Happy Winter Break!

As you're reading this I am hopefully on my flight back home or already home! I am forever thankful that I was able to take my final early and turn in a portfolio early because it meant that I could get home earlier than expected. As much as I love LMU and being at school, the past week has been very difficult for my sanity. If you read this post then you know about the stress of last week and all of the things that happened in my life.

One thing I never even thought about was all of the exciting things that are coming with second semester. Rushing a sorority has been a dream of mine for so long and I finally get to during second semester at LMU. I am excited for this experience because my mom absolutely loved her sorority experience during college and is still close friends with many of her sorority sisters.

However, with all the excitement of second semester I am so excited to spend a few weeks relaxing at home. As much as I was way more excited to go home just a few weeks ago for Thanksgiving break it will still be so nice to head home. I think Thanksgiving was more hype because I hadn't seen my family or friends since I left for school. This break will be much more relaxing however, because I have much more time off.

I'm looking forward to doing a cookie decorating party with friends, buying Christmas gifts for relatives, spending time by the fire with my parents and even going to Mexico for New Year's Eve. I feel like commuting between LA and Chicago is a bit of chore (it's almost a four hour flight), but it makes it so worth it when you finally arrive at your final destination. As scared as I am, I'm ready to attempt to brave the cold weather that is Chicago. Currently, I've been bundling up in Patagonia sweaters and J.Crew vests while the weather never reaches below sixty degrees.

To all college students: good luck on whatever finals you have left. You can do it!!

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post: my Christmas wishlist!

Xo

TGIF

Happy Friday everyone! This week could not have gone by slower. My roommate is currently sick with the stomach flu so I've been sanitizing like crazy and sleeping on the floor of the dorm next door which I will probably continue to do until I leave for break. A bit tedious, but the stomach flu is my worst nightmare. 

This week was a bit rough, but my roommate being sick forced me to spend every extra minute that I wasn't in class at the library or in the student coffee shop. I ended up getting so much done and finishing everything earlier than I expected to. 

My life had a stroke of luck this week too and I am now able to go home two days earlier than I had planned. My math professor mentioned on Wednesday that if we wanted to take the final a day or two earlier we could so I called my mom as soon as I could to see if she could change my flight and lucky me, she changed it. Just as I thought all was well, my professor said that there were no longer any empty seats in the Monday final so I was freaking out because I thought I would have to change my flight again and go home later than expected. But, a miracle happened and someone opted to take the final later than Monday so I got their spot. I am forever grateful for this Christmas gift as it means I can head home and be with loved ones two days earlier than I expected.

Something I definitely learned this week was having hope, without having control. I had very little control over the events that happened this week; my roommate getting the stomach flu and my issue with finals vs. flights, but I attempted to remain hopeful throughout the course of the week. I opted to be proactive and email my professor (kind of a lot...woops) explaining my situation in hopes of receiving sympathy and also sleeping on the uncomfortable floor in my friend's room to avoid getting sickness. 

Life throws all sorts of things at everyone and the main thing is how you deal with what life gives you. My dad always said two things: 1. control the controllables and 2. 90% of life isn't what happens to you, but how you react to it. There are so many things that I don't have control over so I must go on through life not worrying about the things that I can do nothing about. However, being proactive and asking for something you want is important as well because if you never ask, the answer will always be no. 

Sorry for that bit of a rant, but this week was a major learning lesson for me--in perfect timing with the holidays and finals. I hope everything is going well for you. 

If you're a college student, have you dealt with a situation similar to mine? I'd love to hear about your experience.

Xo

Cookie Decorating Party

This year instead of doing a secret santa, my friends and I decided to do a cookie decorating party instead! I think this is the perfect way to still do something fun and in the Christmas spirit, but without spending the extra money. Secret Santa's can get expensive, especially if you're in more than one. This seems like the perfect alternative because you still get to spend quality time with your friends, but without breaking the bank.

I'm hosting the party at my house which is perfect because we just got our kitchen done about a year ago. Now it's fully equipped with a large island and an oven that doesn't have a duct tape handle (yeah, the last one was ratchet). I'm so excited to host my best girlfriends for a night of fun holiday festivities. With a party in mind, obviously some Pinterest planning is involved. I've been compiling my favorite holiday party decor and food/drink ideas that I want to include at my party. Here's what I'm envisioning.

Xoxo

Disneyland Recap

There are so many perks about living in Los Angeles, but one of the best is being literally so close to practically everything. LMU is so centrally located it's so amazing to be able to explore so many different areas. That, and my roomie having a car make exploring LA so easy! This past weekend two of my best friends and I went to DISNEYLAND! I've been to Disneyworld three times before, but I had never been to Disneyland before this weekend! It worked out well because my friend Abby has that place wired. It's her literal favorite place in the world and I swear she knows every square inch of that park. We opted for the park hopper so we could travel between Disneyland and California Adventure. 

We started the day early, waking up at around 6 am (after going out, oops) and getting ready real quick. We grabbed breakfast to go and headed on our way to Anaheim. Anaheim is only about an hour drive from campus, without any traffic. We hit a bit of constructional traffic (which was odd considering it was 7 am), but made it to Disney at just past 8. I was a bit skeptical about going so early to Disneyland, but it was so worth the early wake up call. The park usually isn't too crowded in the first couple hours that it's open so it was so nice having short wait times and hitting up a few of our favorite rides.

In the middle of the day we ventured to the old Hollywood part of Disney and saw the Frozen show. Seriously so good. It was literally like an off-Broadway show! The rest of the day was spent exploring around different areas of Disneyland and California Adventure. My favorite rides had to be California Screaming, Space Mountain, Soarin' Over the World and Radiator Springs Racers. California Screaming is a super fun, long and fast roller coaster and I'm always an avid thrill seeker so it was the perfect fit for me. I loved Soarin' Over the World because it takes you on a virtual journey all around the world! Space Mountian is always a classic that I love at Disneyworld so it was the same for Disneyland. The Radiator Springs Racers are so fun because you get to explore Radiator Springs in a "car" and see the different areas, then actually race against another car!

Overall, it was such a fun weekend with my two best girlfriends from school! It was the perfect way to relax and spend some quality time together just before we head home for finals in just over a week. Now, wish me luck with finals!

Xoxo

{Gift Guide} The Guys

For some reason guys seem to be the most difficult to shop for. The only guys I really ever have to shop for are my brother and my dad. There's usually something on the top of their list that I can get for them, or there's something classic that they always love. For my dad, flannels are always a go-to. I bought him a flannel from Gap in sixth grade for Christmas and he's been wearing it ever since. For my brother Brian, something sporty is usually my go-to. Although, he's a huge fan of J.Crew socks and thrifted sweaters as well. Today I'm sharing the usual items I gift to the men in my life, plus some newer items that I think so many guys would love! Whichever guys are on your list, I'm sure they'd love something from my picks!

I tried to do a few different price ranges, depending on how much you were looking to spend on the gift. A good pair of shoes are always a good gift, especially these Sorel for J.Crew boots and Timberlands. As much as Timbs have become a trend in recent years, my dad's been wearing Timbs as work boots for as long as I can remember. They are such a quality shoe that will be sure to last. As I mentioned before flannels are always a go-to and I love this blue and green check one. 

Shop all of my gift ideas below!

Xoxo

{Gift Guide} The College Girl

Hello all! Oh my goodness, it's December! Real quick announcement...my holiday shop is LIVE! I've done a holiday shop for the past couple years and now you can shop my holiday gift picks here! First semester at LMU has seriously flown by and been so so much fun! I've met so many amazing people and had such a fun time exploring LA and campus as well. Going home for Thanksgiving marked the holiday season for me because I was finally introduced to winter weather. It was actually quite refreshing to be in cold weather and have it actually feel like Thanksgiving and Christmas time. Los Angeles is always pretty mild, but has cooled down just a bit since the end of November and December. But, I still wake up every day with the sun shining and not having to wear a coat.

Today I'm sharing the first gift guide for the holiday season! As I college girl I definitely know a few things that I could use this year for Christmas. I can't even begin to explain how much money I've spent on Uber rides to and from parties or even just to different locations in LA. Uber now offers gift cards at all different prices. This is something I'd definitely love to receive this Christmas. Other gift cards like Starbucks and Target are always good gift ideas too! Ugg slippers are another item that would be perfect for any college student. Community bathrooms are absolutely disgusting and the worst and having a comfy pair of slippers to slide on before heading to the bathroom are essential. 

I've mentioned this product before but the JimmyCASE is seriously the best phone case for college students. It's so nice to have a stylish way to store my debit card, state ID and student ID in one convenient location. This is especially perfect for going out because you only have to carry one thing and it has everything you need! My current agenda (Sugar Paper for Target) is quickly filling up for the end of the year and I'm in need of a new one! I absolutely love this fun ban.do agenda or if you're looking for something pricier, the Erin Condren life planner is absolutely stunning (and helpful).

Shop all of my gift picks for college girls below! Stay tuned for more gift guides and fun holiday posts in the making!

Xoxo & have a great weekend!