back to school. again. and again.

(image from weheartit.com)

I'm kind of one of those people who wander through life not really caring what I'm "supposed to be doing". And by "supposed to" I just mean what is expected of me because of the "norm", not what is best for me/my situation. Except for when everyone is doing (or done with) what they're supposed to and sometimes I get a little insecure like maybe I'm being judged for taking a different path. Mostly - I don't care. :) This is my life & I know what's best for me. That sounded juvenile. Let me rephrase. Just because everyone is doing what society/their parents/whatever/whoever is telling them to do, doesn't mean I have to follow suit. In a way, I guess I am. I'm talking about school. I'm 23 and I've finally transferred to a university from a community college. Yep. I went to community college for 5 years. That's 5 years off and on. I've always worked and done my own thing, had my own businesses, etc. I've always known that I will work for myself and I guess because of that I never really felt like I needed to finish school at warp speed. In a way I regret that because I know I could be done by now, but at the same time I'm a little nervous for it to eventually be over because by the time I'm done I'll have been in college for 7 years! Yep - the 7 year bacehlors degree. Win.

But in all seriousness. I finally transferred and this semester is going to be killer. What's on my agenda for the next 4 months?

• Financial Accounting II


• Managerial Accounting


• Calculus


• Intermediate Microeconomics


• Drug Discovery & Development

Yep. That's going to be SO fun. Just kidding. It's going to be tough, but I've come to the point where I'm in it to LEARN. I do my best to become interested in immersed in the topics at hand rather than just cramming as much information into my brain as humanly possible. Understanding concepts over memorizing facts. I have to admit, I haven't been approaching school this way for long and it'll be interesting to see how it does.

In the meantime - I'm going to do my best to keep up with my creative activities. There's only so much school this mind of mine can take before needing somewhere for my creativity to flow! Now if I could just kick this procrastination bug that I've been holding onto for the past... oh, 23 years, that'd be great! I'm working on it, that's for sure!

Oh yeah, and...



So basically... world - please don't end :)

lots of love, aileen

oh gawd.

A visual representation of me in the car. When this song is on. Which is too often. Thanks too my sister. Not so much anymore, I guess. But this cartoon is a 100% correct depiction of my reaction when it is on. I love it to death.

Weakness Wednesday: Lilies

I love lilies. My favorite flower for sure (though I love flowers in general). They're so pretty. I can't wait to have a house to fill with flowers. Maybe I'll even grow them in my garden... if I don't kill them.

(photos from weheartit.com)

I love 'em! I love puppies too, just for the record. :)

Blast From The Past

Circa: early 2000's

4 Simple Goals

I am joining in on this little simple goals project that Elsie over at A Beautiful Mess blogged about. The idea is to blog about 4 simple goals you have, not goals with end results, just simple life enhancing goals. I love the idea.



(My purchases from back in May at the local farm where I like to buy my produce)

1. Eat healthier

You know those days when you're just way too lazy/overwhelmed to worry about what you're going to eat for dinner and you just grab the fastest thing you can microwave? Welcome to my life. I LOVE to cook. I really do. It's just mustering up the energy to do so and reminding myself that cleaning up after isn't that bad if you kind of do you best to clean as you go. As a Vegetarian, I already eat healthier than I used to, but trust me. I'm not healthy. I type this after eating some left over Panda Express with a coke. I LOVE the way I feel when I eat "clean". I feel sluggish and gross after eating a meal like the one I just ate, even though it was delicious. I'm going to make a conscious effort to think about my food choices and make sure that better choices are available for me on those "lazy days".



(My sister & I and her giant camera that I often steal to take photos.)

2. Take more pictures

I love having pictures of my life to look back on. I am just really bad at remembering to take them. I love when I get together with my huge family because they always end up taking a million pictures. But when it's just Blaine & I, for example, it doesn't happen. We've been together for over 3 1/2 years and I'm thinking we should have AT LEAST twice as many pictures together. Part of the problem is we don't go out a lot. We're very into staying home and it makes it harder to remember to take pictures. Even if we're just sitting down to watch a movie or driving around day dreaming about our first home, I want it documented! Those are the days that make up my life, not just the big events, get together and parties.



(Me & my ex, Chris, circa '04 or '05 - I just really loved my hair in this picture.)

3. Get dolled up

If you haven't already gotten the idea, I'm pretty lazy. Ok - just not easily motivated, I guess would be a nicer/better way to put it. I am a 23 year old young lady and it takes a lot of motivation for me to put the effort into my looks that I'd like to. This is definitely for me and not anyone else. I love the way I feel when I put even just 15 minutes of effort into how I look everyday. It's SO easy for me to throw on some jeans and a t-shirt, put my hair in a bun and run out the door. When I'm home I often find myself in "cheer shorts" (you know - those shorts that cheerleaders wore to practice in high school) and a tank top about 99% of the time. I don't get dressed when I'm at home. I want to pamper myself a little. Even if it's just throwing on a little mascara and doing my hair so it's not up all day. I've already gone a long way in the last few months, but I want to take it farther. I used to LITERALLY wear jeans daily. Now I've incorporated a lot of dresses into my wardrobe which make me feel a lot more girly and I love it. I'm excited to start putting effort into the way I look and in effect the way I feel about myself on a daily basis.



(From our trip to Big Bear where I found studying for finals in the forest SO relaxing and amazing.)

4. Go outside everyday.

I live in southern California. There is sunshine here probably 300+ days a year. There is no possible excuse for me to box myself into my house or work or whatever building that keeps me from the sunshine. It doesn't matter what I do, I just want to be outside everyday. Some days it could be just 5 minutes if I don't have much time, some days it can be hours and I'd LOVE that. Whether I'm outside to take a short walk (I would love to help this keep me healthy along with goal #1) or to play with my pups who don't nearly get enough attention, it doesn't matter as long as I'm outside. I plan to take advantage of this starting today! I would really like to go outside and read a book. We got a hammock at a yard sale several months ago and just put it up in the last few weeks. I've laid in it for a couple of minutes at a time, but when it's nice out it'd be such a dream to go out there and read a good book. This summer has been SO forgiving and much cooler than usual and I haven't taken advantage of it like I should be!

Looking up

I saw a shooting star on the drive  home from dinner for my grandmas 82nd birthday. I was thinking, wondering and wishing about the future when it happened. I'll take it as a sign that things are looking up in the future.

New Shop Update! For Owl & Picnic Lovers!

I've updated my shop, kintage, with 3 items for owl lovers and a vintage thermos picnic set.

I've got soo much more to add. If only I could find the perfect lighting for photos.









Check them out here.