For those of you who aren’t already aware: I am a severe Pinterest addict. (self promo to follow me HERE) It is an actual real life concerning issue that I am starting to worry more and more about every day as my pin count reaches 15k pins…it’s fine, i’m fine? On the bright side I think I could single handedly run this country if we one day decided to make the switch to a “DIY” democracy. Tassel garland? got a pin for it. Need a hairstyle for an upcoming dance? check the hair and makeup board. Homemade-no sugar-gluten free-what is even in these-pancakes? oh lemme pull up the recipe from my food board. Honestly though, Pinterest has GOT MY BACK.

However there is one thing they seemed to be lacking on: life lessons. Sure, my ‘quote board’ is literally a typography of worded witty wisdom hoarding corner of the web (468 pins to be exact.) , but when it comes to things that truly motivate me to live out my life to the best of my ability…I’m at a loss. So I decided to take a few of the quotes from these boards and go a little more in-depth; show my side of how I view these sets of letters.  My font may not be all that pretty and you can’t hold down and save it to your camera roll to set it as your wallpaper for motivation (but feel free to screenshot this post if you feel so much inclined..) but here are MY words of wisdom for you all. Take what you want, leave what you don’t, but above all, don’t be afraid to look into yourself and find your own source of inspiration in the everyday.

no rain, no flowers// I think this is so so so so so important for people to understand and comprehend. we can be so utterly sheltered as a society that when one thing goes wrong, we swear the whole world is against us. life is hard, really hard. sometimes we don’t get what we want, and sometimes we go through struggles that we don’t understand. but what we do have to understand, is that without the times of trouble, there can be no times of triumph. yes staying positive in these hard times is important, but we also have to remember that it is okay not to be okay. it is alright to cry for a little bit or to have a day where nothing goes right. it makes the days that go right seem all the more better.

I have learned that to be with those I like is enough// I have pretty stellar friends. & to be more specific, I count so many people as my friends. if you attend my school, we’re friends. that’s a mindset I think we all need to adapt to. you don’t have to get along with everyone you meet, and you aren’t going to. but we also have to understand that (HSM reference intended) we’re all in this together. we’re all on earth, living life, doin our thing.  so make the best of that. smile to the check-out worker at the store and give a real response when you’re asked about your day, don’t forget that your teachers are people too and they definitely won’t mind you striking up a conversation with them, eat dinner with your whole family and don’t even check Twitter once. learn that these humans around you, are just like the human you are, so let’s get along with them and have a grand time.

if you can’t stop thinking about it, don’t stop working for it// whether this be a bomb diggity friendship that you should put time and effort into, a class that you feel a spark of passion for, or a dream job that you know you’re gonna have to work the booty off for…don’t let dreams be dreams. make them into goals, plans of action, reality. if you can dream it you can do it friends, actually. don’t let that just be a cheesy phrase, make small steps towards your goal and get others who love you to support you, i betcha that they will. don’t ever be afraid of biting off more than you can chew. because it is far better to choke on greatness than to nibble on mediocracy.

surround yourself with people who get it// find those friends. those pals. those buds. those sisters. hold them close and make sure they KNOW that they’re important in your life, because we all need these kinds of people. we become the people we associate ourselves with so find good ones. the real feel good warm fuzzy hey can I hug you for the rest of your life just for being a great person kind of people. I know you’re thinking of yours right now…so shoot her a text sayin so.

exist to be happy, not to impress// this is hecka important. do things for yourself, not for anyone else. do them because they make YOU happy, after all, you’re the only one who truly matters to your own self. SELF SELF SELF SELF: learn to love it.

you’re cute and all but I’m not sharing my coffee// #duh?

well that’s all my Ally wisdom for now, learn to be the best you you can and learn to love a whole heck of a lot. until next time, xoxo, Ally

pictured below: me walking into school after break

I’m officially two days into the life of a second semester senior and now I completely understand the rush to get to college. My apps are done, college is picked out and ready to go (#RockChalk), my roomie and I are patiently waiting (okay not so patiently) to become every day best friends, and I’m right now the only thing I think I’m dreading about college is not being able to pop a bath bomb in the bathtub and forget everything. Can we please start a petition to make campuses BYOB (bring your own bath???). Christmas break was needed, but as usual, it flew by and the time for real school is once again upon me. Although college is approaching fast, there is still time left for me in high school that I am not wishing to move too quickly. So, it is back to the books and routines, which my slightly type A personality was craving over break. so incase you’re in a bit of a post christmas break depression, here’s how to break the slump:

new supplies// okay this is also coming from the girl who got “excessively obsessed and slightly in love” on the “how much does stationary mean to you” quiz on BuzzFeed…but take my bias and slightly materialistic advice: pretty things make you happy. Obviously the best things in life aren’t things, but I know doing my homework is slightly less depressing in a cute notebook and a really good pen.

seeing friends again// nothing motivates me to go back to school like knowing I get to see my classmates (and even some of my teachers) on a daily basis once again. cherish the people you attend school with, if it’s anything like the community of sisterhood I attend school at, you won’t want to miss a single day.

don’t let the semester slip away// if you’re a senior, or even if you aren’t, make sure you aren’t letting the thoughts of college get to you before you’re even done with high school. study hard. work hard. dream big. laugh in class. raise your hand. be a dream student, and do it for you.

I hope your semester is starting well and isn’t TOO chilly!

until next time, xoxo, Ally

WOW long time no blog pals.  

after a few texts from friends about how I need to hop back onto posting and my responses of “it’s really hard to blog AND explore New York City at once”, I’ve decided…sure, nothing being hard has ever stopped me before (okay you got me precalc) but I can do that! My sincerest apologies for the lack of spell check or grammar or formatting on this post, the whole thing was in fact typed on my phone in New York 😁

New York is an absolute blast. I’ll have more posts on that once I get back and have time to upload pictures to my laptop and take a bath to get back in my Christmas break mode, because right now I feel like I’m just a city girl going full speed 24/7. The views are amazing, the shopping is amazing, the food is, you guessed it…amazing. Overall I’m head over heels in love with the place and can only hope to come back multiple times in my life! 

News years has always been quite a confusing holiday for me. Starting from being young and celebrating with my family and going to bed at 11 pm because the NYC ball drop is an hour earlier than my hometown time zone, to where I am now and getting to bed before midnight is an accomplishment so this holiday doesn’t seem much different than any other night. 

The phrase “new year new me” has always gotten on my nerves as well. New you? What about the you that existed December 31 @ 11:59 pm? Hate to break it to you people of the world, but he/she is still you come January 1st 12:00 am. You’re you. You are yourself. For as long as you live. But who in the world said that wasn’t the most AMAZING thing? Think about it, you get to be exactly who you are for your whole life and there’s no one who can do a better job at it? Cool? Yeah… HECK yeah.

So this new year, don’t make any silly resolutions or promises to be a new person. Be yourself, improve yourself, embrace YOURSELF. You are the only you that the world has been honored to meet, so take advantage of it. Be the absolute BEST you possible. 

My pal and I love to remind each other to “be unapologetically you” and it’s my favorite phrase to live by now. Be yourself with no regrets, no worries, no fear of judgement. You’re you, and if you do what you’re proud of and what you love, there’s nothing to apologize for.

So happy almost 2016 my friends. The year I graduate high school, the year I start college, maybe the year I’ll finally be brave enough to attend the dentist alone (we tried it once and I was NOT a fan). Make your resolution this year to be yourself, unapologetically. 

Until next time, happy new year, may it be filled with luck and love and lots of smiles, Ally ✨