2015 Goals

Better late than never, right?

Today's post is exactly what I was dreaming of when I wanted to make a YouTube channel to go along with the blog! I sat down and tried to make a video of this fifty trillion times but they were all way too long. So I decided to put half of my goals on my channel and half here! 

New Years resolutions are something I try to steer clear of. Having something as your resolution is pretty much setting yourself up for failure. They're empty and have no sort of gameplan to them. This year, I made a list of goals instead!

1// Keep a Jar of Good Things

I've seen this on YouTube and blogs and I want to keep one so badly. If you haven't seen it, you make a cute jar and every time something good happens to you, or just something you want to remember, you throw it in! 2015 is going to be a year of lasts and firsts for me. So many memories will be made finishing up my senior year and starting my journey into college. I want to remember every bit of it. I'm a nostalgic person and will look back on this forever. Maybe someday even share it with my daughter? I want to fill the jar up!

2// Get a summer job

I realllllly want to work at this pool over the summer. So many people from my school work there and rave about how fun it is! It doesn't really work getting a job during competition season, since I will be gone so many weekends and have long practices. As soon as it's over I want a job, though! I will be working for most of my spending money during college, so I need to start saving ASAP.

3// Go to Joffrey NYC

Last year, I auditioned for Joffrey's summer intensive in Miami. My brother and I both got in, signed up, and paid but we didn't end up going! There are no refunds, so we have credit to go this year. I fell in love with NYC in December when I went. There is nothing I want more than to be back, and this year I'm auditioning for the NYC program.

4// Find friends in college

I am so nervous about this. I've already had a hard time with the roommate situation... Currently two groups of girls think I'm rooming with them...#yikes I don't even think I will end up with either of them... ##yikes So that's where we are right now. I'm coming from six hours away and just hope I will find some friends. I'm so outgoing and make friends easily but I'm just scared about it!

5// Road trip with friends

It's our last summer truly together, and I want to make the most of it. I want to go somewhere (preferably the beach) with my best buds. And live to tell the tale of it...

6// Keep posting consistently

Cliche blogger goal, but I want to keep it up! I want to keep posting evenly on here and on YouTube and hopefully gain some new friends along the way!

Make sure to watch the video to see the other half of my goals!

Comment and tell me your goals for 2015!

Stay perfect xo

Ash

The Sunday Six: CONQUER PROCRASTINATION

Happy Sunday ladies!

I decided to make this Sunday Six have a little more substance than usual. If you're a typical human, I bet your New Years Resolution list had something along the lines of "Stop Procrastinating" on it. There's a problem with this, though. Every year we make a list of resolutions but don't really attempt to change anything or think of how we can accomplish it! I am definitely one of the worst procrastinators out there. Direct quote from a teacher email: "You are one of the smartest kids in this school but let procrastination get in between you and excellence." If you got this email, you would want to change too, right? So last semester I started my journey to get better. I have made SO much progress but I have a loooong way to go! Hopefully, sharing these tips will help you conquer procrastination, too!

1// Keep a to-do list

I know that at least a lot of MY procrastination stems from simply being overwhelmed. This is where making lists comes in handy! I keep a running to-do list in my planner for things that don't have any specific timeframe, but still need to get finished. This has helped so much with reminding me of the little things! Every Sunday I force myself to just get all of the little leftovers on the list done before making a new one for next week. My favorite to-do list pad is this one from Office Depot's See Jane Work line. It's super cute! My favorite part is that it's sticky so I can put a list in my planner and not have to worry about losing it!

2// Break big tasks up into small tasks

Another way to conquer being overwhelmed is to start breaking up big tasks into small ones. I love this printable for that! Breaking up things makes impossible tasks seem realistic! It also takes a lot of the stress out of having to do it all at once. You can do a few small tasks every day and before you know it, you've finished the big task without staying up until 3am the night before it's due... I know you've been there. 

3// Get an inspirational desktop wallpaper

Call me silly all you want... It works. Seeing this when I turn on my computer is sometimes the little extra push I need to get things done. I downloaded my current one here.

4// Tweak some of your bad habits a little

This post on PopSugar delves into the habits of punctual people. I am guilty of some of these, I'm just doing them wrong! Every morning when I wake up, I plan out exactly how many minutes it will take me to do everything so that I can sleep as much as possible without being late. What happens when my car won't start or I can't find my favorite shirt? I'm late. Even when there isn't an unexpected mishap, I am usually racing to my first period door before the bell rings. I've started to just make myself get up. It gives me some time to wake up before I have to go to school and I don't have to worry about being late!

5// Get a planner that suits you and USE IT

This one seems obvious, but it wasn't to me. Planners are not one size fits all. If you find yourself slacking on using your planner, you probably don't have the right one for you! I love all of the cute Lilly planners, but I've come to find that they're too cluttered and bulky for my liking. I'm currently using the Sugar Paper for Target planner I bought last month. I can't seem to find it online but it's the size of a one subject notebook and I LOVE IT. It has so much space to write everything and barely takes up any space in my backpack!

6// This blog... That is all.

This week while laying on my bed for hours on end and not being able to do anything, I found THIS lovely blog. Organized Charm is a productivity blog with endless resources to help you organize your life! I spent hours on it reading (kind of defeating the purpose... but I was dying... it's acceptable.) I found so many tips that I'm going to utilize in school this year and especially next year in college! She has tips on taking better notes, making the most of your planner, and so much more. My favorite post that will be SO useful in college is How to Create a Semester Assignment Spreadsheet. For an organization/school supply geek like me, this blog makes me like a kid in a candy store.

Hope you guys have a great Monday tomorrow and use some of these tips!

Comment telling me how YOU are beating procrastination!

It's Tea Time!

Happy 2015 everyone!

These past few days I have been sick as a dog. I haven't left the house since I came home from school on Thursday, and I only went because I couldn't justify missing the second day back. But the third was okay to miss I guess...? I haven't been able to sleep or breathe or do anything but lay around. One thing that has been making me feel SO much better is hot tea.

If you follow me on Twitter or watched my first YouTube video (warning: rough but it's a start), you will know that recently I have been OBSESSED with tea. I've always been a coffee girl, but I think I'm a convert. While I've been sick, tea has helped because the steam coming off of it lets me breathe and actually be able to smell something. It's refreshing to have something taste normal! The caffeine has also gotten me feeling better and more energetic. I've had countless cups in just this week alone and would like to think that I've started developing an appreciation for tea. I'm excited to share with you three of my favorites! Each of these teas bring something different to the table and are great for people just starting the addiction. ;)

 

Stash's Breakfast in Paris tea is a lovely floral tea for the Parisian in all of us. This one is my personal favorite and my go-to tea for any occasion. I have had a thing for lavender ever since I was little. My family has had L'Occitane lavender soap in stock in our showers for as long as I can remember, and the scent has been my favorite for just as long. I've always been on a search for a lavender tea and I finally found it! Most teas I try just have subtle hints of lavender that leave a lover like me longing for more. This tea has a very strong lavender note paired with bergamot oil and black tea. Also, THE SMELL IS SO WONDERFUL. I feel like I've drifted off to Paris--eating brunch at a cute little cafe, seeing the Eiffel Tower in the distance while I enjoy my macarons and croissants. That is probably the most cliche sentence I have ever written but it's exactly how this tea makes me feel! If I am stressed, this tea also does a good job calming me down. It has replaced my morning coffee and gives me a little pick-me-up without the dreaded crash!

For: the Parisian, the lavender fanatic, the big dreamer, the floral tea lover

Next up: Twinings's Lady Grey, a spin on the classic Earl Grey with notes of bergamot, orange and lemon. FROOT LOOPS. THIS TEA TASTES LIKE FROOT LOOPS. This is the first hot tea I ever tried thanks to Arden Rose's old tea vlogs. (I may or may not have tried to make my own tea vlogs. They may or may not still be up on an obscure channel from freshman year.) It really does taste like Froot Loops but in a good way! I really recommend this tea for people who don't think they like black tea, or who are just starting to drink it! My little brother hates any hot tea that I put in front of him, but he drinks Lady Grey like nobody's business. The fruity scent is really fun and I love this tea for 

when I want to change things up a bit!

For: the tea beginner, the fruity girl, the tea hater, little brothers, spontaneous cups

Last but not least, Tazo Thrive. This tea is actually really hard to find but I picked it up at my local TJ Maxx for $2.75! I have searched online and the only other place I can find it is on Amazon. The first thing I noticed was the gorgeous artwork on the packaging. Sorry not sorry, but that is definitely what made me pick it up. Thrive is a green tea, and also is blended with green yerba mate and green rooibos. I had never tried green tea before (surprisingly) so I didn't know how I would like it, but I love it! It is minty with rose hips and black pepper. The combination just sounds odd, but I promise you they go together perfectly. The mint is not overpowering like other mint teas I have tried. The black pepper hits the back of your throat and spices the tea up a little. While I've been sick, this has been a favorite because the tingle of the pepper helps my sore throat!

For: green tea enthusiasts, spicy lovers, "minty but not TOO minty", sore throats

I'm always on the lookout for new teas, so share in the comments what YOUR favorite tea is so I can try it!