Junior year.

How on earth did I end up here?

I feel like it was just yesterday that I was in eighth grade, and now I've blinked and suddenly, it's junior year. Frankly, it makes me feel old. Like, the fact that next year, I'll be a senior? THAT'S CRAZY. Not okay with this. Not. At. All.

I've seen lots of "_____ Year Goals" posts floating around the blogosphere the last few weeks, but naturally, I've been in denial that I'm actually a junior and haven't posted mine. Go me, having my life together like that. 

BUT I did want to do a post like this, so I'm going to, no matter how depressing I may find it. I'm only going to be a junior once- might as well embrace it. 

- - - - -

1. Don't get behind on schoolwork.

I feel like this is the obvious goal every year, but let's be honest- it never seems to happen. Am I going to fail miserably at this? Yeah, probably. But might as well include it anyways.*shrug*

2. Finish the first draft of my novel.

That's right. STILL haven't finished the first draft. (I'm currently thinking about scrapping it, actually, but that's a rant for another time.) I'm bound and determined that I am GOING to finish this draft this year. I'll die trying, but I WILL finish it.

3. Be in my co-op's musical. 

I'm really excited for this, actually. (Grace Anne's excited about a musical. Shocker, I know.) Auditions are on the 19th- hopefully they'll go well!

4. Stress less.

I'm a mess, guys. I get stressed out and anxious WAY too easily. I'm probably going to fail on this goal, too, but it's worth a shot. I am not throwing away my shot!

5. Survive college classes.

So far, so good, but I'm only a month in. Hopefully they'll continue to go well! 

6. Branch out, friend-wise.

Most of my friends are all from the same group, so I feel like I should attempt to be a bit more outgoing, friendship-wise. Again, this is another one that I'll probably fail miserably on, but it's worth a try.

7. Read more often.

Lately, I've been in a major reading slump, and quite frankly I'm tired of it. I miss reading! Even though it's always busy during the school year, I really want to make it a point to read more often. 

8. Become more outgoing. 

Yes, I am an introvert. I'm pretty sure that I always am going to be an introvert, and that's not a bad thing. But I do want to try to become a little more comfortable with being more social and outgoing. Anyone want to train me in the art of extroverting?

9. Be more consistent with journaling.

As much as I love journaling, I feel like I did a terrible job with this during my sophomore year. I would try to journal, but I never had enough time, and I would get super overwhelmed (imagine that) trying to write down everything. I need to figure out a way to get better at managing it, because I really do love journaling, and it's nice to be able to look back at everything that's happened.

10. Take more photos 

My family will probably crack up reading this, because I already take an insane amount of photos, but honestly, I want to take even more than I do already. I want to capture everything, even the more mundane moments of life- especially the more mundane moments. They're so wonderful to look back on later.

11. Improve my organization

My life tends to fall into one of two categories- either I'm obsessively organized, down to the *tiniest* detail, or I'm a tornado of a mess. There's honestly no in-between. Lately, it's seemed to be more of a tornado than organized, and I really want to change that. I love being organized, it just seems like I always end up losing that organization. I WANT TO CHANGE THAT!

12. Don't let school take over.

I feel like a lot of times during the school year, I forget that school is only a *part* of my life, it's not my entire life. I want to do things OTHER than school. I want to enjoy life! I'm really trying to get my school out of the way, so that I can enjoy doing other things that I actually enjoy.

13. Survive standardized tests.

With junior year comes PSAT's and SAT's. Yay. I'm basically just hoping to survive them at this point.

14. Go to prom!!

Yes, I'm already thinking about prom. It's so much fun- I can't wait!! I can't decide what color dress I want yet- but obviously I'm already pinning away. ;)

15. Enjoy the year.

Honestly, I just want to have a good year. Like I said, junior year only happens once- I want to enjoy it. ♥

- - - - -

What are YOUR goals for this year??

Bobby Pin Power!!

Aren't these cute? A sweet friend gave these to me, and I adore them! I love embellished bobby pins like these, they're a great accessory to add to a simple hairstyle to jazz it up a bit. Perfect for those school mornings where we're too late to do anything fancy hair-wise, but still want to look cute. Just add them to a braid or ponytail, and there you go! Adorable! I added them to a fishtail, and I love how they looked. :)

What do you guys think? Cute, huh? I think it's super cute! :) Do you guys like it? LMK what you think!

Orientation/First Day Nails!!

What do you all think of this color? I wore it both for Orientation and the first day of school. :) Sorry that it's a bit chipped, I've had it for the past three days, so I have a chip here and there, but I liked the color too much not to post a picture of it. It's Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear 405: Coral Reef. I love Sally Hansen polishes so much!! <3

How I Get Ready For School In 40 Minutes!

Hey everyone! So, first off, I'm so sorry I couldn't post yesterday! My goal was to post every day this week, but that didn't exactly work out... I went back to school today, so yesterday was a frenzy of getting ready!

So, I know that it can be hard to get ready in the mornings, especially for us girly girls who want to do hair, makeup, etc... I get stressed out about it pretty often, to be honest! However, I'm usually able to be out of the house in forty minutes, so I thought I'd share some tips for you all on how to spend as little time as possible getting ready, so you can get some much needed sleep!!

The Night Before-

-Get your backpack ready (yes, I know we've heard this since first grade, but it's true. Just look at it this way-every minute you spend on finding that silly essay is one less minute of sleep!)

-Do any hair prep you can. I always wash my hair the night before, and if I'm able, I like to go ahead and straighten it as well. That way, all I have to do in the morning is minimal touch ups, or adding something small like a braid. Saves you about ten minutes!!

-Think through what you're planning to wear. I'm not asking you to lay it out, (although if you're one of those super organized people, go right ahead. I'm not...) just start thinking it through.

-SET YOUR ALARM!! DO NOT FORGET!!!!!!!

The Next Morning-

-Force yourself out of bed as soon as the alarm rings. Please, don't hit snooze! You WILL fall back asleep. It's worth it, trust me.

-Head downstairs to grab something to eat (quickly!). I try to spend as little time as possible on food, because I never seem to be hungry in the mornings. If you drink something like coffee, tea, or hot chocolate, go ahead and make it and then bring it to your room with you. You can drink it while you get ready/in the car. 

-Daily things. Wash your face, (please!!! Be kind to your skin!!) brush your teeth, put in your contacts, etc. Get those things out of the way first.

-Decide what to wear and get dressed. I always to this first, so I can see what the outfit looks like before I start working on hair and makeup. Don't forget to accessorize!! :)

-Makeup. Ladies, I know we tend to love to play with every color on that eyeshadow palette, but when you're rushing for school, it's just not the time. If you really want to do that, get up five-ten minutes earlier. Otherwise, I usually schedule about fifteen minutes for makeup. Mascara, eyeliner, foundation, a touch of eyeshadow, fix your eyebrows, and add some Baby Lips, and you're good to go! I should do a tutorial of my everyday makeup sometime. Anyone interested? Comment!!

-Hair. Now, if you did as I suggested, your hair is already nicely straightened! Congratulations! You may have to do some minor touch ups, but that's about it. You now have a bit more time if you want to play with some fun braids or twists. If you didn't do your hair the night before, just schedule a bit of time. I'm able to do it in about fifteen minutes, if I'm planning to curl or straighten it. Just realize that it DOES take time, and account for it!

-Anything last minute. Now's the time for that quick spritz of perfume, to grab your wallet or phone to fix any last minute makeup, and you're out the door! Congratulations! You're ready for school! Should I congratulate you or console you? I'm not quite sure. Oh well, you're ready!!

I hope that this helps you! Do you have any tips for those rushed mornings? Comment below!! :) <3 I love hearing from you!

My Rucksack!! :)

Isn't this a cute bag? I got it for my birthday over the summer. It's an American Eagle bag, but my mom found it at Payless. (They sell AE stuff there) I wish that I could use it for school, but I'm homeschooled and go to a twice a week co-op, and we don't have lockers. :/ Thus, I can't carry a six pound chemistry book easily in this bag. If you had lockers, however, I would TOTALLY recommend a bag like this. I'm going to use it for my dance and drama classes, because it's easily large enough for that. Stay tuned for later this week, where I'll post what I carry in my backpack!! :) Any back-to-school blog post requests? Let me know in the comments!!! :)