April Birchbox

The moment has come and I am finally caught up with my Birchbox posting! Here is April's box which I loved tearing open and discovering the secrets behind each beauty product and extra.

Supergoop! | Daily Correct SPF 35 CC Cream || I already love BB creams and Supergoop so when I saw that the CC cream had more coverage than the BB cream combined with SPF 35 I was dying to try this. I loved it.

Beauty Protector | Protect and Detangle || Part de-tangle, part conditioner, and part heat and sun shield, this beauty protecter goes above and beyond when it comes to protecting the hair. And did I mention it smells like vanilla?

Claudalie | Divine Oil || I've had a dry patch on my leg that needed some desperate TLC. When I applied the Divine Oil to the area it instantly smoothed the skin. And it smells pretty fantastic with notes of Moroccan and Bulgarian rose, grapefruit, and vanilla.

LaFace Laboratories | BEAUX YEUX Beautiful Eyes Concentrate Intensive || This is for the under eye puffiness from studying for finals and writing papers well into the night. Just apply a dap under each eye and an instantly cool tingling is there. But if it tingles a little more than you expected and you wind up with a new red puff under your eyes you may be a little sensitive to the product like me.

Hail Merry | Macaroons || These were oh so delicious. They tasted healthy and the right amount of dark chocolate and coconut.

If you're interested in getting or gifting a Birchbox, you can sign up here for $10 a month.

Sunday Social {Week 47}

Today I'm linking up with Ashley and Neeley for this weeks Sunday Social and this time it's all about things I really never did as a child.

1. Did you sleepwalk as a child?

Nope.

2. Did you ever try to run away or sneak out of your house?

Well I wasn't that dramatic so no.

3. Did you have any imaginary friends?

Sure did. Apparently I was said to have a man named Fred who lived inside my head and he organized all my thoughts. My dad asked me how I divided both English and French. I said English is all organized in file cabinets. "Where's the French?" "He threw it in the closet and under the bed."

4. Did you ever go toilet papering?

No.

5. Did you ever sneak tv shows you weren't allowed to watch?

I wasn't really allowed to watch many things. I never really sneaked shows or movies until high school. If my mom thought it was "adult" in language, violence, or any remote sex scenes she would cover my eyes or say "I don't think you should be watching this." So of course I did. And I definitely snuck into movies and told my mom I saw a different movie than what I saw

Saturday Instagram Recap {Week 16}

Here's my Saturday Instagram Recap linkup with Sara of Pearls and Curls of my 21st Birthday!

21 | I turned 21 on April 22 and had fun.

Patterns | I've been painting a lot of patterns this week for my final art project. It's done. I'll post the whole portfolio when the semester lets out.

MVA | I sat in the MVA for only a short while and I ran into an old neighbor from back in the day. There was a woman with an excellent MVA themed shirt.

Crab Deck | Mom took me to lunch at the Crab Deck on my birthday. I wound up getting a Spiked Arnie Palmer and a Pina Colada. And I had fun from there on out.

La Plaza Tapatia | Stacie and Maggie took me out after the Crab Deck and the Blue Bird Tavern to La Plaza Tapatia for margaritas. It was a lot of fun with them and I declared my self the ambassador to La Plaza.

Ducks | I found them.

License | I got my horizontal.

Cara Box | For the second time the post office screwed up. They somehow smashed the side and left a note saying they care. Luckily nothing was broken this time. But seriously USPS, get yourself together.

Lilly Scarf | Sam and I went to dinner on Tuesday at the Blue Heron Cafe and munched on delicous starters. She also surprised me with this Lilly scarf that I must say I am absolutely in love with! She's pretty much the best.

I just want to say I've thoroughly enjoyed myself this week and it's not even over.

April Cara Box

Now this is my third time participating in Wifessionals Cara Box Swap and I was thrilled to be paired with these two bloggers, Khristenas of Just One Grain and Cassie of A Southern Pair. I learned some neat things about both ladies. Khristenas had a bubble wrap wedding and Cassie has run in some great fun runs with her husband, like the Disney Princess Half Marathon (she was Rapunzel and he was Flynn) and the Color Run. This month's theme was to "go green" so I gave Khristenas a box full of items to get her moving and grooving in her new garden and Cassie sent me an amazing box full of some super cute things all wrapped in colorful yarn.

Inside the box:

 Birthday cup

Straws

Birthday Button

An Irish blessing

Journal

Water bottle

Green nail polish

Button hair-ties

Mascara

EOS lip balm

Green frog

Purse post-its

Margarita hand sanitizer

Vera Bradley key chain

Cassie made it really with all the crafy things she made like the frog, the painted anchor water bottle (it was so me,) the birthday cup, and the button hair ties. She definitely took the theme and went green in more ways than one. I got a ton of green colored items (which is great because green is my favorite color) and then environmentally friendly items like the completely recycled journal, the eco covergirl mascara, and the eco EOS lip balm. And of course, what's a Cara box going to me without something Irish. She left me a lovely Irish blessing, "May you have walls for the wind/ and a roof for the rain/ and drinks beside the fire/ laughter to cheer you. and those you love near you/ and all that your heart may desire!"

Oh and can I just say the card she gave was hilarious "Let there be laughter. love. peace. hope. friendship. and alcohol, lots of alcohol. happy birthday."

What a great exchange. So thank you to Cassie for the box and for the time we got to know each other (Khristenas as well.)

22 before 22

I've been seeing variations of bucket lists like 30 before 30 and the like that promote happiness and goals throughout the year. Now that I've reached a new age I'd like a bucket list of my own running until I turn 22. That way by next year when I become a "twenty something" I can say I've completed a fair number of goals in the past year.

1. Lose 15 pounds

2. Run 5Ks

3. Read 22 books

4. Exercise daily

5. Learn a third foreign language (I know French and Gaelic)

6. Get into painting

7. Gather family recipes to make a recipe book

8. Make at least one thing from Pinterest each month

9. Visit as many states as I can (hopefully some new ones)

10. Make an Ireland photo album

11. Take a cooking class

12. Do one creative thing every month

13. Stargaze all night

14. Get a proper domain name

15. Cook a delicious meal for my family

16. Figure out my career goals

17. Meet blogger friends in real life

18. Discover new hairstyles that work for me

19. Volunteer

20. Go for a road trip

21. Try out hot yoga or brickram
22. Learn to sew

Fingers crossed I complete all of these by my next birthday. If you had your own bucket list what would you do?

I'm 21, guys!

Guys, guys, guys, I'm 21 today!

I'm excited that now I can go clubbing, gambling, and drinking (not that I'm super big on the three, but I'm glad that I can.) I can even go to concerts and not have to get that black X on my hand (that I can easily wash off in the bathroom minutes after arriving to the venue.) But, most of all I'm excited to go out to restaurants and bars and have fun.

Woot!

Sunday Social {Week 46}

Today I'm linking up with Ashley and Neeley for this weeks Sunday Social and this time it's all about weaknesses of the must haves.

1. What is your shopping weakness?

Great deals and old cameras. If I happen upon an old camera I research it and barter for a good price.

2. What is your food weakness?

Brie. Sushi. Trail Mix. I would preferably not combine these.

3. What is your go to movie to watch when nothing is on?

I don't have go to movies. I tend to watch new and different movies so that I never watch the same thing twice. But, I will always make an exception for Monty Python and the Holy Grail. That's easy to watch again and again.

4. What is your go to breakfast food?

I am not a breakfast person, but I do love bagels. Particularly bagels with lox and cream cheese from Naval Bagels.

5. Do you drink coffee? If so, how do you take it?

No and I feel like I'm one of the few college students that don't.

Saturday Instagram Recap {Week 15}

I'm linking up with Sara of Pearls and Curls to show you all how the last two weeks have been.

Presents from Gerred | During the weekend boxes appeared on my doorstep from Gerred. I'm still opening them, but I have to say my fiance is wonderful and knows me pretty well. 

Thrifted Clothes | Check out these threads. The skirt I'm wearing was only $7 at my favorite thrift shop in Severna Park.

New Camera | I cannot begin to tell yow excited I am about my Canon Rebel T3i. There's a world of difference between my old Rebel XS and this. I can see it in the picture quality and everything. I got to take some pictures of my grandpa this weekend and enjoyed seeing the quality of pictures it produced.

Kacie's 21st Birthday | I took Sam around Annapolis last weekend and we ended our exploration of the city at the Boatyard Bar and Grill for my cousins 21st birthday.

Upcoming Birthday | My Dad's been mixing drinks preparing me for my birthday on Monday (which I won't be celebrating until next weekend because who goes out on a Monday?)

Quelf | We had the Cultural Ambassador Picnic last Friday and there was a great turnout. So naturally we played Quelf, but I recommend playing Quelf with only a few people so it'll go faster.

Letters | I sent out letters to Rebecca, Bailey, and Gerred this week. I even included a doodle of a giraffe in a canoe for Gerred.

How'd your week go?

Irish Immigration Process

You may not need a visa for a semester abroad in Ireland, but you will need an immigration card to stay in the country. One of the things I wish I was given more information about was the process of applying for the immigration card.

When you first arrive in Ireland a passport stamping man will ask for your necessary paperwork and leave a green stamp saying you have so in so days to get yourself down to the Garda building (Irish Police Station) and become a temporary immigrant. This time can range from somewhere of 3 weeks, a month or two. I personally, waited until the last day imaginable (which I don't recommend because it makes traveling out of the country a lot easier.)

So first thing is first when it comes to applying to become an immigrant. Get all of your important documents and passport and get yourself to the Garda. Don't know where the Garda building is? It's on Angeleasa Street across from the Court House. 

[via]

One thing I cannot stress enough is the amount of time you will be spending in the Garda building. Dedicate an entire day to this venture. You will wait for hours in an almost non moving line and just when you think you're close to your window, they'll take the longest 2 hour lunch break you could ever imagine.

So make sure to bring your necessary paperwork, passport, and something to keep you entertained. I suggest an iPod, a book, or school work. Then the process won't seem as grueling as it actually is.

Something Old or Something New

The third article, Something Old or Something New, is up on Bayside Bride. In this article I share the history of wedding traditions and some fresh alternatives to liven the event. I talk about white wedding dresses vs colored dresses, who "gives away" the bride, the first look debate, personalized and preset vows, and the kissing game I learned at Ryan and Jenn's wedding.

[via]

Find out both sides of the wedding tradition debates to see what you and your fiance will use for your wedding.

The Making of King Lear

This semester I enrolled in the production class of King Lear. It was a large class divided into mostly actors in the play and then a few English majors taking it for their pre-1800 class. It's funny, when I first took the class I thought I'd be just reading and analyzing the play. You know, typical English class business. But it turned out that I was about to embark on a video interpretation of the play and my group and I chose to do a documentary of "The Making of King Lear."

The moment this task was assigned to my group we got straight to work on coming up with questions and e-mailing them out to those we wanted to interview. Then for the rest of the semester we scheduled one or two interviews a week and figured out what it was like making the play from everyone involved.

In the process I got to interview Barbara Mowat, the editor of Shakespeare's Folger edition of King Lear. That was really something special. My group and I also met and interviewed with all three professors involved in teaching the course: Prof. Moncrief, the Shakespeare professor, Jason Rubin the director, and TM who played King Lear, as well as Maegan the dramaturg, Chris Chronin the fool, and the actresses that played the three sisters Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia.

I am proud of the work I put into this and the way that my group worked effectively on producing the end product. Watch and enjoy.

Pack for Ireland

Since I've arrived back in Ireland I've really gotten involved with the international clubs at Washington College. I've joined cultural ambassadors, a peer mentoring group between Americans and international students. I've also reached out to students who want to study abroad and have shared my experiences and the trials and lessons I've learned through my time abroad. These have helped the prospective study abroad students I've talked to and I thought, why not share these helpful bits of information with everyone on here. My first topic of interest is what to pack for a semester abroad in Ireland.

Before I left for Ireland I made a manifesto on abroad packing rules that urged to stick with the basics, think of layers, cut out half of what it is you intend to bring, leave space, and use the carry on effectively. What I plan on doing now is giving you all a practical packing list customized entirely for a semester in Ireland.

[map via] 

If you're studying abroad in Ireland or any place similar in climate like England feel free to print this out and use this as a guide while packing. If you have any other suggestions of what to pack leave them in the comment. Stay tuned for more tips for studying abroad and navigating in Ireland.

Saturday Instagram Recap {Week 14}

I've been loving the change in weather this week so I'm happy to link up with Sara of Pearls and Curls and show you all how I spent these warmer days.

Spring | The sun is out, the trees are blossoming, and I'm happy. Campus is so much more appealing with all the pink trees.

OOTD | I don't normally do OOTD because I've been wearing workout clothes most of the time and I've always been wary of selfies. But, I thought I'd at least share some day to day outfits. I even wore a dress.

Creative Process | Honestly sometimes I don't know how to explain this class. This week the guy who usually brings in his guitar to jam for 12 minutes brought in a toy crocodile, a story on notecards, whirly gigs made of paper, a stick, his guitar, and a coconut. He began to play his mellow music and had us all pretend we were in his backyard. He had one girl in our class walk the crocodile around while another had to stop it in its tracks with a stick all while we read the story off the notecards simultaneously and threw the whirly gigs. Very weird, but it completely de-stressed me for the rest of the week so I really loved it.

Morning Work Outs | I was a little behind on workouts this week. I only went Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Hopefully next week I'll get back on track. But I do love that I have committed myself to going to the gym and only not going if I have a paper to write.

Essie's "Grenadine" | I've had this color for a year now and this is the first time I've tried it out. Good gracious I love this color and I've gotten a few compliments on them.

King Lear | It's been my life lately. I need to talk about this class more. Basically I have been filming every aspect of this class: rehearsals, the play, interviews, workshops, special guests and events, you name it I've filmed it. Now I've got 8+ hours to go through and edit before Tuesday. Let's hope for the best and I'll share the final project on here when I can.

Sibling Appreciation Day | This was trending and I'm not even sure if it's a real thing, but I thought I'd pick an old photo of Ryan and me. We look hella formal.

Birchbox and Julep | I was so excited with the boxes coming in the mail, but I'm thinking it might be time to cut ties with Julep. It's really just not doing it for me.

How was your week?

The Gulf

Gerred and I love discovering new places to eat, so when I visited him for Spring Break we made sure to try out a few different restaurants around Pensacola, FL. We ate at both Wine World Bar in Downtown Pensacola and Flouder's at Pensacola Beach. But when it came time to our date night we made sure to drive out to Orange Beach, Alabama and eat at the #1 restaurant in the area, The Gulf.

This restaurant is ranked #1 in Orange Beach for a reason, it's just so innovative. The owner wanted to build a restaurant by the beach, but for zoning reasons could not have a "building" there so instead he moved out some storage crates, some couches, picnic tables, and chairs and set up a hip restaurant right on the water. The decor is beautiful and the food is incredibly healthy and delicious.

We ordered the Mahi Sandwich and Red Snapper Ceviche and even split the Homemade Hummus with chips. Sometimes when I'm really hungry I think back to how good the hummus was.

If you find yourself in the Pensacola area I definitely whole heartedly recommend this place. We liked it so much Gerred and I made our own "food passport" to keep track of all the restaurants we have visited and liked and this place certainly scored high.

March Birchbox

I'm only a month behind now as I'm catching up with the March Birchbox!

Macadamia Natural Oil | Healing Oil Treatment || This has such a fantastic scent and gives plenty of moisture to my hair just like the Deep Repair Masque.

Sage + Fasten | Common Sense || This scent is relaxing and natural with notes of orchid, lotus, mango, peach, and lychee. This can be a nice daily scent.

MAKE | Dual-Phase Eye Make-up Remover || There is a ton of cucumber oil in this just FYI. I put it around my eyes and they were instantly inflamed. This may work for others. It's just definitely not for me.

MAKE | Silk Cream Lipstick || This lipstick is very red and very matte. I appreciated the color, but realized that it was not a color I needed. I instead used it in an art project where I wedged the lipstick into a bullet shell. I at least got a really good use out of it.

Madewell | Emery Board || This was a full size extra emery board from Madewell. I found it useful, but the pattern was exceptionally matronly.

Macadamia Natural Oil | Deep Repair Masque || My hair has been very dry recently (I blame it on the  fluctuating weather where it went from Winter to Summer in a matter of moments.) So when I used this masque it conditioned and renewed all that moisture into my hair. And the combination of macadamia, argon, and tea tree oil in this smells divine. 

If you're interested in getting or gifting a Birchbox, you can sign up here for $10 a month.

Toms

One of the most important things to have when you're traveling is a good pair of walking shoes. I remember traveling around in flats and boots that were both ripping apart at the heel. It became really difficult to walk around in them so I wound up just supergluing them. But I will say my shoe problems weren't as bad as Sam's whose soles completely split in half when we were walking across the rainy island of Inis Mor.

Now if I do wind up teaching abroad and traveling again I'd like to be prepared and have a nice comfortable pair of walking shoes. I keep reading about how Toms are the perfect travel shoe so I may give these a go. I found them for $44 on the Toms website and then found a Toms Outlet that sells them for $17.99. That seems manageable. EDIT: This is a bad link do not go to the Tom's Outlet.

Which pair of Toms would be more versatile? Do any of you own a pair of Toms?

Birthday Wishlist

I sort of have a hard time coming up with what I want for Christmas or Birthday. But this year, I have a few ideas of what I want since I put a big post-abroad spending freeze on myself. These have been the items I've been coveting on the journey of saving money. Also any one of these things could probably be found on ebay for way cheaper.

Canon Camera || I have the Canon Rebel XS and which was a great entry level DSLR back in 2008. But I'm thinking I may want to leave the entry level and move up to a more professional camera. I'm not sure whether to stick with the rebels and go with a T3i or save up for a more expensive one like the 5D, 6D, or 7D. Seriously I need advice/suggestions on this.

Anthropologie | Home Grown Monogram Mug || I think this mug is just super adorable and I've been getting into tea drinking lately when writing papers to sort of calm me down.

Anthropologie | Jaisalmer Headband || I'm growing out my hair for the wedding and I am having a hard time styling it so I keep it up most of the time. I think this headband would be great to add to a messy bun.

Dogeared | Small Anchored Stud Earrings || So I had some anchor earrings that I adored, but they went missing when I moved into my dorm room. I miss them.

Amazon | Blog Inc || I really like blogging and want to learn all I can about making this better and what not.

South Moon Under | Evelyn K. Bright Paisley Infinity Scarf || I feel like I need to grow my scarf collection a little more and this scarf is just adorable.

Kate Spade | Mikas Pond Stacy || Now that I have my Kate Spade purse, I'm kind of thinking I need to upgrade my vera bradley wristlet to a big girl wallet.

Paper Source | Retro Smash Folio || I realize I both love and hate scrapbooking. It's really expensive and time consuming, but when I did it for Gerred for his graduation it looked great and he loved it. I'm thinking I want to maybe micro-scrapbook in a more casual way for my years of college and for my semester in Ireland and the Smash folio would be great for that.

Flight to Texas || I'd like to visit Gerred over the summer and do a road trip around Texas with him and see the state. If anyone has any recommendations about what to see in Texas (especially in Corpus Christi) let me know.

But really all I want for my 21st birthday is to go out bar hopping in Downtown Annapolis with my family.

Teach Abroad?

Lately I've been really stuck with what it is I want to do with my life. I'm an English major not really set on any one career path or jumping into graduate school right away. I always throw around career ideas like teaching, writing for the government, journalism, social media, or event planning. I'm just confused.

 Graduation is soon and I've found that there's one thing I keep coming back to,  is that I loved Ireland. I loved studying abroad there and I loved the freedom to explore and understand other cultures. And I want to keep doing that. So after some thought I've decided that I need to go abroad again, but this time I'd like to teach. 

[via]                                                            [via]

After graduation I'd like to teach abroad in either France or Japan. I want to teach English, figure out what I want to do in life and explore, explore, explore. 

Has anyone else taught abroad or are thinking about doing it? Any other countries I should consider? Any advice?

Sunday Social {Week 44}

It's Sunday and that means I'm linking up with Ashley and Neeley for another Sunday Social. This week the questions are all on Pintertest.

1. What is your favorite outfit pin?

These two outfits from gochicorgohome are my favorite outfits for Fall and Spring/Summer. My style could be considered classic and nautical. I tend to stick to jeans, cardigans, and bright colors. If something is striped I'm probably going to want to grab that. You can find the rest of my fashion sense on my Pinterest style board.

[via]                                                             [via]

2. What is your favorite food pin?

I've so far made these brussel sprouts twice and I should probably make a recipe post on here since there isn't one to go with the picture. But it involves brussel sprouts, balsamic, parmesan cheese, and pine nuts. Here are some more recipes I've pinned.

[via]

3. What is your favorite wedding pin?

I'm in love with all the nautical, Navy, whimsical weddings I see. But this first look photo with the bridal party above is what really inspires me. I'm really considering doing a first look for our wedding even though Gerred is trying to stick to his traditional guns and wait for me to walk down the aisle. For more of my wedding pins I'd suggest looking at my wedding, decor, venues, engagement & wedding photography, bridal accessories and gifts, drinks, invitations, cakes, favors, wedding tips and advice, hair, flowers, bridesmaids, and dress boards. Yes, I know I have a lot of wedding boards, but in all fairness I am engaged and I am going to have a lot of time to plan.

[via]

4. What is your favorite DIY/craft pin?

There are a million DIYs I love, but the one I've been coveting for awhile and will hopefully do soon is the Mod Podge Lilly Pulitzer coasters out of paper from Lilly agendas. You can find my other DIY/craft pins here.

[via]

5. What is your favorite quote/verse/lyric pin?

I actually did not collect quotes until I needed to answer this. So I made a words board that I mostly stole from all of Katelyn Brooke's pins and made my words board. I plan on adding to this board later. But here is the quote graphic I chose. "Remember to explore" honestly this definitely fits me and this blog pretty well because that's what I like to do.

[via]

6. Share on more random pin you love.

I like the idea of having a guest room with a giant map on it where people can pin where they are visiting from. Honestly if I could just fill my home with maps I'd be happy. Here are more dream home designs I like.

[via]

[via]

[via]

For more of my pins you can follow me on Pinterest.