currently

I love these types of blog posts. They are easy to write and just plain fun because you get to share all those little details about yourself that probably no one cares about but you want to do it anyway. That's what blogging is all about, right? Talking about things that people really love or talking about things that are totally pointless and that only you care about. This is one of those posts.

So I'm currently...

Listening // Fleetwood Mac's Rumours and ABBA's Gold. For Valentine's day Tyler got me a record player and the vinyls of both. He did a marvelous job. I'm obsessed.

Reading // Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari. It's taking me awhile but it's so interesting and not what I expected. Oh, and it's funny. I love funny books written by funny people.

Working // at Wallaroo Media. Full time. It's so different and I can't believe I've started this phase of my life. However, I enjoy it despite the feelings of stress and self-doubt I feel on a day to day basis. Any tips on how to be a mentally healthier human are always appreciated on this part of the internet.

Watching // West Wing and The Bachelor. West Wing is strictly for dinner time because it's easy to watch and it makes me feel smart. The Bachelor for when I want to be like every other girl in America and watch women who are so much more capable of doing other things make fools of themselves on national television. But I shouldn't judge because they are all there for the right reasons.

Wearing // Brown lipstick straight from the '90s. Black boots. High-waisted jeans. Oversized tunic shirt that looks more expensive that it really was.

Craving // Pizza. But when am I not craving pizza? But for real. For a long time, I didn't crave chocolate in fact thinking about eating it made me sick, but today we got chocolate from my mother-in-law in the mail and I realized how long it had been. I almost ate the whole bar.

Wanting // This sweater. This shirt. These boots. This plant. This planter. This print. This vinyl.

Feeling //  Ready for a long weekend. Aren't long weekends just a blessing sent from the Lord above?

Doing // Not necessarily doing these things but I want to. I want to grow my own plants and learn to cross stitch. I said I would in 2016 and I haven't yet.

Enough

Me in an absolutely posed selfie that I legitmately thought would be something an insta-famous person would do. Sincerely was about to post this, until I realized how stupid I looked and how dumb my thought process for the whole thing actually was. This now lives on this blog and the selfies folder on my phone. May we never speak of it again.

Our home teachers invited us to dinner the other night, and I really like my home teachers, so of course I accepted the invitation with grace and hustled on over to their place to stuff my face with the most delicious baked and breaded pork chops with mashed potatoes and caesar salad on the side. During dinner, we started having a conversation about the pressures of social gatherings and social things in general. And with all conversations about social things, I feel like it all goes back to social media. So we talked about how much all of us hate social media. I work in social media, friends, I am social media. Well my job is social media anyway, but not the kind where you share those stupid and really fake articles or those "You won't believe what happened after this girl started singing" videos or even those "please feel sorry for me" or " my hubby/wifey is the sweetest most perfect person in the entire world" posts. We do the business and analytical side, and maybe every once in a while we get to create something totally cool and send it out for the world to see. I mean, we do share cool articles, and create awesome content so I should give myself some credit here.  Nevertheless, social media is more foe than friend to me sometimes.

Now, we all came to the conclusion that social media really is what you make it. I mean, you technically choose to feel bad when you see someone with their completely bleach white photos with perfect potted plants, perfect hair, teeth, husband, food and children that haven't even been born yet, but you just know they are going to be perfect because their instagram theme is on-effing-point. Yeah, you choose to feel bad about that stuff, but let's hashtag REAL talk for a second here.

We. Have. All. Felt. Bad. Or. Inadequate. Looking. At. Someone's. Social Media. Feed. (Periods added for emphasis and attention and annoyance.) We all have. And if you deny it, I promise you from the bottom of my cold, black heart that you are lying. I know you are. Because as much as we love social media and we love keeping in touch with those high school friends that we never talk to ever, we also secretly/not so secretly hate it. And might I add that we all secretly want a million likes and a million comments saying, "goals." So when we don't get them and we see all those insta-famous moms and singles on mountains and wavy-haired girls with those comments and likes, we all feel bad and feel a little bit of bitterness. Even if social media is what you make it, we all still feel bad.

My home teacher's wife is absolutely beautiful. She's totally adorable. She's one of those girls who just looks the best pregnant (she is pregnant) and she has pretty manicured nails and pretty hair and the best personality. And I want to be her friend and tell her funny jokes because she is one of those people that laughs at all jokes even if they are not funny because she wants you to know that you are funny. She really is the nicest human and it seems like she has nothing to feel self-conscious about, but she said to me during that dinner that every time she looks at pinterest or instagram she feels really overwhelmed. She feels like she doesn't and will probably never ever measure up. She gets overwhelmed because she feels like she needs to have the perfect house (with that on-point gallery wall), the perfect closet (with those valentino rockstuds), the perfect husband (with that man bun) and the perfect everything else (you know, kids dressed in outrageously overpriced clothing from companies with names like Finn&Olive, for example). And I am sad to say that I couldn't say that I didn't know how she felt. Oh how I wish we could all say that we didn't feel that way. She and I don't feel that way all the time. I mean, that would get really exhausting, but more than once a week we feel that way.

We feel like we don't measure up and we never will. But I know that's not true. And you should know that too. It's not true.

We can't stop those insta-famous or blog famous people from posting or being who they are. I'm sure a lot of them are great people and I'm sure they have a lot of crap that goes down in their lives. They just have extra validation from the internet. We don't need that validation. We really don't. And they don't need it either. (Don't get me wrong, those people we see all the time all over the internet aren't bad people, I promise I don't think they are bad people. I know a few positively lovely and wonderful internet famous girls that I am glad to call my friends. Please don't think I hate them. I don't.)

So we all came to a conclusion that night. We first decided that we are enough. We are more than our social media accounts.

I told her that she is beautiful and wonderful and enough. She doesn't need to be anything more for the internet. And we exchanged words of encouragement, but then she said that she wished there were people on the internet that were "real." Real is so relative sometimes. Like what defines real? I could say I'm real, but I also sometimes whiten my instagram photos and I sometimes take 50 selfies to get the right one and I even sometimes stage my photos and think long and hard about captions. DON'T TELL ME YOU'VE NEVER DONE THAT!

But I get what she's saying. We need people who are willing to admit that they feel the way I just described above some days more than others. We need people who are size 10's and 12's and above and still try to work out because they want to be healthy not necessarily because they NEED to lose weight. We need girls who are size 00 through 9 to talk about about how no one thinks their bodies are "real or normal" when they are. We need to start a healthy discussion about women building each other up. We need people who are completely open and unapologetic (but not Donald Trump unapologetic, in fact stay away you all trumpians). We need people who sometimes have a bad day and want to write about it. We need all kinds of people. We even need the insta/internet/blog-famous ones. We need each other.

And most importantly we need to remember that despite what is trending, or what is popular. or what boots you SHOULD be wearing from H&M because they are #goals...despite ALL of that...

We are enough.

We are.

So maybe I'll try to be one of those "real" people. That's what this blog was intended for anyway. Let's see how we do.

And even if I fail, I am enough. And so are you.

Wishlist Wednesday // Staples

Whoooa there, a wishlist wednesday? I haven't done one of these in forever, but I thought I'd grace you with a classic post about classic pieces (or pieces that I think are classic). Basically I'm showing you some key pieces that I have in my closet that I never want to part from. Lez do dis.

1 // The Black Skinny Jean 

Oh you guys, I wish I could say mine weren't from J.Crew but they are. Mine have two rips in the knee and they are perfect in every way. They are mid rise, perfectly skinny and perfectly cropped. Ooo I love them. I did not buy them at $115 though, I got really lucky and got my pair during an end of season sale online. They were an extra 50% off, so keep an eye out, okay? They are the best and they go with just about everything. 

Also, any black skinny jean will do. American Eagle, Gap and even Levis have some great quality pieces. OH MY GOSH. I forgot about Old Navy. That place has bomb skinny jeans. The Rockstar Skinny Jeans are my favorite, and they are a decent price and they are always on some sort of sale. Really though, since I'm not the biggest leggings person, I love these. I also have a pocketless pair with a side zipper that I use that are jeggings, so there's an option as well. 

P.S. I honestly don't wear these a lot in the summer; I opt for a blue wash. Heck, I opt for shorts and dresses half the time. This post isn't supposed to be about summer staples, but I feel it's going that way. 

2 // A Shift Dress 

Whether it's floral, striped, chambray, pink, black, blue, white, orange, t-shirt material, poplin, or cotton, shift dresses are the most comfortable pieces for summer. I love this dress because of the summery print, but I also have so many others in plain grey, stripes or checker. You can throw them on, and if you are someone like me who has to worry about thighs getting sweaty and rubbing together, throw on some cute lace shorts...or garments, you know if you're Mormon. I also am a big fan of fit and flare dresses from Gap, H&M and Old Navy, but I feel like the shift is a little bit more laid-back and I'm all about laid-back. 

3 // A Midi Skirt 

Yours does not need to be black. My mom has the striped version and I saw someone with a cobalt blue version the other day. I love this thing. I wore it to my interview with Anthropologie with some booties and a structured eyelet blouse and it was great. It's airy, but sophisticated. You can also dress it down with some cook slip-ons or even an awesome band t-shirt. You heard it from me first. The midi length is totally cool now and it's a very versatile piece. 

4 // A Denim/Chambray Button-up 

I'm a loser when it comes to white button up shirts. They get so dirty when I wear them. I can wear every other white t-shirt or something, but when it comes to white button-ups I'm the number one winner when it comes to getting that stain. So I go for the chambray/tencel look because it's lightweight, breezy, and it gives you that street style look that you're (I mean I'm) looking for. 

Remember when the western denim shirt made a come back and it worked? Yes. I do. Praise. 

I strongly encourage you to try the half-tuck with this baby for maximum style effect. 

5 // A White Shirt Too Pretty to Get Dirty

In store, this baby is only $9.00 right now, I have a short-sleeve version of this and it's so dreamy. It looks great with just about everything. It's white. It's cotton. It's whimsical. It's girly. It's cool. Pop on some light wash denim or any denim for that matter and some gold jewelry then call it a day. 

6 // A Striped Top for all your Striped Top Needs

I don't have this one exactly, in fact, I have yet to find the perfect striped top. My latest one shrank so I'm keeping my eyes open. But this one is #goals. Thanks for getting me Madewell. Thanks for it all. 

7 // The Grey Pullover for Those Times in the Movie Theater When the AC is Just Too Chilly 

So mine is from Madewell and it's a complete different style. Again, a really good sale made we do it (harhar). But there is always a grey pullover somewhere in the fashion universe so don't get too disappointed. 

8 // Flats for When You Feel Fancy 

Holy goodness gracious, I love these flats. I have wide feet so D'Orsay flats are tough for me, but these are like butter. I love a good flat that makes you feel fancy. 

9 // Vans for Every Occasion

Because I have the classic black and white checkered pair and I can't get enough of them. I will wear them with everything (much to my mother's dismay). They are just that good. Sure you might think they look like nurse shoes, but I don't mind one bit. 

(Anyone else notice how my titles turned from practical to overdone in four five seconds? Me too.) 

EH...Stay Gold. 

Inspired // It's a shot in the dark but I'll make it

Anyone else obsessed with "Rather Be" by Clean Bandit like I am?

Update: I have a job interview tomorrow. It's at a clothing store. Wish me luck!

Here are some things that inspire me...

1 // Brows are such a personal thing. Recently I was griping about my eyebrows while filling them in. I kept thinking to myself that I had to get them waxed or do something with them, and then I realized there was a reason why I hadn't already done that. It's because I don't want to. I like my eyebrows the crazy way they are. Lots of fluffs and some rouge ones here and there, but so what! 

2 // Two sizes too big, please!

3 // Ah the floral and feminine dress...I'm a sucker for these. 

4 // Like I said, two sizes too big, please!

5 // Although it's not very practical or comfortable to have glitter thrown in your face, it's a nice touch if you want to feel extra fancy with your glitter clutch. 

6 // Because I desperately want an eyelash boob shirt. 

P.S. I don't own all of these photos. Found most of them on my Pinterest.

Friday Favorites // Lots of Lovin' + Here's to the Weekend!

// 

1 // I would be totally and completely ungrateful if I didn't say the biggest, gushiest and heart-juiciest thank you to the best favorites this week...YOU GUYS! My friends! Thank you for loving me even when I'm down. Thank you for the encouraging texts and messages and comments. My heart is full! I have that "my heart is going to burst out of my chest and melt into a puddle of love juice on the floor" feeling. God gives us friends because of moments like these. Just know, you are never alone. I know that. I get reminded of that every day. There is someone there who may not be going through EXACTLY what you're going through, but they are willing to feel for you and feel with you. Isn't that something? Feeling with something. That's empathy, right there. So thank you, friends. I love you. I really do. Thank you for feeling with me. 

2 // One of my freshman roommates, Meghan, is getting married and the other day she asked for some planning advice from me and my two other roommates. I got all the wedding feels. Here are 12 unforgettable wedding moments. 

3 // Speaking of Cup of Jo, have you seen the new website design? Can I please write for this website? That would make my life. 

4 // And one more from this beautiful corner of the internet, a West Village Apartment Tour that will make you swoon and wish you had all the dollars to have an apartment so beautiful. 

5 // The prettiest iPhone 6/6+ cases. I'll take the sparklerose one, please! No but really, can't you see those gems looking great on a block of gold?  

6 // Because of recent events, my fashion studying has gone through a little desert-y moment. I wasn't able to talk about the Met Gala red carpet or the rest of NYFW (it's all right though, because it happens every single year). But I just wanted to give a shout out to my girl, Anna. Though poppies were an odd choice, her dress was a work of art and I dig stuff like that. Also, Fan Bingbing. That. is. all. 

7 // The summer shoe. 

8 // More wedding inspo: for the donut lovers!  (Sorry, Karlee) 

9 // Can we "taco" bout this? Please? 

10 // I call this "Throw it on and go" #1. 

11 // "Throw it on and go" #2. 

12 // A slim twist to an old classic. 

13 // Ok and I hate to shamelessly plug, but hey, why not? Check out my tumblr!  You can find me there drooling over food, fashion and nerdy things. Ya dig? 

Have the happiest weekend friends and, dare I say it, stay gold. 

Friday Favorites // T-Shirts

Hey friends, I have found the drive to keep going. So what if I write about silly stuff like t-shirts? Who really cares? I sure don't.

So let's talk about t-shirts. I own waaaay too many of them. You own waaaay too many of them. Oprah probably doesn't own waaaay too many of them, but she probably would if she could. 

Okay and maybe t-shirts aren't the most fashionable thing, but if I've learned one thing about fashion, it's that it's all individual, unless you are applying for a position at Vogue, then you better get your shiz together and find a friend who can get you Chanel samples pieces STAT. 

Anyway, I am all about the t-shirt. I've said it once, and I'll say it again...I am a t-shirt and jeans girl. Throw in an oversized bag for a dress and call me fantastic. Take that, Anna! Okay, just kidding Anna...I love you. 

So here is a round up of some of my favorite t-shirts to sport when the whether gets warm. I'll try to find all the exact shirts from my closet, but we're just going to do the best that we can. Ya dig? Ya dig. 

And one more thing...why don't I wear more color? I need to get my act together. 

1 // So I bought this from J.Crew on a mega-sale, for like $14. Well the sleeves were massive and so I chopped them. Now it's the best short-sleeve top I have. The double-stripe gets me every time. Now if I could just find shorts that are gold like those pants. 

2 & 3 // The best shirts I have ever spent money on. So they don't look like much and everyone thinks they are too boxy, but they are Gap's best made items, ever, in my very humble opinion. You could honestly wear these reversed, roll up the sleeves, half tuck them, dress up, dress down...I'm currently craving a striped midi skirt to wear them with. The world in your oyster with these babies on. Plus, comfort. They are straight up the most comfortable things. I almost wore the grey one for 3 days straight. Oh wait, I didn't almost, I did. 

4 // I think I'm sharing this dress mostly because of the way the girl is standing in it. What is with "models" and all instagram fashion girls standing like this? I put quotations around models, because I don't mean Gigi Hadid models, I mean instagram models or girls from Utah that think they are really stylish. Okay am I being too mean? Probably. Okay, anyway, this dress it's light, it's comfortable and even though it's 3/4 sleeve you can still wear it because it is just that light and airy. The pocket is really cool too. I love a good chest pocket. 

I love all t-shirt dresses for this time of year. Target comes out with the best ones. So go look. Size up for a Pinterest, street style, parisian-chic look. And don't brush your hair for good measure. ;) 

5 // THIS DRESS. THE HEAVENS OPENED AND THE HALLELUJAH CHORUS SANG AND IT'S ANOTHER PIECE THAT I HAVE TO STOP MYSELF FROM WEARING FOR A WHOLE ENTIRE WEEK. 

All dramatics aside, I love this thing. I do, I do, I do. In fact, I should start a list of pieces that I will wear for the rest of my life. Or I should write a list in a notebook of things to never give away. 

6 // The A-Line top from H&M is a perfect staple for spring. It's swingy and it comes in different prints and colors. Unfortunately it shrinks horribly in the wash. My poor striped one is a few inches short now and I'm wondering if I should part with it. So hand-wash. Annoying, but just do it. Or buy a new one. It's $12.95 and I'm considering it. 

7 // The jersey tops that are $9.95 from H&M are another great piece. They also come in different colors and prints. They are also VERY comfortable. Like wearing a pajamas, but cool pajamas that you're not embarrassed to wear in public. They are extremely flattering too. I love flattering tops. 

8 // A t-shirt with varsity stripes. I have this one in all three colors, but there are better quality ones out there for cheap. These ones are seeing their last day, but I still like them. They are easy to throw on and I love wearing them with necklaces. Believe it or not, Forever 21 one versions of this shirt are WAY better for the price. These are particularly good with statement necklaces. So, you know? 

Alright, that's it! What are some of your warm-weather essentials? Let's talk. 

Have the best weekend!

Inspired // The Pretty Stuff

Since when was "pretty" not cool. It's okay to be pretty as long as you're not a pretty little fool. Be pretty. Be glamorous. Tough is cool and strong is cool, but pretty is cool too. Be pretty in all ways, but most of all be pretty on the inside. Let your insides glow with so much goodness that the glow comes through your eyes and your smile and your fingertips.

Now...Here are some things that I think are pretty...

1 // A pretty little blouse for breezy spring days.

2 // A street style look that makes you want the transition days of the seasons to last a little bit longer. I always have a hard time packing up my favorite sweaters at the end of the season. She's wearing Culottes by the way. *swoon*

3 // A graphic t-shirt and wind-tossed hair for most days, because most days are meant for ultimate comfort and cool moon t-shirts. 

4 // An exhilarating feeling of letting go.

5 // A haircut that works perfectly for you. 

6 // A quote that reminds you to see things with new eyes. 

Monday Musings // Meet My Specs and Why It's Okay to Take Selfies

Happy Easter! God is good and God is real and Jesus is my brother, people. I just wanted you to know that I know that. I have a very personal relationship with my Higher Beings. I have a personal relationship with the church I belong to. This past weekend was what we call "Conference Weekend" in the LDS faith. It's pretty cool. A lot of people get really, outwardly passionate about it, and that's totally cool. I'm a little bit more reserved. Not that I don't want to "Share Goodness", not that I don't want to "Defend My Faith"...I do, oh I do, but sometimes somethings just have to stay close to your heart.

My sister said something really wise this weekend, I asked her how she was doing with the church and all and she said, "You know what, Dani, some people have problems with the church, I could have problems with the church, but I don't. I choose to keep believing and I choose to believe what I believe not what anyone else believes."

She was right, my family could choose to be angry at people that have hurt us and things that are hard, but we choose to believe and we choose to be happy, because that's what God wants.

He is patient and he waits and he loves.

And that's all I'm going to share today.

Now meet my specs...

Meet my new face friends, these are the Warby Parker Kimball glasses in Marzipan Tortoise and let me tell you something...

I was at work the other day just doing what I do and a girl comes up to me IN FRONT OF LIKE 12 OTHER PEOPLE and asks me the following question.

"Do you like your new glasses?"

Well, yeah I do. (I said this in my head.) What kind of question is that?"

"Um...yes, yes I do. I wouldn't have picked them if I didn't like them, why?"

And she gets this squirmish look on her face, like those looks that are reserved for the mean girls in high school that think they are so much cooler than you because they wear clothes from "Buckle."

"Oh well, they're just really distracting. I mean, I can't look at your face."

And my heart dropped because as much as I was confident about my choice of glasses for MY face, because MY eyes need them...her words bit through me. Her words are the words that girls in this world are always hearing. They are words of theft. That girl was a thief. She was stealing all my confidence. She was stealing the one thing that took me forever to feel okay about. I've been wearing glasses my whole life. They are kind of the thing that defines me. They are a fashion accessory that I get to wear everyday. And yes, my new glasses are very different from my old ones, but there was no question as to which ones I was going to buy when I tried the Kimball's on. I told Tyler that I didn't care if people thought they were crazy, MY eyes, MY face, MY glasses, MY choice. But that girl had to say something.

I'm over it now, but I just want to say this to EVERYONE reading this...

DON'T BE A THIEF!

Don't steal confidence away from people by saying petty things. Don't say anything that in the slightest could chip away at someone. Genuinely compliment someone. Genuinely mean something good. If you don't like something because that something makes someone happy, keep your mouth shut. Please and thank you, God bless.

In other news, I like my new glasses. No, I LOVE my new glasses.

And now why it's okay to take selfies and pictures of your food.

Society tells you that selfies are stupid and that no one cares about what your food looks like. Sure, that may be true, but I agree to disagree with society most of the time.

I like selfies. As Ezra Koenig once said, Selfies are cool because you get to see what your friend looks like that day.

Be proud of your face! Not that conceited proud, but that hey I like my look today and I'm proud of myself today. This is me. There may be a filter and there may not be, but it's not your place to say that or not.

And your food, if you had this delicious food and you want someone to see. SHOW THEM! SHOW THEM! I love it when people show me good food because then I know where I can go to get it. Share, because FOOD IS GOOD!

I don't like wearing my hair back because I always believed that I had a fat face or that my chin was too big, but I took this on snapchat the other day and my hair was back and I really liked this picture.I looked at myself and I liked what I saw. Is that so bad? I'm not trying to say that my face is better than other faces, I'm just saying that I liked the way I look. I rarely do that! And...I'm probably rambling on about this, but I'm not ashamed to share this. People can think all they want, but remember that caring? Yeah throw it away. Also, RIP old glasses.

And here is the food that I was eating when I took that selfie.

It's from In-N-Out, thank you very much. Get in my belly. Aren't you always craving this shiz? Yeah. Me too.

Here's a half-eaten piece of pizza that kind of changed my life. It's from Pizzeria 7/12. Go, go, go.

And then this. Stay happy and laugh a lot.

That's what life is all about. Stay happy. If you're having a sad day...that's okay. Cry and have a sad day and then try to be happy again and try to laugh again. Laughing is good. It's really good because chins double and eyes crinkle and teeth show and it's beautiful.

Now what was the point of this post?

Hmm...that's for you to decide.

Inspired // Spring Showers

It's raining right now. And I love it. Forgive me for the lack of links. I do not own any of these images. I found them all on Pinterest. 

1 // This time of year has always brought me anxiety and I would be lying if I said that hasn't changed. But amidst the anxiety and uneasiness about the future, I know that there are beautiful things on the horizon. I know that things are going to work out for me. Don't stop believing in yourself, because so many beautiful things are on the horizon.

2 // Are you a wildflower? Yes! I like to think I am. If I could be any flower, it would be a wild one.

3 // Don't you just want to cozy up with a book from those shelves on a rainy day.

4 // This is actually a men's outfit, but I don't really care about that. You knew that already.

5 // A simple street style look for days like today. All you need is an umbrella and you're solid.

6 // Such a good outfit. I'll put this one in the books.

7 // I have a wall in my apartment that this would look great on.

8 // A fishtail braid and the messiest thrown together bun! Dreamy!

9 // This one time at the a white elephant, I chose a succulent and it got stolen from me. I wish I still had it. Or any cactus or any green plant for that matter.

10 // I LOVE styling without a lot of jewelry. I am part of the nothing but precious metals club so accessorizing can be hard (and painful). So thank you ASOS for styling your models so simply it's so lovely.

11 // Another street style look. I love the boxiness and the stripes and the matching pieces. And I love all of it.

12 // For casual days because they are coming. Summer is coming.