Summer Reading; Book Haul.

I have to admit that I'm a bit obsessed with ordering books online. I can't help that my wishlist on Amazon is endless and I always find new interesting books I want to read. I think I've told you before that it's kind of hard to find books in English here in Sweden (you can find the most popular titles but they're ridiculously expensive compared to what they cost online). I thought I would share my latest purchases from Amazon so you know what I'll be reading this summer;

1. You are Here by Jennifer E Smith: This is usually not the kind of book I go for. Romantic, contemporary fiction!? But I thought that it might be a bit more uplifting to read something like this during my summer holiday compared to my usual books about the world coming to an end.

2. White Horse by Alex Adams: Yeah, I kind of still had to get an apocalyptic book as well...

3. Life below Stars: This was suggested to me by Amazon because I've ordered all seasons of Downton Abbey from them (yes, you got me Amazon, your targeted marketing really works!). I used to read a lot of non-fiction books a few years ago so I thought I would start doing that again and this sounds really interesting and has a lot of good reviews.

4. Running Made Easy: I need this. 

5. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me by Mindy Kaling: I've wanted to read this for a while and I usually think it's easier to bring non-fiction books when I go on holiday because it's easier to read short passages at the time from a non-fiction book compared to a fiction book because you don't get as drawn into the story. And when I'm on vacation I only have time to read short passages...

6. The Inside Out Revolution by Michael Neill: Is this some kind of self-help book? Why did I order this? Honestly, I have no idea. What just happened? I guess I fell for some kind of targeted marketing again. The Internet is a dangerous place people...

What are you planning to read this summer? 

Currently; June.

I could go on and on about how great the weather's been lately, but I'm not going to bore you with that. You can just look at the pictures below. And you know something else that's pretty awesome? It's only 13 days left until we leave for our trip to New York City! So tell me, do you have any exciting plans for the summer?

Loving: Summer. 

Excited about: That I only have 7 more days to work before our vacation, that's pretty darn exciting. 

Eating: Sushi is my biggest food obsession at the moment, I eat it at least 3 times a week.

Drinking: Water and wine (that's what you drink during the summer, right?). 

Wearing: I've started wearing a lot of dresses lately. I usually don't wear a lot of dresses but for some reason I've been buying dresses like a crazy person this spring and summer (yes, because crazy people are known for buying a lot of dresses you know...). 

Reading: Seraphina by Stewart Rachel Hartman 

Listening to: Young and Beautiful by Lana Del Ray 

Feeling: A bit pissed about the fact that I've started to get some problems with my knees from all the running I've been doing lately. It kind of sucks considering that I had started enjoying it!

Doing: Running, working, reading and hanging out with my friends. That's pretty much what my life's been like lately, and I love it.

The Wanderlust Tag.

I love traveling (who doesn't?). Traveling is probably one of the things I love doing the most of all, so I naturally always like tags about traveling as well. I haven't done the wanderlust tag yet so I guess it's right about time that I jump into it! And if you have done this tag please leave a link in the comments, I always enjoy reading these kind of posts. Enjoy!

1. Your most treasured passport stamp?

As a European I never get a stamp when I go to an European country so I don't have that many stamps in my passport. But if you've followed my blog for a while you know I have a thing for traveling to the US so I guess my first US stamp is my most treasured one (I got it in Miami in 2008).

2. Can you recite your passport # from memory if asked?

No, memorizing numbers is not my thing. But I'm pretty good at memorizing maps, that comes in handy when traveling. I wish I was better at memorizing numbers though! 

3. Preferred method of travel: planes, trains or automobiles?

I like all methods of traveling, but I guess I have to go with planes they're kind of a time saver when you go traveling. And it's kind of difficult to go to the US with a train or an automobile right?

4. Top 3 travel items?

Camera, sunscreen and sunglasses (I guess my passport is pretty important too, but oh well).

5. Hostel or hotel?

I have to go with hotels (I'm fine with motels too) because I kind of like having a private bathroom and shower, it just makes life easier I guess...But it doesn't have to be a fancy hotel or anything. I just need my privacy, haha! 

6. Are you repeat visitor or do you explore new places?

Both, I like visiting my favorite places again but I also like exploring new places. It all depends on what kind of trip/vacation I'm planning. 

7. Do you read up on your destination or do you wing it?

I do really enjoy reading up on my destination! I don't want to miss anything important and I think that planning  your trip is a big part of the fun when you travel. But I don't want to plan everything, I want there to be a lot of time for winging it as well. 

8. Favorite travel website?

 I guess this is a pretty obvious answer but I don't know what I would do without tripadvisor. 

9. Where would you recommend a friend to visit? Name a city and why.

Chicago: Because it's my favorite of the cities I've visited so far. If America and Europe got a baby, that would be Chicago (at least in my mind). Sounds pretty awesome huh?

10. You're leaving tomorrow, money is no option, where are you going?

On a road-trip in the US. I know, I've done that, but there's so much more to see! It's like an addiction. If I would choose a county I haven't been to yet I would probably choose South Africa or maybe Japan? 

Running?

I'm known for hating exercise! Especially running! I used to say things like "The only time I might even consider running is when I'm late for the buss". But one Monday in May (30 days ago) something happened. The weather was really nice and I was sitting in my couch reading a book and thought "I can't sit here all night, I need to go outside". So I put on my sneakers and thought I would go for a long walk. But after a while I thought "I'm going to run and see how far I can get before I need to stop". Here's the embarrassing part, I only ran 300 or 400 meters before I could feel the taste of blood in my mouth. So I decided I needed to change that! And now 4 weeks later I came home from running 3,5 K and walking 1,5 K and not tasting a single drop of blood in my mouth. And you know what!? I even enjoyed it!

So I thought I would share my tips on how you find the motivation for running when you have zero experience. I'm not an expert on running (obviously) but these tips are on how you find the motivation when you're a total beginner. I guess these might be pretty obvious and basic tips, but it's always better to hear them from a total beginner (I literally started running 4 weeks ago) who knows that they actually work than hearing them from someone who's been running for years. 

1. Don't pressure yourself too much in the beginning! Don't run 10 K, throw up, cry and never go out running again. I went for 1,5-2 K runs the first two weeks and was happy with that. Any exercise is better than no exercise.

2. Get some cool running gear! Shopping is always a good motivation! And it's more fun when you feel and look good.

3. Get yourself a personal running coach! In the beginning I was like "No one's ever going to get to run with me because I suck at it and look ridiculous when I do it". But I've actually started running with Daniel lately and he's a great coach and motivation! Sure, running with me is not really exercise for him, it's more like a walk in the park. But he still does it and we usually have a great time! You can also ask a friend? Your mum? Your dad? Your sister? Your brother? Your cousin? Your dog?? 

4. Set up small goals on the way. My first goal was to run 1 K without stopping and when I reached that goal after 3 weeks my new goal is to run 2,5 K without stopping. And when I reach that goal I'm going to buy myself a cool running watch. 

5. Get good running shoes! Believe me, it makes a huge difference! 

Happy June!

Summer is here and it's a bit ridiculous how much that affects me. I'm like a new person. I mean, I'm a pretty decent and happy person during the other seasons as well. But I'm extra awesome and friendly in the summer. I'm a little bit happier, a little bit nicer and a little bit more relaxed. I find myself thinking things like "Sweden is an amazing county to live in" or "Look at that couple over there, they seem so happy and in love, how marvelous!" and that's not really me... But hey let's all enjoy it while it lasts. And I thought I would share one of those moments when I thought something like "Damn! Life is pretty freaking amazing and Sweden is the shit!" (I can't remember exactly what I thought but I guess it went something like that...I kind of wish my thoughts sounded a bit more intellectual but oh well...);

Thrifting Finds.

I haven't done a lot of thrifting lately. It seems to be more of a autumn and winter activity for me. But I went to my favorite thrift store with my mum last weekend and I found a few pretty things I thought I would share with you guys;

I bought a bigger version of these wooden plates at the same thrift store a few months ago so I was thrilled to find two smaller versions of the same plate! I've been really into wooden interior details lately. I pretty sure that these plates are originally from IKEA.

I'm not sure why I love this floral plate so much and it's not super practical to just have one plate in a series, but I don't care, it's pretty. I'm thinking that it's going to be extra pretty with strawberries on it.

They had a huge selection of old glass bottles (they're usually really hard to find) so I kind of regret that I only got two. But I'm going to use them as vases for wild flowers. 

Current Favorites; May.

May has been a pretty good month! The weather has been surprisingly nice! We've had summer temperatures for almost two weeks, so I'm not complaining. I'm not sure if you're all enjoying my updates on the Swedish weather, but that's how I roll. On a more interesting note (I hope) I thought I would share some random favorite things from May: 

1. Yes, I kind of went with the flow and got one of the Nivea Lip Butters. Some people think that they're a bit overrated but I like them! They are moisturizing, they taste like cake or ice-cream and they are ridiculously inexpensive.

2. Daniel got this Cynthia Sylvia Stout Beer Shampoo from Lush for Christmas. He has a pretty sensitive scalp so he can't use it because it has a really strong scent so I thought I would give it a go. First I thought it was a bit drying (I have really damaged and dry hair, that's life as blonde) but after using it for a while I realized that it actually makes my hair nice and shiny.

3. I like the new Batiste scents (I'm not sure if they're that new, but they're new to me). I especially like Paisley, it's a bit more classic than the old scents.

4. I love moisturizing facial mists and this one from Emma S is a new favorite! But sadly you can only get it here in Sweden (or maybe some other countries in Scandinavia?), I know that's not sad for me but it's sad for you guys!

5. My sparkling flats from Aldo.

Other random favorites this month;

The Great Gatsby: I'm talking about the movie not the book. First I wasn't sure how I felt about it but now I'm pretty sure I really liked it! Mixing hip hop with the 20's? Who came up with that idea? It's genius! And let's talk about Leo, he's a pretty darn fine example of a man (I'm talking about his acting skills here).

Running: I've started running. I enjoy it. I never thought this day would come. Is anyone interested in reading a post about my thoughts on running? How you go from hating any type of exercise to enjoy running in 21 days? 

Escape by Carolyn Jessop; This might not be the most well-written book I've read but it was really interesting and I couldn't stop reading it. 

Pompeii by Bastille: This is the song I've been listening to on repeat all month (Yes, that's what I do, I listen to ONE song a whole month).