things neatly organized

I love when things are organized neatly. As you can imagine, when I stumbled across this blog, my heart was very happy.
Here are some pictures from the blog, cleverly titled, "Things Organized Neatly".

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happy first day of fall, my friends!

Wow. Has it really been a week since I last blogged? Whoops!
Our teachers have been on strike for the past two weeks, and so today was our first day back. Over the "break" I was able to tackle some college stuff, but I spent most of my time reading which was nice for a change.

Some lovelies from this past week:
-I read "Blue Like Jazz" this week, and was amazed by the beauty and truth of this quote:
“There is something beautiful about a billion stars held steady by a God who knows what He is doing. (They hang there, the stars, like notes on a page of music, free-form verse, silent mysteries swirling in the blue like jazz.) And as I lay there, it occurred to me that God is up there somewhere. Of course, I had always known He was, but this time I felt it, I realized it, the way a person realizes they are hungry or thirsty. The knowledge of God seeped out of my brain and into my heart. I imagined Him looking down on this earth, half angry because His beloved mankind had cheated on Him, had committed adultery, and yet hopelessly in love with her, drunk with love for her.”       -Donald Miller
-I made Buttermilk Chocolate Cupcakes multiple times this week. I promise to post the recipe soon! They. Are. Heavenly.
-Warm weather. Sometimes fall (when we are in school) in Washington is warmer than summer. This is wrong, I tell you.  
-The movie "Once. Have any of you seen it? So beautiful. I've had the soundtrack playing nonstop in my room. My favorite songs are "Falling Slowly," "When Your Mind's Made Up," and "If You Want Me." 


Have a wonderful weekend!

I need to start living

lovelies

*Peach season is one of my favorite parts of summer. I could have peaches and yogurt every. day.
*WARM WEATHER! It has been in the 80s all week. I think Washington finally got the message that it was supposed to be summer.
*Kina's cover of "Sound of Silence". It is so breathtaking. I'm a sucker for three part harmonies.
*First week of school = awesome.
* the notebook doodle's free phone wallpaper downloads! I have one on my iPod right now.
*I'm playing at this coffeeshop tonight with some friends and I'm really excited. We are playing "You Are My Sunshine" (Civil Wars cover), "The Water" (Johnny Flynn), "Hallelujah", and "The Sound of Silence".

How was your week?

what to do with doilies

The Simple things: Dark Chocolate Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

Why have you not been in my life before now?

a new school year = school year goals

The new school year is always a perfect opportunity for making goals. And I love making goals. A lot of these are ones that might be slightly unrealistic (working out four times a week? pshh) but I'm going to try my best.
What are some of your school year goals?

Psalm 63

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you;

my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you,

in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

I have seen you in the sanctuary 

and beheld your power and your glory. 

Because your love is better than life,

my lips will glorify you.

I will praise you as long as I live, 

and in your name I will lift up my hands. 

My soul will be satisfied as with the riches of foods;

with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

Psalm 63:1-5

font love: august edition

download them (for free!) here:
payday
masana
blackout
type keys
the maple origins

in the kitchen

Let me start by saying that these are some of the best carrot cake cupcakes I have ever had. Ever. Beats the local cupcake shop for sure. Another highlight of these little bits of heaven is that they have lots of carrot in them. So that makes them healthy. Essentially, you don't have to feel guilty about eating them. Guilt free cupcakes? Yes, please! Let's get started.

You'll need:

• 4 eggs
• 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 3 cups grated carrots
• 1 cup chopped pecans (I leave these out)
• 
  

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

Now for the heavenly cream cheese frosting:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 
  
• In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Stir in chopped pecans. Frost the cooled cake.

Warning: be prepared to eat at least ten cupcakes in one sitting. Happy baking!

recipe from here

Lovelies

-a lovely lunch with a lovely lady
-this "14 Ways to Make Mediocre Art" post is so great
-a whole week of sun. Washington finally realized it is summer...
-listening to worship songs in Spanish. you should listen to "the stand"/"agui estoy" by Hillsong.
-new school supplies. one of my favorite parts of summer!

what lovely things have you found or done this week?

wisdom from atticus finch