Super Busy, Time for Instagram: March

Happy Tuesday, lovelies!

March has been a truly amazing month, and to send it off with good vibes I thought I'd do an Instagram recap commemorating all of the wonderful things that have happened! Enjoy!

IHOP National Pancake Day!

One of the most creative spellings of my name I've ever seen!

Pot of Gold Music Festival 2015

Spring Break 2015 in Vancouver

I will never get tired of bows, seersucker, and monograms.

I love little diners, they're too cute.

Ahhh, I miss my baby!

I rarely get up super early, but when I do, it means Starbucks and #SkimmLife.

Judging the Arizona National Qualifying Tournament 2015 bright and early Saturday morning!

I love dogs, but service dogs make my heart swell!

I. HATE. HEIGHTS. But I scaled a 30/40 foot(ish) wall multiple times!

Yesterday was Theatre Geek's birthday - please go wish him a belated birthday on my IG post!

Sometimes life moves so fast yet so slow that you really lose track of time! Doing Instagram roundups are fun because they actually put time into perspective! Have you ever found yourself losing track of time?

xx

Catch you next time.

Quote of the Week {Guest Post by Kendra}

Happy Sunday, lovelies! 

Hard to believe that it's nearing the end of March, huh? When I walked out of my Accounting exam late last week, I think I almost went into minor shock, realizing that I am over halfway through my second semester of college!

I was having a conversation with my academic advisor the other day about the different education paths I could pursue, and imagine my glee when Kendra of It's a Bug's Life approached me with the idea of guest posting with this quote.

Kendra is an awesome, beautiful blogger who stumbled upon my blog and I subsequently fell in love with her's! Y'all should definitely go check it out - she writes about everything from books to OOTD's to her life in college.

*******

*******

Being in college, it can be so hard to try and decide what to do and study for the rest of your life. This is something that can be so stressful for college students, and I have been struggling with this lately because I don't have a solid idea of what I want to major in. I found this quote the other day, however, and it has really helped me remember that I'm only a freshman and I have three more years to figure it out! I also love this quote because it makes a lot of sense; as long as you aren't completely slacking off and taking pointless classes, any road will take you to where you want to be in life, even if you don't know what that is yet. 

​

Uncertainty can be so hard for some people - I am definitely one of them - and trusting the fact that they will eventually find their way in life can be even more scary. What if you never figure it out? What if your original plans aren't the ones you stick with? What if, what if, what if. Life is full of those questions, and I don't think it's possible to have a solid plan that will be the ultimate guide to your life. Plans have to be flexible in order to work out in life, and if you don't have a plan, that's okay too. This is something that I have thought about so much lately, and I feel like I am finally coming to terms with the fluidity of life. But that's the best part, isn't it? How else would we appreciate the good times if we didn't have the bad to balance it out? 

The beauty of life is also the chaos of it. You don't wake up knowing what will happen during the day - it could be the best one you've ever had, or maybe just an ordinary one. Being a college student, I plan out a lot of my time based on my class schedule and assignments that are due, but it's important to realize that going somewhere spontaneously can be just as fine as something planned. And most of the time, those random adventures you go on with friends are the best memories you'll ever have. So accept that life is crazy and that you won't know what you're doing until you get there. Focus on living your life now, and trust that you'll end up exactly where you're meant to be in life. I'm not saying you should throw caution to the wind and "just go with it" for everything; make sure you study for tests, keep up with assignments, and go to class, but also make sure you don't stress out too much and make time for fun as well! Life has its way of working itself out in the end, so try your hardest and live life to the fullest.

*******

Great quote, right? What have you done lately to help yourself live life to its fullest?

In the Eye of the Hurricane: A Quick Family Reunion

Last Thursday, I had lunch at Oregano's with my old Speech and Debate coach, her mother, and Theatre Geek! They say that the people you meet in college will be your friends for life, but that the ones you keep from high school will forever be part of your family.

These past few weeks have been pretty hectic so having a nice little two hours to get away from everything and relax the slightest bit was amazing. We were able to talk about everything under the sun, from what's going on back home to the funniest things that had happened to us lately.

When Theatre Geek and I were leaving the restaurant, I had felt my eyes water the slightest bit. I love my college friends, but I am so happy I will always have my Mama Feebs and Theatre Geek - we have been through so much together and they really know me like nobody else.

When life gets busy, people often begin to shut down and close off from the world until they finish whatever needs to be done. Do you do this or do you leave yourself fairly open?

xx

Catch you next time.

#BloggersGetActive: A Morning on the Range

Happy Wednesday, lovelies!

For those of you following along on Instagram, you know that last Friday I hit the driving range for the first time in months! It was so much fun to hit some shots with my Pledge Mom, but I didn't stretch as much as I should have, so my back literally feels like I was only there yesterday!

The weather is really beautiful right now, and I hope to take advantage of it before it warms up too much and then I head home at the end of the semester to the 120+ degree heat (where, for the record, I become a vampire because I remain inside the house during the daytime).

One of the things many bloggers and social media-savvy readers have in common is that we love the indoors, Internet, and Netflix. But I mean, who can blame us?! I know many people are working to become healthier, whether it be going to the gym or going on a fun hike.

I am inviting everyone to use #BloggersGetActive on Instagram and Twitter, to not only share fun ways to be active, but also so that we can all support each other!

Apparently when work gets cancelled, I still get up early anyways. Such a beautiful day for hitting the gorgeous Arizona greens - I haven't hit in months but I still had a few great drives 😍 | Are you coming to the end of your #SpringBreak? Make sure you check out@lauren__douglass' guest post on the blog! {Link in bio}

  

A video posted by @pasthopingfor on Mar 20, 2015 at 12:27pm PDT

Do you play any sports? What is your favorite way to get active? What helps keep you motivated?

xx

Catch you next time.

Spring Break 2015 {The Arizona Prepster Link-Up}

Okay, I know this is late, but as I warned y'all earlier last week, I've been pretty busy! Anyways, here are pictures from my Spring Break trip to Vancouver!

The weather was chilly, but beautiful! I was so glad I had the opportunity to wear my new boots!

My grandpa laughed because I wanted to walk through every bookstore we saw!

Just walking around the Wharf.

Throwing up forks, everywhere I go. #SunDevilNation

Guess who walked into Storybrooke?!

My first NHL game!

How was your Spring Break? Did you have any new experiences?

xx

Catch you next time.

Getting Back on Track From Spring Break {Guest Post by Lauren}

Happy Thursday, lovelies! When I was settling into my workload from Spring Break last Saturday afternoon, I had a minor freak out: I realized just how many things I had to this week and the pressure started to get to me.

I love my blog and all of you, and I'm always on the lookout for new things to try out here on the blog so I decided to try out guest posters. Luckily, I joined the HerCampus Blogger Network last month and had a whole network of wonderful young bloggers I could ask for help.

Today my friend Lauren from The Arizona Prepster is guest posting! Lauren was actually one of my very first blogging friends. She's super sweet, has great style, and she has a great blog so please go check TheArizona Prepster out! Lauren is a college student, just like me and many of you, and has a greatseries called College Tips, with each post composed of just a few quick tips about things that you sometimes don't think about! Enjoy!

*******

Spring Break. A week full of good times, good people, and lasting memories. But then out of nowhere it's Monday morning and you're thinking "how the heck am I going to finish this semester?" {Maybe not that dramatic, but you get the point}. It is true though, Spring Break gave you a taste of summer and now you're stuck until you get yourself back on track.

Review Course Schedules at the Beginning AND End of the Break

There's nothing like coming back on Monday and then hearing "don't forget about your paper/assignment due Wednesday/next class". Suddenly everything else is tuned out and all you hear is your inner voice freaking out. It happens to the best of us and we students hold no judgement. That's why it is imperative to review your course schedules before your break begins and plan out time during break and/or after break to do immediate assignments.

Walk Around Campus and Get Organized on Sunday

Most people come back from vacation Saturday or Sunday. I highly suggest walking your normal campus route to class on Sunday, or just take a stroll around campus. Even if you live on campus, you may not walk around since you may want to relax; however getting yourself back into your routine before classes pick up will help you transition easier. Plus, who doesn't love strolling around a quiet campus? Also, make sure that you have all of your supplies together the night before. You know that you will be a little slower Monday morning, so help yourself by getting your supplies together and ready the night before so you can take the extra time to get ready.

Use Summer as Your Motivation

Remember those first few weeks of the spring semester and all that got you through those papers and exams was Spring Break? Do it again with summer! Summer is even longer and more fun than Spring Break so it should b an even bigger motivator! When you finish an assignment, think "that's one assignment closer to summer". Do the same thing with exams and other projects. Summer is the "light at the end of the semester" so work your hardest towards it!

You'll have more fun during summer knowing that you tried hard and earned good grades during the semester. As much as you don't want to admit it, Spring Break is over and mulling over how short it was will not help you finish out your semester as strong as you want. Focus on the future! Let's finish out this semester strong!

*******

Lauren's third tip is too true - summer is so close, I can almost feel it! Well, it is in the upper eighties today, the weather is so beautiful! What are your essential to-dos to get out of vacation funks?

Bows and Kites March Subscription Box

Happy Hump Day, lovelies!

Yesterday afternoon I went to the mail and was greeted with a surprise in my mailbox! While I was still in Canada for Spring Break, I decided to order a Bow Subscription Box from Bows and Kites. I ordered it a few days after the initial shipments were sent out, so I wasn't expecting to receive my box so soon!

I absolutely loved my box - and I'm in love with these bows! My bow holder is getting a little heavy but COMMAND strip hooks are real troopers, I'm so thankful for them!

Ahh, aren't they all so adorable?! I can't wait to wear them! 

xx

Catch you next time.

Pot of Gold Music Festival | Happy St. Paddy's Day!

Happy St. Paddy's Day!!

One of the funny things about this little holiday is that as Irish as everything is and people treat it (at least, here in America), it turns out the holiday is more American! I found this article about today after I woke up this morning and found it funny and interesting.

Heads up: As well as written in the article, a woman in my Jane Austen class this morning told me that it really does rile up the Irish when you say/type "St. Patty's" instead of "St. Paddy's" so be mindful and accurate!

Over the weekend, I ended my Spring Break with the Pot of Gold Music Festival! It was so much fun, especially because I had won a pair of tickets for Friday through the Blaze, a student-run alternative radio station, so I could take a friend!

Friday night my friend (and Brother!) Brittany saw Bleachers, AWOLNATION, and we were only four people back from the barricade to watch Bastille! AWOLNATION put on such a great show and Bastille, live? Simply wonderful - I'm starting to think they sounded better live than they do in recordings! All of the acts were amazing, the weather was beautiful, and we even made a few friends while getting smashed together like sardines trying to see if we could get closer to the stage.

I took a break from the festival on Saturday to do homework and was back on Sunday to see New Politics, Echosmith, and *one of my FAVORITES* Fall Out Boy!

New Politics are actually from Denmark so I was excited to see them in-person. My friend Riggs and I were laughing because David Boyd, the lead singer of New Politics, looked like he was sweating up a storm on the stage in black pants and what looked like a heavy black jacket.

If you like Echosmith but haven't been following them religiously, you may be as surprised as I am about this Fun Fact: The Echosmith band are all siblings! They are all wonderful musicians (and their bassist Noah switched between three basses throughout their set!) and when they stopped moving/playing to sing A capella for a few seconds? The harmonies were so beautiful and the chords were so together I was speechless!

Saving the best for last: I have to be honest for a minute. I am a picture pack-rat when it comes to my phone: I love keeping old pictures and videos because I'm a sentimental person. But I ended up clearing and using over 5 GBs of my phone's memory to video the Fall Out Boy concert! This may not seem like a lot at first, but I have the 16 GB iPhone 5S (so only 12 GBs of storage!) so that's almost half of my memory - BUT IT WAS WORTH IT. Fall Out Boy put on such a great show, their energy was amazing for over the hour and fifteen minutes, and I'm so beyond happy I finally got to see them!

Today I will be celebrating St. Patrick's Day by wearing my green power blazer because I am giving a presentation in my Public Speaking class!

What did you do this weekend? How are you celebrating St. Patrick's Day? Remember to wear green or risk getting pinched!

xx

Catch you next time.

Stateside and Pi Day

Hello lovelies!

So the plane ride back from Canada was interesting...turbulent flight on Friday the 13th? I'm not really a superstitious person but you can bet I was slightly freaked out for part of that plane ride!

As soon as I set foot out of the airport, I definitely realized "Wow, I am not in Canada anymore!" I left Vancouver in 48° and its chilly winds and good ol' Phoenix welcomed me home with 90° and a 20 minute wait for my UberX.

Fun Fact: Although my flight was half an hour early, it took 45 minutes for us to get our luggage because AirForce One was landing in PHX - although I was a bit upset, I had to admit that it was the best reason I had ever been given for delayed luggage.

After unpacking all of my stuff, I examined my schedule for the next two weeks and promptly started freaking out. I have a lot to do in the next few days, especially, and it's kind of scary! I will be putting up pictures from my Spring Break soon, including a specific post for The Arizona Prepster's Spring Break Linkup on March 23rd!

Also, for those of you who didn't know, today is Pi Day! You know, pi, 3.1415926...okay, that's all I know! Another quick fun fact: one of my friends from elementary school has 50 digits memorized! Anyways, because of everything I have to do, I didn't get to really celebrate more than getting a frozen slice of Pi from WalMart, but hey, it was still delicious!

{via}

Piece of good news: I am officially opening up to guest posts! If you are a fellow blogger and interested in blogging here on my little site, feel free to shoot me an email {thesouthwesternprepster@gmail.com} and we can talk!

xx

Catch you next time.

Hello, Canada!

Well, I am officially in Canada! 

I will be here for a few days and I am wondering if any of you have any suggestions for things to do while I’m here. I am staying in Richmond to visit with family (and finally see my beautiful godson!) but plan on exploring Vancouver a bit. While doing some research on the area, I found that there is an anthropology museum, that definitely sounds like something I’d like to check out!

Have you ever been to Canada? What was the most exciting thing you did there?

xx

Catch you next time.

Freshman Five: Air Travel Tips

If you follow me on Instagram (which I would forever love you if you would!), you know that Thursday night I boarded an airplane for the first time in a long while and flew home!

Usually I drive, but because of my international spring break plans (trust me, sounds crazy but I assure you they are anything but!), my family and I decided it be best to just fly home and have a bit more time to spend with them before I head off.

By the time many of you will be reading this post, I will once again be up in the air, heading to cross the northern border into good ol' Canada!

Personally, I like flying. Now, don't get me wrong, I hate heights with enough of a burning passion that I refuse to ride roller coasters, but I enjoy the process of people-watching in the airport, potentially meeting new people, and having an experience, because every trip truly is its own experience.

Not everybody has flown on a plane before, or flown by themselves, so here are a few simple tips I have found to be pretty helpful to myself.

Dress Comfortably // I have been in both weather extremes, and personally, I would rather be cold than hot, because if you're cold, at least there's something you can do about it! I have never been on a flight where I wasn't freezing, so comfortable layers have become an essential when I fly! If, however, you aren't a fan of layers, bring a good coat or a blanket to keep on you during the flight. Lots of flights have their own blankets, but if you're a slight germophobe like me, you would probably rather bring your own blanket and just wash it twice after the flight.

Pack Smarter, Not Harder // Carry-ons are great, partially because they help keep your check-in luggage from going over 50 lbs (or is that just me?!). They are great for keeping the things you need at-hand, from an extra change of clothes to your laptop, but if you're a packrat like me, you may find yourself overpacking this luggage as well. To keep my carry-on light, I go no farther than packing an extra change of clothes, a book, my laptop, snacks, and any small things that I decided not to put in my check-in.

I Like Food, You Like Food, We All Like Food // Food is great, but airport food prices are most definitely not. Packing small snacks in your purse or carry-on is not a bad idea, especially if you happen to arrive at the airport early and you get hungry while waiting. Pick snacks that will satisfy you more and quickly - my mom loves packing almonds! Funny story: one of the girls who used to work for my parents told me that on a flight to Hawaii, the family sitting a few rows down from her had brought a cooler of sandwich stuff and made sandwiches throughout the flight! Now I have no idea on if that would pass the current TSA regulations, but what a nice idea, huh?

Bringing Entertainment // Depending on how long your flight is, you may decide to bring a book, a pack of cards, or maybe you're lucky and your specific plane provides WiFi or free TV. You won't always be notified of the WiFi or free TV ahead of time, nor will you always enjoy what they're showing, so having something small with you is typically a good idea - having options isn't necessarily a bad thing! Who knows, maybe your flight gets delayed and you have something to do while waiting?

Be Prepared // Planning ahead is great, but sometimes things don't necessarily go as planned, so remember to keep an open-mind when things happen. One of the most simple yet extremely important things to remember is keeping hydrated! It's really easy to become dehydrated during the flight so bring a collapsible water bottle that you can refill once you're past the security check and don't be afraid to ask the flight attendant for water! Also, hand sanitizer and wipes: I typically carry these in my purse anyways, but if you don't, I highly recommend traveling with them - you never know what you'll encounter!

Hope some of these tips were helpful! Have you flown before? What have you found to be helpful when you're flying?

xx

Catch you next time.

Getting Organized: Blog Life ft. The Preppy Greek

Hello lovelies!

As any studious, type A, slightly OCD honors student can tell you, organization really matters! There is a place for everything and everything has its place. But, sometimes even getting organized can get a bit messy, too.

I am currently working on getting my blog life more organized. Getting on a posting schedule is a little hard when school, work, and clubs collide, but it is almost my Spring Break and I hope to be able to get things back into order over that week.

Earlier this week, I was contacted by Jessica of Jessica Marie Design. Jessica is a graphic designer with her own adorable blog and Etsy shop! She has some of the cutest designs up on her shop, I absolutely love how everything is so bright and colorful - blogging should be fun and so are her blog planners!

Recently, Jessica released a new printable blog planner and, knowing what it's like to be on the other side, is currently offering the March 2015 pages for free as a download on her blog, how sweet is that?

Below I've added a few pictures from Jessica's Etsy shop that show you just how many ways you can customize your own blog planner:

Fun Fact: Jessica is offering 15% off your order of $12 or more on her Etsy shop (Code: BLOGPLANNER) until March 14, 2015.

How's your Hump Day been? Are you ready for the end of the week?

xx

Catch you next time.

This post is not sponsored in any way - Jessica Marie Design directly contacted me and informed me of this freebie and I thought it would be a good idea to share with my readers in the event none of them have heard of it.

Quote Of The Week: Furious Dancing

Happy March Monday, lovelies!

{via}

Sometimes life gets really, really frustrating. This morning I woke up, rolled over in my bed, groaned into my pillow, and begged time to rewind and let me go back to sleep for just a few more beautiful minutes. Oh, if only!

As if on cue, my phone began to blare Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off" and I knew that I actually needed to get up - not for the song, but actually because I have lined up my alarms so that "Shake It Off" is currently the song of my last alarm, which means if I don't get up, I'll be late for class!

I try to switch up the songs on my alarms every month to keep things interesting, and I'm always careful not to put songs that have been first as last in the current month so as not to confuse myself or accidentally sleep past it.

To me, furious dancing means finding a song that makes you smile, your heart race, and just want to stop whatever you're doing and jump around. Some people do yoga in the mornings (sometimes I do stretches!), but I've found that getting my blood pumping in the morning with a little dancing is one of the best ways to wake myself up.

How do you wake up in the mornings? What does furious dancing mean to you?

xx

Catch you next time.