. why do dogs leave earth first? .

I read this article on someone else's blog and i honestly can't even think of it. Yesterday Izzie at a whole chocolate bar AND 9 stroopwafels (Dutch caramel wafers). She was fine...iron stomach :) but I was so worried about her. I slept with my hand on her belly making sure she was breathing.

I can't even grasp the idea of Izzie dying...ever! I love the denial I'm in, I'm very happy with it, no one needs to burst my bubble. Izzie has been there with me through everything loves me regardless. I could have left 5 hours of 30 seconds ago and she greats me like she hasnt' seen me in days...like I'm the most important thing to her, like she is to me.

This year Izzie will turn the oh so young age of 5...so weird. I still see her as a puppy, mostly because she still acts that way. I can't imagine life without Izzie, and I won't, but I saw this and even though I don't need this at the time, someone else might want to read it.

Isn't that the sweetest thing...and SO TRUE!!! Now when you get home, great your fur baby like they great you and love them!!

xoxo E

. resolutions / goals .

I'm personally not a big fan of making new years resolutions...they always only seem to stick for one or two months and after that I forgot I made them or just simply don't care anymore. Last year for example, my resolution was to lose weight and be skinny. From the end of the year until the end of February I lost 10lbs, but then I stopped caring so I didn't lose anymore. I think now that I have a blog I can look back and see what I wrote, no more excuses for 'not remembering' what I said I would do in the new year.
So this year I am going to be focusing on goals, instead of resolutions...i think it sounds better.
So, here ya have it...my goals for 2013

1. Graduate college!! I am going in on Monday to apply for graduation, and if all goes well (please say a little prayer) I will be wearing my cap and gown in less than 170 days!!

2. Be healthier. I'm not saying I want to be skinny, because frankly, who cares. I just want to eat healthier, exersize more (take Izzie for a long walk) and take better care of my body. I have recently become a vegetarian, I started in June of 2012, but I wasn't strickt about it. After hearing a video in class (I had my back towards the tv so I couldn't see it, but hearing it was enough), I'm done eating meat. I'm not craving it, I just have to be careful to get my nutrients some other way.

3. Be financially responsible/stable. I tend to get carried away when people around me are spending money, and I need to be more responsible than that. I'm ashamed to say I don't have a saving account....well actually I DO have a savings account, there is just nothing in it, whoops. I need to start saving money and paying bills when they are due. I bought a huge white board so I can write down all my bills and due dates. I'm also working on making a budget and my boss is explaining the envelope method of saving money :) I'll keep ya'll updated.

4. Take off my make up before bed. Honestly, I'm so bad at this. I lay in bed before its time to go to sleep and its really not that hard to take off my make up but its one of those things that I just don't feel like doing. I have really good skin and I look really young (not always a plus) and I want to keep it that way!

5. Get closer to Him. At the moment I am reading a daily devotional. I am under so much stress and pressure and all I need to do is let Him lead me, and all my worries will go away. If only I prayed as much as I worried...I'd be in much better shape!

6. Be a better blogger. My one year blogiversary is January 27th (be on the look out for my first give-away!!) and I feel like I haven't used my blog as much as I wanted too. I want this blog to become part of my life, something to look back at later on to see how much has changed and how much has grown.

7. Organize my house. I HATE when things don't have a place! I need to get more organized in my house, bills have a place, school stuff has a place and stuff like that. Also, I am aweful at picking up after myself...I rather just clean one day of the week and do the whole house, but it woudn't take me nearly as long if I picked up along the way. I . need . to . work . on . that . PRONTO!!

What are your resolutions / goals for 2013? I don't know about anyone else but I think this is going to be a great year!!

xoxo E

. last post of the year..eep!! .

So crazy that tomorrow is the last day of 2012...I feel like this year has flown by! I have been pretty busy this past year and a lot of stuff happened and a lot changed. Here is a look back at my 2012.

January

I spend 2 weeks of January at home in Holland celebrating Christmas and New Years with my family. It was the first time I brought a boy home to meet my family...3000 miles away is quite a distance.
After we came home, things didn't quite work out the way I had in mind..I became single. Best thing that God could have done for me, He has it all figured out.

February

What a month! I got a new job this month, I started as a housekeeper at Liberty University. I despise that job, but I met one of my best friends there! We can talk for hours...its more me talking, her listening, but she just gets me! This is the month where I really started contemplating my future.

March

I made what I thought at the time was the smartest decision ever, I became a Mary Kay consultant. And even though I still love the company and the products (oh my gosh how I LOVE these products), my business has had to be on the back burner for a while, but I might be making a come back :)

April

Yay, I turned 26 this year. I'm so excited I got to celebrate it with the people I love the most. Its kinda scary to get older but I do feel like my life is starting to fall into place the older I get.

May

I found out I got accepted back to my alma matter, the State University of New York at Fredonia! I'm 39 credits away from graduating, and if I can pull my GPA up, I will be walking at graduation in a year! I quit my first ever big girl job at Liberty, leaving behind my family there. I love all my coworkers, but it was time for me to move on to bigger and better things!

June

My parents flew into the country. Luckily my dad knows me well enough to know that A: I can't pack my own stuff in a 20ft Uhaul, and B: I can't drive a 20ft Uhaul with my car behind it for 500+ miles....mommy & daddy to the rescue! My dad is the master packer and he did a great job, as usual with the Uhaul. We left for NY and unpacked and decorated my house in 2 days. My sister and the hubs drove up, and we started our great Canadian adventure...which might have been the best vacation ever!

July

I got word of blessing #3 for the year...my current job. I so dearly love my job and the people I work with and for. My bosses are the most unbelievably nice, sincere and caring people and all the girls are great. I didn't come to Fredonia looking for friends, but I will be leaving with a second family

August

Cannot believe the time has come for me to start school, so crazy. I remember how nervous I was to walk into my first class, everyone knew everyone and I felt like such an outsider, but I actually made some friends in my classes. I'm nervous about getting good grades, but I feel so much more focused and confident this time around...it feels right! In the midst of having a new job and starting school, I also adopted baby Hazel...a 9 day old kitten :)

September

Hazel and Izzie, and school and work are keeping me on my feet. Hazel is growing like a weed, her eyes are still bright blue. She is gaining weight and looking healthier by the week. She weighed 0.5lbs when I first got her but she is getting close to the 1lbs mark! Its almost break, which means I'll see Lynne soon!

October

Fall break is here! We get 2 days off school and my aunt and Lynne have decided to drive up. So much fun! My house was jam packed with 4 dogs, a kitten and 3 people, but we had such a great time!!

November

Its getting colder...winter is definitely on the way. I spent my Thanksgiving with my best friend Brianna. We made dinner at my house, our table was so full we could hardly squeeze in there! After dinnfer it was time for pjs and movies until we fell asleep on the couches :)

December

Holy cow, both the end of the semester and the end of the year! After much debating, I decided to spend Christmas with my sister and her hubs and his family..i had a blast and I'm so glad I decided to spend it with them. I am not a big fan of Canada this time of year, snow freaks me out (driving in it at least) and its just too cold. It was -15 Christmas day!! We got the first real snow in Fredonia, about a foot fell the day after Christmas and more has been piling on. I'm feeling a litte more confident driving in it, but sometimes I'd rather just hibernate :)


It has been an incredible year. I hit some rough patches in the beginning of the year, but God always has your back. He has a plan in mind that is just right for you, and all I have to do is trust in Him! Sometimes its hard to see a good thing until a while later. But I am so blessed that things have really fallen into place in my life and I feel incredibly accomplished.

I have to share some good news with ya'll. I got my final grades back for this semester and I'm so excited to share that my GPA is a 3.25...something I have never done before!!!! My highest GPA for a semester was a 2.79 so I am so proud of myself... I DID IT!!! I will be taking a winter class, 6 classes next semester and 3 over the summer, but it looks like I will be walking in the graduation ceremony on May 18th 2013!

Hope ya'll had a great 2012...I am so excited to see what is in store for 2013!!!

xoxo E

. time flies .

Time flies when you're having fun! Or when you're busy!!
Tomorrow at 1:30 I am scheduled to take my last final for the semester...say WHAT?? I remember just posting a picture on Instagram (follow me: elisesandrina) of my outfit that I was to wear the first day of class and tomorrow is my last final. Where did the time go?

I have been incredibly busy between work and school. It was exactly what I needed, and only God knew that. I have made some incredible friends this past semester, most of them at work. I wasn't interested in making friends but I've made friends that mean the world to me.

I have done pretty good this semester and my grades are better then expected. It is always hard to keep hanging in there during finals week. I managed to get the flu this past week so I'm recovering from that. I was lucky enough to only have 2 finals, and some papers due. I don't think I could have handled much more.

16 weeks ago was my first day of class. And 5 months from yesterday I will walk across that stage to get my degree! YAY college graduations :)

I am so blessed to have a God who knows what is best for me...what I needed most. Sure it hasn't always been the easiest, but I've made it through. I relocated, reacclimated, mourned friendships that didn't last, and made new friends that are for life. I don't know if I would have done as good this semester if it wasn't for those people!!

My favorite time of year is just around the corner. I will be heading to the Great White (not right now) North to celebrate with my brother in law's family. Can't wait to have a day of complete relaxation!

What do you have planned for the holidays??

xoxo E

ps. my sister has a fashionblog and yours truly made a small little appearence there :) go check it out right here

. favorites .

Hi ya'll!

Ater going through the 500+ pictures on my phone, I found some pictures of really cute outfits I wore this semester. Since this semester is coming to an end, I figured I would give you a selection of my favorite outfits

{ 1st day of classes }

{ work dinner party }

{ new go-to summer outfit }

{ meeting with the president of my school...excuse the flash }

{ debate outfit }

{ favorite winter outfit }

 

Sorry about the quality of my pictures...my phone is pretty good but it could be better. I'm the worst at taking pictures of myself :)

 

Hope ya'll like the outfits. If you like to know where something is from, I'll be glad to tell you where it's from!

 

Hope you had a great Monday!!

 

xoxo E

. Upper Crust Christmas party .

Hi ya'll!

It's almost Christmas!! I'm seriously so excited! Today we had a Christmas party at work, where we did some crafts and had a secret santa gift exchange. It was a blast! We got there and these beauties were waiting for us

How cute is it to wear matching pj's when your in your 20's! :)

We started doing some crafts (making Christmas ornaments) before breakfast was served. My boss came in especially to make each employee their own breakfast. I picked french toast, with home fries and bacon...so darn good! Probably the best breakfast I have ever eaten..thank you Jim!!

I made these lovely crafts by myself..they all match (I've got a serious problem matching things)

{old sheet music modge podge ornament}

After the amazing breakfast, and craft time it was time for presents!!
These are some pics from the girls opening their gift!!

 

 

 

 

Then it was time for me to open my gifts!! I love how everyone knows each other so well...I love all my gifts!!!

{drink thermal cup}

{coffe cup earrings!!!}

{awesome glitter top}

{Kate Spade knockoff earrings!! Love these!!!}

 

 

All in all it was an awesome awesome day. I love all of my coworkers so much, we have all become really good friends. It's weird that all 12 of us get along as much as we do, but there really aren't any issues or any drama going on (Praise the Lord!!)

 

So here is to Allison, Brianna {not pictured}, Brittany, Colleen {my boss, not pictured}, Emily, Haley, Jenn, Jim {my other boss, not pictured}, Lindsey, Marisa, Meghan, Shawna & Tia {not pictured}

 

I love ya'll!

 



{fltr: me, Haley, Meghan, Allison, Shawna, Marisa, Brittany, Emily, Jenn & Lindsey}



 

What a great day, I'm feeling super blessed! God knew I really needed some good girlfriends after I moved back here!

Hope you had a lovely weekend.

xoxo E

. acts of kindness .

 

I found this today when I was roaming the good ol' internet and I thought I would share this with ya'll. It amazes me sometimes how unbelievably nice some people are. We should all act more like these examples to make a world a better place, I know I will be making more of an effort. I had a busy, stressful day at work and this made my day a whole lot better. Hope you enjoy!!

{its a tad small, but if you click on this link you will find a much easier to read version...no squinting}