{finals time.}

I'm not giving up on the blog...I'm just taking a short break! Finals time is in full swing, and I need to focus on school. :)

I'll be back soon!

{weekend.}

I've had such a low-key weekend. I saw Like Crazy with a few girlfriends on Friday night; like I said last post, go see it! Annoyingly, I couldn't fall asleep that night until 5 AM (!!!!) so I wrote a bunch & called my sister. That's the upside to not being able to sleep; it's lunchtime where D is! :)

After meeting with a group for a project, I went to the movies & hung around. I was exhausted from the lack of sleep, so I was fine with laying low. I just bundled up {no heat}, watched another movie {no Internet}, & wrote some more.

My Sunday is pretty much the same. Still no Internet, but the heat is back on! :)

My day in pictures:

Still in pjs:




Staring at the two posters that have fallen {August & September}:




Staring at the Ethernet mess on my floor {no luck!}:




And watching Friends :)




Notice all the coasters I've made? :)

Happy Sunday!!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

{like crazy.}

Please go see then movie. And then after, buy the entire score.

{stream of consciousness.}

I didn't know what to blog about today. Lot's of things going on in my head, so I'm just going to write down random things.

My sister posted on Facebook that in exactly one month we will be reunited. Sounds dramatic, but for reals.....I miss the girl.  Not ashamed to say it.

Last night, I listened to recordings of my sister & I singing. NOT because I'm obsessed with myself, but because I miss it. This is the longest I've gone without singing...& really singing....& it's making me ache.  I've also been without a piano for far too long.  But in a few days, I'll be home with a piano & a microphone :)

This morning I threw on a headband as I was running out the door. When I came back to my room after class, I looked in the mirror & gasped.  It looked ridiculous. Lol.

I want to go to the movies tonight, but the twi-hards scare me. I don't want to be caught in the swarms of people waiting for the midnight showing.

I have my celiac pain today & it's really bothering me. Not to mention, utterly annoying.  It's hard to sit in class when it feels like a knife is being jabbed through my ribs. I've been very careful the past few days, so I have no idea where I ate/consumed gluten.  :(

That lens I've had my eye on?  Well, I have a photoshoot next weekend for a family, & I'm tempted to buy the lens for it. Yes? No?

I'm wearing one of my favorite outfits today. I've noticed that I've been wearing it a lot lately, & I hope my classmates haven't noticed. Lol. {it's always clean though!}  It's just a sweater, skinny jeans, & brown boots, but it's comfy & a bit fashionable, so I seem to always wear it.

I got a box of gluten-free food in the mail yesterday, which included cinnamon buns. I was ridiculously excited about it's arrival.

That's all for today. Happy Thursday!

{wishful wednesday.}

1) Canon 50mm/1.4 lens.

{source}

This lens has been on my wish list for a while. 

It'll probably be on my Christmas list. The pictures it takes are amazing.

2) Polished Platinum Dress from Anthropolgie

{source}

I have no place to wear this to, nor the funds to buy it. But I think it's fab.
Anthro never does wrong in my book!  This dress is stunning.

3) A Personal Chef

{source}

Need I say more?  Oh, and a snuggly puppy would be fun.


4) A Manicure

With my fave color: Chinchilly. Maybe next week over break I'll get one.

That's it for this week. What's on your list?

{maine!}

On Saturday morning my mom, stepdad, & I drove up to Maine for the day. The first thing I noticed, as an advertising student, was how...not creative Mainers are with business names? I saw a "Mainely Hearing Aids," "Mainely Wraps," & "Mainely Donuts." E for Effort, Maine ;)

Before I start....only at a Maine rest stop would have this:

I, naturally, took a picture of it. I ended up carrying my camera inside & was able to get a body shot of my new jacket. Came in handy on this chilly day.

{people weren't exactly thrilled with me having a camera in the bathroom. can't imagine why.}

The weather was gorgeous but cold, so we were happy to sightsee within the warmth of the car for a bit. We stayed on the coast the whole day & it was so nice seeing the ocean!

{these people weren't kidding around}

We saw a pathway to the beach, so we parked the car & made the short walk down.

That was probably the coldest part of the day. It was around 40 degrees! After quickly stopping to take a pic of one of the two lighthouses, we were on our way to Portland!

{one of the many cute streets in Portland}

{endless olive oil & vinegar options!}

Only in Portland would you see this guy:

I'm sure he didn't appreciate me stopping in the middle of the street to take a picture of him. He was nice enough to wave though. {Although now that I think about it, he could very well be giving me the finger under his claw.} Ha!

This was our view at lunch:

And walking around after:

{stepdad, mom, & me}

And because it's my new favorite pic, my mom & I:

{we didn't plan on matching. that always happens though.}

After walking around for a few hours, we drove back to my aunt & uncle's. We all went out to dinner {sans kiddos} to a quaint little restaurant in town. As we were waiting for our table, we ended up briefly chatting with a couple & quickly realized it was Tiki Barber & his fiancèe. So crazy running into him there, as this is such a tiny town. {And funny enough, I've met him before at a Knicks game.}

But if you don't know the story behind Tiki & his new love, do a quick Google search; it was quite a scandal. There aren't many photos of them together, so we spent the night joking around with our camera phones "pretending" to take pics of each other, while really aiming at them. Interested TMZ?

The next morning we hung around with this dart-eating, foul-mouthed, crazy girl....

.....before I headed back to the city. It was such a relaxing, fun weekend. It was so nice seeing my mom & stepdad. Thanksgiving break cannot come soon enough!

**Disclaimer just in case: We actually didn't get any photos of Tiki. We did get a photo of the guy-who-was-standing-next-to-Tiki's back though! :)

{let's go house-crashing}

This weekend I took a breather from the city & went up north to a little town on the coast. My mom & stepdad drove up from home to spend the weekend, and our main focus was to just hang & catch up. We stayed at my aunt's house & it's one of my favorite places ever. She & my uncle bought the house five years ago & it was a major fixer-upper; but with a lotta love & sweat, it's totally transformed into one of the coolest homes. It's old & new, cozy & eclectic, colorful & fun. Unfortunately I didn't have a very wide lens on me, but hopefully you'll get the point :)

Here's their son's room. It's so light & happy!

Their daughter's room. {I made the tissue paper balls!}

The whole house is filled with the coolest light fixtures {& amazing original ceilings}. Case in point:

I'm in love with every rug & floor:

& every piece of artwork:

Two of my favorite parts of the house are the surfboard in the family room & picture frame wallpaper:

The icing on the cake? Their view:

Sorry for the picture overload, but this house was too cool not to share. In my next post, I'll show some pics of what we did during the day :)

{let's talk about makeup!}

A few things to know about me & makeup:

1.) I like wearing it...but not a lot of it. Most days, I'm going to class, & although it's nothing incredibly important, I want to at least look presentable. No matter how late I'm running or how tired I am, I still make the effort. {I'm the type of girl who'll never show up to class in sweatpants.}

2.) Since getting diagnosed with Celiac, I've come to learn that gluten hides in everything--including makeup. Therefore, I have to be very careful about what products I buy & use. Thankfully my favorite brands are okay :)

3.) Most days, I use a little bit of moisturizer {morning/night}, blush & mascara.

Click on each picture to be brought to their website :)

1. Moisturizer

Northeast winters are cold, cold, & cold. Which means my skin gets dry, dry, & dry. So for a moisturizer, I use Lancôme's Bienfait Multi-Vital. It hydrates my skin like crazy & bonus! It has SPF 30. Even if it's not really sunny out, it's still important to protect your skin. I buy this at Neiman Marcus.

2. Cover-up/Concealer

I love love love Laura Mercier; it's my brand of choice. It's always light & let's my skin breathe. Not to mention, it looks good. For spot concealer, I use Secret Concealer:

There are different levels/numbers for different shades. You can use a tiny brush to apply, but most days I use my finger :) Sanitary, I know.

I rarely use this, but for larger areas of my face, I use this tinted moisturizer:

It evens my skin tone while keeping it hydrated {& protected--SPF!}. I hate when concealor makes me feel painted {i.e. character makeup}, but I barely feel this when I'm wearing it! I buy each at Nordstrom.

3. Blush

I think blush can transform someone's face. If I haven't gotten a good night's sleep, or I'm just not looking my best, I dab on some blush and Voila! I look a little more...lively :) I swear by this Laura Mercier Mocha Spice Quad Powder. It has 4 different colors in one, so you're definitely getting the bang for your buck. I mainly use the top two colors: the rose blush & bronzer. I mix them both together and it makes a rosy mocha color. {& if I need a bit more pink, I dab on a separate rose blush.} I buy this at Nordstrom.

4. Mascara

I've been using Blinc Mascara for years now. Sure, there are cheaper brands at drug stores {which I happily use & buy!}, but my favorite brand is Blinc. Why? Well because it doesn't clump, it elongates my lashes, it stays on all day, & most importantly...comes off easily. It's worth visiting the website to see their recipe, but the mascara basically goes on in tubes around your lashes, & with a warm compress, slides off. But don't worry: it's cry-proof :) Available at Sephora.

{Apply a warm, wet tissue & the mascara comes right off}

So those are my most-used, favorite products. Tell me...what are yours?

**Disclaimer: I was not paid by any of these companies. I'm simply sharing the love!

{i'm back...hopefully}

I am going to try and commit for real this time. I have a blogging-buddy-to-be who is helping nudge me along.

Coming soon:

• less complaining about Celiac! :)
• more DIY projects
• more photos {it's inevitable...I take a picture of everything}
• fun themes/blog topics

Let's see how this goes, shall we?

I'm off to class, but I'll post this weekend :)

{happy valentine's!}

Happy Valentine's Day!

I spent the day in class and going to dinner with 2 girls :)

I also bought myself some chocolate covered strawberries, which I happily ate....by myself.

And for a laugh...this is my favorite Valentine's card this year:

{source}

{the verdict.}

After missing the first week of the semester for a capsule endoscopy, an upper endoscopy, & a colonoscopy:

I am a Celiac patient who's body is resistant to a gluten free diet.

I could think of a million things to say about how this makes me feel, but the one thing I've been feeling lately is anger.

I am so mad.

When I was diagnosed, I was told a gluten free diet was the only way to "cure" Celiac. Right now, I am struggling to accept the fact that the one thing that is supposed to make me better, is making me more sick. I am so angry about it.

I am angry that I have to deal with meal planning & weekly grocery budgets in college. Isn't this stuff supposed to come after college?

I am angry that I have to have bi-weekly weigh-ins to make sure I'm maintaing my weight.

I am angry that I have to base my travel plans around Celiac.

But mostly, I am angry that Celiac has made me an angry person. It is making me resent my new life, and I resent that it is. I thought I was over this. I thought I had come to a good place with this. I am sick of complaining about it. I feel awful complaining about it. I am sure my friends are sick of hearing about it.

I'm sure this blog is sick of hearing about it! ;)

Tomorrow I am going to go grocery shopping. Get started on some of my meals for the week. Bake cookies. Try to write some songs.

Tomorrow is a new day.

{my medical dramas & the c word.}

My body likes to keep things exciting. You know, since it gets bored with being so healthy.

::insert sigh here::

After being diagnosed with celiac, and going on a gluten-free diet, I immediately felt better. I had my energy back, and gained some of the weight I lost back, and I looked and felt healthier. I no longer felt pain everyday....until last summer.

Slowly, the pain started resurfacing. I ignored it in the beginning, thinking it was probably caused from eating at a gluten contaminated restaurant. However, the pain began getting stronger and coming more often. This past September, when I started my sophomore year, I decided to cook lunch and dinner and only eat in the dinning hall for breakfast. I had separate pots and pans, and shopped at Whole Foods.

In October, I had my celiac levels checked and they were high. Not good.

The pain continued and in November I had my levels checked again. They were the same. By December, my levels had risen yet again. On a strict gluten free diet, there is no reason for this. This means that somehow gluten is getting into my system. I also began losing weight and lost fifteen pounds in about eight days.

It was like two years ago all over again. In the beginning of January, my tests we so bad the next diagnosis they considered was lymphoma.

The word cancer hit me hard. The week of testing I went through was the worst week of my life. I had an upper endoscopy, a capsule endoscopy, an MRI, and a colonoscopy all within eight days. Needless to say, I've had better weeks. Thankfully THANKFULLY I do not have cancer. I'll explain the verdict in the next post.

{cupcakes!}

Chicago. Chi-town. Chi-cags.

One fabulous weekend in October, I went to the Windy City to visit my sister. The weather was fall meets winter. It was rainy & chilly, but then the sun would come out for 10 minutes. It was really weird. During one of the rain lapses, I took this picture on the ferris wheel... (as well as the one above).

While there, among completely redecorating her apartment, we went to a little place called...

They had a divine gluten-free red velvet cupcake. I don't have a photo, but it looked like this.

Fast forward to the cookie party my friend threw at Christmas. It was a cookie swap, but being the rebel I am...I made cupcakes. I think I should have gotten points for that. Add another 5 points for the fact that they were not gluten-free. I pretty much handed them out with a note that said, "You're welcome." I'm kidding. But really, these things looked good. I present, my chocolate chip cookie doughed-center chocolate cupcake:

Yum. Now I only need to make it gluten-free.

{i'm back...again.}

How has it been three months since I last posted??

My life has been nothing short of crazy. And not all the good kind.

Since my last post, there was Thanksgiving break. Then Christmas break.

And then I had a bunch of medical drama that I will get into another time. Let's just say, once I started fully accepting my new gluten-free life, it came back to bite me in the ass. Mixed with the start of second semester.....well, I've had better weeks.

I miss blogging. I miss having a place to get out my thoughts. I miss not having to cook all my meals.

I miss my twin sister. I'm having one of those days where I wish we went to the same college. I miss singing with her.

Compared to most of the world, I have an easy life. I know that. But lately, it seems like nothing's really going my way. I get frustrated with myself more easily and just want to snap out of this funk. Just one of those weeks.

::sigh::

Things will get better. Things will get better. Things will get better....