Is Chevron a Blogger Thing?

Ya'll. I'm confused. I used to not like chevron. Weird zig-zag stripes on zig-zag stripes? Uh....weird, right? And actually a little bit ugly. 

And then I started my blog. Now?

"ohmygosh that's so cute!" Personally, I don't like anything except color + white combos, or mint + black but that's just me! What do you think?

Anyways, here's my question to you:

Is liking chevron a blogger thing? Why? 

And here's what inspired that question- and obviously the beginning of my Friday Five: 

1. We had to make puzzle pieces for Leadership (I'm on student government) to show that we're a family- how cute, right? I couldn't come up with anything, and than it hit me- CHEVRON!

Of course I left my orange marker at home, so I used highlighter. 

2. Welcome Back Bash last Friday! I know this is a little late to write about this, but YOLO. 

JK, I didn't say that. 

Carpe diem. 

There. SO much classier!

Photobooths, best friends, music and dancing. 

Definitely a great night ya'll!

Don't mind the In N Out hat (Sidenote: HA you poor non-Californians don't even know what that is!)- it was a nautical theme and we don't have the budget for real sailor hats. 

3. I found flat-ish land in California. NorCal, to be exact. 

This is a rarity ya'll. The only elevation changes in sight were the mountains in the distance. 

Notice the palm trees and evergreens in the same area. 

#californialivin

4. I got Sperry's! I've been wanting these for FOREVER and I'm totally obsessed with them. 

Seriously. 

I've worn them three days in a row. I never do that. 

5. Not really a high...but I'm getting my wisdom tooth taken out today. 

Yes, you heard read that right. 

I only have one. My bio teacher says that it mean I'm a "highly evolved human."

Honestly, as long as I can get my homework done for the weekend. 

What was your experience like? Wish me luck!!!

xo, Hima

Falling in Love with Fall Fashion

It happens every year- I'm so excited for brights and florals and neons and sundresses and shorts at the beginning of every summer, but by the time the school year rolls around and it starts to get cool, I can't help but lust after darker tones, chunky sweaters, scarves, and boots. 

Oh boots. 

How I love thee. 

No matter that I have 5 pairs- I still want more. 

On my wish list for now? Proper riding boots, a new pair of fake Uggs (Mine are absolutely dying!) and combat boots! 

Like I said, boots. 

Aside from my evident love for boots, I've put together a list of fall fashion items that I am absolutely in love with!

I tried to do a Back-to-School kind of thing, but that's just me being super lame haha :)

Clockwise, left to right: 

1. Southwestern Patterned Sweater ($24.80)- Forever 21

I'm not sure why, but I've been absolutely in love with Tribal everything lately! Including my necklace. 

2. Maroon Pants ($25)- Yoox

Maroon and mustard/burnt orange are at the top of my list right now!

3. Lace Bell Sleeve Dress ($39)- Urban Outfitters

Is this not absolutely adorable? I can see this with cowboy boots, which I unfortunately don't have, but it's also cute on its own!

4. Combat Boots ($20)- Amazon Boot Shop

5. Cognac Messenger Bag (19.99 Euros)- Newlook

6. Boho Braided Scarf ($9.80)- Forever 21

Don't mind me...just adding to my already crazy scarf collection. I think this muted but still colorful scarf is perfect for transitioning from summer to fall!
7. Bangle Set ($5.95)- H&M
I'm not much of an arm candy person, but this is just too cute!

How about you? What are you just dying to get?

xo, Hima

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Welcome to the weekly blog hop , Grab A Friend

Link up here , answer a question , grab a blogger and be friends!

Every week this hop is created with lots of love + fun . So be sure to share it to more and more people ca catch up and our lovely little hop can be large with more friends ;)

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Want to co-host? Shoot me en Email or check Sponsor .
                           

               Blog  | Twitter  | GFC | BlogLovin                                Blog | Twitter | GFC | Bloglovin

Now the co-host

Kirstie from The Semler Family

Blog // Bloglovin // Twitter 

Lovely Hima from Hima Hearts

Blog // Bloglovin

When you go to follow your hosts , leave the answer to make their day + a bloggy present .  We all would love to share love back { will follow you back} .

This hop is for finding new friends & bloggy mates . So be sure to go and find yourself one .
I am so happy cheery to see you all linking up with us every Tuesday . Yip-yip , you're rah-king.
Twitter is a new addition in hop , so if you want some Twitter-holic bloggy mates so link up , hop around & grab some tweeeeeeeeter sweeties .

Q : What's the worst advice you've ever given to anyone ?

Noor :

I am quite good at advice so everytime I give . I make sure it's not a shot but man , life's terrible at moments . In a party , my friend was in dilemma whther to clip her hair or not . She had to go on stage but before she wanted a perfect (aka purrrrfect) hair style . I told her "Don't clip them up . Let them move . Concentrate on your presence up on stage , we're gonna rock the floor"
Okay , did I knew up there was SO hot . Her hair went out of control and no one could help it . I wish I wasn't just present there .

Areeba : 

Every time anybody asks me about going out with someone, all I say is yes. No matter what's going to be happened with them in the last and I will end up saying sorry, you never matched.

Hima:
I advised my friend who was allergic to dog fur to get a dog anyway. I told her that she would get used to it, but that never happened and she had to give her dog away!

Kirstie :
psh I give awesome advice! Ha just kidding not all the time. I think the worst advice I ever gave was to one of my friends in high school, she was nervous to ask a guy to a dance I told her to just do it, live life to it's fullest! Little did I know that it was the guy I had a crush on and wanted to go with and was planning on asking.

Woot , now it's your turn to answer!

Fish are friends, not food

This week was a pretty good one overall! I like (most of) my teachers, I think they like me, and it's been great seeing my friends every day again! More to come on that later- I got a great post idea from one of my favorite blogs, Noor's place. 

Go check her out guys! She's my age and absolutely hilarious!

Anyway, let's high five for friday!

Clockwise: 

1. So I asked my little brother to make me a binder cover for Spanish because he's artistic and I'm not. I gave him one rule: Make it pretty. 20 minutes later, he comes up to me with this. Seriously, how cute is this? And he even remembered to put in my Spanish name!

2. We did a goldfish lab in AP Bio! This was our fish, Lucy! Even though she wasn't a clownfish or a Blue Tang (aka Dory), she made me think of Finding Nemo, and the famous line, "Fish are friends, not food." 

#disneymovielover

3. My brother loves to train Bella, and I love this picture I have of her jumping over the blocks!

4. This post. Definitely a highlight! I love finding fun apps to edit photos on my phone! This one is called Mirrord2. 

5. My friend Ruchi drew a portrait of me in Leadership. I think it's fabulous :)

How about you? H54Fs are some of my favorites posts to read/write, so leave me a link in the comments below to check out!

xo, Hima

Being Honest

Today I'm talking about something a little bit heavier than my usual bright and lighthearted topics. I'm putting myself out there a little bit, so please read on with an open mind and enjoy!

Summer 2013 was absolutely life-changing for me. Like I mentioned earlier, I taught summer school. Breakthrough is a different kind of summer school in a few ways. According to the mission statement, "Breakthrough Silicon Valley launches high potential, underserved middle school students on the path to college and inspires high school and college students to pursue careers in education." It's a six year program for middle schoolers to ensure that they get to college, as well as an internship opportunity for older high school and college students. It was a really fulfilling experience for me to work alongside people 6-7 years older than me, and I learned so much from them, in terms of getting through high school, applying to colleges, and just life philosophies in general. 

I've learned that life is a pathway, and everything that happens to us is to keep us on our own pathway. Like so many others in this area, I had never considered teaching to be a viable career path before Breakthrough. I knew it was important, but 6 weeks of lesson planning, making Powerpoints and notes and coming up with synthesis activities alongside the brightest and most motivating colleagues on the planet have given me a whole new respect for what teachers do. Seeing a student finally break through and understand a difficult concept after not getting it for so long, because of your creativity in finding a new way to teach it to them is probably one of the best feelings in the world. Every teacher has the ability to change a student's life, and I really respect that now.

At Breakthrough, every two teachers partnered up and commandeered a crew, a group of 8 kids (both future 7th and 8th graders) who did everything together outside of classes. We were our own little families! Getting to know my crew kids and learning what some of them go through, and how they keep their heads up every day was definitely an eye-opening experience for me. The idea that my kids trusted me enough to share such personal stories and problems after knowing me for only a couple of weeks with me is amazing, and I am inspired by them every day.

At the graduation ceremony at the end of summer, I was filled with pride watching my students walk up onto the stage and receive validation for their hard work. I loved meeting their parents and being able to brag about what wonderful individuals their kids were. What I thought was interesting was that I really meant it; I wasn’t just saying it as a nice gesture- I truly believed that my students were the most capable and hardworking kids I had ever met. When the 7th and 8th grade speakers, whom I had mentored throughout the summer to speak, both gave thanks to me in their speeches, I started crying. I truly understand what it felt like to be proud of someone, and to want the absolute best for them with all your heart.

At home, I read my planet (the theme was space), that the students had written messages on, and I teared up again. I had no idea of the impact that I had on some of the kids, and I loved knowing that I had been a part of a program that changed their lives, and lead them to like learning. The student who gave me the most trouble in biology, Omar, is a pretty stereotypical cool kid. He is always teasing girls because he is secretly crushing on them, he thinks he’s amazing at sports, and he is the sassiest little seventh grader there ever was. On the first day of classes, he wrote me a letter saying that he didn’t like biology and never would, but on my planet he wrote “I don’t know how u did it, but u talked me into loving biology! Thx soooo much. I will miss u!” Of course it was in text language.

Reading this message validated my entire summer’s work: all those late nights lesson planning and grading, all of those missed parties and social events, and all of those times I had to deal with his sass without yelling at him.

Omar showed me why teachers teach. Despite the long hours, low pay, and endless pile of grading, teaching is one of the most rewarding, honorable, and important jobs in the world.

Thoughts? Similar experiences? Let me know!

<3Hima

Color Coordination is for Babies!

So I went shopping this past weekend for Back-to-school/I haven't gone shopping in forever, and I'm pretty pleased with what I've got!

My friend and I hit up Forever 21, H&M, Nordstrom, and Urban Outfitters. The next day my mom and I made a stop at the motherlode of all things school supply, Target. 

And I was secretly hoping to get some clothes!

Target, ya'll, is my weakness. 

Seriously. 

I LOVE browsing through the clearance rack (Ummm $6 shirts? YES please!), and their dress section is to die for!

It was no big surprise when our bill totaled to $260. Don't worry- I only contributed to like...$45 worth. 

Is it just me or is it impossible to go to Target without buying more than you wanted?

Anyways, enough about Target. Tuesday was the second day of school, and since student government was required to wear our shirts on the first day, Tuesday was my day to look cute. 

DISCLAIMER: I'm an awkward person and have an inability to post for pictures. 

 My shoes were in the front and I was too lazy to go get them. 

And so you have shoeless Hima.

I was really having trouble finding a matching cardigan, so I decided to wing it and throw another bright color on top. 

What do you think?

Dress: H&M Cardigan: LOFT Necklace: Forever 21 Belt: Target...where else?

I'm also really in love with this eagle necklace I bought from F21 on Saturday! How cute is this?!

Seriously, I swear, F21 has the best jewelry, and it's pretty darn cheap too!

Happy Wednesday ya'll!

#Sarinotsorry + more!

I would say weekend, but it's not like I posted on Friday. Or Thursday. Or anytime in the last week and a half. 

Oops.
EDIT: This post was supposed to go live this morning, but Blogger and I got into a fight. Updates on the first day of school tomorrow!

Last week: Last week was all about wrapping up teaching at Breakthrough and getting ready for school! The graduation ceremony was absolutely beautiful!
The speeches were on point, no one messed up, and my slideshow evoked lots of tears!
The only downside? I'm an ugly crier.

Post ceremony, us teachers just got a lot of love from the students in general.

Clockwise from top left. 

1. A note that a student wrote me. 

2. Our crew alien

3. A flower with notes on it from the students to symbolize growth- remember the packet of seeds we got in the beginning?

4. WOOHOO I'm a certified educator!

5. My planet with notes from all my students. 

Just reading and looking at these in my room gives me so much joy!

I also got my schedule and my ID picture! It was hot and sweaty in the room, so my pictures not that great, but I liked seeing how I've changed over the years according to my photos!

The top photo is from 6th grade, and the bottom right is from 11th 

We had another Indian party on Friday, so it was time to sari-up (bonus points for anyone you can name the show reference!)!

Saturday night I hung out with some girlfriends to celebrate the start of school/enjoy out freedom while it lasted!

Pizza night plus a sleepover with TONS of girl talk :)

Always wonderful, right?

Sorry for the SUPER long post with all this pictures, but after almost two weeks, I was ready for a photo dump. 

In a Mug

You guys. I've discovered something that could potentially be dangerous. It's the epitome of "Murica. 

Desserts in a mug. 

It's like taking all the "I'm too lazy" out of baking! All you need is a microwave and a small portion of the regular ingredients. 

Here are some of my favorites: 

This Chocolate Chip cookie in a cup from No. 2 Pencil sounds divine!

This chocolate peanut butter mug cake is killing me. 

This microwave cheesecake is great for when you don't want to ingest 23094823094 calories in one sitting. BUT it does require 60 minutes of cooling, in which case I might as well make a real cheesecake. 

This mocha brownie is the easiest thing ever. 

I couldn't leave without posting a red velvet cake. FAB. 

And of course, here is a directory of 57 tried and true mug cake recipes from Kirby's Cravings. 

Thank me later. 

Have you ever experimented with mug cakes? Do they actually live up to the hype?

xo, Hima

Bucket List Part Two

Hey ya'll. It's been a while since the first installment of my bucket list, and I've been coming up with all kinds of new items recently! Here's part two, for your enjoyment:

16. Visit Vermont and/or New Hampshire in the fall. I love seeing the leaves change each fall, but in California, we don't really have beautiful red palm trees. I would love to see fiery reds and warm, mellow yellows in real life!

17. Make these crayons! We have so many random broken crayons at home, and it would be a fun little rainy day project to do. Besides, how cute are they?

18. Learn calligraphy. It's such a beautiful art form, and looks absolutely gorgeous. Plus, it would make my crappy handwriting better. 

19. Learn to do a handstand. This is a work in progress! Like every little girl, I could execute a perfect one ate age 9, when my center or balance was about a foot closer to the ground. 

I was practicing yesterday, and may or may not have fallen flat on my back. 

20. Rent a Volkswagen bus with a group of friends. Seriously, they're the cutest vehicles ever. 

21. Visit the 4 Corners national monuments at the border of Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. 

Seriously, 4 states at once. 

SO COOL. 

22. Study abroad. Patricia from Kisses and Croissants and Samantha from Life is But a Stream of Thoughts have both studied abroad, and have had such amazing experiences! They've both inspired me to spend some time in Europe. 

Right now, I really want to go to Barcelona.

Have you ever studied abroad? If so, where? What was your experience like? 

23. Make something off of Pinterest. 

*Look out for a post about that coming up soon!*

24. Raise a puppy. Our dog, Bella was about a year old when we adopted her, and she didn't have any growing left. I think it would be magical to get to see a puppy go from a tiny little thing to a lanky dog. 

25. Go on a Gondola ride in Venice. 

I've heard that the canals are gross though, so I've have to be really careful not to fall in!

And that's it for Part two! Anything else I should add? 

xo, Hima

Lessons learned at the Dentist's Office

So on Saturday, I had to step foot into the torture device they call the dentist's office. I really hate the dentist's office, but I thought I'd make the best of it. And so, I present: 

Lessons learned at the Dentist's Office:

1. The things they put in your mouth for x-rays were probably medieval torture devices. Your mouth doesn't naturally open like that! Seriously, what the heck is that? I'd like to find the person who came up with it and yell at 'em.

2. The x-ray lead blanket coupled with the reclining chair is ridiculously comfy. I almost fell asleep. 

3. Dentists are fabulous at interpreting open mouth talk. You know, the "ah-ahah-uheah-ahg?" 

And they answer, "I'm doing really well. How about you?"

SERIOUSLY HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?

4. The water sucky thing is really cool. The one that sucks all the fluid out of your mouth after you rinse? Yeah, that! 

5. They have adult versions of the dinosaur flossers for idiots like me who still don't know how to use the real ones. 

Aaaand that about sums it up. 

Note to self: Learn the names of the instruments so you don't have to sit here describing them like the "water sucky thing."

Hopefully your weekend was more interesting than mine? SPILL!

xo, Hima

Highlights

In no particular order, I have for you the very best things of my week. Does it ever occur to you that my top five events are also the five things that I happen to take pictures of? 

That's okay, right? Moving on!

1. On Thursday, at work, we had a "Women in Science" brunch, and all the girls had to write something that inspired them on their butterflies. We stuck them all on this sign, and it looked so pretty! 

2. Straightened my hair earlier this week! It's getting so long now- I love it! :)

3. I went to San Francisco with my mom after work on Thursday, which is always a treat. I was struck by the beauty of having mountains/hills on the right side of the road, and the ocean on the left. 

Oh, how I love this city. 

My heart will always be in San Francisco. 

Garbanzo beans, chard, and mushrooms with quinoa. 

Beet and black bean burger with fries. 

4. Dinner in SF at the cutest vegetarian/vegan restaurant ever: Source! It gives off that beautiful San Francisco vibe: a little bit hippie, a little bit hipster, and wonderfully green! you HAVE to go if you're ever in SF. 

5. I got this text from my student and I wanted to cry. Why does summer have to end? 

What were the highlights of your week?

Also, any ideas to name these posts more creatively? 

xo, Hima