Rise and Shine

Considering we talk about life a lot, I thought today we'd look at mornings. It seems silly, but I'd argue that morning is the most important part of my day. Let's have a look why . . .

I get up at 6:00 am every single day of the school week. Now, my schedule varies slightly so that some days I could afford to get up 45 minutes later, but I still always roll out of bed at 6:00 am precisely. Why? I believe it's extremely important to have consistency in your life, where ever you can find it. By getting up at six, I establish a reliable (and predictable) morning, which keeps me calm and balanced. 

I keep my alarm clock far enough away from my bed so that I must physically rise, walk a few steps and turn it off. This prevents me from checking my clock in the middle of the night (I never slept straight through the night until I did this.) and keeps me from simply tapping the snooze button. 

Speaking of alarms . . . I never awake to a harsh alarm. It's jarring and frightening! Instead, I prefer something melodic, quiet, and generally happy. This is a really nice one. 

Once I'm out of bed, I do the yawn stretch (you know the one I'm talking about) and hop in the shower, get dressed, etc. Being put together helps me feel awake and ready to go. I grab some coffee and breakfast and then check my email.

I wait to check my email until now (about 6:30) because it's important to wake and have personal you time. Our lives are filled with other people, so why not start your day peacefully with just yourself?

My favorite part? I sit on my bed or in a comfy chair and read for fun as the sun rises. That's right. I read for school all the time, but every morning I read something that's fun for me. It keeps me sharp, engaged, and excited. 

What's your morning routine? Do you think it's important to have a schedule / consistency? Are you prone to check email, phone, etc. immediately? I'd love your thoughts on the importance of peaceful mornings as a way to establish balance and happiness. What's your trick?

Photos via Instagram

{Curious}...Roommate Duties

One of my roommates had a concert last night. Her parents even drove here to see her! How sweet? I didn't have a lot of work to do and I had been looking forward to a relaxing evening with no pressing chores all day. As McKenna was leaving, bassoon strapped to her back, Abby and I cheerfully waved her off, telling her how gorgeous she looked in her band dress and wool coat.

But once the door closed and the lock was turned, Abby and I glanced at each other asking, "Are we supposed to go to her concert?". Were we expected as roommates, as friends, to attend her concert?

When your roommate has a big test, do you act as their study moderator quizzing them?
If she has a game, do you go to cheer her on?
You're doing laundry while on a cleaning frenzy, do you throw in some of her things as well?

What do you think? What are some of your basic roomie guidelines? Do you have any suggestions for me? I'd love your feedback and thoughts on roommate duties! 

Photograph by Joe Scherschel via art.com

That Tastes Happy

Are you an emotional eater? Many of us know that it's bad. Technically. So we all say, "Of course not!" We think we have enough control, enough self respect and common sense to reasons with our emotions on a more contemplative, logical level. I'll admit it, though...

I do eat based on my emotions sometimes. When I'm feeling sad or blah, I make comfort food. There is not way you can get me to eat a salad if I had a really bad day. If a friend is feeling down, I make a batch of cookies. 

Emotional eating doesn't mean that you gorge yourself on crap only when you feel bad. When I got my college acceptance letter, we celebrated with a fun dinner. When your friend gets engaged, you throw a party complete with food. Having a baby? Throw a shower with light pink macaroons and punch. WE even have food after funerals, or even little snacks at wakes!

So is it really as bad as everyone says it is? Is emotional eating seriously an eating disorder? Perhaps, but if so, then all of America is suffering from a collective eating disorder. I'm not telling you to hide from your feelings through food. But let's not feel bad about that pint of Ben and Jerry's you ate after your last break up. 

{Weekend Update}...Movers and Shakers

Real life Tetris.

After many boxes, suitcases and totes, most (okay-half) of my belongings have been moved to my new apartment! Before the first move in trip yesterday, we did some end of summer cleaning. Refreshing! The weather was gorgeous and cool, so welcome, Fall! Oh, I can't forget...girls' night! In my book, there's no better way to inaugurate the weekend than a good old fashioned sleep over with your best gal pals. The end of summer has been a whirlwind of emotions, to do lists, obligations and more. When things get pretty crazy in life, my best remedy is friendship.

Looking a lil' bare. But not too shabby.

Fantastic friends. 

Photos via Instagram // Abby Carlson - @classickitsch Instagram

Dorm Life

Remember the dorms in college? 

The summer leading up to your Freshman year is crazy. You're checking your inbox everyday anxiously awaiting your roommate match. (I was lucky a roomed with my twin sister, Abby.) You gush to everyone which dormitory you're assigned and you're (secretly) thrilled that you're in the coed building! Extra long twin sheets, matching towels, a coordinating shower caddy, and several air fresheners later, you're more than ready for the ultimate collegiate experience.

And then you move in.

There it is in all it's tragic mess. After dreaming of a room like Rory's from Gilmore Girls, you're horrified by the pee yellow walls and dusty carpeting. Even though you've opted for lofted beds, you have just enough room for one of the two of you to pace in a narrow line the night before a term paper. Gross!

I'll admit it. I wanted to barf, cry, furiously clean, unpack, but also leave all at once. It was the strangest tumult of emotions. Thrilled, and yet terrified to be there, I was moving in no matter what.

And guess what. I survived. A whole year! I helped that I roomed with Abby, because if I was feeling miserable, at least we could miserable together. Despite what you might think, dorm life was not a great catalyst in the friends department.

I was expecting to become best friends with everyone on my floor. The highly romanticized theory that you are thrown together and suddenly mesh is just that. It's just a theory. I was one a cliquy floor inhabited by people that were extremely different from me.

So in all honesty, dorm life was awful. At least for me. Instead of feeling surrounded by good friends and good times, I felt completely isolated. If it weren't for Abby, I would have been desperately sad and home sick.

I hate to make it sound so terrible, but my experience was eye opening. I am grateful for the friends I did make. It forced me to actually leave such a cloistered setting and branch out.

Don't forget, living in the dorms made me truly appreciate little things like baking and cooking, cleaning my own bathroom, doing my laundry without taking eleven flights of stairs. I never thought I would be thrilled about such simple things!

I'd love to know how you felt about the dorms! Did you love it or hate it? Did you make some of your best friends there? Did you ever feel isolated or completely claustrophobic? Or was it exhilarating to be surrounded my so many different people you didn't really know? Let me know about your experience!

Transition

It's something so simple and beautiful to remember. We've talked about how change can be hard. This is to make it easier. Send this card from Etsy to your best girlfriend when she's feeling overwhelmed by the transitions in life. It's the perfect reminder that she is resilient and wonderful.

Happy Monday!

Via pinwheeldesigns

And Boom Goes the Dynamite

Bang! And just like that, life can change. 

I apologize for my short commercial break. Things have been pretty crazy lately. I'm always amazed how easily our lives can transform. Every day appears to be utterly redundant, and we soon lose sight of things. We don't realize how different things can (or could) be until something makes us stop. And once something grabs out attention, we take a moment to look around. Suddenly, the scenery is different. Perhaps it's the same thing, but we're looking at it in a different way. It can be good thing, and sometimes it can be a bad thing. 

It's no surprise that change is hard for everyone. I should be a poster child for this common issue. I like things to go according to plan, and when they don't, life gets tricky. It would be nice if our lives went smoothly. If nothing ever exploded, there wouldn't be a mess, there would't be a ruckus. But if things didn't get raucous every once in a while, we wouldn't notice the potential in life. We wouldn't see the changes. 

Let's try to work on that. I'll do it too. Because sometimes when life explodes, it glows.