over the past week...

i went to my favorite book store... more on these two books below. 

& we played lots of games of mexican train. i was losing here, can you tell?

my new mittens came!! 

& i made chocolate cupcakes + chocolate frosting, yum!

i purchased these two books:

i have been anxiously awaiting Jessica Alba's new book. she is my favorite celeb mommy

& i have been saving my pennies for Design Sponge's hardcover book

(the perfect addition to my stack of coffee table books)

and these...

these books are so amazing and are very meaningful to me. during my senior year, all four of us "gnomies" started using Wreck This Journal. my roommates and i would take turns on various occasions "wrecking" the journal throughout that final year of college. since then, it has made its way to birthdays, bonfires, & even our weddings. it has all of our memories in it & currently is in the hands of roomie down in PA.

and then, Keri Smith created "Mess" and i saw it at the bookstore this past week & obviously sent the picture to my roomies via instagram... and the idea came about: a sort of traveling pants meets a penpal slash journal. i am going to purchase Mess & put my mark on it & then mail it to whoever i think needs it next. i am going to put little notes in it, pictures, jot down thoughts, moments when i miss these four girls (which is like everyday) & whatever else i feel like. and it will make its way around to all of us & will be the cutest way to keep in touch. (especially since pete and i are making our way to California in the next two months!)

i hope it inspires some of you to do the same! as you grow older it gets harder and harder to keep in touch with friends. but i am truly blessed to have the greatest group of girl friends in the world. girls that understand how busy & crazy life can be, & when a month goes by & then you chat on the phone, it is like you haven't skipped a beat! 

so check out these two books here and here & start your own traveling journal!