33 -Age Is Just A Number

Tomorrow I am 33 years old. Where has the last year gone? Scratch that. Where has the last few years gone? Time is flying and it's insane to think that I'm almost to my mid-thirties! I want time to slow down a little and let my brain catch up to this new number.

I thought it would be fun to do a little post where you get to know me better. I've done some posts in the past, but since then I've gathered a lot more people reading. I always love reading posts like these, and sitting here trying to figure out what to share was fun! In honor of my 33rd birthday, I'm sharing 33 things you may not know about me. Not going to lie... it started getting tricky around 18. It's hard to come up with things about yourself! So... let's get started shall we?

33 Things You May Not Know About Me

 

 

1. I use to twirl baton. As in competitive twirling. I also twirled in high school and college.

2. I majored in Criminal Justice and Foreign Language- German in college. That's also what I received my undergraduate degree in.

3. I studied overseas in college in London and Paris.

4. My first job out of college was for NASA's U.S. Space and Rocket Center.

5. My husband and I met at work (not my current job).

6. We had a winter wonderland/Christmas theme wedding.

7. I'm not a fan of sauce. Any kind of sauce actually. The only sauce I'll eat is a light spread of pizza sauce and fettuccini sauce.

8. My favorite movie of all time is Romancing the Stone. I've talked about my deep love for it several times here, here and here.

9. I was born in Huntington, West Virginia. #countryroads

10. Two years ago I collapsed and since then I'm obsessed with making sure I have enough electrolytes. I'm all about some Smart Water.

11. I put up a minimum of seven Christmas trees. This year I'm going for eight. Don't judge me! I love Christmas.

12. Speaking of which... Christmas is my favorite holiday!

13. I had a miscarriage and a nasty nail fungus all in the same year. I talked about them both here and here.

14. My favorite vacation spot in Pigeon Forge/ Gatlinburg, Tennessee. If you told me that we were buying a home there tomorrow and we were going to retire there, I'd say LET'S GO!

15. I have a gift for watching movies over and over and never getting tired of them.

16. This December is two years of marriage and four years of togetherness.

17. The older I've become the more I hate wearing open toed shoes/ sandals.

18. I'm excellent at cooking breakfast. The rest of the meals... not so much. But I can bake!

19. I love to read mystery novels. My favorite author is Stuart Woods.

20. When I was a kid I wanted to either be a dentist or a travel agent.

21. I love eating food off the grill. Give me a hot dog or a grilled steak and I am one happy camper! But without the camping.

22. Which brings me to... I have never been camping. No thank you! Which brings me to another point...

23. I am deathly petrified of snakes. Yuck, just thinking about them to type the name gives me the heebie jeebies.

24. I Skype with my mom almost every weekend.

25. I'm cold about 89.9 percent of the time and have a sweater or jacket with me at all times.

26. Gouda Cheese is my favorite but I wont snub my nose at other cheeses. Yum!

27. I cannot stand the Kardashians. Go AWAY!

28. The O.J. Simpson bronco chase happened on my 10th Birthday. I've talked about it here.

29. I've travelled quite a bit but I'd love to go to Italy, Greece and Australia still!

30. My favorite board game is Clue.

31. I have a collection of miniature alcohol bottles.

32. I love eating Spam!

33. I love freshly vacuumed carpet.

Randomly Me

1. I buy those bulk packages of toilet paper. I fear having to #2 and having no toilet paper.
2. I could eat bacon for breakfast every. single. day. Probably not the healthiest thing but whatever.
3. I'm trying to eat better. This entails wheat bread. Carrots, grapes and protein bars that taste like turds (even though I've never tried a turd).  
4. I loathe taking out the trash. Every Monday night on my drive home from work, I remember that it's trash day and cry a little bit on the inside. HA!
5. Every time National Treasure 1 or 2 is on television, I watch them.
6. I'm cold about 98.9% of the time. Even in the summer. Except when I'm roasting on random days of 115 degree heat.
7. I try to pretend I'm a patient person. I am not. I am the most impatient person ever. I want it and I want it now.
8. When I laugh really hard, I think I make the biggest laugh face.
9. I love Elvis. I think if I would have been alive back then that I would have been his girlfriend. Suck it Priscilla.
10. I'm obsessed with French bulldogs. I want one. I want one bad.

Six Things

I saw this over on Jessica's blog and I thought it was a cute idea. It's a little more insight into who I am and things in my life... Jessica called it the Cliff Notes and I agree.

Six things I'm passionate about:
1. Christmas
2. Recycling
3. Family
4. Traveling
5. Blogging
6. Movies

Six things I want to do before I die:
1. See the pyramids.
2. Hold a koala.
3. Finish my 30 before 30 list.
4. Find someone I want to spend forever with.
5. Rent a cabin for Christmas.
6. Retire at a reasonable age.

Six of my favorite reads: 
1. Choke by Stuart Woods
2. The Hunger Games Triology
3. Stori Telling by Tori Spelling.. I was going through a crazy time and this book was there!
4. Divergent by Veronica Roth
5. The Hardy Boys. All of them are cute reads.
6. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

 Six of my favorite TV shows:
1. Scandal
2. Revolution
3. The Real Housewives
4. Matlock
5. The West Wing
6. Seinfeld

Six things you'll learn from my blog:
1. How to be obsessed with Christmas.
2. How to take a major leap of faith.
3. How to be obsessed with movies and watching a good one each week.
4. What Not to Say or Do on a Date.
5. That Elvis is still the King of Rock n' Roll.
6. That Vintage is awesome.

So let's hear it... what's six things about you?

A Little More About Me

I saw this the other day over on Meghan's blog and instantly I knew I wanted to fill this out. It gives new readers a little glimpse of who I am and it gives faithful readers a better understanding. All in all it's just another way to get to know each other.

 

Clearly he stole my arm moves

 

1. Do you like blue cheese? I had never tried it until this past year. It's ok but I can only handle it on fries.

2. Have you ever smoked a cigarette? No and I'm keeping it that way.

3. Do you own a gun? No. I don't but I've been thinking about buying one.

4. What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic? I usually don't buy drinks at Sonic. I go there for the tater tots!

5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Normally no. I was really nervous once when I was having to get stomach issues looked at.

6. Do you like hot-dogs? Yes! I love them off the grill!

7. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Usually water or a cold sprite zero.

8. Can you do push-ups? I can do the half push ups really good. The real ones.. eh not so great but I'll work on it.

9. What’s your favorite meal? I love pork chops, hash brown casserole and baked mac and cheese. You know who has that? Cracker Barrel. Get on it California.

 

10. What’s your favorite piece of jewelry? I wear a ring my mom got me when I was younger everyday. Besides that I don't have a lot of "real" jewelry.

11. Favorite hobby? Watching movies, blogging, reading.

12. Do you work with people who idolize you? Definitely not. I think they probably feel that I'm a good worker though.

 

13. Name a trait that you hate about yourself? I can't take positive feedback. I always do this weird, "ohh umm thanks" or a "oh no it's nothing important" spiel. I need to learn to accept it.

14. Middle name? Marie Olivia

15. Name 3 thoughts at this moment: 1.)My AC has been on almost all day because it's so hot outside. 2.) my shoulders are hurting from the way I held them today while I was working on the computer. 3.) I really want some royal kebab food but I'm not driving over there just to get it when I have food here.

16. Name 3 things you bought yesterday: I went to the grocery store and bought food. I got some Urban Fries at work and I bought some stamps.

17. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink: Water, Sprite Zero, Diet Cherry Pepsi.

18. Current worry right now? Wondering if I'll get the holidays off work.

19. Current hate right now? That it's been over 109 for the past 5 days.

20. Favorite place to be? Anywhere that's fun but I do love Pigeon Forge, TN.

21. How did you bring in New Years? I spent it in West Virginia.

22. Favorite place to go? Pigeon Forge, Tennessee and San Francisco.

23. What is your most recurring dream? I don't really have a recurring dream.

24. Introvert or extrovert? I'm typically an extrovert.

25. What color shirt are you wearing? Peach.

26. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? I don't believe I've ever slept on satin sheets.

27. Can you whistle? Yes.

28. Can you sing? No.

29. Favorite color? Green, Blue, Yellow.

30. Would you be a pirate? No.  They seem dirty.

31. What songs do you sing in the shower? I don't sing in the shower.

32. Favorite girl’s name? Sadie

33. Favorite boy’s name? Wheaton

34. Who is your loudest friend? Don't hate me... Newt.

35. What’s in your pocket right now?  Nothing. I'm wearing yoga pants.

36. Last thing that made you laugh? My mom. She kept talking about how she looked in a certain photo.

37. Bed sheets as a child? I had all different kinds. The California Rasins, The Berenstain Bears just to name a few.

38. Worst injury you've ever had? I broke my middle finger in the 9th grade.

39. Do you love where you live? Sacramento definitely has it's pros and cons.

40. How many TVs are in your house? 2.

41. What is your worst habit? biting my nails.

42. How many dogs do you have? Zero

43. Does someone have a crush on you? not that I know of.

44. Do you own slippers? Yes. I need new ones actually.

45. What is your favorite book? "Choke" by Stuart Woods.

46. What is your favorite candy? Bottle Caps.

47. What is your favorite sports team? I don't care about sports but I love the Olympics! Does that count?

48. What song do you want played at your funeral? I have a few in mind but they all revolve around Elvis.
 

49. What were you doing at 12 AM last night? Laying in bed reading.

50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up this morning? Go back to sleep!

Sunday Social

1. Name 4 jobs you've had in your life.

Sales Associate at A.C. Moore

Fundraiser for Marshall University

Aerospace Instructor at U.S. Space & Rocket Center NASA

My current Federal Job

2. Name 4 movies you would watch over and over.

Romancing the Stone

She's the Man

The Thomas Crown Affair

New In Town

3. Name 4 places you have lived.

Huntington, West Virginia

Huntsville, Alabama

Sacramento, California

I've only lived in 3 places!!!

4. Name 4 of your favorite foods.

Breakfast foods! Bacon!

Pork Chops

Baked Mac and Cheese

In-N-Out Burger

5. Name 4 things you always carry with you.

My phone

Gps

Wallet

travel size body spray

6. Name 4 places you have been on vacation.

London, England

Memphis, Tennessee

Orlando, Florida

Los Angeles, California

Hope you liked learning a little bit more about me! Don't forget to become a follower! The 800 by NYE Giveaway is going on right now! If I hit 800 by then I'm going to have a HUGE giveaway! 

Now Is the Time

On Friday, I opened up the blog to questions. Tomorrow I'll be answering them so if you haven't got your questions in yet you can ask them now. Nothing is off the table, so ask away. Ever wanted to know what I do for a living? Where's my next vacation spot? Favorite food, etc? Ask it here or on Friday's post . Tomorrow you'll be getting your answers! 

10 Day YOU Challenge: Day 8

Eight Fears

1. Chipping a tooth. That would just be one more hillbilly joke I'd have to shoot down.
2. Death.
3. Losing stuff: my phone, laptop, car keys, etc.
4. Snakes. Let's not even talk about them, ok?
5. Losing someone really close to me.
6. Not living life to the fullest.
7. Machetes. Dear Charlie Sheen, stop swinging them from balconies. I broke out in a cold sweat.
8. Barry Manilow. No one should wear that much velour.

10 Day YOU Challenge: Day 6

Six Places. I love to travel. A ton of my blog posts have been about travel. If you know me, you know I live to travel. Narrowing down to 6 places is hard!

London, England. I loved it there. I did a study abroad trip there in college. Once I was done with college,I went back over again once I was done with school. I love it there so much that if someone gave me a work permit I'd move there in a heartbeat.

What's not to love about it? It feels super safe, the people are friendly, the sights are amazing and you're walking around where so much history has occurred. Man this makes me want to go back!

Sydney, Australia. I have yet to get there. I want to see the Opera House. I want to hold a Khola bear. I want to ride around in the outback and take tons of photos in the red clay and pretend I'm an outdoor enthusiast. I want to try it all!

Los Angeles, California. Have you been there? I have and let me tell you. You will never be bored in LA. There's a 1,001 things to do and see there. Plus it's crawling with celebrities. You show up and the right place and the right time and guess what... you'll spot one. The weather is great year round.

Hawaii. I have friends that live there. I know people who have vacationed there, yet I've never been there. I have a feeling, I'll be getting there in the next year though. The views are to die for. The weather is amazing and there's so much to do on the tiny islands. Hello... who doesn't want to swim with a sea turtle?! Their my favorite sea creatures! Sign me up.

New York City, New York. Can you believe I've never made it to NYC? I know, I'm shocked too. They've got great vintage stores, the Statue of Liberty, Times Square, Broadway. The list could go on forever. I thought I was going to go there this Christmas season but we couldn't get the travel plans all laid out in time. Maybe soon!  

Italy. They've got the Colosium. They've got the Leaning Tower of Pisa. They've got the wine country and they've got style. I have yet to get there, but I'm telling you from the travel book I bought a few weeks ago on it, I must get there and soon. Beautiful and Romantic. Check please!

10 Day YOU Challenge: Day 5

Don't forget to join in on the Christmas Gift Exchange ! 

Oh, how I love food! Five foods that I love and love to eat...

Breakfast. I am a huge breakfast foods fan. Give me some hashbrowns, bacon and pancakes and I'm set!

Pork Chops.

Fetticini Alfredo

Brown Sugar Baked Ham

Hot dogs off the grill

What's some of your favorite foods? 

10 Day YOU Challenge: Day 4

I love to read! Last year I read 45 books and this year I've been on a quest to read 50. The four books, I'm going to talk about today are great reads. If you haven't read any of them, I highly suggest you pick them up soon and add them to your reading list. 

Choke by Stuart Woods

Choke was the first book that I can ever remember myself not wanting to put down. I wasn't much of a reader when I was kid and when I became a young adult it was the same thing. I think I was in high school when I got this book and it completely changed the way I read. I loved it. I couldn't get enough. It sparked my love of reading and the book was so good!

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I read this book in one sitting. I had been hearing things about it but before it became super popular. I didn't know if it was going to be good or not but the concept sounded interesting. Then I read it and it blew me away. I read the whole series in a week.

sTori Telling by Tori Spelling

This book came to me after a break up. I was doing anything I could to keep my mind off the state of my personal life. I read her book and it completely changed how I felt about the break up. I realized that if someone so rich and famous could have that many problems in their personal life that I was doing pretty good for someone who wasn't rich nor famous. Everyone has problems. Everyone has issues. This book definitely reassured me of that. Plus Tori Spelling is actually really funny.

New York Dead by Stuart Woods

This book was the first book in Stuart Wood's series about Stone Barrington. I truely believe that if Hollywood would get off their butts and make some new, originial movies that this could be the American James Bond. Stone Barrington is an ex NYPD cop/detective who took a bullet to the knee. Once he left the force he got his law degree and practices law in the city. He always find himself in crazy situations in exotic locations with women flocking to him. He's also got his best friend/ex partner always by his side.

10 Day YOU Challenge: Day 3

Three Films.

I think it's pretty obvious that I love movies. I devote my Thursdays on here to Theater Thursday. I also have a huge dvd collection that continues to grow. So limiting my choice to only three is hard for me.

Here's 3 movies that I love and will always want to watch over and over....

Back to the Future

My mom tells me to this day that I would go around when I was 2 or 3 quoting this entire movie. She says I was obsessed. She had to watch it so many times because of me she knew exactly where the cuss words were so she could hit the mute button. 

Romancing the Stone

I love this movie. I liked the second one but it wasn't as good as the first. Michael Douglas looked good in his younger days! This movie always makes me laugh and smile. My favorite part is when they hang from the vines to get across the old bridge. 

Grease 2

I have a deep love for this movie. I don't know why but I like it more than the first one! I also love the soundtrack. I keep it in my car and on every car trip, I play it at least once. Usually, much to the annoyance of whoever else is riding along with me. HA! 

Seriously, I could name a 100 movies I love so it was extremely hard to name only 3. 

10 Day YOU Challenge: Day 1 & 2

This is the first time I've ever done one of these 10 day challenges. This one's all about me so maybe you'll find out some things you didn't know about me before. 


I had originally been saving this for when I move across country but well.... I'm tired of waiting so I'm starting the challenge. And more than likely I won't post the challenge every day in a row. Soo..... yeah. I'm combining Day 1 & 2. 


One: Picture of yourself. 

outside of one of my favorite places: Graceland! 

Two Songs: I have always loved these two songs. Their classics to me and I'll always love them. 

The first one is, "Just Pretend" by Elvis Presley. 

The Second is, "With or Without You" by U2.

This Is Me In General

I am a travel loving, movie obsessed, crazy shenanigans blogger!

For those of you who may not know me, may be new to my blog or have even been around for awhile, here's a few things about me...


I'm 27 years old and work for the government (one thing I never blog about). I live on the east coast but I'm in the process of moving 2,500 miles away to California. I often post a weekly blog including the week's Top 5 things about California. I'm also big on traveling and anytime I can go on a vacation I'm there. I'm also movie obsessed and host a weekly Theater Thursday. I also have about 3,000 dvds in my collection.

• I love pork chops, beef jerky, dry cereal and all things breakfast.
• I am obsessed with movies. 
• My favorite place is London, England.
• I'm attempting to read 50 books this year.
• I believe life is full of Crazy Shenanigans.
• I keep it real. If I don't like it/you then there's no faking it.
• Everything Happens for a Reason.
• Haters are my motivators. 

And that's just a little bit about me.....

The Anniversary of My Birth

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY to me!

June 17, 1984 is when I came screaming into the world. Since then I've been tooting my own horn, marching to the beat of my own drummer, creating my own strides and all that other jazz. If I wished for one word on how I'd like people to describe me, it would be unique. 

I've always said I'd rather be viewed as different than blend in with everyone else. 

I'm one more year closer to 30 and guess what? I don't care! It's off to Dollywood I go!

Ten Things

The lovely Amber from over at Brunch With Amber tagged me in the 10 Favorite Things post and I thought today would be perfect for it! So without further ado, here are 10 of my favorite things!

1. Movies. Um hello, I think my dvd collection proves that I am a big movie fan. Anytime I'm in my house, I've got the television on and a movie popped in the dvd player. 

2. Friends. They brighten my day. They make me laugh and I've known most of my friends for forever. I'd say the shortest time I've known any of them is at least 8 years.

 

3. Family. I love my mom. She's always there for me. The rest of my family can rock most of the time too. Haha!

4. Vacations. I live for vacations. My favorite spot in the world, that I've said I'd move to in a heartbeat... LONDON!

Outside of Kensington Palace

5. Reading. What can I say, I love to read. I've usually got a book in my purse everywhere I go. Usually, I only read at night when I've changed into my pajamas and got in bed. It's relaxing! I read 45 books last year and this year I'm shooting for 50.

6. 80's Television. You name it, I've probably seen it. Dynasty, Matlock, Matt Houston, Hart to Hart, Simon & Simon, etc. The list could go on and on. I'm all about detective shows from that time period! Any suggestions? I'll watch them! 

7. Food- Specifically breakfast items and pork chops. For real, I could eat a pork chop every day and never be tired of them. LOVE them! I'm also a huge fan of Cracker Barrel's hashbrown casserole. 

8. Elvis Presley. He's one of my favorite male singers ever. I've been to Graceland twice and this year I'm attending Elvis Week. I've already got my tickets to the events and I can't wait! It's going to be crazy good! I'm sure I'll have tons of stories to tell once I get back from it. 

Sitting on the steps of Graceland

9. Christmas. I love Christmas. I love the decorations, the lights and everything about it! 

My white tree from this past Christmas

10. Vintage! If it's vintage and retro, I love it!!! 

My favorite vintage shop in Memphis

If you want to participate, then consider yourself tagged! I don't know who wants to play along.

5 Truths

Yesterday was cold and rainy. However, I went out and braved the cold for some Christmas shopping! I can't have a tree up with nothing under it, right? Right! 

I had some set goals of things I wanted to get for people on my list. It was a complete FAIL. The stores that I went to didn't have any of the stuff I was looking for in stock. I mean really, how hard is it? This is Christmas time, stock your stores!! So I came home, called all my friends to say, "Any suggestions on things you want for Christmas?" and started browsing Amazon where I met with success! I can't wait to get the stuff and start wrapping. Fun! Ok... I swear I'll stop being overly excited about Christmas before Thanksgiving even. Maybe.

Over the last few days I've seen this on a few other blogs and since I didn't like the top 2 Tuesday topic, I thought I'd join in on this one....

5 Truths

1. I could literally eat breakfast foods for every meal, every day and never get tired of it. 

2. I will never look at Kelsey Grammer the same way after seeing the train wreck he married from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Am I the only one who thinks she's deranged? 

3. The next country I'd love to visit is Australia. 

4. I love stores like TJ Maxx and Marshalls. You never know what you're going to find there!

5. The television is always on if I'm home and awake. I like having the noise. 

450th Post! Your Questions Answered!

Wow! This is my 450th post and honestly I never thought this day would happen. When I first set out blogging I had no idea that I'd actually stick with it, enjoy and love interacting with other bloggers. Looking back at it now, I'm really glad that I began to blog. It's allowed a lot of great things to happen in my life. 

In honor my 450th post, I opened up the floor to any questions you may have. So without further ado, your questions answered. 

Kendra asked, "Of all the places you've traveled, Which place was your favorite?" Outside of the USA- London England. Inside the US- Los Angeles, CA. 

Kassie asked, "If you were running out of the house from a fire, What would you grab? Things not people/pets." Photographs. We keep photos and negatives all in one place. Clothing, furniture and everything else can be replaced. Photos are really important to me and some of those could never be replaced. 

Aimee asked, "When did you discover you wanted to travel a lot? I've traveled since I was a child but I knew it was something I wanted to do often when I was in middle school. How do you travel a lot? I'm going with luck. I also save, plan out and go on the cheap. How do you get time off work? Well I'm lucky because my normal work week is only 4 days so that's 3 days off a week right there. I also get a total of 19 paid vacation days a year so that helps. Best vacation experience ever? Los Angeles, CA and the first time I ever left the country to go to England. Where is the one place you haven't gone to that you would be super disappointed if you were never able to go?" Egypt. I've always wanted to see the pyramids. (Aimee, you asked for specific examples of some things for a more detailed answer please e-mail me)

Love Jenny Xoxo asked, "What is the biggest turn off in a guy?" Smoking. 

Mariahsmile asked, "How do you find your deals for trips? I have a AAA membership, I find the cheapest outlet to book hotels, airfare and attractions be it on their official sites or discount. What is your favorite thing at Sephora? The eye shadows.What is your favorite movie and television show of all time?" Movie-Back to the Future/Shag. Tv- The West Wing/ Mission Impossible.

JG asked, " What are your goals for the rest of the year? Continue to pay off debt. What do your Saturdays typically look like?" I work on Saturdays. So I'm usually up around 7am and continue to work the majority of the day. Once I'm off, I'll run a few errands and relax. 

Kelly & Sara asked, "If you were invisible for 1 day what would you do? I would follow someone else to see what their life is like and what they're really like in private. If you won the lottery, honestly what's the first thing you would do? Pay off debt. What is your favorite book and movie?" Book- Choke by Stuart Woods, Movie- See above. 

Samnhal asked, "If money wasn't a problem, where is the one place that you would go for a 2 week vacation?" Somewhere tropical like Tahiti or Bora Bora and be in one of those huts on the water.  

Still have a question or want to know something else? Please feel free to ask, if it's not something you want to post on here then e-mail me. Thanks everyone! Here's to another 450 posts!