ick.

this is what i tell myself every time i swallow my three handfuls of stinky vitamins.

smile at strangers.

i don't want to become one of those bloggers that simply posts images found on other websites and blogs, but to be perfectly honest, i kind of can't help myself. when i find things i love, i drag them into a file on my desktop that i frequently visit, causing me to smile.

so, now i will share. it is also a good quickie blogging option for a 8-hour-day "part-time" job gal like myself.

this is truly how i feel. and what i try and do every day. i may forget to dress my best as i run out the door to work, but the rest i make sure i do. everything from making eye contact with, greeting and thanking my bus driver to making sure that i am attentive i can be at work and home, and letting my mom know how much i love her, i try my best to live by these rules. i would say that it's a pretty good list to live by.

also, i think that you should listen to a guilty pleasure song on a daily basis.

an instant pick-me-up.

(because of my casual system, i have absolutely no idea where so many of these images come from,

meaning that i can not properly credit the artists. i apologize to all for that.)

ho-ho-holi-delay. (that sounded much better in my head.)

ok, officially a horrible poster/blogger and my dear emily (www.frenchieandflea.blogspot.com) has called me out on it. so, in honor of that, i'm going to get my blogging booty in gear and for now, i am going to do a little play-by-play of some of the FANTASTIC christmas presents i received.

sidenote: truly everything i got was amazing. it was a great year. aside from successful gift-giving and gift-recieving, the day was full of great food, amazing family, laughter and love and it was one for the books. love it. (plus cranium -- always a hit.)

my "fun-in-laws" (a.k.a. boyfriend's family) got me some really great things, including this awesome book that i'm pretty much obsessed with. it's essentially a guide to all things passing us by, such as cash, mix tapes and basketball players in short-shorts, and most ironically -- books. totally right up my alley.

they also got me a couple scarves, one that's a really pretty pashmina-esque burnt orange color, and another little banana republic number that's a light khaki cable-knit neck warmer. totally in love. worn it the past two days.

also, not to be outdone, CP's grandma got me law & order: svu on dvd. season 8. brilliant.

my mom gave me this great mixing bowls for the apartment. and yes, they are indeed ladybugs -- with fancy gripping "spots." totally adorable. and this means that we won't have to use our big ceramic crate & barrel mixing bowls when we just need a quick mix.

my adorable little (well, not too little 17-year-old) brother bought me a book on lifting for women. he's a total ripped gym rat, and is trying to encourage me to get "lean and mean in 2010" as he wrote on the gift tag. he also got me a little composition book for me to use as a workout log. so cute. and SO from him. and practical and encouraging!

in the workout category, i also got the hook-up from my dad and my mom, who i'm planning to do a half-marathon with sometime this coming year. after opening an impressive lululemon box, i was greeted with cute, inspiring gear!

(the one i got is heather grey on the outside and a really pretty bright blue on the inside. big hood. love it.)

also, the boyfriend did a fantastical job this year. truly. so proud of him. i got my favoritest kate spade perfume i had requested. (along with the michael kors i needed a refill on...) CP also replaced a raggedy old marc jacobs tote that most certainly needed an upgrade. and once again, he always does a great job with books and other little tokens of love. i'm glad he's all mine.

little sister brought me a great scarf from italy with of course, it amazingly soft and gorgeous and an amazing deep chestnut-y red color. so pretty. one of those things that i'm almost to nervous to wear -- but, i'm sure i'll get over that quickly.

also, leave it up to my super-cool older sister to rock it out with the always desired weird japanese masking tape. i absolutely love this stuff, and i'm so very glad that she hooked it up for me.

my dad got me a really cute brown michael kors leather tote, which i can't wait to use. kind of surprisingly rustic for kors, much more my vibe than his typical stuff.

in addition, i got some new books, a few things here and there. (a stocking full of cleaning supplies for the apartment -- yay grown up life!) some cute little jewelry piece from my daddy. really fun stuff. overall, things that i really wanted (or didn't even know that i wanted!), but would not likely buy them for myself -- which is exactly what a gift should be.

merry christmas!

or merry december 27th. whatevs.

long time no see.

SO.

obviously, been a bit busy. though, that does not mean that my love for the blogosphere has lessened. i truly promise that i will work on getting back into the groove.

i found this wedding suite on bird and banner today, and i love it so much it makes me ache. i don't think that a wedding in jackson hole, wy is really my style, i am most certainly willing to re-evaluate.

the invite (and postcard style response card) is actually letterpressed wood. so amazing!

the bundle of weddingness comes wrapped in its own little monogramed bag.

this welcome packet is genius. most certainly stealing this idea.

all found on bird and banner.