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Our apartment is coming along! Now that school is out I have started all of my projects! The first of which was making our horribly ugly and gross drawers cuter! I used this tutorial and used tape instead of glue, since we are just renting. I used the same fabric stiffener she did, but mixed it with equal parts water. I cut my fabric first, and then stiffened it, but I would recommend stiffening it and then cutting it. I think it would be easier to get an exact fit that way, and you can put it in your drawer and crease it and then just cut along the crease! Anyways, here are the fabrics I chose.

And here's what our drawers looked like before! EEK! Grossest, am I right? 

Here's after! 

side note... does anyone know how to use those measuring cups? i really love them, but i never know if i'm supposed to measure to the first line or to the very top?

I totally just realized I didn't photograph the bathroom drawer that I started with... oops. I can assure you they are adorable though. Here's the rest of our apartment! It was driving me crazy to not have anything on top of the cabinets, but I didn't feel like leaves were really our style. I decided to move all of our books from our bookcase and put them on top of the cabinets. I also decided to put some prints up in the kitchen. It definitely feels more home-y than it did before! Now we just need more books for the other side!

Most delicious waffles from our Saturday lounging. If you haven't tried them yet, here's the recipe! We use my mom's syrup recipe, and oh my gosh the two combined are literally the best ever. 

And a beautiful snowy day to top it all off!

XOXO

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Eva + Birthday

Last week we celebrate my birthday! It was super fun, because on my actual birthday nothing happened. Jake had work and finals all day long! I actually had a final I had to take as well. So, all I did on my actual birthday was read my Facebook birthday posts (which is my favorite thing about Facebook), got my free drink from Starbuck's and some gingerbread...

unfortunately didn't bring my camera, but look at the size of that thing! and the cute note! i feel bad for not writing that on people's drinks.

... took my phone into the mac repair store and found out they can't repair my lock button (bummer!), bought more hair dye, picked up some cards from my sister's house and played with my adorable niece and nephew for a bit, bought some fabric from Joann's for our drawers, and then headed home! Jake gave me his present and then we ate Pizza Hut and watched The X-Files! 

Then, on Friday we headed to Eva! Funny story, I thought we were going to Eva's bakery, but we were actually at Eva small plates and drinks! It was the place I had looked at pictures of, and where I had looked up the menu, but it definitely wasn't a bakery! 

my nails of the week! purple, black, and blue stripes.

they had really lovely artwork on the walls.

literally the best fries! they were parmesan, rosemary, and garlic! we loved them so much we recreated them the next day haha.

our margarita pizza with jalapenos instead of tomatoes. it was different from any pizza i've had before and really good. the crust was perf!

Then, afterwards we drove by Hobbitville in Salt Lake! Ever since finding out it is really a bird aviary I wanted to go back and drive in further. It was still pretty creepy though.

I really wanted to go to La Bonne Vie and get some macaroons since I haven't gotten any since my wedding in June (eek!). They only had blueberry and passion fruit though, BUT I've had "eat yule log" on our Christmas list for soooo long. I didn't think I would have time to make it, but there it was, sitting in the pastry display case! It was praline bouche de noel, so I snatched it up and we ate it while having an X-Files marathon. It was soooooo good! The cute leaves were made out of chocolate and edible! For some reason I love when everything is edible.

Like I said, we were so obsessed with the fries, we recreated them the next day! They obviously weren't exactly the same, but they were pretty dang close! Luckily Jake knows how to make fries like no other mother. 

It was a great night! I luh ma bb.
And my birthday.
But, mostly ma bb.

XOXO
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INTRODUCING BLUE HAIR.

I seriously have wanted to blue ombre my hair for years. Like, literally YEARS. I couldn't for the longest time, because my hair wasn't the right length (for the look I wanted), and then I probably could have last year, but I was all worried about the "honor code", so I didn't. 

This year I've seen tons of people with streaked hair, so I decided to just go for it. These photos were taken the night before my last final! I was so nervous they weren't going to let me take it because I had an "extreme hairstyle", but I just wore a hood and nobody even looked twice at me.

We'll have to see what happens when winter semester starts, because I might have to get rid of it if my professors have issues with it. Although, I highly doubt they will!

Then, the next day was my birthday! I was really bored, so I decided to add some more blue to it. I really like the green-blue, but I wanted to see what would happen if I added some more atomic turquoise. Here are the before pictures. I guess I finally get to hashtag #nomakeup or #leftovermascara? LOL.

also take special note of that amazing painting in the background! my sister got it for me for my birthday, thanks ash! it's by an artist named nicole morris. she got it at the craft lake city event, but you can view nicole's etsy store and get in contact with her here

And here's how it turned out after.

please excuse the weirdest shading on my lip. i promise i have a bottom lip and not just half of one!

This picture was snapped before Jake and I headed out to celebrate my birthday! The contrast is a little strong, but it's more blue than it was before. I am going to keep it this mix of green and blue until school starts. If no one says anything, then I am going to touch it up with some more electric blues and maybe some purples. We'll have to see. But, I'm loving this experimenting!

Also, that necklace is what Jake got me for my birthday! I've always wanted a pearl necklace and I've worn it every day since! He's the best at picking out gifts that I love. I'm so excited for tomorrow morning! We're going to use Christmas day to establish new traditions and spend quality time with each other :) I'm so excited! Holidays definitely get a little crazy with so much family living near, but I am so excited for all of our Christmas activities today! Let the feasting and games begin!

SPECIAL THANKS TO JESSICA DRAPER! She is the lovely human who did my hair! I'm glad I got to meet her and get to know her better, because it turns out we have lots in common and she's the nicest!

Merry Christmas Eve everyone! Make it a memorable one and remember the true meaning of this holiday season!

XOXO
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a happy list: 7

This photo is from a cute Christmas party we went to on Saturday!

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free things

tickling babies

getting good grades

pizza hut's 10 dollar box

 all the facebook birthday posts

the egram cat card my grandma sent me

making cute improvements to the apartment

the beautiful necklace jake got me for my birthday

starbuck's peppermint hot chocolate with nonfat milk

the feeling you get when you finish school for the semester

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if you make a happy list, drop your link and let me know!

XOXO

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a birthday post!

Well, since today is my birthday I decided it would be fun to post my theme songs from past years, as long as embarrassing pictures from my teenage-hood!

So... for starters we have the theme song of Ocean Avenue by Yellowcard. Let's be real. Who didn't love this song in junior high?!?!
Also, does anyone remember when selective color was like the dopest shiz? Well, that's pretty much what I did during my 16th year of life. Like, literally the first camera I purchase, I purchased solely because it had selective color. 

This brings us to Seventeen Forever by Metro Station. I still really love this song. It just gets me, ya know? Lol. 

But OMG THE 17TH YEAR OF LIFE.

This was the year that I chopped allllll my hair off and got weirdly into outfit photos and circle cropping (literally all my photos are circle cropped!)

Oh, also I discovered Photoscape and The Public Diary during this year, and it literally changed my life! I was convinced that if I used her same editing program, I could get my photos to be as beautiful as hers. Well, that obviously didn't happen as you can tell by photo #2, but I did get really into photography because of it.

When I was 17 I also had the opportunity to teach these cute kids in India! (The nose ring is fake and was a gift from one of the teachers haha).

And I also hiked a mountain! Hardest thing I've ever done in my life so far! The foothills of the Himalayas baby!
On a more serious note, the experiences I had in India literally changed my life. Like, I'm in no way exaggerating. It was the most spiritual, enlightening experience and I am so thankful to all of the wonderful people I knew/know who donated to me to help me get there. I wouldn't be the same person I am today without that experience, and I'm so glad to know I have people who support me with all the extreme things I want to accomplish. Thanks for being amazing, friends and family! I love you all!

18!! Being 18 was the bombbbbbbb.  My theme song for this year was obviously Soco Amaretto Lime by Brand New! Days after my birthday, I finally pierced my nose (although I didn't keep it for very long at all because it was much bigger than I originally wanted).  I also scored an awesome vintage dress and went to a different school's prom at the capital with some very good friends!

I met some of my very favorite friends this year (Jayne and Hailey not pictured, but I still really love them) and had some of my very favorite memories with my already-friends.

Also, I finally let the public aware of my and Trixie's closeness as best friends. We adventured often. Some of our favorite places to go were Beans and Brews and the cement block by my house to watch the sun set.

 I also finally got a 35mm lens, and as a result some very, very strange photoshoots happened. My favorite of which was when I painted my and my brother's faces like skeletons. He would kill me if I posted the picture of him!

But, as awesome as 18 was, I lovedddddddd being 19! It's been my favorite year so far! My theme song was Nineteen by Tegan and Sara! My 19th year of life has been my favorite because I married JAKE. Although... (1.) We met at the Jenn Blosil concert and (2.) had our first picture taken together (on Halloween!) when I was 18, so many cool things happened when I was 19! 

3. We rung in the New Year together by building a blanket fort where I promptly fell asleep after 10 p.m. and Jake sent this hilarious photo to my mom and sister. It's our favorite photo to date.

4. I wore my Betsey Johnson (that my mom bought me for my school's senior prom, because I promised her I would go, but then decided I didn't want to after all haha) for a cute photoshoot we did for one of my friend's school projects!

5. We had an awesome city creek/temple square date, which was my favorite ever! LOVE WINTER.

6. Signed the wall at Muse Music with a bottle of fingernail polish I had in my purse. It's something every couple must do in order to be immortal. Didn't you know?

7. GOT ENGAGED.

8. Got the cutest engagement pictures taken by Alyssia B. Photography

9. Sealed the deal!

Then, a bunch of awesome things happened after we got married. 

Like when we went camping just the two of us and it was literally so fun.

Also we went to the drive-in with an air mattress and that was also really fun. 

Oh! And our super cute apartment! (Which has gotten cuter, I will have to post about it.)

Also, my mother-in-law brought me back macaroons from France which was the nicest thing in the world because I really, truly love macaroons very much and they were literally so delicious.

We explored the nature side of Cancun and it was so beautiful!! 

And we went to a plethora of weddings which were super cute and we were super cute in this picture which is the background on three things I own.

Farewell, 19! You were a very, very, very, very, very, good year. Perhaps the best yet!!!!!

Now, for year 20. I found this song (please, for the love, do not watch the video, just minimize the window), and have literally been listening to it non-stop. 

It took me a while to find a song that talked about being 20, but it's such a gem!!!!

I feel like now that I'm no longer a teenager, I somehow gain validation in the world. You know? Like, now when I say things people will nod their heads silently instead of staring at me blankly and discrediting everything I say in their heads because I am a teenager. VALIDATION TASTES GOOD, FOLKS.

Anyways, this post took me forever to make, so I hope it was fun. 

XOXO

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On Sunday we celebrate my birthday and made gingerbread houses! I got a Holga camera from my mom and a cute skull painting from my sister. I'll have to post pictures of our little apartment coming along later! There are the gingerbread houses we made though. Jake went for a Colosseum look and ended up with a kick a house! Like look at that! I bet small people would want to live there.

On a side note, how do we even know that aliens are the same size as us? Like in the movies they are always pretty much the same size as us, but maybe they are like super miniature and can live in gingerbread houses, ya know?

Anyways, mine is pretty lame. I just wanted a rooftop terrace. Lol. That's Jake and I laying out being skeletons. Next year I want to make this one.

XOXO

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The Choc'late Mousse

So, on Friday night we decided to try out the new cutest place on University! It's called the Choc'late Mousse, and it's a pie bar! You just choose which set up you want (I got the pie flight because I wanted to try them all!) and then you choose the fillings and the crust! It was really different, but really good. All of the pies were super rich, so you could pretty much just share the pie flight with like three people. 

But, it was the cutest ever! Literally, anywhere that has interior brick walls is the cutest in my book.

My favorite fillings were the red velvet with honey gram crust, and the chocolate filling with chocolate crust! They had lots of other fillings like white chocolate with peppermint, snicker doodle, snickers, pumpkin, and eggnog. I would definitely recommend it if you're looking for a new place to try! 

XOXO

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