Bead for Life

Today I bought a few bracelets and a necklace that were on sale by a few student groups in our cafeteria. They are sold as a part of Bead for Life, and are made by women in Uganda. The proceeds are sent back to these women to help them receive education, health treatments, vocational training, etc. It helps them create a sustainable way to overcome poverty by providing a form of income instead of just sporadic aid.

On top of this, the jewelry is quite well-made and gorgeous! I've made jewelry before, and this is better than anything I could ever hope to do.

The beads are actually made out of rolled strips of newspapers and magazines, and there is a spot on their website where you can see how they are made. The video is really cool and very inspiring. It's convinced me to go and get another bracelet for my mom. I hope she doesn't read this post before I give it to her!

More banh mi

We tried another Vietnamese sandwich place on the list from the Seattle Times, this one was called Pho Cyclo and also has lots of other delicious dishes. There is a sit-down area (only if you order off of the menu, sandwiches are take-out only), and this is a picture of the rickshaw in the middle of the restaurant. Sorry that the first photo is a little blurry.

Vietnamese Deli Sandwiches

Yesterday for lunch we went to this delicious Vietnamese deli for lunch, where we got BBQ pork sandwiches. The name of the deli is Seattle Deli, and reviews and the address can be found here.

My mom heard of this deli through a review of places in Seattle to get 'banh mi', which is the Vietnamese name for these type of sandwiches. That article can be found here.

Don't they look amazing?? But be careful, mine was full of jalapeños!

I Love Water Bottles

I am always thirsty, but I never used to drink very much water. This was because I found it very inconvenient to do so.

However, ever since plastic water bottles started showing up everywhere (and not just on hikes or camping trips as they had been used previously in my family), I have accumulated a large collection of water bottles of different sizes, colors, and brands.

Here are my favorite four water bottles:

1. CamelBak Water Bottle

I really love that this has a straw, because it makes it so user-friendly.

I have a purple one with the WashU logo on it, but as I am now perusing their website, I'd really love to have this one.

Why? The colors are fabulous and it's insulated! If there's one downside to a water bottle, it's that I like ice and ice means drips everywhere (shout out to Tervis Tumblers, which are also insulated, but aren't water bottles so don't belong in this post).

2. Nalgene 32 0z. Wide Mouth Water Bottle

I have on in orange, and one of my favorite things about this size Nalgene bottle is that they are so easy to customize. My orange Nalgene has a blue lid (I also have white, and it came with yellow), and a smiley face Splash Guard.

I also really like the size of this water bottle. It's unlikely that I will ever need more than 32 ounces of drinking water at one time. Also the long strap makes this bottle very easy to attach to my bags with a caribiner.

The one downside? It doesn't fit in most cup holders.














3. Nalgene 16 oz. Wide Mouth Water Bottle



I also have this one in orange. I like it because it's small enough to fit into my purse or school bag when I don't have room for a larger water bottle. This prevents me from leaving it behind, which I do quite frequently with my other bottles.





4. Contigo 24 oz. Auto-Seal Water Bottle


This is an interesting water bottle, because you drink out of it by pressing a button, that opens a hole in the lid, which you then drink out of. Basically it's sort of like a sippy cup. If you drop it, chances are it probably won't spill.

The reason I like it? I tend to always spill all over myself whenever I'm drinking from a water bottle, so I try to buy products that help me avoid this (a trend which you may have noticed: straw, splash guard...).

This water bottle is also great for use in the middle of the night. I can just feel around on my night stand, find it, and can drink out of it one-handed. Can you imagine unscrewing your Nalgene lid and drinking from it in the dark? That's just a disaster waiting to happen.



Added bonus? I bought mine in a 3-pack at Costco. Just the fact that they sold these at Costco made me want to buy one, because I love Costco and almost every product it offers.

I. Love. Costco.

Chi Omega

As many of you may have noticed, it's been quite some time since I last posted. I took a little break to concentrate on my winter semester at school, and am proud to say that my efforts paid off. I consider last semester to have been quite successful.

A big event that has occurred since my last post is that I am now a member of Chi Omega Fraternity. I am not yet an initiated member, as Initiation is on March 25th, but I am most definitely a part of this wonderful community of Chi Omega sisters!

Part of the fun of being a Chi Omega is that now I get to shop for things with owl or skull and crossbones designs (those are two of our symbols). My only purchase along those lines thus far is a really awesome owl necklace from Claire's. I've had to stop myself from buying a whole bunch of other things because I'm waiting for Big/Little week. This is all in an effort to avoid buying myself the same things that my Big Sister ends up buying me. I'll be sure to post photos from that week when it comes. I've got another month to go!

Chill Frozen Yogurt

This new Frozen Yogurt store opened not too long ago on Wydown Boulevard in St. Louis, possibly within walking distance of my dorm, but that theory has yet to be tested. In my (and everyone else's) opinion, Chill is way better than FroYo Frozen Yogurt on the Delmar Loop. Their non-dairy flavor is the best I've ever had - blood orange!

Vera Bradley Winter 2010 Patterns!

Just a short post (I know it's been forever, but what can I say? I'm a college student!) today about the new Vera Bradley Winter 2010 Patterns. I am beyond excited and everyone I see throughout the day knows it. These patterns aren't even released until September 23rd, and I'm already super excited about them! There will probably be a better post after I see them in person.

The new catalog is online as of today, I suggest you go and take a look at it.