HOME.

Home. 

home-home. 

really home!!!

this place where I grew up. 

this place that welcomes me with open arms, hearts....and refrigerators...

who's love I welcome, with open arms, heart...and stomach...

this place where I'm never singing alone...

where the harmony is always perfectly in key...

and the guitar always sounds beautiful...

along with the piano...

the place where "cheese" can really mean almost anything...

and "peach pit" is a term of endearment...

the place where everyone knows every quote that everyone else says...

and by 'everyone else' I mean my dad...

and 'everyone' usually excludes my mom...

but 'every' really means 'every'...

this place where we sometimes cry over spilled milk...

because no one's perfect...

and I can't even say that it always get's cleaned up either...

because that's kind of what cat's are for...

this place where sometimes no one mows the lawn... 

nor rakes the leaves...unless it's into one BIG pile

nor shovels the snow...

but that's ok too...

because the cats stalking through that long grass...

the epic jumps and flips into that giant leaf pile...

and those snow angels (but mostly snow ball fights)...

are worth more than just a pretty lawn...

this place where something's always broken...

but where there's always a quick-fix...

apparently because we're Norwegian?

the place where not a soul is awake at 10 on a Saturday morning...

but evidently a casual pan of bacon can revive almost anyone...

this place where people freak out sometimes...

but where people laugh out loud most of the time...

the place where people just aren't allowed to use big pans...

because they'll just make bigger messes...

this place where the sound of my mom's laughter echoes off the walls...

the best sound in the world...

the place where I learned how to listen...

and how to interrupt...effectively...

the place where I learned to try new things...

and how to stick to the old things...

the place where I've fallen down so many times...

and where I've been picked back up again...

the place where I've learned things...

the place where I've taught things...

the place where I learned how to be myself...

because being anyone else wouldn't be nearly as great...or easy...

the place where I was urged to be creative...

where now, my creativity hangs on it's walls...

the place where I can come to for help...

with the people I know how to help the best...

the place that frustrates me the most...

the same place that loves me the most...

the place who's walls I helped to knock down...

and who's walls I helped to build up...

the place where sometimes minds are spoken, even when they shouldn't be...

where sometimes ideas are shot down, slightly insensitively...

where sometimes people are angered, with a just cause...of course...

but a place where everyone is loved...

and when it comes down to it...

love is really the only thing that matters...

 

Hack.

Hacking.... computer hacking more specifically, can be seen as both a positive, and a negative thing... usually by whomever is doing the "seeing".

However. there are other types of hacks.....

{life hacks}

{fashion hacks}

and then there's PICNIK hacks...

For those of you know, {or don't know....?} picnik is an photo editing website. There's bunches of cool effects, and little tips and tricks that you can do to your pictures to make them look kinda professional... 

one problem with picnik is that you have to upgrade to *premium* in order to do some other cool effects that are slightly more professional than the others.

HOWEVER!!!!!

I'm very proud of the fact that I have discovered how to use many of the effects to create other effects. 

like the "tint" effect. MY WORD, I can use that thing for like everything. 

can't use the "custom eye color" effect? use the tint!!!!!! tint your eyes blue, or purple, or brown..? whatever you want!!

can't use the "eye sparkle" effect? use the tint!!!!!! use white, and the "hardlight" tint effect, and apply it just on your eyes! thennnn use the white and the "add" tint effect, on just your pupils. it's a win. 

this is an exaggerated example so you can actually see the change.

basically.... it's really fun.
it's also free.
WIN.
go have fun.
suck on that picnik!

 
**UPDATE: picnik is now owned by Google {but honestly... what isn't...} and I'm not quite sure how it's worked out, but now picmonkey is the website they suggest, and frankly, I like the interface better! It has all the same effects, but better! enjoy!**

Decorating! {my room: college dorm}

Usually, I'm not such a big fan of decorating... or rather, I WAS not such a big fan of decorating.

I never had any "fun" ideas, and never any inspiration.  

and... I still kinda don't, but I have pretty things, and when I put them in places, it makes those places pretty.....

like this earring/jewelry tree!

And: this little mirror, those sticks in a teeny-tiny pot from France, that wooden dolphin knick-knack, that flowery headband, and...

THESE necklaces!!!!!!

that was just at the beginning of the year. 

My roommate and I got the smallest room in our suite 

{WHYYYY???? jk it's actually not bad at all.}

but it DOES mean that we have very minimal aesthetic space.... because it all has to be functional.

THEREFORE, we had been dealing with our lack of prettiness anywhere.

until christmas {cue chorus of angels!!!!!!}

{...............no, really....}

Then we put up lights!!!!!!

HOORAY FOR AESTHETICALLY PLEASING LIGHTS!!!

{ummm and thanks for $1 little tinted blue glass bulb TREASURES from good will}

Next up in the decorating series... {my other room: home}