An iPhone Update.

I got an iPhone in November, the battery is great but Siri hates me. She refuses to respond to my requests half of the time, I guess I got a sassy one.
The best part about having an iPhone is having a decent camera with me at all times. We all know that we can't go anywhere without our phones so an 8 megapixel camera is always at my side. 

Here are some pictures from my life as of late.

*My brother is becoming a Diet Coke addict lover and I couldn't be more happy about it.
*Mike and I found this dessert at Chilis. It is half vanilla, half chocolate cake with ice cream on top. Couldn't be more perfect for us!
*What our Oscar Sunday looked like. As my roommate Nicole wisely noted, "The Oscars is our Superbowl."
*I've been having a grapefruit every morning at breakfast and they have been divine.

*This was my alarm schedule the day I left for the East Coast. just plain gross.
*Diet Coke has been Boyfriend #2 lately. It picks me up, makes me smile and is always there for me. Pathetic, I know, but so, so true.

*Due to my dad's work travels, we buy our airplane tickets with airline miles. 

Unfortunately, when we bought my ticket the only seats left were in first class ;) 

It was my first time flying in first class and I didn't know how to act. They kept re-filling my drink, bringing me warm towels, asking if they could hang up my coat, it was great. I could definitely get used to that. However, I don't think I'll be seeing that first class cabin for another 40 years.

*If the Masters' have to have a layover we plan it at the Chicago O'Haire airport so we can get Garrett's popcorn. It is incredible. Get the cheese flavor, your mind will be blown.

*Pictures from Newport, Rhode Island. 

My New England Vacation.

Last weekend I was able to visit my best friend from high school, Sammy, in Providence, Rhode Island. She goes to school at Providence College and I've been dying to see where she's been the past 4 years.
Thanks to Papa Masters' airline miles and George Washington's birthday, I was able to take a trip out there for the long weekend.

Friday we went out to Newport, Rhode Island.
Newport is the quintessential New England summer town on the water - think polo matches and summer dresses. Newport is equipped with some of the most absurd mansions I have ever seen. Oh the life.

On the backside of the mansions there is a Cliff walk that is 3 1/2 miles long that takes you past the mansions and gives you their sea view. Newport is unbelievable. If you get the chance, you must go. 

Random fact: The Vanderbilt's had a home in Newport and the 1st Great Gatsby movie was filmed there.
We were blessed with perfect weather. We didn't even need to wear our coats for most of the walk!

Friday night I went out to dinner with Sammy's roommates and we went to her "Senior Night" at their on campus pub.

 The theme was Red, White and Blue so we went country style. 

We were supposed to go into Boston on Sunday, but as fate would have it, I came down with the stomach flu for the first time in a decade (literally 10 years, people, we're talking since 6th grade). We stayed home and took it easy Sunday and headed into Boston early Monday morning before my flight. 

This is Quincy Market, a food court type place with tons of cool shops and stores around it. It is right next to Faneuil Hall which is a meeting house from the 1700s.

After exploring Faneuil Hall Marketplace, we started on the Freedom Trail. The Freedom trail is a walk that goes all throughout the city marked by a red or brick line that takes you past all of the major Revolutionary war sites.

Above is a memorial to John Hancock in the cemetery he was buried in. 

My favorite thing about Boston is that it is a city that mixes the old and the new. You will be walking around a bunch of high rises and come upon an old church from the Revolutionary Era. It is an incredible city. I could just walk around for days.

Memorial to George Washington in Boston Commons (a park), Samuel Adams' grave

Ever since I was little, my Grandma has told me the story about my great-great-great(etc.) Grandma, Mary Dyer. She was part of the Antinomian movement in Boston in the 1600s, meaning she preached that God did not just speak to man through the Clergy, but that we could receive personal revelation from God.

This is her monument outside the Massachusetts State House in front of Boston Commons

Because of this she was banished from Boston and sent to Rhode Island. She came back to Boston 3 times to preach what she believed and was sentenced to death. She got out of her death sentence because she was well connected but on her 5th time coming back to Boston, she was hanged in Boston Commons in 1660. How rad is my too-many-greats-to-count grandma? 

Of course we had to stop by Cheers to get some food and a Diet Coke!

This was such an incredible trip. Sammy is one of those friends who you can not see for over a year and as soon as you get back together it feels like you haven't missed a beat. I am so lucky to have her in my life, she's been an amazing friend to me through the years.

I absolutely loved New England, I am dying to go back and spend more time. Next up: Foliage season, lighthouses in Maine, a few more days in Boston... a girl can dream, right?

A 90th Birthday.

My family has been lucky enough to have one of the cutest fathers/grandpas/great-grandpas around for so many years. This past weekend my grandpa turned 90 so my family threw him a huge party.

My grandpa is the funniest, happiest man you will ever met and he had more people at his 90th birthday party than I could ever dream of having at my next birthday. The man is a legend. He had well over 100 people in attendance, all paying tribute to his incredible life. 

I had to post a few pictures we had around the party.

My grandpa was born in Long Beach, CA in 1922. After his mission to Canada, he joined the World War 2 Navy. What a babe!

My Grandpa and Grandma got married just 3 weeks before he left for World War 2. Although they were apart for over two years, they wrote the entire time and had a secret system so she always knew where he was. When the war ended and his shipped sailed into the U.S., she was was waiting for him at the end of the Long Beach Harbor. All the men saw her and started hollering, he jumped off the boat, picked her up and kissed her as all the men cheered! True story. How sweet is that?

They went on to have a perfect marriage. Not a mean word was ever spoken. They are the greatest examples of true love and I hope to have a life just like theirs! I also hope to have a life filled with beautiful things like my grandmother's fabulous clothes. 

My grandpa is the most positive man you will ever meet. He makes everyone feel better about themselves than when he found them. Even though he has 31 grandchildren and well over 80 great-grandchildren, he has an incredible ability to make you feel like you are  the most special person in the world. I love him with all my heart and am so grateful to have had him as an example for all these years!

Cheers to many more years to come! 

My Valentine.

I have always loved Valentine's Day. Call me a sucker, a fool to the "Halmark-created holiday", so be it. Why not welcome an excuse to be extra nice, do things for your friends and loved ones and who doesn't love an excuse to go out to eat?

This Valentine's Day definitely goes down in the books as one of my favorites. My Valentine this year was Mike, who just so happened to be my Valentine for the past 3 Valentine's Days.

On Valentine's morning, I dropped off a little present, an eclair and a note on his doorstep.

I was a little too cheap to buy real wrapping paper so I grabbed a Daily Universe from campus, luckily I had ribbon.

I made these cards for my roommates and had to snap a picture of Mike's suave friends as they were on their way to their V-day "mandate" to P.F. Changs.

Can you guess which card is for which roommate??

Right to left: [Natalie] this Selena Gomez song is mine and Natalie's jam, [Meegan] I make tons of cookies and David always jokes about how they're a temptation, [Nicole] my diet coke run partner for life!

Ladies, all these men are single, let me know if you want in. 

Mike told me to dress up all fancy and that he'd pick me up at 6:30, other than that I had no idea what we were going to do. He'd been super secretive the last few days running "errands," and I was just dying to know what he'd been up to. We had to run by his apartment really quickly because "he forgot something," and I walked into the most perfect dinner setting.

Mike and I love to go out to eat, it is one of our favorite things to do together. We go out so much that this was the perfect way to switch things up. We had the apartment to ourselves and I have quite the chef of a boyfriend.

How cute is this table? He did it all by himself! He found real China at D.I., the fancy goblets, bought a table cloth and a runner, folded the napkins like a cruise director and set two spoons and forks. He is just the cutest. 

Mike's always been a good cook, but his recent obsession with Chopped has thrown him into Emeril Lagasse status. He made a "Jenna Meal," as he likes to call it: artichoke dip, ranch chicken, and butter cake topped with Haagen Daz ice cream. After the meal we watched The Bachelor together (his suggestion!) and played scrabble together, my favorite game. 

I'm not a chocolate girl so flowers are definitely the way to my heart. Over the last 2 and a half years, I've received a lot of flowers from this boy. Last Valentine's Day I wanted to return the favor so I came up with the idea of "man flowers." I got gift cards to some of his favorite places to eat and taped them to green pipe cleaners and tied a bow around them. They've been a hit! I highly suggest the idea. 

Mike made these bouquets himself. He bought all the flowers individually, even the greenery, and put them together! 

I just have to take one minute to brag. This is too good not to.

Most boyfriends/fiances/husbands want to make their girl feel special on Valentine's Day so they buy her flowers and do things that she likes to do. Mike brought me two bouquets of flowers, cooked me dinner, learn how to set a table, watched The Bachelor and played Scrabble with me - this is some pretty fancy courting if I say so myself.

However, that is not even the best part. Mike bought my roommate and his sister a bouquet of flowers, a huge cookie, balloons, a basket full of candy and a homemade card. Who does that? Mike does that.

He is the sweetest boy I have ever met. He is so in tune with other people's feelings and wants everyone to be happy. He's the greatest guy I know and I'm glad there is a holiday that gives me an excuse to show him how special he is to me. 

happy birthday

Friday was this crazy girl's 15th Birthday!

I have the spunkiest, most talented, funniest little sister around. Since she is almost 7 years younger than me, I have been able to watch her grow up. It has been the best kind of treat. She is my best friend who puts up with me annoying her mercilessly, she always keeps me laughing - seriously this girl's sense of humor is like none other, she is incredibly smart, is the biggest social butterfly I know - her social life is literally 8x busier than mine, is really mature and wise, and is the most talented person I have ever met. Don't believe me? Watch this: 

http://www.twitvid.com/RII0Q

Carly was Annie in her musical theatre company's production and from what I heard (unfortunately I wasn't able to go) was unbelievably incredible. I knew she would be, she's been singing ever since she could talk. When she was three years old we were getting our hair cut and she had the whole salon silent (over 15 hair cutting stations) while she performed the song "Part of Your World" from The Little Mermaid.

I love Carly so much and am so grateful to have her as my sister and best friend. Happy Birthday! 

**I'm just glad it's her 15th birthday so I don't have to worry about dating and driving just yet. Phew! 

something disturbing.

This guy fits into my clothes. 

He enjoyed it, I laughed but was crying on the inside and secretly contemplating fasting for a month. 

I did have fun seeing his inner model come out during the photo shoot. 

America's Next Top Model, watch out. Daddy Long Legs is coming for you. 

My View.

This has been my view all week.

Sitting on my bed, or chair, or library desk, staring at my computer.
I guess my view has never really been my hair, unless I had some crazy Spide-y vision. But this has also been my hair all week. On the top of my head. I've only put heat on my hair twice in the past week and a half. Not because I'm trying to keep it healthy or anything, nope, not at all. Just because I've been busy and lazy.

While we're giving out beauty points, in the past week and a half I have gone 3 days without wearing an ounce of make up, 2 wearing only mascara. 

In case you were wondering or worried, I shower every day. Although I may not be cute, I'm always clean. 

I decided to get dressed today so that at least these cute rays of sunshine would be part of my view.

Disregard the messy dresser, my room is actually much more clean than this picture lets on.

Happy Midterms! 

Art Therapy

When I was in London, I learned that I absolutely love art. Last Friday, I learned that while I love to look at art, I am certainly no good at making it. 

This past weekend, my roommate Nicole and I decided to follow through with the artistic plans we had been dreaming up for months. We went to the dollar store to buy a brush set and Walmart for the paint and canvases (3 canvases for only 6 dollars!). The entire night only cost each of us a $12.03!

 I promise Nicole wasn't posing for this, she's just that darling all the time.

 My paintings
excuse the hair on top of my head and the Zermatt shirt my dad didn't want. At least I have the excuse I was painting, sure didn't have that on my Cafe Rio excursion the next night. woops! 

Our finished products.

These were very amateur, to say the least, but it made for such a fun night. We got in old clothes, turned on Sleepless in Seattle and went wild with a little art therapy. I definitely recommend it.