Treat Yourself.

Life is so sweet.
and sometimes it deserves an ice cream sundae, with chunks of Chocolate Chip Cookie, just because. 

Last week was a rough week.
Real Debbie-Downer for me.
Emotionally draining, and basically...
an all around Suck-fest.

But I'll tell you something:
as awful as it was,
it sure did turn around awfully fast.

This week I have been loving life,
every single bit of it.
And I've got to say it's due in part to the amazing friendships I'm blessed with.
I am so grateful to have such encouraging people in my life.

They say laughter is the best medicine,
and I firmly believe that.

But I also believe that an ice cream sundae, a cookie, or basically any dessert in general... is good for the soul.

and some nights you just have to treat yourself.


Go indulge.
Because I said so,
Because you deserve it,
and because ice cream sundaes are freaking delicious.

WILW

I'm linking up with Jamie today to share what I'm loving on this beautiful Wednesday!

Today I'm loving....

[one.]- Mine and Jasmine's productivity yesterday with packing. We made some serious progress, then treated ourselves to Margaritas. Naturally.

[two.]- My monogram necklace I ordered FINALLY came. After seeing Emily's on instagram, I finally bit the bullet and got one. SO in love.

I got it from the etsy shop Marinette Jewelry.

[three.]- My biochem test that I totally thought I bombed... I actually got a B on. Holy smokes batman! That's a way to turn my week around!

[four.]- Spotify. I have a serious music obsession, and boy does this make it even more out of control.

[five.]- Sweet friendships. Man, they really make the world go round don't they?

Happy Wednesday!!
Now go link up and share with us what YOU are loving today.

Where has the time gone?!

Seriously, life has been flying by lately.
With summer school winding down I have been crazy busy, and on top of that we're moving into a new apartment this coming week.  (So exciting!)

Packing is just the pits. 
It's hard to know where to start, or even how to pack since we're literally moving two miles down the road to a new apartment.

In the meantime, I've been running my little heart out. 
I decided I needed to have good running shoes, so yesterday I went to a store where they watched me walk and determined the best shoe for my foot. So legit.
I think my feet are going to love me a little bit more after my runs now :)

also, pardon the two different socks.
I bought two new pairs yesterday, and tried one of each on before taking the picture. :)

So that's where I've been... basically just studying. I'm anxious to be able to blog more frequently, and especially to catch up with all of my blog reading!

Happy Tuesday Friends!

Happy Birthday Mallory!

Today my sweet little sister is turning 17.
Which is so hard to believe,
it seems like just yesterday she was my "real-life baby doll."

 and I used her as a canvas to practice my Pocahontas Indian War Paint. ;)

Sweet little Mal, 
thanks for always being my number one fan!
I couldn't ask for a better little sister!
I love you bunches and hope 17 is one of the best years yet!

Running- Half Marathon Training.

Let me start by saying: I have never considered myself a runner, ever.
This summer I started running as a stress reliever, and every single day I find myself actually looking forward to running.

It clears my head,
it makes me proud of myself when I finish and have accomplished something.
Especially because I keep proving to myself that I'm better than I thought I was,
I'm capable of more than I have given myself credit for.

It's helped a lot with all of my anxiety with class too.
I tend to freak out a lot over school, the first week of summer school I felt so overwhelmed during the lectures that I literally came close to having panic attacks. I told my mom I  have NEVER felt so crazy, I was having to concentrate on breathing... it was just the definition of ridiculous. Running has kind of given me a way to just let everything go, and feel good about myself.

Source: livehappyagain.tumblr.com via Leslie on Pinterest

SO with that being said, Jasmine and myself  have decided to start training for a Half Marathon.
I've always wished I could complete something like that, but it never seemed possible to me. Well, I've decided it's time to push myself to do it. There's no better time than the present, right?

We're registering for the Run Rock n Roll Half Marathon in Savannah on November 3rd. With the amount of time between then and now, I definitely think it's doable. If you follow me on pinterest, you've probably seen a ton of my pins about training and stuff... but It's hard to find a good training plan.

So that's where you guys come in. I know several of you are avid runners, and many of you have even completed half marathons. What training plans did you use? Did you do a special meal plan? Any other tips you can share with me would be so much appreciated! 

I'm so excited to commit to something like this, last year I would have never dreamed I'd be doing it, and I feel like that's exactly why I need to prove to myself that I can! :)

Flip Flop Swap & Other Good Stuff.

First things first: If you participated in the flip flop swap link up below so we can all see your goodies! I  can't wait to see all of the packages you ladies put together! :)




Also, have you noticed anything different on here?
I redid my blog yesterday: all by myself.
Not gonna lie, I'm pretty proud of how it turned out.
I just knew it would end up being a disaster, but it came together nicely.
I felt like I just needed a little change, and something crisp and clean for a design was what I went for.

I'm still working on ironing out a few little kinks, and adding some things here and there... but for now I'm loving it.

Happy Thursday loves!

Koozie Swap

Swaps make me happy.
Especially when you get paired with someone who has a knack for putting together a package, and is super sweet.

Sarah hosted the swap, and shopping for koozies was too much fun. I was blessed to be partnered with Jessica at Preppin' Postgrad. (check her blog out if you haven't already)
She has such an awesome blog, and I'm so thankful we were partnered together so we could become friends in the blog world!

So without further adieu, here's my lovely package:

She did such a great job, it's so summery.. is it not?
and she gave me my first lilly koozie :) Which has already been put to good use:

ohhhh yeeeahhh. Now I just need an ocean backdrop for that picture and we'll be SET.

Happy Wednesday friends!!

p.s. If you participated in the Flip Flop Swap I hosted with Liv and Sarah, link up to show off your goodies will be TOMORROW :) So make sure you swing by and link up!

Running Playlist

I've been running pretty regularly here lately, and I'm working on training for a big run. I've never been much of a runner at all... So this is huge for me.

Anyways, I need your help. I need some kick butt running jams for me to get lost in while I truck along!

What songs do you have on your playlists? I need your best ones so I can make me a rockin playlist this afternoon!

Summer School Sucks.. but nights out on the town make up for it!

The title of this post says it all.
I was feeling pretty low Friday night... Summer School seriously got the best of me.
You know when you're studying hard for something, and you feel like you're getting absolutely no where because the material is just SO overwhelming? Well yeah... that sums up the past 2 weeks of my life.

And Friday it really hit me that I'm tired of it.
I know it'll pay off in the end, but when you see all of your friends out having fun on Instagram, and you don't get to be apart of the fun it really bites.

SO I worked my little tail off and went out Saturday night to celebrate one of my friend's from High School's 21st birthday.

me, Candler (the birthday boy), and Elise

 Best part of going downtown? Running into random people you know. I live for it.

Candid pictures make me laugh.

We ran into all of the boys from our hometown, who are always fun to be around.

but mostly me and Elise just had a blast hanging out.
It had been TOO long since I'd gone out with her, or anyone for that matter.

So next Saturday it's happening again when I don't have a test looming over my head.

Did you all have a great weekend?!

Terrapin

Terrapin is a local beer company in Athens, and touring their brewery has been on my bucket list for quite a while now. 

Well it just so happens.. it's been on Ben's bucket list too, so while he was in town over the weekend we made sure we got it crossed off.

Naturally it was 106 degrees when we went on Saturday.
and inside the brewery? 
It was blazing hot.
But well worth it.

Bonus? You get awesome pint glasses.
Boom.
We were happy people.

We both like trying new beer,
so Terrapin was right up our alley.
I'm kind of feeling a brewery tour road trip on my bucket list now...

We shall see. ;)

 Cheers!
Have you been to any breweries? 
 Spill. 

I want to know your favorites, and favorite beers... because I love finding new ones!