Ever since I was a little girl I have wanted to see other places. I knew coming into college that I wanted to study abroad sometime during the four years, but I didn’t know when. This past fall quarter, back in 2015, a representative from a study abroad program in San Sebastián came into my Spanish class to let us know about the program. I was instantly interested, and decided to apply. Fast forward a couple of months to winter quarter, I heard about another summer program in London from the English department, that is conveniently taking place right before the San Sebastián program. I decided to apply to that program as well, thinking I would at least get into one program.
Well, I ended up getting into both programs, and thought at first that I would have to decide between the two. After talking with my parents about it, they asked me, “Why not do both?” Great question, mom and dad. Through a lot of consideration, and a very stressful week of deciding before the deadlines, I have decided that I am going to do both programs this summer. The London program starts just two weeks after spring quarter ends, and goes from June 19th to July 23rd, and the San Sebastián one starts literally one day after, and ends August 24th.
I cannot explain how excited I am to be going to Europe this summer. I have only ever been out of the country once when I was five years old, to volunteer in Mexico. London and Spain are a huge step up from that, since they are on a whole other continent. Both programs are homestays, meaning I will be living with two families, one in London, and one in San Sebastián, which I think will be so fun and a great cultural experience. I have always dreamed of going to both countries – England and Spain – since a huge part of my family is English, and I have been studying Spanish for about six years now. I am also majoring in International Studies and English, with a minor in Spanish, so these programs are the perfect fit for me.
Since I was wondering when I was going to fit in studying abroad, here are a couple of reasons why I decided to do it during the summer.
It would be extremely hard to try and fit in a study abroad program, since I have to be consciencious of all the classes I am taking, and how to fit in all of my major(s) requirements. Dedicating a whole quarter to a study abroad program that only satisfies one of my majors or minors would be very challenging, and not the best in terms of time management.
This summer, I will be getting 30 extra credits essentially, which will make me a senior by next year, my junior year. While this won’t really allow me to graduate early since I have to get through all of my major requirements, I won’t be scrambling to get all of my credits done by the end of my senior year.
College isn’t only about the academics – they are very important – but it is also about extracurricular activities. I am a part of three different clubs, I have a job, and a very big class load, so it would be really hard to take off for a whole quarter, and drop everything, essentially. It’s not that it wouldn’t be doable, it would just be very hard, and not something I want to take on. I am already stressed out enough during the year, and missing a whole quarter would not be the best for my anxiety.
I have looked up so much about the places I will be going, and have talked to natives from the area, and they all agree that summers are gorgeous in England and Spain. Summers can be kind of lackluster here in the Pacific Northwest, so I am especially excited to spend a month in San Sebastián, where I will basically be living on the beach.
When I was in the third grade, we had an exchange student from Spain who is now like family. He lives in Madrid with his girlfriend (they are adorable), and they offered to let me stay with them for a couple of days. I’m super excited to see the capital of Spain, and see what the city is like! Since it’s during the summer, I’ll have plenty of time to stay with them for a little bit.
I am so stoked for this summer, and I can’t wait to not only learn about the class subjects, but more about myself as well! I don’t want to have too high of expectations, but I’m hoping that both programs will be a lot of fun, and that’ll I’ll be able to meet some great people. I’ll be posting all about my experiences abroad this summer, and also tips for studying abroad once I get back, so make sure to check back with my blog!
I am a chronic last minute shopper. You would think I would’ve learned by now, but without fail, I always seem to wait till the last minute to buy gifts for people. It’s not that I forget about it, I think too much about what to get for people, and whether or not they’ll actually like what I get them. I’m actually doing pretty well this year for Mother’s Day, I just have a couple of little things left to get, but other than that I am all set. If you need some more ideas for something special to get your mom last minute, this guide is for you!
One of my favorite gifts to give people is a framed photo. In this day and age, so many of our photos are just kept on our phones or laptops, so to receive a physical photo once in a while is so nice. I’m just a huge fan of photos in general, and I think it’s really cool to give them to others as well. I personally would probably not go for a frame as cheesy as this, but get your mom whatever she would like!
I am a very quote-oriented person. Call it cheesy, but I really love motivational quotes, especially since I love reading and writing. Words can be transformative, and can give people the courage to make a change, inspire them, or just make them feel good. This week hasn’t been the best because of stress, and I’ve been in this weird funk that I’m trying to get out of. Whenever I feel like this, I always turn to quotes to make me feel better, so I thought I would share some that’s been helping me a lot this week!
It’s really easy for me to get caught up in the stress of life and consequently forget about living in the moment. This quote really puts things into perspective, and helps me live each day to its fullest! When I was at the beach for my birthday weekend, I really felt like I was living in the moment, and because of that I ended up having the best time. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, so I think I’m going to do a whole post about it soon!
This is a very important quote for college students. Sometimes it feels like we are suffering through classes for no reason, but it’s really important to keep in mind that all of these hardships we are going through now will result in incredible futures! Keep this in mind when it feels like you are drowning.
In media today, shaming people is something that is huge. Oftentimes people are spoken badly about, and things get way out hand, and it’s completely unnecessary. I really love this quote because it’s so true; when you try to be kind to people and show them compassion, it makes it that much less believable when people are putting you down. This is really similar to the whole “kill ’em with kindness” mindset. It’s really important, though, to not do this in a fake way. Be your genuine self, and try to be kind; however, on the other hand, never let anyone put you down.
Alright, those are three quotes that helped me get through this long and difficult week! It wasn’t even bad or anything, I just have so many things going on that I’m feeling very overwhelmed. Plus, we’re getting close to the end of the year, so all of my classes have been kicking it up a notch. Hopefully I’ll be able to relax this weekend!
Disclaimer: None of these quotes are mine!
I also made a video on my YouTube channel about my nap routine, so you can check it out down below!
Napping keeps you rested throughout the day.
Happy Earth day! Some of you might not know this, but I am very passionate about helping out the environment. Being from the Pacific Northwest, it’s something that kids are educated on very early in their lives, and it’s drilled into them that something needs to be done to help the Earth. This was how I grew up, and I’m very glad that I did. My family has always been really good with separating out trash and recycle, making sure nothing bad goes into our water, and just generally trying to help out the environment. It can seem like a daunting task sometimes, and people often think that it’s a lot harder than it actually is. Anymore, there are so many easy switches you can make now that can help the environment later; here are five!
I know this one is the most obvious, but it’s also something that helps out a lot. It’s super important to try and find ways to cut out the use of fossil fuels because it’s something that hurts the environment very much! There’s so many different options for getting places, so make sure you check out yours before you immediately get into the car.
This applies to many different aspects of your life, anywhere from plastic packaging to leftover food. Try to remember to bring reusable bags to stores instead of using the plastic ones they give you. If you’re really bad at this like me, put some in your car, or right next to your purse so you’ll see it as you leave. If you do end up forgetting them, use the paper bags instead of plastic since you can end up reusing those for a lot! For food waste, start a compost bin so you don’t have to throw out as much food! There are a lot of great guides online, so I definitely recommend checking those out on how to start one, how to use it, and how to regulate it. There’s also a surprisingly amount of things that you can compost, a lot more than you would think! Also, get a reusable water bottle so you aren’t constantly getting plastic water bottles from the store. This not only cuts down on waste, but is also better for you! Bottled water often sits in a warehouse for long periods of time which allows the chemicals from the plastic get in there, which is not good for you at all.
There are so many ways you can cut down on electricity use, like getting higher efficiency light bulbs (they’re sold at virtually any hardware stores nowadays), LED lights, putting a sweatshirt on instead of turning on the heat, or opening a window instead of turning on the AC. All of these tricks end up saving you money as well, so it’s really a win-win! I love to use little fairy lights to light up rooms rather than ceiling lights, because they are a lot more energy efficient anymore, they look prettier, and I just generally don’t like rooms with really bright lights. You can also light a couple of candles for lighting, smelling, and general pretty appearance!
Cutting down on shower-times can be hard at first, especially when you have a lot of hair to wash, but it get’s easier with time! This is a great way to use less water since people tend to use a lot of it while they shower. If you like to leave the water on while you brush your teeth, turn that faucet off! This uses a lot of completely unnecessary water, and adds up over time. If you really want to save more water, you could even install more efficient shower heads and faucets.
Eating locally is something that not a lot of people think about when trying to help out the environment. Not only will you find some yummy food to eat, but you also eat things that didn’t have to use fossil fuels in order to travel to the store. Big name brands ship out their products all across the country, and consequently, end up using a ton of fossil fuels to make it happen. Eating locally also supports small businesses, and can just generally be a lot of fun to find new places. Local food is often organic as well, which most often means that it wasn’t sprayed with any harmful pesticides. It also feels great knowing where your food comes from!
Alright, there are five ways that you can help the environment in honor of Earth Day! This is such an important day, and really helps to bring awareness to the disparities the environment is facing in the world today, and it’s also a great way to celebrate this awesome planet that we live on!
Thank you so much for reading and watching! 🙂
As you all know, this past weekend was my birthday weekend, and I got to spend it at one of my favorite beaches here in the Pacific Northwest with my best friends and family! I had such a great time, and I just wanted to share some photos with you all because I was able to get some really good ones.
It is Friday, April 8th, which means it’s my twentieth birthday! I cannot believe I am twenty years old – two decades! The years seem to go by faster and faster with every birthday, and here we are at twenty of them! I really don’t feel old enough to no longer be a teenager, if that makes any sense. For so long I have identified as a teen, and now I am a full-fledged young adult. I know I’m still young – I still can’t even drink – but it’s crazy to think that I have entered my twenties. Even though I’m pretty nervous and scared to be in my twenties, I’m also really excited to see what the future holds. I still have to get through college, but who knows where I’ll be after that! That’s a scary thought to have, and I can’t believe that it’s one so real and applicable to my life right now.
Since I’ve been alive for two decades on our lovely planet earth, I thought I would share twenty things I have learned thus far!
I have been on Etsy so much lately looking at room decor, and everything else really. You can find some really adorable things on Etsy, and it’s super fun to just browse around! While I was looking the other day, I came across a really cool crescent moon dreamcatcher. I have always loved dreamcatchers, and have had a lot through the years. When I saw this one, I knew I wanted to make one like it! I absolutely love DIY-ing, so I really wanted to make one rather than buy it, especially since I knew I could simply make one myself.
Here is all that you will need for this DIY (side note: I got everything from Michaels just to keep this easy! This post is in no way sponsored by them, however!)
How pretty are these feathers?! I saw them and knew I had to use them for this DIY.
I also got these feathers since they are nice and fluffy and large. I also like the natural color that they add to the dreamcatcher since a lot of the pieces are white!
Here is the metal rod cut to the crescent shape!
I have been obsessed with Michaels stone and crystal collection they’ve had in the jewelry section! Everything is seriously so gorgeous, it was so hard to choose which crystal pendants to get. I have this really nerdy rock collection, so the inner rock geek in me was crying when I saw all of the stones.
I got this really pretty shimmery embroidery floss for the web part of the dreamcatcher, and I think it ended up looking so cool! I love how it’s basically a dark copper color, and it really added a cool dimension to the web, especially since they can be kind of bland sometimes.
Here’s a nifty action shot of my dad cutting the metal. He was very proud of himself for making it on the blog, ya’ll (he didn’t realize he wasn’t actually in the shot…poor guy).
These are the little clippers my dad used to cut the metal!
Let’s get started with the actual process:
To get the beginning of the twine to actually stay on the metal, I used a hot glue gun (I completely forgot to take a picture of it, sorry!) to glue the end of the twine down. After it was dry and the twine was secure, I went ahead and started to wrap the twine tightly around the metal.
I first quickly wrapped the twine, and then went back and pushed it all together more.
Once I hit the end of the metal, I did the exact same gluing process as the beginning!
For the strings that hang down, I decided to do slip knots. I first pulled off how much I wanted from the spool, and then doubled it back up it’s length so both sides where the same size. After you have one long string folded in half basically, grab just below the part where it is folded in half.
Fold the loop back behind the base (the metal rod covered in twine).
Put your fingers through the loop, and pull both lengths completely through the loop.
This is how it should look after you pull the whole thing through the loop.
Tighten up the knot, and situate it how you want!
Okay, now time for the web! This is the time I definitely suggest watching the video to see exactly how this is done. I completely forgot to picture this on the first “layer” of the web, but it’s exactly the same process. To start it off, wrap the string around the base about five times, or however many you think it takes to anchor it tightly, and tie it off. So take the tale of the string and fold it to the right of the base, or in this case the second “layer” of the string.
Pull the tale over the second layer. You will see a kind of loop form, especially if you are on the second layer.
Pull the whole tale back through the loop.
Now it’s time for the fun part – decoration! My parents had this copper wire hanging around that I decided to put around some of the string (you can also find this at stores like Home Depot if your parents don’t just happen to have some haha), and I absolutely love how it turned out. To keep the feathers on, I hot glued them to the strings, and tied the string around them to make it appear as though I had tied them on rather than glued them on.
Here’s how everything turned out! I love how the gold feathers look with the more natural ones.
The crystals really add a lot as well!
