....Or really, "goals for the remainder of the Summer", because who would've guessed that between work, grad school prep, apartment hunting, and a summer prerequisite course, I haven't spent much time writing? ;)

Taking it back about 15 or 16 years for a second: when I first learned how to ride a bike, my Dad and I would spend evenings just looping around our neighborhood. My Mom encouraged me to learn how to make it all the way up our neighborhood hill back to our house. "Think of it as a summer goal"; she'd say. 

Completely cheesy? Yes, but it worked, and for the two Summers I've had that are unstructured by classes or homework, I've tried to keep a bit of this mindset.

So here we go, a few of my goals for the rest of this Summer:

1: Read, read, read! When I was younger, you couldn't tear me away from a book. Then came college, and having to read for classes seemed to bring that to a halt. And I miss it! Aside from trying to get back into a more academic state of mind, I'm also trying to spend less time feeling like I *have* to be staring at my phone, iPad, or some sort of visual stimulation! At the moment, I still have The Light Between Oceans and Joe Biden's book waiting to be read!

2: Plan some sort of (small!) trip. Alas, I won't be jetting off on a major beach trip or visiting London and Paris like my friend Katina at Lost and Found in the City- how gorgeous are her pictures here and here?! I'm still completely jealous! But since I'm staying in DC for the time being, I'd love to get back to New York to visit friends for a bit.

3: Try to get some exposure to French at least a few times a week. Of course, I use Duolingo and pull out my old French textbooks whenever I get the chance- but that doesn't give much real-world speaking or listening experience. I'd love to take classes again, but I'm also picking and choosing a few Netflix shows and movies available in French- sadly, favorites like The Office and Parks and Rec aren't on the list.... maybe on Amazing Prime or iTunes?

4: Make a list of "new" places to explore in and around my new neighborhood this Fall. As usual, I'm pretty apprehensive about starting something new and making friends along the way, so I'm trying to focus on the exciting elements of what is an otherwise very high anxiety time!

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This time last year, I was one month into my internship at the UK Mission to the United Nations (more about that here!) Spending every day in and around the UN and suddenly being thrown into giving in New York left me a little shellshocked, but I was incredibly fortunate to meet a great group of friends, many of whom were in similar situations as me, and I had a great time living in the city and of course, had a great start to my first year post-undergrad!

When I was in college, and shortly afterwards, I had every intention of postponing grad school by a few years to gain experience, not to mention the whole process of preparing for, researching, and applying to grad programs!

Sounds good in theory, right? But not as simple to put into practice- job hunting in my field with only a bachelor's degree is rough, and while I was still in New York, my intern director really encouraged me to think about grad school sooner rather than later. So in November, I attended an open house at George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, which has always been one of my top choices of grad programs. I obsessed over my personal statements, resume, and recommendations, never really having full confidence in my potential to be accepted to such a tough program.

The beginning of March rolled around, and I the long-awaited "your admissions decisions are ready!" email popped into my inbox, pretty much stopping my heart momentarily in the process...



A huge thank you to everyone who helped me review my application materials, answered my endless grad school questions, or just offered me some reassurance while I (inevitably) overthought all of this!

XOXO, Emily

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Long time no see! I hit a bit of a blogging lull coinciding with the holidays, then had a very busy few weeks with family recently. I've loved reading everyone's "facts about me" posts on Instagram and blogs that I read, so I'm jumping back into today with my own answers...

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 It's no secret that Fall gets a lot of attention from all sorts of blogs and social media outlets- who doesn't love a good selection of autumnal foliage and a plethora of cool weather outfits to pick from? Well, that hasn't quite been a reality this year in the DMV- of course the leaves have changed and fallen, daylight savings took effect, but as I type this, it's just reached 60 degrees outside! I blame global warning....

On a happier note, even if we aren't experiencing a "true" Fall at the moment, I can still share some of my most recent favorites in fashion, beauty, reading, and binge watching:

- Finding riding boots to that are both narrow enough in the calf and tall enough for me isn't easy, and I was initially disappointed by these boots last year when they tore up my heels after about an hour of walking. This year, they've finally broken in enough to wear frequently without any discomfort.

- Christmas shopping with my Mom led me to grab Vice President Joe Biden's new book, and based on the reviews and excerpts I've seen, I fully expect it to be a (incredibly poignant) tearjerker- foreign policy and the personal story of a prominent family facing tragedy? Just hand me the tissues already. Since I can't read it until Christmas, I've been enjoying The Dressmaker, an easier historical fiction read that was great to have on my recent trip to the beach.

- Who else watches This Is Us? I've found some of the characters and storylines slightly frustrating this season, but I've loved the recent episodes showing more of Kate and Kevin's backgrounds. I'm excited to see Randall's episode for tonight's fall finale- he might be my favorite of the "Big Three"!

- Although it hasn't been particularly cold here, the humidity has dropped, and I decided to try this version of Lancôme moisturizer which so far is helping me avoid dry skin- bonus points for not causing any sort of irritation.

- Finally, my picks for Giving Tuesday- The Malala Fund, Save the Children- an organization I had the opportunity to work with as an intern, and the Syrian American Medical Society, recently featured on 60 Minutes.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend with family and friends!

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Happy (almost) Friday! It's still hot on the east coast- almost ridiculously so, to be honest- so I'm spending my free time preparing for my next French immersion class, catching up on some TV, and doing a little online window shopping in hopes of cooler weather!

A few of my current favorite (and pretty random...) links around the web...

The best $15 I've spent this week: you probably need this brush! I have pretty dry hair, and I've been impressed so far at how well this brush helps keep my hair's natural oils distributed throughout its length, especially when used before going to bed.

The post-grad struggle, summarized by tumblr: I'll be honest, I complain about life post-graduation and the ever-frustrating job hunt quite a bit. On a daily basis, I find it hard to remember that I'm one of many recent grads to be experiencing the same frustrations and challenges- articles like these bring a little humor into #TheStruggle of being a young 20-something!

One of my favorite parts of my stint in New York, any of the cities I've lived in and visited, was experiencing  the rich history all around me. This website allows you to pick a location in New York and view a library of old photos taken in that location, some dating back to 1800. I found my old address on the map, and parts of Madison and 5th Avenues and Central Park certainly looked a bit different 100 years ago!

Speaking of cooler weather, my favorite Wool Sidewalk Skirts are back at J Crew Factory. I love pairing these with tights and boots through the late fall and winter, and with Jacks into the spring. I love the cabernet color linked above, but I'm also debating whether I can pull off this one without looking like I'm wearing a school uniform ;) This style in navy looks cute as well!

Real talk: I've dealt with chronic anxiety since I was pretty young. As much of an obstacle as it can be in many aspects of my life, it really is just part of who I am. I'm more than happy to see anxiety disorders gaining more mainstream exposure, like this interview with Emma Stone about her experience growing up with anxiety!
And finally, 24 frustrating things that happened on Gilmore Girls. Like many people my age, I'm a big Gilmore Girls fan- I binge-watched the full series a few years ago with my Mom, and of course saw the revival most recently. I *think* I'm still #TeamLogan. But this article makes some good points. I was annoyed with Rory's temporary dropping out of Yale, and Lorelei and Christopher's whole saga just complicated things. It's still one of my favorite shows, but I have to strongly agree with this: Lane belonged with Dave. Just saying ;)

Have a great weekend, and last few days of September!

XOXO,
Emily

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As September rolled around, my Mom joked that she actually missed back to school shopping. For the first time in who knows how many years, there is no purchasing of supplies of textbooks or lugging anything into campus housing! As a December grad, this is the first time I haven't been headed back to school in the Fall.

Instead, I'll be spending my free time tackling something I've been meaning to do for a while- practicing (and improving!) my French skills. Instead of back to school, it's back to full immersion French classes (at French Academy DC) for me!

I'm both nervous and pretty excited- I actually started studying French early by American standards. Starting in seventh grade, we had the option of adding French or Spanish to our schedule. I was already interested in French, and had taken a short course for middle schoolers the previous Summer. I was so excited to start- I decorated my binder, bought my first French dictionary, and dutifully studied my vocabulary and conjugations. I had an amazing French teacher through middle school, and it quickly became one of my favorite subjects.

As I've mentioned before, my department required all undergraduates to pick a language to study through the 300 level. Of course, I picked French, making it my minor. Here's the kicker- no matter how much quality academic instruction you have, it's nearly impossible to become fluent in a foreign language without living in a country that speaks said language.

As a result, my French is very academic- I can read and write much better than I can understand. This was confirmed during my time interning at the United Nations- some of my attempts to practice by listening to speeches on complex political and humanitarian issues given by native speakers weren't particularly successful :)

This is just another little step in my path towards ultimately entering the diplomatic world, so I'll face my fear of actually speaking up in my second language, gather up my notebooks, and enjoy my back to class, but not back to school :)

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Oh, social media... what would we all do without the ability to see exactly what friends (and strangers) are doing on a daily basis? ;)

No matter how simultaneously rewarding and frustrating it can be having social media so embedded in our daily lives, there is certainly one benefit: the ability to mentally "visit" anywhere you can think of.

Scrolling through Facebook, I would occasionally notice pictures posted by an acquaintance I'd met through Model UN. While admiring his pictures of the multitude of European cities he was visiting, I noticed he would always include a particular hashtag with each picture and "check in": #30Before30

As it turns out, this was in reference to his goal of visiting 30 countries before he turned 30- pretty cool, right? Of course, I immediately started thinking about all the different places I'm anxious to visit!

I should mention that aforementioned acquaintance happened to being enrolled in grad school in Italy, making short trips to multiple countries a lot more realistic!

So I did a little more research, and apparently, this is much more of a thing than I realized- countless people are sharing their experiences online, including this blog feature and 30xTHIRTY- a whole community of 20-somethings attempting #30Before30!

I don't necessarily have a travel bucket list to speak of, aside from visiting every country in Europe at some point. I know.... good luck with that one, Emily! ;) I'm 24 now, and I've visited six countries in Europe and North America- experiences that I'll always be grateful for! I'm not sure I'll be able to visit 24 more countries in six years- but for now, it's something to work towards!

Do you have any travel bucket list items, or number of new places you'd like to experience? Leave me a comment with your favorite travel experiences :)

Hope you have a great week!
Emily

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