June Bugs and Puppy Hugs

Bonjour!

 It's been a beautiful summer so far, and I just can't believe that June is almost over! Only 1 1/2 months of summer left and then we're back to the sighs and slows of finishing college... Wow I can't believe I just messed up this post in just two sentences. FORGET school, it's summertime! Vacations and excessive hobbies and sun and flip-flops! No time for school here. Except summer classes, which really aren't that bad considering it's creative writing (WOOHOO).
    Currently I'm working on a mystery short called "Carpe Corpus" (seize the body), appropriately named for its constant relocation of a body that may or may not actually be dead. I've also got a sci-fi in the works which deals with the unexpected fate of a dystopian research team looking for survival in a collapsing world. Sooo excited to get these written and receive feedback from much esteemed colleagues (I hope). But until then...
fun awaits!

 Top: Pick Your Plum | Skirt: Old | Flip-flops: Gifted

xoxo, Sara

How to Have an AWESOME Summer

Bonjour!

So you want to have a fabulous vacation. The first things that may come to mind are your friends' pictures of beachcombing in the Bahamas, shopping in Paris, or hiking in the Grand Canyon, and suddenly your summer seems like a walk in the park. Literally.
     While you may not be able to travel the world during this time of academic freedom, you can still have a ball right where you are. That's right folks- your city may not be as hole-in-the-wall boring as you think! Continue reading to find out how YOU can have the time of your life without a passport.

HOW TO GET STARTED

 - First, you're gonna need a jar (I recycled an Apple Sauce jar), a little container/box (e.g. recycled cream cheese container), washi tape, and sticky notes. Use the washi tape to decorate (yay!) the containers however you want. For the activity container, you can cut a slot into the lid to make depositing sticky notes easier and more fun.

HOW IT WORKS

 - For every day of rigorous (or whatever you're able to do) physical exertion you complete, you get to add a sticky note of an activity to a jar. At the end of the week, providing that you have completed at least 5 weekdays of workout, you get to pick an activity from the jar and enjoy your well-deserved and much-earned funness.
 - Need some workout inspiration? My Fitness Pal is a great resource to track calories, record workout progress, and connect with a community of fellow fitness enthusiasts. Best of all, membership is free.

 - To find a workout, simply click blog near the top of the screen and then click "Move". It's all incline from there!


HOW TO FIND ACTIVITIES 

 - This is perhaps the best part of the whole program: activity shopping. While some ideas may automatically start flowing from brain to pen, finding great cheap activities can also be a struggle. Here are some places to look if things to do become hard to find:

• Local Park Districts- May offer boating, hiking trails, volleyball/tennis courts, baseball diamonds, or just an open area to throw a frisbee/football around.
• Local University/Community College events that are open to the public: Can include art exhibits, musical concerts, sports areas or facilities, ice-skating rinks, rock-climbing facilities, etc. for minimal prices (most under $10).

Run out of things to do in town?

• 50 States.com/Travel- Select your state to find out what landmarks are worth visiting OR 
• Locate your state destination website for a free (usually) travel guide. I went to Enjoy Illinois, ordered my free travel guide, and can simply choose by region or city to find landmarks/activities that interest me (State parks are a favorite and the parking fees run under $10).

HOW TO FUND ACTIVITIES

 - Throughout the week you can add loose change, found dollar bills, etc. to a FUNds jar, or you can add a dollar for every day you complete your exercise/ accomplish a goal, to help meet the cost of fun.

 - Or you can budget extra money earned from lemonade stands, selling hand-made crafts on Etsy, mowing lawns/gardening, etc. My favorite way to make quick cash is to participate as a subject in research studies at the University. There are a lot of opportunities for making a little summer profit, so just be creative and do a little investigating to see what work people need done.

Fun is out there waiting!

xoxo,
Sara

Aquamarina

Bonjour!

 I thought it would be fun to "YO-HO MATEYS!" other boaters... apparently not everyone was on deck with that.

Bonjour mateys!

Yesterday I set sail on my first paddle-boating adventure with my little sister in tow and learned three things right out of the gate:

1. If you don't know how to steer, you're going to end up in places you don't want to be.
2. Just like pedestrians, ducks think they own the rights to the roadway and will pull out in front of you recklessly at any given moment. With no apparent regard for the fact that you are in a solid boat a foot off the water and they are in expendable mortal duck bodies. Quacks.
3. If you take someone with you, you should confirm that the person can actually drive/steer the boat safely before turning the wheel over to them. Refer to point number 1 for more information.
4. Boating is a great opportunity to work out some serious leg muscles and tan the tar out of them as well. Or burn like a frog in a boiling pot. #sunscreen.
5. There really is no way to stylishly style a lifejacket.

Ok, maybe 5 steps. But who knew there were multiple life lessons involved here??

     This boating trip is part of a PSP (Personal Summer Program) in which adults make summer fun happen (assuming of course that the non-mentioned-before summer job does not interfere with aforementioned activities and that aforementioned adults do not have non-mentioned-before children. Which may or may not completely destroy the carrying out of afore-mentioned fun summer fun program).  It is also well-adapted for teens, which I am not, but who may feel left out at the sole mention of "adult". Providing you don't have kids and an inflexible work schedule, who's to put an age limit on fun? (besides me, apparently.) Fine! A generic Personal Summer Program for any persons of any age. Except those under the age of 15, who must be accompanied by an adult. But it's not like the adult couldn't set it up for their kids like nice parents sometimes do but which mine never did (probably considering the fact that I was the child and it was my idea in the future which my parents would have no way of knowing unless of course they were time-travelers in a well-distinguished blue box. That could actually account for the weird noises at night coming from their room. Or maybe that was my dad's chronic snoring. Now that I think about it, they probably hid the Tardis in the attic where I would never ever think/dream/attempt to look. *suppresses a shiver*). I will elaborate on the PSP next time with an update on how well I am progressing on it/ how I am pretending to progress on it considering I am actually failing miserably on every aspect apart from actually doing the activities. :) But we're all secret-keeping friends here, aren't we?

To see our boating adventure and get a sneak peek behind the scenes when we accidentally sink the boat (not, but it was definitely a possibility), check out my video below and on YouTube.

Hat: Gifted | Top/Skirt: Thrifted | Sunnies/Flipflops: Old | Mint Scarf: Pick Your Plum

xoxo, Sara

Picnic Joli + Striped Promenade

Bonjour!

 What a beautiful week it has been here! Yesterday I got to stop by one of my favorite spots for a picnic atop a hidden hill (mountain if you want to consider the heavy bags and semi-high heels that had to be drug up the thing) with my new favorite food of all lunch-time: sushi. After that, it was a simple matter of rolling up the waterproof picnic blanket, tossing the trash into a bag, and setting off on the winding trails for a beautiful garden adventure. A slight breeze made the summer weather bearable and the open pagodas and sculpted hedges were a delightful touch to the afternoon, especially when they helped obscure the view of a potential creeper who "coincidentally" appeared every five minutes. Or maybe he was just following the same path. Who knows. Anyway...

I can't wait to hit the streets again and join you next week for another exciting expedition into nature's unknown!

Oh La La Tee/Bow-Bedecked Bag/Belt: Thrifted | Skirt: Romwe | Heels/Sunnies: Walmart | Watch: Jane

xoxo,
Sara

New Face, Same Space

Bonjour!

After months of consideration and deliberation, I have decided that it is time for a fresh new face for the blog! What can you expect to see from Cover (It) Girl? It's the same blog, same purpose, and same personality as The Ladyhood, but with a new snazzy outlook. Specifically, I want to focus more on fashion and modesty as well as the importance of natural beauty, because girls, we don't need products to be beautiful!

This is not to say that the blog is solo style, because I never know what is coming next (I mean, constant bombardment of random thoughts, ideas, inspirations, etc. etc.) so stay tuned! Things are about to get exciting. :)

xoxo,
Sara