7 Ways I'm Investing In Myself

elf-development is something I am rolling over into 2020 from last year. It truly has been a part of my life for quite some time, yet now it is evolving into an active awareness for me as I navigate new chapters. It is a constant struggle to keep myself in balance but the rewards of showing up for myself are great. So, here are seven ways I'm investing in myself currently.

Take up a new hobby 
One of the best things I've ever done for my psyche was to expand my hobbies. It is so easy to get lost on my iPhone with social media or Youtube vlogs. And honestly, my eyes needed a break from the computer screen. I needed to stop scrolling and start doing. So, last summer I re-taught myself how to cross-stitch. I absolutely love it so much, and now I'm diving into the world of embroidery, something I really don't know much about. But, hey that's why there's YouTube, right?


Never miss an eyebrow appointment 
Yep, maintaining my eyebrow shape means a lot to me. I've been doing it since I was about eleven or twelve and I've never looked back since. Somehow it livens up my face, making me feel so much more like myself.


Have a sugar detox 
I am currently on my second (super serious) sugar detox and it always helps my body mentally and physically. Sugar is my weakness and saying goodbye to it for a while is one of the best ways I know how to respect my body. It makes my mind feel more clear, I don't have withdraw headaches, and no more afternoon slumps. A sugar detox is a challenging investment and one that won't be a regular lifestyle habit in my life, but it's one that needs to take place a few times out of the year.


Read all the books 
As an English major, I love learning through the lens of other people's lives. Whether it's within a fiction piece or an autobiography novel it is one of my favorite ways to discover my own personal development. Reading just provides so many beautiful perspectives to view the world.


Put words to paper
Journaling has been such a powerful tool in my life. It is a practice I would love to invest in more, but I find it is a slow process to develop. Somethings are hard to navigate and when I write it all makes sense. I just love how such memories are able to be saved forever, never forgotten.


Spend quality time with my family 
Growing up I've always been taught that friends can come and go but family is forever. The best thing I can do for myself is to be surrounded by my loved ones who truly know me and my greatest passions all while encouraging me through them. Being around my family is such a blessing and they bring out the best of me.


Travel to new places 
Ahh, traveling gives me so much joy. Experiencing new cultures and lifestyles is so refreshing. Through the process of seeing and trying new things radiates a whole new perspective for my life and I love that feeling.

My 2020 Resolutions

Ahhh 2020 is here. A fresh new start to enjoy whatever comes my way. I've always loved resolutions but this year is a little different for me. There is a lot of pressure I put on myself to become better than ever in everything. But, I'm trying to put that thought behind me and focus on letting this year be whatever it will be for me. I don't have any plans or big dreams to chase, other than some goals I'm excited to tackle. I learned a lot during this last decade as it held my high school and college days. I just think it's so neat to be entering the 20's in my twenties, lol. Anyways, here are my resolutions.

1. Learn embroidery // For Christmas, I received a lot of the materials needed to start new projects. I have experience with cross-stitch, but it will be fun to learn new types of stitches.

2. Speak more kindly to myself // I've said it before, but I can be very hard on myself. Well, that is why last year my word was grace. Words have a lot of power, and the ones that run through my head every single day need to be more uplifting and full of gratitude this new year.

3. Have more faith // I hope to grow in the word and trust God more deeply.

4. Explore new places // California is so beautiful and I've lived here my whole life with so many more places to experience. I hope to do a lot more day trips to LA and San Diego!

5. Focus on my health // Physically and mentally my health needs to become more of a priority.

6. Maintain my bullet journal // Ahh, I'm so excited to have found such a neat community of fellow bullet journal enthusiasts. The concept of keeping a journal full of stationery and personal thoughts is just right up my alley. I hope to share a few entries soon this year!

My word for 2020 is grow. To grow in all areas of my life. I hope to plant my roots deeply in my faith, shed sunlight on my creative hobbies, water my friendships, and bloom into a more self-confident, independent, and strong version of who I am today. My desire is to grow tall no matter the seasons my anxiety brings. To grow in the freedom of saying no to certain expectations. To grow through my fears. To grow during the joyful moments. To grow in writing and poetry. I'm so excited to see where this year takes me, as I hold onto this word tightly. The words I chose to live by every year are the ones I silently repeat over and over in my mind and heart, as a reminder that everything is going to be okay.



"If you are outgrowing who you've been, you are right on schedule. Keep evolving." 

Taking Time To Reflect: Little Lessons of 2019

How do I even begin to sum up 2019? It's been a long year for me. Saying goodbye to the world I have poured every ounce of myself into was definitely a new challenge. I earned my degree in English and I couldn't be more proud of accomplishing my life long dream. Yet, it was hard to let it go and enter the unknown. Summer felt long this year, but our family vacation in Ventura felt refreshing. I quit my job in retail (woohoo) and took a full-time position at a consulting firm. It feels amazing to be able to begin paying off my student loans. This year I honestly felt so creative and I hope to explore new avenues next year.

Well, I truly don't know what 2020 will have in store for me. It's the first time in my entire life where I don't have any plans. I am just going to take life in short moments and enjoy what comes my way. Before I share my new year's resolutions, let's recap this past year.

1. // You can do anything you put your mind to, even if it takes time. If you forget, just think back to May when you received your degree.

2. // This year I found a love for poetry. I can't wait to slowly begin sharing them on the blog.

3. // I started an art travel journal. I just love using photographs, paint, washi tape, and paper to keep create such a memorial page of my adventures. It's so much more enjoyable when I print out my photos and do something special with them (unlike posting them on Instagram).

4. When I was young I use to cross stitch all the time. I would make tiny little cats or dogs. Somehow I lost the hobby all together come Jr. High. But, this year I began learning the craft all over again and it is my favorite past-time yet.

5. I met my celebrity crush, Jesse McCartney. I think our selfie turned out pretty cute.

6. Back in May, I was a bridesmaid for the second time for my best friend since second grade, Emily. I just love weddings.

7. Going to the Mission Inn Hotel with my mom to celebrate my graduation was just the best.

8. And I ended the year with my sister at Disneyland!

Best Of 2019

hhhh! You guys, 2019 has almost come to an end. I just wanted to take a minute and reflect back on the blog, because it has morphed into many forms for me this year. It truly serves as my milestone and every emotion in between type of space. I have barely blogged this year, and yet I've managed to grow a lot on Bloglovin', bringing my readers to 416! So, thank you! I love seeing new faces around my site. But, with that being said, this post was easy to create due to only publishing 24 posts. Back in the day, I was pushing out triple that amount.

I believe 2019 served as my year for simplicity and quality over quantity. I truly look back on my posts and love what I wrote, how I laid out the content, and the photography style I tried. I hope you have too! :) Let's dive in, here are the top five most-read posts of the year, along with my top four new places I traveled to!!

                GRADUATING WITH MY                  BACHELORS DEGREE 

       FIVE WAYS I WANT TO 
       SWITCH UP MY STYLE 

FIVE THINGS UNIVERSITY

TAUGHT ME 

          PERFECTIONISM,           THE HEART OF IT

I'M FEELIN' 22

  

This year I wasn't heavy in travel, but I ventured back to some of my favorite places. To kick off the year my mom and I celebrated my graduation at the Mission Inn Hotel. It was so relaxing, and so needed after the stress of my capstone course. In July, all of my friends and I bought annual passes to Seaworld and that was a blast in the summertime. For my family vacation, we went back to Ventura Harbor, Santa Barbara, and Carpeteria (all the places I grew up). Oh to be back on the sand with a book in my hand. It's literally all I did, it was awesome. And towards the end of the summer, I went to Balboa Park for the first time ever in San Diego and it was beautiful. You can read all about it here.

30 Reasons To Be Grateful This November

Creating a gratitude list is something I've implemented more regularly into my life this year. I've truly seen the benefits of taking the time to focus on the good that surrounds me. Whenever I suffer from anxiety or a certain funk it can be hard to feel grateful sometimes. But, I find it's the only thing that pulls me out of my situation and provides a different perspective. Honestly, 2019 has turned out to be completely different than ever planned. Yet, every day my gratitude list grows because I chose to focus on the small things. Here are 30 reasons I can be full of gratitude this month.

1. // Being exposed to poetry during my last semester of college. And enjoying the process of writing my own pieces.
 2. // The well-being of my family.
3. // Going to Disneyland with my sister.
4. //  Changing of leaves so soon in Cali compared to last season.
5. // My pup, Lily, turned 10 years old this month.
6. // Gilmore Girls is still on netflix.
7. // My comfy space around me that makes me feel at peace.
8. // Everyday conversations I get to have with my mom.
9. // Chai tea with vanilla almond milk.
 10. // I'm glad that I was able to not only recognize my need to be off social media during this time but listening to my well-being, despite how hard it can be to not be apart of the daily happenings on Instagram.
11. // Twinkle lights.
12. // To be learning the concept of grace.
13. // Talk solely in movie references with my sister, Hannah.
14. // I gratuated with my Bachelor's degree.
15. // Christmas music by Frank Sinatra.

16. // For creativity in all mediums (paint, photography, and cross-stitching).
17. // Chocolate. Always.
18. // My new job in order entry.
19. // Leopard print is back in style.
21. // Found a new hobby, cross-stitching, that allows me to be creative and work with my hands.
22. // Being able to pray for anything.
23. // Homemade cooking.
24. // Laughter, because it makes me feel free.
25. // California beaches.
26. // My gold jewelry.
27. // Early cold mornings.
28. // I was able to be a bridesmaid for the second time for my best friend, Emily!
29. // My short haircut.
30. // This blog of mine. Throughout these seven years, it has served so many purposes for me. I love being able to express myself fully, along with meeting so many sweet readers in this blogosphere.

Three New Things | October

Long-time no talk, eh? Well, I am coming at you with a few reasons as to why that has been such a hard habit to break lately. I absolutely love reading blogs, but when it comes to creating my own posts, man is it hard. But, I have been trying to create something different here that I can actually obtain realistically. Those outfit styled photoshoots or how-to posts are probably long gone. So, hopefully, you are down for less styled content and more journal-type entries that speak solely on matters of the heart. Okay, my rant is over. Onto some updates for the month of October...

I cut my hair short. Okay, so back in March I had my routinely scheduled haircut appointment, but barely had a trim so in my graduation photos I would have long hair. Well, I never followed up in the summer-time, so here I am with super long hair (probably the longest I've ever had) and very unhealthy. It was so thin and damaged. I knew it needed at least 3 inches cut off. Well, it was more like 5 inches once I sat in that chair. It hasn't been this short since senior year of high school (any OG readers remember that?) I have to say I love it so much! Now I just need to learn new ways to style it, haha.

Already 26 days into my social media break. That's right, your girl deleted her Instagram and Facebook apps on her iPhone. I honestly was so tired of being bogged down by the weight of it all. My mental health has been a lot this summer, and social media was not helping at all. You know it's time to say goodbye for a while when it leaves you feeling tainted. I don't know when I'll pop back on, but for now, I'm just enjoying the silence.

Goodbye retail, hello order entry! Ahhh, you guys this is such exciting news for me. I quit my job in retail and took a full-time position as an order entry specialist. Working retail taught me so much (like can we just put those jeans back on the correct shelf, or say hello back to your cashier?) but I began feeling so irritated by every little thing. You know it is time to leave your job when it no longer challenges you to become a better version of yourself. Bottom line, it is not where my passion lies. So, it has been one week since I started my new position, and I love it so much already. A professional environment is just completely my vibe. I enjoy wearing blazers and high heels to work. Working at a desk just makes me so happy. I think I am really going to love this change.