Confetti and Champagne and All That Jazz

Yeah, so it's New Years Eve. I'm sure you didn't know that, though, because it's such an under-publicized holiday *eye roll*. 

I don't mean to sound overly bitter, but the whole concept of this holiday is a little puzzling to me. Why do we celebrate a new year? After all, there isn't anything special about it: it's merely just the same, gradual progression of time. Ancient people arbitrarily assigned January 1st to indicate a new year, that's all. It's not like the instant the ball in Times Square drops everything will be different. We'll still go to bed and wake up as the same people.

I guess the New Year is just kind of a wake up call. I think it's a time to reflect on the past year to see what can and needs to be changed. I'm not gonna lie, 2013 kinda blew. Now, don't get me wrong, there were a LOT of incredible things that happened this year. I joined my sorority, Chi Omega, a sisterhood that I will be a part of for life. My adorable nephew Sammy was born. My family got an incredible French Bulldog named Elliott. I turned 20 surrounded by my best friends. And I also began my weight loss journey, lost 15 pounds, and already feel so much more confident in myself.

To be womanly always, to be discouraged never.

He should be a Gap Baby model. But seriously.

My love and snuggle buddy.

Low quality photo, high quality friends.

MCA selfies for days.

But there was a lot of shit, too. I guess that's just life, though. I think I grew and matured more in 2013 than any other year. I finally feel like a real adult. I had a lot of tough situations thrown at me, and now I know how to deal with them. I feel stronger now. I feel like I can handle much more now. I feel like, as cliché as this is gonna sound, the world is my oyster. Even though 2013 wasn't my favorite year, I still consider myself very lucky to have what I do, and I can't wait to begin 2014 with a new, positive outlook. 2014 is gonna be my bitch and I'm so pumped. (Sorry for all the profanity. This is what happens when I get really pumped about something.)

Although I spent the first part of this post criticizing the glorified nature of the New Year, I still celebrate it and use it to evaluate my life and set resolutions. So, if you want to know, here are my 2014 New Year Resolutions (in no particular order):

|| Go to a music festival ||

|| Wear lipstick more often ||

|| Love and embrace myself fully ||

|| Reconnect with old friends (I'm looking at you, old California friends. I miss you!) ||

|| Study abroad in London and explore Europe ||

|| Run a half marathon ||

|| Use the word "rad" more often ||

|| Spend less time on Facebook (yeah, this one will be hard for me) ||

|| Spend more time in nature ||

|| Take more photographs ||

|| Continue pushing myself both academically and creatively ||

|| Follow my passions ||

|| Update this blog with a new post at least every couple of days ||

|| Sew enough clothes to constitute a mini wardrobe ||

|| Continue on my healthy lifestyle, exercising and eating healthy to reach my ultimate goals ||

|| Try to look my very best every day ||

|| Be true to my character and personality ||

|| Believe in myself in every situation ||

I realize that this is quite the hefty list, but I intend on completing all of these items. We'll check in on this list again in a year. For now, I hope you all have a very Happy New Year. <3

New Girl <3

Cheers!