a few of my favorite things...

the lovely beantown prepster has tagged me for the kreativ blogger award! thanks, bp! :)

so, i'm supposed to list seven things that i love and then tag seven more bloggers to do the same. here goes...

1. books! this should shock no one, because i'm an english teacher, but nearly all my splurge purchases end up being books or something book-related (and, well, shoes, but that's another story). i have four completely full bookshelves in my house and more stacks laying around. if my job weren't so centered on books and reading, i might think i have a problem. :)

2. the locator on we tv. i got hooked on this show a couple of weekends ago ... it's a detective show where a private investigator tracks down long-lost family members and tries to reunite them with their families. it's heartbreaking, uplifting, and totally addictive.

3. pizza pringles. they're like the crack of potato chips.

4. my madras purse. i can't wait until it finally gets sunny and warm so that i can bust out my favorite spring/summer bag!

5. freesia lotion from bath & body works. love, love, love -- and have since i was a teenager. i still wear it every day.

6. audrey hepburn movies. she's one of my celebrity idols, even though sometimes i think i'm really more of a katherine than an audrey when it comes to hepburns. i saw sabrina again recently -- what a perfect movie!

7. london. my home away from home ... i can't wait to get back soon! (if i'd just get it together and marry a british boy already, this would be much simpler...!)

i'm sure most of the lovely ladies i tag will already have been tagged, but they're some of my favorite daily reads, so i'll honor them again!
1. kHm @ QueenBeeSwain
2. K.C. @ Peachy Keen
3. Chloe @ Cardigans and Clogs
4. Her Preppiness @ Preppy, 50, and Loving Lilly
5. Emily @ Vineyard Vogue
6. Kristin @ Summer in Newport
7. AEO @ Up North Preppy

spring hair fever

it's that time of year again -- i'm jones-ing for a hair cut. right now my hair falls a couple inches below my shoulders, and it's just straight and dark. i'm thinking i want something cute with a shape, maybe a little like taraji at the oscars?

it's just so amazingly cute, with the long sweepy bangs, and i like that it's short without being super severe. and it looks like it would grow nicely -- being a preppy prof doesn't exactly pay well, so i usually only get my hair cut a few times a year, unfortunately. this one looks like it might stay cute, with a little bangs-trimming, even if it grew a bit.

beyond it just being spring, and my own personal wish for something less blah on the top of my head, i have to admit that there's a totally superficial reason for choosing right now as the time for a trim: i'm not currently seeing anyone, so there's no one to complain about me cutting off my longer hair. boys are so weirdly picky about hair, and i swear i had a boyfriend once who broke up with me not long after i chopped off my locks. now, i can get a cute cut and go out and be flirty with it, instead of having to worry about how anyone else is going to feel about it!

erin go bragh!

happy st. patrick's day, everybody!

though i only have a little bit of irish heritage -- represent, murphys and flynns! -- i'm also a domer, and i fell in love with st. patty's day during college, green beer, jigs, shamrocks, and all. hope you're all wearing green so you don't get pinched today! :)

and before i head back to my st. patty's festivities, here's a link to my favorite news story of the day so far: in honor of chicago, the first lady has had the white house fountains dyed green!

spring break has sprung!

after conquering my mountains of work last week (yes!), i am now officially on spring break. i'm visiting the preppy mom, dad, and sis this week, and loving it -- i get to see my family pretty infrequently, and i miss them a ton.

today the preppy sis and i went on a hobby lobby trip, and i snagged some great, cute fabric for that amy butler brick path quilt i'm going to work on as my fun, relaxing project for the second half of the semester. aren't the colors great?

so, strenuous plans for the rest of the week: bracket-building before tomorrow night, and st. patty's fun tomorrow!

hanging in there...

two more days to go before i get a break, and i'm still chugging along! but i have decided that i'm going to buy this shirt in preparation for finals week later this semester. so hilarious! (and so appropriate for those post-crunch time moments, ha!)

want to win a pretty necklace?

jewelry designer kristin pearce over at summer in newport has an awesome giveaway this week: the pretty green necklace shown above. how cute would this be for the spring and summer? my spring-clothes fever is kicking into high gear over this one!

i'm mulling a giveaway of my own as soon as this midterm craziness dies down a bit ... book lovers, stay tuned! :)

dateline: midterms!

ah, midterm week: alternately the best and the worst week of the year. i always get a ton of stuff done this week, because i'm under so much pressure from deadlines ... but i also have to get a ton of stuff done this week, because i'm under so much pressure from deadlines! :) at least my classes got their papers back last week, so that's one less thing to worry about!

right now i'm working on a research grant proposal. one of the toughest things about academia is the way that money is distributed; instead of giving everyone more on a regular basis, they hold more competitions and scholarships that you have to apply for. i've got a great project going right now, something that could definitely be publication material, so fingers crossed on this one ... now i just have to get the write-up done on time!

but as a distraction, of course (of course!), my brain is going all full-steam-ahead on dreaming up the world of the persuasion-inspired novel. picture it: a girl just like you, who loves a really sweet boy, with misunderstandings, love, romance, reconciliation ... all set with the kentucky derby and the horse racing industry as the background. and the hero looks like this:

swoon! love henry cavill. ah, someday soon i will get this written! and it will be amazing, and you will all love it. ;)

the blanket with sleeves!

it may be dorky to admit it (scratch that: i know it's dorky to admit it), but i have absolutely fallen in love with my snuggie. i got one from the preppy sis as a gag christmas gift. i laughed a lot about it at first -- the wtf blanket indeed! -- but when the temperatures nose-dived in my part of the country this winter, it suddenly became an absolutely indispensable item in my house. i can sit in my living room comfortably, using my laptop, and not jack the thermostat way up! amazing.

(one tip, though, if you're going to get one of your own: wash it with fabric softener and then dry it with dryer sheets before using it. i nearly got electrocuted on a lamp the first time i broke it out of the box!)

the new york times had a hilarious article about the joys of the snuggie in the style section last week: "snuggie on the street: watch your back." now, while i love mine for cuddling up on my couch, i think i'd have to draw the line at going outside in it. or even walking around my own house. this is a couch blanket, not an article of clothing!

and quickly, about the bachelor last night? boo hiss, jason. you suck! (and molly, what are you thinking, honey? he's already dumped you once, for goodness sake!) what a load of hooey all around.

ladies, will you accept this rose?

here's a vaguely (or possibly very) embarrassing admission: even though i'm a girl who works as a scholar for a living and am supposed to be very high-brow and la-di-da and all that, i still watch the bachelor like it's going out of style. it's like a "real" soap opera, and i've always secretly loved those. i've been super-hooked on this season, but less so since my girl jillian was booted a few weeks ago. fingers crossed that she's the next bachelorette -- love her!

i've heard that there's all sorts of weird behind-the-scenes drama that's going to go down tonight on the show. hmm ... we shall see!

like christmas in march

i found an old navy gift card while i was cleaning today -- isn't that just the best! i've been surfing their website all afternoon, trying to decide what i should spend it on ... i'm thinking these super cute seafoam green capris would be too cute for spring!

of course, there's still snow on the ground in my neck of the woods, so it may just be spring-clothes fever talking!