Endless Bliss | Happy Lifestyle Blog

what i've been listening to.

These are the songs that have been on repeat on my Spotify for the past few weeks.

Team by Lorde

We live in cities you'll never see on screen. Not very pretty, but we sure know how to run things.

Best I Ever Had by Gavin Degraw

You're the best I ever had, and I'm trying not to get stuck in my head, but I've read that soda kills you and Jesus saves on a bathroom wall where I saw your name.

White Dress by Parachute

I wanna love you more, than all of the things you wanted, than all of the things you're not.

Play It Again by Luke Bryan

She was like, "Oh my God, this is my song. I've been listenin' to the radio all night long sittin' 'round waitin' for it to come on."

Stars by Grace Potter & the Nocturnals

I followed your ashes into outer space. I can't look out the window. I can't look at this place. I can't look at the stars.

See You Tonight by Scotty McCreary

Sometimes I can get by with the a "Sweet dreams, baby. Goodnight," but this time, well, I don't wanna spend it alone.

What songs have y'all been listening to recently? Any recommendations for me?

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Meet my newest sponsor, Mo from OLLIVANDER MO! She is a precious peach, and I'm so excited to have her on my sidebar.

I just finished re-reading Catching Fire, and I can't believe I forgot how good it was. To be honest, the first time I read the Hunger Games series, I was so focused on the Katniss/Peeta/Gale love triangle, that I skimmed through everything else. This time around, I knew who she was going to pick so it was easy for me to focus on everything else.

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I'm so happy that I decided to read the book again before I go see the movie. I am a big believer in midnight premieres, so Jon and I are going to see it at midnight when it comes out. Wahoo! I'm really curious to see the movie adaptation for several reasons. There might be some spoilers for those who haven't read the book, so be warned before you read on. The Arena. Oh my goodness. I forgot how awesome the arena was in this one. I mean, a giant clock?! Brilliant! I can't wait to finally see what jabberjays look like and to figure out exactly what Beetee's plan to kill the careers looks like. Honestly, it sounded really complicated in the book, and I couldn't picture it in my head. Katniss's Wedding Dress Options. I just can't wait to see how elaborately beautiful they are. I wish we could see a wedding too, but no go.

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Peeta's Leg. At the end of The Hunger Games book, Peeta's leg is pretty much kaput at the conclusion of the games, and he has to get a fake one. They didn't do that at the end of the movie, so I'm curious to see if they somehow incorporate his bad leg into the movie. Katniss's Mockingjay Dress. Her dress just sounds extremely remarkable and complicated. I can't wait to see how they turn a white dress into a black one and somehow make her look like a mockingjay. I hope it's awesome, because it was in the book.

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Finnick. He's just gorgeous, so I can't wait to see him. And Peeta, duh. And Gale. Oh gosh. Just a movie full of attractive guys.

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SparkleLouder with Hpnotiq.

*This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.*
I'm not an alcoholic by any means, but I do enjoy a drink every now and then. Not gonna lie. And Hpnotiq is one of my favorites. Not only is it pretty, it's actually really tasty! If you haven't heard already, Hpnotiq is holding a contest called SparkleLouder, and being a supporter of all things sparkly, I jumped at the chance to participate.
So what is the SparkleLouder contest, you ask? Well, it's all about how you Sparkle on one of the greatest holidays ever...New Year's Eve! Plus, it's super easy to enter. It involves no essay writing, no video making, no nonsense. Just a pretty picture of you in a glam outfit, you and some gal pals or even a selfie, and all you have to do is make it Sparkle with the SparkleLounder app.

Here's one that I made. I might have gone a little crazy with the sparkle, but really, when it comes to sparkle, you can never have too much. AMIRIGHT? I do wish that it would've fixed itself to fit my vertical picture, but oh well. I still love it.
It was so easy to do. All I did was choose how light or dark I wanted my picture to be. I chose 1 and lightened it up a bit. Then I chose the color of my sparkle. I did some blue and white. Then I dragged my mouse to create the sparkle on the picture. I added a quote, and wala! Done! Easy as 1, 2, 3. Literally. Then you submit your picture and you're entered.
Now what are you entering for exactly? Well, each entry gives you more weekly chances to win one of 20 EFFY Diamond & Blue Topaz Rings Sweepstakes Prizes (four each week)! The entry that Sparkles the Loudest will win the ultimate grand prize - a New Year's Eve trip for you and three girlfriends to New York City to see the ball drop in Times Square! Who wouldn't want to win that?! (I mean, seeing the ball drop in NYC is kind of on my bucket list, so obvs I'm down with that prize). The contest runs from November 4th to December 8th, so go go go enter!

I have no idea what I'll be doing for NYE this year, but here are a few outfits from my closet that I could possibly be ringing in 2014 year with.

If I were to win the grand prize, I would probably turn to my favorite site for fashion inspiration to help me find the perfect outfit - Pinterest! Here are a few outfits that I would wear to help me SparkleLouder.

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1. I'm in love with this gold skirt, and I love how it's paired with the flowy shirt and the gold necklaces. A simple outfit to put together, but it looks really awesome.

2. Blake Lively is such a peach. I love her white dress and the long sequined jacket. The jacket looks like it would make me itchy while it's rubbing up against my bare legs, but it's totally worth it if I'll look as fab as her.

3. The back of this dress is just absolutely gorgeous. I know that I would freeze to death, but I would go jacket-less, purely to show off the back of this dress.

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4. I have always wanted a sequined blazer! It seems like it would be so easy to dress it up or down. I would definitely pair it with some skinny jeans and some wedges.

5. Again, loving the gold skirt. I like the elegance of how black and gold look together.

6. I love everything about this outfit, except, I would definitely need a black jacket. In love with the wedges.

There are so many ways that you can SparkleLouder on NYE, and it doesn't just have to be reflected in a sparkly outfit. You could...

...have a night out dancing with the girls.
...make a list of your new year's resolutions.
...grab a bunch of board games and have a game night.
...gather a few snacks and cozy up in front of the TV for a movie.
...watch every episode of your favorite show on Netflix.
...drink some Moscato d'Asti (the best way to sparkle!).
...kiss someone at midnight (obvs!).

There are so many ways for you to SparkleLouder this NYE, what will you do?Now, go enter the giveaway, and start planning your glam outfit for NYE!

*For full contest rules and information on entering the SparkleLouder contest, click here.*

weekend full of love.

Whenever Jon comes to visit me, we always try to fit as much as possible into 2 1/2 days, and this weekend was no different. I haven't seen Jon for a few weeks, and he decided to come to Shreveport, because my co-worker was going to be in an opera this weekend.

Tosh walked into our picture then wouldn't sit still when we tried to take one with him.

On Friday, both of us were feeling pretty tired after a long workday, so we decided to take it easy and go see a movie. We agreed on Carrie. Jon and I rarely ever want to go see the same movies. I was starving, so I had to get some popcorn. Luckily, Jon hates popcorn, so I didn't have to share. Yum.

The movie was really awesome. I didn't think it would be because it's a re-remake, but I loved it! And so did Jon. We decided to go get burgers at Twisted Root after the movie. Jon had never been, and I had only gone once and loved it! We were The Fonz during our visit. Jon was embarrassed because I didn't know who he was, but then I looked him up and realized that I did. The embarrassment still ensued.

And this is The Fonz. Just so everyone knows.
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Saturday, we slept in then went to the farmer's market around 10:30 am. I bought a ridiculous amount of stuff, more than I've ever bought at the farmer's market before, but I needed a lot of groceries. We walked around and ate a bunch of free samples then we had some pistolettes that weren't that great because they weren't really pistolettes. They weren't stuffed. Everything that it was supposed to be stuffed with was just poured on top. Um...that's not a pistolette at all.

After the farmer's market, Jon helped me find a dress for the opera...

My newest LBD for just $19. Love the belt too!

...then we nerded out at Barnes and Noble - him in the classics and me at the Harry Potter display.

I don't know what use this will have in my life, but I know it would bring me happiness.

Saturday night, we met two of my co-workers, and my boss's daughter at Ernest's, which is a really awesome restaurant in Shreveport that I had never been to. I asked the bartender to make me something pink, fruity, and sweet, and he did. I asked him what it was, and he declared it The Tiffany, which is great except that I'll never be able to drink it again, because who knows what was actually mixed in it? Not me.

What a handsome fellow.

After dinner, we went to the opera to see one of my co-workers in Elixir of Love. It was not what I was expecting. It was in Italian, but they had the English translation at the top.

It was a very funny love story. A man named Nemorino, confesses his love to a beautiful girl named Adina. A sergeant comes into town and proposes to Adina. A "doctor" comes into town and Nemorino asks him for the love potion that was used on Isolde to make her fall in love with Tristan. The doctor gives Nemorino what he believes to be the elixir of love, but it is really just wine. All of the ladies fall for Nemorino when they discover that his uncle has died and left Nemorino a great fortune. Adina sees this and becomes jealous. Eventually she declares her love Nemorino. A lot of other stuff happens too, but that's the gist of it. It was a very funny opera, and Jon enjoyed it too.

My favorite soldier! So glad I could support him in the opera!

Yesterday, we slept in again and then watched Lie to Me until we got hungry. Then we made some pizza and watched Friday's episode of Grimm and hung out with this guy for a little bit.

Luckily, I won't have to wait too too long till I get to see him again - just two weeks and I'm going to visit him and we're going to see Catching Fire! Did you do anything exciting this weekend? photo withlovesignature_zpscd4b5559.png

picture perfect memories.

Day 9 of the Thankful Project is all about a picture. I'm very excited to share this picture with all of you.

When I graduated from college, my dad drove all the way from South Carolina to come see me walk. My dad is one of my favorite people in the world. He is one of the strongest men I know, and he knows how to keep his head up even when he has every reason to just be upset and give up. He always tells me how proud of me he is, and he is definitely my biggest supporter.

I don't think I'll ever get a picture with my entire family (maybe at my wedding?), but this picture just makes me very happy. My step-dad hardly ever takes pictures, and I barely ever get to see my dad, so I love this picture so much because they are both in it. I also love how happy my mom looks in this picture. She is always laughing at something. The lady on the far left is one of my mom's oldest friends, Nicole. She's known me for a very long time, so long that I didn't remember who she was at first. And of course y'all know the love I have for my sister. This picture was taken during the graduation party that my mom threw for me. I'm so happy I got to share it with some of the most important people in my life. I'm going to treasure this picture forever, and hopefully I'll have another one later that shows my whole family, or at least a bigger portion of it. And don't forget to like my new Facebook page! photo withlovesignature_zpscd4b5559.png

college roommates.

I'm interpreting The Thankful Project in my own way today. Today's prompt is "words." The word I chose is roommate, and I want to share with you some of my favorite people in the world.

I honestly feel bad for the people who choose to stay home while attending college. There's just something about moving to a new place for college, away from your family and away from the similarities of your every day life. Unlike most people, I wasn't scared to move away. I've moved so many times in my life, so I felt like that was just a preparation for me to finally be living independently from my family for school.

I really lucked out with my first roommate. We were strangers before we moved in together and ended up living together for two years, which was a blast. During my junior year, I moved into an apartment with my friend, Anamaria, and two strangers. Anamaria and I were wonderful as roommates.

We were cuddling before we even lived together.

Then during December of my junior year, one of our roommates moved out, and our friend, Mandy, moved in.

During senior year, our friend's little sister, Analeigh, came to Tech as a freshman, and she moved in, which led to us having the best (and most diverse) roommate foursome ever!

There are so many things I miss about living with the four of them, like...

...walking across the street to get fro-yo.

...getting ready for parties together, particularly ones that had themes.

Graffiti party!

...carpooling to Wal-Mart.

...doing things together that other friends wouldn't think of as fun, such as having a murder mystery party.

Drag queen, lap dancer, senile mother, hippie cousin

...eating lunch together on campus even though we saw each other every day.

...opening each other's Christmas presents together in our pajamas before we opened any of our other friends' presents.