Hi all!
I’m sorry my posts have been so infrequent. To be honest, I’m just completely overworked and it’s leading me to major burnout. I don’t want to sound like a broken record or be a redundant complainer, but this has been a really, really tough year for me and I just need a break. From my Kind giveaway, I learned that a lot of my readers are college students (hi, guys!), so I’m sure you all know what I mean. It’s the last few weeks of the school year and summer is thisclose.
I feel like blog life can be so glamorized, but in reality, I only show the highlights on Apple of My Eye for the most part. Yeah, I went out shopping and to brunch with my parents last weekend, but most days I’m up and running from 6 a.m till 12 at night. Yeah, it’s super cool to have a job that lets me cook and photograph recipes, but those recipes take up a ton of time- time that I need to take away from sleep or relaxing. Yeah, it’s omgcute that Kyle and I have library dates, but we have them around 4-5 days a week for hours at a time and it’s draining.
I’m at that point where I’m tired of having to depend on coffee to get me through the day. Two days ago, I had a small breakdown from exhaustion and overall frustration that stemmed from being too tired to retain information as quickly as I wanted. I feel like my mood is completely dependent on coffee since it’s either copious amounts of coffee to keep me energized or feeling drained. Having coffee and triple shot lattes four times a day just to keep running is neither healthy nor something I want to keep up for the rest of my college experience.
So rant over. Basically the summary is I’m tired and need for this year to be over (this year is the hell year for bio majors at my school) and for SUMMER! I can’t wait to channel all of my energy into relaxing, my health, cooking, blogging, traveling, spending times with friends, etc.
Anywhoville, this is what my marvelous Saturday looked like!
After staying till 11 at the library on Friday night (I know, I’m cool), I got to bed around 12 and slept in a bit till 8 in the morning. I made myself some coffee, then did an hour or so of studying for a bio exam I have on Wednesday before digging into some brown sugar banana oats!
Mid-morning, I headed off to watch Kyle play in a recreational doubles tennis tournament that the club team at our school puts on. The weather was perfect, and I enjoyed an hour and half of relaxing spectatorship that alternated watching him play with browsing Pinterest on my phone (shh, don’t tell him).
After I got back to my apartment, I worked on a recipe freelance project that involved lots of cheesy goodness. Amanda and I are both starting to work for a new recipe site, so I wanted to make sure it turned out tasty and that the photos were decent. One thing that I constantly struggle with is timing my cooking and baking so that they’re finished when the natural lighting from the sun is good for pictures. Shooting in good light is (in my opinion) the most important thing you can do to improve your photography, but getting everything set up and ready within the hours of 2-4 p.m can be challenging when you reach those sleepy midday hours. #foodphotographerproblemz.
Here’s a sneak peek! I’ll link to the recipe when it goes live on the site :).
After getting the pictures taken, I finished a physics assignment and did some reading for my organic chemistry class before taking a pie (!!!!) and Netflix break with Kyle. I’ve been complaining to him on a daily basis about the lack of pie in my life lately, so he picked up one from a Danish bakery on a whim.
This is snapshot of Kyle singing the Circle of Life song from The Lion King:
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwSKkKrUzUk]
Imagine him (trying to) belt out the lines “Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba, sithi uhm ingonyama” while raising that glorious pie in the air. Thats my boy!
You do you, Kyle.
And now, more pie pics.
Beautiful, just beautiful.
OH. And let’s talk tv series. Kyle and I just started watching House today, and it’s SO good. Our other favorites include Game of Thrones, the Walking Dead, The Following, Orange is the New Black (one that I like), and I also recently have watched a few episodes of The Bible. Do you guys have any favorites? I’m always on the lookout for great new series!
The rest of my night includes a bit more work and (hopefully) a little more relaxing before bed.
Hope your weekend is going swimmingly!
The Mindy Project and New Girl are two series you NEED to have in your life right now! Full of laughs, for sure! I hope you do well on your test on Wednesday. It’s the home stretch. Hang in there!!!
Oh, and Catfish on MTV is also a guilty pleasure of mine. GREAT show!
I totally, 100% understand this. I feel like I’ve barely posted lately because I’ve had zero energy! The schedule of a Bio major is insane. I definitely don’t sleep enough and this year I went from never drinking coffee to being such a regular at my local cafe. It all pays off on the end…? Right? Please?
Don’t worry about not posting so often, totally understand. Life can get pretty hectic! I was worrying about my lack of posts lately thanks to finals and school too, but it’s okay! Plus, blogging is hard work! I like how you spoke about the not so glamorous side of blogging because it certainly is true, that bloggers tend to only share the highlights, making our lives seem far more perfect than reality! Oh well, have a wonderful weekend
I hear a vacation calling your name, as soon as summer hits! Just remember nothing matters in life if you aren’t enjoying it, so find a way to buckle down and start enjoying your crazy, busy schedule, it is worth it
Have a great week !
Ugh, I cannnnnnot even imagine how overworked you must be! Only a few more weeks at this point, right?! Maybe you should try studying in a bubble bath
Christian and I watch “New Girl”, “About A Boy” and “Growing Up Fisher”. The last one is getting cancelled (not surprisingly) but we both like the other two!
Laughing out loud at Kyle and his pie, lol!
Game of Thrones and Mad Men are my two main shows. I did like True Detective too though and can’t wait to see what next season will look like. My Fall/Winter shows are American Horror and Walking Dead.
ditto the mindy project love! i also always get a kick out of house, as well. that pie looks delish, as does the new recipe
I know what it’s like to feel that way, and how it’s so close, but so far until you’re officially on summer break.
You sound a lot like me and just push through it, even though it’s super hard. The accomplishments feel great, which I find helps power through.
Keep at it!
xo Jackie
Something About That
Girl if you can’t post for a week or two, don’t! Your school, work, health & time w/ Kyle & friends is much more important. Do you & know we’ll all still be here when you come back <3
I really hope that things get a little (or a lot!) easier for you! I’m sorry your year has been so rough
Don’t worry about not posting – just take a break if you need it and we will all still be here!
You poor thing! I applaud you for being more genuine with how life can be. I get so bored and annoyed when people try to make their lives sound perfect! I hope you get through your finals okay and are able to focus your efforts on what you really love this summer!
I really wish you and Kyle were closer to us! I feel like you’d be the perfect double date duo
That pie looks AMAZING! And – I enjoyed your rant, and it reminded me SO much of my college days. Stress can be so overwhelming, and yucky sometimes, but you’ll get it all figured out one or another 
Christine!! I have so much to say about this post. First, SO refreshing to read about your honesty that life can sometimes get plain old exhausting, and while our blogs only show the exciting parts, life is life and sometimes you totally get burnt out and need a break. You are so close to summer, and you are going to absolutely love the freedom you have!! You are working so hard– you’ve got this, girl. Second, that pie looks magnificent.. I have been craving peach pie ever since I saw someone in a movie making it several days ago and now I’m extra dying for one, haha. Third… I LOVE HOUSE! House is my favorite show of all time. Totally wanna marry Hugh Laurie. Sending you so much love!! Hopefully this week isn’t too rough school-wise. Xo
Sending you happy thoughts to get you through this semester! And I really need to try those brown sugar banana oats. They always look amazing!
Love, love, love The Walking Dead! We really got into Breaking Bad too, but we didn’t start until the last season. We binge watched all the seasons before.
Sometimes it’s hard to find a balance with so much going on. Just have to focus on what’s important and what you love 😉
I think most of us can completely relate to how you feel so feel free to vent when you need to. Also, I completely agree with you regarding light being the most important factor in food photography. It’s amazing what a difference the perfect time of day can make. But it’s right when I want to be outside having fun or relaxing! I love doing it but it sucks when it eats up all your free time and running yourself ragged.
I think taking a break here and there is the best way to prevent burnout so if you need a day off just say screw it and spend the day relaxing, without guilt. You deserve that much!
Hahahahaa Kyle singing that song is gold. Not sure if you got my tweet or not about lifting our cats and singing it?! My Twitter was acting weird haha. I really hope things start getting a little less hectic for you! I can’t imagine doing all the studying you do! As for TV shows, I can’t help ya there. I rarely watch tv. If I do, it’s either the Pioneer Woman or Modern Family! And OMG need that pasta recipe!!!
You are doing such a great job balancing everything and it’s so true – the blog only paints a positive picture. If anyone actually has a brain, they know a blog is not the entire story, that would be impossible. So no worries, you’re doing wonderfully. And you’re doing so well with your foodie stuff – like live it up AS SOON AS school lets out. Celebrate yourself, you deserve it. And ain’t that the truth – you do you, Kyle! HAHA! You two are precious. Good luck finishing everything and CONGRATS on doing so well on managing all the things in your life. That will serve you well in your future career endeavors.
Andddd now I’m hungry
Only because these food pictures look SO amazing! Orange is the New Black, love! And I am so excited for The Bachelorette!
That’s hilarious that Kyle was singing that!
Girl, take your time! Study, relax and blog when you can. We’ll all be here when you get back! 
I totally know what you mean when you say photographing recipes and writing blog posts takes a lot of time! Sometimes I take several pictures of the same thing over and over and yet I’m still not satisfied with the outcome. There is also a lot of pressure to have to come up with a new post so frequently. Hang in there and make some time for yourself!
Even though I’m still in high school, I can totally understand the burned out feeling (or at least I think I understand, I’ll probably eat these words once I go to college!) I took my last final yesterday morning, and I’m already feeling 100x better. Hang in there! A lot of rest, good food, and relaxation is coming your way, and you’ll be feeling better in no time! For now, don’t forget to take a little time for yourself! You’re just as important as all that school stuff you’re stresssing over (if not more!) xx