greetings in december.

goodbye november. hello december.

goodbye turkeys. hello santas.

goodbye pumpkin orange. hello cranberry red.

goodbye any second of freedom. hello to studying for finals.

goodbye sunny days. hello rainstorm after rainstorm.

goodbye bright red lips. hello to this deep red lip stain. {color:"stay currant"}

goodbye moccasins. hello rain boots.

goodbye to joel's job at apple. hello to a new internship.

goodbye rehearsals upon rehearsals. hello nutcracker performances. 

goodbye empty house. hello visitors. 

goodbye to warm spicy smells. hello to this candle- my absolute favorite.

goodbye to a little mowgli. hello to him growing up too fast.

goodbye to a jam-packed schedule. hello to some much needed time off.

goodbye california. hello utah. {going home for the holidays}

goodbye to having self control. hello to these delicious things. so addicting. 

goodbye all things pumpkin-y. hello all things pepperminty. 

goodbye wintery dry skin. hello to this life saver of a lotion.

goodbye missing you like crazy. hello to getting to talk to you on christmas. 

goodbye empty apartment space. hello to our christmas tree.

goodbye to the want for family time. hello to being home for the holidays.

goodbye silence. hello to the always playing christmas carols.

goodbye pumpkin spice. hello egg nog. 

goodbye to my bad habit of always wanting. hello to the season of giving.

goodbye to the worries in life. hello to holiday cheer in the air.  

goodbye to being naughty. hello to being nice.

goodbye november. hello december.

what do your goodbye's and hello's consist of this month?

do share with me, please. leave your link below.

happy december.  

xoxo

30 days of thanks.

give thanks.

{and lots of it}

this month i did the 30 days of thanksgiving challenge. 

{remember this? did you join in on it?}

taking a picture {or two} of something each day that i was thankful for, 

made me feel so very blessed. 

it was a fun 'challenge', that turned out to be anything but a challenge,

because i realized i am surrounded by things i am thankful for.

the challenging part, was picking just one thing for that day. 

{that explains why i have more than 30 pictures above, ops!}

i'm thankful for:

movement, our humble abode, my missionary/brother, marriage

learning, being able to vote, a handsome husband

rainstorms, friendship, earth's colors, mowgli,

fresh flowers, all things fall, my primary kiddos, 

surprise mail {a box of chocolate}, puppy play time, school's campus,

homemade dinners, date nights, being a girl, little william,

being in love, us, holiday packages from midge,

decorating, family outings, our thanksgiving feast,

the season of fall, polka dots + stars and top knots + red lipstick.

i'm afraid to say, i think i could add a dozen more things to the list.

so happy i did this challenge; can't wait to do it again next november. 

cheers to a month of giving thanks!

xoxo

{p.s. follow along on instagram! username: eleasejane}

take me with you.

i feel like fall has come and 

{has almost} gone all so quickly.

the orchard's trees were completely covered in exuberant color just last week.

this week, those leaves have made a solid blanket upon earth's ground.

i'm slightly saddened that fall seemed to have passed by me.

life is busy right now.

so busy, i wonder if that's why fall seems to have escaped.

it's as though it was just yesterday, when i was saying how grateful i was

that fall had finally decided to arrive-

and now, today,  it's on it's way out;

not allowing me enough time to run through those gorgeous orchards

that so recently housed the season of fall amongst their branches.

today, i'm wishing i were a leaf-

floating, drifting and traveling.

all so unknowingly and willingly.

fall- please take me with you, where ever you may go.

just as you are so easily taking those leaves away from their branches.

since you are escaping me all too quickly,

i think i may just need to blow away with you. 

you will deeply be missed.

xoxo

learning little lessons.

a {small} list of a few things i've learned in the last week:
1. lovebird loves pumpkin pie more than i do. i didn't think that was possible.
2. although i wear little of it, i'm obsessed with makeup.
3. my extreme phobia of throwing up, isn't any less when dealing with puppy vomit. bummer.
4. if you're looking to boost your self esteem, don't put on a leotard and tights after a four day weekend of pigging out on mash potatoes, pie and well... basically anything in sight.
5. yellow is a gorgeous fall color and makes me feel spoiled when walking around campus. {picture}
6. i am still capable of staying up past midnight and proved myself this weekend. however, i'll take a bedtime of no later than 10pm any day of the week. i am one who only functions with antiquate sleep.
7. i'm very eager for a change. a big change.
8. the vacuum and i are becoming best friends. thanks to mowgli's ability to shed an insane amount.
9. i have finally learned to accept that my feet will never grow num or callus enough to void out the the pain of pointe shoes. pain is beauty; or at least that's what i'm told.
10. i fall in love over and over again, each and every day. biggest blessing of life.

food coma.

obviously, i'm still in a food coma-

hence, the lack of blog posts this weekend.

that, and i was a little preoccupied by black friday

and getting our little home all decorated christmas.

thanksgiving was a success;

in fact, it goes down as 

our first thanksgiving- just the two of us.

aka: me behind the stove. scary, i know. 

lots of trust on lovebird's behalf. 

he claims it was the best thanksgiving feast he's partaken in-

we all know he's lying- but, it's his big heart that wins me over every time. 

i'm beyond thankful for him, that's for certain. 

 i suppose i'm thankful for his little white lies too-

anything to boost my lack of gourmet cooking skills. 

when i say black friday shopping,

i literally mean to one place:

the pet store.

pathetic? entirely.

new proud pet parents? exactly.

ashamed? not in the slightest. 

i'm not the biggest fan of black friday shopping;

i have never been one to spend my sleeping hours shopping instead.

i'm all for a good deal-

but, ginormous lines, body to body shopping and pure exhaustion,

 just aren't my cup of tea.

my hat is off to those of you who endure the craziness of it all! 

'tis the season.... to decorate. 

over here, due to nutcracker and finals- 

our home must be decorated on thanksgiving weekend 

or else it would never get done. 

so, amongst enjoying our last chunk of free time before christmas day,

we decided to pull out a little christmas cheer and scatter it about our home. 

all of course, while blasting christmas tunes and having 

at least three pine scented candles going at all time.

{i'm slightly obsessed with the scent and secretly wish it was available year round.}

i'm hoping your thanksgiving was delicious

and your weekend was eventful.

turkey day is already over, and christmas is just around the corner.

i plan on enjoying every day in between, because i simply love this time of year. 

cheers to food comas, decorating and time off.

xoxo

cya later.... alligator.

see you later, alligator.

in a while crocodile. 

okay, just for a little bit; as in only today. 

i've got to study my brains out for an exam tomorrow.

then at by 11 o'clock tomorrow morning- 

i'll be as free as a bird.

the thanksgiving holiday will begin it's celebration.

{well sort of- i still have rehearsal until 8. boo!}

utter excitment for a turkey feast,

four days off of dance,

not having to go to school, 

black friday shopping,

and spending loads of time with lovebird 

is a complete understatement.

first, i've got to get through this test.

so... see you later alligator.

in a while crocodile.

diy nail art above?

it's called being a cheater, and buying sally hansen nail stickers.

so worth every penny- especially, when you find them on clearance.  

{i think the crocodile i used above may be discontinued- but they are all fabulous!}

dreaded day.

this is me today:

{photo source}

i'm sitting here, already unmotivated to push through these next three days.

and that's the funny thing, it's just three days.

it could be due to the fact that i have:

tons of studying to do, tests to take,

hours upon hours of rehearsals 

and a whole lot of cleaning to do before the thursday rolls around. 

what is it about the days right before a holiday, that always make them go so slow. 

is it the anticipation?

the work load that magically grew overnight? 

or the fact that you just plain wish the holidays were here already?

i'm certainly not trying to be a debby-downer today,

i'm just wishing thanksgiving was this very minute.

my mouth is watering for every single dish, because they are all my favorite.

my muscles are begging for a break from rehearsals,

my brain is ready to explode with information- i can't retain anymore,

and the lingering piece of my cold is in need of some extra sleep to fight it away.

is anyone with me today?

please, tell me you are.

on a happier note- hope you had a lovely weekend.

{we sure did.}

here's to: motivation to get us through these next three days- we can do it!

cheers to defeating mondays and three day work weeks.

xoxo

p.s. on an even happier note- today marks my 1/2 birthday. 

i just may have to celebrate with a little dessert.