Forgive me for sounding like an old lady, but it's true- everything these days is electronic. We communicate over text and Skype. People read e-books as opposed to physical books. Business is done over email. Schoolwork is typed instead of hand-written. You can order food online, grab a ride online, and learn basically anything with the press of a few buttons. I'm the first to agree, technology is great. But I have to say, there is a piece of hard-copy communication that I really wish would live on- snail mail. Real, physical letters. As much as I love texting and emailing, there's really nothing like opening your mailbox and seeing a letter from a friend, being able to open it and hold it in your hands and keep it. It's one of the most fun, special things in the world. I am thoroughly convinced that it should never go out of style. Trust me- if you write someone a letter, you are literally going to make their day! Still not convinced? Here are nine reasons why snail mail is the best thing ever. 

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1. IT'S MORE PERSONAL

Don't get me wrong- I love getting emails and texts from friends. But letters are honestly so much more personal because you know that the person who sent it to you had to put in more effort than just punching a few keys. 

2. YOU CAN STUFF THE ENVELOPES FULL OF GLITTER

I highly recommend it. A few months ago, I glitter-bombed my dear friend Aaliyah, and it was pretty fantastic. I apologize again, Aaliyah. DIDN'T KNOW THERE WAS THAT MUCH GLITTER.

3. THE CREATIVITY IS LIMITLESS

I'm not the most artsy person. Y'all know that. Crafting has never really been my thing. But when it comes to letter writing, I LOVE IT! Like, there are so many fun things that you can do. You can decorate the envelopes or outline the letter with cute quotes or drawings. You can add stickers or glitter or decals or awesome things that you printed from Pinterest or Tumblr. I love scrolling through Pinterest and getting ideas for how to decorate letters- it's so much fun!

4. YOU HAVE AN EXCUSE TO BUY TONS OF ADORABLE STATIONARY

If you have never bought notecards from Target's dollar section, are you actually living your life? I think not. I have a stationary addiction and I am proud of it.

5. IT'S SUPER FUN TO SURPRISE PEOPLE

I really love randomly sending something to a friend and surprising them. Letters aren't super common these days, so it's fun to send something to a friend who isn't expecting it!

6. IT GIVES YOU A CHANCE TO JUST SIT DOWN AND WRITE

I love journaling, and letter writing can be comparable. It's nice to have a chance to sit down, empty your head, and write something by hand. It's so relaxing!

7. IT BRIGHTENS SOMEONE'S MAILBOX

Let's be honest- mailboxes can be pretty boring, filled with bills and ads and junk. Let's make checking the mail fun again!

8. LETTERS ARE A GREAT KEEPSAKE

Personally, I never throw away a letter. I love having something from a friend to keep and look back on. It's so special!

9. YOU CAN INCLUDE FUN THINGS

Remember those friendship bracelets that we all made back in sixth grade? Why not get back into those? Over the past couple months, I've started making bracelets again, and it's been super fun. You don't have to limit it to bracelets, though- you can include pretty much anything that will fit inside of an envelope!

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p.s.

I published this post about ten minutes ago, but I'm popping back in because I have just been made aware of the most amazing thing, and it needs to be known by all. The fabulous Lisa just sent me the link to InCoWriMo- International Correspondence Writing Month. Apparently, InCoWriMo takes place every February, and challenges its participants to hand-write and deliver/mail one letter, card, note, etc. every day. I honestly think that this sounds fabulous, and I'm going to give it a try. Even if I don't manage to deliver one every day, I want to try to write twenty eight letters or notes this month. Obviously, you should join me. Are you going to accept the challenge?

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So, what are you waiting for?? There are so many reasons to send snail mail! Whether it's a birthday card, a Valentine, or just because, go write a letter- I dare you. ♥

Martin Hospitality Cover Reveal!

Earlier this fall, in September, I had the honor of beta reading my friend Abi's novel, Martin Hospitality. I absolutely adored it, and I can't wait for all of you to have the chance to read it as well! It will be hitting Amazon on February 4th, so keep your eyes peeled- I'll add a link once it's up!

And now, without further ado....... the beautiful cover of Martin Hospitality!

Isn't it gorgeous?? I'm so excited for Abi- you all are going to LOVE this book!

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Are you as psyched as I am for Martin Hospitality?? Get ready- it's amazing!

100 Things I'd Rather Hold {Instead of My Phone}

via

I'll be honest with y'all. The blogger block has been super real lately. I have a ton of posts that I really want to write, and am excited about, but they're posts that are really important to me, and I don't feel that they're good enough yet. So, I've been struggling figuring out what to post in the meantime. Naturally, I scurried over to Twitter with a desperate plea for ideas. The super sweet Madeline from The Little Decorator replied to me with a post idea that she herself was working on, and invited me to join her. You can find the original post idea that she sent me here. 

Let's be real here for a second. We all probably spend too much time on our phones. I know that I do. And spending time on your phone isn't a bad thing. It's how we can keep in touch with people that we don't see very often. As bloggers, there are all kinds of things that we have to do on our phones, from answering emails on the go to promoting new posts on social media. 

But then you get to the point when you're stalking your sister's friend's cousin's classmate, and you know that you're just in too deep.

One of my goals for the year is to spend less time on my phone. I'm not dropping it cold-turkey, because I don't think that that is necessary, but I want to spend less time mindlessly scrolling. So when Madeline sent me this post idea, I thought that it was perfect. (Here's her post)

So in honor of the new year and of spending less time "plugged in", here is my list!

100 Things I'd Rather Hold {Instead of My Phone}

1. My journal

2. A warm fuzzy blanket on a cold day

3. My favorite blue pen

4. A chocolate chip cookie

5. My dance bag

6. A bottle of my favorite nail polish

7. My favorite fox mug full of coffee

8. A letter from a friend

9. The giant stack of photographs sitting on my dresser

10. A Harry Potter book

11. My laptop as I settle in for an afternoon of writing

12. A kitten

13. The script for a show

14. A stack of sweaters

15. A big book full of sheet music to play on the piano

16. An eyeshadow palette as I get ready for the day

17. Sassy t-shirts

18. The strap of my big leather purse

19. A polaroid camera 

20. My 365 day journal

21. A balloon

22. A CD to blast in the car

23. A slice of cheesecake

24. A fabulous new pair of heels

25. Hair ties

26. The ribbons of my pointe shoes as I tie them around my ankles

27. My seatbelt as we get ready to drive to the beach

28. A stack of stationary to write letters

29. Thread to make bracelets

30. Warm towels

31. A new pair of leggings

32. The ballet barre

33. Packs of pens

34. A stack of books from the library

35. A spoon to stir a bowl of cookie dough

36. A tube of lipstick as I add the finishing touches to my stage makeup

37. An ice cream cone

38. Packages delivered to the front porch of things that I ordered

39. Colored pencils as I color a page in an adult coloring book

40. A seashell

41. Books that I've read countless times

42. The Princess Diaries DVD

43. Boxes of doughnuts

44. Soap that smells good

45. My yoga mat

46. The familiar pages of my planner

47. My Bible and a pen

48. Playing cards

49. My favorite necklace

50. Sand trickling through my fingers

51. Piles of bobby pins

52. Wrapping paper and scissors

53. Ornaments to decorate a Christmas tree

54. Paper and a pen to hand-letter

55. My favorite army green jacket

56. A package of hot chocolate

57. Plans for choreography
58. A frappuccino at Starbuck as I hang out with my friends
59. A fuzzy pair of socks
60. Succulents
61. A tin of tacks to hang things on my bulletin board
62. The hand of a friend as we squeeze out the pre-show nerves
63. Scrapbooking supplies
64. The vacuum handle as I finally finish cleaning
65. Piles of notebooks
66. A snowball
67. WAFFLES
68. A tube of eyeliner after finally doing a wing
69. The cute white kettle that sits on the stove
70. Knitting needles
71. Pillows
72. Strings of fairy lights
73. Bowls of popcorn
74. A hand of playing cards
75. A camera
76. Puzzle pieces
77. Bagels
78. Memories
79. Sunglasses as I step onto the beach
80. A prom dress
81. My binder as I stuff it in my backpack, work finished
82. A folder full of plans
83. My favorite body spray from Target
84. Warm trays of muffins
85. Shoelaces as I tie them on the way out the door
86. Ribbons
87. A stack of old VHS tapes
88. My favorite ring
89. A box of doughnuts
90. A jar with quotes written on slips of paper inside
91. A library card
92. Someone's hair as I braid it
93. Flowers
94. A well worn t-shirt
95. A picnic basket
96. Sweatshirts
97. My leg as I attempt to stretch it over my head
98. Tickets to a show
99. A toy as I play with my cat
100. Last, but not least? Let's go with chocolate.

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So, tell me- what would you rather hold instead of your phone?

Lately

Hello, lovelies! I feel like I haven't been super active here in the Blogger world lately, and although you may know a bit about what I've been up to lately if you follow me on Twitter or Instagram (there's some shameless self-promo for ya), I thought that I'd pop by in between classes and lunch and do a little wrap-up here on the blog of what life's been looking like lately. ♥

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Reading- a ton of Mary Higgens Clark books. I'm currently on my third one this month! I really love them, they're so suspenseful and well-written. I'm also looking forward to reading Cursed Child soon- I got it for Christmas, and have been anxiously awaiting reading it! Bible-wise, I'm finally on Romans, and I'm so excited- it's probably my favorite book of the Bible.

Watching- the time literally slip past me. I've been so used to the calm and peace of winter break, and now life has gotten SO incredibly crazy, it's kind of overwhelming. I'm constantly thinking of new things that need to get done.

Writing- so many journal entries. I haven't journaled consistently in about a year, but one of my New Year's resolutions was to get back into it, and I'm so glad that I'm doing it. I really love journaling so much.

Trying- to remember all of the choreography that I've shoved into my brain. I'm the assistant choreographer for our middle school show, and it's so much fun, but a bit stressful. I'm such a perfectionist that I think my biggest concern is just not doing a good enough job.

Cooking- ....nothing. I literally haven't cooked or baked in so long, it's kind of pathetic. Maybe I'll try to make something on Sunday when I have some free time.

Eating- too many chocolate chip cookies and probably not enough fruit.

Drinking- water and coffee and coffee and water, maybe with a cup of coffee (or water) on the side. I've come to the realization that coffee really is the only way that I'm going to survive junior year, and  seeing as I've got a ton going on, I'm really trying to stay healthy and thus chugging water 24/7.

Calling- ...no one. The only person that I can remember calling in recent days is my grandma. I should get better about calling people more frequently.

Texting- the handful of friends that I talk to every day.

Tweeting- about how crazy excited I am that ED SHEERAN RELEASED NEW SONGS!!!!!! I literally cannot contain my joy. Y'all, if you haven't listened to Castle on the Hill yet, what are you even doing with your life????? GO LISTEN TO IT.

Pinning- not much, honestly. I haven't spent much time on Pinterest in a while.

Crafting- a plan for a new journal to track blog stuff. I'm really excited about it, but kind of nervous?? The OCD is so real, y'all.

Doing- my best not to get lost on campus again. The first day back to school, I got SO lost. (Which wasn't entirely my fault because my schedule was giving me a class number that didn't exist, sooooo....)

Going- to so many rehearsals that it's blowing my mind. Tuesdays and Sundays are my only truly rehearsal-free days.

Loving- SNOW! We got about five inches of snow over the weekend, and I cannot tell you how happy I was to be able to stay inside and read while looking out my window at that winter wonderland. (Literally what I was doing when I took the photo up top.)

Hating- the fact that the snow is melting, boring English classes, and not getting enough sleep.

Discovering- how much easier life is with a clean room, and how much journaling really declutters my mind. Honestly, I'm getting to the point where I'm realizing that I'm so much more sane if I just write everything down.

Enjoying- long snowy weekends inside, the chance to sleep in, and gigantic, fuzzy blankets.

Thinking- about when I'll have the chance to hang up some photos that I just got printed, and also when I should schedule my next blog post for.

Feeling- overwhelmed and tired but excited for so many things.

Hoping- that I passed my Spanish exam. Goodness I hope that I passed that.

Listening- to Castle on the Hill on repeat. I'd love to know how many times that I've listened to it so far because IT'S A LOT.

Celebrating- a couple of birthdays last week, and the fact that I don't have classes on Monday thanks to Martin Luther King Jr. day. I'M SO EXCITED.

Smelling- the body spray that I accidentally sprayed in my room. I'm now completely unable to get rid of the scent.

Thanking- heavens that coffee exists, and I don't have any Spanish homework this week.

Considering- the best way to convince a group of kids that the fake hatchets that they're dancing with should NOT be used to whack each other with.

Starting- to think about what I should eat for lunch.

Finishing- this post!

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What have you lovely people been up to lately? ♥

How To Approach Resolutions (And How To Stick To Them)

Resolutions. They're one of the first things that you think about when you think about a new year. "What resolutions am I going to make this year? How am I going to become a better person?" Seeing as it's the first week in January, my blog feed seems to be filled to the brim with posts about New Year's Resolutions. Some people hate them. Some people live by them. The opinions that I've seen have been so varied, it's kind of hilarious. I'll be reading one post where the author talks about the importance of setting goals and planning out your entire year on January first, and the next post will say the exact opposite, that resolutions are unhealthy and everyone needs to calm down.

So naturally, amidst all of the different opinions, I decided that I might as well jump in and toss out my two cents on the topic.

I'll be the first to admit it. As much as I oftentimes fit the stereotype of the scattered artsy person, when it comes down to it, I am a planner to the core. Oh my goodness, am I a planner. That's not to say that I'm always exceptionally organized. 90% of the time, my room is a wreck, I'm behind on school and blogging, and I'm probably avoiding my problems by burying myself in a good book. But when I finally get ahold of my mental health again, I am a planner. I love lists. LOVE them. I have been known to make lists of lists that need to be made. Writing everything out gives me a sense of calm, a sense that everything isn't falling out from under me and that I do somewhat know what's going on.

(It's also worth noting that at times, I can have the memory of Dory. Just the other night, I was racking my brain because I could not remember what I had been doing before dinner to save my life. Apparently I'd been having a conversation with my sister, but I still don't remember it. My short term memory is awful. So writing things down can be a bit of a necessity for me.)

On top of being a planner, I really love goals. Oftentimes I fail miserably at them, but I love making goals. It's fun for me to see where I want to be after a certain period of time, to plan what I want to do and who I want to be. I'm not sure why, it's just something that I enjoy.

So naturally, after reading all of this information about my scatterbrained nature and need for plans, I'm pretty sure that you can guess where I stand on the topic of New Year's resolutions. Yep, I'm that girl. The one who writes pages upon pages of resolutions.

But yet, at the same time, I can see the issue with resolutions. They can very easily turn into something that is far from healthy. As great of an idea as it is to make New Year's resolutions, oftentimes, despite our best intentions, they don't go the way that we want them to. Life grows busy, and we forget that we ever made those resolutions at all. Then, when we realize that we have once again not followed through, we can start beating up on ourselves. Those little voices come on in your head. Oh look, you've failed again. Another year, and you've screwed up your resolutions before the first week of February. You just can't do anything right, can you? You're never going to be healthy. You're never going to get to where you want to be. You'll never be good enough for ______. You can't do _____. You can't. You aren't. You wish.....

Guys, that's literally the most toxic cycle to find yourself stuck in. Those voices? Once you start telling yourself that, it's SO hard to break the cycle. Listen to me. You are not defined by your New Year's resolutions. Whether or not you stick to a resolution does not define what kind of person you are. Only God defines you. So remember that.

So once you get it in your head that it is okay not to complete every New Year's resolution, that is when you can start actually making them. If you go in with the knowledge that it's not going to go perfectly, and that's okay, everything will go so much better.

My friend, Rachel, wrote a post about resolutions that I really loved. In it, she discussed the difference between "goals" and "targets". As she explained it, "A goal is something you want to achieve specifically. A target, however, is something that you just generally want to aim for." So, for example, you might have a goal of going to the gym three times a week, or you might just have a target of living a healthier lifestyle. I think that it's really good to have a balance of goals and targets, but you may be someone that likes all goals, or all targets. So your first step in determining your New Year's Resolutions might be to decide where you stand on this. Do you want to make a list of goals, targets, or both?

The next step to take is to ask yourself, "Where do I want to be at the end of this year? What do I want to do?" Prioritize. You're not going to get everything done. So you should decide which resolutions are most important to you, and go with those.

I also like to add a few things to my resolutions list that are a bit more of bucket-list type of things. Things that I want to do, shows that I want to watch, books that I want to read. It helps me remember what I want to do.

Now you're ready to make your list. Write out as many or as few as you'd like. Some people prefer to stick with two or three resolutions, while other people make thirty. It's completely up to you!

Once you've decided on your resolutions, it's time for the hard part. Sticking to them.

I've decided that this year, I want to continually keep track of how I'm doing as far as resolutions go. Otherwise, I'll forget about them completely- it always happens. So at the beginning of each month, I'm going to evaluate where I am, and make a list of steps that I need to take to get closer to my goals and targets. For example, maybe your goal is to write a novel by the end of the year. You might first set a goal in January to have the entire thing outlined, and then in February you might set a goal to write five chapters. Working up to your bigger goal by taking smaller steps is the easiest way to accomplish the things that you want to do.

So now that I've taken you through the process of creating your list of resolutions and attempting to stick to them, here's a few of mine-

-Keep a journal consistently

-Finish my novel

-Read 60 books

-Take better care of myself (work out more often, drink more water, etc)

-Watch Sherlock, Gilmore Girls, The Hunger Games, and the Harry Potter movies

-Spend less time on social media

-Stop procrastinating schoolwork and just do it (i.e. spend as little time on school as possible and actually have time to LIVE)

-Take more photos

-Share things on here that I'm super passionate about

-Pop out of my comfort zone a bit more

Am I going to succeed with all of them? Probably not. In fact, definitely not. I know that I won't. But I'm going to try, and hopefully some things will end up getting done along the way. I'm excited for this year. It's going to be good. Here we go.

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So, tell me- what are your resolutions for the year? How has 2017 gone for you so far? How's life? Let's chat!

(p.s. Some of you may have noticed that I didn't write a Happy January post. I decided that my Farewell 2016 post kind of summed up everything that I wanted to say, and I didn't want to just repeat myself and bore y'all, so that's why I didn't post. I'm not completely losing my mind yet!)