Dear Older Emily, 

Right now we’re in the middle of a global pandemic, and I’ve been quarantining and social distancing for weeks now. I’m not gonna lie, it totally sucks. I’ve already cried multiple times over losing my second semester of senior year, and I’m still not over the sadness yet. However, I’m pretty sure they’re going to push back prom and graduation to the summer, which is good. 

This has been a weird weird time. People are stocking up on insane amounts of toilet paper, and thinking that we’re all going to die even though that isn’t the case. For me, I’m not really afraid of getting the corona virus, I’m just more concerned about when it’s going to be contained enough to where we can go back to our daily lives. 

Some good things have come out of this quarantine. I’ve gotten to spend lots of quality time with Cody, which he has seriously been loving. I’ve also been spending more time outside which is something I normally never have the time to do. This week, Grandma Decker has really been struggling with not being able to see us, so I’m going to write her a letter letting her know how much she means to me. I’m also going to make her that welcome sign she’s been begging me to do for months now. 

On the topic of good news, I also officially committed to Kentucky a few days ago! While it’s refreshing to finally know where I’m going, I’m both excited and scared for what’s to come. I’m so excited for the class I’m gonna take, the hospital rotations, and joining a sorority but I’m still nervous. It’s starting to feel very real now.  I can’t believe that I’m actually an adult. 

Future me, from all of this I hope you know that you need to always appreciate your life. Don’t take the small things for granted because in a blink of an eye things can change. You’re someone who thrives off interacting and collaborating with others, and you should never take seeing your loved ones for granted again. I hope that you keep choosing to see the positives in life, and that you know that you are enough. No matter what life throws your way, keep a good attitude and your head held high, because while it may seem small, I promise it has a big impact. 

Love, 

Young Emily

I’ll say what we’re all thinking right now: Life sucks. 

I went through the five stages of grief about school events getting cancelled and not having school for two weeks. It’s frustrating hearing about how everything is closing down, but I’ve finally started to just move towards accepting it and making the best out of a bad situation. I’m not totally there but I’m trying. 

Another reminder that everything happens for a reason and that everything will be okay in the end. Just hang in there.

Here’s my advice on the corona virus and then I’ll shut up about it. Don’t give into the hysteria on the news. Yes, this is a serious situation. No, it’s not the end of the world. We’re not all going to die tomorrow. Stop panicking, buying a year’s worth of toilet paper, and getting pulled in by the flashy “breaking news” headlines that are everywhere. Take a deep breath. Stop checking the news every two minutes, and accept that while it’s not the best circumstances everything is going to be okay in the end. It’s mostly just preventative measures, trying to stay ahead and flatten the curve as much as possible.  

We should only focus on what we can control: which is our attitude and how we’re choosing to spend our time. 

But enough about the corona virus. Honestly, I’m sick and tired of talking about it and beyond done hearing about it. Instead, I’m going to focus on what I’m going to do with the new amount of time on my hands. Here’s  a list of plans I have to do with all the free time that I will probably never get again 🙂 

#1 Learning how to cook  

Before going off to college, I’ve always wanted to learn how to cook a few basic meals, so that when I’m sick of cafeteria food and I’m craving a homemade meal, I can make one for myself. I’ve gotta do something to combat the inevitable freshman fifteen, so this way I can say that I tried. 

#2 Deep Cleaning my Room 

Not going to lie, I normally hate cleaning. But every once in a while, I get in the mood to deep clean and reorganize everything. I know over the next few weeks I’ll be so bored that this will happen, so I’m going to take advantage of it by clearing off my desk and getting rid of the clutter. (Definitely going to make my mom happy with this one) 

#3 Redecorating My Bedroom Walls 

A few months ago, all of my decorations in my room had been the same since I was in literally in 1st grade. But, I decided to take down all the childish decorations. Unfortunately, I lost my energy when it came to redecorating, so my walls are pretty much just bare now (sad story of my life). I’ve been looking on pinterest and I want to work on adding a photo wall next to my bed!! This is a project I’m very excited about. 

#4 Self care…to another level 

As you may remember from my other blogs, I absolutely love self care. And with this free time, I’m taking it to another level.  Yesterday, I gave myself a pedicure: Soaking my feet in water with bath salts, shaping my nails, removing the dead skin.. we’re talking the whole nine yards here. I’m trying to do something everyday to treat myself, that I wouldn’t normally do. 

One of my favorite pictures of me and Cody, just being bffs.

#5 Spending quality time with my dog 

I’m going to miss my dog the most when I go to college. Cody is my best friend and when I have time we do everything together. I have been trying to stay active by walking him 3 or 4 miles every day or so, this way I’m moving around and we get to spend quality time together. 

#6 Netflix binging 

Relax, relax, and more relaxing. As many of you know, I’m a huge tv watcher and these next few weeks will be no exception. I’ve been rewatching old shows, movies, and watching criminal minds with my mom. There’s nothing better than escaping reality for a while, and simply letting you, and your brain, relax. 

#7 Board games 

My family LOVES board games and card games. We have been spending a lot of quality time together playing these games because they’re fun, strategic, and a great way to spend an afternoon. There’s no better feeling than destroying your family in UNO.

#8 Making a photobook on Shutterfly 

I decided I’m going to make a digital photobook of my service trip to Guatemala. I know in the future it will mean a lot to me to have all these pictures in one place, and to be able to have all my thoughts written down with it. They also take a CRAP TON of time if you want them to look pretty, so it’s now or never baby. 

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I hope this blog brings you comfort in knowing that you’re not alone in how you’re feeling. Look for the positives in life. Everything happens for a reason, and it’s all going to be okay.  

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you’re doing with your free time! I wouldn’t mind adding a few more things to my list 🙂 

As the end of senior year approaches, I can’t help but get sentimental. These four years went by in the blink of an eye, and I didn’t appreciate everything as much as I should have in the moment.  

Although there have been times where I have sworn off school forever, the reality is that I love learning. As long as the topic is semi-interesting and there’s not a bunch of pointless busy work, I’m happy to be there. Looking back on my four years at North, there are a few classes that really stuck out to me. 

Here are my top five classes of all time that I’ve taken and why: 

#1 Early Childhood 1 and 2 

This is the only class where I have actually cried when it was over. We run a preschool where kids 2-4 come in. You get to act as a teacher and create/plan lessons for the kids, while also getting to work closely with one preschooler who is your “special child.” You get to work with them closely, and do a case study of them at the end of the year. 

A picture of Jay and I, almost two years ago

There seriously aren’t words to express my love for this class. As someone who loves working with kids, this class was the highlight of my day every single day. Working with my kid Jay confirmed that I wanted to work in Pediatrics when I’m older, and helped me better understand the social and emotional development of children at this age. From reading books, to making crafts, to going to the zoo— I will always remember the joy this class brought me everyday. 

#2 Health Occupations 

This is a class that I’m currently taking this semester, and I love it. As an only senior class, we get to go on rotations two days a week to Edward Hospital and different diversified sites. From the NICU, to the Naperville Animal Hospital, to mental health facilities, we see it all! 

I love this class because it has given me the opportunity to shadow different professions and occupations that I would never be able to do otherwise. Even though I almost cried and passed out at the Animal Hospital because of seeing them doing surgeries on dogs, the experience was still great! Now I have a clearer idea of what’s for me and what’s  definitely not for me. 

Plus, who doesn’t love to get to leave school for 2 periods? 

#3 AP Lang 

Whenever I tell people that this was one of my favorite classes that I have ever been in, they’re always very surprised. The reality is that even though I want to go into the medical field when I am older, I still love English. The reason I loved this class so much is largely because of my teacher, Mr. Pearson. 

I’m one of the few people who actually read the books that were assigned. In this class, we mainly read different books and articles and then had discussions. There were no assigned questions, we would just talk and see where the conversation would carry us. I loved how Mr. Pearson always emphasized that there is no right answer, because instead of everyone looking analysis on sparknotes and coming into class trying to sound smart, we all collaborated and worked on understanding the deeper meaning of the book together. 

Also, we had a P for passing for the entire semester which I loved because if you don’t have a grade, there’s nothing to worry about! Overall, this class was very stress free and I’m very glad I took it over Honors English 3. 

#4 Sociology 

A stunning selfie of me in my natural habitat

Okay, this is a class I think everyone needs to take before they graduate. It’s fun, pushes you out of your comfort zone, and helps you get to know the people around you better. The class is all project and discussion based, and you talk about very serious topics such as conformity,  LGBTQ+ history, mental health, serial killers, mob mentality, and our current prison system. 

The biggest highlight for me was my breaking social norms project. Sivaayan and I went to Target, and he pushed me around in cart while I wore a banana costume. Then he dropped me off and I sat by the bananas and talked to people walking by. It was fun, crazy, and truly unforgettable. 

If that doesn’t make this sound like a class you wanna take, I don’t know what will. 

#5 Anatomy and Physiology 

While this class was a lot of work, I absolutely loved it. We got to learn a lot about the human body in pretty great depth. I am absolutely fascinated by the human body and how everything works, so I was always excited to come to this class. 

One thing that made this class really special was all the dissections we did. While learning about anatomy from a textbook is important, seeing it up close and personal is even better. We dissected animals from pigs, to cats, to cow eyes. With this hands on experience, I was able to learn a lot more. 

It was definitely a class worth taking, even though our dead cats that we had started to dissect exploded (Yikes). But that’s a story for another time. 

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I hope you enjoyed hearing about my favorite classes at North! Please let me know in the comments if you also enjoyed these classes or any other classes you were in that you’ll never forget!!  

Did you know that the average 4 year old laughs 300 times a day? Guess how much the average 40 year old laughs every day. 

4 times. 

Only 4 times????? 

Yep, you heard me right. 

So, are we headed for a life full of depression? What other explanation is there? How is it possible that a 4 year old would laugh 75 times more than an adult on a daily basis. 

Well, I’ll tell you how. And spoiler alert— it’s not because we’re all heading for a life of gloom and unhappiness. The reality is that people take life and themselves too seriously. 

Do you know what happens when a young child trips and falls over their own two feet? Sometimes they cry if they get injured, but a large majority of the time they laugh and get back up again before continuing to go on their way.  

As we grow older, we fall victim to constantly being stressed and worrying. We want to be perfect, and we try and reach that high expectation for ourselves by staying driven and goal-orientated. But, in the process we lose that youthfulness of being able to destress and realize that we aren’t perfect. 

One thing I’ve always been proud of is my ability to laugh at myself. It may sound stupid, but I think that too many times people are so scared of failing or of not being absolutely perfect that they miss out. Let me tell you, I have a long list of blonde moments in my life, and instead of trying to look past them or forget them, I keep their memories alive by sharing the stories with my family and friends. 

Lucky for you, I’m feeling particularly close with all of you right now. So please enjoy my top 6, funniest and blondest moments of my 18 years on earth. 

1 Medium Eggs?  

It was 5th grade, the night air was crisp, and my family was enjoying a lovely meal at Denny’s. I ordered pancakes with eggs and sausage, because I have good taste. But, when the waitress asked me how I wanted my eggs I panicked because I had no idea what that meant. So I answered “medium”. With the look she gave me, you would have thought that I had three heads. 

The iconic restaurant Denny’s, where many unforgettable memories were made.

2) Ankle snatcher? 

This next funny story also happened at Denny’s. Guess that restaurant really made me who I am today. 

Anyways, it was Halloween time and my family was eating here yet again. Denny’s had a mini haunted house inside the restaurant. So my siblings and I went in. Terrified, I did the dumbest thing I could do. I stepped away from my brother and I walked by the one covered table in the haunted house. Someone under the table grabbed my ankle, and I screamed and literally almost peed my pants. 

This traumatizing experience has stayed with me to this day, because even as an 18 year old I still jump getting onto my bed so that the monster under my bed won’t grab my ankle. 

3) No dad, Tyler’s not 14 

On a family vacation, my family went to Tennessee and we visited old, historical homes on plantations by doing house tours. It was filled with hours upon hours of the same boring thing “And here is the blood stain of Abraham Lincoln’s cousin’s son’s daughter’s boyfriend’s parent’s nephew who fell one fatal day” It was practically torture, but that’s beyond the point. 

When we went to sign up, my dad went up to pay. There was a huge cut off in payment between 14 and under, and being 15 or older. By being in the lower group, you saved $30. Well my brother had just turned 15 a few months prior to this trip, and when my dad went to pay for the tickets and said that he had three children under 14, I said 

“Wait Dad what do you mean? Tyler isn’t 14, he turned 15 a few months ago, remember?” 

Yikes that was a bad day. Not only were the tours boring as hell, but I also got yelled at like I never have before.  

4)There’s a sign there? 

This is a similar sign to the one I smashed my head into on this fateful day. (Just to give you an idea of how stupid I was for choosing to ignore it).

During middle school, my family went on a vacation to Texas. On one of the days of our trip, we got out of our car and started walking across a field to go to a park or something. I became deep in thought, and I remember seeing a sign in front of me. In my haze, I thought that I could fit under it but I couldn’t so BOINGGGGG my face slapped right into the sign.

No cellphone. No talking to anyone. Nothing to distract me. I just walked into a sign because I was dumb enough to think I could fit under it.

5) Butter or Cream cheese? Same Difference. 

My mom makes an amazing baked potato soup in the crockpot, but it takes awhile to cook. During her lunch break one day, she put everything in and after school she asked me to do the last step in and add the cream cheese. 

So I did what she asked, or at least I thought I did. But really, instead of adding a stick of cream cheese I added a stick of butter. The soup was ruined and when my mom realized, she lost it. My sister tried to eat the soup to make it seem like it was okay, but even I couldn’t do that. To this day, my family doesn’t let me live it down. 

But to my defense, butter and cream cheese do kind of look alike. 

6) That’s not actually a word…

I have taken Spanish in school for more than 5 years of my life. And although I am probably the whitest person ever trying to learn it, I thought that I was pretty good. I used to try and speak it as much as I could outside of school, and during that time I started saying a word that I thought was real, but really wasn’t. 

“Amunto” means amount doesn’t it? 

Well, up until Spanish 4 I thought it did. I used it in papers, socratic seminars, and in speaking assessments. And NOBODY, literally NOBODY, had the guts to tell me that what I was saying was completely wrong. Until my Spanish 4 teacher Señora Pitts told me it wasn’t a word after I used it on a test. 

When I found out, I literally laughed so hard I cried. For five years of my life, I made up a Spanish word by taking an English word and adding an “O” to it, and I genuinely tricked myself into believing it was a real word. 

That’s a special kind of stupid. 

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I hope that my experiences made you laugh! Remember, it is important to let loose sometimes and see the hilarity in the world and in ourselves. We all make mistakes, and you can trust me when I tell you that’s it’s better to use them to laugh than to try and pretend they never happened. 

Have any funny stories you would like to share? Please leave them below in the comments. I could always use a few more laughs 🙂

Question: What’s the difference between Utah and Alabama?

Are you ready for it?….. 

The meaning of sister-wife.

Ahhh… you gotta love incest jokes. C’mon, if that did make you laugh like it was supposed to, you at least have to tell me that it made you crack a smile. If it didn’t… well you can just leave now. I only like readers who have a good sense of humor. 

 Anyways, I promise I didn’t just tell you that joke for no reason. Actually, this blog is going to be about Utah!! I know it seems random and weird, but actually one of my favorite vacations I’ve ever had was when I went hiking in Utah. 

I don’t know about you, but my family and I absolutely love to hike. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good beach vacation but there’s something so memorable about hiking and exploring new places with those you’re close with. It’s fun, good exercise, and it can have views that are impossible to forget. 

I’ve been to Utah a couple of times, and I’ve hiked a lot. Like seriously— A LOT.  Out of all of my experiences, here are my top three favorite hikes that I have ever done. 

1)Angel’s Landing 

The famous switchbacks… yes they are as painful as they look.

This first one is not for the faint-hearted. Located at Zion National Park, this hike is approximately 4-5 hours round trip and is 5 miles long. It starts off flat, before going into a mile or two of switchbacks which are up-hill. Make sure you get a good night’s rest before because trust me, from personal experience I know this part is truly a KILLER. After this, you will get to a cliff like structure, where you hold onto chains to help you climb across before you are able to see one of the most stunning views in the entire park. 

FYI, it’s not like these chains are the only thing keeping you from falling to your death. You do have .some room side to side, but holding on to these chains is helpful in a lot of parts so yo

A picture from when I hiked on this trail. You can the chains they have for you to hold onto and part of the breathtaking view.

u don’t loose your balance because again, you’re on a cliff. 

Undoubtedly, this  hike is extraordinary. It’s the kind of experience that you’ll remember twenty, thirty, even forty years later to tell your kids and grandkids about. If you love the outdoors, aren’t afraid of heights, and don’t mind a good leg workout then this hike is a MUST see for you. 

2) The Narrows 

Okay, this hike is also pretty special. Why? Well because you’re hiking through a river. 

For this hike, you will need to buy water shoes because you’re hiking over rocks and through water. Bring comfy athletic clothes and leave your valuables behind because if you go on this hike, everything’s getting wet.  

A typical view of what you see on The Narrows while hiking

This hike is also located at Zion National Park, and the entire trail is 15 miles long. You don’t need to do the entire thing. The river itself does not go in a loop, so however far you go out is however long it will take you to get back to where you started. What’s amazing about this is that you can choose how long you want to hike for, whether it’s two hours or eight hours. 

When I went, we found a dry spot to stop for lunch after two or three hours. Some of the parts are shallow and other parts were so deep they went up past my waist. In the deeper parts, my cousins and I had brought our swimsuits so we were even able to relax and go swimming for a bit. How cool is that? 

Seriously though, this hike is truly extraordinary. The views are unbelievable, the hike is fun and not overly challenging, and it’s nothing like you have ever seen before. If you go to Zion Park, this hike is a must do. 

3) Devil’s Garden Trail 

One of the many stunning arches you will see on this hike

My last favorite hike is Devil’s Garden Trail! It is located in Arches National Park, and if you decide to do the entire loop you can see eight different arches. The entire loop is 7.2 miles, but it is mostly flat with only a few strenuous uphill parts. 

Going on this trail will allow you to see the majority of the park, including ALL of the best views. Each of the arches are different, and you get so close that you can touch them. As you hike, you walk through gorgeous sandstone rock and you get PLENTY of opportunities to go off-                                                                                          roading and scramble up along the rocks. 

A family photo (minus my brother) of us under one the arches, before we almost died of dehydration.

Personally, my entire family and I loved this park. We probably spent an extra hour or two just going off the trail and scrambling up and down rocks — exploring the hidden passageways of the park itself. We didn’t bring enough water which made me feel like I was going to pass out by the very end (it was a blonde moment on our part), but overall it was a very fun and different day. Definitely a trail you need to go on at least once in your life! 

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These are undoubtedly my top 3 hikes and luckily they’re all in Utah so you can knock all of them out in your next visit there. I hope at least one of these sounds interesting to you. Please let me know if you end up going on one of these hikes or if you have been here before! 

Have any suggestions of where I should go hiking next? Please leave your suggestion in the comments! I’m always ready for another adventure 🙂

I may not have many talents, but I promise you I have amazing taste when it comes to TV shows. Some people are just naturally good at everything, and I am definitely not apart of that elite group. But, watching TV is one of my favorite things to do in order to de-stress and I take pride in my ability to choose a wide variety of good shows to watch. 

Many times, there are only a handful of shows that get thrown around a lot as recommendations. In the past few years, that would be shows like “Game of Thrones”, “The Office”, “Friends” etc. Don’t get me wrong, these shows are good but there are so many hidden gems out there that are just as good… or dare I say even BETTER. 

Luckily for you I’m feeling generous, and I’m going to make it easy for you by giving you your next shows to watch on a silver platter! So whether you’re a TV fanatic like me or you just finished a show and don’t know what to watch next, here are five underrated TV shows that you need to watch ASAP! 

1 ) “Revenge”

The cover of “Revenge”, featuring the characters of Amanda Clarke (left) and her rival Victoria Grayson (right)

In “Revenge”, the main character is the fierce and witty Amanda Clarke. When she was young, her life was ruined when the Grayson family falsely accused her father of channeling money to a terrorist organization responsible for the downing of a commercial airplane. Determined to get revenge (hence the title), she creates a new identity and moves next door to the Grayson’s and begins plotting to slowly destroy their lives in the most painful and entertaining way possible. 

This show is like “Gossip Girl”, “Pretty Little Liars”, and “90210” on steroids. If you like drama, this show is for you. The development of the characters is amazing and well thought out, and there’s plenty of backstabbing. With a developed plot with unexpected twists and turns, this show will keep you on the edge of your seat just dying to know what happens next. 

2) “Castle” 

Okay I’m not going to lie, I may have an obsession with criminal investigation shows. A few of my favorites that you may know are “Bones”, “Blue Bloods”, “Criminal Minds”, and “Chicago PD”. Honestly, solving murder is kind of in my blood now. 

Cover of “Castle”, with Detective Beckett (left) and Richard Castle (right)

Anyways, it always blows my mind how people have never heard of “Castle”! It is one of the funniest crime shows I have ever seen. The main character is Richard Castle, a player who is a famous mystery writer. He pairs up with Detective Beckett, who not only serves as his partner to solve crimes but his inspiration for his upcoming novels. This show has interesting murders, and does a great job of developing the characters and their lives outside of work. It’s a perfect balance and if you love mystery and comedy, this is the show for you. 

3 ) “Lucifer” 

Not a fan of the devil? I wasn’t either, but your mind changes pretty quickly after watching this show. This show  adds a new twist to the famous story of the devil. 

The one and only Lucifer Morningstar…. need I say more?

After Lucifer Morningstar gets bored of hell, he decides to take a vacation to Los Angeles. He ends up deciding to stay, and partnering up with Detective Chloe to help catch murders because punishing people is what he does best. This show is a mix of criminal investigation, fantasy, and drama. This show is witty, different, and humanizes the devil and puts him in a new light. Most importantly, you have good eye candy in every episode (because have you seen the actor that plays Lucifer??) AND hear an unbelievably sexy British

accent. If that doesn’t sell you on this show, I don’t know what will! 

4) “The Originals” 

Here’s my man Klaus… clearly one of the most attractive people ever to exist

Anyone who has seen “Vampire Diaries” has probably heard of “The Originals”. While it started off as just a spin-off, it turned into so much more. It takes place in New Orleans, where you get to follow the original vampire family (known as the Michealson’s) as you learn about their complicated past and their tension with the vampires, werewolves, and witches in the town. 

The show is STACKED with an attractive cast. Klaus Michealson has been my celebrity crush for years! I mean seriously just look at him—don’t you just get lost in those eyes? And his British accent is on another level! His brother Elijah is just as attractive and his accent will send goosebumps down your spine… in a good way, of course. 

The eye candy, mixed with an action and drama packed plot, makes for an amazing series that you won’t be able  to help but binge! 

5) “A Million Little Things” 

I like to call this show my emo show. There have been two seasons and there hasn’t been a single episode where I haven’t cried. The show follows a very close knit group of friends and in the first episode one of them commits suicide. His name was John, and in the process of mourning John’s death they realize that life isn’t always as it seems and that everyone has secrets. .You get to know all the characters really well and you follow them in their coping process as they try to move forwards and truly live their lives the best they can. This show contains heavy topics such as suicide, struggles with mental health, romantic affairs, and the emotional affects of having cancer. 

The cover and cast of “A Million Little Things”

While it sounds like a Debby downer, it truly is uplifting and inspiring. It will pull on your heart-strings, and it has a well developed plot that really does make you change how you look at the world. If you like more serious shows, and you like a little drama, this show is perfect for you! 

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Hopefully by now you can tell that these shows don’t get all the hype and love that they clearly deserve. I know how hard it can be to find a new show to watch, which is why you should choose your next show from this list! If you have seen any of these shows or start watching them please let me know what you think. Also if you have any recommendations for new shows to watch please let me know because I need some more to add to my list! 

Parks and Recreation, Season 4, Episode 4, Minute 5:33

At this moment, iconic and unforgettable words were spoken. Just three simple words. Yet, while only a few words, they are the essence of my entirely new mindset.

The iconic line, straight from Tom Haverford himself.

Treat Yo Self.

That’s right, you heard me. If you’ve ever seen this show, you know which episode I’m talking about. Two-coworkers, Tom and Donna, celebrate their best day of the year, which is all about self care. They spend the entire day getting their nails done, shopping, eating, getting massages, and being completely vocal about it to all their friends.

I absolutely love this show, and I would never intentionally criticize two of my favorite all time characters unless absolutely necessary. And unfortunately in this case, it’s necessary.

Just like in this show, many people think that they can just cram all their self-care into one day and be perfectly fine. And while this may be more convenient, it’s not very effective. Many people either fail to see why this isn’t the right mindset or they just ignore the idea of it all together.

The reality is that our mental health is something we always need to be in tune with. With our busy lives, it’s very easy to get overwhelmed from all the stress we endue on a daily basis. Without taking time for ourselves to relax and just breath, we can start sinking deep down into a hole of despair where we feel consistently hopeless, stressed, and depressed.

A few years ago, I was struggling with these negative emotions because I was completely overworking myself without any breaks. It made me have no energy, I struggled to fall asleep at night, and I even lost my appetite at times. It wasn’t until I started making some simple changes in my own life, that I started to achieve that healthy balance that I was looking for.

Now I promise you, self-care doesn’t have to be as complex and time-consuming as it may seem coming from influencers or celebrities. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to go to the gym for 2 hours every day, have salad for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and drink 100 ounces of water by noon in order to say you practice self care.

Don’t believe me? Let me show you. Here are my top five self-care suggestions for de-stressing that have been very effective in my own life.

1.Do Nothing

I know, I know maybe even reading those two words makes you antsy. We’re always doing something, whether it’s doing homework, checking emails, or scrolling through social media. But I want to challenge you to do something that has no real thought at all. Put your work and your phone down, and watch an episode of TV, pet your dog, or color. It doesn’t have to be for very long, even fifteen minutes would be beneficial. By giving yourself a mental break, you’re allowing your body and brain to destress and reset, and this period of relaxation— even if relatively short— is very effective in lowering your body’s stress both mentally and physically.

This is my personal favorite order from Starbucks, that I get when I’m particularly stressed. It’s a venti strawberry refresher with lemonade and light ice. 11/10 would recommend

2. Buy yourself that Starbucks drink or eat that ice cream for dessert

If you’re anything like me, you’ve got a huge sweet tooth and absolutely love a good meal. Even something as simple as a strawberry refresher from Starbucks or one of Deeta’s donuts is something that can add a little something special to your day and make it a little bit more bearable. While it isn’t always healthy to eat food based off of your emotions, a few treats here and there is harmless. And, it’s a great way to start your morning off on the right note— refreshed and energized.

3. Give yourself a day off

Now look, I know it isn’t always realistic to take an entire day off. But, we also don’t need to be working 12 hours a day every day. Maybe choose one day a week or every two weeks to only do an hour of your homework. For the rest of your night, fill the time with things you actually want to do. You could go to a yoga class, watch tiktoks in bed for three hours straight, or go outside and play with your dog. What you do doesn’t matter, as long as it’s something that you’re passionate about and that makes you happy. The one thing I will say is don’t take naps. Please don’t kill me and wait to here me out. Naps are the worst. If you’re tired then just go to bed early; there is no shame in an 8 o’clock bedtime! Getting that extra sleep will allow your body to restore itself and you will feel energized in the morning (without the grogginess that comes from napping).

4. Have A Nighttime Routine

Speaking of sleep, it is very important to have a nighttime routine before you go to bed each night. For me, this is taking off my makeup and going through my skin care routine. This can look different for everybody. Some people like to shower, read a book, or even listen to music. Whatever it is, keep it consistent. By doing the same actions over and over again before you go to bed, you’re subconsciously training your brain to start winding down. By doing this, you will find that you spend less time tossing and turning in bed and more time getting those necessary zzz’s.

5. Go exercise

As someone who can be very lazy at times, I sometimes struggle with this one. But the reality is that exercising and working out is very effective at relieving stress. Whether it’s playing a sport, lifting weights, or taking your dog for a walk, try and find a short amount of time to do some physical activity. It doesn’t have to be anything overly time consuming or strenuous. Just the actions itself releases the chemical dopamine, which helps you feel happier and more relaxed. So get off the couch and get moving! It may be hard to do at first, but I promise afterwards you will feel so much better.

All of these tips have worked for me, and I hope that you can find them useful in your own life. Please let me know if you do find these helpful and let me know what you do in order to relax and de-stress. Because I certainly am in no shortage of stress, and could always use new suggestions 🙂

I felt my stomach churn and bile rise up my throat as I looked at the disgusting scene in front of me. C’mon Emily, you know what you have to do, I thought to myself. But with shaking hands, I knew no amount of mental preparation would ever prepare me to finish the deal.

A visual representation of how I feel when I see salad

I threw my fork down in pure disgust and sat up from my chair “That’s it, I refuse to eat it!”

Yes, I am talking about eating salad. And no, I’m not kidding.

For most kids, they grow out of their sweet tooth and fear of eating fruits and vegetables before middle school. For me, this day never came. I genuinely can’t even look at salad without being physically repulsed. I mean seriously, how do people just eat leaves?

My diet was simple: processed food, processed food, and more processed food! Throw in some pasta and ice cream and that sums up what I ate for the last seventeen years of my life.

This was all until I went on a service trip to Guatemala, where I had to eat healthy for two weeks because we had no access to processed food. This was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life. While I was constantly day-dreaming about the pint of Ben and Jerry’s Tonight Dough that was waiting for me in my freezer at home, I couldn’t help but notice how much better I felt. Without all the grease and empty calories I was used to getting, I felt less weighed down and I had more consistent energy throughout the day.

It was after I came back, that I became determined to continue eating healthy and for the most part, it has been pretty successful with a few bumps here and there. Here are my three tips regarding healthier eating, that were crucial in helping me change my habits.

1. Do it for the right reasons

For many people, they think that the only reason to eat healthy is to try and lose weight. This is NOT true. While maintaining a healthy weight is beneficial for your health overall, it is not the only reason to try and eat healthier. It no way, shape, or form should cleaner eating be used to try and become skinny to mold into societal beauty standards because that is where you create an unhealthy relationship with food. Remember that food is just fuel, and calories are just energy. Ultimately, we want to fuel our body with energy that has strong nutrients so that we can physically feel better on a daily basis.

Eating healthy has so many positive side effects, and if you’re doing it for the right reasons it will make you feel better both inside and out.

2.Make small changes at a time

One of my biggest mistakes in the past, is that I would try and change my entire diet at once. That quickly made me lose motivation, as I would give into my cravings within a few days and then I would feel hopeless again. Start by implementing one new change a week from cutting out foods with processed foods to only drinking water as a beverage to incorporating one more fruit a day during your lunch. By breaking the process down into baby steps, you’re less likely to feel overwhelmed and the change will be more gradual which will make the changes your implementing more sustainable.

3.Remember life is all about balance

This last tip is so crucial. We’ve all had that moment where we’ve eaten a little bit too much cake or pigged out over junk food for a few days in a row and have felt guilty afterwards. Don’t feel guilty! Life is about enjoying the finer things in life and doing the things that make you happy, and sometimes that involves eating some chocolate. As you’re making the change to start eating healthier, realize that your lifestyle isn’t just going to magically change over night- which is perfectly okay. As long as you find that balance between treating yourself and eating healthy, you will still be greatly benefiting your health.

Now I’m going to get off my soapbox and remind you that I’m no “health queen” or even someone who is a healthy person by many standards. I still scrunch my nose in disgust when I see anyone eating salad and I struggle to eat my vegetables every day. But I know that it’s important to remember that change doesn’t happen overnight– it takes time.

Remember that forward is forward, no matter how slowly you’re chugging along. Progress is impossible without the will to change, and all that matters is that the change happens, regardless of how long it takes.

If you decide to make that change, I hope my advice helps you on what can be such a difficult process. Please comment and let me know if you think my tips are useful or let me know any other tips that you have!

I’m not going to lie, I’m not a huge movie person. When I go to a movie theater, I’m that person who makes comments to the person next to them the entire time because they can’t manage to sit still for an hour and a half. A lot of movies just take too long to build up and my attention span doesn’t last that long.

But, I absolutely love to watch TV.  It’s mindless, refreshing, and most importantly relaxing. One of my favorite feelings in the world is when I can come home after a long day at school and forget about my worries for a little bit. Because I am so picky about what I watch, I believe that I have very good taste. A few of my favorites are Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries, Parks and Recreation, The Originals, Glee, The Office, Bones, Pretty Little Liars, Shark Tank, Dynasty, and Revenge. If you don’t like my list, I’m sorry. We can’t all have good taste I guess. 

If you do like my list, and you love watching funny and dramatic shows on TV, then have I got a treat for you. If there’s one thing I’m picky about, it’s my movies. I only appreciate movies that have stellar plots and that are beautifully crafted. Some of my absolute favorite movies are the spin-off Cinderella movies. I decided to rank my top 5 and evaluate them for you guys, so you can save your time and only watch the best of the best. 

Official Cover for A Cinderella Story if the Shoe Fits

Here are the top 5. 

5) A Cinderella Story If the Shoe Fits 

If I’m being honest when I was first making this list, I forgot that this movie even existed. Easy to say I’m not a huge fun. It’s really recent as it came out in 2016. It kind of gives me, recent Disney

channel movie vibes. The acting isn’t amazing and the movie seems almost too exaggerated and far-fetched. This definitely isn’t a must see, but if you’re trying to watch multiple movies and build up to the best spin-off Cinderella movie, then this is a great place to start. 

Official Cover of A Cinderella Story Once Upon a Song

4) A Cinderella Story Once Upon a Song 

As someone who has been watching Pretty Little Liars from the beginning, Lucy Hale is one of my favorite actresses. Her acting, dancing, and singing all met my expectations in this movie. It’s funny at parts and definitely a little cheesy. If you like rom-coms and you don’t mind cliches, this is definitely a must watch. 

3) A Cinderella Story 

Two main Characters in A Cinderella Story, Sam and Austin

It was very hard to choose between my second and third ranking here, because I love these movies so much. One of my favorite things about this movie is how realistic it is, the main character Sam really is just an average girl and there’s no over the top dancing and singing. One thing that sets it apart from #4, is how funny it is. You will definitely be laughing the entire time and you’ll fall in love with the love story. 

One of the MANY iconic dance scenes in Another Cinderella Story

2) Another Cinderella Story 

I have always loved and will continue to love Selena Gomez. Her acting, singing, and dancing in this movie truly set it apart from others. This movie was an iconic part of my childhood. Not only will you get to stare at actor Drew Seeley known as Joey Parker for the entire movie (who was one of my childhood celebrity crushes), but you get to witness amazing dance choreography and iconic dance battles. You can’t not smile and laugh while watching this movie. Even if you aren’t usually a fan of romance movies, you will love this one. It’s impossible not to. 

1) Ever After

The official cover of Ever After

When I tell a lot of people that this is my number one, they’re surprised and many times people have never seen it. This movie is truly incredible and is in my top five favorite movies ever. Set in the medieval times, it’s realistic, engaging, and completely unique compared to all the movies before. It’s incredibly well written and filmed. The characters are witty, the plot is thrilling, and you become so emotionally attached and invested into the characters. 

This is absolutely a must watch for everyone!! It doesn’t matter if you like action, horror, comedies, or romance movies. If you have a heart, you will love this movie. 

—

We’ve all experienced that moment when you’re trying to find a movie to watch and it ends up taking an hour just to pick a movie that everyone can agree on, and everyone ends up settling for a mediocre movie so you can just watching something. If you choose from these five movies, you will avoid this because you really can’t go wrong with any of them! Especially if you’re a Cinderella Spin-off Virgin, make sure you pick one of these movies from above on your next movie night. You need to watch these ASAP, I promise you won’t regret it. 

Attention: National Deaf Dog Week is officially over! Yes you heard that right, and yes that is a real national week.

Who the heck comes up with these things? I don’t know, but all my sympathy goes out to those poor puppers.

The Official theme of the National Mental Health Awareness Week during the first week of October.

So I know you’re wondering now, what’s the theme for this week? I’m glad you asked! This week it’s National Mental Health Week. A more serious theme for the week, but one that is undeniably important.

Sometimes talking about this topic can make people uncomfortable, but it is a conversation that needs to happen. There’s a stigma surrounding mental illness in our society that we need to break away from. We need to take that stigma, throw it away, and turn in the opposite direction.

We have already made a lot of progress in diagnosing and understanding it more, but we still have a lot farther to go. I think the biggest roadblock for people is that it’s not like a physical condition. If you break your leg, you go to the doctor and get the surgery done. If you have a headache, you take some Aleve.

The reality is there’s no handbook or guide for dummies to tell us how to recognize or deal with mental illnesses.

In my opinion, the way to break down this barrier is to gain different perspectives and outlooks on it. For me, one of the best ways to do this is through reading. Reading is able to transport us into another world and show us life through a different pair of eyes.

So that’s exactly what I did this past week, I picked up a short story on mental illness in order to expand my horizons on the topic. And boy am I glad I did.

The official logo of the Mental Health Foundation, which was founded 70 years ago. It wasn’t even created until 17 years after Silent Snow, Secret Snow was published.

Reading Silent Snow, Secret Snow by Conrad Aiken gives the reader the different perspective they’re looking for. What first intrigued me about this piece was that it was written in the 1930s. During this time, more common mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety were rarely even acknowledged. I was excited to read this short-story because it was ahead of its time in terms of describing more of a “taboo” topic.

No doubt about it, Aiken’s is a great writer who has written countless successful poems, short-stories, and novels. However, what stands out most to me about him is his childhood. When he was young, he dealt with severe emotional trauma after discovering his parents corpses after his father killed his mother and then committed suicide. It’s clear that this life-altering event fueled his drive to write this story and his openness towards this dark place he was in paid off in creating this powerful, thought-provoking piece.

The story itself is about a young boy who feels like he is living a double life between hiding what he really feels and trying to appear happy to the outside world. It describes his increasing emotional detachment from the real world, as he uses fantasy to try and ignore processing his confusing emotions. While he knows that he should speak up about how he’s feeling, he feels as if there’s an invisible force telling him to stay quiet and keep suffering. Overall, it illustrates the effect the depression is having on the young boy, as well as the unintended consequences that it causes for his family as a whole.

It’s easy to read, but is still written elegantly. It’s poetic in a sad, twisted way. It provides descriptive imagery and symbolism that shows the complexity behind having a mental illness. It takes that gray area in our feelings that’s hard to properly express in words–sometimes even to ourselves–and clearly amplifies the meaning behind it.

With no doubt in my mind, I would rate this a 5/5 stars. It is a MUST read. Its message is timeless. The insider’s perspective it gives the reader on the many layers of mental illness is still just as relevant, even though it’s almost 100 years later.

Our mental health is constantly changing and will continue to do so for the rest of our lives. We all know somebody who is struggling with a mental illness, whether it’s ourselves or a loved one. Genuinely understanding the issue at hand makes a big difference in supporting one another and seeking the proper help when we need it. Any light shed on the complexity of mental health, no matter how big or small, is invaluable.

So do yourself or a loved one a favor, and pick this one up. You won’t regret it.