Humpday Confessions | A 70 Degree December

Happy Humpday Confessors! It's been a crazy year hasn't it? I can't believe it's almost coming to an end so soon.

I confess...

that I went to go see the National Christmas tree for the first time....ever. I'm probably a bad Washingtonian for not ever going to see it before, but it was just never on my priority list. 

I was going there for a purpose. I had to get photos for my parent's holiday card. So of course, I cart out there with the boyfriend, the dog, my camera, my remote and tripod. What ever was I thinking? We got yelled at my secret service for having a tripod because everything needed to be "on" or "with" you at all times. So we had to set up and then run away quickly after getting a few snaps of us with the White House behind us. Then trying to get a good photo without 100 people in the background was definitely difficult. I got so frustrated at one point that I just took down the tripod and just started asking people to take photos of us. #Cuethecropping

Totally doesn't look like it's December...

Seven Books That I Couldn't Put Down

So thanks to Goodreads and reading challenges, I have realized two things: I don't read as fast as you people! and the older you get the harder it is to find time to read books. Seriously! I am shocked by how many people's reading updates include over 10 books per month. I was struggling with one book each month. This year was also the year I've traveled the least since probably 2009, and I read a lot on vacations. So there's my terrible excuses for the year.

I'll start by recapping my Modern Mrs. Darcy reading challenge.

A book you’ve been meaning to read: Bossypants by Tina Fey

A book published this year: Inside the O'Briens by Lisa Genova

A book in a genre you don’t typically read: Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

A book from your childhood: Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce

A book your mom loves: Wicked 

A book that was originally written in a different language: IQ84 by Haruki Marukami 

A book “everyone” has read but you: Big Little Lies by Lane Moriarty

A book you chose because of the cover: The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

A book by a favorite author: Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

A book recommended by someone with great taste: Girl Boss by Sophia Amoruso

A book you should have read in high school: Lord of the Flies by William Golding

A book that’s currently on the bestseller list: The Martian by Andy Weir

Related Post: Review of Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man

So not too bad considering that I'm reading Light Between the Oceans right now. Out of all 21 books that I read this year, these were the books that I couldn't put down for the life of me. Links lead to Goodreads pages for each of the books.

Winter Styles with Firmoo

Disclosure: I was provided this free product in exchange for my review of these glasses for Firmoo.com. Any opinions are 100% my own.

A little while back I got some prescription glasses from Firmoo.com. I love wearing them, they're perfect for nights in when I want to take out my contacts and relax my eyes. They're also super durable. So when Firmoo contacted me a second time, I was more than happy. Since I now have two prescription glasses, and  I was in need of a new pair of sunglasses I opted for a style that would work as sunglasses. 

Humpday Confessions | #HashtagMadness

Happy Humpday Confessors! So just some housekeeping alerts for you guys. The holidays are getting a bit hectic and it's tough for me to write as I go so I've scheduled a bunch of posts for the rest of December. With that being said, I will not be hosting Humpday Confessions on December 23 or 30th. I just don't know how busy I will be. However, you can still link up with all the other Wednesday gals.

I confess...

My GRE test is on Friday. I'm about as ready as I can be at this point but I've definitely been studying vocab like a crazy person. Wish me luck.

I'm so not comfortable in front of my camera. I really need to get better for a few pictures of myself here and there because, HELLO, my blog is my brand and my brand is me. I have to take some holiday photos of myself this weekend, so if some of them turn out good I might share them here. We'll see. 

I'm still surviving off Thanksgiving leftovers that I froze and have now unfrozen. #Turkeyforweeks

My menorah broke last year and I haven't fixed it, so I haven't been lighting any lights. #BADJEW! Whoops, Can I arrange my B&BW candles in a row and say it's a menorah?

Speaking of holiday decorations, I'm loving everyone's! I like mine and my roommate's too. It's a pumpkin still filled with Halloween candy. #Wesuckatdecorating

I just realized how many hashtags I've used. Laura, you should be proud of me. I usually can only find ways to incorporate one or two hashtags into posts, but this week I'm going wild!

My birthday is now only 12 days away! What are you all getting for me? Should I have written a gift guide of what to get me for my own birthday? #Nomoregiftguides

I'm trying out this new brunch spot for my birthday brunch in Chinatown that just opened a couple weeks ago. $15 bottomless drinks and a killer menu. I can't wait to go. #countdownison!

I really do try to take my own photography however these types of posts require gifs, and I need to attribute sooooooo.......

All gifs from Giphy

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Now onto the link-up with Plucky in Love and I!

Here are the ground rules for the link-up:

• Each Wednesday create a post about what’s going on in your life and confess!
• Grab the button and include it in your post or include a text link back to the link-up. 
• Link up with either me or Sarah, so we can see what you're confessing this week.
• Comment on at least one other blogger’s post from the link up.
• Feel free to share on social media with the hashtag #HumpdayConfessions and I'll retweet.
• Enjoy!

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Linking up with #HashtagHumpday

Say hello to this month's sponsor:

Festive Drinks for the Holidays

With the holiday season approaching, instead of blasting the Christmas/Channukah music, I opt to pull out my holiday recipes instead. There are definitely some foods and drinks that always remind me of the holidays and I tend to only make them around that time.

So today, I've teamed up with Alexis from Chemistry Cachet to bring you our favorite holiday recipes.

My Tattoo Stories and My Tips To You

I have three tattoos. Two are pretty large and one is small. I was thinking about it the other day because the small one that I have is a simple flower I have on my foot that I got a week after I turned 18 years old. I got it as soon as I could get a tattoo based on the parlor's availability and legal age minimums. 

I was laying my legs over my boyfriend last week and just looked at my foot and said, "Wow, I've had this for forever." And it's definitely seemed like it, so much so that I think of it as part of my body now, not something I elected to get permanently etched into my skin.

Humpday Confessions | It's DECEMBER YAY!

Happy December! I'm so excited. Let's get right to confessing!

I confess...

That December is seriously the best month of the year. Channukah is about to start, my birthday countdown is on, Christmas is coming and then NEW YEARS!