Happiness is...

.........sharing cupcakes with your roommate.

Not just any cupcakes though, The Cocoa Bean Cupcakery cupcakes.

I introduce you to the Ultimate Brownie Cupcake. It is heaven, in cupcake form.

Alexa let me try her Lemon Raspberry Cupcake...and oh boy was it good!

Too good.

Quote of the Day

I hope you all have amazing plans for the weekend...but don't get too crazy :)

My day was craptastic thank you, how about yours?

Craptastic= A state of something being marked by major disasters, breakdowns, and just plain crap.

Have you ever had a day that makes you want to just sit down and cry?

Or, if you're too mad to cry, a day that makes you want to curl up into a little ball in your baggiest sweatpants...preferably with chocolate?

If not, let me show you what such a day looks like:

You know that you're headed towards a craptastic day when your days merge together. 

You look at the clock and realize that it is 2 am. You are already on Wednesday's time, and it is already going by way too fast.

You're attempting to complete one of the worst assignments you have ever been given.

Because you do not curse, you start making up other polite, mature names to call your professor like "jerk-face", "devil", and my personal favorite "fetcher".

You then realize as you say the last one out loud.....you are probably in need of some serious repentance since you are still in essence cursing....only with less gross sounding words.

First disaster.

After being emotionally and physically drained....and now having your spiritual well-being in jeopardy, you decide that it is time to go to bed.

You vow to wake-up early to finish your hw before class.

So, your alarm goes of at 7, reminding you of your promise.

Pretty soon, it is time for your 10:00 Stats lecture, but your assignment that is due at 11:00, is still incomplete.

So, you do the only thing your frazzled little mind can think of.

The Stats lecture is skipped as you continue to work on your fetching project.

Sorry, that was out of line.

Second disaster.

Pretty soon it is time to go hand the assignment in.

You rush to your closet. 

Grab a shirt.

Throw your hair back in a messy braid and vow not to look in the mirror because your reflection, and by yours, I really mean my reflection, is truly frightening.

So, you walk around campus the whole dang day, feeling and looking like a hot mess.

To top it all off, usually during a craptastic day, you have been sick with the worst cold all week, so you are mentally fuzzy and physical yucky.

I'm talking coughing, snot, and puffy eyes.

Not pretty.

The day progresses.

The coughing continues the snot keeps coming (tmi?), and finally sneezing is added to the mix.

Eventually, you are no longer the annoying coughing girl in every class and your nose ceases to function as a faucet.  

You are in the clear....or are you?

You think to yourself "you know what, you only have one more class....I think you're safe, Nothing else will go wrong".

Third disaster.

Note to all: Never challenge the universe. You will be sorry.

Finally, you're sitting in your last class which happens to be a sewing class.

Your teacher is talking to the class about the upcoming project you will be working on.

She mentions that you should not buy plaid for your fabric because it is too hard to deal with for your beginning class.

Crap. Crappity crap.

What kind of fabric did you buy the day before?

Oh yeah, plaid fabric.

Of course, you know you cannot return said fabric because you have already gotten it prepped for class.

You silently scream as you realize your project will now be more time-confusing, stressful, and marked by disaster than it already was.

Luckily though, you were not the pathetic person in this story. I was.

In short, today has been a train wreck of a day, but I am still standing.

[Universe: That was not a challenge, merely a statement.]

Quote of the Day

Jeeze....I guess I will try again tomorrow.

Please tell me your day was better than mine?

If you want the complete package....you have to be the total package yourself

Have you ever heard someone mention their checklist of what their ideal partner would be like?

I have, and it usually goes something like this:

1. Hot.

2. Athletic or in other-words, have a rockin' bod.

3. They need to be outgoing.

4. Some people have a hair-color preference.

5. A great sense of humor.

6. Good communication skills.

While many of these items are something that I would want in a guy, I think it is important to realize that if we want these things....we need to be them as well.

If we want someone that has an amazing body, yet we do nothing to take care of our own, we have a problem.

We want someone that is kind and generous, yet we act like a grouch all of the time.

How is that fair?

What makes us think that we are deserving of perfection from someone else, while we just coast along?

We get all of the benefits of being with this amazing person, yet their needs and wants are not being met.

They are essentially settling....and I think we all realize that settling is not good.

We have had all had friends or family members choose to be with someone that did not deserve them.

Someone that belittled, used, and drained them.

I do not want that to happen to me and I'm sure you do not either.

So, instead of making a checklist, how about we focus on becoming.

Let's become good communicators, if our goal is to be with one.

Let's become healthy and athletic, if that is what we are looking for in a partner.

Let's become more compassionate, if we want a compassionate person in our lives. 

I truly believe that when we broaden our horizons and work on improving ourselves, we attract similar people.

Oh, and when you do attract that person, you will be able to know if the relationship is worthwhile easily.

"One good yardstick as to whether a person might be the right one for you is this: in his/her presence, do you think your noblest thoughts, do you aspire to your finest deeds, do you wish you were better than you are?". - Ezra Taft Benson

Great people inspire you to be better. Their goodness and sincerity make you want to be a better person. 

Relationships are a learning experience. They teach us new skills and allow us to be influenced.

So, remember that you are not perfect...and do not expect perfection in someone else.

But do expect and demand that they try just as hard to make your relationship a success as you do.

Quote of the Day

That is what my checklist looks like.

This year, I will work to become:

1. More studious

2. More spontaneous

3. More of a reader (I love to read but can never find the time anymore!)

4. More forgiving

5. More Spiritual

I hope that my guy's checklist includes finding a girl that loves pizza....because he will for sure be seeing some of this 

in his future.

But seriously, I love pizza and SLAB might be my new Pizza place.

You better believe that I ate every. single. bit of my Rosemary Potato and Bacon pizza that I tried this weekend. It was perfection.

Did you notice that my blog design is fully-launched?

 I hope you love it...because I sure do :)

It was designed by the amazing Casey Wiegand and Danielle Roy.

If you are ever in need of a blog design, I highly recommend these lovely ladies. 

They were so easy to work with and made me feel so important, even though my blog is just getting started.

Check them out here. You'll be glad that you did :)

Also, what are some characteristics that you are working to become? I would love to hear them :)

Remember

 I can still remember being 10 years-old and terrified out of my mind.

Sitting in the cafeteria grouped together, we could all tell that something was horribly wrong.

The adults were not speaking.

Their expressions were strained.

I wanted to yell because I was so frustrated over the silence. Frustrated at the uncertainty.

My dad picked me up and told me that our Country was under attack.

I did not understand, but I understood as soon as I saw t.v. footage, that our country would never be the same.

We would never be the same. 

As tears rolled down my cheeks, I wondered who would do such a thing?

Why would someone destroy so many innocent lives?

Destroy families, dreams, and our security.

Now, 10 years later, the hurt lives on.

It lives on in the families that no longer have loved ones with them.

It lives on in the terror of those that witnessed firsthand, things that will forever haunt them.

But you know what? We survived.

America survived.

We were not destroyed like the terrorists hoped.

We pulled together and worked to rebuild. Worked on a way to live with our new legacy.

Today, I am beyond thankful for the brave people that lost their lives that day.

I am thankful for the Firefighters, Police Officers, and other first responders that sacrificed their own lives to rescue others.

Let's make their sacrifice mean something by helping and loving each other well. 

Love has the power to save; the power to heal.

Let us use that power for good and never forget that on September 11, we learned that we are stronger than we know. 

Life can be beautiful again.

Quote of the Day

Lets be brave.

You are enough

Life is hard sometimes.

Especially in those awkward teenage years, when you are trying to discover who you are, and where you fit in this crazy world.

You ask yourself.....

Am I artsy, am I witty, am I popular?

Why do we have to have labels? 

Why can't we just be ourselves?

Why can't I just be Ashley?

A girl that loves laughter and loves her friends and family with her whole heart.

A girl that hates snakes, sweet potatoes, and waking up early.

but

Loves fro-yo, love stories, and music....lots of music.

Since when does everything have to have a title or secret meaning?

I hated hearing people in school classified as "nerds" or "goody-two shoes".

Is it not possible for someone to be fun and smart?

Or genuine and outgoing?

I believe that this is possible.

We are limitless by design. It is only when we start to put labels on people that we limit ourselves and our capabilities.

You are enough.

You are fun, smart, brave, creative, loyal, beautiful, and unique.

You are anything you want to be.

That is the beauty of this world; of this country.

If you do not like something about yourself, change it!

But change it because you want to. Not because you feel pressure to be like everyone else.

We need more trendsetters....and less followers


....Well, minus being followers of Christ, laws, and all that jazz.....but you get my point!

{WARNING: YOU ARE ABOUT TO HEAR AN EXTREMELY CATCHY SONG}

If you cannot handle sugary-sweet bubble-gummy pop music that makes you wanna dance, do not listen. 

Ummmm.....does anyone know where I can get my hands on some sparkly headphones like those?! They are legittttt.

Seriously though, I know that for me....music totally has the ability to change my mood. 

If I am feeling grumpy or lazy, turning on some tunes never fails to get me hyped and ready for the day.

I especially love the last part of the song where she says:

"this ain't the first time you've felt like this....this ain't the last time you'll feel like this....but it'll be fine, if you can just smiiile".

Now I know that sometimes it is easier said than done. 

It is easy to say "just change your attitude and you'll feel better".

The truth is though......you will feel better if you can just smile.

Find a way to break away from the situation you are in.

Punch your pillow a few times, scream as loud as you can, then walk away.

Turn on some feel good tunes...and rock out.

A few of my current feel good faves are:

1. Good life= OneRepublic (You just know it's gonna cheer you up! It says "good life" in the title!)

2. Tonight, Tonight= Hot Chelle Rae (The quintessential summer song)

3. Summer Girl= Leighton Meester (This will solve your boy woes..just grab your best gal-pal and partayyyyy)

4. Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall= Coldplay (Such a great beat)

5. Stereo Hearts= Gym Class Heroes and Adam Levine (After you're done getting your previously mentioned boy woes out....this song will remind you that there are sweet boys still out there)

We all deserve to feel important and happy......so start today.

And if all else fails, know that I love ya like crazy and that you've always got a friend here.

Quote of the Day

Have a nice, safe weekend. Party extra hard for me :)

Thankful Thursday

So as you can see, my blog is coming along! This is all thanks to the great Casey Wiegand and the equally awesome Danielle Roy 

It will be fully-launched soon and I am so freaking excited!

Like jump up and down excited.

I felt like this week has been flying by...so before I take it for granted, I thought it was about time for a "Thankful Thursday".

On this Thursday, I am grateful for many things:

1. Being back at school for my Junior Year.

2. Getting more creative with my clothes and accessories.

3. Cute boys.

4. Said cute boys that also smell amazing.

5. My family and my awesome mom.

6. My roommates. 

7. New friends.

8. Yummy food.

9. Fun and challenging classes.

10. The Savior.

11. The future.

12. Change

Quote of the Day

What are you thankful for today?

New and Improved

This semester in school, I am taking a lot of hard classes.

I firmly believe that even though part of being a grown-up involves dealing with stress and being responsible, we all need an outlet.

Some way that we can express ourselves. 

A way to discover new talents and interests.

For some, this outlet is art.

For others it is sports.

For me, some outlets include cooking, music, and crafting.

This new school year is bringing some new creative outlets into my life.

I am taking a Sewing class, and an Interior Design class.

Now you may be thinking, those sound so fun....and you would be right.

They are also really involved and tricky (sewing).

But you know what? We all need a challenge.

Something that gets us out of our comfort zone so that we can grow and discover our strengths. 

So, I challenge you to develop one of your talents.

Or, just pick a skill or art that you would like to learn.

And if all else fails, laughter is always the perfect outlet.

Lets make this year a year of growth and self-discovery.

Be the best possible version of you that you can be.

Quote of the Day

YES! Let's water our frickin' creative grasses! 

Yes, I know...that was an extremely deep and philosophical metaphor. You're welcome.

Also, I am happy to inform you that I am in the process of getting a blog design.

 I am excited to see what the finished product will be like....and I'm sure you are all excited to have something besides a plain background to look at :)