A very happy Fathers Day

Today we feasted on cupcakes. Today we celebrated the spectacular man called Dad, Pops, Daddy. Today we admired the beautiful flowers I was blessed with at my graduation. Yes, I'm officially a high school grad! So many things right now are worth celebrating, even the fact that exam week begins tomorrow! (Eeek!) I'm so excited to share stories and grad pictures with you, but it will have to wait just a few more days until those exams become a distant memory... :) 

Much love, Vivi 

a story of study breaks

First four units of Biology: check. 

Wander around the house looking for non-existent chocolate. Settle on vegetables and hummus.  Boil the kettle, steep a simple green tea.

Chemistry summary pages: check.

 Wander around again for said chocolate. Still very non-existent. Chick peas snacks win this time.  

First six units of math: check. 

Golden lighting and an unassuming subject drinking coffee outside. Many "hold stills" and "oh! oh! that's perfect hold that pose!" later and all of a sudden an extended study break begins as uploading pictures gains priority... :) 

Much love, Vivi 

the craziest thing of all

High school. A four year-long journey filled with excitement, hard work, and bumps along the way. High school for me has been an interesting journey. Why, you ask? Well, people like the ones you see in these pictures. The moments in-between learning have brought silly faces in Chemistry classes, heart to heart talks while spraying goblin masks in Art, laugh till you cry moments while snacking on hummus and snap peas during lunchtime. And the craziest thing of all? We all graduate this Friday.

Much love, Vivi

Sunday rambles

I've decided that blurry pictures are worth a lot more than I used to think. Hello, beautiful bokeh!

I've decided that the most common flowers are actually the prettiest.

I've decided that when the sun leaks down through tree branches, chocolate has no calories.

I've decided that teeth without braces feel A LOT better. Goodbye evil pokey wires.

I've decided that every kind of flower has a place in my heart, even scrunchy somewhat mutated tulips. It's okay, I think you're beautiful. 

Not pictured: I've decided that eating a large quantity of coconut pie before an equally as large dinner is really not a good idea.

Much love, Vivi

blessed is this life

I wake up at 7. Correction, I set the alarm for 7, wake up at 7:30. I turn on the radio, my feet walking to the beat of the bouncy tunes. Hair in messy tangles sticking out in all directions, I make my way to the kitchen. Breakfast: a grapefruit perfectly chilled in the fridge, granola poured generously on a heaping of Greek yoghurt. Food in hand, my happily dancing feet take me back to my room. On the radio, a song was playing. The first thing that caught my attention was the beautiful guitar playing, joyful and crisp. Then, a snippet of the lyrics caught my ear. An ordinary, grapefruit eating, messy-hair morning turned into something, well, quite wonderful.

"I welcome the sun
The clouds and rain
The wind that sweeps the sky clean and lets the sun shine again
This is the most magnificent life has ever been
Here is heaven and earth and the brilliant sky in-between

Blessed is this life and I'm gonna celebrate being alive
Blessed is this life and I'm gonna celebrate being alive."

Brett Dennen

Much love, Vivi

look in the mirror, and I see you

 At 3 pm today, my mom's silver car drove into the school parking lot. I hopped in, thoroughly not surprised to see groceries piled up in the back seat. I thought I smelt something sweet, something with hints of floral. I pushed the thought aside while chatting about the day's events: tests, tutoring, and a daily dose of amazingly awkward moments. It's an unavoidable part of the high school package, friends. And once you realize that, it becomes quite enjoyable. ;) Once we were parked in our garage, my mom quickly revealed the em, more, uh, flowers she *couldn't resist* that filled every square inch of the trunk. I love my mom's love for flowers. I love how happy she gets with a new hanging basket, potted hydrangeas, wildflowers on the dining room table. I love how she's passed her love down to me. 

Much love, Vivi

Bloom

Recently I've been finding more and more artists that create the most beautiful songs. Their talent to tie heartfelt words with sweet, sweet melodies is captivating. So much so that my guitar, which *ahem* has been collecting dust for a few months now, is the first thing I play when I get home from school. Something about a gentle acoustic sound gets me every time. Here are a few artists that I've had on repeat...

The Paper Kites

Jack Johnson

Peter Bjorn and John 

Ed Sheeran

Griffin House

The Lumineers

Grab a cup of tea & paint your nails to a tune from one of these artists: ultimate relaxation. ;)

Much love, Vivi