Currently: December

…Also known as “It’s almost finals week so I’m stressed and practically brain dead so here’s a fun post that will take my mind off all that I have to do in the next week and a half.” All my fellow (or former) college students will understand what I’m saying here.

Current Book: I’m currently doing my best to avoid all books, even my textbooks. Just kidding, but really the only books I have time to care about are my textbooks. #sorrynotsorry

Current Music: All things Christmas music, especially Vince Guaraldi trio, aka A Charlie Brown Christmas music!

Current Guilty Pleasure: Homemade dark chocolate-covered orange slices. Remember those chocolate oranges that always came out around Christmas? These are like that, but better because I’ve been making them with satsumas (100x better than plain old oranges) and stevia-sweetened dark chocolate. So does that make them a guilty pleasure, or not so much?

Current Nail Color: They’re chipping now, but last weekend I painted my nails with my friend who has a million different nail polishes (seriously, a girl’s dream) and I used OPI The Color of Minnie and Essie Toggle to the Top for some festive-looking nails.

I can never get my nails to not chip a few days in.

Current Drink: Celestial Seasonings gingerbread tea or water.

Current Food: Alllllllll the homemade ‘balls’, creamy & spicy butternut squash sauce, leftover grain free stuffing, pomegranates, satsumas, stevia-chocolate chips melted on everything, sauerkraut and these really good spicy sprouted sunflower seeds I got from the bulk section at Whole Foods. I like how I always list multiple things in my ‘Current Food’ section. What can I say, I love food!

Some completely random nachos from sometime last week. I had some sprouted cranberry pumpkin tortilla chips I needed to use them up, so I paired them with beans, sauteed spinach, sauerkraut, olives and homemade cranberry sauce.

Current TV Show: This question and the book question need to go, seriously. I never answer them because I’m never reading/watching anything regularly enough. I will say that my dad has been getting The Newsroom on Netflix and we watched a few episodes of that over Thanksgiving break to get caught up. I am obsessed with that show. Take my love for journalism/news and my love for (recent) history and you’ve got a perfect show for this nerd 😉

Current Wishlist: To make it out of finals week alive (and graduated), to mentally prepare myself for Christmas (not that I’m dreading it, it just doesn’t quite feel like Christmas yet to me), and to magically have my dream job right now #nothappening.

Current Needs: More coffee (haven’t had any Starbucks in almost 2 weeks), my car to start again (poor Alejandro’s battery doesn’t work after a week of near-zero temps) so I can stop taking the bus to campus, the end of school to come sooner.

This was back when Alejandro could deal with some cold and snow.

Current Triumphs: Trying not to stress out so much. Emphasis on the trying there. I’m not 100% anxiety-free, but I’m doing better. I had a lot of stressful situations thrown at me the beginning of the week and I’m still trying to deal with those (such as my car not working, and having to take the bus to campus) on top of stressing about finals, graduation and the post-grad life. I’m doing well not worrying so much about what I’ll be doing with my life after school is over, but I need to also focus less (in a good way) on the more present issues so I don’t run myself down too much.

Current Bane of Existence: How damn cold it was here for the past week, and still kinda is. We got about 6 inches of snow last Tuesday/Wednesday and it’s barely melted due to how cold it’s been. I know a lot of the country’s been dealing with very cold weather, but even living in Colorado most of my life, we never get weather this cold for this long. I blame my Arizona-born blood for not being able to handle the cold 😀

The snow we got a week ago…and it still basically looks like this today.

Current Indulgence: Mung bean pasta (so good–grain free and 25 grams of protein per serving) with homemade spicy butternut squash sauce, sauerkraut and salted pumpkin seeds. It tastes like a totally decadent pasta dish but is actually healthy.

Current Blessing: Being so close to the end of my school career (for now, anyways). I feel like I’ve been a student forever, and I kinda have if 16 years is forever, so it’s completely crazy that by next Saturday I’ll be done. I’m so thankful that I’ve had the chance to go to college, finish out my degree and make some amazing memories.

Current Outfit: Chillin’ in my pajamas at the mo, but here’s a recent memorable outfit. It was from last Friday, when I had my capstone panel review. One of the most nerve-wracking things ever, but I got some good feedback and it’s all over now!

I’m so classy in my Ann Taylor skirt suit set I got on sale during Labor Day weekend and wore for the first time ever last week.

Current Excitement: CHRISTMAS (duh!), graduation and most of all, being home for the holidays. I. Can’t. Wait.

What are you currently excited about? Is it still cold where you are?

Currently: September

I’m trying to get back to a more regular posting schedule (which includes new recipes–check out my other blog for some spicy raw tacos!) but for now, I still don’t have a ton of content I want to cover, so I’m gonna go with the random and always fun ‘Currently’ post.

Current Book: This may be nerdy, but I think my nutrition textbook is really interesting. I’ve always been fascinated by nutrition & health, but before my nutrition class this semester, I never did much research into it. Now I’m finding out so many things, like how conventionally-grown oranges are often colored with food coloring to be more ‘orange’ and what those weird-sounding food additives really are.

Current Music: Sorry not sorry, but another alt song is on the list for this month. This time, it’s “Unbelievers” by Vampire Weekend. Gah, I love Vampire Weekend. It doesn’t hurt that the lead singer (Ezra Koenig) is pretty attractive…and obviously talented.

Current Guilty Pleasure: The matching mani I got done with a friend last week. Disclaimer: this is like the 3rd or 4th time EVER that I’ve gotten a mani. The first time was on my 18th birthday. I don’t get them done a lot because it’s hard to justify spending $10+ for polished nails that I could do at home for the price of a bottle of nail polish (though I can’t always get it as good when I do it myself, but at least the price of nail polish goes a lot farther). But it was fun to do it with a friend and now I have pretty taupe nails.

Perf for fall.

Current Nail Color: See above ^^^. Before this though, I was sporting Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear (my go-to brand, because it’s cheap and effective) in pink and purple, both on sale at Target for under $2 (because sadly they’re both discontinued colors).

Current Drink: Water from my freebie ‘PINK’ water bottle. It makes drinking water more fun and convenient, since I can just bring it with me to classes and it won’t spill as easily as my other water bottles did. Plus it’s gigantic, so I end up drinking more overall.

I’m loving water + Amazing Grass greens packets too.

Current Food: Lettuce wraps stuffed with spicy raw taco filling/homemade avocado-cashew dressing, coconut butter-stuffed dates, Larabars (so great for when I’m on campus all day), all-fruit softserve from the softserve food truck on campus, figs.

Current TV Show: One of my friends got me hooked on old episodes of New Girl. I won’t be able to watch them live this season because I have CTV on Tuesday nights, but I’m definitely gonna keep watching them somehow.

Current Wishlist: For the 2nd Colorado location of Native Foods Cafe to open (it’s only an hour away from my hometown!), cute and comfortable booties (preferably cheap, too), a new phone (my contract expires in December–maybe I’ll finally get an iPhone…though I love my Android too), for this nice weather to last for awhile (can we just skip over winter?).

Current Needs: I need my budgeting skills back. Over the summer, I wasn’t buying much for myself other than clothes occasionally from money I earned doing chores or from birthday cash but now that I have student loan money again, it’s been too tempting to spend some of it on fun stuff, instead of saving most of it for rent and groceries. I haven’t been going too crazy, and a lot of it has been when I’ve been hanging out with friends and we got sushi, or manis, but I need to keep my spending in check and only buy what I need, with minimal ‘fun’ purchases.

Current Triumphs: Starting to get back into the swing of school (I still have senioritis, BUT it’s motivating me to get through the next 3 months) and being more spontaneous. I’ve gotten really close with a friend I met in our newswriting class 2 years ago, and we’ve been hanging out a couple of times per week. She also invited me to join her intramural volleyball team and even though I don’t like volleyball and I’m not one for team sports (I prefer working out solo, or playing tennis with my dad), I decided to do it. It’s only for 4 weeks, 1x per week (and we’ve already made it through 3 weeks), and even though our team sucks, it’s been fun. Hanging out with friends more often has made me realize how much I crave a schedule, but it’s made me go out of my comfort zone a lot. I’ve been saying yes to Starbucks runs and yoga sessions instead of staying home and doing my regular workouts and such on my own time. It’s been hard, but really freeing.

Current Bane of Existence: This 5 day forecast. Thursday–great! Saturday–okay. Sunday and Monday–perfect. Friday just had to be cold and rainy, right? Ugh, I am so not ready for the 50s yet. I still want the 80 degree weather back!

No. Just…no.

Current Indulgence: This deliciousness. Gah. I stopped getting these so often (read: every other week) because they were a bit too expensive (not really, but definitely for a regular purchase) and I didn’t want to get burned out on them. Now that the Whole Foods by school has stopped carrying Hail Merry tarts (WHY?), I have to make a stop at Natural Grocers for them, but they’re cheaper there anyway, so it’s a total win. Plus anything mint+chocolate is just amazing.

Current Blessing: Having my family coming up to visit me this weekend. I usually go home every other weekend because I LOVE my family and it’s nice to get a break from my apartment once in awhile (even though I live alone–I need the company sometimes!) but sometimes they get to come up and spend the weekend at my apartment. Being a hostess is a bit stressful (mostly because I keep my apartment clean and having people over makes that harder to do…and also because I don’t get to keep my regular workout schedule) but I always love seeing them and having my parents treat me to dinners out is always a plus.

Current Outfit: This was actually from Monday, but it was a navy knit sweater over a mint lace bandeau, light wash jeggings, floral hair wrap and a mint statement necklace. Anybody else feel awkward wearing jeans again after a few months without them? Ignore my weird looking thighs in the photo. I’ll be used to wearing skinny jeans again in a couple of months.

This necklace was $5…gotta love Living Social deals!

Current Excitement: In the short term–this weekend with the fam. In the longer term–graduation…just 3 months away now!

What are your ‘currents’?

On My (Wish) List

I don’t know about you, but I always made a “wishlist” of what I wanted before Christmas and birthdays when I was younger. Okay, let’s be honest, I still do that. I don’t really like surprises (unless they’re really good ones) so I’d rather give people a list of things I want so they don’t end up getting me something that won’t be used/worn. I’m just trying to be proactive. Anyways, I’ve also been compiling a wishlist of sorts for things I want this month–in life, with food and fashion and at school. So what’s on my list?

School

• Survive the next two weeks. This sounds a little extreme, but I get a little anxious around Thanksgiving break time. I still can’t believe it’s already November, so now I’m stressing about some of the assignments I have to work on before I can go home for an extended break (10 days, baby!) There’s no tests (thank God!) or major assignments but I should probably do some things so they’re not hanging over me over the break. And I just want it to be break already, so it’s hard to focus on writing papers and reading textbooks but I know I’ve gotta do it. Just 9 more days of classes!
• Appreciate my time at CTV more. I can’t believe there’s only 3 more weeks of broadcasts left in this semester…where has the time gone? I’ve loved being able to report the weather every week but I haven’t really appreciated it as much as I should have (I’ve also complained a lot about my crew position, but it’s really not that bad). Hopefully I’ll be able to do this again next semester but I still need to be grateful for the few weeks I have left this semester.

Food

• Vega maca chocolate bar and saviseed snacks

I love all the Vega products I’ve tried, especially their vanilla protein powders. I just wish they weren’t so expensive! But they recently came out with some new ‘superfood’ products that I’m really intrigued by. The maca chocolate bar provides a big dose of B12, which is always needed in a vegan diet, and the saviseed is a complete protein and has more omega-3s than wild salmon! How’s that for a healthy snack? Plus it comes in a caramelized and chocolate version, and who can pass up that? I haven’t seen either in stores but I was thisclose to buying the saviseed in my recent iHerb order…too bad it’s 9 bucks for a bag though!

• Garden of Life RAW Vanilla Spiced Chai protein powder

I literally picked this up the other day while I was at Whole Foods (it’s a Whole Foods exclusive flavor)…and then put it down. I just didn’t want to spend the money right then when I had just ordered some peanut flour and already had some vanilla protein powder at home. However, I am almost out of my chocolate version of this powder so I may get this one to replace it even though it’s not the same flavor. It just sounds so good, and I loved the chocolate. This protein powder is actually priced pretty well for a plant-based, raw protein powder.

• A decent Whole Foods salad bar box

I’m hoping I can fulfill this over Thanksgiving break. Because as much as I love the Whole Foods in my college town (it’s so close and well-stocked), it has a crappy selection of salad bar items most of the time. There are rarely many vegan options, and if there are, they’re totally processed (like faux chick’n salad). The WF near my house, however, is awesome. They almost always have an amazing selection of salad bar things and I can usually find something new to try, and it’s always worth the price. At the beginning of the school year, I would get the salad bar from the WF up here once every other week and I was usually not thrilled. I decided to stop wasting my money, but I still miss my WF salad bar dinners.

Life

• Enjoy the upcoming weekend with my family. My family is coming up to visit me this next weekend because my dad has something to do in a nearby town (well, not actually nearby, it’s the next state over but my college town is close to the state border) so my mom and sister decided to tag along too. Don’t get me wrong, I love being with my family but the visit is stressing me out. I’m worrying that I won’t be able to workout as much as I usually do, I won’t be able to eat my normal meals (because they might seem restrictive/weird) and that I have to be the ‘perfect’ hostess the whole time. But I want to enjoy next weekend, so I need to just remind myself that it’s a few days and I won’t die/get fat/lose my fitness. Besides, we all need breaks once in awhile.
• Plan for Thanksgiving break. This kinda ties into food, but I also just want to have an enjoyable break from school without worrying about the same things I mentioned above. I need to make sure I bring all my stuff home that I need to feel comfortable and try to plan ahead so I don’t have to do school things over break.

Fashion

• Riding boots

I’ve been looking all over, and I’ve seen some that I love, but right now I just don’t have the money for any of them! Why do nice boots have to be so expensive? I’m planning on asking for a pair for Christmas because I really like/need them–they’re so versatile.

• Sparkly Sperry’s

Ummmm, how cute are these? Unfortunately, they’re around 100 bucks, aka not affordable. I kinda want to ask for them for Christmas, but that would take out an even bigger chunk of my list than the boots, and I don’t want to just get some shoes for Christmas, you know? So maybe I’ll save up my money for awhile…

• Abercrombie & Fitch colored jeggings

What can I say, I’ve fallen head-over-heels in love with jeggings! I’m especially diggin’ the colored pairs, like this awesome blue-colored one from A&F. Actually, they have several colors I’m lusting over but some are very impractical…like the bright orange pair.

What’s on your “wishlist”? Do you like Sperry’s (or that style of shoe)?

Saturday Seven: Oh, Fudge!

Let me just say that I loved all your responses to my WIAW post–you guys are the best, seriously, so thanks! I’ve been getting some…erm, weird, creepy and downright mean comments in my spam box but seeing all the supportive and nice comments from you all has really helped me brush off the anonymous negativity.

Anyway, I’m spending another weekend on campus, this one filled with tons of studying and homework, but at least I have a weekend at home to look forward to a week from now! I thought I’d do yet another Saturday Seven post because they’re just fun so here we go!

1. You can make fudge in a dorm room

Oats topped with peanut flour paste and frozen PB fudge cubes.

I know I complain a lot about not having the best food living in a dorm, but honestly, I’ve been making do and it’s not that horrible. I actually eat pretty similarly here and at home, just minus the extra cooking appliances like an oven, stove and food processor. However, I think this is my first real recipe that I’ve ever created in my room–and it rocks! I made two variations and I really love both. So simple, so tasty…make it now!

Frozen PB Fudge (vegan)

1/3 cup unsweetened chocolate almond milk (I used Almond Breeze)

1 tbsp dark cocoa powder

1/2 tbsp peanut flour

sweetener, to taste (I used 2 packets of Truvia)

Stir all ingredients in a microwave-safe measuring cup or bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute; take out and stir til mostly mixed. Microwave for another 3o seconds and then pour into an ice cube tray and freeze for a few hours (makes 1 small tray of fudge cubes or half a tray if you have a bigger tray)

I was surprised how delicious these little fudgy cubes are. They’re a bit icy, but I don’t mind that. They’ve got a rich chocolate flavor from the combo of the chocolate almond milk and dark cocoa powder. And they’re a lot healthier than traditional fudge–low cal (about 40 for the entire batch!) and sugar-free (if you use a natural no-calorie sweetener like stevia or Truvia).

Frozen Vanilla PB Fudge (vegan)

1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (I used Pacific Naturals)

1/4 scoop vanilla protein powder (I used Soytein)

1 tbsp peanut flour 

sweetener, to taste

Stir all ingredients in a microwave-safe measuring cup or bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute; take out and stir til mostly mixed. Pour into an ice cube tray and freeze for a few hours (makes 1 small tray of fudge cubes or half a tray if you have a bigger tray). 

This combo is also super yummy and has about 8 grams of protein in the entire batch–not too shabby for ‘fudge’!

2. Snow is really pretty…as long as you don’t have to be out in it

The view from my room on Thursday night. Isn't it gorgeous out there?

I’ve lived most of my life in Colorado, so it’s safe to say I’ve been through my fair share of real winters. Almost 17, to be exact. Okay, okay, maybe they’re not as brutal as Midwestern or even Northeastern winters, but they can still be pretty rough. I used to love snow as a kid, because it meant sledding, hot cocoa and snow days. Now, it means cussing under my breath while trekking to class. Even last winter, when we had sub-zero temps (which never happen here!) my college was basically the only school in the state that didn’t close. Yeah, didn’t appreciate that. Anyway, this Thursday and Friday was supposed to be the mother of all winter storms. As far as I know, it snowed a ton in Denver and at my house, but not so much in my college town. It probably snowed 5 inches, which isn’t horrible, and the sidewalks were just a little slushy. But still, I hate having to be out in snow! Can it just be summer already?

3. I really love quick cardio circuits

Looks easy, but it's a really effective workout!

I am not the kind of girl who likes to hit the gym for a workout–I prefer fitting exercise into my day, like walking to classes (I walk for 30-60 minutes 5 days a week!), outdoor sports like tennis and biking or my personal favorite, shopping! What, it totally counts as cardio 😉 Because it’s winter, doing stuff outside is usually not an option, so I turn to cardio circuits I can do in my room. I love that they’re quick but they do give you a really good workout. I’m definitely sweating and my heart’s pumping after 15 minutes of these circuits. I typically do two different ones per day, as well as some yoga and walking to class. The one above is a new personal favorite, and I also love this free workouts app I have on my iPod that gives me a good full-body workout.

4. I’m obsessed with ordering food online

Still waiting impatiently for my kale chip order!

I ordered a Hugh Jass thing of peanut flour as soon as I got back from winter break (hey, I was running out!) and earlier this week I ordered some Natural Nacho Brad’s Raw Kale Chips. I’m really nervous that my order isn’t going through, since I got the confirmation email and it said that there’s a lot of demand for the chips at the moment…and then the other day, the charge was canceled on my credit card. I’m holding off on reordering for a few days so I don’t spend money that I don’t need to in case the shipping is just delayed. I can’t wait to get my hands on the kale though–I’ve heard good things about it!

5. I have 4 tests coming up in the next 2 weeks

So. True.

They’re not even midterms–I’ve only ever had two midterms in my year and a half in college, so I don’t know the awfulness that is midterm week. I’ve got a weather & climate test on Tuesday, a broadcast writing test on Valentine’s Day, an American environmental history essay exam on that Thursday, and a national parks history test the next day. Yikes, I hate having three tests in a week! It makes me think it’s finals week, which sadly it isn’t. Luckily, this semester I only have ONE final exam, so I guess it’s not too bad having so many tests back-to-back.

6. I don’t get Recipage

I just don't understand how it works!

I’ve seen a lot of bloggers using Recipage, and I think it looks really professional, so I set up an account and followed all the directions, but it didn’t create a Recipage on my blog! WTH? I don’t get what I did wrong, so for now, I’m still storing my recipes in a somewhat disorganized way on my Eats & More page. I really want to set up a Recipage at some point, so does anyone have any advice for me on how to make it work?

7. Naps are my new BFF

I can only hope to look this cute when I take a nap!

I don’t know what’s been up with me but lately, an afternoon nap has sounded so good to me. It’s not like I’m not sleeping enough at night–I get about 8 to 9 hours per night (I’m one of those people who needs that much to function) but I think it’s because my Tuesdays and Thursdays are crazy-busy. I have classes straight from 9:30-2 and by the time I get back, I just want to take an hour-long power nap. I’ve napped 3 times in the past week, and that’s just something I never do. But I don’t think it’s a bad thing right now since I’m getting used to having a crazier schedule, plus I feel so refreshed when I wake up.

Do you take naps? What do you think about snow?

Random Ramblings During Finals

Heeeeeeeeeeey all! What is up? I’m so glad the week is over–I’m ready to spend this weekend chilling at home before heading back up for a couple days of finals and what-not. I’ve already got one of of the way (yay!) with just 2 more left next week and a take-home one. I lucked out this time with finals for sure.

I basically have no brain cells left, and no motivation (thanks, school!) so my next few posts before break might be kinda sketchy. And by that, I mean pretty random. But random is good, and I hope you think it is too because that’s what I want to post!

A lot of people have shared their site stats in the past and I thought I’d jump on that bandwagon because I have some pretty hilarious search terms just within the past week or so. I’m not sure which one takes the cake for being the weirdest–I’ll let you decide that for yourselves!

• Little girl leggings. Okay, you guys, you caught me. I do shop in the kids section (basically just Abercrombie Kids) sometimes…
• Ultra nerd. You knew that already though.
• Scrawny Christmas tree photos. Ummmm, what?????
• Hummus myths. What, that it tastes awesome? ‘Cause newsflash, it actually does! That’s not a myth!
• Good. Pooped out and ready for my weekend break haha. You? I feel ya. And thanks for asking.
• Naked Hollister model. As yummy as that sounds, let’s keep it PG, ‘k?
• Foodies love Medjool dates. Yes. Yes they do.
• Why did I born. Obviously not to be an English major.
• “Gun show” brides. I would actually really love to know what this is.

Yeah, okay, some of those were just too bizarre to even comprehend.I’m just gonna wrap up this quickie of a post with a few of my favorite fashion/beauty inspirations from Pinterest. But first, a little thank you to Abby of iHerb! She saw my mention of their great services on one of my posts and now she’s sending me a little package of some free stuff. Can’t wait to see what I get (and review it, of course!)

I want sparkly eyeshadow so bad!

My obsession with tights/boots continues with these cute patterned version.

A hair bow made out of...hair? Yes please.

These booties are so fierce!

I love the boots/leggings/long sweater trend for winter.

Who could pass up a Santa mani just in time for Christmas?

What is the weirdest search term you’ve ever had for your blog, or from the ones I shared? Anyone else a Pinterest addict?

Saturday Seven: Sick of School

Aren’t you all pumped that it’s the weekend? To be honest, I’m actually not…because I have a lot to do this weekend, like a mini take home exam, making flash cards, a stats lab, working on a portfolio for my newswriting class and a meeting for a project that we’re presenting on Monday. So yeah, not the most fun weekend of my life, plus I am just itching to finish up this semester. Only 9 more full days on campus before I can leave for winter break–wahoo!

I think the worst time of any school year is coming back from Thanksgiving break. I got a week off from school, got to chill at home and enjoy a few shopping trips and Starbucks runs, as well as a fully stocked kitchen. Break went by wayyyyyy too fast, and then I find myself back at school, with three weeks left in the semester before an even longer break. By the time I got back, I was so used to being on break that it felt so weird to have to come back to school, but not in a good way like after summer break. More like a “I just can’t wait to be done” kind of way. Now that a week’s gone by, it’s back to normal for the most part, but I still can’t wait to be done with this semester. I remember back in elementary school when we used to have class parties and cookie exchanges right before Christmas break. Now it’s finals time, along with tons of projects and what-not. So stressful.

I have a week left of classes, which includes one random final thrown in there and a project presentation, then I’m supposed to be headed home for an extended weekend so my wonderful daddy can help me with my stats take-home final and then it’s back to campus for 3 days to finish up finals. Whew, I’m getting exhausted just thinking about it! Anyways, this edition of Saturday Seven is all about random things that are (somewhat) related to the end of the semester, so enjoy!

1. Why doesn’t Colorado have a Trader Joes?

I need these in my life ASAP!

I mean, really?! This is what I’m missing out on? Come on Colorado, you’re a beautiful state and all but you’re killing me with the lack of Trader Joes. And by that I mean, there are literally none in the entire state. I keep reading about all these wonderful-sounding seasonal TJs products on practically every blog, and I’m drooling in jealousy over here. Sometimes people say they rarely go to TJs because it’s like 90 minutes away from home or something–I am so deprived that I would gladly travel that distance to get my hands on these Candy Cane Joe-Joe’s, as well as the entire contents of the store. However, I did join the Facebook group Coloradoans for Trader Joe’s, so we’ll see where that goes…

2. Just call me a master decorator…

Isn't it purty, especially with all the snow outside? The stupid light reflection ruins it though.

…Or just tell me to keep my day job, since I obviously am no Martha Stewart. I just wanted to bring a little Christmas cheer to my room, so stringing Christmas lights and sticking window clings was the best I could do. Oh, and I also have a mini Christmas tree, decked out in the colors of my room (purple, pink and orange). Maybe I am an expert after all!

3. Pandora is my new best friend

I'm loving the Christmas music playlists!

Who needs someone to talk to when you have an amazing app that plays the music you want to hear? When thinking about finals is putting me in a craptastic mood, I just turn on a little Christmas music and I’m instantly 10 times better. And it’s putting me in the Christmas spirit (the big day, btw, is in 3 weeks!)

4. Starbucks VIA Christmas Blend and I have a little fling going on

Once I dump a bazillion packets of Truvia in you, you actually taste delicious.

I bought some Starbucks VIA Christmas Blend 2011 on a whim, having no idea what it’d taste like. I live on instant coffee when I’m at school, with no easy access to a real ‘bucks, and come finals time, it’s even worse. I first tried it at home, and couldn’t stomach it. I’m used to their instant coffee packets that have a little sugar and flavoring already blended in. This is just straight-up ground coffee, which I’ve basically never had before. I thought these would go to waste, until I put 3 packets of Truvia in a cup and it turned out pretty good. I could still taste the coffee, and this particular blend has actually grown on me, but it wasn’t so bitter. I’m planning on trying it with a little mint chocolate soy milk, which will hopefully be even better. Here’s to our newfound relationship, Christmas Blend!

5. My planner is becoming one big countdown book 

This is just one of many!

You do not want to know how many pages are devoted to counting down to break. I have a count down for every day on the daily part of the planner, plus several in the extra pages, including how many weekends left on campus and how many class hours are left. I am a desperate woman with too much time on my hands, that’s for sure! Except scratch that last part, I don’t have that much time to waste but I do it anyway. Sorryimnotsorry.

6. Why does every little thing become so stressful around finals time?

Just don't be this girl!

The stupidest things ever are stressing me out right now. Like I opened my fridge door and as usual, all the stuff in the door flew out, including my mint chocolate soymilk, which ended up spilling all over the floor. Awesome. I practically had a meltdown about it, and there’s still a stain on the carpet because I was too stressed out to properly clean it up. Or when my purple pen stopped working the other day, I almost teared up. It’s just a stupid pen. But really, the littlest stuff sets me off right now. You’ve been warned.

7. I miss my sweet potatoes

'Nuff said.

I’ve mentioned the apparent sweet potato shortage in my area before, but coming back from Thanksgiving break with only one sweet potato with me is a crime. Considering I enjoyed one probably 4 times over break just makes me miss them even more. I’ve only got one, so I’ve gotta make it count. Wow, how pathetic am I?

What little things have been stressing you out? What is your favorite TJs product (if you have one near you) or what would be your favorite product (if you had one near you)?