Happy New Years Eve!

With a little over an hour left of 2013, I decided to make my last post of the year a reflection on 2013. There were so many things that have changed this year, I got into my department at school, had a couple great jobs (one of which I currently have today), got more involved at school, and made a ton of great friends (some of which who have become family to me). There was heart break when me and my boyfriend of two and half years broke up (no hard feelings though, it wasn't a rough break up at all thankfully), and not to mention the last few days have been a little emotionally rough. But everything happens for a reason, just push everything behind you and focus on the wonderful adventures to come in 2014.

Just like anyone else, I did some thinking about my New Years Resolutions, and they're actually something that I know I can handle and won't give up on:

1. Keep up on my blogging (especially after how much I realized that I loved it after participating in Blogmas!); writing is a great outlet besides my music, and I'm so happy that I decided to start this blog.

2. I participate in a Photo-a-day challenge on Instagram created by the wonderful Chantelle (check it out, it's one of the best ones out there, it's super creative and not corny like the others), and I say every month that I'm going to complete it, and in December, I didn't do one picture. So just like blogging, I want to keep up with the Photo-a-day community!

But obviously the most important ones are focusing on my school work, but still find the balance between school, work, extra school stuff, and keeping myself happy (which was the reason for my break up). I never met that balance, and now I realize that my happiness and well being needs to come first. 

I want to thank everyone who's read my blog since I started a few months ago for actually reading. As of right now I have 526 page views, and that's super exciting to me. I hope you all have a happy and healthy 2014, and be safe tonight!

xo

-A

What now?

Have you ever felt totally heartbroken, with out even realizing at first?

It happened to me just last night. Well, early this morning to be more specific. 

Backstory: There was this guy that I met this semester at school, he's a freshman theatre major, so naturally he joined our little family and we hung out all the time. I felt close enough to him to tell him things that only a few people know, so he was obviously special to me. But I didn't know just how special. Last night, he told me that he started dating a friend of his that I had met around Halloween (super nice girl), and I was honestly crushed. Completely heart broken. Apparently there were feelings that I pushed into the back corners corners of my mind, and when I realized I missed the chance I never knew I wanted, it killed me. 

Isn't it crazy how the things that don't affect you at all in general can impact you so much in such a split second? 

-A

(Inspiration for this post also came from a late night conversation with Jocelyn from The Undecided Girl shortly after the story occurred)
(Package update: I got my wallet today and I'm in love.

my other ones should be here Thursday/Friday!)

Sundays are for being productive.

Today was a huge success for a couple reasons. 

1. I out of bed, dressed, AND in public before noon

2. I was in an organizational mood.

A few weeks ago, the TV in my parents bedroom broke (it's pretty old), so my dad asked me if I wanted to go buy a new TV with him because he knew I wanted to go to Target today (my heaven). So we went out, got some coffee, and headed to the nearest Target so I could pick up the things I needed. We ended up finding the perfect TV and I found everything I wanted today, so that was a success on it's own.

As I was looking through the home section, and more specifically where the storage bins are, I came across those little plastic drawers (the really small ones). Now I've probably owned at least a million of those things (I currently have one on my desk), I decided to get another one for my closet, where I have my dresser and everything concealed behind curtains. My mirror is hanging next to the dresser, and everything that I use regularly on top of the dresser so I have easy access to it.

Usually my eye shadow palettes are just laying on top of the dresser in piles, and I was getting tired of all the clutter. So I did a little rearranging, and put all the make up I use into the plastic drawer set.

Now I have everything I need/use more organized than I had it before. I even went the extra step and labeled the drawers with some washi tape that I had lying around. All of my B&BW Body Creams are on top, along with my Clean and Clear face moisturizer (LOVE that stuff) and my Almay makeup remover (I'm obsessed with this stuff, works like a charm). 

It's really the little things like this that just brighten up my day!

-A

GUYS IT HAPPENED AGAIN.

I shopped. 

Ugh.

On the bright side, I got great deals, soooo it's fine. AND I just made a huge payment on my credit card, so that's good news. I decided that for today's post, I'm gonna do a small haul of all the after-Christmas deals that I got. 

FIRST, I bought some things from B&BW because we're having our semi-annual sale right now, so some things were dirt cheap, like our holiday scents.

 The two Merry Marshmallow Kiss items I already have, but I bought another body cream and body mist because it's my favorite holiday scent, and I wanted to stock up in case I happen to run out. The candle is Tis the Season (my FAVORITE holiday scent that isn't body care), and of course I already started burning it (I bought these things the day after Christmas), but I have a matching wallflower bulb. Speaking of bulbs, that little gem is our Champagne Toast, and I love how it's sweet but not over bearing.

This little cutie is a pill box from Vera Bradley. The print is Plum Crazy, and I have to say that it's probably my favorite pattern from VB (I have it in a bag, card holder and lanyard). It has three little bottles inside that holds any kind of pills that you would need (I put Advil, acid reflux meds, and allergy meds in it!)

I've been looking for a simple case for my iPad, and this mint greenish-blue silicone case from Charlotte Russe was PERFECT. It fits like a glove and it's a super cute color. I love that it doesn't add unnecessary bulk to my iPad.

The last picture I have is this water bottle that I got from Aeropostale. I have a problem with buying different water bottles/tumblers, and this one was on sale and a pretty blue color, so I obviously had to buy it. I also got a mini perfume from here of a scent that I already have, but I forgot to include it in the picture (the scent is Live, Love, Dream- check it out!).

I also got a basic black cardi from Charlotte Russe, and two infinity scarves from Old Navy for a dollar EACH. They're originally $8 something, but for this weekend they're only a DOLLAR. Such a steal! I got one in purple (duh, my power color), and a pretty teal color!

Happy Shopping!

-A

(Side note: A while back I was on Wanelo and came across this gorgeous Irish Claddagh ring with a rainbow topaz stone in the middle and I favorited it for a later time. As I was going through the favorites, I decided for jump on it because there were limited sizes left.

It should be here on Friday, and I'm so excited. I'll keep you all updated!)

Up Before the Sun

This is totally a first-world problem, but I'm NEVER up this early in the morning. And by early, I mean that my alarm was set for 6:45. Usually I'm not up this early even for school because last semester my classes didn't start until 9:30/10 AM, and next semester they don't start until 11 (totally not complaining).

Today is the kick-off for the B&BW Semi-Annual sale, but the whole mall opened at 7 AM for after-Christmas sales and I'm pretty sure it's boxing day, which wouldn't normally apply to typical American mall, but more than half of our clientele is Canadian shoppers (we're only a little over 2 hours from the Border/Buffalo). I start work at 9 AM today, which isn't that early at all, but I'm not a morning person AT ALL. I'm a total night owl. I get productive when the sun goes down and I can light candles and put on cozy lights. So just to play it safe, I wake up about 2 hours before I actually need to be anywhere. 

But hey, that's what coffee is for!

-A

My name is Ally and I'm a shopaholic.

The first step is admitting you have a problem. 

As I was enjoying relaxing with my dogs and parents, watching Christmas movies, I was casually browsing Wanelo (shopping app/website), and I came across this adorable wallet (and let it be known that I'm SUPER picky about my wallets) and it was on sale for $9.99 with FREE shipping, and of course I had to buy it. But I mean with a deal like that, who could blame me?

All shopping problems aside, I had a super relaxing Christmas with my family. I never got out of my pajamas, and I just enjoyed the holiday with coffee in hand, and my dogs in my lap. Even at 20 years old, I still feel like a little kid on christmas (it doesn't help that I traditionally wear a onesie)

Merry Christmas!

-A

Twas 5 minutes before Christmas...

There is truly nothing better than the feeling of Christmas. And not even the material things, just being able to spend time with your family and reflect on the memories of Christmases of the past. It's such a nostalgic time, and time is too short to focus on your presents. It's your presence that should be more important. 

It's weird though, today didn't feel like a Christmas Eve to me. Both my parents had to work, and I was supposed to work anyway. But I gave my shift to a girl that really needed the hours, so I used today to run some last minute errands. But tonight my parents and I watched The Santa Clause together and and I put on my traditional Christmas PJs and it started to feel like my favorite holiday again. 

I hope everyone has a truly delightful Christmas and I hope that you all enjoy every second with your friends and families. 

-A

Time flies when you're stressed out.

Guys. Tomorrow is Chrismas Eve.

The day after is Christmas.

WHERE THE HECK DID THIS SEMSTER/YEAR GO?!?

These realizations hit me when I was standing around at work today. But it also gave me a chance to reflect on how much I've accomplished this year. This was probably my best semester of college yet, and I'm proud of everything that has happened, and I'm grateful for the opportunities that I have been given. 

Anyway, I think I FINALLY have my shopping done for christmas. When I got off work I picked up a couple small things for my parents, and it's a relieving feeling. Now I can finish wrapping all of my gifts and relax before Christmas! 

Happy Monday!

-A

Everything Went Better Than Expected

Today I was scheduled to work from 10 AM to 5 PM, with a possible extension from 5-6:30. But when I got to the mall where I work this morning it was literally empty. And this mall is NEVER empty on a Saturday. And what I was scheduled to do was only required for a super busy store, and we weren't super busy at all. Most of the day there were more associates in the store than customers. So 1 o'clock comes around, and the assistant manager tells me that they're letting me go home at 3.

OKAY. YOU DON'T HAVE TO BEG ME. 

I was SO relieved, because I had family coming around 4, and I felt bad that I couldn't be home to help my parents set up for company (and it's a good thing I got to leave early because they also got to my house earlier than expected!) It was really nice to see my family though because even though they only live about an hour away, I really only get to see them on holidays. All in all I'd say it was a pretty successful Saturday.

Hooray for weekends!

-A

Finally a Relaxing Friday

This morning, I woke up with horrible neck pain- I'm assuming that I slept a little wonky. But I didn't let it stop me from doing what I planned to do today. After I went out to get some coffee and an early lunch, I came home to start baking for a family party tomorrow. Baking is probably one of my favorite things in the world next to performing. There's just something to therapeutic about it.

I'm also super obsessed with chocolate chip cookies, so they're my favorite to make. 

While I was baking I watched Gossip Girl on Netflix, and it's crazy how a show like that can make you reflect on your own life and really make you think about things. All in all, today was super productive, but I am NOT looking forward to working all day before I get to see my family tomorrow. 

Happy Friday! 

-A

Merry Early Christmas to Me!

The Urban Outfitters package that I ordered on Friday came TODAY! I was so surprised because it usually ships in 5-7 business days, and it's only been about 3. I'm super excited, regardless. 

Here's some pictures of the jewelry:

I'll get some pictures of my new backpack up as soon as I can get a good picture of it!

-A

Winter Must-haves!

A lot of my must-reads have been posting about their winter/holiday things that they love the most, so I decided to share mine!

-Starbucks/Coffee: Let's face it, what self-respecting white girl doesn't get Starbuck on the reg to begin with, but especially in the winter time (hello, red cup season!). My go to drinks during the holidays are always Salted Carmel Mochas and Pumpkin Spice Lattes. (Cinnamon Dolce or mocha frap the rest of the year). But at home we have a Keurig, and it's literally heaven. It's nice because me and my parents all like different kinds of coffee, and the Keurig lets us have whatever we want!

- Lip Balm: Walking around campus and walking through town can wreck major havoc on your lips in the winter time with the frigid temps and wind. I love EOS balm because it's super cute but it works really well. I also splurge and get the C.O. Bigelow Mentha Supreme gloss from Bath and Body Works (buy it here) because it makes your lips super tingly to soothe them and it quickly heals chapped lips.

-Hand Sanitizer: We all know that fall and winter is Cold and Flu season, and I ALWAYS have hand sanitizers everywhere. Working at Bath and Body Works doesn't help because I literally have a bag full of PocketBacs because I get excited when we come out with new scents. I have one on my purse, backpack, in my car, and sometimes on my keyring, just so I know I'll always have one on me!

-Lotion: My skin gets super dry in the winter time, and I love a good body cream to keep my skin smooth and hydrated. I especially love (here we go again) B&BW triple moisture body creme because it has more shea and other moisturizers to keep your skin nice and hydrated all day. 

-Infinity Scarf: You won't see me in the winter without an infinity scarf on, it's slowly becoming my signature thing. I bought one from Charlotte Russe that I LOVE, and I just bought another one from Deb that was on sale (I couldn't help myself)

-Nail Polish- I'm one of those girls that ALWAYS has her nails done or painted (I'm a huge acrylic/shellac fan, but the upkeep is too pricey), so I'm always buying new colors to experiment with. I'm a big fan of darker colors- I'm usually rocking a dark grey or dark purple/red of some sort. But during the holidays I love the glittery and shiny colors. As I type this I'm wearing two different Revlon Polishes, Iconic (dark grey) and Radient (blue & silver glitter). I'll probably change it to more Christmas-y colors for this weekend and Christmas, but this is definitely a good look for New Years!

What are your winter must-haves?

-A

Just when I thought I was done...

I had to do more shopping today.

My dear mother, at the last minute, decided that she needed more stuff, and because she worked, I was the person who had to get it. I promise I'm not complaining, even though it kind of sounds like I am. It did mean that I got to go back to Target, and that's one of my favorite stores in the world. I could literally spend HOURS in there just walking around and making a huge list of everything I want. I especially love the store during Christmas time, because I love all of the cute and unique Christmas items that they come out with every year, especially all of the novelty glass tree ornaments. I did, however, pick up some adorable Christmas washi tape that I can use for cards, gifts, and other crafts! They're super thin and I'm so excited to use them!

Happy Wednesday (almost Thursday!)

-A

Review: Revlon Lash Potion Mascara

I was looking through my Target Cartwheel app because I planned on doing some Christmas shopping there today, and I had a coupon for Revlon's Lash Potion Mascara, which was perfect because I needed a new mascara and I'm always up for trying new kinds. 

First of all, the tube itself is super fun and colorful. The color I got was "Blackest Black" (which is what I get in any eyeliner/mascara). It's a volume and length mascara with "Grow Luscious" serum in it which is what gets your lashes longer. When I came home, I wiped all my eye makeup off and started from scratch just so I could try it (it's a problem sometimes), and it's fantastic! I'm not too huge on mascaras when they're first opened, because of how full and wet the brush gets. That's why I like to leave my tubes open for about a day to thicken up the product a bit. But overall I love the product and I highly recommend it!

-A

My Poor Credit Card

My poor Discover card HATES Christmas. But on the other hand, I got all of my shopping done today! I actually had a pretty productive day, because after giving my room a good clean last night, I vacuumed super thoroughly and hung a new string of lights up. I also got caught up on all of my laundry. I was super impressed with myself. In the midst of all the christmas shopping, I also picked up a few things for myself (I couldn't help it!) like some new earrings, a new tube of mascara (review coming soon) and a few other makeup necessities. Not to shabby for a regular Tuesday!

 -A

Yay for Productivity!

Today was pretty productive for a Monday, and I'm super proud of myself (especially since it's the Monday after finals week). Even though I didn't get out of bed until 11:00, and I regret nothing, I actually did everything that I planned on doing all before 5 o'clock. I actually started my Christmas shopping today, but not before seeing a friend before they went back home for a little bit. Then this evening I cleaned my room, which was long overdue after all of the craziness over this past semester.

My University also had final grades posted today, and I was very pleased that I had A's in all my classes even after missing a week for going on tour and after the crazy finals week. It's an extremely relieving feeling!

I hope everyone had a great Monday!

-A

It's official!

I'M ON BREAK!!!!! 

There's nothing better than the feeling of freedom after a stressful semester of school. I'm so excited to start on my christmas shopping (a little late, I know) and I have family coming up this weekend, which means I get to bake, which is my absolute favorite stress reliever. 

I also got my first of two Urban Outfitters packages in the mail yesterday, and I'm super excited! I'm so happy with how it looks!

It's super cute and it matches my bag perfectly. I'm super excited to get my other package in a couple weeks. 

Happy Sunday (night)!

-A

DONE DONE DONE!

As of 11:00 AM, I am officially done with classes for the semester! And there's no better way to celebrate than Urban Outfitters having a sale on their sale items AND free shipping. 

I bought the grey wallet a couple weeks ago and it should be here soon, but I just bought the backpack, the ring and and the cutest necklace. I love online shopping (but I hate looking at my bank statement and my credit card bill).

I'm so excited to be done with school though, now I can focus on recuperating and relaxing until my busy schedule picks up again at the end of January. 

Happy Friday!

-A

No Sleep + Loads of Caffeine = Finals Week

One paper, one final, a dress rehearsal and two performances keep me from starting my winter break and I can't wait! The end of this semester has been entirely too stressful, and you know that your Mocha with extra espresso isn't working anymore when you have three and you can still easily take a nap. 

On the bright side, I finally got done with the most stressful final, and that was my acting final this morning. My scene partner pulled through and I'm super proud of her because she's never acted a day in her life. I'm excited for next week when I get to start lounging around and catch up on everything I've missed in the last couple weeks. 

I still can't believe, though, that Christmas is only in 13 days! I haven't even started shopping yet, and that's definitely going to bite me in the butt come next week. I'm super excited to Christmas shop though, because I love finding the perfect gifts for people and seeing the looks on their faces when I give them their presents. 

I'm also happy that I'll be able to actually fulfill the Blogmas challenge though! I haven't been able to blog everyday, and it actually really bothers me. 

Hope everyone's week is going well! 

-A

Almost there!

Today was my last day of classes for the fall semester, and I couldn't feel more relieved. Now only three finals and two performances keep me from my 6-week winter break. I'm super excited to actually spend time with my friends and family, and not have to worry about anything but working over break. 

Now that I'm done for the day, I can relax while catching up on blogs/vlogs and sipping on the Salted Carmel Mocha from Starbucks (seriously though, that stuff is like crack) before I go to lunch at the Brewery in town with some friends.

Happy Monday!

Happy Friday!

There's just something so comforting about it being a Friday, even if it means that my weekends are just as busy as my weekdays (because apparently having a Saturday or Sunday off work would be a crime.) But this weekend is also the opening of our indie-rock show called Procrastinate. It's this super fun concert that we do every year as a fundraiser for our department, and everyone seems to love it. It's basically just a big jam session in our tiny theatre in the basement of one of the buildings on campus.

 

But I'm not going to lie, I'm happy being busy. Because it means that I'm being productive and it's usually doing the things I love (like performing.)

 

Happy weekend, lovlies!

 

-A

Bloglovin!

Hey errybody!

I decided to get a Bloglovin account, and here's the link to my profile.

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/11363523/?claim=jkr76sh3fkt">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

-A

Finals Frenzy

You know that moment of panic when you look at the calendar, and realize that you only have one week of classes left and then finals?

Yup.

Black Friday Madness.

My whole life (all 20 short years of it), I've never understood the hype about Black Friday. Some people get SOOO into it. I've seen people with paps of the stores or malls that are highlighted and color-coded, and people bring walkie-talkies and it's this huge deal, but for what? Deals that will 9 out of 10 times stay the same for a few days or sometimes even weeks. Working in retail, I know how ridiculous people can get, and it's not pretty. Fights break out, people get upset, and sometimes, people get thrown out of stores because they cause too much trouble. Another thing that truly annoys me about black friday is the fact that stores open up earlier and earlier every year. The mall I work at opened at 8 pm THANKSGIVING NIGHT. People are turning what is supposed to be a family oriented day into more of a shopping day. People leave their families early just so they can score the huge deals on Thursday night. And I don't want to sound selfish, but do people think about how the employees feel? We don't like having to cut our holiday short just so we can come to work at 6 o'clock in the evening and stay open until midnight Friday. Some of my co-workers worked form 6 pm until 4 am, and then came back at 10. That's not fair at all. It will soon get to the point where stores are going to open Wednesday night and stay open until Friday, and people will forget about Thanksgiving all together. 

It's not that big of a deal, people!

(Getting off my soap box now!)

-A

Merry Blogmas!

I just recently joined the Blogmas group on Amy V. Norris's blog (and by recently I mean 5 minutes ago). I really love this idea, and I do the same thing on Instagram every month with the FMS photo-a-day challenge from the lovely Chantelle. This should be easy for me, because winter/December/the Holiday season is my absolute favorite time of the year, but I also love the Blogmas idea because it'll force me to blog more often, because I don't write as often as I'd like too. 

Check out all of the other great blogs on the Blogmas network on this page.

Happy Blogging!