My Everyday Runway

Reading has been a huge part of my life since as long as I can remember. My parents were (and are) the absolute best about teaching us the importance of reading and how it's a lifelong skill to take with you wherever you go. There's a lot of power in a good book. Back in January, I made a resolution to keep track of the books I read all year long. I've never done this before, and I wish I started doing it sooner.  I sincerely believe that all these books helped me in some way, although it's very clear to me which one's were more impactful than others. With all of that said, here is my 18 in 2018: all the books I read this year. I hope you can take away at least one new book for your upcoming list! *(english class book) 1*:  The Picture of Dorian Gray  by Oscar Wilde Honestly, I don't remember  loving  this book, but it is one of those that you are glad you read once you're done. Also this was my first time reading anything by Oscar Wilde, wh...

Welcoming any new month is a bittersweet feeling. And for some reason, December is an especially difficult month for me to welcome with joy. This seems so wrong, with Christmas right around the corner and all of the festivities that come with the month. But I can't help but remind myself that this is the last month of the year. I've spent 11 months of 2018 leading me here. When I think about myself and my life at this point last year (or pretty much at the beginning of this year), it blows my mind. I don't use that phrase a lot, but when I do I really mean it. I think about my school, my family, my friends, my blog, my home, my habits, but the most crazy change to me is my thoughts and even my personality. A lot of things haven't changed. I still love waffles more than any other food, I'm still an introvert at heart, and I still love dancing to Taylor Swift music any chance I can get. But, I feel things in my soul have changed. I know, so deep. But, really. I so...

                                                  With the holidays fast approaching, I find it apropos to talk about traditions.  After all, the holidays center around traditions, however big or small, however simple or grand.  I love asking people about their traditions and am always surprised to learn about ones I have never heard of before.  I also like to see the joy and hopeful anticipation in peoples' eyes as they share their favorite holiday traditions and memories.  It connects me to a world I feel less a part of each year that passes.  I ask my co-workers, hair stylist, dentist, grocery store clerk and bank cashier, to name a few.  Some of the recent responses range from buying Kentucky Fried Chicken on Christmas Eve and putting on the comfy cozies while settling in to a night of comfort food and Christmas movies to making...

Is there anything better than a bucket of popcorn and a Ryan Gosling movie? I don't think so. It's crazy to me how much worth each day holds. So many beautiful, little moments squeezed into just 24 hours. Each day is truly a new chance for a lovely adventure, spontaneous or planned. I thought I'd tell you about mine. Sunday 28 October 2018 Just like every Sunday, the day started with church. I was exhausted, because, in my opinion,  Saturday nights are for late-night movies. But still, it was a great sermon and it gave me strength for the week ahead. I love going to church because it sets up the day up for success. I also love the simple act of dressing up and that feeling of "there's still more weekend to be had!" For lunch, my mom and I went to our church's turkey dinner and OH MY GOSH it was so good. There's something so comforting about a homemade meal, especially one involving mashed potatoes and gravy. I love spending one-on-one time li...

I love love, and I'll admit that I'm definitely a hopeless romantic. Watching rom-coms is quite honestly my favorite pastime, and I swoon whenever I see a sweet boy holding his girlfriend's coffee while she zips her coat. Love, to me, is the clearest and most beautiful form of God's grace in our lives. Feeling loved is no doubt the best feeling in the world. There is something wonderful to be said about knowing that somebody is there for you at all times. Of course, there are many forms of love. There's the love you feel when you walk with Jesus in faith; ultimately the most important kind. There's the familial love you get from your parents, siblings, grandparents etc. There's the friendship love you get from friends who feel like family. And then there's romantic love; the butterflies in your stomach kind of love.   I think I should just quickly say that I have never been  in love.  There's never been a boyfriend in my life, and therefore nev...

I've been asking myself a lot of questions lately. Am I doing the best I possibly can? Am I doing what I'm supposed to be doing in this season of life? Honestly, right now it feels like I'm not doing either.  It would be easy to get really down on this feeling. To let it sink in and say to myself- you are NOT doing what you could be doing. You could be taking more AP classes, you could be doing more *teen things*, you could be doing BETTER. It would be so easy to let my mind run down this path and think of all the things I could be doing. It's much harder to be proud of yourself and think about all the things you ARE doing.  And let me just say, just because you think you should be doing something doesn't mean you should. God has a plan for you, and as long as you keep in touch with Him and seek His wisdom you will will be doing the right thing.  So if you feel like you should be doing more with your life right now; take a step back and ask if there'...

can you remember the last time you went without your phone? not just an hour or two during church,  a family meal, or doing homework. have you ever just left your phone in a drawer on airplane mode for a day? a week? a month? let me tell you, the longer you leave it the less you want it back. i'm the first to admit that putting your phone away can be really hard at first. i used to hate leaving my phone at home for the day because I was scared I would miss important texts or just not be able to respond to people quickly. i now think it's freeing to leave it behind, and people don't care how long it takes you to respond (or at least they shouldn't).  two weeks ago i tried this out. i left my phone at home for the week for my family's vacation to michigan. it was hands down the best week of my summer.  here's what i learned: 1) the first night was hard! i'm kind of embarrassed to admit this but i did feel a brief moment of regret the first nigh...

 Believe me when I say that the best things in life are not tangible. That doesn't, however, take away from the thrill you get when you find the perfect new pair of shoes or sparkly pen for the upcoming school year.  Recently, I have either bought or been gifted some pretty cool things that I think are worth talking about on here. Hopefully you can take something away from this. Enjoy! My mom just ordered a pair of Tretorn shoes for herself and told me she loved wearing them back when she was in high school. I loved them so much that I made it the number one item on my birthday wish list! Luckily my wish was granted and now I have my own pair in a different style! I love  these shoes  and would definitely recommend them. (yay for sparkly laces!) I also got these shoes  for the upcoming school year and I am so excited to have a comfy casual shoe I can wear everyday. I probably wouldn't have picked these out just seeing the pictures online, but I picked...

fifteen to me is making each day the best day. it's learning what's really important and what's not. it's going garage-saling with my family on a saturday morning. it's walks to the park with rainey after i've finished my homework, and wearing a school uniform for the first time. fifteen to me is learning how to drive, slowly and painfully. it's the year of reading jane eyre and loving it, the year of doing school newspaper and book club. it's acting class and drawing class and finally understanding math (kinda). fifteen to me is going to new york- the city of my dreams. it's going to the top of the rock and walking all day around central park. it's seeing my first broadway show and visiting the college of my dreams. it's crossing the iowa border for the first time and finding the best ice cream shop. fifteen to me is dancing with my cousins to the backstreet boys and camping in "australia". it's dancing to footloose with squas...

Summer may just be my favorite word in the dictionary. So many wonderful memories are attached to it, and always the opportunity for more. I'm here today to share some of my ideas of things to do this summer. Enjoy! 1) Take a day trip  Day trips are my favorite thing to do any time of year. It's not nearly as much commitment and planning as a full-blown vacation, but it's just as fun. Bring family, friends, a date, whoever you want. Grab some candy and good music for the car and you are SET.  Below are a few MN day trips I would recommend- - Duluth- canal park, look for sea glass, get yummy ice cream from PortLand Malt Shop & enjoy being by Lake Superior! + would recommend touring the Glensheen Mansion to add a whole new dimension to your trip! - Mankato- visit the Betsy-Tacy Houses where Maud Hart Lovelace and her best friend lived. Do some biking! And always make sure to stop at unique and fun roadside stops on the way! - Niagara Cave- I found it so...

Hey friends! Summer is approaching fast, and I'm beyond excited. This also means that I'm getting to the point in the school year where I am very ready to get outta there. Maybe some of you are also hitting this spot where you really have a lack of motivation to power through these last few weeks. In this post, I talk about some things I have done recently that have helped me stay happy and motivated. I hope you will take away at least one fun thing to go do when you've finished reading! 1) buy a plant for your room!  I currently have 3 little plants in my room, and I love them oh so much. Not only are they adorable, they also can have many health benefits.  This article  talks about these benefits. The picture below is the cutest succulent I just added to my room! 2) go see I Feel Pretty  (Amy Schumer) or Life of the Party ( Melissa McCarthy) I went to see I Feel Pretty with my mom last week, and we were both a little hesitant. It turned out to be absolu...

Hey everyone!  I hope all is well and you enjoyed this St. Patrick's Day with a Shamrock Shake in hand. Today I wanted to share a few things that I have recently been loving! 1)   Turtles All the Way Down by John Green My goal for 2018 has been to read 2 books per month. So far, I have completed my goal and have been really surprised at how much I miss reading. I forgot how much of an escape it is, and sometimes that's exactly what I need. My favorite so far is definitely John Green's new book, Turtles All the Way Down. It follows a teen girl figuring out love, friendship, and family all while feeling stuck inside her head. It feels very relatable and is also super entertaining to read. 2) Ted Talks When I used to think of Ted Talks, I thought of videos teachers played in class to bore everyone. But recently my perspective has changed. A few weeks ago I was scrolling through Instagram and this influencer had shared a link to a Ted Talk they recommended to feel mo...

Hey everyone. Today's post is just a little something I wanted to share that I have been thinking a lot this week in particular! When life feels out of order, it's best to reevaluate and take little steps to making it better. Here are a few things I like to do when I feel myself getting down or stressed. 1) Set a Weekly Bucket List To-do lists are dreadful and boring, but doesn't a bucket list sound like fun? Plan fun activities during the week that you will be excited to check off your bucket list. This is nice reward for tackling the to-do list items of the week! 2) Make Playlists More Often Music is a great mood booster and can really install a positive change in our mindsets. Make a playlist every other week or so, so that you always have something new to listen to.  3) Take More Pride In Your Work To me, this applies to schoolwork, but for you it could apply to your job or really anything else important in your life. I've learned to spend more t...

Hey everybody. I think it's pretty clear that My Everyday Runway has not been at the top of my priorities in the past year. I want to say a few things about where my head has been at, and what the future of this blog holds. So, if you're interested keep on reading. It's really hard for me to describe the year of 2017 as a whole. There were so many crazy good moments I never dreamed would happen (Hawaii, NYC, transferring to my dream school) but there were also some very hard moments where my anxiety really took over (the beginning of the school year wowza). It was the year that I even realized I had a real form of anxiety. In past years, I had pushed it off and took it for me just being a worrier. It hit me hard in some moments, and I had felt broken for the first time in my life.  But now, here we are in 2018. I am in a better place, but still nowhere near close to the person I ultimately want to be. I am working everyday to strengthen my faith, and my relationship wit...