On My Playlist: Christmas 2014

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Happy Thursday! This morning I woke up to my Pandora Christmas Station Alarm and, well, it's been a happy day since then. One of the things I love so much about this time of year is the vast amount of music at your fingertips! Don't get me wrong, I love classic carols, but some of the new covers and melodies that have been put out are too great not to love! Here are just a few of my current favorites:

Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) - The Mistletones
All I Want for Christmas is You - Mariah Carey

My Song For You - Brigit Mendler ft. Shane Harper
Carol of the Bells - Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Mary, Did You Know? - Pentatonix

We Need a Little Christmas - Glee Cast

O Holy Night - Tia Mowry

Sleigh Ride - FUN

Silver Bells - She & Him

Deck the Rooftop - Glee Cast 

White Christmas - Michael Buble

The Twelve Days of Christmas - Straight No-Chaser

Baby, It's Cold Outside - Darren Criss and Chris Colfer
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Andrew Belle

What are your favorite Christmas carols and songs? Do you have a cover that you really love? Let me know! I'm always on the look out for new music.

xx
Catch you next time

The 2014 Filipino Christmas Party

Every year, the Filipino community in my area have a huge Christmas party filled with everything, well, Filipino! There was plenty of food, traditional and current music, singing, dancing, party games, and even a little Zumba! One of the biggest parts of the Filipino culture is being happy and living in the moment, despite whatever else is going on. Many of the people who grow up in the Philippines have learned what hardship truly is, making moments of happiness worth that much more to them.

I really missed this girl!

Although I was born here in the United States, I try really hard to stay connected to my culture through my parents and through our community here. I work to embody and adapt the values of my Asian heritage with the very American culture I've grown up around and, though I still have a long way to go, I think I'm doing a pretty good job.

A little downside to having fun at parties is that sometimes it's a little hard to find the time to take pictures! I'll add pictures if I find more, but right now here are some of me as well as me with my dad.

I love the beauty in simplicity so I stayed classy and minimal on the accessories: a pearl necklace, my watch that I got from my mother for my 18th birthday, and my high school class ring (Go T-Birds!). To make the outfit pop just a little more, you can switch out the nude pumps for brightly colored ones to match a scarf or colored belt!

Michael Kors Coat | Little Black Dress | Henri Bendel Clutch | My Favorite Nude Pumps

What's your go-to outfit for holiday parties? Do you have favorite accessories? Happy Holidays!

xx
Catch you next time

Finals Week 1: Conquered!

To say that I am feeling immensely relieved does not even begin to cover it! This semester has been chock-full of ups and downs, challenging not only my academic abilities, but who I am and who I want to be as a person. Suffice to say, I am not that excited to be packing up to leave my new home and friends for a few weeks, but I am feeling pretty awesome now that I realize that despite whatever my Final grades turn out to be (Grrr, none of them have been posted!), I know I gave everything my best effort. Here's a video I found this morning scrolling down my Facebook timeline and I just couldn't make myself scroll past - it's sure to put a smile on your face!

xx
Catch you next time

Suite Love!

From the BRC's Paint War event at the beginning of the semester!

Lately I've been reminded that the friends you make and surround yourself with are the ones who really do help you shape into who you're becoming. A couple weeks ago, I was really stressed and my suitemate did something that seems small but meant a lot! A little while ago she went through something upsetting as well so I decided to try to return the favor and help her smile, even if only for a moment. We both kept our respective presents on our mirror to always remind ourselves to smile! 

Friends, memories, smiles: they are all very precious things that we need to remember to actively appreciate. When you actively appreciate these things, you not only show your gratitude to the people around you, but you also know that you're living your life. What are some of the things you've done to help someone smile?

xx
Catch you next time

Talk About A Busy Weekend

I'm neither the first nor the last person to attest to the fact that time seems to be flying so quickly, especially lately considering it is officially Finals Week down here in the Great Southwest.

Friday was a lot of fun because not only did I get to take an extra credit exam for Calculus, but I also had the wonderful opportunity to play with puppies, eat my first Twinkie (deep fried, at that!), go to my first RoseBall, and make gingerbread houses with my floormates. 

Finals Week is here, but hey if it means I get to cuddle puppies then it might be okay.

Photo credit to the beautiful Ana of Could've, Would've, Should've!

My Pledge Mom loves bow ties and has a black belt, don't mess with him!

A picture with my favorite Greek Seniors.

Loved these wine glasses and centerpieces for RoseBall!

Came back home to the dorm just in time to make gingerbread houses!

On Saturday, I slept-in just a bit, did some studying, and then surprised Theatre Geek at one of his performances! I dragged Em along with me to see the show and she loved it!

Ready to see Hale Centre Theatre's "A Christmas Carol"!

Surprising my best friend at his new job was such a great decision. It makes me so happy to see my best friend working at something he is so deeply passionate about. I know he is going to go so far in life, and I am just deeply appreciative and blessed that I have been a part of his life.

Meet Young Scrooge/Narrator of BOTH casts!

Sunday afternoon was spent eating chocolate chip Sparky waffles, watching Landon Donovan's last game before retirement (YAY, congrats LA Galaxy!), and attending a Fraternity event to say goodbye to our graduating seniors. Later the same evening, my building put on a Winter Wonderland event with free Dutch Brothers hot cocoa, stocking decorating, Christmas card writing, pictures with Santa, and sugar cookie decorating! It was a lot of fun, but to top the night off, Ana, E, and I hung out, studied more for Finals, and then proceeded to make grilled cheese sandwiches with E's quesadilla-maker.

#WafflesForTheWin

Galaxy and New England both started off the game with high energy!

Walkin' in Agave Wonderland!

Protip: Quesadilla-makers can be used for more than just making quesadillas.

I know I say this a lot, but it's only because it is so true: life can move so quickly when you get busy and/or begun having fun. The secret to not losing yourself is to remember who you are and hold on to to all of the memories you make. How was your weekend? Did you make any memories?

xx

Catch you next time