Some News and an Outfit!

I have a couple of exciting things to share! Today I reached over 10,000 views on here. I've been waiting for this day for weeks now and it finally came! Yay! Thank you all so much for paying me a visit. :)

The other bit of news is that I made a Facebook page for the blog! I've been meaning to for a while now, but never got around to it until now. To view my page and like it, you can click the badge in my sidebar or just head on over to www.facebook.com/swingthedayaway. 

I've been pretty busy lately, running around doing all kinds of things! I went to my cousin's wedding, had a picnic for Father's Day, and went to a ska show where I skanked the night away (and ended up with bruised feet).  I've started my giant baking extravaganza for Chris's birthday, and we went to the casino on Saturday to celebrate. I ended up winning $34! Haha.

Beforehand Chris and I and a friend of ours went to practice some archery. Yes, archery. Chris recently bought a bow, so we've been practicing shooting with it! I have to confess that I feel really awesome when holding it. It makes me think of Legolas from Lord of the Rings and Katniss from The Hunger Games! I've wanted to give archery a try ever since high school. I always hoped that we'd learn it in gym class because I'm pretty sure there were rumors of it happening, but it never did. I'll just have to learn on my own! It's pretty easy to shoot. It's actually aiming accurately that is the hard part... Here's what I wore for this arrow and casino-filled day:

We practiced shooting at my old grammar school. It brought back a lot of memories just being around there. It's funny how things seem so big when you're little, but when you go back, you realize they're not as grand as you thought. I felt that way about the playscapes and this big rock that we all used to like to sit on.

[Shirt: Delia's
Skirt: Forever 21
Shoes: H&M]

The shirt is one that I got at this awesome retail sale that comes around here every month or so. I got it for only 6 bucks! I was excited because I love cats and I love black, white, and red together. It was a win-win. A win-win-WIN, actually, because of the price.

Anyway....thank you all again for reading my ramblings and helping me reach over 10,000 views! :D There's still so much more in store for me this summer. I have lots of travel goals and things I want to see before the season's over, plus all kinds of fun picnics and parties and events. I really can't believe it's almost July. I feel like this summer is going to just fly by! At least it'll be a good one. :)

Oreo Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies

It was my friend's birthday a couple of weekends ago, and to celebrate, her family had a BBQ. I decided I was going to bake something (any opportunity to try out new recipes!), and I had decided on some cookies and cream cookies. Unfortunately, I overbaked them and they came out kinda crispy and dry. :\ But I had also planned on making these - Oreo Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies. They were a hit, and very tasty, if I do say so myself. I couldn't wait until they were done to try them. They don't take too long to make, either! So if you live the dangerous life and have a spare package of Oreos sitting around and you're looking for an excuse to get rid of them so you don't eat the whole thing yourself, then try out this recipe and share with friends! Or just try it out because it's not only peanut butter and chocolate, but two cookies in one. Yeah. Enough said.

I'm sure there are quite a lot of recipes for these out there on the Interwebz. I know that there are a lot for chocolate chip cookies stuffed with Oreos as well. I used Christy's recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything. 

Hers look more defined, structured, and small. I think mine came out a little big and haphazardly because I was in a hurry and in the midst of a baking panic since the first batch of cookies didn't work out. On the other hand, I did enjoy the nice, big cushion of delicious peanut butter cookie around the Oreo. It's really up to you! Either way, they'll taste amazing. :)

Seaside Rendezvous

It was SUPER hot last weekend and it made me crave some ice cream from the Ice Cream Man. So Chris hunted one down and got me a Spiderman popsicle! :) I was feeling very superhero-y. My outfit looked a little Wonder Woman-esque. 

[Yum!]

I've had this outfit planned for a while, but was waiting for the perfect weather to wear it. It was definitely a beach weather day, so I decided it was time to wear it! I love this top. It's comfortable, and it's fitted. Most of the crop tops I see are baggy nowadays. Don't get me wrong...I do enjoy the baggy crop top look and I do own a few, but nothing beats a nice fitted look. And the red with the white stripes gives off a sort of retro/pin-up vibe to me. They had it in black too, but I had to go with the red.

[Top: Forever 21
Shorts: Old Navy
Shoes: American Eagle by Payless]

I love lighthouses. I've always wanted to go inside one and climb to the top. I think it'd be cool to live in one...or to at least have a nice room in one to hang out in and get away from things for a bit. I think there's something really romantic and enchanting about them. The repetition of the light going around is soothing to me, for some reason. I also like to think that it's searching for something, or that there's someone in there searching for someone. I guess that's where the whole romantic part of it comes into play. Around here, I've seen houses that have what look like little lighthouse rooms at the top. I'd love one of those.

Chris and I have come to this park together a few times. And we usually always migrate towards this lighthouse. It's a great place to overlook the ocean. I wish it was open to the public!

[Pretending to be a cool kid]

Some of my favorite pictures of us were taken here a couple of years ago. It's a great spot. :) I think I'm going to make it a point this summer to try to find as many lighthouses as I can. As great as this one is, it can get a little crowded. I'd love to find some more secluded ones that are accompanied by great landscapes and grassy fields.

Most Wanted: Modcloth

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days! I've been sick the majority of the week and haven't felt up to doing much of anything. I have pictures from last Sunday that I just finished editing yesterday, so I should have a new outfit post up tomorrow! For now, I thought I'd share a Polyvore collage that I made of all the stuff I'm lusting after on Modcloth.

As I've mentioned in a previous post, I check Modcloth obsessively multiple times a day. They always get such adorable and unique stuff in! The only downside is that they're usually kinda pricey, and it's just not in the budget for me to be spending $80 on a dress every week. And it's hard to go back when you do have the money because these things usually sell out quick! I'm pretty sure that some of the items in the picture are already sold out. But the good thing is that Modcloth does get things back in stock if the demand is high enough. I just have to hope that everyone else loves a certain dress as much as I do!

I received the Have A Window Seat dress that I ordered from them, and it fits great! The pattern is too cute and I can't wait to wear it today for my cousin's wedding! Luckily, it's an evening wedding so I can still have some more time to rest today and get some more energy back into me.

Lions and Tigers and...Giraffes!

I finally went to the zoo I've been looking forward to on Saturday, and I got to feed giraffes! Giraffes are one of my favorite animals. I just think they're so pretty, unique, and graceful. It turns out they can also kill a lion with a kick of its hoof. Crazy! Before we got to the giraffes, we saw lots of other animals like this kangaroo who was sleeping on his back. For the first few seconds, I really thought it might be dead, but he was twitching.

[Super relaxation!]

I thought this monkey was funny because he reminded me of The Thinker. He was just sitting on that basketball, hangin' out. It's so odd to see how closely they can resemble humans in some of their mannerisms.

[So deep in thought]

They had a petting zoo in the middle of the zoo with goats of all sizes, so we went into there. This little white one was the cutest. It didn't want to leave that stump! I think it was a little shy. It didn't want to turn around and let me get a good picture!

There was also a part of the zoo where you can just walk around with deer who are far more accustomed to people than normal deer. You can feed them too! They're pretty greedy, especially the males. And after you feed them, you definitely feel like you immediately need to wash your hands, but it was cool. The spotted ones were my favorite.

[Me feeding the deer!]

And then, finally, it was time to feed the giraffes! I was really excited. Unfortunately, one of the workers there sort of put a damper on the whole thing by being a little pushy and rude, but it was still really awesome to get to be that close to a giraffe! They told us that we couldn't pet them, but I wish I did anyway. I don't think they would've cared since they were so into eating those leaves!

[Their tongues are super long!]

[Nomnomnomnom]

Chris made friends with this one deer after we were done feeding the giraffes. The deer was just walking by his side for the longest time. Chris would just walk with him, with his hand on his back. It was so cute! 

One of my other favorite animals is cats. I love domestic cats, but I also love big cats. They're so gorgeous and strong. The leopard was so pretty. I wish he was a little more active though. All of the big cats just kinda laid around or were sleeping.

Before we left, we enjoyed some snacks, and then went on this train ride that they have there. It was kind of lame, but it was free since I won tickets for it.

[Chris and I waiting for the train to leave]

I had to go see the giraffes one more time before leaving. I wanted a picture with one, but there weren't really a lot around by the time we went back to their habitat.  It's kinda hard to see in the background, but there's one with his head over the fence eating the grass.

[Dress: H&M
Shoes: Gap
Bag: H&M]

So this is the dress that I saw in H&M a couple of months ago and decided that I would get just for the occasion of going to the zoo. It's very appropriate, especially since there was a leopard there!

Here's a giant turtle that we saw on the way out. They can grow to be about 550 pounds, I think. I can't really remember, but that number is jumping out at me.

Of course, I had to stop in the gift shop. I was hoping to find some cool giraffe-themed treasures, but nothing really caught my eye. We did, however, find silly masks and take creepy pictures with them.

I didn't get my picture close to a real giraffe, so I took some with the fake metal ones out front. Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do.

The day was over pretty quick. We got there a half hour before they opened because I wanted to be sure that I would get one of the limited tickets for the giraffe feeding. I think we left at around 2 or 3. But it was a fun day and I'm glad that I finally got to have my giraffe encounter!

Quick Pics

I feel like there's so much to look forward to this month! I'm going to a really awesome zoo tomorrow (and of course, will have plenty of pictures to share!). I've had a dress picked out for it for about a month or so, now. Alright, so I bought it specifically with the zoo in mind. It's leopard print. What other place is more appropriate to wear that to?!


My cousin is getting married next weekend, so there's that to look forward to. I also bought a dress specifically for that. At first, I was going to go all out and order the red Taylor Dress from Windsor, but my logical side butted in and decided that it's probably a dress I won't ever really wear again and I should spend my money on a wiser choice of dress. I ended up ordering this lovely dress from Modcloth instead that I know I'll wear a whole bunch. It's by Trollied Dolly, who makes such adorable, retro-inspired dresses! I can't wait to get it in the mail!


There's also Father's Day and Chris's birthday coming up this month too! Things are going to get a little hectic, but it's all fun stuff, so it's fine!We're going to the casino with a bunch of our friends the weekend before Chris's birthday, which should be a good time.I'm also planning an epic bakefest for Chris's birthday. I literally have about 9-10 different things that I want to make. We're going to have a small party with his friends, so at least it won't just be the two of us stuck eating everything!


So that's what's in store for me this month, but here's what I've been up to lately, according to my Instagram and mobile pictures:

[I like to park my car at the beach, overlooking the water.]

[Chris climbing a trolley on one of our adventures.]

[I got my mom a strawberry hanging plant for Mother's Day and one of the strawberries was shaped like a heart!]

[I recently re-did this photo collage on my wall. This is the bigger and better version!]

[I was on a Tootsie Pop kick for a good week or so.]

[Chris's cat, who I constantly smother with snuggles and kisses, taking a nap.]

[Awesome rainbow the other day!! And yes, it was full on.]

[Grilled turkey legs and asparagus. GLORIOUS.]

I can't wait to share my zoo pictures with you all! I'll probably take hundreds and then not know how to condense them into a blog post that doesn't span pages and pages. Oh, the woes of blogging.