Weekly Round Up (December 1-7, 2019) | Blogmas Day 7

There's always some snaps that sit on my phone throughout the week that tend to get skimmed over while I'm putting together blog posts. I thought it would be fun to end each week during Blogmas with a collection of what didn't make the cut for the rest of the week for one reason or another! This week was particularly low-key because I was only in the office for a whopping one day. Monday I worked remotely, Tuesday was a snow day, then Thursday and Friday I was sick (still am 🤧), so nothing particularly exciting happened aside from lots and lots of Netflix and lounging in bed to get better, but here are the things that you missed from me this week!

I finally registered for Half Fanatics, and became a Double Agent! You might remember that I qualified for Marathon Maniacs in the spring, where I ran 3 marathons within 90 days. Over the summer I qualified for the Half Fanatics by running 3 half marathons in 90 days - the Wallis Sands Half Marathon, the Sour Apple Half Marathon, and the John & Jessie Kelley Half Marathon! They were putting on a Cyber Monday sale for a lifetime membership for the Fanatics so I decided to jump on the deal! PLUS when you're both a Marathon Maniac and a Half Fanatic, you're automatically considered a Double Agent, so I'm now officially Marathon Maniac #15241, Half Fanatic #18266, and Double Agent #3578! I really enjoy being part of the Maniacs so I am beyond excited to be part of the Fanatics & Double Agents as well! 🤗

Untitled Goose Game has been one of my favorite things about 2019 and I absolutely love all the memes that have come out of it. I saw this posted and thought it was genius 😂 We need more horrible geese in this world! 🤪

WHY DON'T WE DO THIS EVERYWHERE?! Dogs deserve the most, tbh.

I saw this tag floating around Twitter and I was curious to participate! The song I originally got - "Butterfly" by Weezer isn't the happiest song in the world lyrics-wise, but I'm hoping that 2020 will be beautiful like a butterfly. This year has been full of challenge and growth, and I hope that means that I will evolve in 2020! I also accidentally hit "next" when I was laying down in bed after doing this tag and the next song that popped up with "The Healing" by Bloc Party which I thought was appropriate because I also hope that 2020 is a year full of healing!

I've been really enjoying seeing everyone's Spotify end-of-year wrap ups. I shared my top artist of the decade a couple of days ago, but I wanted to share some of my other stats as well. I definitely was super into Khalid in the spring/early summer thanks to him being our Spring Day artist at work (he puts on an amazing show, btw!) and I absolutley played "Outta My Head" right to death 😂 Also not a huge surprise that Lizzo was my top new artist. I feel like she was on everyone's top artists this year (and rightfully so!).

This will 100% be me on Christmas morning 😂

Getting Festive & Feeling Accepted

Happy December, everyone!

(And most importantly, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!! The day this post goes live is my mom's birthday. So, you know. The most important day of the year. I hope you have the greatest day ever, Mom! ❤️)

Can you freaking believe that it's December? It honestly feels like we were JUST ringing in 2018 and here we are, nearly 12 months later, ready to say goodbye. WOW. This time of year is super fun, though, and even though the season can cause me to stress (check out my Holiday Self Care post from earlier this week!), it's also a time of year where lots of really great memories can be made. And I just love to be festive! My work desktop is all updated and ready for the season:

Free download of this adorable gingerbread wallpaper over on Sarah Hearts!

Last week ended on a super positive note at work. Not because anything specifically happened (it was actually quite a weird week when it came to the things our staff was dealing with day to day), but because I'm at that point in my new position where I finally feel like I'm clicking with the staff and starting to become friends with my colleagues. The awkwardness has really started to melt away and I feel much more comfortable around my staff and feel like I can be myself around them without feeling judged. It always takes a while for that to happen, and I really felt like we were finally getting to that point, especially at the end of last week. I'm so happy about that! 😊 There was this moment on Friday where 3 of my coworkers and I all gathered around a computer and watched the premier of the "Thank U, Next" music video and I just felt *accepted* at that point. It's a great feeling!

(btw, HOW GOOD IS THE "THANK U, NEXT" VIDEO?!)

{source 1} | {source 2}

The weekend was a bit of a whirlwind. Saturday was filled with snuggling the pups and decorating for Christmas (or attempting to, at least). I wanted to get the whole place decorated, but I really only managed to get the tree set up and decorated before I got too tired and wanted to go to bed. 😂 I did end up live streaming my Christmas tree decorating, so if you'd like to see the whole process from start to finish you can watch that here, but for folks who just want to see the finished product, here's a photo!

Our beautiful tree for 2018!

Lupita was being such a snuggle bug on Saturday! So cute. I also took the girls on a ride when I went to pick up coffee and Lupita *always* needs to sit in the front and you *always* need to be petting her as you drive. She cries if you don't, and will pull your arm toward her until you do! 😂 Poppy is a bit more relaxed in the car than Lupita is! 😜 But I love taking them with me to one of our local coffee joints because they always give the dogs a treat every time we come through the drive through. A treat for me and a treat for them! 😊

Meanwhile, in Florida... The southern Ficketts are hard at work getting their house ready for our Christmas visit later this month. My mom posted this awesome photo of my dad setting up a Christmas tree IN THEIR FREAKING POOL. #what I don't think my parents will ever not do the coolest things ever, even it means being a little ~risky~ to get there. 😂 My dad also shared a shot at night time with the tree all lit up. So awesome! Not gonna lie - even though we *just* had a break for Thanksgiving, I CANNOT WAIT for the Christmas/New Year's break. I need another vacation already! 😂 Only 16 more days! (But who's counting?) (Me. I'm counting.)

Sunday was the Happy Holidays Half MerryThon and I woke up to a beautiful day full of pounding rain and whipping wind. 😫 It really took every possible shred of motivation for me to get my but out of bed. The last thing I wanted to do was wake up, drive two hours, and run 13.1 miles in the freezing rain. But I did it. Why do I do this to myself? 😂 This was a race that I had run back in 2013 and the course was, to my memory, the exact same.

Due to the weather, most people opted to wear *smart* rain running gear, but I still rocked an ugly sweater and Christmas leggings (over copious amounts of other layers to stay warm) because IT'S A HOLIDAY RACE, Y'ALL. Needed to be festive. As you'd imagine, there weren't many people spectating on the course which is never super fun, but the folks that did come out and cheer were so great and I got a lot of compliments on my festive outfit. My clothes were quite absorbant, though, and after about 5 miles of running in the pouring rain, it felt like I was running with weights all over my body. At least it was a better workout? I guess? 😂

I only had two complaints about this race, though I'm that the weather played a huge factor in both of these things:

1. The water stops were really inconsistent. The was one at mile .75 (???), then again at about mile 2.5, then we didn't get another one until mile 6. It was an out-and back course, so we saw the same stops at mile 7.5ish, 10.75ish, and 12.25. It was WEIRD and left me feeling really dehydrated. I don't usually wear my Camelback for races that are going to be colder, so I didn't think that it would be a problem and I don't remember it being a problem the last time I ran this race. If I remember correctly, I think there was an additional water stop between 2.5 and 6 the last time I was at this event, and I'm assuming that due to the weather they were short on volunteers and had to cut out one of the stops. I really felt the impact of the lack of hyration throughout the race, unfortunately, though I understand if they were short staffed!

2. There was ZERO hype at the finish line when I crossed. Like... none. No music, no cheering, the volunteers looked miserable.... >_> It was awkward. Again, I'm sure the weather played a factor in this but... that was a major buzzkill. I'm sure that there were folks that this was their first half marathon and I feel SO BAD for them if that was the welcome they got across the finish line after all the hard work of training. Like... come on. It was actually silent when I crossed the finish. So awkward!

Anywho, it was a good way to get my #SundayRunday long run in. Tackled a nice, hilly course, ran with completely soaked and heavy clothes on my body, AND got a medal out of it. It's always good to put some runs with bad conditions in as you never know what you're going to get come race day, so hopefully that half made me that much better of a runner for my next full in February!

After drying off and picking up some lunch, I headed to Brett's parents' house for his niece Sophia's 6th birthday bash! It was just a small group of us but it was so fun having dinner, watching the Patriot's game, seeing Sophia open her gifts, and having cake & ice cream! We even got to wear fun princess themed party tiaras, as you do when you're at a 6 year old's birthday party. 😂

For those of you that might be familiar with Strengths Finder, you might know how excited I was to have the opportunity to find out at 34 of my Strengths in order yesterday! Ever since I learned about Strengths I've been convinced that my #34 Strength is Woo.

Welp.

Guess what my #34 Strength is.

NO ONE IS SURPRISED.

I litereally LOLed when I saw this. I was not far off at all. 😂 I also found out that I don't have an Influencing Strength until #15 (not influential at all I guess) and HALF of my top 10 are Strategic Thinking Strengths. I need to get out of my own head, apparently. Anyway, so cool to finally see how all 34 of my Strengths line up! I have a Strength Coaching session with our department head next week so I'm excited to see how that meeting goes. 

Other than that it's a real regular week for us this week. Like I said, we're counting down the days until we get on the plane to Florida so that's all I can really be bothered to think about at the moment! 😂 One of my grad school pals Brittany is hosting a holiday party this upcoming weekend at her place so we'll be heading to that on Sunday, but other than that we don't have any weekend plans. We'll probably spend it getting caught up on chores, getting groceries, going to the gym.... you know. Fun adulting things. Hopefully we can squeeze in a Christmas movie as well! And of course, tons of reading. 😉

I'm currently reading American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis and I'm enjoying it thus far. Nothing screams Christmas like a good slasher novel, right? 😂 I'm also hoping to get started on Rich and Pretty by Rumaan Alam for my Lowest vs. Highest rated books project, and I just got a holiday romance from Book of the Month called One Day in December by Josie Silver that is really calling my name right now. I'm only 11 books away from reading 150 books in 2018, which is 50 more than my GR goal for the year, but it would be SO COOL TO HIT THAT NUMBER (I read 148 in 2017 🙃). So, like I said, tons of reading shall be done!🎉🎉🎉

What are you getting up to this weekend? Reading anything you're excited about?

Let me know in the comments!

LINKS I LOVED THIS WEEK

This Gingerbread House Looks Just Like Hogwarts from Buzzfeed

Ariana Grande - Thank U, Next Music Video from YouTube

Girls during Christmas season be like... from Trey Kennedy

Mixtape of the Moment: Fall 2018 Playlist | Blog Ahead #13

Blog Ahead #13
Originally written on October 22, 2018

For the last several years, I've been putting seasonal playlists together. These are mostly playlists of songs that I'm really into during any given season. They can be songs that I've heard a million times (as reflected by the Fleetwood Mac & Hootie and the Blowfish songs on this list), or new favorites that I don't want to get lost in the shuffle of the floods of new music that comes out every day. For today's Blog Ahead post, I wanted to share my Fall 2018 playlist with you all to give you a taste of what I've been jamming out to this season!

What songs have you been loving this season?

Songs That Push Me Through the Tough Miles | Blog Ahead #5

Blog Ahead #5
Originally written on October 11, 2018

As this post goes live, I should be running my little legs all around Richmond, VA! Fingers crossed that I'm feeling great, but in the event that I'm not, I thought I would share some of my favorite songs to get me through some of the harder miles. These songs have gotten me across finish lines in past races, and they mainly act as a reminder that if I work hard, dig deep, and pretend I'm on The Challenge (because let's be real, I just want to make TJ proud).

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I hope you enjoy this playlist of ~jams~ that help me get through when I just want to give up, and hopefully they will help you get through your next tough workout! Also, you have any songs that help you get through harder workouts (or anything in life that you need a little bit more of a kick in the pants to get through), leave them in the comments. I could always use more songs to add to this list!

A Few of my Favorite Links {#25}

SURPRISE! IT'S A BLOG POST THAT ISN'T READING/BOOK RELATED!

I figured you all were looking for a break. ;)

It's been a bit since I've shared some links with you all so I thought it was time to compile some internet things for you all to click on and check out! This round we've got one more serious and heavy thing but mostly fun, hilarious, and ridiculous things to balance it out. I hope you all find something you're interested in, and make sure you share your favorite links of the moments in the comments!

I Replaced The Word ‘Millennials’ With ‘43-Year-Old White Men’ And Now These Headlines Are *Italian Chef Kissing Fingers Gesture*

I always get confused as to why other generations like to abuse the term "millennial" so much, as if the literally millions of people born between the years 1980 and 2000 are all the same and a single-handedly ruining society. So when things like this article come out it is beyond satisfying. Take a look at these hilarious edits and learn just how ridiculous that blaming literally everything terrible on Millennials.

Anxiety, Depression, and Being a Downer



Charlieissocoollike has been a favorite YouTuber of mine every since I started visiting the site back in 2007 (I can't believe that is nearly 10 years ago!). It means so much to me when people I admire speak out about mental health. There is so much ridiculous stigma around topics of mental illness when 1 in 4 people in the United States live with it everyday. We need more voices on this tpic, we need more dialogue regarding this difficult subject, and we need to start treating mental illness as just that - an illness that needs to be treated. It's real, and we need to treat it that way.
New Hampshire Rated Happiest State in New England

This was a cutesy little article just just relays one very important piece of information - New Hampshire, which I consider to be my home state even though I've lived in Massachusetts for pushing 10 years now, is the happiest state in New England! LIVE FREE OR DIE!

Lincoln Park Zoo Names Baby Camel 'Alexander Camelton'

I mean... the title of this link is all you need to know. The Lincoln Park Zoo is extremely witty. And I love it. ALEXANDER CAMELTON! WE ARE WAITING IN THE WINGS FOR YOUUUU!
$ave Dat Money - Lil Dicky

Brett showed me this music video and song and I'm obsessed. I've never related to a rap song so much in my life. Seriously, give this a listen and really pay attention to the lyrics. A.) They're hilarious (I mean, that iced coffee verse at the end? PLEASE.) and B.) They're so effing smart and I'm pretty sure anyone in my age and SES group can totally relate. American Girl Dolls Ranked by Betchiness

My friend Solange had posted this on Facebook and as someone who LOVED American Girl growing up I LOLed the whole way through this clickthrough article. If you know anything about American Girl - whether you had a doll, read the books, read the magazine, or visited the store - click through this article and cry-laugh along with me.
What links have you been loving lately?

Mixtape of the Moment: SUMMER JAMS 2016

I've been finding a lot of really fun upbeat music this summer which I think perfectly fits the mood of the warmer weather. I've recently discovered the running feature on the Spotify app (I'm honestly not sure how long it's been there) that syncs your steps per minute to the beats per minute in a song and then creates a playlist based on your current listening trends. You can imagine - with marathon training - that I've been finding some really great stuff on my training runs. As a result, I've built a Summer Jam playlist that I'm pretty proud of! It's the perfect mix (in my opinion) of old and new music that's upbeat, funky, light, and all around fun. Press play and see if you can find anything that you want to jam out to for the rest of the summer!

Mixtape of the Moment: Spring 2016

Spring has been a blur (as it usually is) and I never really had a ton of time to really search for new music. Most of this playlist consists of songs that caught my attention while they were playing in the background while answering a marathon of emails or scrambling to get last-minute project accomplished before a large on-campus event. Most of these are super upbeat EDM/pop/hip-hop jams that kept me going through the frequent 12-hour shifts that were being pulled throughout the semester! (And to be quite honest, when I wasn't jamming out to this playlist, I would be rocking out to the Hamilton soundtrack. So. There's that. :P)

I hope you find a track or two you'll want to throw on your Summer playlist. Mine is well underway and I'm already very excited about the background it has provided for these warmer summer months! If you'd like to get a sneak preview on my seasonal playlists as they develop, follow me on Spotify. You can find me here! Also make sure you leave some of your favorite tracks from the season so I can check them out! :)

Mixtape of the Moment #3

I recently got back into listening to Spotify (I feel so weird and out of touch saying that - everyone uses Spotify). I was really into using this platform for my music in college, but when I moved to Dean in 2012 the wifi blocked Spotify for some reason, so I started to rely on creating YouTube playlists in order to collect the music I was really into at any given moment and kind of forgot about it. Now that I'm on my own wifi & work wifi, I'm remembering how amazing this platform is and I'm re-obsessed! :)
I'm a big fan of making seasonal playlists so when I want to look back and see what music I was into at a certain point in time, it's all collected right there! For today's Mixtape, I'm going to share my Winter 2015-2016 playlist that I've created on Spotify. I'm sure I'm going to add to it as Winter moves forward, but as I add to it, it will update! Right now I'm getting right back into some EDM and Electro-funk. The sounds on these songs are so interesting to me and I need to listen to them several times a day! And of course, I have the token New Found Glory song on there found on their deluxe edition of Resurrection. They're just. so. GOOD.
Give it a listen, and let me know what music you're currently into in the comments! <3

Mixtape of the Moment #2

It's been quite some time since the last time I made a Mixtape of the Moment post! I found that I tend to listen to the same music quite often (I like what I like, I guess), and with my crazy schedule throughout grad school I never had the time or energy to look into new music that I enjoy, but now that I have more time on my hands I'm starting to dedicate a little bit of it to creating playlists of my favorite songs of the moment.

I've found that I really like to create playlists based on the season that I'm enjoying certain songs, so today's Mixtape of the Moment is based on all the songs I played on repeat throughout this summer! Hit play for a fun, summery mix of my favorite tunes!

1. "Lean On" by Major Lazer & DJ Snake ft. MO 2. "Classing Man" by Jidenna ft. Roman GianArthur 3. "Cheerleader (Felix Jaehn Remix)" by OMI 4. "Truffle Butter" by Nicki Minaj ft. Drake & Lil Wayne 5. "Secrets" by Tiesto ft. Vassey 6. "Five More Hours" by Chris Brown & Deorro 7. "Where are U Now" by Skrillex ft. Justin Bieber 8. "Get Low" by Dillon Frances & DJ Snake 9. "Can't Feel My Face" by The Weekend 10. "You Know You Like It" by DJ Snake & AlunaGeorge 11. "Don't" by Ed Sheeran 12. "Fun" by Pitbull ft. Chris Brown 13. "Let's Go" by Cartel 14. "Oh Wonder (Melvv Remix)" by Oh Wonder 15. "Giants" by Bear Hands 16. "Ways to Go" by Grouplove 17. "Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift ft. Kendrick Lamar 18. "679" by Fetty Wap ft. Remy Boyz 19. "Sugar" by Maroon 5 20. "Sing" by Ed Sheeran 21. "Good For You" by Selena Gomez ft. A$AP Rocky 22. "Something Good Can Work" by Two Door Cinema Club 23. "The Love" by A Tribe Called Quest

A Few of my Favorite Links {#12}

It's been a while since I've done a favorite links post! I kind of forgot that these have been a staple on my blog for quite some time, but now that I've pretty much caught everyone up on all of my life's happenings on this space, I finally have some time to chat about the things that I've been loving online lately! Hope you guys enjoy these as much as I do! :)

A First Look A LEGO's Official WALL-E Set

How. Freaking. Adorable. WALL-E is one of the most underrated Pixar movies to date and the fact that LEGO, one of my favorite toy companies, decided to create a WALL-E set makes me so, so excited! How cute would this look on a bookshelf? This was instantly put this on my wishlist!

12 Tricks to Appear Smart in Emails

This post (originally found on thecooperreview.com) is a hilarious infographic on how to wow your colleagues on your email game. Email is a huge, cumbersome part of all of our lives, so poking fun at the etiquette of passing notes electronically is always fun. Check out this post to pick up some new tricks to really impress your coworkers the next time you're in the office! ;)

Blues Cover of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Theme


I love when artists take well-known songs and interpret them into different genres, so when I saw this pop up on my Feedly, I knew I was going to be heart-eyes Emoji over this! This is a blues interpretation of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme (coincidentally, one of my favorite TV shows of all time) and it is excellent. I highly encourage you to take a listen, whether you're a fan of the show or a fan of blues music in general! Today I F*cked Up, and It Was Glorious Enough To Post Online
I read this post while I was in bed one lazy Saturday morning and I was cry-laughing the entire time. It also helped that I was reading these stories out loud who was also cry-laughing, but I never wanted this post to end. It's based on a sub-Reddit (I'm not a Reddit-er so I hope I'm using the lingo correctly) called "Today I F*cked Up" and it pulls some of the best stories that the author could find at the time of posting. If you need a quick pick me up for the rest of your week, take a look at this post, and maybe even click onto Reddit itself and read through a few. Amazing.
Under Construction: A LEGO Block Wedding Cake

(Clearly, I love LEGOs.) This is an incredible wedding cake that depicts mini-figs constructing the cake out of LEGO blocks and rolling out the white icing. Not saying that this will 100% be my future wedding cake, but this might 100% be my future wedding cake... 5 Things Successful Runners Never Do

This article is a quick reminder that yes, running is hard, but it's supposed to be. I sometimes let myself slack on my running when the going gets tough. I compare myself to other people, get discouraged by my bad runs, and probably over-exaggerate when I'm feeling just a little bit uncomfortable during my runs. It's important to remember to embrace the suck and realize that when you hit a rough patch, it only means you're about to improve! (Only runners will get that, hah!)

College is not a commodity. Stop treating it like one.

I read this while I was on duty a few weeks ago and it really resonated with me. There are many people who attend college now because it's the norm in our society, and many of those attendees enter their collegiate career with the attitude of "I'm paying thousands of dollars for this, so I deserve (fill in the blank)". I see this attitude every day I am at work, I remember hearing it come out of my friends' mouths when I was an undergrad myself, and I'm sure I even uttered it a few times myself. Those that are in college need to realize that college isn't there to make you feel comfortable. It's supposed to challenge you and frustrate you, because that's when you're going to grow. The Washington Post does a great job of putting this idea into words, so give it a read!

What are some links you're loving lately?

Spring Favorites 2015!

This weekend marks the first day of summer! HOORAYYY! Summer is my favorite season - sunshine, ice cream stands, fireworks, flip flops, and all the BBQ food you could ever dream of. Love. It. Brett and I have a lot of fun things planned for this summer, including moving into my new apartment, taking a trip down the Cape with some friends, and spending as much time together before football takes over his life once again in August. I'm SO EXCITED!

I 100% skipped out on doing my favorites for the winter, but I really wanted to get back on the favorites ~trend~ for the spring! Let's hop right into it.

Activity | Playing Pokémon Alpha Saphire

Brett bought me Alpha Sapphire as a graduation gift and of course the day after I graduated I needed to hop right into it! I was super duper into the game for a long while but sessions with Orientation has since interrupted my streak of playing for hours upon hours. I'm 6 badges in right now (All you PokéFans will know what that means) and I can't wait to have a bit more time to finally beat the game. It's so much fun (as Pokémon always is) and I love that I have a reason to spend some time on my 3DS again! :)

App | Dreamdays 365

This app is one of the millions of countdown apps out there, but I love the way this one looks and operates. There is a very minimalist feel to this app, which I love, and I looked at it almost every day as graduation drew nearer and nearer. If you're counting down to something exciting and are looking for a nice looking and functional countdown app, I would recommend this one!

Apparel | Bridgewater State University Alumni Tee

I mean, of course! Not only do I love this shirt because I get to brag about the fact that I actually graduated from grad school, but my organization, PC, gave it to me as a parting gift. I'll always think of them whenever I wear this shirt. Double special! :)

Book | Wild by Cheryl Strayed

This was the only book I read in the spring, but this book was great. Memoirs are my favorite genre of literature, especially if it involves travel and adventure! This book made me want to go hiking so badly every time I picked it up to continue reading. I have always thought long-distance hiking would be such a cool adventure, and this book made me fall even more in love with the idea. This book would be perfect for anyone who feels like they are in a bit of a crossroads in their life, or anyone who is craving a bit of adventure.

Food & Drink | Espresso Bacon @ The Fix in Worcester, MA

Tim and Joanne took me out to this restaurant on my last day of my internship at Clark, and as soon as I saw "Espresso Bacon" on the menu I KNEW I had to order it. Oh my goodness. So delicious. I'm pretty sure I blogged about this in one of my life updates in May. But still. Oh my goodness. *drool* I can't wait to go back there to get some more (with an ADULT milkshake, because they have those there #heaven)!

Home & Office | Filofax A5 Saffiano in Pear

Obviously. I love this thing. I knew I would love the A5 size! I felt so cramped in the Personal size, but now I feel like I can really plan comfortably and utilize my Filofax to its full capability. Right now my schedule has been extremely repetitive (Orientation is basically 3 weeks of déjà vu), but once I move and start my new job I'll be relying on it a bit more. I can't wait to show you all the inside soon! :)

Movie | Pitch Perfect 2

I was a bit nervous about how good this would actually be (I'm not typically a fan of sequels) but I was laughing so hard throughout this whole movie. It's a lot of the same thing as the first movie, and it's a very "cutesy" story line like the first movie, but it is entertaining as hell. (One recommendation: leave your politically correct hat at the door if you really want to enjoy this movie, because most of the jokes are SUPER inappropriate. They really do attack every identity in this film!)

Song | "Lean On" by Major Lazer & DJ Snake


When I first heard this song, I'm pretty sure I plaid it on repeat for 48 straight hours. The beat is so catchy and cool, I absolutely love it. GREAT jam to fall in love with right before summer kicks off!
TV Show | Game of Thrones Season 5

DUH. Holy crap. This season was INSANE. Game of Thrones never fails to impress me. The story line is incredible, the actors are amazing, the cinematography is stunning, and the plot twists KILL YOU ON THE INSIDE. I'm not going to put any spoilers in here, but THAT SEASON FINALE. JEEEEEEEEEEEEZ. The best part about this season is that it ends at the same place the latest book ends, so now NO ONE really knows what's going to happen next except for the creators. Brett and I are really considering starting to read the books together to tide us over until the next season releases, because who knows when that will be? If you haven't started watching this show, YOU NEED TO START WATCHING THIS SHOW. /endtiradeaboutGoT

Memory | Birthday/End of Classes/New Job/Graduation Week

Also another obvious one. This was one of the greatest weeks of my life and I feel so lucky to be fortunate enough to experience it. I turned 25 and ended my grad school classes on the same day, the next day I accepted my position with Mount Holyoke, and the day after that I graduated and spent the entire rest of the week celebrating with the people I love the most. What more can you really ask for as a twenty-something? Who knows if I'll be lucky enough to have a week like that again, but I will always look back on that week of one of the best of my life! :)

What were some of your favorite things this spring?

A Few of My Favorite Links {#7}

It's been an exciting first few weeks of the semester! As my event calendar ramps up and my marathon training winds down (just began tapering... yikes!), I've been spending a little less time perusing the internet for fun and more time doing actual research related to school, internship, and work. (#gradlife) I have, however, found quite a few great links over the past few weeks, so I suppose quality has not been sacrificed! :) Here's what I'm loving online as of late:

Holly-Woo: Matthew McConaguhey struts onto Clark University Campus

Sooooo Matthew McConaughey was casually on campus at Clark, my internship site, last Friday, filming for his movie Sea of Trees. I didn't have the pleasure of seeing him myself, but I did get to see the set and the filming process which was really, really cool. (I also discovered that I have the worst time spelling "McConaughey".) I can check "spend a day on the set of a movie" off my bucket list! Can't wait to see the movie when it releases! Here are a few of my own photos from the day:

Trailers in the parking lot across from campus.

View from my office window. A few scenes were being filmed in the building in the background.

Movie crew outside of the building I work in. McConaughey was filming in the room above the guy standing on the roof!

They had to create the effect of trees in the window with spare branches (even though there were actual living trees outside...)

Home Run to Happiness: The Kickball Ice Cream Maker

This is an amazing idea! I remember making home made ice cream at Girl Scout camp as a kid and though the experience was fun in itself, I remember it being a lot of work as well. This gives you the fun of making ice cream as well as the fun of playing! Such a fun summer activity idea! (Until the ball pops open and the ingredients go flying everywhere. It's inevitable.)

5 Things I'm Not Allowed to Say

I really enjoyed this post shared by Katie at Scarphelia. She discusses what some bloggers have become, and points out that many blogs revolve solely around click counts, giveaways, and brand deals rather than including authentic writing, which is what blogging is there for in the first place. Many bloggers try to uphold the image of being "perfect" and having "perfect lives" in order to maintain an audience and sacrifice their authenticity in the process. As an avid blog reader as well as a blogger myself, I can't help but agree. When I'm reading posts that are painfully obvious brand promotions, I have to scroll away from them. I like to read what the author has to say, not what the person who is paying them does. What's your take on this issue?

10 Lessons Learned While Running 100 Marathons

This woman is an inspiration to me. I came across this article when I was feeling pretty down on my training, but reading that not only had she has accomplished 100 marathons within the time span of a few years, but also has experienced the same training mistakes as me, was another reminder that truly anything is possible if you dedicate enough time and energy to it. If you need some fitness motivation (or even life motivation), check out this article! 

(Side note, 3 weeks and 2 days 'til the New Hampshire Marathon! AHH!)

"Paradise" by City & Colour

I loved City & Colour in high school & college, but I kinda forgot about his music after I graduated (save for a few iTunes shuffle appearances). I heard this song on a rerun of Catfish (hilarious) I had on as background noise as I was cleaning my apartment one day, and Dallas Green's voice immediately caught my attention. I tracked the song down and have been playing it on repeat ever since!
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I've officially come to terms with the fact that my favorite season is pretty much over and that fall is making more and more of an appearance in New England. (The leaves are still green, but it is getting depressingly cooler outside...) For me, fall is a time for FOOD. I think fall is my favorite season for food (not counting summer BBQ... that will always be the best in my eyes/taste buds) because it has all the best flavors - pumpkin, apple, cinnamon, cider... YUM. Of course, because of this, I've been Pinning fall recipes like CRAZY and I can't wait to try some of them out. Here are three recipes that I'll definitely be testing in the coming months:

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

If the title doesn't intrigue you enough, just look at that photo! *drool* I swear once the weather gets colder, pretty much every recipe calls for cream cheese of some kind. Not that I'm complaining... Definitely need to make a batch of these and bring some into one (or all) of my offices!

Pumpkin Pie French Toast

If you know me at all, you know I'm a breakfast gal through and through. My co-workers know I don't eat huge lunches because of it, my boyfriend knows I get cranky if I don't get my breakfast in the morning, and my mom knows that a fresh batch of French toast can cheer me up after a long day. When I found this recipe for pumpkin French toast, I just about fainted. Can NOT wait to try these out on my next lazy Sunday this fall.

Caramel Apple Sangria

One of my favorite fall treats growing up was apple slices and caramel dip. This is a fun grown-up play on that treat! Perfect for a cozy night in after spending the day watching a football game and pumpkin picking! Can't wait to try this out with some friends. :)

What links have you been loving lately?