Have a Great Weekend.

What are you up to this weekend? It's the beginning of "Senior Week" at Northeastern, and I couldn't be more excited! I'm headed to a few bbqs and bars, Fenway Park, and a banquet. It's bittersweet how fast the past 5 years have gone by at NU, but I'm very excited to begin a new chapter of my life. While I'll be very busy, I've left you a few fun and useful links to check out over your weekend...

Sunset at Fenway Park

"Shipped my Pants"

The Power of Style
This book by Bobbie Thomas (Editor for NBC's Today Show) highlights your style by identifying your best colors. It looks amazing! Officially on my to-read list!

Well, that's a huge slap in the face
This has got to be one of the funniest, kick ass emails that I have ever read. I definitely don't understand Greek Life, but by the sounds of this email, those sisters are crying in a corner right now.

23 Science-Backed Study Tips to Ace a Test

NH Liquor and Wine Outlet Coupons
I plan to pick up a few bottles of Franciscan Cabernet!

Peace in Boston

College Senior!

A look into next week's post: Future Apartment Style

Enjoy!
-Lauren

Fedora Find

     

I'm in search of a fedora for the summer time. As you can see from above, I'm a fair-skinned, blue-eyed girl. A hat is a good way to keep my face from getting too much sun; not to mention, it's a great fashion statement. The hat from above was one I tried on last summer at a festival, but I didn't end up buying it (wish I had). Below are some options I'm looking at. It's hard to online shop for fedoras because you never know how it will fit your head. Most fedoras are one size fits all. You can find the fedoras below at Target, Gap, & Express (use the links provided to get info about prices and sizes).

Orange braid

Chevron

Nautical Knot

Nautical Pink Knot

Two-tone

Navy Ribbon

Which fedora is your favorite? Do you were fedoras during the summer?

-Lauren

DIY--Melted Crayon Art

Several other blog sites and people on Pinterest have written about these melted crayon designs. I wanted to share how I created mine with my little sister last Easter. I grew up in a house with two sisters, and every year our mom would take us back-to-school shopping. We always bought a new box of crayons each year for each of us girls. We also kept our crayons from the previous school year, so if you can imagine 3 boxes of crayons each year for about 12 years... that's a whole lot of crayons! For my melted-crayon project, I used ALL old crayons that my family had stored in our home. I encourage each of you to use supplies that you already own for this project. I also used fake flowers from a bouquet of flowers that I purchased from a craft store. After I removed the 5 flowers I needed for this project, I kept the bouquet and have it in my apartment in a vase. You can't even tell that the 5 flowers were removed from it. Here is a step-by-step tutorial of how I made my beautiful wall art...

Reused flower bouquet

Supplies: 
<> Canvas
<> Hot glue gun with glue
<> Hair dryer
<> Crayons--greens, yellows, browns
<> Newspaper
<> Fake flowers


Step 1: Pick out the colors you want to use and line them up on the bottom on the canvas until you run out of space.
Step 2: Using a glue gun, make a line of glue across the crayons. Quickly place onto canvas in a line with tips facing down.
Step 3: Line your floor with newspaper, place the canvas against the wall, and turn your blow dryer on high. The wax sometimes splatters a little, so be sure to cover the floor and surrounding wall.
Step 4: Blow dry the crayons, making sure to move the blow dryer vertically and horizontally. This could take up to 30 minutes. As the wax starts to really melt, continue to move the blow dryervertically and horizontally to make the wax drip more down the canvas. 
Step 5: After the design has dried for 15 minutes, hot glue the flowers onto the longest "stems." 

Enjoy! Have you made a melted crayon design? I'd love to see how other people got creative with the different designs. I think the couple in the rain one is so unique.
-Lauren

Let's Go on a Road Trip!

Mapped-Out Road Trip from myscenicdrive.com

As I mentioned in a previous post, I am amidst planning my cross-country road trip after I graduate! The plan is to leave May 20th and take about a month to travel in the mapped-out loop shown above. Over Easter weekend, I Googled cross country trip planner and came across an amazing site called myscenicdrive.com. This site allows you to easily create your road trip plan. It even calculates the total cost of gas, as well as lists nearby hotels and campgrounds near your destination points. I have found this site very useful and would recommend it to anyone trying to plan a cross-country road trip or just a within state drive. Check it out!

Below is a list of major areas and attractions that my boyfriend and I are hoping to visit on our trip...

• Niagra Falls, NY
• Cambridge, WI (where I have family)
• Badlands National Park
• Mt. Rushmore
• Devil's Tower & Crazy Horse Memorial
• Yellowstone National Park
• Grand Teton Loop
• Napa Valley
• Stanford, CA
• Yosemite National Park
• Sequoia National Park
• Las Vegas
• Northern Rim of the Grand Canyon
• Bryce, Utah
• Glenwood Spring & Denver, CO
• Kansas City or St. Louis
• Nashville
• Manchester, TN--for Bonnaroo!!
• Smokey Mts.
• Lake Norman, NC
• Alexandria, VA (where I have family) & Washington DC

Any other suggestions of places that we must see or remove from our list? Any good restaurants that you know of along the way? We enjoy good food and hiking!

-Lauren

Have a Fun Weekend.

What are you up to this weekend? I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things here in Boston. It's been a crazy week, between volunteering at the Boston Marathon finish line, the continuing manhunt for the bombers, the Texas explosion, etc. My thoughts are with all those affected by the horrific events that have happened over the past week. On a lighter note, I hope you have a wonderful weekend, and here are a few posts from around the web...

My Northeastern University student group, the Student Alumni Association, volunteering at the finish line

Stars' Style at Coachella

Puppy Love

She gives me the chills (go to 2 min)

Turkey, Kale, & Brown Rice Soup

Mishka's new album

DIY: Homemade Baby Wipes

My most recent shoe purchase

So Inspirational

Angie Miller's I'll Stand by you for Boston

"We will run again." "They picked the wrong city to do it." --Obama

I'm Going to Bonnaroo

I have an announcement... I'M GOING TO BONNAROO! 

Bonnaroo is a 4-day music festival in Manchester, TN that features different musicians/bands and comedians. This year the lineup includes Paul McCartney, Mumford & Sons, Tom Petty, The Lumineers, and Passion Pit (just to name some of my top favorites). I'm traveling to Manchester, TN as part of a month-long road trip that my boyfriend and I are taking after we graduate from college. I'll tell you more about our cross-country adventure in future posts.

He made a playlist on Spotify of some of the musicians/bands that are playing at Bonnaroo, so that we can familiarize ourselves with the music before the big event.If you would like to listen to my Bonnaroo Playlist, click on the link below. 
Listen on Spotify

I'd love to know... have you ever been to Bonnaroo? Any advice for first-timers? I'd love suggestions!
-Lauren

Who Wants Guacamole?

Hi friends!

In the past year or so, I've been on a guacamole kick. I recently made my guacamole recipe for a weekend bbq with friends. It was delicious, if I do say so myself. Avocados have great health benefits, and you DO NOT need to buy them organic. The following is my go-to, easy recipe...

Recipe: Guacamole
Serves 6

1/2 small white onion, peeled and finely diced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced
4 ripe avocados
1/2 cup of your favorite jarred salsa
3 tablespoons Newman's Own Black Bean & Corn Salsa (Medium) or a similar bean dip
1 tsp kosher salt
pepper to taste
lime juice to taste

What to do: 

Slice the avocados in half around the pit, remove the pit, and scrape the flesh out. Place in a large bowl, and use a fork to mash the avocados to a chunky texture. I will sometimes use a potato masher to mash the avocados as opposed to a fork. Use whatever works for you!

Squeeze the fresh lime juice into the bowl and mix. Add the onion, garlic, salsa, and bean dip. Mix to blend ingredients. Add the salt and pepper to taste. 

 Taste the guacamole and add more salt if necessary.

Lauren's Guacamole

This recipe is able to be adapted in anyway. If you don't like bean dip or don't have it, don't use it! Like cilantro? Add it! 

I'd love you hear your go-to guacamole recipe! Feel free to leave your recipe below in the comments, and I'll be sure to try it out and let you know how it went! 
Come back tomorrow for a post about what I'm currently listening to! :)
-Lauren

Welcome!

Welcome to C'est La Vie.

My name is Lauren, and I currently live in Boston, MA. I am getting ready to graduate college in less than 3 weeks from Northeastern University. I study speech language pathology and want to work at a skilled nursing facility beginning in the fall; however, I'm still job searching and looking forward to having my summer off from most responsibilities.

This blog will serve to highlight some of my hobbies, including cooking, DIY fun, travel, fashion, interior/exterior decorating, and organization. Today's post will highlight my love of cooking affordable, flavorful, and healthy food. This is a recipe that I've made for a girl's night dinner, for my parents, and for my boyfriend. I exclude the lobster (to save money) and include a warm baguette to dip in the delicious sauce that this recipe makes. Also, the recipe calls for heavy cream but to make it healthier, you could use half & half. Everyone that I've made this dish for has loved it and has gone back for seconds.

Whole Wheat Penne with Lobster and Bacon (and Shrimp)

Bon appetite! If you attempt to make this recipe, let me know how it turns out. :)
Come back tomorrow for another affordable, flavorful, and healthy meal post!
-Lauren

Photo credit: My boyfriend's Droid Bionic camera