................

At the beginning of this year I made predictions as to what I thought this year would hold. It's funny to look back on them now. I didn't know that I would go to Savannah on a Senior trip or vacation in the Dominican Republic. I didn't know that I would get a job working on campus. I didn't know that I would be accepted into KBS or that I would join a sorority.

Going into this year I was scared. I was afraid because so many things were unknown. I was afraid to leave high school behind and start college.

I think back to my life 365 days ago. So much has changed but so much has stayed the same too.

2013 was a crazy whirlwind of a year, but I am so incredibly thankful for it. I did things this year that I never thought I would. I stepped out of my comfort zone at times, and I survived.

2013 was one of the most emotional, difficult, and stressful years of my life, and yet looking back, I can't help but only see the good.

It was also one of the best years of my life. In fact, arguably, the BEST.

And now, 365 days later, the year that I dreaded, the year that I feared, is also the year that I am sad to see go.

I hope you all have a great New Years Eve ringing in the new year with people you love.

"That's what New Years is all about, getting another chance. A chance to forgive, to do better, to do more, to give more, to love more, and to stop worrying about what if, and start embracing what will be. So when that ball drops at midnight, and it will drop, let's remember to be nice to each other, kind to each other, and not just tonight, but all year long."

Now I'm just so excited about 2014 and everything it has to offer, but more on that tomorrow......