new wheels.

biking has been my exercise of choice lately so I was thrilled when I came across this beauty today while out shopping. literally thrilled! I had been looking for a new old bike for awhile now. usually the ones I see are either over priced or look great, but ride horrible. today, I was pleased all around. I paid $35 for it at my favorite thrift store and have been riding it all day. so far so good. :)

I am going to try to work biking into my morning routine because I really really do enjoy it. hooray for the invention of the wheel and thrifted treasures!

my dad and I.

of all of my siblings, I am the one that is the most like my dad. it creates an interesting dynamic in our relationship, but I don't think I would have it any other way. my Dad works so hard, loves us so much and I am so thankful for him.

5K.

this past Saturday my ten year old niece Kiara and I ran a 5k together at Soldier Field. the race was through an organization called girls on the run and we were just two of 12,000 (record high!) runners. it was SUCH a fun morning. this was Kiaras first time running in a race, and I was especially proud of her because she ran the entire thing without stopping even once! so proud :)

hair journey.

growing up my sisters, cousins and (african american) friends all strived for the same goal...long hair. when I was little my mom used to braid my hair into a bunch of corn rows. in grade school she started sending me to school in two french braids, I wore my hair up every single day throughout middle school and only started wearing it down sophomore year of high school. it's hard to explain why, but even to this day I just feel more comfortable wearing it up. it was around my nerdy two French braid wearing phase that I first got my hair relaxed. the reason was that it would be 'easier to manage'. for the next 14 years I relaxed my hair. during this time it wasn't just the longer the better, but now it was also the straighter the better. I relaxed my hair for the last time in November of 2010 and have been growing out and cutting off my straight ends ever since. I cut off the last inch or so of my relaxed ends a few months ago and now I come out of the shower (or lake or pool :) with kinky curly hair and I love it. I spend a lot of time experimenting with my hair in its natural state and am enjoying getting to know my new head of hair, but for now I still straighten it each week.

there is so much shrinkage when my hair is curly that it's difficult for me to get it all up and clearly I'm a wear my hair up kind of girl. so for now I wear it straightened in a little bun at the top of my head while it grows out little by little and I am comfortable with that. this has definitely been an interesting journey and for a girl who was defined for so many years by the length of her hair cutting it shorter and shorter each month turned out to be quite liberating! I really admire all of the women out there who chop off all of their hair at once and fully embrace their new head of hair. everyone is different and a slow transition is the path I felt and still feel the most comfortable with. I am 1 year and 8 months in on this hair journey and plan to do an update on how I'm wearing it, length, etc every few months or so. this has truly been a test of patience and I am actually surprising myself at how well I'm doing!

*fun facts: I started getting gray hair around the time I turned 16 years old! ...and also, I am actually still quite nerdy ;)

mashed apples.

food is one of the many things that I love. I really enjoy it. people say I eat like a bird (which is true) and therefore I'm usually the last one finished with a meal, but there's a reason for that...I savor each and every bite. always, no matter what.  I've been making an effort this year to eat fresh. be healthy. snack wise. today I was craving applesauce so I decided to make some. I love cooked apples. LOVE them. I bought a bag of Fuji apples, cooked them on the stove, added some cinnamon and ate away! a super easy simple snack. yum.

so simple. so good.

reciprocate.

this week I was in Carbondale! I returned the surprise and drove down to see my sister for her birthday this week. she turned twenty one and this visit is going down in the books as my all time favorite :)

celebrations are so fun.

coffee.

people who know me, even just a little, know that I LOVE coffee. its a part of my daily life and I rarely go a day without it. the smell alone energizes me. coffee shops are my favorite places and its just simply one of my favorite things.