Oh, Italy

As a child, two things were always certain.  I loved New York City (although I hadn't yet been) and I wanted to travel the world.  I think both of these perplexed my parents because they were not New York City people and they certainly did not like to travel.  I eventually made my way to New York City and was in love with it just as I knew that I would be and as a junior in high school I had the opportunity to travel to Spain.  It was such a beautiful experience and I remember knowing that it would not be the last time my passport would be stamped.  It's been some time since I've traveled but am very excited to announce that I will be heading to El Salvador on January 4th for a service trip with my University.  There is something about seeing the world that is just so lovely and so while my eyes are set on my impending trip, I can't help but think of all the places I'd like to visit someday.  A few months ago, Taza from the blog Love Taza and her family took a trip to Italy and since then I have been hooked.  I've started saving by using this fun savings plan and in the mean time I have pinned every image I could find on Italy.  Below are a few of my favorites!

Does Italy tug at your heart strings? Or is there another place on your wishlist? 

Welcoming 2014 and creating those dreaded resolutions

2014 is going to be a big year, I can feel it.  We have approximately 11 days until we ring in the new year and to be honest, I can't wait.  2013 was by no means a bad year, but it was a weird one.  There was a lot of change and a lot of growth and I am certainly grateful for the lessons that life inevitably taught me this year.  With that said, I am more than ready for what 2014 is going to bring.  I think as each year undoubtedly comes we are provided with a unique opportunity to hit the refresh button, to set goals and to put life in perspective.  It's important to stop and ask yourself, what do you want from 2014?  I've always found making a New Year's resolution to be frivolous. We are so often setting ourselves up to fail with a resolution that may or may not be obtainable.  Rather than make one resolution, I typically set goals and create a list of things I'd like to do in 2014.  Since my Photoshop has decided not to work tonight, I will just go ahead and type them out :)

In 2014 I'd like too:

• Lose 50 pounds
• Get a job (terrifying that I have to write this down!!)
• 4.0 in the spring semester (I've never had a 4.0, I always end up with a damn B+ in something that brings me down to a 3.8)
• Plan at least one weekend trip.  I asked Santa for this amazing travel book for Christmas.  Hoping to get it and plan a fantastic trip for my girlfriends this semester.  
• Blog at least once a week
• Take a dance class

Feel free to join in on the fun with this adorable print I found on Pinterest.  This adorable little print comes from the blog Run Lucas Run and was created by Lindsay.  The site is adorable and I highly recommend you all check her out!

I've also filled this out and have, as always, sent it out to my girlfriends to do the same!

Comment below and let me know what you are planning to achieve in 2014! Or Tweet them to me at @ashnduvall :)

Happy planning my loves!

Personal Mission Statement

It's a mouthful, I know, but when I really think about it...this is it.  This is what I stand for; my mission statement.  I decided to create my own mission statement after stumbling upon a thoughtful guest post on The College Prepster written by Maxie McCoy.  I absolutely love any chance for reflection and having never made a personal mission statement before, I thought this served as a perfect opportunity, especially as 2014 draws near.

I urge all of you to go ahead and make one!  It was such a fun experience and I'm already forcing all of my girlfriends to take part :)  Feel free to draw inspiration from my own (pictured above)!

Happy mission statement making, folks! :)

It's Monday

Gosh I wish I had a wittier title for this post, but it's Monday and there is no proper way to sum up my life right now or what this post is about and so that just seemed like it fit.

My original idea in writing today was going to be something like this "out of all the life lessons I have learned this semester, perhaps the most important one is to worry less."  I haven't worried about anything unreasonable in so long that I actually can't remember the last time.  It's a good feeling.  I'll just worry about things when I have too.  So yeah, I was going to write a long post about that but instead I emailed my roommate and asked for some blog post ideas and I just liked those better...

Charlotte's suggestions: her nail polish collection, chocolate, jelly beans, the term boo thang, cable knits, fresh apples vs. store apples, cat gifs/vines, Halloween sl... (you can take a guess as to what that says), chocolate again, why it's okay to eat ice cream in the winter, gluten, vitamins, white teeth, dying your hair, leather goods, cookies and last but not least...the weather!

When I got this email at work I actually laughed out loud it was almost ridiculous.

But anyway, shall we let Charlotte comment on a few?  I think so...this girls funny, so enjoy!

Chunky sweaters
 
The thing about any chunky knit or cable knit sweater is that it looks great in theory, but poor in practice if it's not the perfect size. First of all, elbow dents. Can we talk about those? Am I the only one bothered by them? Anything knit or 100% cotton is subject to getting stretched out in all the wrong places. No, no one should give a care about how stretched out my sleeves are at the elbow, but it's annoying. Also, length. If your sweater is too short you look like you shrank it (back to "dry clean only" in a second), and if it's too long, you look like a carpet, or a dog bed. Even skinny people are susceptible to this. I personally think those cable knit, knee-length, button-up hooded sweaters are reserved only for 45 year old moms at high school football games, and no one else. Ever. Please just make it stop. If you have a pet, you have to make sure they don't put a pull in the sweater. If you don't have a pet, you have to make sure YOU don't put a pull in the sweater. Dry clean only is also a load of bull. Wash anything giant and knit by itself on delicate and lay it flat to dry. No one can afford a dry cleaner every time they decide to make the effort of wearing a sweater you'll have to babysit while you wear it. I adore chunky sweaters. Everything fall makes me happy, because I am a Caucasian female between the ages of 14 and 29. But be mindful of how you wear them. A quality sweater is a very beautiful thing.

Boo thang's
 
Your term of endearment for the month is boo thang. Try it. I call males, females, best friends, boyfriends, pretty sure my mom, boo thang. A boo thang, by its most pure, fine, urbandictionary definition, is like a wifey or hubby. More high grade than a dime piece, but not quite a fiancee. The greatest use of boo thang is by someone you would not expect to use it (read: I am a Caucasian female between the ages of 14 and 29.) It will make the person laugh, out of confusion or happiness, or a little bit of both. People will also share the love and eventually call you boo thang in return. A boo thang is someone who does something for you in the clutch, makes you smile, or is generally helpful when you're off your game. Boo thang is also perfect to use when you are unsure if someone is dating someone else, or how to gently ask a friend "are you like... seeing him?" The laughter resulting from the use of boo thang will get you the info you need and the smiles we all love.


I'd make a few comments of my own, but that's a tough act to follow.

Happy Monday folks!  

Apple picking and other noteworthy pictures

Thoughts on a Thought Catalog list...

Thought Catalog recently published the list, 19 Things You Accomplish Before Getting Married.  I was perplexed at first because they totally plagiarized themselves since they published a very similar list in July by a different writer entitled, 19 Things You Should Do Before You Get Married.  Personally, I like the first list better.

So...lets reflect on that one. 

I guess I'm still dealing with my breakup, right?  I'm 90% fine, but I guess that 10% that leaves my mind reeling means I am still in the post-apocalyptic phase.  I appreciate this list for that reason because clearly...so much left to do! *hand-clapping iPhone emojii* - go ahead, judge me for that...

Here are some personal favorites:

 2. Love your body. While it’s true that the media would often convince us that we’ll only feel beautiful in the arms of someone who loves and approves of us physically, when we’re alone in front of an unforgiving mirror, the only thoughts we’re left with are our own. Going into any relationship feeling ugly, unlovable, and as though you should be ashamed of the way you look is a recipe for disaster. If you think you’re not worthy or capable of being touched and admired, even if someone disagrees with you, it’s going to be difficult to feel their love through all the layers of self-loathing. Though no one wakes up one day and goes, “Oh hell yeah I don’t know what I was thinking, I’m f-cking gorgeous,” it wouldn’t hurt to work on becoming happy with your body and finding some balance every day.

3. Accomplish something just for you. It could be graduating from school, starting a challenging job, or just facing a fear you need to prove you can overcome. Frankly, the obstacles and goal posts we have scattered throughout our lives come in all shapes and sizes, and only you should be concerned with the parameters you set for success and accomplishment. But if we don’t do things to make ourselves happy and feel as though we accomplished something, we can easily become complacent, or feel that we shouldn’t even try, because we’ll never reach our goals. The longer we go without achieving something because we want to, the harder it will become to start up that hill.

7. Learn from the time you dated someone and treated them like crap. Everyone has that one relationship where they’re not particularly proud of the way they behaved. They took someone for granted, they picked fights, and acted generally like a jerk. While such behavior is certainly not commendable, you learn a lot about yourself through treating someone badly. Mainly, you realize who you don’t want to be and what kind of relationship you don’t want to have, which makes you more prepared for something like marriage. You can’t ever go back to the way you acted because it made you hate yourself. Your future husband/wife will feel relieved that you got this relationship out of your system.

11. Get your heart broken. Whether from losing a good friend, having a fight you know you were wrong in, or seeing a love you were sure was forever end prematurely — we all need to know what it feels like to be broken. Perhaps the most essential thing about heartbreak is coming out on the other side and realizing that, no matter how badly you are hurting in the moment, it’s going to pass and you are going to be happy again. Few things manage to put future fights, anger, and sadness into perspective than getting over a real heartbreak at least once.

15. Live alone/ be alone. People can go their entire lives skipping from relationship to relationship because they’re afraid of being alone. Being alone isn’t always a walk on the beach, but it’s important to develop the capacity to rely on yourself for happiness before you pass off so much of that weight to another human being. 

16. Fall in love with a friend. What is this strange idea that only the people you have sex with/ marry are the people you are supposed to fall head-over-heels in love with? What a sad life we would all be living if we were incapable of loving someone just for long car rides, laughing at stupid TV shows, and staying up late eating junk food and drinking straight from the bottle. Take the time to experience love in all the forms that you routinely mistake for being “boring old friendship.”

How can you not appreciate this list?  I particularly love 15 and 16.  Being alone is difficult, especially when you're used to being a pair.  That was the case for me and when it ended I was beside myself.  However, I quickly learned the benefits of taking some time for myself.  I think there is something to be said about being comfortable all alone because you get the opportunity to decided whether or not you actually like yourself.  If you do, great...if not, make some changes.  I feel sorry for people that can't be alone.  There's no intimacy greater than getting to know and love yourself without the comfort of a significant other.  Number 16 is equally as great and is something I'm experiencing now.  I've gotten the opportunity to put so much love and time into my friendships and they have just blossomed.  People forget about their friends, especially while in relationships and its foolish.  It's a mistake that I will never make again. 

What are your thoughts on this list?

Back in business, folks

A friend of mine wrote to me today and asked why I had stopped blogging.  It dawned on me then that I hadn't written in a very long time.  I was certainly aware of my unannounced hiatus but it really hit me this morning that I was letting people down who read this blog.  I have friends, family, and readers who have contributed so much love to my blogging experience and I was very ready to throw in the towel.  I had decided about a week ago that my laziness might as well be a hiatus and I might as well just return after the holidays.  The thing is, I've been feeling very uninspired.  About three months ago when From Scratch was in the design phase, I wrote another blog which chronicled my life in my relationship....and then my relationship ended.  So, the inspiration for From Scratch derived from the idea that my life was starting over.  Remember that age old saying, "don't put your eggs in one basket?" Yeah, don't.  I did and it totally sucked.  The point is, I was motivated to start From Scratch because I literally had to press the abort mission button on my old blog and restart.  I essentially changed my identity.  I was so inspired to write openly and honestly and then I realized I wanted privacy...just for a little.  I got rid of Facebook and just lived my life.  It felt good and I don't necessarily feel like putting myself back on the grid and sharing all of my deepest darkest thoughts and opinions about life in general, but still.  I do however feel like putting time into something I love...which is this blog.

So for those of you that do read...hang tight.