A girl can dream!

Summer dreaming as we speak...

Eclectic. Chic. Flawless.

I want to serve this at a dessert party.

Yes, please. 

Love this and love that Zara's spring line also utilizes these colors.

glamgasm.

drool with me...

Welcome to my humble abode!!

Everyone already knows I love her.

Still love her.

MKA=BFF4L

Classic and I love it. Not trying too hard and still lookin' bangin'.

Little sex-pot man.

My dream mans' uniform. I know I posted my uniform in a previous post...

I plan on it.

I have no rights to these pictures, but I thoroughly have enjoyed them and would feel selfish if I didn't share them with my loved ones. So enjoy, babes!

“The universe doesn’t care if you’re scared. I know this is not news, but you need to hear this. I’m scared, you’re scared, and we’re all scared. The difference is whether you’re going to keep moving. I really hope you will.” ~Merlin Mann

Stick to what you know...

There are few things in life that will never fail you and often times I've found that sometimes we have to learn the hard way what we can and can't rely on. The conclusion I've come to is this: When in doubt, stick to what you know to avoid turbulence in your otherwise cool, calm, and collected life. Now, if your life is already turbulent then I guess you have nothing to lose... but for those of us who seek control and comfort in life, we have to stick to what we know to remain sane. There are a few things that I know will undoubtedly fail me at one point and probably another; those things include (but are certainly not limited to) my car, my skinny jeans, my math skills, my judgment, my budget, my computer/flash drive, etc. Luckily, I can rely on a few things in life to fix my car, to disregard my skinny jeans, to compensate for my lack of math skills, to have mercy on my judgment errors... you get the picture.

I know I can rely on my family, my church, a generous handful of friends, and therapy. By therapy, I mean what you do to make you feel overwhelming happiness. My closet might tell you that I consider retail therapy to be an acceptable form of therapy... and that would be a perfectly valid conclusion! Another form of therapy for me is running... a habit that I have almost forgotten about since I've been able to hide my winter weight for way too long, but a habit that has recently blessed my life with a little bit more balance and a few more endorphins.

My goal right now is to stick to what I know. I know at this point what I want and what I don't want for myself and for my future and am challenging myself to keep those values in the forefront of my mind when making decisions.

Lo and behold, dammit.

I love my Mommy.

I don't even know where to begin! My mom is the best. She is the first one to take care of anyone. She doesn't have to know them, but she assumes the role of caretaker to anyone she comes in contact with and for that I love her. She truly taught me the art of caring and that to truly care means that you don't expect it in return. I can't tell you how many times I rolled my eyes at having to run soup and crackers to a stranger's door because my mom heard through a grapevine that they had the flu. Or when someone at church was struggling financially and my mom just so happened to clean out her closet that same week and drop the clothes off at their house because they "didn't fit her anymore" without so much as asking a question. I honestly can only hope to be half as selfless as she has shown me to be. I have learned through her example to make sure that the house is clean before bed, that when someone has been out of town we should have warm cookies waiting upon their arrival home, and when someone comes to visit we are to have a thoughtful gift on the guest bed to let them know we appreciate their company. Even more admirable, is that most of these things are second nature for her. It's not a burden at all, but just the way she is. Not to mention she does all this while looking fabulous! While our fashion senses don't always see eye-to-eye, I respect her for wearing what makes her feel good and for taking care of herself always. She's gorgeous and that fact lightens my fear of aging with the chance that along with many other traits I also might have inherited her graceful and inevitable pursuit towards old age. Basically, I love my mommy. And by posting this on my blog for everyone to see, I feel like I've made my point abundantly clear.

An oldie but a goodie of me and Mom!

Sorry for the wordiness but I had been out of town for the last week both in Frisco (home) and visiting some family in Arizona so I feel like I have so much to say! Much needed TLC was enjoyed and it's always great to catch up with long lost family! I have been so blessed to have so many influential mother figures in my life and this Mother's Day certainly reminded me of all of them. From literal 'aunts' to my substitute 'aunts' that I have no blood relation to, but have earned that title no less, I realize that I need to let these women know of their emanating beauty and genuine example in my life... even if Mother's Day was last week. Better late than never, right?

Ello Princess!

I swore I wouldn't catch Beiber fever, and I did. Now I've found myself drooling as I watch the Royal Wedding coverage and repeats. Since when am I on ANY bandwagon? As of late, I'm a molded follower of pop culture... it's true. From the Biebs to Her Majesty the Queen and to the bazaar antics of Charlie Sheen, I'm guilty of falling subject to the opinions of TMZ and E. Maybe I'll consider this a natural physical reaction to lose all the brain cells I may or may not have acquired this semester-homeostasis! That's it, my current trash TV binge is a subconscious, physiological attempt to balance the information in my brain.

While on the subject of Princess Kate... I have to gawk momentarily at how stunningly she presented herself as an addition to the Royal family. Also, the comparison of her dress to Grace Kelly's made me love her even more because I strongly believe we should all strive to be more like Grace Kelly. Gawk with me...

LOOK at her teeny waist. Please, just look.

Perfection. I love this. Not sure how much I would love to be Pippa though...

Sorry men, after today ALL girls/ladies/women/whathaveyou will be slightly jaded about not being a princess... maybe try to make them feel like one... just a thought.

Lo and behold, we are ALL princesses! :)

People are CRAZY.

The older I get, the truer this statement becomes. Be it ex lovers or new lovers or strangers at the grocery store, peoples' "isms" never cease to amaze me! We all know what makes us tick and as we get to know others their possibly crazy tendencies become normal to us, but as for the people we don't know... they're just crazy and need to keep their crazy to themselves as far as I'm concerned!! The market is surely not a place to open up your craziness via an escalating phone call with an apparent uninterested individual. I hardly want to hear the intimate details vexing you as I pick out my bananas... And as for exes... How come it takes them becoming an ex for us to realize just how crazy they are capable of being? Did the actual act of breaking up make them crazy, or were they always that way and we were blind to it because of our feelings for them? So for those of you who are in a relationship and can admit to the insanity of a person, I'd advise you to get out of the relationship asap and put bars on your windows... cause you don't know crazy yet!

Meanwhile, the sun is out today and despite the frigid, cold air I have cracked my window to let in the sun and pointed my space heater to my feet. Counterproductive? Maybe. I'm just being responsible in getting my daily dose of vitamin D!

I'm swooning over a newly discovered blog. coco+kelley. I love when I find blogs of people with great taste.

I'm keeping my head above water... Barely

Between moving and finals and friends and whatever is left of my social life, I'm drowning quickly in "coulda shoulda woulda's"... One. More. Week. I can do this! I am loving being back in a more social part of town! It's not quite as easy to hibernate and people might actually notice now if I disappear... haha I wish I had something more exciting to share, I'm just grateful to be living in the moment. I can't control the future and the past is set in stone so all I am focusing on being in the present and really soaking in life for all it has to offer.

I just started reading C.S Lewis' The Problem of Pain, and I love it. I highly suggest it. If for no other reason than the ability to relate to humanity on a deeper level, even if you aren't Christian. The logical way he approaches emotional subjects makes the concept that much easier to grasp. I say 'grasp' only because just understanding the concept is not enough, we can understand something and still struggle to apply it to our lives.

No pictures today... I haven't gotten a chance to cyberstalk anyone in this hectic time of my life... a crying shame if I ever knew one... ;)

Lo and behold, my head is still above water...

Moving again!

The good thing about moving... Fresh slate. My turn to take up something new in my new surroundings. I want to learn to cook deliciousness so I stop eating fast food like a fat American! A few of my ideas/cravings... I will succeed at this. Be my source of inspiration? Any of you? Side note: I NEVER thought I'd be moving to another place in Provo again... Lo and behold, right?

I never would have thought of this, but there are peaches in this beauty! nom nom.

Cute table cloth... but say hello to the cure for PMS...

Seriously? Cuteee little bunnies. 

This reminds me of the delicious berry coffee cake at starbucks!

Love love love asparagus. But it does remind me of the part in Elf when they propose the idea for the book where the asparagus is self conscious about his pee smelling...

Not hard to make by any means but THIS is tempting right now...

People Will Surprise You.

I'm not even one for surprises... but every once in a while it's nice to know that you aren't in control. I can't believe I just admitted that, but I mean it. People are, if nothing else, unpredictable. For better or worse you will realize that as monotonous as life gets, what with school and work and the facts of life, you can always count on people to rock your boat in still water. I'm pleasantly surprised with life right now and feel like I need to make sure that people know that despite my sometimes negative attitude. Sorry boutcha. Love yall.

Thought I needed to add this on here. It's a magnet. I understand if you feel like you should gift it to me, they come in 10 packs. :) I can always count on my mom to send it though in her classic survival packages she sends almost monthly. They typically include, but are not limited to, magnets like the one above but usually along the lines of me being high-maintenance, note pads of the same sort that might also be a magnet, socks with various cute little animals and bows, PEZ dispensers, and fast food gift cards. My mom rocks.

New dawn, New day... New clothes?

Yes, PLEASE! Mom, I hope you read this. On pretty spring days like today I am reminded that my wardrobe is way too consumed by sweaters/coats/boots/warm stuff. I need color and prints and dresses, oh my! Topshop is calling my name and I find it just rude to ignore her! I'm now accepting donations to my spring wardrobe fund. :)

2 years ago at about this time, Tayler and I became friends with a new group of boys... One of whom was her "school crush" that she would creep on every Tuesday/Thursday and call me while she walked by him so as to seem discreet... Now they are married and living happily ever after and I love it. I love them. I also love that I nearly failed all of my exams because of them (the boys) who had the most outlandish ideas in the middle of the night. So at this time of the year as I'm dying in the library, I remember that if I could pass my classes then, I can surely do it now. Those were good times to be had by all... A few moments to be remembered now as Josh got married 2 weeks ago and Darren gets married in 3 weeks... Only Clayt and I left from the crew. No comment. Enjoy some of mine and Taylers best of memories during this time...

Couldn't be happier for the two of them. But I still want to go shopping... :)

Snow Storm in April...!

Lo and Behold, we're in the midst of a snow storm! ahhhh! April's showers don't bring May's flowers in Utah. Here, the SNOW makes flowers GROW. I thought that one up on my own, pure genius. I must say though, I'm ready for the flowers to bloom and the birds to chirp and the sun to shine... come on mother nature!

On the upside, this dreary weather has put me in the mood to listen to Carla Bruni all day. You MUST investigate this lovely artist. She is French and her songs are in French and I don't even speak French but I loooove listening to her on days like this and pretending I am somewhere else in the world. If I can figure out how to put music on here I'll be sure to put one of her songs up.

Snow snow go away...!! Please?

I'm a grandma at heart.

It's a Friday and I'm a 22 year old -single- college student. I should have crazy plans with crazy friends to do crazy things that we will look back on and undoubtedly regret. Instead, I am looking forward to watching dateline and 20/20 and ordering take-out with two of my best friends... and I really am looking forward to it! Who does that?! Welp, we do apparently... Grannies for life.
I never would've imagined my life to be this way and I'm sure my friends in Texas are shaking their heads in disbelief, but I am in fact a hermit. Since it's April I am blaming the weather to be a partial factor, but in all honesty I am really content with where I'm at and what I'm doing with my life. I have been blessed with some of the most loyal of friends that I can honestly say will be a part of my life forever and a large part of that is because of and with thanks to my granny-like qualities. These friends know who they are and can almost be considered more like-unto family than friends. I'm grateful and excited to be a part of one of my best friends weddings in October. Brittany and her fiance Will embody a partnership that's hard to explain because of it's ingenuity and I can't wait to be there surrounded by some of our closest friends when she walks down the aisle.  I have learned that it's not losing a friend as they get married, but gaining a new one who shares a common ground of love for an individual. (Shout out to ya B, love you) So as I think about these traits that are both innate and learned that have greatly benefitted my life, I can't help but encourage the rest of you to embrace some of the more subtle pleasures in life as we all seek for high quality relationships and meaning.

Some of the friends I'm excited to see at Britter's wedding!! Minus Taylor... who was too busy being a genius and graduating with a 4.0 a year early. (This was at her graduation)

Furthermore, I'd like to bring to everyones attention that beyond this miserable weather lurking in Utah there is now a miserable man who has been freed from the mental hospital and is sure to be lurking in the creepy hills behind my house. Please look into this because I for one am appalled. Utah Sex Offender to be Freed...

On a lighter note, here's some retail eye-candy!:

To do list: buy bronze oxfords from Banana Republic.

I spy with my little eye David Yurman accessories. I likey.

I could look at her style all day every day. I love it. 

Atlantic-Pacific

The end is in sight!!!!

So last night at midnight the registration for fall classes opened! eeee!!!! I will officially be graduating in December... given I pass all my classes, of course. (sorry mom) I'm not sure I'm ready to be an adult yet, so with that in mind I'm blog stalking right now while my Info Systems book lays conveniently open in my lap. Tutorial D is staring at me but is hardly as provocative as stumbling for hours on end. Stumbling, for those of you who might assume I'm intoxicated on campus, is actually a reference to StumbleUpon. Check it out, I dare you to try NOT to become addicted.

You're invited to enjoy some notable quotes and such that I'm currently stumbling upon:

“Look at you. You’re young. And you’re scared. Why are you so scared? Stop being paralyzed. Stop swallowing your words. Stop caring what other people think. Wear what you want. Say what you want. Listen to the music you want to listen to. Play it loud as hell and dance to it. Go out for a drive at midnight and forget that you have school the next day. Stop waiting for Friday. Live now. Do it now. Take risks. Tell secrets. This life is yours. When are you going to realize that you can do whatever you want?”

I feel all too often that I want to scream these words at myself and/or the people around me. Be YOU and enjoy it... Why is this a concept we need to hear over and over?

Green with envy, I am. Bright, shiny green.

In a word: flawless.

I want to sit on these stairs with an eclair and read Eat, Pray, Love in a comfy sweater.

This. is. me.

Oh wait... no... no it's not.

Laugh all you want, but I want a king charles spaniel that I will name Ralph. Together we will be Ralph and Lauren. Which is close enough for me.

Uniform. Wardrobe staples.

This has to make you smile. It's just too true.

I owe today's inspiration and distraction with much thanks to:

because im addicted, Fashionista, Fanshionology, and sarahklassen.com

Lo and Behold! I have a blog...

One of my many nicknames growing up was Lolo... Hence, the "Lolo and Behold"...? Clever, eh? (I'll give credit to the speech impediment that forced me to call myself "Lo-wen"... adorable, I know.) Luckily this nickname stuck around despite my siblings attempts to provide ones that were slightly less flattering! Understatement of the century right there...! Don't get me wrong though, my siblings are the best. And despite what I may have thought in high school, my parents are the best. I'm just gonna go ahead and add here that my nieces and dogs belong on this "best" list as well. I'm extremely fortunate in the hand I've been dealt and offer that notion as my motive for forming a blog. I want to recognize the moments in my life when, lo and behold, I experience something worth sharing. I'm not going to expect every entry to draw a tear or force out a bout of laughter, but I do want the people who inspire me to know they inspire; the people who I love to know they're loved; the people who know me to know my values; and for anyone who reads this to have something with which they can relate.

My life is full of "Lo and Behold Moments" where I deem new information and discoveries to be important and exciting enough for everyone to know and appreciate. If you know me at all, you know not to expect to fully understand anything I post on here. Expect randomness. Expect hilarity. Expect love. Expect beauty. Expect faith. Expect sarcasm. Expect frustration. Expect honesty to the core. Above all else, expect reality coated with southern hospitality. (Where I will say what I mean, but I will always "bless your heart" afterwards.)

A little old and I know some of them hate this picture, but I love my beautiful family with all my heart. 

Sophie Grace and Madeline Blake. My nieces that I'm sure will provide countless entertaining Lo and Behold Moments...

Lo and behold! I have a blog ladies and gents...!