Last weekend, we went up to our annual mini family reunion in St. Johns, AZ to visit my Great Grandma and celebrate the 24th of July. We normally spend the weekend playing cards, watching the parade, and eating until we feel sick. So instead of gaining 5 lbs like normal, we rolled ourselves off the couch to run a 5K! We also took some pretty pictures during our down time... Enjoy!

This is our "before" and "after" 5K picture of the fam-bam! It felt really good to check running a 5K off my Summer Bucket list!

My Great Grandma is the bomb. She is 86 years old and still walks 2 miles almost every day! I love the way she talks about my Great Grandpa, who has been in heaven for over 20 years now, and their sweet marriage. 

Now lets talk Birks!
Birkenstocks are the new "It" shoe! **happy dance** for comfort and style! At first, I was hesitant because I have only seen them on wanna-be hippies at BYU and old people that wear them with socks... but after seeing that JCrew and Urban Outfitters were selling them and that they were in every fashion magazine I've read this month (InStyle, ELLE, Vogue) I had to try on a pair. They are SOOO comfy and not nearly as clunky as I thought they would be, so I bought the Arizona style in taupe! I'm completely obsessed now and wish that I wasn't a poor college student so I could buy them in every color and wear them every day. If you aren't sure if you want to buy a pair, just promise me that you will try them on before they are SOLD OUT (you heard me right, they are so popular right now that the black pair are on back order for 3 months) or bump up in price because of the high demand. Even my super stylish, stiletto wearing momma ordered a pair of shiny silver ones because mine were so comfy. 

On a side note, Bridgett is my built-in hair stylist (and I'm her make-up artist) so we decided to try a new hairstyle on Saturday and then take pretty pictures. It is a dutch side braid! Sisters are the best.

If you need more Birkenstock inspiration, go check out my Birks Pinterest Board! 

What we wore...
My lace shirt: Target
Bridgett's neon shirt: Target
My shorts: American Eagle
My shoes: Birkenstock

H A W A I I #3

DAY 4

Friday was relaxing which was much needed after so many eventful days. We slept in and walked 2 blocks to Waikiki Beach where we boogie boarded and soaked up the sun.

The top picture shows how Bridgett and I felt we looked the entire time we were boogie boarding, but in reality, the 2nd picture is what we looked like 99.9% of the time we were out there! 

This whole week was even better because we never did our hair or make-up. A little waterproof mascara and chap stick and we were good to go!

Bridgett and my favorite store right now is Kate Spade! Bridgett loves the neon and sparkles whereas I'm obsessed with the polk-a-dots and tailored clothes! We loved the store they had next to our hotel. 

Every Friday night there are fireworks on Waikiki Beach at 7:45! I mean seriously? A warm summer night, on the beach, watching the sunset and firework show in Hawaii is pretty much as great as it gets. And even though I love Disneyland fireworks more than any other, this came as a very close second!

What we wore...
My floral swim bottoms: Forever 21
Bridgett's fringe one-piece: Pacsun
Mom's black one-piece: Victoria Secret
My tan hat: Charming Charlies

Day 5

We spent our morning at Pearl Harbor, boating out to see the USS Arizona ship that still lies on the bottom of the harbor. It was humbling to be in a place where so many brave men lost their lives. I'll never forget the experience. 

The next place we went was to one of Oahu's Botanical Gardens. It was fun to stroll around and take pictures that were so GREEN! (which are hard to take when you live in AZ)

 One of the highlights of my trip was that we saw a few sea turtles on the last day!!! I have always loved these creatures and was freaking out about seeing them in the wild! 

Since I am not huge into souvenirs but wanted to have something to remember the trip, my parents bought me these cute little gold pineapple earrings! It seemed fitting since we ate pineapple almost every day. I'm completely obsessed with them and wear them all the time now. 

I hope you enjoyed our pictures and were able to get a taste of how much we enjoyed this family vacation! Mahalo friends! 

What we wore...
Bridgett and my cover-ups: Rue 21
Mom's cover-up: T.J.Maxx

H A W A I I

Aloha Followers!

Last week, my family traveled across the pacific to the tropical state of Hawaii! My parents celebrated their 25th Anniversary this summer and wanted to take the family somewhere special. None of us have ever been to Hawaii, let alone any tropical paradise, so it was an easy choice to visit the Island of Oahu for a week. 

We took over a thousand pictures so this will only be a peak into our vacation! I will be doing multiple posts about this trip.

THE FLIGHT

We decided to fly Allegiant Airlines because it was SUPER cheap and flew out of Mesa, AZ. The plane was small, there were no TVs, and the seats didn't recline but we didn't mind a bit because of our super massive neck pillows and ability to stay entertained by braiding every inch of Bridgett's hair. :)

DAY 1

First of all, the view from our hotel (Aqua Pacific Monarch) was amazing! We could see the ocean, city, and Jurassic Park mountains all from one balcony! We were 2 blocks from the beach and 1 block from the nicest designer stores on the island. We loved being able to choose to be in the hustle and bustle of city life or to drive a couple miles down the street to relaxing beaches.

We spent the whole first day driving our convertible around the entire island with the top down! It was the perfect way to start the week off because we were able to take our time and stop at every sight seeing pull off, tourist hot spot, and ocean that we wanted to jump into!

Here are some pictures of our adventures....

The Dole Plantation pineapple ice cream and fresh pineapple was SO TASTY! We actually went back for seconds on our last day too!

I got the yummiest mangos and otai (my favorite fruit drink) at a fruit stand on the north shore.

This was our FAVORITE beach! The water wasn't cold at all and practically crystal clear. It was magical. My momma is terrified of the ocean (darn you Jaws!) but was willing to get into this clear water because she said she could "watch for sharks easier." 

Thanks for splashing in and I hope you come back for my next post to see more pictures from our Hawaii adventures!

As for our swimsuits...
My lemon bottoms: American Apparel 
My top: Old Navy
Bridgett's gingham one piece: Target
Mom's pink one-piece: Victoria's Secret

About Me

Hello followers, let me tell you a little bit about myself.

I am Alexia Nicole Saxton and I am studying at Brigham Young University in Provo Utah. I am majoring in Elementary Education and minoring in Art Education.

I was born and raised in the sunny town of Tucson, AZ where I was surrounded by friends and family every day. 

I must admit that I was not an outdoors(wo)man when I was growing up in the dry heat of AZ, but I found my passion for it when I moved to Utah! It was a lot easier for me to fall in love with the outdoors when I was not sweating/getting a sunburn/accidentally stepping on a cactus.  I picked up a few hobbies last year that include rock climbing, fly fishing, and scenic hikes where I can take pictures.

I grew up with a mom who was great at all things cosmetology and a dad who lived and breathed for sports so I have a love for both! I enjoy getting all dolled up and practicing new hair and makeup techniques as well as playing and watching pretty much every sport. (GO COUGARS!)

My newest passions are art and traveling! I was inspired by my Art History class last semester to be more creative and to travel the world. I am currently practicing my photography, painting, and drawing skills. As for traveling, I would love to visit every state in the U.S. and to someday step foot out of the country! I've never used my passport but hopefully that will change soon. 


My younger sister Bridgett is my best friend. She is my biggest role model and the happiest person I know. 

This blog is a work in progress but I'm very excited to write about my life, school, family, and all things pretty! 
Thanks for stopping by!

Summer Bucket List

I am loving my summer break in Tucson so far! I must admit that I was pretty bummed about leaving the green trees and nice weather in Provo, Utah to come to the HOT desert, but I have been looking on the bright side of things. If you know me, you know that I am an avid "list maker." Every day I create 1-5 lists about everything you can think of... Grocery lists, to-do lists, pros and cons lists, and last but not least... Bucket lists! I love being organized but since I am forgetful, this is how I roll. After one week of being back in Tucson, I realized that I was going to go crazy if I did not write a summer bucket list for my 4 months in AZ. So now I have some fun things to do between watching How I Met Your Mother and Gossip Girl marathons on Netflix with my mom and sister! Some of these ideas are strictly for Tucson but most of them can be used/altered for anywhere. I hope this inspires you to write your own bucket list and sparks some fun ideas for the rest of your summer! 

Summer Bucket List 
(Purple Font and X means they are checked off!)

• Hike to Havasupai Falls (hopefully in August)
• Practice new hair and make-up styles X
• San Diego
• Hike "A" mountain 
• Hawaii (TICKETS ARE PURCHASED! Wooowhooo!) X
• Mt. Lemmon X
• Run a 5k X
• Go swimming X
• Tube the river
• Go to the lake X
• Camping
• Kartchner Caverns X
• Grand Canyon 
• Gilbert Temple X
• Driving range X
• Diamond backs game
• See a Broadway play X 
• Concert
• Yoga X
• learn how to cook new dishes X
• Read books X
• Paint furniture
• Sunbathe X
• Bike rides
• Paint and sketch X
• Photography shoot X
• Visit museums
• Volunteer X
• Bake a cake X
• Get a Massage X
• Flower arranging X
• Create art with kids X
• Build a fort
• Fly a kite
• Play tennis X
• Sew X
• Go fishing
• Temple work X
• Hike Tomamach X
• Eat at Tohono Chul park X
• Go on walks X

Here are some pictures from my adventures so far!