I've decided to do a weekend recap every Sunday from now on. Let's see if I can stick to this decision!
Anyways, my weekend was a crazy one.
Friday was spent at home on the couch with the stomach flu...let's just say I am VERY glad that is over with! Despite all that, I woke up on Saturday ready to decorate our Christmas tree!
Threw on a Santa hat...when I was feeling Grinch-like ;)
There's a smile!
By Saturday night I was already feeling better, and enjoyed the movie "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" with friends! A few rounds of Just Dance 2014 were played afterwords, and in case anyone is wondering, I'm the champion of that game.
My friend Crystal spent the night, but I wouldn't really say we slept. More like laughed and talked and ran around the house taking pictures with the Santa hat on until it was time to "get up" for church Sunday morning! A trip to Black Rock beforehand was necessary...how could I pass up another opportunity to enjoy a Peppermint Bark Mocha??
My afternoon consisted of brainstorming future blog ideas and studying. Not as exciting as the rest of my weekend, but the good news is that all that fun must have cured my stomach flu!! So back to school it is for all those who missed me! ;)
Curious as to why I haven't posted in a few days?? I was "wrapped" up! Like a present, but instead of wrapping paper, I was wrapped up with Christmas cheer! It hit me... and it hit me hard!
It all started when Vancouver had their first snow on Friday! Believe it or not, us students still had to attend school. It was a huge disappointment for many, including myself. But, I knew it was going to be an easy day. We rarely get much snow here, so when we do no one can focus.
Keeping that attitude, I headed out the door with hot chocolate in hand (of course!). On my drive to school, I noticed the roads had a faint blanket of white over them. When I arrived at school, I noticed that the floors in the hallways had no less. Which means yes...I did slip a total of at least 5 times yesterday. I quickly made the executive decision to not rush through the halls on the way to class, but to slide slowly and carefully. Lesson=learned.
After school, I felt like Buddy the Elf! If you do not know who I am referring to...we can't be friends. That is that. ;) Basically, what I am trying to say, is that my big after school/Friday night plans consisted of throwing on a Santa hat and blasting the soundtrack to both the movie Elf and Polar Express! The fact that it was snowing out made it 10X better!
Then there was today! The picture above explains it all.
Apple Cinnamon tea + favorite flannel shirt + trudging through the snow to find our perfect Christmas tree = pure holiday bliss.
My nephew Noah thoroughly enjoyed our trip to the tree farm, also! Bright red nose and all... :P
...and of course I had to steal a picture with him!!
Before I end this blog post, I have to give a lot of credit to my dad! Heading out in the morning in 23 degree weather and climbing on the slippery roof to put up Christmas lights is not something easy to do... so here we are. At the tree farm. And no, I don't trust him with that hand saw ;)
Well, that's the update! Now off to watch my favorite Christmas movies!! Have a great rest of the weekend everyone. :)
When I woke up today, I can honestly say I didn't have the best attitude.
Being that it was my first day back to school from Thanksgiving Break, and the fact that I didn't get much (if any) sleep last night, you can probably predict that I wasn't real "pumped" to start the week. I was tired, my head was slightly pounding, but I decided to get out of bed and start the day with a smile regardless. Typically I struggle to turn around my attitude like that, but today was different. I had a weird feeling that my day wasn't going to turn out as badly as I was expecting at the moment. A sort of hope, a rush of strength, or just a little feeling that made me think "let's do this".
My intuition was, in fact, correct.
Just minutes after I got up, things were already looking better! I went upstairs to check my phone (only thing I can check anymore! :P) and was greeted with a message from one of my best friends, Alyshia. She informed me that she had started a blog and that I should check it out! Indeed I did! It put a smile on my face knowing that I inspired just one person already... and the day hadn't even really started yet!
After filling up my new camera lens coffee cup I got for my birthday with my favorite Harvest Peach Black Tea, I headed out the door ready to take on whatever came my way!
Surprisingly, it felt good to be back! I was greeted with hugs, smiles, and hello's from people I hadn't seen all break! Also with a few late "Happy Birthday's" and a trip to Wendy's for lunch with a group of some of my most goofiest friends!
When I came home, I knew I had to focus on my goal and not go on any social media sites. I had to actually find things to do, and I didn't have homework either! So, I grabbed a quick snack and called up one of my other best friends, Crystal! Yes...I actually called her. Which is not normal for me. I am a texter and typically nothing more but I wanted to try out the calling thing. It was actually quite fun! And when Crystal and I have a conversation, there is NEVER a dull moment!! :)
Shortly after my phone conversation, I was greeted by my sister and my 1 year old nephew, Noah! Enjoyed playing with him and visiting with my sister!
Today definitely turned out a lot better than I had thought it would! Just goes to show how attitude is everything. How no matter how bad of a morning you have, you need to shake it off and have faith and hope that your thoughts alone can change everything for the better!
I think that what we all need to do, is wake up smiling. Jump out of bed and say "let's do this!". Wake up each day with the attitude that something amazing is about to happen, and it will!
As most of you probably heard, I had a Birthday on November 29th and am now 18 years old. Technically, an "adult". Do I feel older? No. Do I look older? No. Do I blog any better? We'll see... ;)
What I do know is that I had a birthday that I will remember forever. Why? Because I shared it with friends and family who made me laugh from 5:00 until midnight...but that's a whole other blog post itself!
The one thing that stood out to me the most, though, was a card I received from the kids I used to babysit. They are also our backdoor neighbors. I consider them my siblings because they are like second family to me. So many memories have been made with that entire family. They have always been there for me and hold a special place in my heart. I can honestly say they are the most kind, fun, and caring family you will ever meet (besides mine ;). Here is the birthday card I received from the two kids...
"Dear Sarah, Happy Birthday! I can't believe you're an adult now! You'll still always be the best neighbor/friend in the world! No matter where you go or live. I know you will be very successful no matter what you do in life. You have taught me so many lessons that I will remember and use. Time goes by too fast and I will miss you when you leave after high school but no matter where you go, I will always be your back door neighbor. Love, Lilah"
"Dear Sarah, Happy b-day! You're already 18? That's unbelievable! It feels like you started driving only a month ago! You're a great friend and I have learned many things from you. I won't forget you even after you leave our neighborhood. Love, Theo"
I will never, ever forget my "backdoor neighbors" and how much of an impact I made and continue to make on them!
I'm guessing most of you are reading this right now because you are curious as to why I randomly disappeared from the social media world today! So, I'll cover that first and get it out of the way...
There were 3 reasons as to why I decided to take a month long break from Facebook, Instagram, and all the other time consuming boredom-busters, as I call them!
Reason #1: I just said it. Time consuming. I found myself on some type of social media app far too often, when I could have been spending my time in more productive ways (i.e. actually studying, homework, etc.) I would come home from school and check my phone, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat. Bam, bam, bam. Just like that. Every single day. Why? Habit. It's not always a good thing, people.
Reason #2: I'm curious as to what it will be like when my friends don't know what I am doing every second of the day. When I don't post a practical timeline of my day, or when I don't contact them every single time I'm bored. Will there be more things to talk about when we hang out in person? Resulting in a more enjoyable time? I'll find out!
Reason #3: I wanted to give myself a challenge. Sounds silly, but if I can truly stick to my word until January 1st, I will ultimately feel very accomplished! I'll probably have found better things to spend my time on so that when I do enter the social media world again it won't consume me like before.
So there you have it! My little (big) goal for myself this month. Hopefully I can stick to my word! I will still answer any texts/calls and I will continue to blog on here as long as you all keep reading! :D
Also, feel free to leave any comments on here below and I will gladly respond to that as well! Thanks!!
To start thanksgiving off right, I am going to make a list of the top 10 things I am thankful for (not in order). Enjoy and I hope this will encourage you to make a list also!
1. Zumba class. The fact that I can drop in with one of my best friends and not know what exactly is going on, yet have the time of my life. All while getting fit. It's kind of my favorite thing right now, and it's an excellent stress-reducer!
2. Family dinners. One of my good friends mentioned one time how she really enjoys how my family sits together every night for dinner. Since then, I have gained a new appreciation for it. I love how we always have things to talk about from the day, and how it brings us closer together in a way.
3. My neighbors who act as second family to me. I couldn't as for anything better than the neighbors that surround me. They have, in a way, shaped me into the person I am today. They are the ones who have seen my chalk drawings on the driveway transform into works of art throughout the years. They have witnessed many soccer and basketball "games" in our front yard, and they have probably seen me wipe out on my bike a few times also. :P
4. My memory card for my camera...because it does just that. Saves memories. I never delete anything off of it either, so if you happen to get a hold of one of my memory cards, it's like a timeline of my life in pictures. Literally each picture on there has a story behind it, and I am very thankful for that.
5. Laughter. It honestly is the best medicine. I can have the absolute worst day ever and laughter somehow manages to cure it. Luckily I have friends that can make me laugh until I am hunched over and crying. They should honestly all be comedians!
6. My pets. My cat keeps me warm at night and my dog keeps me young. That's all there is to it!
7. Target. My whole wardrobe is practically Target and I'm proud of it! They have everything! Whenever I go, I have a specific list of things I need to get, yet somehow end up with twice as much as I needed when I leave. I have absolutely no clue how that happens.
8. Music. I love that every song on my ipod has a memory behind it. I also love that whether I am running, at the beach, in the car, doing homework, on an airplane, or going to sleep, there is a type of music for it all! Music is what gets me through the day.
9. Cookie dough. My mom's chocolate chip cookie dough, to be exact. It's the best and there is no doubt about it! Cookie dough makes life better, and if you disagree, we cannot be friends.
10. This blog! Thankful I have it to pour all my thoughts and feelings into, and thankful for all of you who care enough to read it! I encourage all of you to start some sort of blog at some point in your life. It's very rewarding and fun! :)
Happy Turkey Day everyone!! Enjoy it and be thankful!
'Twas the night before Thanksgiving, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse...but here I am, blogging away... ;)
Anyways! Thanksgiving is tomorrow!! I know what you are ALL thinking right now: food.
Yep, I said it! Instead of thinking "Oh fun! A day to be thankful for all I have!", the first thought that typically comes to mind is... food.
We are taught that Thanksgiving is a day to be thankful for all you have...but honestly, who spends the whole day focusing on that, when there are pies in the oven and people to please?
If you do, I give you a great amount of credit! We all should strive to be more like you.
This year, I am going to attempt to not let the meaning of Thanksgiving go in one ear and out the other. I am going to make "giving thanks" as fun as the company we are having over for dinner, and I am going to acknowledge all that makes me smile, because that is what we should truly be thankful for.
I also have a goal for when the turkey gets out of the oven and the table is set. For every bite of food I take, I am going to think of something I am thankful for. Anything. Big, or small. Already I can name a few...and hopefully you can too!
Tomorrow I want you to enjoy Turkey Day... not just because of the turkey! You have many things to be thankful for, so start giving thanks!! :)
For those of you who don't know me, I am Sarah and this is a blog about my day-to-day life and the things that make it an awesome one! Decided to venture out and work on my writing skills...so enjoy and check back often! :)