life of a ballerina.

hello! another new week has so quickly begun.

i'm hoping your weekend was full of good weather,

date nights, laughter, food, parties, relaxation and lovely friends.

our's was full of most of those things-

plus the dreaded homework, long work hours and too many rehearsals.

i'm happy and excited yet tired and sad to announce 

that it's my last week of dance for this season.

it's always a bitter sweet thing;

bitter: because the thought of not dancing or working out 

for a few months is frightening and depressing. 

also, saying goodbye to those not returning next year is never easy.

sweet: because my body kills and is begging me for a break.

plus- the end of the season means summer is finally here.

i have hundreds {not an exaggeration} of photos from this ballet season,

but i thought i'd share just a few to wrap it all up.

we finish our season off with romeo and juliet this weekend.

it will be a busy and stressful week, to say the least.

i hope to stay caught up in blogging and reading your lovely posts-

if i don't, bare with me and remember my summer starts

in a week from now and i'll have lots of time to do just that.

unfortunately, the semester doesn't end until the end of may-

but believe me, not having to dance for six hours a day,
certainly frees up a lot of my time. 

cheers to the last busy week of the season.

xoxo

come one, come all.

dear friday: thank you for finally making your appearance.

i've been waiting for you all week long. 

i can finally take a breather. 

this week has been absolutely nuts {to say the least}!

thank goodness the weekend is here to stay for three days:

we have big plans and lots of fun in store.

starting off with this...

i'm happy to announce a lovely giveaway! 

here's a little note from nicole: 

Hello all! No matter what kind of day you’re having, I’m hoping this post will make it all the better! I am so excited to be posting here today! The past few years of my life have been pretty chaotic, to say the least, but I am finally starting to settle down a bit. For the last few months, I’ve been living in a small city and working an administrative desk job. It’s a great job with wonderful co-workers, but for some time I just felt a void of passion in my life. In my spare time, I started dabbling in stationary design. The more I dabbled, the more I fell head-over-heels. Designing has kicked up a spark of enthusiasm in me that I just can’t get away from, and now I have little shop to share it all with you! It’s full of wall art prints, note cards, graduation prints, birth announcements, custom designed daily planners, and more! This week, I’ll be giving 30% off to everyone who uses 

this coupon code: lovebirds 

Drop by and take a peek! I hope you find something that brightens your day 

and makes your heart skip a little beat.

Nicole

it's oh-so simple to enter:

leave a comment below letting me know what print you are drooling over.

then, cross your fingers that you'll be the lucky one

to open your mailbox and find yourself an adorable print from cole&co designs.

{winner will be picked next friday}

ready...set...go!

xoxo

he's golden.

golden birthday:

a person's birthday when they turn the age of their date of birth.

today is lovebird's golden birthday.

{can i get a woot woot?}

we plan on spending the morning together doing something birthday-ish.

{given the fact we both work/dance from 12-10. lame, right?}

i'm thinking breakfast in bed or an early lunch date...?

one thing is for certain: no matter how late we get home,

we will have a feast of gelato, because that's lovebird's favorite. 

remember this birthday and then this one?

i can't believe he's 26 already.

or the fact that it's been over two years since i met lovebird.

it feels like yesterday when we: 

were giddy in love as we explored our city together.

{san francisco is where we fell madly in love}

 spent our evenings skyping due to our long distance relationship,

took turns hoping on a plane just about every weekend or so to visit each other. 

planned our wedding and indulged in a romantic honeymoon.

moved into our little home, jumped into new schools and jobs and made new friends.

which brings us to now...

lovebird is growing up. 

26 will be a good year- i can feel it in my blood.

big decisions are about to be made.

good thing they say golden birthdays bring a lucky year-

hopefully we'll have luck on our side as we plan our little future. 

26 sounds old, but oh-so young at the same time.

we have a lifetime of love to look forward to.

and that my friends, is what i look forward to most.

the fact that lovebird is mine and will be forever.

i'm excited to celebrate many more birthdays together.

all i know, is winnie the pooh said it best:

"if you live to be one hundred, i want to live to be a hundred minus one day so i never have to live without you."

to him:

happy golden birthday!

you are my everything:

my "shugg", my better half, my lover, 

my "shorter" half, my companion, my source of laughter, 

my inspiration, my partner in crime, my shoulder to cry on...

but most of all you are my best friend.

have the happiest of birthdays today. 

i love you.

xo

wed.nes.day

it's wednesday; which means it's hump day.

currently, wednesday is my least favorite day of the week.

my body feels exhausted and my mind is tired.

the thought of the weekend still feels so {too} far away. 

wednesday is my busiest day of the week;

i've somehow managed to cram everything i do into one day.

{school, teaching, dancing, personal shopping}

coming across something motivational on a wednesday is what gets me through to a thursday.  

this quote did the trick a couple weeks ago-

so, i thought i'd share it with you.

as simple as it is, i've thought about it numerous times since. 

just when you think you are at your limit...

you are not.

there is always more in you.

lately, more often than not, i feel as though i've reached my limit.

it's as if one more math problem, dance step or errand just might kill me.

but, it won't.

and that's the hard part; understanding i'm fortunate to be busy.

that pushing myself is only benefiting the outcome of who i am and who i become. 

today i will think harder, dance a little longer, love a little deeper and

through it all- i'll be a little happier. 

maybe then i won't dread wednesdays so much. 

instead, i just may embrace wednesday with it's challenge of enduring it

while being a little better and giving a little more in all that i do. 

happy wednesday.

let's get over this hump together.

because believe it or not, the weekend is just around the corner.

xoxo

little love notes.

a few {little} love letters as of late:

dear elder carlson: i get to talk to you in one week! i am waiting as patiently as i can for monday to come. you can bet your bottom dollar i'll be by my phone 24/7 that day- i am dying to talk to you- and that's an understatement. hurry up already- mexico is calling your name!

dear shellac/gel nails: you are the best invention {ever}. if i could convince myself that i deserved to spend money on you every two weeks, i totally would. i'm a sucker for nail polish; especially un-chippped and shiny nail polish, which is exactly what you are for a solid two weeks.

dear romeo and juliet rehearsals: you are exhausting. your rehearsals are long. or maybe it's the long day i have before i start rehearsing you. you're lucky i am in love with the music and the starstruck love story- or i'm not quite sure how much longer i can put up with you and the bruises you cover my poor knees with.

dear number 26: what a special number you are this week. you happen to be lovebird's golden birthday this year. i'm looking forward to thursday, his birthday, and the year that follows. i hope 26 is a good year for him. please bring lots of luck, love, traveling and maybe a graduation...?

dear hairs upon my head: thanks for not being the oily type. i don't know if i'm embarrassed or proud to say that i haven't washed my hair since wednesday night. {that's not a joke.} with my extremely busy schedule not having to wash my hair is a true blessing simply because i don't have to take the time to style it from scratch every morning. a special thanks to moroccan oil, dry shampoo and the top knot for allowing my hair to get it's debut for several days in a row.

dear artichokes: you are a recent love of mine. i ate a whole one for dinner last night, and could have had another one if lovebird would have let me. you are scrumptious. why didn't i like you as a kid growing up? i wasted all those years on not enjoying your yumminess.

dear evolution: exploring your theories and principals are quite interesting. being raised religiously and believing in a creation my whole life interferes with you slightly. that being said, you do intrigue me. i enjoy learning your perspective. your point of view is scientific while my point of view is based on faith. both of our ideas together, make for a confused outcome. one thing is for certain; my anthropology class has certainly made me open my eyes to a whole new concept while planting my feet even further in faith.

earth and time.

happy monday.

i hope you had a lovely weekend.

earth day was certainly earthy over here.

we spent our time loving the beautiful weather outside.

of course we had homework, so why not take it outside and do it at a park?

genius idea, i tell you.

we are surrounded by national parks and there's no charge to enjoy them.
{thanks to earth day}

we just may have to take a trip to yosemite.
nothing beats the beauty of that place.

life is hectic right now.
if i could only slow it all down, add an extra hour to the day
or put everything on hold and concentrate on one thing at a time...
now, that's what i call blissful living.
if that were the case, it may actually feel like i am living a real life,
rather than feeling like i am in fast forward motion;
blinking and wondering how i say hello and goodbye
to the same day in a single sentence.

all this to say, i am looking forward for that moment when
life will suddenly slow down.
{it will, won't it?}
for me, it will be at the close of my ballet season and
after the end of the this semester.
{just a few more weeks. i can make it.}
maybe then, will be have time to explore all the beautiful
national parks we live so close to.
and maybe then, will the days feel like they pass me by one by one.

cheers to the start of a new week!
may the days pass slowly enough to enjoy them-
yet quick enough to get through them.
if you know what i mean.
xoxo

i heart you.

i have a crush on you. 

i'm totally crushing on these few things lately.

long skirts: you are my fashion obsession at the moment.

especially the long-silky-pleated ones.

i just want to spend my days letting the wind blow you, as you make

me feel oh-so feminine and in a sense conservative. 

moroccan oil: i will be faithful to you until the day i die.

you save my hair every single day.

i love you more than you know.

up the amp:  hello purple lips.

thank you mac, for this fun bright color.

i'm clearly in love.

organic produce: i've been falling for you more and more lately.

you may be pricey, but you are well worth it.

i prefer you ten times over "regular" produce now.

you taste better, you last longer, and buying you locally supports a good cause.

j.crew: yes, the entire store.

if i could transform my closet into your store and catalog,

i would do it in a heartbeat. 

bright blue: simply the color.

whether it be this new clearance skirt i just bought,

the gorgeous blue skies we've been lucky to have lately

or the way you remind me of my lovely mother and grandma.

i'm totally into you.

what are you crushing on lately?

it's time to reveal your secret crushes.

beauty items, food, colors, people or places.

what ever it may be....

spill the beans, i want to hear!