daily inspiration

via quote diary

give it up/start it up

I may not be super religious, but I have always loved the idea of Lent. Bettering yourself/others for 40 days... plus having a finite amount of time always makes it seem easier (you can do anything for 40 days!). My approach: give up a food/drink that is unhealthy, start up a new activity, and become a more helpful/productive member of society.  So, in that spirit, here is what I've decided to do:

via Creative Review

let's be honest- how good does that look? Sometimes I just crave a diet soda. But ZERO soda of any sort for the next 40 days. When I'm craving that carbonation (as I frequently do), I'll turn to sparkling water or seltzer.. or I guess I could settle for a glass of champagne, too!
 

via Food Gal

 I eat these almost everyday. I read an article about how  potato chips are directly correlated with obesity. Cutting. it. out. (UGH SO SAD).

via Whole Living

maybe it's a lack of motivation, but I've yet to find a type of exercise that I enjoy doing (besides walking and Zumba). In an effort to put a spring in my step, I've committed to doing 100 jumping jacks every day for the next 40 days. Weird, I know. But jumping jacks are simple enough that there is NO excuse not to do them. My goal is to get to the point where I can do this exercise routine. But, we're dealing with amateurs here, and we gotta start somewhere!

???????

still looking for a way to give back (any suggestions?). I'd like to make this a more permanent thing in my life... and while I'm searching, I'll make an effort to smile more and help out in daily things as much as possible (good substitute for the time being?). another option would be to copy the sorts of things they did in this blog- all wonderful ways to make someone's day better.

are you doing anything for Lent?

cozy up

It's beginning to feel a lot like... January. Ice and snow greeted us this weekend here in DC, and I must say that walking out side for a (little) while can actually feel really refreshing. I love the winter air... when you can kind of smell the snow. It's so crisp and cold and just feels great. Anyway, the downside to this weather is that I am always cold. Cue scarves- my favorite functional accessory. Here's a look at some of my recent favorite finds:

Halogen 'Altitude' Scarf in Navy Multi, nordstrom.com, $34

Jaguar Scarf in Brown, tobi.com, $28

Terracotta Aztec Print Scarf, charlotterusse.com, $9.50

Tory Burch Striped Scarf in Milk Opal, shopbop.com, $145

Halogen 'Altitude' Scarf in Orange Multi, nordstrom.com, $34

party like it's my birthday

I'm one year older! Today I turn 24, and I couldn't be more excited to celebrate tonight with the boy and then again this weekend with some amazing friends. As I was searching for birthday-ish images on Pinterest, I got inspired by all the cool things I saw on the site for only $24! The rest of this post will show these super cool, super inexpensive things. If you click on the links below the pictures, it'll take you to the original sites where you could potentially purchase the birthday girl a gift or two or three (joke!). Hope you enjoy your day as much as I plan on enjoying mine!

cross-body bag from Nordstrom, $24

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

salt & pepper squeezers from flip & tumble, $24

quilted crossbody bag from Ruche, $24

sparkly studs, Anthropologie, $24

scratch-off world map, Uncommon Goods, $24

eat this

Like most humans, I really enjoy eating delicious food. And like most people in their early-to-mid twenties, eating out every night just isn't possible on my measly budget. Cooking is also an occasional issue, as it requires effort that I may or may not have after a 9+ hour day at a news organization (aka I get lazy).

Enter stage right my lifesaver dinner/lunch/snack: Trader Joe's Fusilli with Vegetables and Basil Pesto.

 I'm not claiming to know much about food  - I just know what I like, and this is YUM. It has that spiral pasta that is sometimes in pasta salad that is so good to me, but I'm sure a real Italian or pasta maker would probably gag over this. I just happen to be 0.000% Italian, and not a pasta maker (shocker!!!). It's a pesto, zuchhini and a tomato wonderland (I am partial to vegetarian frozen things).

The best part? It's CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP. Only $1.99 at my local Trader Joe's-- you seriously can't beat the price. Plus it's 380 calories... which I consider a totally decent nutritional number for a pasta dish.

(Can you tell I had this for lunch today?) Now eat up, my minions.

brighten up your winter wardrobe

via Ever and Wright

Colored jeans. It took me a while to get on board with this trend (maybe it seemed too 80's at first?) but now colored skinnies are #1 on my birthday wish list (I think I'm partial to the deep red color). I just moved into a new house, so curtains, rugs and organizational tools will be the majority of my birthday gifts from mom and dad, but if I get to choose something fun that doesn't involve decorating, that's what I'll go for!

bella alhambra

via thelook4less.net

via thelook4less.net

Maybe I'm late to the party with this, but I haven't been able to stop thinking about these necklaces by Van Cleef and Arpel for months upon months. Too bad the "real" Van Cleef & Arpel alhambra necklace (worn by the coolest chick ever... see Reese above) retails for thousands...

Luckily, I've seen knock-offs abound! I picked up some look-a-like black earrings with gold trim with that pretty clover shape at Eastern Market (a sweet farmer's market in DC) for about 20 bucks. They look like a cheaper version of these:

via coolspotters.com

I wish I had gotten a necklace while I was there, but once the weather starts warming up, I plan to head back to hunt for some more alhambra-inspired jewelry.