Children of the Corn Maze & Other Amherst Adventures

This past weekend I took a spontaneous day-trip to Amherst with my friends Kara and Kyle for some reminiscing about our college days at UMass Amherst. October is such a perfect time to be in that part of Massachusetts, and I'd personally been craving a Pioneer Valley trip the entire month thus far, so it was just the thing to lift my spirits.

When I think of Amherst in the fall, I think of beautiful foliage splashed across the hills surrounding the valley, pumpkin patches, farm stands, corn mazes, haunted hayrides, apple cider, and the UMass campus teeming with students wearing North Face jackets, UMass gear and Ugg boots. Since Kara, Kyle and I were only going to be there for the morning/afternoon, we couldn't pack all of those pleasures into this one trip, but we picked a nice selection of Amherst-area activities and gave it our all.

We made it to the Valley by around 10am, and after swinging through Northampton for some coffee, we made a bee-line for Mike's Maze in Sunderland - a local corn maze and farm stand that I'd been to once before with David some years ago. And what a gorgeous day to do a corn maze!

And looking north, here was the gorgeous view of Mount Sugarloaf from Mike's Maze:

Sidebar, Mount Sugarloaf is also a great attraction on a fall day if you're in the Pioneer Valley. It's a short hike with lovely views of the Connecticut River and the surrounding hills.

While I'm sure all corn mazes are different, Mike's Maze does a different maze design every year and also incorporates a whole game/challenge into the maze. This year's maze design was a raven, and you can (and should) check out the bird's eye view of it here. The game aspect involved a bit of animal trivia and some drawing, and while that part was obviously mostly for the kids, we still got into it pretty unabashedly that morning. Here's an intense shot of Kara completing one of the drawing challenges, while Kyle makes sure she doesn't go over the allotted 30-second timeframe to do so.

What a nice day to be lost in a corn maze...

After we found our way out of the maze, we were each rewarded with a free sugar pumpkin to take home. Did you even know there was such a thing as a "sugar pumpkin"? Apparently that's what the smaller pumpkins are called - and they actually have differently textured flesh that makes them better for baking with than larger pumpkins. Now you know. 

From Sunderland, we drove into Amherst and through the middle of the UMass campus as we made our way towards the town center for lunch. If you are a UMass alum, you don't need me to tell you where we went for lunch that day. You already know. For everyone else, our lunch stop of choice was Bueno Y Sano - aka the best Mexican restaurant in the entire world. Yep, even better than the ones in Mexico probably. But seriously, Bueno is famous in Amherst (and beyond) for its in-cred-i-ble burritos, tacos and quesadillas. Most people go for the burritos but I'm more of a chicken soft taco girl myself. I ordered two of them while Kara and Kyle each nommed on different types of burritos. Everyone was more than satisfied with their choices - and it was SO good to eat at Bueno again after my 3 or 4 year hiatus.

We followed up lunch with a stop off at a local watering hole - McMurphy's. It was definitely one of the most popular bars in town when we were students, and it's one of the few that has remained relatively unchanged in the years since we graduated. Many of the other bars have changed owners or been renovated or moved completely to new premises in the last 7 years.

Same goes for UMass itself! An impressive number of new buildings have gone up all over the campus. Guess that's what they did with all of our tuition money haha! Has anyone else gone back to their college campus and been like, "Whaaa? Where'd all this new shit come from??"

We took a stroll through campus and checked out our Student Union and Campus Center while we were there. Again - things changing left and right. There are some really fancy new common areas and dining facilities inside of those buildings that have the whole place looking like something from THE FUTURE. Kids these days. They're growing up spoiled! (Shakes fist at young'ns.)

The proper way to conclude our Amherst trip was to drive past a few of our favorite college apartments of yore (#RUSSELLST, #TRIANGLEST, #EASTST, #BESTYEARSOFOURLIVES) for some ceremonial sighs and memory-lane'ing, and then stop into Hadley's The Donut Man for some treats on our way out of town. I was thrilled to see that Donut Man still sells my much-beloved Frozen Hot Chocolate drink - which is just effing out of this world, guys. Tastes EXACTLY like a delicious Swiss Miss hot chocolate, except it's a frozen, ice-blended version. Mmm... I'd like one right now, in fact.

All in all, I'd say this day-trip to the Valley was a roaring success. And, as Kyle keenly pointed out, having had such a lovely time in such a short amount of time (a span of just about 4 or 5 hours, not including the drive) will hopefully encourage us to head to Amherst more often in the future. In other words, students of UMass... see us in a bit.

When was the last time you headed back to your college? Leave a note in the comments and let me know where you went to school! I'm curious :)

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An Inadvertent Heart-to-Heart

I have been a bad blogger this month. Truthfully it's because my mood hasn't been that phenomenal lately thanks to all of my many aches and pains (physical and emotional), and part of me wants to not bother trying to put on a show of being chipper here on my blog. I don't want to be fake, but then again no one wants to read a blog from a person who is just betching and moaning all the time. (No, I didn't take a poll of the room to come up with that last conclusion, but it just seems logical.) My solution, mostly, has been to just remain quiet and not post much at all. "If you don't have something nice to blog, just blog nail polish pictures every Friday."

But I don't want it to be that way. I like blogging - or at least I did. It's a great hobby, generally. A good way to keep writing, a good reason to hone my photography skills, a good way to keep a little record of my life. In Vancouver it was also a good way to make new friends, though that aspect of blogging has yet to trickle over into my new Boston life.

... The scary part is that my Boston life isn't even really that "new" anymore. I feel like something in my life should have made more forward progress by now, but instead my bedroom still isn't even really finished being "put together." I have stacks of random photos all over my bedroom because my life feels so uncertain that I'm scared to commit to hanging anything onto my walls. There's still no living room furniture in my apartment. Part of me feels like I'm relying on my friends too much for stimulation, rather than working on making myself feel more complete and capable and self-sufficient. I should be taking up some new hobby, like the guitar or meditation or yoga. Actually, don't even get me started on the topic of physical activity like yoga, because it's just a reminder that I'm unable to workout due to the neck/shoulder/arm/back pain I've been dealing with since the summer. My life this month has been a series of trips back and forth to the chiropractor in Cambridge, twice a week, an hour each way, for 15-minute appointments that may or may not even be helping. Only over the last few days have I been able to fall asleep without pain medication or muscle relaxers.

This still doesn't even cover all the things going through my mind lately. It's really been a rough week/month/year. Making it all just a little bit rougher is the fact that my 30th birthday is just a few short weeks away. Six months ago, that wouldn't have been a big deal to me at all - I'd have felt pretty decent about it, like my life was ready for me to turn 30. Now I feel like everything is off-track, like I'm entering my 30's in a panic rather than a party. It doesn't feel like a cause for celebration, that's for sure.

Believe it or not, I started this post with the intention of just sharing these pretty fall leaf pictures. Apparently I needed to share some feeeeeels, too. Hope you guys don't mind. I don't have a tidy conclusion to my stream-of-consciousness blah's or an easy segue into my leaf pictures, but... um... here, look at these now:

Have any cheerful thoughts or gigg-worthy memes or videos to share with me to relieve me of some of my Debbies? Please, for the love of god, leave me something to smile about in the comments below.

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BLOGLOVIN

New England in the Fall: Everywhere Else Can Suck It

Sooo not to brag or anything, but New England in the fall is simply the bee's knees. October, specifically, is the month to come here if you're looking to do any leaf-peeping. That means you better get here pronto if you want in on the action this year.

My neighborhood isn't lacking in deciduous trees, so I've got a front row view of Mother Nature doing her annual color-changing thang. Things look different around here every single day, and I have been snapping plenty of pictures around my hood each time I go out for a walk or to run an errand. Here's a bit of what's been in my lens:

This weekend I tried to get back to the gym a little bit, but only to do cardio. I still can't do many other exercises without my shoulder hurting, so at the very least I can put in some 30-minute sessions on the elliptical here and there. Can't be letting myself get soft during Halloween month, when we're all supposed to look super fly in our skanky costumes. Just kidding, my costume won't be skanky - though it will feature some exposed bra. Can't wait to show you what I mean, but you'll just have to wait till Halloween to find out. My friend J-rod throws an annual Halloween party that I've missed out on the last 2 years, being away in Vancouver, so it's especially exciting for me to be here for it this year.

Stay tuned for probably more fall pictures from my neck of the woods.
Do the leaves change where you live?
Are you dressing up for Halloween?

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BLOGLOVIN   {Linking with Finding Beauty}

Fall Foliage Nails

Oh well hello there, Friday. Fancy seeing you here again.

It's been another week of muscle relaxers and chiropractor appointments over here, trying to make my shoulder stop misbehaving. I can't tell if the chiropractor is helping or not, but at least I've got a man massaging my neck for me twice a week. Don't tell him I said that.

In other news, I have been taking walks outside in the refreshing sunshine that Boston has had this week - and the autumn leaves are really looking spectacular. I've got a ton of pictures to share with you soon, so please come back on Monday to leaf-peep some of thooose!

On a related note, my nails today were inspired by a tree right outside my window that has slowly been turning from green to yellow over the last couple of weeks. Everyday it's a little more amber and a little less emerald, which inspired me to break out my makeup sponge and do a sponge mani with green, yellow and orange.

I'm not entirely thrilled with how these came out - honestly, they're not what I envisioned. But they're not awful, so that's why I'm sharing them.

I started out by painting all of my nails this Hunter Green color from Love & Beauty. Next I used some white polish on a makeup sponge to dab some random splotches around my nails. (The white splotches would serve as my "blank canvas" for the next steps.)  Once the white was dry, I repeated that step with a yellow polish (Little Miss Sunrise by Essence), then an orange polish (Metallic Mango from Milani), and finished it off with another dabbing of the yellow polish.

At the very least, this is something out of the ordinary and different. It can also be done with pretty much any color combination you'd like, so... go forth and dab with your sponges, ladies.

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BLOGLOVIN   {Linking with The Nail Files, Beauty Buzz, and Friday's Fab Favorites}

5 Fall Nail Designs

Yesterday I did my nails twice, and each time the outcome displeased me so much that I removed the polish in a fit of rage. (Just kidding about the rage; it wasn't that serious.) Normally I pride myself on my color combinations, but the choices I made yesterday have me questioning all of that. Ah well, it's back to the drawing board for me. But in the meantime, here are five other fall nail designs that you can feast your eyes upon:

These mustard and navy nails are a great way to incorporate the seasonal mustard yellow without having to commit to an entire garment in the bold color:

Use a dotting tool to create abstract autumn leaves against a blue sky:

Everyone loves jewel tones in the fall! These jewel toned nails of emerald, sapphire and topaz were inspired by a fashion blogger's outfit:

Halloween nails! This nail design was inspired by witches and was a fun departure from the typical "orange and black" Halloween color scheme:

Candy corn nails are a great excuse to bust out the makeup sponge and do a gradient this season! Click through for the how-to: 

Tonight I am going to The Paint Bar on Newbury Street with my friends Steph and Kara. The Paint Bar is a super fun thing to do with your friends - it's a painting class where you can "paint, drink and be merry" (so sayeth their website). I've been to The Paint Bar in Newtonville, MA before, where we painted a really cool Boston nighttime skyline. Tonight's picture is a beautiful autumn-inspired painting of the Charles River - you can see the picture here. Everyone in the class paints the same picture, but each person's comes out a little bit differently. I'll absolutely be bringing my camera and will blog in the near future about the good times that are had!

What do you have going on this weekend?
Have you spotted any cool fall or Halloween nail designs yet?
Do you have something like a Paint Bar in your city?

FACEBOOK TWITTER PINTEREST INSTAGRAM BLOGLOVIN   {Linking with Friday's Fab Favorites, Monday Must-Haves,  Beauty Buzz, and The Nail Files}

Falling into Fall while Holding a Camera

Normally I post my workouts today, but that damn shoulder pain has prevented me from even going to the gym this week. In lieu of a Workouts of the Week blog today, I thought I'd post some pictures I took while walking around the Mystic River Reservation on the first day of fall:

.  i love the deep grooves in this tree's bark  .

.  this tree's roots were rebelling against the sidewalk  .

.  pop of yellow in this green tree  .

.  airplanes fly over my apartment building alllllll the time  .

Despite the shoulder pain, this weekend has been a nice one. I finally got some muscle relaxers that give me enough relief to fall asleep, and since I didn't sleep at all last week, my Friday night was spent curled up in my bed watching episodes of Scandal on Netflix before passing out around 10. It was very exciting for me to realize when I woke up on Saturday that I'd actually fallen asleep the night before. Yesterday I spent the afternoon in Cambridge with my friends Kara and Jenna. We went to lunch at Charlie's Kitchen, where we ate outside in their beer garden, and then did some casual shopping in Harvard Square. Later that night I decided to tackle the project of putting together my new Tarva bed from Ikea. I expected to only take the parts out of the box and evaluate the situation, but I ended up glancing at the directions and realizing that they didn't look too tricky. And, lo, they weren't! I put the entire bed together, topped it with my comfy mattress, and slept on a REAL bed for the first time since moving in. Hoozah!

This afternoon some of my girlfriends are getting together for what we hope will be a new monthly staple:  a craft club! We'll take turns hosting the club and the craft (so each hostess will choose the craft on her day), and we will eat food and drink wine while being creative. Jenna is hosting the inaugural Craft Club (is it OK if I capitalize it? It's pretty official) today, and has kept the craft a secret so far. Can't wait to see what she has up her sleeve! I'll definitely bring my camera and then hopefully blog about it afterwards.

What do you think of the idea of a Craft Club? Sound like something you'd ever do with your friends?
Who else watches Scandal?
Is fall showing itself in your neighborhood trees yet?

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More Vancouver Fall Pics + Checking Items Off My Fall To-Do List

It's been an overcast couple of weeks here in Vancouver, which had me longing for those bright blue skies and colorful leaves that I was boasting about just a few weeks ago. That's why I was so excited to remember that this crop of photos existed - a set that I snapped in late October before the weather turned drearier.

I was parked on the UBC campus waiting for David one afternoon, 

when I hopped out of the car to take these:

And then I ran across the street to take these: 

I thought the red berries looked cool against the white painted wall...

We were out for a walk through our Kitsilano neighborhood when I couldn't resist stopping to capture this beautiful red tree against the clear blue sky:

Walking along the Seaside Bike Path, I noticed the lovely foliage on the Yaletown side of False Creek:

Coming home from the gym and these fiery leaves caught my eye...

Here's a clear shot of the mountains that were totally covered by fog in my last fall post:

And while I've got you here and we're all chit-chatting about fall, it seem like a fabulous time to give you a little update about how I'm doing on my Fall To-Do List!

Let's start off with the BEST news:

.  nailed it  .

Yes, I'm finally the proud owner of The Nightmare Before Christmas and I gotta tell ya - life is pretty great over on this side.

You see those little gourds?? SOMEONE'S SPORTING A NEW PAINT JOB. Yup, I painted a pumpkin, so I can successfully cross that off my to-do list! I even found another random tiny gourd to paint, as a bonus.

The other item that I've been able to scratch off the list is going through my clothes to pull out some items to donate. There's probably a Round 2 in my future, but I have gone through all of my shirts and jeans and have pulled out a handful of things that really don't need to be in my closet anymore. The number of items that ended up in the "to go" pile was pretty disappointing though, in terms of what I'd expected to get rid of. That's why I say there'll probably be another round - but this was a good start!

So that's 3 of my 6 goals done. I still have to:

• Buy new rain- and fashion-friendly boots
• Go to an apple orchard/hayride
• Attend a Halloween party <~ Possibly too late for this one? 

Did you make a fall to-do list this season? What's the best thing you've gotten done in the last month or so? And would you like to come over for a Nightmare Before Christmas viewing party? BYOP (popcorn, obvi)!!

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{Linking up at Miscellany Mondays and Tell Us Tuesday}

Autumn Leaves Nails

All of the autumnal foliage around here has been making me want to splash some of that fall flare all over my fingernails! So I did.

The inspiration behind these nails is a fully-swagged out tree against a beautiful blue sky. Something like this:

So I pulled out my favorite "sky blue" nail polish - Snowcone by Orly - and selected a crop of fall leaf colors from my stash to make it happen:

.  fuzzy navel by ruby kisses, little miss sunrise by essence, posh by revlon, a list by essie, and snowcone by orly  .

After applying a base coat and one coat of Snowcone to all of my nails, I tapped a few dots of the green polish onto a scrap paper and used my dotting tool to place a few green dots randomly around the lower half of each nail. I repeated this step with each color, until the lower half of each nail was more or less full of multi-colored dots.

I left a little bit of blue peeking through the "branches."

What do you think of this look? A little abstract, but fun, quick and easy!

And today there's a little something extra in my weekly nail polish blog! Each Friday I link up with Jennie over at her weekly Nail Files link party. This week she's hosting an awesome giveaway full of nail goodies and has asked for some help in spreading the word about zee fun. You can follow the link to enter the giveaway here ~> a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out what Jennie is generously giving away to the winner:

A bottle of Seche Vite top coat (which is apparently the Rolls Royce of top coats in the nail polish world), a bottle of China Glaze Patent Leather Top Coat, a bottle of Finger Paints Paper Mache, a bottle of Seche Vite Collage Overlay, a bottle of China Glaze Razzle Me Dazzle Me, a set of 10 assorted striping tapes, a set of nail art brushes, a set of dotting tools, and a packet of cheetah nail strips.

You can even earn extra entries for following me on Bloglovin, sooo.... DO THAT, RIGHT?

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{Linking up with The Nail Files, Friday's Five, Friday's Fab Favorites,  What I'm Loving Fridays, Tell Us Tuesdays}