What I Wore Wednesday & Oh, How Pinteresting!

Jeans: Alloy.com; Shoes: ebay; Belt: Primark; Turtleneck: F21; Shirt: Walmart (little boy's section, because I'm awesome)

So Happy Wednesday, people! You know what that means... that I'm linking up with The Vintage Apple for Oh, How Pinteresting! 

Let's get PINTERESTING! Umm yeah. That sounded cooler in my head. 

 Love. This. Watch. 

 Fun DIY Christmas deco! 

Yeah, sorry... Couldn't resist. He's hot (not as schmexy as Hubby, of course). 

 If you can name this show... We can be friends. 

All images from my Pinterest account.

Love that last one, so with that... hope you have a wonderful Wednesday! 

Tuesday Ten & GIVEAWAY WINNER.

Hey, everyone! It's Tuesday, and usually Tuesdays are the hardest day for me to come up with something to post - my creative juices just stop flowin' for some reason! Anyway, because of that, I thought I'd link up with Miss Mommy for her Tuesday Ten! Here goes:I ____________ right now. I am - happy. Happy that my long workday is over and that I can spend time just hanging out doing nothing. In my sweatpants, of course. I wonder - what life will hand me in the next couple of months. Living in a foreign country is like walking around blindfolded all the time. I have no idea what sorts of things I'll be up to in the next couple of months. At first it was stressful, but I've gotten used to it. I see - dead people. Haha, Sorry guys... just couldn't resist that one.

 sourceI want - to go on a trip. I'm thinking Prague, Paris, Montpellier, or Venice.

 sourceI pretend - that I'm not thousands of miles away from most of the people I love. Life is easier that way. 

I worry - that my career choice won't please everyone. I hate disappointing people. I know you can't please everyone, but I feel like people have high expectations for me, and if I don't want to do what I thought I did for so long, I don't want to let anyone down. I cry - when I get homesick. Yeah, I'm a wuss. I've had a few good cries since I've been here. That's right, I just announced my sissy-ness to the blog world. I hope - to be my best self always, no matter who is watching. I need to work on this. Why do we, as people, constantly put on a show of who we are? Yeah, I mess up. Yeah, I make mistakes, but you know what?! So do you, so does your best friend, so does the "perfect" mother, sister, father, or neighbor down the street. We are all human. I dream - of changing the world. 

sourceI feel - other people's pain. I'm super sensitive to things like that. It's just who I am. 
UPDATE: The F21 Gift Card Giveaway winner is: 

Congratulations! Email me within 48 hours to claim your prize! 

It's Okay.

Hiiiiiiii!!!!!!!!! So... I stole this idea from Whitney. I wasn't feeling creative enough on this gloomy Monday to come up with my own awesome post idea. But... IT'S OKAY! 

1. It's okay that this is our Christmas tree. Give us a break. We're living on like, slave wages here. All we could afford is a 5 EUR tree and some ornaments made out of an old t-shirt and potpourri. Yeah, I got creative.

2. It's okay that I spent a total of 3,50 EUR on Christmas decorations. Yep, you read that right. I got these two little beauties for super cheap! And no, I am not embarrassed that they look like something my granny would buy. 3. It's okay that I think Germans are grumpy. Because they totally can be, you know. I guess Americans can be too, we're just not as "in your face" about it. 

4. It's okay that I'm obsessed with candles. It's Christmas time, and honestly - who doesn't love their house smelling all Christmasy? 5. It's okay that as soon as I get home from anywhere I take off my pants... and put on sweatpants. Sheesh. Get your minds out of the gutter! 6. It's okay that I am lazy sometimes. 

source7. It's okay that, in order to keep my sanity, I have to go on outings. Hubby pointed this out, and it's true - I have to get out of the house and DO something, or else I get grumpy/crazy. 8. It's okay that cooking is not my favorite. Hubby can cook, why should I have to do something I don't enjoy all the time? I shouldn't - and he agrees with me. win/win. 

source9. It's okay that I'm behind on laundry. We can't all be superwoman. Besides, I put up a 90cm Christmas tree today... that deserves some recognition, right?! Right. 10. It's okay that my pictures aren't fabulous today. Because I'm irresponsible and forgot to charge the camera. Oops. So half of these are iPhone pics, and the other half were found on Google. That's how I roll. 

11. It's okay that I'm literally DYING to draw a winner for my F21 giveaway. But... I have to wait. Go ahead, enter. You know you want to. Just click on the pic, and it will take you there.

HAPPY MONDAY!

Sunday Confessions

Hello lovely people! 


Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving surrounded by family and/or friends. Black Friday doesn't exist here, but if you braved the crowds to go out, I hope you weren't one of the people who got sprayed with pepper spray, or punched in the face. If you did, well... that sucks, and I hope you're over it. If not, maybe some Sunday Confessions will put a smile on your swollen face.

1. I'm worse than the old men that fall asleep during church. I didn't just fall asleep at church today, oh, no. Instead, I read and fell asleep. No, I wasn't even reading the scriptures or the lesson. I was reading Anne of Green Gables, and I had to stifle my crying when Matthew died. After I finished the book, I didn't have anything else to read, so instead of trying to concentrate on all the German, I fell asleep. Nice, eh?

2. I am the world's worst "winker." No, I didn't say "wanker," I said, "wink-er." You know, where you close one eye and keep the other open? Yeah, I totally can't do that. I think I look sort of like a mix between a pig and a weasel when I try to wink. Definitely not a good look for me - that's why I never do it.

3. I am deathly afraid of cicadas. Story time! Once upon a time, when Alyx was 12 years old, her friend decided to put a dead cicada in Alyx's messy bun. She then said, "Oh my gosh, ALYX! What is that in your HAIR?!?!?" Alyx reached up into her hair, felt something large, pulled it out, and found a cicada. She screamed bloody murder. She is now terrified of anything with more than four legs, especially cicadas. 

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4. I tried to be crafty yesterday. I failed. I wanted to make a super cool t-shirt scarf, but ended up with an ugly, slightly weird-looking, braided bracelet. I wore it today to make myself feel a little better about that hour of wasted time. 

5. I cut Hubby's hair. Yeah, you read that right. I, who can barely cut a piece of paper without ruining it, cut someone's hair. With scissors. This is because we are: a) too lazy to walk to the Friseur and b) too cheap to pay 12 EUR or more for a men's haircut. Before and Afters: 

Happy Sunday! Don't forget to enter my F21 giveaway here. Time is running out!! 

Picture Perfect.

Hey there, bloggy friends! You may or may not know this about me, but I love pictures. I also love editing them. I have so much free time on my hands now that we're in Germany in the middle of nowhere without a car, and I've used it to really get into Photoshop.

Picture 1: brightened eyes, more vibrant colors, added text

Picture 2: Eliminated shadow on him, changed to Sepia, added focused light

Above: changed exposure, added light ray, added shadow 

 Photo 1: added grain, changed colors

Photo 2: more vibrant colors, added shadows and highlights

Above: added light ray, changed coloring, added text 

Above: changed exposure, changed coloring 

Above: removed shadows, brightened faces, changed coloring 

Above: changed coloring

 Sadly, I have run out of pictures to edit. That's where you come in. If you like what you see, don't have time to edit your own photos, or whatever - email me. The first three people to email me 1 or 2 pictures will get them edited by yours truly within the next week. 

Don't forget to enter the F21 giveaway here. 

Happy Saturday!!! 

Favorite Things Friday

Yes, I know I already posted today. I realized, though, that I didn't do my Favorite Things Friday post, and that made me kind of sad, so here I am again. 


My Favey-Faves for Today: 


1. Taco Soup. I'll put up the recipe sometime this weekend, but this is my all-time favorite soup, and this recipe became a family favorite about 15 years ago when I brought it home from Mrs. Godown's 2nd grade class. 

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2. Belts. Seriously - they are probably my favorite accessory, second only to scarves. 

3. All things yarn. Warm, cozy, wonderful yarn! Sweaters, hats, scarves, gloves, you name it - I probably love it! Especially as the temperature outside is constantly dropping.

4. Slippers. As I start to freeze my butt off more and more each day, I'm loving the fact that slippers exist. Cute ones are the best, and even though we have heated floors, I still love the things.

5. Poinsettias. Prettiest Christmas flower ever. And I got one from our landlord for my birthday. 

Happy Black Friday, Everyone!!!! Don't forget to enter my giveaway here. 

Since I'm FINALLY Allowed to: CHRISTMAS!!

Happy Followers Fest! Head on over to Casey's, Danielle's, Kate's, and Janel's blogs and link up for the fun! And don't forget to join my Forever 21 Gift Card giveaway here. 

I thought that, since we are away, I'd do a post about how we're going to celebrate Christmas this year! You may have seen this on Alicia's blog for her Kickoff to Christmas. Sorry!!! 

 So. On to the good stuff - Christmas Traditions. 

My husband and I have only been married a little over a year, so we are still trying to figure out our own holiday traditions. We are currently living in Germany, where Christmas is pretty much a huge deal. Observe: 

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That picture is a typical Christmas Market. We fully plan on visiting a few of those while we're here, but since we aren't here permanently, that doesn't exactly make for a tradition. 

Of course we plan on incorporating some of our family's traditions...

Every year, Hubby's family has a real tree (except last year, but that doesn't count), so we've decided to keep on keepin' on with that one. There's nothing like the smell of a real Evergreen just hangin' out in your living room, and that's something that I never really experienced until last Christmas. 

Yes folks, that is a real tree. 

Every year, my folks gather together on Christmas Eve to bake cookies for Santa and read the story of Christ's Birth. This tradition has been really special to me, so it's definitely been a keeper (No, we don't have children yet - yes, we still bake cookies for Santa). 

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As for our own traditions - Hubby and I have decided that every year, on the day after Christmas, we will all pile into the car (or onto a plane, if we're rich enough), and go to a surprise destination to open our "big" presents for that year. This year, we and Hubby's parents will go to Paris, France, and open our presents under the Eiffel Tower. We thought this would be a really cool tradition to pass down to our children! 

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SO. What are your Christmas traditions? How do you and your family celebrate this magical time of year?! 

An American Thanksgiving in Germany

I am so thankful to be here in Germany. 

I am thankful that the Lord has blessed me with so many opportunities. I'm thankful that I have been blessed with a wonderful husband, family, and friends (near and far). I am thankful that I have a home, food to eat, and clothes on my back. 

We had Thanksgiving here in Germany with a couple other Amis (slang for "Amerikaner"). 

HUGE turkey 

Our new fran Claire from Nebraska! It's a small world!  

Hubby's plate 

My plate

Happy Thanksgiving! Don't forget to enter my F21 Gift Card Giveaway here.