ModCloth

In the search to find some great boots online, I came across ModCloth. They have ridiculously cute dresses. Seriously.

Cute, right?

More soon.

Merry Christmas!

Whew. Long day of post-Christmas shopping done and gone, thank the Lord. My Mom and I decided that 10:30am was soon enough to get to OakBrook mall; good thing, too, since the mall was a complete madhouse when we left at 2:30pm. Moral of story: never go to the mall on the day after Christmas after 2pm. You won't come out alive.

Recap of Christmas Eve/Christmas Day:

--Enjoyed a long day of cleaning and cooking to prepare for dinner with the cousins and Uncle Jack (Dad's uncle).

--Ran random errands for Mom at the last minute.

--Feasted on peppercorn beef tenderloin and mashed potatoes (among many other delicious dishes) for Christmas Eve dinner, served by Mother L. Job well done.

--Went to church with the cousins and Jack.

--Opened presents the next morning with immediate family.

--Ate breakfast: waffles, bacon, fried potatoes. Yurrrrm.

--Took Xmas nap.

--Saw "Marley and Me" with the Jaderholms, cried like a baby.

--Went to sleep happy to have a young and healthy puppy.

Needless to say, it was a great couple of days. I've actually really enjoyed having Uncle Jack around, too--not that I wasn't looking forward to having him, I just wasn't sure how I'd feel about having a guest in our house for two weeks. His jokes and snacks around the house have been quite fun. :) I exchanged some stuff I got yesterday morning for some really great "layering pieces" (as my Mom loves to say), and I'm feeling very lucky that I found so many good deals today. Best deal of the day:

The bridesmaid dress for my roommate Lama's wedding. Ralph Lauren, bought at Macy's. Down almost 60% of the original price. I was seriously wondering if God sent me to find that deal today. It's possible.

Favorite (can I actually choose one?) thing I received on Christmas morning:

Funny thing is, I've been trying to wear my hair like hers for weeks. Can't manage to get it to obey like that. Sweater's cute though, even if my hair has major static issues.

Whatever.

Merry Christmas!

Senior Year: First Semester Highlights

I can't believe that the first semester of my senior year in college is already over! These last couple months brought a lot of fun into the lives of the 24/7 residents (nicknamed because of our address, 247 13th Street): off-campus parties, dressing up in costumes (our favorite pastime), and spending lots of quality time doing crazy things together. 

On the other hand, it was also a very challenging and time consuming semester in regards to schoolwork. All of the roommates seemed to be overwhelmed around Thanksgiving break, especially since we all sat around during the Norovirus epidemic. Whoops. Nevertheless, we all finished the semester with heads held high and with senioritis in our hearts.

Here are just a couple pictures (ok, maybe 8) of my favorite moments from this semester:

The first week of school: classic picture of the roommates in action.

Out at the Curragh with the music kids!

Our first Toga party.

Our first rager (just kidding, only a small *cough* house party).

Homecoming with the couples!

Mmm...coffee at the Intelligentsia roasting tour.

Mom and Dad at Cosley Animal Farm.

Michael, Hank, Brent, Lama and I at Fall Crawl!

24/7 as "Japanimazing"!

This is our great attempt at dressing like Japanese anime characters. Costumes courtesy of the Hope College costume sale.

Michael and I enjoying breakfast and a morning stroll through Saugatuck.

Conducting the Hope College Collegium Musicum at our fall concert.

Woohoo! Gotta love those robes.

Singing with the choir at Vespers (note my solo stance, front left).

Everyone up front.

The music education majors at our professor's house (also notice the tshirt I'm wearing, designed by myself and Mari Jo...we're pretty proud).

More music students at Professor Randel's.

Set up in the music library. Did you laugh? I bet you didn't. It's ok, I only laughed because I'm a music dork and we love that kind of crap.

Hoping that next semester brings just as much fun as this semester did! 

DIY Blogs: My New Hobby

Thanks to Mrs. Leman, I am now obsessed with DIY blogs. Seriously, check some of them out (links on the right). I have found myself dreaming of color schemes, wall-paper and resale treasures in the last few days, and my creative side is bursting to try something neat.

Take "make something", for example (the first picture). I recently came across  Nicole Hill's blog and fell in love with her photography. Cool, right? I'd love to try something like this, though I'm sure it's more complicated than it looks.

Thanks to Black*Eiffel, I've also fell in love with some amazing clothes. Not to mention this beautiful table and chairs. 

How much do you adore the different chair styles all around one table? Gah. I'm drooling.