fuschia and lilac

can i tell you about an awesome deal i got today?

it was the perfect storm at GAP:

all sale items 40% off plus i had $20 in rewards

i just had to check it out and i'm glad i did.

i ended up with this new outfit for...

$5.18

electric fuschia pants
originally $49.95, i paid $3.70

spring lilac shirt
originally $19.95, i paid $1.48

oh yeah! a good deal feels so good.

and it continues

"it" being my birthday

remember my new obsession?

well these beauties arrived in the mail today:

and... i LOVE them!

feather | clover | k initial

my parents sure rock at surprises! the charms are perfect.

thanks you two.  i am so lucky!

sometimes

sometimes a single day can just be too overwhelming.  

everything seems hard, or complicated, or unfair, where everything
 seemed fine the day before.  things that seemed so manageable morph into things that
are too much to bear.  suddenly, there are new things to take on, decisions 
to worry about, and people to pray for. 

and it all happens so fast. and for a moment, or for more than 

a moment, maybe a whole day, it all seems like the worst. like nothing 

else could possibly complicate life.

then...

 the prayers are said and the comfort comes.

the time is taken and the mind is rested.

the phone calls are made and the soul is rejuvenated.

sleep is enjoyed and the body is ready.

and slowly the worst is manageable again, even welcomed, 
because the worst is never the worst.

at church

 if you recall, jeremy and i teach the sunbeams.

 i wore these shoes to church yesterday and during
our lesson one of our cute 4-year-olds said, 

"Hey you have cheetah shoes. 
Do they make you run fast?"

kids say the funniest things.

and actually they are leopard. who knew?

dipped

 last night we enjoyed some fantastic fondue!

we were brave this time and ordered something besides just milk chocolate
to dip the goodies. we got milk chocolate with crunchy peanut butter stirred in...
 and it was delicious! perfect ending to my birthday week.

remember when it was my birthday?

so i have been mia for almost a week!  what?!  

well, i have been busy.

you know, just doing the usual... going to school and my internship, doing homework  (reading articles & books and writing papers), sitting on the subway, working out, eating, showering here and there, and basking in my birthday glory... it's been great. 

so how about i just recap the big day?

 the day i turned 24:

  {self portrait at 24}

last year's here

i had the day off... so i just did whatever i felt like.

i started off the day by making the delicious wafer cake (my family's birthday tradition), 

going running, finding my door covered in love, and staring at my presents so beautifully

 arranged by jeremy (he's so cute).

then i ventured out to get my toes pampered...

while i was there they may have talked me into getting a manicure, too.

 then i did some light reading for school (because sometimes reading for school is quite enjoyable) 

and i made whole wheat muffins for lunch.

i eventually made my way downtown and rounded jeremy up from school.

we walked around the public garden and newbury street to check

 out my newest obsession: alex and ani.

then we went to pf changs for dinner! delicious!

i always have chinese food for my birthday dinner, even when i was in romania.

they even gave me a birthday dessert!  raspberry cheesecake!

 after hanging out downtown we headed home 

(where we witnessed a beautiful sunset) to open presents and eat cake!

  i was so surprised by the awesome gifts!  and i loved having a relaxing day to do whatever.

thanks family and friends for making my birthday rock!!

23 has been so fun... and 24 is bound to great as well!

according to cliff

cliff is jeremy's ipod touch that he got for his birthday. we named it after the triceratops fossil at
the museum of science that we saw for the occasion. the name has actually stuck, which is great because
it's way easier to say, "hey jeremy, can i see cliff?" instead of, "hey jeremy, can i see your ipod touch?"

anyways...

here are some pictures of tonight's date from cliff:

mini-golfing (we tied!) and ice cream at the same place. SCORE!
 jeremy got green monster and i got milky way. they were super delicious! (can you believe those are kiddie sizes??) we will definitely come back to this gem. they have the cows out back and they make everything on the spot. you can even buy fresh milk. how cool is that?

what now?

i was going to add some more things to my electronic wishlist,
but jeremy informed me that he was done shopping. so...

what now?

i guess that means i can focus 100% on school stuff instead

of day dreaming of things i want. or i can start planning what

i will actually do on my birthday... yeah that sounds like

a WAY more fun alternative.

i have the whole day off. any suggestions?

what would you do with a whole day to yourself?

5 days left! YAY!

here's an idea! no. 7

just rounding up birthday ideas for the hot husband

how about a little something for my wrist?
i love these simple and sweet bracelets.

i'm also kind of crazy about the wrap bracelets. i love them.

here's an idea! no. 6

just rounding up birthday ideas for the hot husband

my running playlist is pretty old.
i would love to get some new beats with a lovely itunes giftcard.

i bet it would even make me run faster.
p.s. you have about a week, until the big day! hooray!

hey vermont!

we went to the beautiful green mountains of vermont this weekend
to sleep outside and commune with nature - we wanted to go camping before school gets crazy.
we roasted hot dogs and mallows and told stories around the campfire with our buds.

i love camping.

the next morning we had a breakfast of champions complete with
hot chocolate, eggs, sausage, pancakes, and fresh fruit. it was delicious!
after our bellies were full, we went to the birthplace of Joseph Smith
to hear some amazing stories.

after, we ventured up to the Ben & Jerry's factory since we were so close.
we took the tour to see where they make all of the goods.
we also got to sample triple caramel chunk. and wow, it was tasty!
(hey jeremy, i would love a pint for my birthday.)

it was my first time in vermont and i am a big fan. vermont is beautiful!
it was a quick trip, but a fun one.