Happy Saturday guys!
As you all know, where I live is a big part of my blog. Alaska is unique, it’s unknown to many people, and that’s what sparks curiosity in many people. When I travel out of state – or even out of country – seeing people’s reaction when they find out I’m from Alaska is always one of my favorite things.
So, do you have questions? (They can be literally anything, guys.) Drop them below, and I’ll answer them next weekend!
XOXO,
Morgan
Hey guys, and welcome back to Swingsets & Snapshots!
Let’s be honest, many of us are not thrilled at the prospect of returning to school this year – and that’s not only the normal back-to-school dread, but the thought of returning to school online. Those of you who are able to attend school in-person are very fortunate!
I’ve finally decided to reveal a bit more of my personal life on my blog so I have a place to talk about it. So if you didn’t guess by the title of this post, I’m a senior this year.
Ooh, I just got goosebumps.
To me, and everyone who graduated this spring/is graduating next spring, our senior years look absolutely NOTHING like we imagined them to be. Sports are functioning outside-only, so no real swim practice for me. There’s no homecoming dance or football game. We didn’t have our junior prom, and it’s almost guaranteed we won’t have our senior prom, either.
I realize that doing school online is difficult for everyone, no matter what grade they’re in. But having to do senior year online adds an extra little touch of difficulty and loss. There’s a lot the Class of 2021 is missing out on.
I’m sure I’ll be talking about this more as the school year goes on but I wanted to start the post off like this so it’ll make more sense when I talk about what classes I’m in. And without further ado, here’s my school supplies setup for the 2020-21 school year!
Our district set up our schedules very differently this year. No one is taking for than three classes in a quarter. We will be taking the same classes first and third quarter and second and fourth quarter. We also have to do a semester’s worth of work in a quarter so we can do the whole year’s material in a total of one semester. Confusing, right?
My schedule for first and third quarter (the schedule I’ll be starting the year with) is as follows:
1st period – Algebra 2 (I already took this class as an underclassman but I’m retaking it just because I want to solidify my basic math skills before college)
2nd period – AP Literature & Composition (the only class I think will be remotely challenging)
3rd period – Forensics (I absolutely LOVE the teacher I have for this class and I’m so excited!)
I also have my ASL 4 class which is not through the school district, as well as another work-at-my-own-pace required class called Alaska Studies.
Second and fourth quarter, the only scheduled class I am in is AP French. (Second quarter I’ll still have AK Studies and I’ll have ASL 4 the entire year through).
I don’t really think you guys honestly care about my schedule that much but I’m putting here just in case you’re curious. 🙂
Here’s the little setup I have on the left side of my desk – a basket for books I don’t yet have, my binder, my planner, and my school supplies.
This year, I’m decorating my binder with stickers!
My planner is blue and pink tie-dye. The image is cropped because my name is on it and I honestly can’t figure out how to blur it out. Does anyone have recommendations for websites where I can blur names?
The inside of my binder – I have stickers for inside the planner tucked into a pocket. You can see my tabs and pencil pouch as well.
This is what my desk currently looks like. 🙂
School-related update coming soon, probably at the end of next week.
XOXO,
Morgan
Soooooo July happened.
Straight up though, I really do feel like all of my Life posts are blending together. I’m trying my best to make sure I post about something other than my increasingly-boring corona summer life. (IDK guys, is it boring? Should I stop doing these posts?)
I spent a lot of time this July going on big mountain bike trips with my dad and brother and also with my guy friend D. We did a 50 kilometer (that’s 32 miles) bike trip in early July:
And here’s another one where I went with my dad and brother:
Hammocking is kinda like a sport here, and we did a lot of that too.
Oh wait, here’s a picture from yet another bike trip:
Anyway, I’m going biking with D again tonight.
While we’re on the subject of friends, I had a few rough experiences with a specific friend this summer and I realized it was too unhealthy for us to continue to have a relationship and I’m no longer talking to her. If you’ve had to let go of friends recently to protect your mental health, just remember that you’re not alone! A lot of people have had to do that, unfortunately. The pandemic has caused huge divides that extend beyond our communities and states . . . they reach other states and countries. Sometimes you have to let go of people, but remember to extend grace and ask what YOU could be doing for others.
For Independence Day I cooked a huge dinner for everybody. We didn’t go to any barbecues but unfortunately a lot of other people did and we wound up with a HUGE Covid spike in Alaska. Our restrictions got a lot worse because people are *cough cough* having a veryyyyyy difficult time following rules. Oh yeah, my brother also had to get tested for Covid because he has some medical issues and was having a hard time breathing one day (and had low oxygen levels as well) so my mom took him to the doctor and he was tested. It took about ten days to get results back and it was negative, fortunately, but we had to quarantine better that week just in case.
Ahaha, we’re back to having school be a part of my Life posts . . . school is starting in just a few weeks. Our district is going back online-only after an original plan of going three days a week. That’s kinda a bummer but I totally respect and understand why they made that decision. This school year is going to be a lot of work and I’m going to have to make a lot of big decisions and really stay on top of stuff. Even though I’m not happy about the prospect of online school, I cheered myself up by getting a cute new binder and decorated it with stickers. I also ordered my planner for the year, which I always do to stay on top of things. 🙂
I’ve sort of neglected ski training a little bit and switched to mountain biking more frequently. Skiing was kind of stressing me out and I lacked a lot of motivation, so my decision to cut back on training was a good thing for me. I still rollerski all the time and do strength training, but biking brings me a lot of joy and I’m really glad I’m making more time for that as well.
What I’ve been listening to:
Shows I’ve been binging:
Books I’ve been reading:
Haha this post was sort of short but like I said, the days really blend together. Catch you next week!
XOXO,
Morgan
Hello my scrunchie-wearing readers!
At least, I hope you wear scrunchies. If you don’t, no judgement, but if you would like to know where to get some, look no further!
Natalie of Taking the Cake started an Etsy shop, TwoFiftyScrunchies, where she sells high-quality, functional, and stylish scrunchies. I absolutely love Natalie’s scrunchies. The colors are super vibrant and they compliment all of my clothes super well. She sent me some in exchange for a little review, and I decided to do my first lookbook featuring her scrunchies! Thanks, girl!
The point I would like to make is that these scrunchies can go with anything. My friends and I wear scrunchies year-round at school. Here’s one of Natalie’s scrunchies (from her Grape Juice scrunchie pack) paired with a tee-shirt and shorts.
Here’s one of her key lime scrunchies with my favorite black flowered romper!
And finally, another Grape Juice scrunchie paired with a fall outfit (that familiar chill is approaching, guys . . .)
If any of you are looking for some lovely scrunchies, go check out Natalie’s shop!
XOXO,
Morgan
Hey y’all! Happy Monday!
Last summer I did my first album review on SS&SS (one of my first posts, actually). This album was “GIRL” by Maren Morris and you can check out the review here. I haven’t done another album review since then because, in all honesty, I haven’t discovered an album where I actually liked the majority of the songs since then. I’ll admit, I’m picky about my music – but then, who isn’t?
Gabby’s music reminds me a lot of Maren’s. It’s country-meets-pop and is created by a wonderful female artist. Gabby is quickly becoming one of my favorite singers and her latest album, “Goldmine,” did not disappoint.
While I had to include a disclaimer in my review of “GIRL,” “Goldmine” is a very clean album. I’ve never encountered profanity in any of Gabby’s songs (don’t quote me on that, I may have missed one), so I honestly think her music is appropriate for any age.
Let’s start with the song “I Hope.” This song has been playing on both country and pop stations since it was released in July 2019. Gabby included a remake of “I Hope” that she dueted with none other than Charlie Puth. Personally, I like the duet even more than the original. This is by far Gabby’s most famous song – it’s about a scorned ex-girlfriend who discovers her ex got together with another girl.
I hope you both feel the sparks by the end of the drive
I hope you know she’s the one by the end of the night
I hope you never ever felt more free
Tell your friends that you’re so happy
I hope she comes along and wrecks every one of your plans
I hope you spend your last dime to put a rock on her hand
I hope she’s wilder than your wildest dreams
She’s everything you’re ever gonna need
And then I hope she cheats
Like you did on me
10/10 very catchy.
“Write It on My Heart” is probably my favorite song from this album. Gabby sings about leaning on the person you’re in love with and letting them see all of the parts of your life, good and bad.
Give me all your secrets
Give me your hometown
Give me meet your mama
Don’t leave nothin’ out
Everything that came before me
Even all the broken parts
Every chapter of your story
Write it on my heart
It’s a super sweet song with a beautiful message. With the exception of “I Hope,” which is written with a slightly more vengeful tone, all of Gabby’s songs have good messages. “Footprints On The Moon” is about how anything is possible, considering people have literally walked on the moon. “Jesus & My Mama” is about how Gabby refuses to change herself for any boys – after all, Jesus and her mama love her, and that’s what’s important. “You’re the Only Reason” and “Hall of Fame” are, sticking with a classic theme in country music, about true love.
My one complaint about “Goldmine” is the very co-dependent message that one of the songs sends. Check out the lyrics to “Rose Needs a Jack.”
We all should have somebody
Makes us feel like we’re somebody
Every me needs you, every pair needs two
Every June needs a little Johnny Cash
Every Rose needs a Jack
Makes you dance, makes you smile, makes you laugh
Every Rose needs a Jack
That’ll love you if it all goes bad
Every Rose needs a Jack
Personally, I dislike how Gabby says that all girls need a boy in their lives. It’s not true at all, and let’s be honest, some girls don’t even want a boy by their side. If you do, great. If you don’t, also great.
See the difference? In “Strong,” the man Gabby loves is complimenting who she really is. She can do anything she wants without him, but when she’s with him, she feels even more powerful.
To wrap this up on a good note, check out “Got Me,” featuring Shane & Shane. This is one of the few songs in the album that doesn’t discuss boys.
Nothing can separate me from amazing grace
Jesus, you’re all that I need
If everything falls apart and I don’t know where to start
You bring me back to my knees
‘Cause you’re good
And a God who’s got me
Who’s got me
It’s more like a worship song, in all honesty.
To wrap this review up, go check out Gabby Barrett’s album, “Goldmine.” Of course, you should consult with your parents first, and just remember that all opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
And if you need more country-meets-pop music by another talented female artist, here’s another link to my review of “GIRL.”
Have a great week, everybody!
XOXO,
Morgan
Better late than never, right? I got to mid-June and realized that I still needed to do my post for May and basically decided to combine them. May was pretty slow and basically nothing happened anyway, so if I add in June there are more stories to tell. 🙂
So May was kinda cool, I celebrated my birthday and was able to have some friends over to hang out in the backyard with me. We played Heads Up! and ate cupcakes and it was overall very fun. I’ve gotten to see my friends a lot more and reconnect and do a ton of activities outside so that’s a big yay!
Recently my friends and I have been hammocking a ton with our lovely Eno hammocks. We bike on some of the trails in town and then go off the trail and into the woods and usually get eaten alive by mosquitoes, but it’s all in good fun. We just have to remember to take bug spray.
Quarantine is pretty much coming to a close in Alaska. Our state reopened so we can go to restaurants, shops, and pretty soon, church. My family in general still isn’t eating out (unless it’s something like pizza) or doing shared food which is slightly awkward at barbecues but oh well. Unfortunately, a lot of cities have had to mandate masks because literally NO ONE wears them so that’s blown up and sparked a ton of debates in my state. At least we can be safe inside now.
My family decided to have me and my brother stop going to youth group though, because a lot of people at my church are way too comfortable getting way too close to other people. That’s really sad to me because now I can’t hang out with my friends at my youth group or help out with the younger kids at our middle school youth group. But I’d rather be safe than sorry, you know?
Ski training continues! I’m hiking, downhill biking, doing core exercises, and rollerskiing to prep for swim and ski season. (That reminds me, today is interval day 😉 I think all of my training is really paying off and I feel a lot stronger . . . plus when I flex in the mirror I actually look kind of muscular . . . don’t tell anyone. 😂 I went rollerskiing with a few guy friends the other day and one of them got their pole stuck in a storm drain and it snapped in half . . . so stuff like that happens. Oops.
My brother and dad and I are very into downhill mountain biking and we go all the time. For a while, we were going around five nights a week. About four weeks ago, my dad sent it a little too hard on a jump and the back of his bike hit him from behind and he went down really hard. I was right behind him, so I braked really hard, almost running into him, and helped him pull his bike off the trail. Later that night, at around midnight, I heard this huge crash from upstairs and I got out of bed. Turns out, my dad had a HUGE bruise on his lower stomach and the blood had drained out of his head and to his stomach, causing him to pass out. What worse is he pulled my mom’s dresser on top of himself as he fell, and it was on half of his body. My mom called 911 and eight paramedics showed up at our house with an ambulance and two fire trucks. It was extremely scary, but my dad didn’t need surgery or anything. And now he’s back to biking, although he has to go kind of slow and be careful.
So that was our excitement for June!
What I’ve been listening to:
Shows I’ve been binging:
Books I’ve been reading:
That’s about it for May and June! I hope everyone in the US had an amazing Fourth of July!
XOXO,
Morgan
Long time no see! Well, not that long I suppose. I’ve been outside, enjoying our beautiful summer (I hope y’all are doing the same).
Faye nominated me for the Sunshine Blogger Award – my first award on SS&SS! Thank you so much Faye. Go check out her blog, everyone!
The rules are as follows:
The questions for me:
What is your favorite song and why?
My favorite song changes on a regular basis, but the one I keep coming back to is “Beautiful People” by Ed Sheeran ft. Khalid. I love Ed Sheeran’s voice and for some reason the lyrics in this song really resonate with me. The beat is also great!
Favorite book series and why?
My all-time favorite is The Mother-Daughter Book Club series by Heather Vogel Frederick. The series is middle-grade fiction and I discovered it years and years ago, but the characters are all so different (it’s told from five different POVs) and the plot lines of each book are creative and fun. Plus, the author’s sense of humor is absolutely hysterical. They’re a great read for any age in my opinion.
Favorite movie and why?
I love The Parent Trap – the original and the remake. I can’t really choose which one is better. The twins are so mischevious and the movie is super entertaining.
Favorite flower and why?
My favorite flowers are hydrangeas because they’re super puffy (in a sense) and come in all different colors – depending on the pH level of the soil, in fact!
Favorite memory and why?
There are so many to choose from! I used to live in California (after being born in Alaska and relocated back and forth) and I have a lot of great memories from living there. My favorite one is actually from the day after I moved there. I got to meet our neighbor’s Chihuahua, Chloe. I was only eight at the time and Chloe and her owner were the first people I met there. Chloe passed away last year, but my own Chihuahua, Callie, reminds me of her.
What is a small thing you are incredibly proud of?
Hmm. (Anyone else have the problem where they have problems answering questions they would normally have an immediate answer to?) I guess I’m pretty proud of my bookshelf, actually. The one that’s rainbow color-coordinated, remember?
Do you have a bunch of friends or a few or really close friends?
I’m going to have to say I’m smack dab in the middle, honestly. I have two friend groups – my school/ski friends and my church friends. And then I have super close friends who aren’t in either of those groups who I love to death.
Are you a straight A’s kinda student, a few B’s and C’s, or failing kind of student?
Straight A’s, lol.
Do you play an instrument and if so, for how long?
I played piano for about nine years. I occasionally will go sit down and play, but I don’t do it consistently anymore. I would like to pick it back up, but I’m not sure I have the time.
What is a fact about yourself that is immediately apparent to new people that you meet?
Probably the fact that I’m pretty athletic. Besides the fact that I wear workout clothes a lot, I look like I’m in good shape. (Year-round ski training kind of shows.) 😂
Alternatively, what is a fact about yourself that only your closest friends (and now the internet) knows?
This is already on my blog, but the fact that I love swingsets! It’s easy to share that kind of information to my fifty followers, but I only have a couple of friends in real life who know that.
Here’s who I’m nominating:
Anyone over @ Yes, We Are Insane 🙂
Olivia @ Blogging and Bubble Tea
Diamond @ I Have 12% of a Plan
… and anyone else who wants to do it!
Your questions are (I knew I was forgetting something . . .)
Have fun! Thanks again for the fun award, Faith!
XOXO,
Morgan
This should be fun!
Ice cream is my favorite dessert – no, food – and it’s getting hot outside and it’s the perfect treat to cool you off.
You guys. I don’t cook. I can’t cook, rather. I burn everything, even things that should not physically burn. I do like baking a lot, though. I’m not sure where ice cream falls. But whatever. I made some, and if you would like to follow my incredibly uncomplicated (hehe) instructions, you can make some for yourself! (Or your family. Mine ate it all.)
For this recipe, you will need an ice cream processor. You can’t just put it in the freezer and expect it to do something. Haha.
I’m loosely following this recipe. Mint chip is my favorite flavor, and I’ve never made ice cream before, so we’re starting with something basic.
Ingredients!
You will need 6 ounces of chocolate chips, a pinch or so of salt, a cup of heavy whipping cream, a cup of milk, six egg yolks (not shown, because we only had four eggs at the time and our chickens had make more eggs before I could get very far in the recipe, which resulted in the actual ice cream consumption being delayed by a day), 2/3 cup sugar, and either peppermint extract or food-grade peppermint essential oil.
Measure that milk and heavy cream . . . (they look the same lol)
As well as the sugar . . .
And the salt . . . and put it all in a pan.
Stir stir stir! Combine it as much as you can.
Put it on the stove and heat it over medium until all the sugar dissolves (this may take a little bit, be patient).
While that is combining, chop up your chocolate chips to whatever size you want. Just make sure whatever size they are will work in your ice cream processor. Mine won’t work with any add-ins bigger than the size of a chocolate chip.
Then pop those in the freezer in a plastic bag.
Next, we’re going to whisk the egg yolks together. Ooh, pretty yellow color.
Slowly pour the milk-cream mixture into the eggs. If you pour it in all at once, the heat will cook the eggs and then you’re going to have scrambled eggs and that’s yucko.
Put it back on the stove and heat it up until it begins to thicken. It should coat the back of your spoon (preferably a wooden spoon, mine is not) and not run and be drippy everywhere.
Get a bowl of ice water . . .
And pull the mixture off the stove. Put it in the ice bath for about five minutes to stop the cooking.
Now we’re going to add the peppermint! This is to taste, and if you’re using peppermint extract you’ll need more to get a miny flavor than if you’re using essential oil. Make sure your oil is food-grade! Some is and some isn’t. This Young Living Vitality peppermint essential oil is food-grade (not sponsored). I used five drops, but my mom said it was too minty so it’s really personal preference. I thought it was just right. You can taste the mixture to see if it’s the flavor you want.
Now, you’re going to either leave the mixture in the ice water for about twenty minutes – or put it in the fridge for a couple of hours, which is better. You just want it to be completely chilled.
Now, process the mixture in your ice cream machine. Mine is this Cuisinart that I got for my birthday. Follow the manufacturer’s directions.
Add in the frozen chocolate, carefully folding it in.
Ta-da!
Now, leave the ice cream in the freezer in an airtight container (NOT the processor bowl – that can damage it, apparently) for a couple of hours to solidify.
My final product!
Guys, it tasted like legit ice cream . . . I’m honestly kind of surprised. The ice cream is pretty yellow for mint chip, it’s more of a vanilla-y color, but other than that, it’s real mint chip ice cream!
XOXO,
Morgan
Earlier this week I asked you guys to leave me assumptions and boy did some of you have some good guesses!
This is really fun to do so maybe I’ll have a Q&A later this summer.
Diamond’s questions:
I would like to get married within the next ten years, yes! Not until after college though.
I actually like Star Wars more than Marvel, but honestly I am not super familiar with either of them. My favorite Marvel character is Spider-Man, but for the majority of superheroes I really could not tell you who is Marvel and who is DC. 😂
I am actually a ENFP (I think . . . I haven’t taken that test in quite some time).
I would LOVE to travel abroad for a year . . . I almost went on a two-week exchange over spring break but I wound up dropping the trip – which was a smart decision on my part because obviously it got cancelled anyway. We were supposed to go to Martinique, which is a French-speaking island in the Caribbean.
Grace’s questions:
Oddly specific – but no 😂
I am an enneagram one! Good guess! (Enneagram ones are “moral perfectionists” or “reformers” – if you don’t know what an enneagram is, click here to learn more.)
Correct . . . and also correct 😉
Hahaha this is so random. I don’t care for the smell of lavender, no – but even if I did, I’m allergic to it so it’s not a good idea to have in my house anyway.
Ahhh, I was waiting for someone to guess my age! I’m not 17, but you are not far off 😉
I do love dogs. I have four of them!
Again this is so specific I love it 😂 No comment . . . excpet I will say I don’t intend to get married until after I graduate.
I like Swedish Fish a lot! They’re not my favorite, but one of my top five for sure.
For sure! That’s a dream of mine.
Natalie’s questions:
I do like pistachio ice cream, yes. However, my favorite is mint chip!
Correct! I wear my hair down unless it needs to be washed or it’s really hot, or if I’m doing something athletic – such as skiing!
I love baking. Baking makes me exhausted so I can only bake one thing at a time, but it’s really rewarding (and delicious!)
Ashlynn’s questions:
(More like facts tbh because she knows me in real life.)
I did do that! My name was spelled one way until I was twelve, when I decided to change it. I’ve always disliked the way my name was spelled and changed it to something I like a lot more. I dealed with correcting the spelling a lot for friends and teachers and a couple of months ago my mom surprised me with a brand-new birth certificate. 🙂
Haha I do . . . I almost-fluently speak French and ASL, and I’m learning Spanish and Russian.
I do. 😝
So I’ve only made this once but I do love it and I’m going to make it again tomorrow ahaha.
Again, no comment . . . you guys. 🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️
Awww wow I love you. 💛
Um yes there are. We have four dogs, one bunny, chickens, and yes, my brother has a frog (and a few fish too).
That is all the questions I have for today! Thanks to everyone who guessed. I hope y’all are enjoying your weekend. 🙂
XOXO,
Morgan
This post idea literally just popped into my brain and I thought, wow, I know I just posted two days ago, but wouldn’t this be fun to do? I’ve seen this around the blogosphere (I think Mary did one too) and thought I would jump on the bandwagon.
I blog anonymously, of course, but I do talk about my personal life quite a bit (after all, this is a personal blog . . .) But the question is, based on the information you guys have gathered over the last year, what do you think you know about Morgan McCartie?
I’m genuinely very curious.
So ask away! What do you think my real name is? My age? Things I like and dislike? It can literally be anything, guys. I may not be able to give you an honest answer for privacy reasons, but you are welcome to try. 😉
I can’t wait to see what y’all think about me! I’ll post your questions and my answers later this week/early next week, depending on how quickly I get responses.
XOXO,
Morgan
