Fashion Friday: Rocker

I love! my modern mohawk hair-style! And I love that I can go rocker-for-a-day with chains, a diamond double ring, cheetah print, and diamond snake clip!

Also, this picture is pretty blurry. . .but I just had to put it up. . .

In case you can't tell: that's my Justin Bieber button pinned to my shirt. He goes with me everywhere!! Shhh, don't tell! ;)

be nice!

via

Don't you just want to say this to people sometimes? Why do we have to be so MEAN to others. Everyone is going through SOMETHING tough. Doesn't matter if you think it's tough or not. Doesn't matter if you know about it or not.

Be nice.

I need to be nicer in my mind. You know that devil mind in the back of you head that says sarcastic things when you're annoyed? Yeah, mine is VERY over active. 

It needs to leave. Go away, thank you.

Fashion Friday: Sunday's Best

Bright Blue silky top, black pencil skirt, black pointy shoes. Classy.

teal. oxford.

Wow, I've been a bit sentimental/philosophical the past two days!

Let's lighten it up a bit, shall we??

Look what I just ordered from ALDO:

The UPTONA. 

AHHHHH! SO. EXCITED. for them to be delivered!! :)

daydreams

Some days I find myself daydreaming about my future life.

Full of smiles, laughter, hand squeezing, traveling, making old things beautiful, red telephone booths, fashion, kisses, boardwalks, sunsets, beaches, sandy toes, rainbows, happiness. 

via

via

via

via

I KNOW life is never as perfect as these moments captured on camera, but I will ALWAYS hold on to that belief that  there ARE some perfect MOMENTS in life and I will ALWAYS be searching for them.

I KNOW marriage is hard. I KNOW having a family is hard. I KNOW being a wife and mom will be REALLY hard. But I've learned my whole life that I CAN DO HARD THINGS. and my life has been so much richer because of the hard things I've done.

The important part is to keep a good attitude, stay close to God, and choose a man that loves me and knows how to go through hard things too. 

Sometimes my heart aches so much for a boyfriend, for a husband, for a family. Sometimes I get a little angry because it's a GOOD goal for me to have, so why won't God help me achieve it?

why? because. . .

His is.

He has a plan for me.

He KNOWS me more than I know myself. He knows my future husband. He knows what we need to learn before we meet each other.

But it WILL happen. I have faith that there IS someone "out there" for me.

Whenever I start talking about this I know that some people will say:

"This is the BEST time in your life--enjoy it now before it's gone forever."

"I WISH I was back in your shoes!"

"Don't get married/don't have kids--it's over rated/it's HARD!"

"Well, if you really want to get married so bad, then go to the Singles Ward--that's the 

only way to meet people."

I understand where you're coming from. I know I'm a little naive. But I also know I'm not stupid. I know a LOT of people/Mormons meet their spouse in a Singles Ward--and that's GREAT! I also do not believe that is the ONLY way to meet people. I know that I will go through some really hard things in my future. I know it will not be a fairy tale every second of every day. But I also know that It's important. I know that I have done lots of hard things in my life and I know how to work through them. I know Heavenly Father will be with me every step of the way. 

I ALSO know enough not to waste my life away. This IS a GREAT time in life! I AM enjoying it! I will NOT throw it away. I am happy and proud to be a successful single 20-something living in Utah County. I don't feel sorry for myself at ALL! In fact, I really like my life right now!

I'm just saying, that sometimes life would be fun to share with someone. Yes, I have my family and yes, I share a lot with my mom and she is very good at feeling happy for me. . .but a boyfriend, a husband who is fully committed to my life; someone to call up and say "hey, wanna go get a cookie at Subway?"--whenever, someone that I can be fully committed to also. . .THAT sounds really nice.

It will come.

For now, I'll keep enjoying my life!

But I will never stop daydreaming. ever. 

busy BE

I could type a whole post about how I've been too busy to blog, that I've been too busy to clean my room, too busy to get enough sleep. . . .but after reading the Daybook today, I realized I don't want to use "busy" as an excuse anymore.

As Sydney says: "I don't want to use "busy" anymore, as a filler word or as a social status or whatever it is. "
I'm sick of not being able to enjoy the little things because I'm always thinking about what else I have to do. My life is only going to get busy-er. and really. . .EVERYONE is busy--so doesn't "busy" lose some of it's compassion? When people say they are busy to me, sometimes in my little devil part of mind (that I'm trying to get rid of), I think "GURL!? Seriously? You don't even KNOW what BUSY IS!" haha, but then again I'm sure when I say busy to others, they think the same thing.

The truth is, we are all "busy". A lot of times I'm "busy" doing nothing. Meaning I'm filling up my time with so many things that are not very important. Not on purpose. We all do it. Maybe it's because we never want to be alone with our time to let our thoughts get carried away, so we always make sure we leave things on the "to do" list to flood over into infinity tomorrows. Maybe it's because we feel good about ourselves when we check things off our list. Not that these are bad things to feel--I mean--at least I'm not LAZY--right?

But honestly I remember in high school making to-do lists that said 1. "Wake Up", 2."Get Dressed", 3. "Eat Breakfast". Like I needed a reminder on paper to get dressed????? HOPEFULLY I learned that long ago! ;) BUT by the time I got to school, I was able to cross 3+ things off my list and my list was 1/3 done! WOW! I am talented!

It's time to raise the bar. Church last Sunday was about Raising the Bar in our life. Sometimes we get caught up in a rut and the only way to get out is to raise the bar our hands are connected to and get ourselves out of the mud.

It's time to be kinder.
It's time to do things that are MOST IMPORTANT on my list. and only those. and not feel guilty about it.
It's time to BE instead of to DO.
I gave a talk in Sacrament Meeting about a month ago about BEing rather than DOing. DOing is good, but I can be better. and when I master better, then I can focus on being BEST.

That is what life is about. BEing happy. BEing with family. BEing kind. Taking time to BE the person you want to BEcome.

And the best part is. . . we don't have to do it all at once. We'll ALWAYS have something to work on, so boredom or anything else we're scared of having if we throw out the too-long to-do list--it won't come. And that's a good thing. It doesn't have to be overwhelming. Take it one step at a time.

I promise that if we raise the bar a little bit we will feel so much more proud and accomplished than we EVER have felt with crossing off our lists.

Fashion Friday: Red Polka Dots, red lips, and skinnies

Own It.

Computer Window Shopping

You'd think I'd know by now how fast a paycheck can deplete. Yet I still went to Rue 21, Deseret Book, Charlotte Russe, or Walmart EVERY DAY last week. SERIOUSLY?! And I am NOT a good window shopper. I've been so used to "living without" (do I even dare say that when I am so blessed?) in college when I didn't have a job and could barely afford cereal. . . .that as soon as I started getting paychecks bigger than I've ever gotten before--I splurged. And then splurged again. Until I barely had money for my loan payments. gah!

So now, I will be forced to window shop for a few months. sigh. but computer window shopping isn't too bad I guess! Here's some things I've been loving lately:

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245313908/

Hand Dipped Arrow Rings

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245262044/

Glasses Ring

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245313519/

Mint Oxfords

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245313426/

My Little Paris Book

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245313391/

Fortune Necklace

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245237554/

Chevron Rings

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245233974/

Happy Hunger Games Bracelets

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845245213944/

Optical Illusion Shelf

http://pinterest.com/pin/283726845244813387/

Pencil Shaving Necklace

Anything unique and/or Mint and/or Peach-Pink = to die for. In my eyes. FUN!

Mikarose

www.Mikarose.com

I love Mikarose! They have STYLISH MODEST clothing which is hard to find sometimes.

And guess what??? My BFF Elise is having a giveaway over at her lovely blog, Elise's Pieces.

Go check it out! She's hilarious and adorable--you'll be glad you did!

And while you're at it. . .head over to Mikarose.com and drool! :)

Pinterest Recipe Day: Dr. Pepper Cupcakes

"Make these easy cupcakes with only TWO ingredients," Pinterest said. 

Yeah, right. . . . .a can of pop and a cake mix? really? 

okay. . .that kinda sounds intriguing. . . .I wonder if it works? how do they rise?. . . .

Soda Can Cupcakes via Cookies and Cups

• 1 box cake mix, any flavor
• 1 can room temperature soda, any flavor

1. Preheat your oven to 350°
2. Line muffin pan with liners.
3. In a medium bowl combine your soda and cake mix, stirring with a whisk until most of the lumps are gone.
4. Fill each liner 1/2-2/3 full of batter.
5. Bake for 18-20 minutes until cupcakes are springy and toothpicks comes out clean.
6. Let cool completely before frosting.
7. You can use any flavor combination you would like. Coke or Dr. Pepper would be great in a chocolate cake mix. Orange Soda, Mountain Dew, Sprite, Root Beer would all be fun to try too.

I love Dr. Pepper. and Lemon cake mix. . . .

So I tried it.

.

.

.

.

ready to bake. after seriously 2 minutes. what?

Well they HAD to have frosting. . .so I started making a simple butter cream. . .until I looked in the pantry and the powdered sugar had somehow disappeared. (probably into Calli's makeshift muddy buddies.) great.

So I searched the internet for "frosting without powdered sugar" not thinking I'd actually have some luck!

Tasty Kitchen saved me! 

The Best Frosting I've Ever Tasted

• 5 Tablespoons Flour ***( I know, I know. my nose wrinkled at that too--but it's good! I promise!!)
• 1 cup Milk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• 1 cup Butter
• 1 cup Granulated Sugar (not Powdered Sugar!)

In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. You want it to be very thick, thicker than cake mix, more like a brownie mix is. Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. (If I’m in a hurry, I place the saucepan over ice in the sink for about 10 minutes or so until the mixture cools.) It must be completely cool before you use it in the next step. Stir in vanilla.

While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. You don’t want any sugar graininess left. Then add the completely cooled milk/flour/vanilla mixture and beat the living daylights out of it. If it looks separated, you haven’t beaten it enough! Beat it until it all combines and resembles whipped cream.

**I also added a little bit of left over Dr. Pepper to the frosting too. fyi.

Look how cute!!!! :) and they. are. so. goooooood! yum!

Think of all the soda-cake mixtures you could come up with! Endless possibilities! 

Fashion Friday: 1 skirt, 3 ways

Look One: Comfy Saturday

 Look Two: Summer Date Night

 Look Three: Design Event

There's so many looks you can come up with for this easy jersey knit skirt! I LOVE it! AND. . .I LOVE that I got it for 50% off! :)

MUUUUUUUUUUsic

As I'm sitting at work in an empty mall, listening to the same songs over and over and over (hello. . .how many times can Orange Crush come on in an hour???!) I've been thinking about my favorite songs. Songs I've become quite addicted to--especially lately.

I love music! I love the way it can change your mood. I love singing along. I love singing along in your car. at a stop light. and dancing. while people in cars next to you point and laugh. (like THEY'VE never done it! psh!). It's FUN!

Here's a list of my top 15. (It started as my top 5, but I just have SO many loves!! :)) oh. and also some music videos to enjoy. Turn your speakers on full blast and have a one-woman dance party. . .mmmk?!

In no particular order. . .drum roll, please. . . .

1. Thought Of You --Justin Bieber --"Believe"
2. Spend That Money --Carmen Rasmusen --"Nothing Like The Summer"
3. Happy --Carmen Rasmusen --"Nothing Like The Summer"
4. Love Will Wait --Carmen Rasmusen --"Nothing Like The Summer"
5. Boyfriend --Justin Bieber --"Believe"

6. Crazy Love --Mindy Gledhill --"Anchor"
7. Sensitivity --Alex Goot --"In Your Atmosphere"
8. Pretty Eyes --Alex Goot --"In Your Atmosphere"
9. Keep Your Head Up --Andy Grammer --"Andy Grammer"
10. Domino --Jessie J --"Domino"
11. Whole Wide World --Mindy Gledhill --"Anchor"
12. What Makes You Beautiful --One Direction --"Up All Night"
13. Loving You Tonight --Andrew Allen "Andrew Allen" (someone wrote "If Jason Mraz and Maroon 5 made musical babies, this is what they would sound like." . . .yeah, pretty darn close--YUM!)
14. Maria --Justin Bieber --"Believe" (His "Billie Jean" to Mariah Yeaters who claimed he was the father to her 3 month old a while back--pretty darn funny!)
15. Brokenhearted --Karmin --"Hello"

Pinterest Recipe Day: Cookie Cake

When I saw this recipe on Pinterest my mouth started watering and I HAD to try it out.

Thanks Cookie Madness--it's DELISH!!

Giant Cookie Cake: 

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (11 1/4 oz)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
8 oz unsalted butter or use 4 oz butter and 1/2 cup shortening for 1 cup total
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 bag milk chocolate chips regular or miniature size  (2 cups)**
1 regular size bag (about 1.5 oz) plain M&M’s 

Preheat oven to 300° F. Line a 12 inch round pizza pan with a circle of parchment or non-stick foil. Alternatively, you can make your own pizza pan by molding non-stick foil into a giant 12 inch circle.

Mix flour, baking soda and salt together; set aside.

Cream butter and both sugars by hand or with an electric mixer. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. When well mixed, add flour mixture and stir until blended Fold in chocolate chips.

Put all the batter in the pan and press it into a circle. Stop the circle about 1 ½ to 2 inches from the rim. Press M&M’s decoratively into top.

Bake on center rack for 32-35 minutes or until cookie is golden around edges and appears set.

**I ALWAYS use milk chocolate chips. . .but semi sweet is definitely an option. :)

My new walls!

above my bed

My new walls make my room happy. and me happy too! :)

What do you think?