May 23, 2013

The Decision to be Positive

“The decision to be positive is not one that disregards or belittles sadness that exists. It is rather a conscious choice to focus on the good and to cultivate happiness - genuine happiness. Happiness is not a limited resource. When we devote our energy and time to trivial matters and choose to stress over things that ultimately are insignificant, from that point, we perpetuate our own sadness and lose sight of the things that really make us happy and rationalize our way out of doing amazing things." 
Christopher Aiff

May 22, 2013

Life Lately

Days in the life of Anni have been crazy lately! I guess that is to be expected when you move from one country to the next, unpack in a new apartment (which yes, we are calling a flat), start a new internship and catch up on the lives of the people I missed the most!

I cannot believe I have been back in the States for a whole month, and I cannot believe all of the ways my life has changed! I am finally settled in my new little place, which is in a new part of Minneapolis for me. I have been having so much fun exploring my neighborhood, mastering the downtown skyway on the way to my office and decorating my tiny flat! I think one of the best parts about my new living situation is that it came with a pretty cool neighbor friend. This summer is going to be the best one yet.

A few new loves in my life include my clawfoot tub, The Foundry Home Goods store in NE Minneapolis, green smoothies with sprinkles and farmers markets!

Also, have you heard that I have the best Dad on the planet? My dad has always been one to fully support my passions and so when I lived in England and espresso captured my heart, well Dad knew just how to make my new flat feel at home. He bought me a Nespresso machine as a “welcome home” gift and now it is the soul reason I roll out of bed in the morning. (my parents and I attended a tasting in London at the Nespresso store, oh the memories) It is so perfect. Dad, I just love you.

My espresso brewing is perfected and next up: latte art.

I have definitely been counting my blessings as of late, I am one lucky gal.
xo

May 21, 2013

"You don't have to be dying to start living."

I hope you have seen this by now, but these are the types of things I love to share here.
Zach Sobiech touched so many lives, talk about a heart of gold.
Rest in peace, Zach. 

May 19, 2013

Happy Sunday!

{Happy words for your Sunday via}

This weekend was a good one ladies & gentlemen!
I was able to head home for the weekend and spend some time with my family, all while in anticipation for my cousin Jodi's bridal shower on Sunday!

It was a long, somewhat awful week for me as I battled my first (hopefully last) round of hives due to some allergy still unknown. I needed some R&R. And my mom.

I chose these happy words to share since I spent some time on Saturday with my parents picking up plants and flowers. I am developing a love for growing things, hopefully I inherited my dad's green thumb :) Saturday also involved some British Cooking done by yours truly from this cookbook I bought my dad in England!

The bridal shower was beautiful and I am so happy/excited to be a part of the big day by being in the bridal party! Jodi has always been a big sister to me and I love her more than she knows.

a few links for your sunday:
*I have a serious obsession with Lee and her recipes blow my mind. I baked this oatmeal for my family Saturday morning and it lasted all of 10 minutes. Maybe. Bookmark this one people!
*One of the most beautiful women in all of Minneapolis was featured on Style Architect's blog. Wing Ta is so damn stylish and the sweetest person to boot!
*I am dying to wrap a present like this.
*I don't understand how it took me nearly 5 months to find and print this.
*10 ways to use a muffin tin. 
*Angelina Jolie shares her proactive medical choice, I find it inspirational.
*My Dad sent me this link and now I am curating a summer bucket list!

Hope you had an amazing weekend and a week of smiles to come!
xo

DIY * Gold Dipped Barstools

My sister Lilly and I are quite the team for a good DIY project.
This weekend we gold dipped two barstools for my new little place.

I would write a little how-to, but we literally just taped up the stools, exposing the legs and spray painted, very simple :)

A few other favorite DIY projects so far have been my little yellow dresser, beautifying moleskines, making chalkboards & these jars.

My next do-it-myself projects involved planting a few plants, I will update you if/when they are still alive!

xo

May 12, 2013

Happy Sunday! {Mother's Day Edition}

“My mother’s gifts of courage to me were both large and small. The latter are woven so subtly into the fabric of my psyche that I can hardly distinguish where she stops and I begin.”
Maya Angelou
Happy Mother's Day (weekend) to all the beautiful women in the world!
But especially to my rockstar mama. 
Yes, this day is an excuse to celebrate all our mom does for us, but for my family it is also a reminder of what a warrior my mom is. We rose before the sun and laced our sneakers for the Race for the Cure 5k this morning! Running in celebration of my mom's 13th year as a two-time cancer survivor and also in honor of our grandma Rosie. There are so many mothers in my life in heaven and on earth, and I hope they know I am thinking of each of them today! If it weren't for the moms in my life, my friends  wouldn't be the people who they are. 

My Sunday..
The Race for the Cure with my entire family.
A stop at Isles Bun & Coffee for a couple big buns to share.
Gifting mama a few new things.
An affirmation bouquet of beauts from the farmer's market. 
And making sure her day didn't go without her favorite treats from Cocoa & Fig!

We love you Mom, so so so much!! I know that when each of your girls count their blessings, we could you a few extra times!
xoxo

*Past Mother's Days - 2011, 2012

May 10, 2013

Advice for Studying Abroad

“Once the travel bug bites there is no known antidote, and I know that I shall be happily infected until the end of my life.” 
Michael Palin

No excuses!
Yes, it is expensive. Yes, it might be a pain in the arse for your schedule. But all of the pros will far outweigh the cons, this I can promise you. There might not be another period in your life where you can spend time totally immersed in the culture, while being semi productive (as in, taking classes/interning). So find a way to put your excuses on the back burner and just do it. Do it for you!

Be a tourist! (for a little bit) 
It’s easy to say “I have four months to do that, I’ll do it later.” But the time goes by way too quickly. I know of some friends who made the mistake of saving a few major things for the last-minute, and with only a few days left, including finals, it was hard to get everything done. And the only thing worse than not studying abroad at all, would be to study abroad and not live it to the fullest! If you need some help getting started, I found the best guidebooks to be those by Rick Steves (London) and Lonely Planet (I own London, England and Scotland!). His walking tours are genius, and he’ll help you get the most out of your time and money. We got to meet his son, Andy Steves who also does excursions once you are abroad!

Keep a diary or a blog or an instagram...
This may seem obvious, but it’s something that a lot of people plan on doing and only stick with for a week or two. And I get that, because it can be very time consuming and/or stressful if you let it! If it’s not your thing, you don’t need to write a page about your daily life, yet just include a few pictures of major highlights. I blogged my life in London pretty regularly. It was the perfect way to stay in touch with family back home, keep all of my memories bottled up in one place and make new blogging friends! The last reason there, surprised me, but I have made new friends virtually from the whole experience and it has been amazing. Try starting small by keeping track of where you go, restaurants, anything you would want to recommend to someone else. That way you can at least share your suggestions!

Be a local with the locals. 
You’ll get a real feel for the culture and may even become friends with a few along the way. I attended yoga at the same studio as often as I could and this is where I met my favorite British friend!!

Do as the locals do & eat as the locals eat.
Every culture has a unique cuisine so be sure to learn a few tricks to take back with you! I always asked a lot of questions, so I hope I can make some mean mushy peas when I live in America! Local markets are a great resource for seeing how food is reflected in a culture, and they often have foods for you to try that you may not normally order. There is so much more to each culture's food than you probably first image. You think England is only fish n chips & pints? Well my obsession with mushy peas, green juices, and pink lady apples would tell you otherwise.

Be a backpack-er.
It will force you to pack quite lightly. Old cities with cobblestone streets are also not the best for wheeling around suitcases (or strutting around in heels, so don't even attempt), and if you’re late for a train, you’ll be glad you can easily run to catch it. And you know all those annoying straps that come on a North Face backpack? Not so annoying when they help take the pressure off of your shoulders, they are heavenly actually! (*speaking of travels, don't forget the city you are living in has extraordinary things going on during the weekends as well! I met people on my program who never hit some of my favorite markets or attended a British football game. What!?)

Just wander.
This is how you find the hidden gems not crowded by tourists, but rather the locals who know the good spots. Again, ask questions! You truly see a city when you are a bit lost, and these places will likely become some of your favorites. The places that are most special to you! I also loved taking some time to explore by myself. It allows you to stop and see what you really want to, its always nice to reflect on things alone as well.

Do an internship! (or some activity outside of school) 
Internships not only provide great experience, but a lot of them are just plain cool. I cannot speak enough great words about my internship (and the people I met through it! Oh the people!!) while living in England and the amount of things I learned about my career but more importantly, myself. I think this is where you separate yourself from being a traveler in a foreign country (which is totally cool, if that is what you want to do) and being deeply immersed in the culture, becoming a true expat.

Finally, look at each day in life as the next big adventure. 
The day I packed my bags to move back home, I felt nearly the same emotions I did as the day I arrived. So sad to leave behind the life you know, but so excited for what is to come. It is an extremely bittersweet situation. I can honestly say, I had fallen in love with two places, two different lives. And now you have to combine all the bits of yourself and live accordingly. I love this quote..
“The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.”
Eleanor Roosevelt

May 9, 2013

For you, Natasha.

I met a lot of seriously awesome people on all of my travels these past months.
But my flatmate, Natasha, she was one of a kind.

She literally made me laugh every single day! Now, I find almost everything to be funny. But gosh, I just can't say enough awesome things about my Nat!

Natasha liked to read my blog, even though we lived together and I told her about each of my day's adventures. And during our last week in London, she treated me to Kahve Dunyasi, swearing it would be so blog-worthy. And oh was she right.
^^Turkish coffee (coffee prepared with the grounds remaining at the bottom) and a chocolate turkish delight. I never imagined I would love Turkish food, but there were a few things I grew to love!
^^I tried really hard to get this chocolate spoon on my nose, but it cracked/melted :)
^^Terranova, our other bestie, joined in on the chocolate spoon and dessert dinner!^^

***
We spent the rest of the night roaming Picadilly Circus and made our way to Oxford Street for shopping.
Natasha boards a plane today to head back to our love, London, for the summer! She is such a brave soul, I hope she is ready for many skype chats. I bloody miss her!!
xo

May 5, 2013

Happy Sunday!

It's been awhile, since I've written on a Sunday. 
I traveled and explored so much on my weekends while I lived in London.
It feels pretty good to sit down behind my little laptop and be back to share a few things that are making me smile on this chilly day in MAY. (Minneapolis had May-Day snow, it is all very confusing over here in the midwest.)

*The best way to celebrate half-birthdays. I love!

*I literally sat in the aisle of my bookstore yesterday flipping through THIS book. After an awkward time limit (I think the lady working there thought I probably read the whole thing), I left and its all I have thought about. But oh the beauty of online shopping!

*I think THESE are the bees knees.

*So cute. Made you smile right?

*I'm a creature of habit. Last week I ate chicken pad thai for dinner most nights, and this week these veggie wraps are on my menu.

*7 Positive Things You Should Say Today. I especially love #6, maybe it's because I have adapted the lifestyle of a minimilist lately, more on that to come.

Have the happiest of Sundays everyone!
 {photo via}

May 4, 2013

Little bits of London Life

A few glimpses into my daily walk in London, things I miss already...
The door across the street in the perfect shade of yellow // The doormat in our flat // Puddles, so many puddles! (and in London they paint on their round-a-bouts.. haha!) 

double decker red buses // cars drive on the right side of the road, the Brits help you with little reminders // all of the pretty prep schools // 

Holland & Barrett's health food store! // a neighbor lady's flat with cool letters in her window // oh, the tube

xo
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