Reasons this has been a divine weekend:

1. I went home and spent quality time with my brother & sister

2. Dad made cinnamon rolls, mom made cheesecake

3. Dad filled my car with gas

4. I saw Kaylee & Emma for 2.5 seconds at Sonic. Good chat girls!

5. I woke up, exercised, and did other productive things. Go me.

6. Introduced my roommate Ali to the wonder that is One Tree Hill. She's obsessed now. Love her.

7. I carried my Coach purse.

8. The weather has been delicious.
(Does anyone else love using the word delicious?)

9. Kaylee is following her heart & applied to BYU. I helped her. & I'm oh so happy for her!

10. I am resting easy knowing that spring break is near...5 days!

Why was your weekend good?

500, y'all!

I have an unhealthy obsession.
It's with a song.
It's with a song that came out in 1993.
On average, I listen to it about 17 times a day.
I have never been so in love with a song.
It's pretty much on repeat all day.
While I do homework, while I'm walking to class, while I'm blogging...
I discovered it 27 days ago, late at night when I couldn't sleep.
iTunes is telling me I've listened to it 500 times.
That's not counting the times on my iPod or in the car.
Proof?

I was telling my momma about this obsession on the phone last night and she asked,
"What's the song called?"

"Fade Into You by Mazzy Star."

Deep intake of breath.

"Autumn, I LOVE that song. It's one of my all-time favorites. I listened to it ALL the time when you were little. I actually just listened to it tonight."

Like mother like daughter. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. All that stuff.

Now I realize it's all my moms fault. The song probably brings back subconscious memories or something like that.

So if you haven't listened to mine and my mother's all-time favorite song, I've made it very simple for you. Believe me, it's a beautiful song and you will love it.

Don't judge me.

It's here again...

Another wonderful Thursday. I just love them.

Mine looked like...

A messy desk before naptime...
(can you spot leftover oatmeal, The Great Dialogues of Plato, and a necklace?)

And a kick-butt Harding basketball game. Check out that score.

100 to 88.

We rock.

Was your Thursday this cool?

Keen Imagination

There is a restaurant here in Searcy that I have been dying to try. Hunan Express.

But I've been sceptical because it is pretty easy to screw up chinese food.

I took one for the team though and decided today was Hunan Express-trying-day.

I ordered sweet & sour chicken with steamed rice like I do at every chinese joint.

Beth ordered orange chicken and steamed rice.

Oh, and we shared some delicious wontons stuffed with cream cheese.

Verdict?

Success.

Epic. Success.

(I really liked my fortune)

I'm off to study for a psychology exam.

And then to worship the one who blesses us all.

I hope you do the same.

The worshipping, that is.

Not the psychology.

p.s. Click here to laugh.

Yummy Short Stack

Unbeknownst to me (until 3:30, thanks Shelby!) today is free pancake day at IHOP. As a starving and poor college student, the word free just made my day!

So off to IHOP I went! The wait was only 15 minutes, which was a bit surprising because of the large amounts of Harding students I saw!

All IHOP asks is that you donate money to a Children's Miracle Network (for Arkansans, Arkansas Children's Hospital)

Free pancakes + good cause = EPIC SUCCESS!

And I enjoyed every bite...

At the risk of sounding too much like an IHOP spokesperson,

"Visit an IHOP today!"

Deodorant & toothpaste & sad, sad T.V.

There are SO many options these days. I made a little trip to Wal-Mart tonight for toothpaste and deodorant and literally stood in each aisle for about 5 minutes.

"Well this toothpaste fights bad breath germs..."

"Oh, but this one whitens!"

"Fluoride? Is that important?"

Finally I picked Crest Pro-Health Whitening because it was $3 and came with whitening strips. I thought that was a steal!

Deodorant was a different story.

It's hard to decide which vegetable I would rather smell like.

Sweet pea or cucumber?

Ridiculous (below)

On a different note, I finally took the wrapping paper off of my door and decked it out for spring. A little construction paper, some tape, voila!

It brightened my Monday, that's for sure.

What dampered my day, you ask?

One Tree Hill.

Could it have been more depressing?

It was a really good episode, don't get me wrong. But it was so sad. I can't imagine anything happening to my mom. I was definitely sobbing.

That

was

Monday

p.s. new layout! I made the top banner. Like?

Sad College Fridge

They say you can tell a lot about a person by the things in their refrigerator.

Contents

Orange Fruit Punch

Diet Green Tea

Ragu Marinara (bagel pizzas...yum)

Lettuce

Peanut Butter cookie dough

Carrots

Apples

Butter

Cream Cheese

Don't be shy. Let's see your fridge!

Secrets From a Bathroom Stall

I hate public restrooms. They are nasty and gross and the only positive thing that comes out of them (besides getting to use the bathroom) are the funny stories Sharpied on the stall walls. Unfortunately for me, I downed two waters at dinner so my first stop when I reached the movie theatre was the bathroom.


I stepped into the stall, did my 2-second business, and stood back up. I flushed quickly and was adjusting my shirt when I felt...water? I looked down. Why is there water on the floor, I asked myself. Was that there before?

Horrified, I looked behind me. Of course.

Of. Course.

The toilet was spilling out water. Actually, spilling doesn't describe what was happening. Gushing is the more appropriate word.

Why am I still standing in it?!

I did a hop/jump/shimmy out of the stall. I'm sure my eyes were wide. What do I do? Leave?Tell someone? I glanced around the bathroom. I was alone, but for how long? When would someone walk in and give me a disgusted look?

I wasn't about to stand around and find out.

I mustered up some confidence and with extreme grace, I walked out of the bathroom and into the movie.

Classy.

p.s. I know you're wondering. I have hand sanitizer. Too bad I couldn't rub it on my feet.

Was your Friday this wonderful?

Aren't Thursdays just the best?

What does your Thursday look like?

As lovely as red roses in the sunlight?

Otterbox

Why they call it an otterbox, I have no clue.

But it protects your phone like nobody's business.

I mean, really protects in. Dip it in water, throw it on concrete, throw it down three flights of stairs, run over it in a truck...

Beth and I decided to test these theories.

But her iphone is her baby, so we played it safe and just dropped it on concrete. More experiments to come!

What have you put your otterbox through?

Naturally, I waited until 11:06 to begin studying for my Psychology test. But never fear, I'm fully equipped with fruit punch and notecards!

Can you guess what I'm listening to?

Tranquil Sundays

I love today. I have nothing in my schedule to conflict with lounging around, amazingly. So I spoiled myself and slept in until 1 and then the suite mates and I made a little road trip to Moe's Southwest Grill in Conway. I hit up that salsa bar!

Then the dreary rain started and we decided it was the perfect weather for stopping in at Hastings to read and drink white chocolate mocha's. So we did. I thoroughly examined my favorite section- World War 2 -and heavily debated buying 'Auschwitz' by Laurence Rees. But I'm a poor college gal so checking it out at the library seemed like a better route.

Now I'm sitting in my cozy dorm room, 'Fade Into You' by Mazzy Star is on repeat (iTunes says I've listened to it 193 times in two weeks...that's 880.08 minutes I've spent listening to it, which is 14ish hours. Is that sad? Really sad?), and I'm thinking about cleaning/organizing to get ready for the new week.

Nah, I'll just sit here a little longer...

Friday Friends

I first met Kaylee in the second grade, and we have been best friends ever since. When I think of her I think...

Strong. Mormon. Michael Jackson fan.
Honest.

Presenting Miss Kaylee:

Major?

OT? Nursing?

What scares you?

Being alone.

What's been on your mind lately?

Wondering what happened with my ex-boyfriend Joey.

Beauty product you cannot live without?

Powder!

What has been your hardest decision in life thus far?

Whether or not to go to BYU next year.

(From one private school kid to the next, go!)

What has been your greatest accomplishment?

Graduating high school!

At 10 pm, what are you usually doing?

Computer time!
(Check out her blog)

Favorite time of day?

Getting comfy after class. Or going out!

Describe yourself in 1 word...

Isn't she lovely?

Wintry Thursday Nights..

Psychology homework, World Lit test, Friends on TV,

chapped lips, new songs added to iTunes,

hungry, expecting more snow,

Grey's Anatomy & Private Practice,

toaster-oven made chocolate chip cookies...

I love Thursdays.

Wonderful Wednesday

The sun was out and the day was beautiful! I went to Goodwill after class and found two darling skirts for this summer.

I also decided to start trying to eat healthier and picked up a mango smoothie for lunch.

At Goodwill, I found this cute kid.

"Hi, what's your name?"

"Boston!"

"Oh, like the city?"

"No."

Random desk shot.

Snowcream!

I decided to put our several inches of snow to use, so I made snowcream! I had never made it before but it was really easy and pretty good. You should make some!

Here's what you do:

• Collect a gallon of fresh snow
• Pour in 1 cup of sugar & 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• Stir, then pour in milk until the snow reaches desired consistency

To make it even yummier, you can use chocolate milk or even stir in blended fruit!

Utah

Basically, ever since I read the blog NieNie Dialogues, I've wanted to go to Utah. So for about 2 weeks now!

Anyways, Kaylee has family in Utah and when she mentioned she was going:

"I'm going to Utah this summer to stay with my aunt." -Kaylee

"I wanna go!!" -me

"You should come!!" -Kaylee

"How long are you going?" -me

"..like a week." -Kaylee

"Oh my gosh I wanna go. That would be so fun!" -me

Imagine that conversation in high, squeaky voices.

After talking it over with the parental units over Sunday lunch, they agreed and Kaylee booked our flight- June 11-21.

I'm ready to fly (I love flying), be in an airport (I love airports more than flying!), see some Utah mountains and hike, and spend time with my bestie. Plus, I'm getting the full on Mormon experience. I'm not Mormon, so this will be interesting! In a good way.


"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover."
-Mark Twain

Jersey Friday!

Every Friday, if you are in a social club (private school sorority/fraternity), you wear your club jersey. Every club has them and they in your clubs color. There are some ridiculous rules too, like "don't be caught dead in your jersey after 5 o'clock!"

We like to make things dramatic here at Harding.

After Pledge Week you wear your big sisters jersey until yours comes in. Well guess what? They came in! First day to wear MY jersey!

It says "Iota Chi" on the front and "Dixon 23" on the back. Why 23? Good, legit reasons, let me tell you.

1. 23 was Michael Jordan's jersey number. He's like a basketball legend.

2. 23 is a fab song by Jimmy Eat World. Download it.

3. 23 is Nathan Scott's (One Tree Hill) jersey number.

Told ya...legit reasons.

Cute, huh?

Simple Pleasures

Of course we are all grateful for the big things in life- family, friends, God...

...but the simple things make life great, too.

Having a good hair day

Towels straight from the dryer

Waking up early and realizing you have more time to sleep

Summer nights

Hearing a good song on the radio

Hot chocolate on a cold day

Clean sheets after a long, hot shower

Smell of baking brownies

The smell right after it rains

Feeling when you find a great song

Saturdays spent in PJ's with nothing to do

Candle burning while doing homework

What are your simple pleasures?

Humbled

This is Stephanie Nielson.

She is beautiful and was living the all-American dream. Her home was happy with four small children and a perfect husband. She was 27 and living the life she had always dreamed of. Several people followed her blog, the NieNie Dialogues,where she talked about her children, husband, and Mormon faith in God.

For her husbands birthday, she bought him flying lessons. Soon he got his pilots license and would take the family on flights. One weekend, leaving the kids with their grandparents, the couple went on a flight.

The plane crashed.

Stephanie got out and ran through the flames, burning over 83% of her body. This is that beautiful woman now. Still beautiful, brave, strong, and SUCH an inspiration.

Click here to read about the 10-week coma she was in, how her blog readers raised over $100,000 for her, and how her youngest child couldn't recognize her, and called her sister 'mom'.

"I had you," she whispered then. "Please, please remember me."

Her story will change your life. Be grateful for the wonderful blessings God has given you. You never know how lucky you are...