Valentine #LoveBlog

Happy February 4th, my friends! It's Thursday, the work week is ALMOST over, hang in there!

I'm trying to get things done, and keep up the blog hehe, and prepare for my recital this Saturday. Eek! It's not an easy life, but at the end of the day I know I'm working towards some awesome goals, so that keeps me going. AND I get to see my husband tonight! Yay! (Long distance sucks, but thank goodness we can see each other for weekends and he has tomorrow off from work!)


Today's #LoveBlog linkup question is about Valentine's Day! Brita asks us what our valentine plans are and what our favorite valentine has ever been.


This year is our first married Valentine's Day, and we will probably be celebrating the whole weekend and just spend time together. That being said, we also would LIKE to go camping, should the weather permit. One of our wedding gifts was a huge ton of camping gear and a tent and a double sleeping bag, so we really want to utilize that gift! Plus we love hiking and nature, so it'll be great to go up one of Huntsville Alabama's many mountains and enjoy the view.

How cozy does this look??

Huntsville is just gorgeous. We live in a beautiful city!

As for the best Valentine's Day, that's really hard to pin down. I've been with Michael since October of 2011, so we have celebrated 4 Valentine's Days together. Last year's was really nice; we were both broke at the time so we both painted each other little cute cards, and played world of tanks online together (Valentanks day, as we call it) and then celebrated the REAL holiday, the next day, Half Priced Candy Day :) It was really funny last year because I knew Michael had been working on acquiring an engagement ring, but that's all I knew, there were no details. So he kept reiterating to me that I would NOT be getting a proposal on Valentine's Day (which would've been cheesy and kind of lame anyway, BUT at that point in time I wouldn't have minded because I was ready to get engaged!). He did eventually propose, just two weeks later, so I was a happy camper (hehe, camper, see why we need to go camping? Ok, I'll leave the puns alone...for now...). 

The thing about Michael is we can do anything and nothing but as long as we are together we are so happy and joyful. We've been through many hardships over the last four years, and they have only made us stronger. And the thing about long distance is that it makes you appreciate the time in person even more, because you know how the aching feels to be apart. 

Since we are Firefly nerds in our relationship, I'll end with our version of my favorite quote from the show. "No power in the 'verse can stop us." (In the show, Kaylee says "me" instead of us, but I think it's close enough!)

xoxo,

Alexandra Anne 

Fictional Love- #LoveBlog

Hey friends! I'm joining the link-train on Brita's AWESOME February linkup (stay tuned, I'm gonna be co-hosting on four different dates this month, it's gonna be so fun!) and I'm a little behind but that's ok! I'm on board now ;)



Today's topic is Fictional Love. Brita asks "Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?" and "What TV couple is most like you and your significant other?" 



First off, if you've ever met me, or been to my apartment, you've seen my Labyrinth poster and know that David Bowie was supposed to be my husband. But once I got married David realized he would never have me and gracefully left us behind (am I awful? Ok yeah, just a bit). Seriously though, Labyrinth was my childhood and Jareth the Goblin king was the man I was supposed to marry. I would totally have been his queen and danced around the castle with different dimensions and levels of gravity, etc. I also am a huge fan of Nathan Fillion, because he is the captain (in EVERY role, I swear) and my real-life husband looks just like him, so, I'm winning!!! 

Oh Jareth....

Captain. Always. 

How could you NOT have crushes on these men? Mmmm. 

Anyway ;)


As for question #2, what TV couple are we like, I want to say Marshal and Lily from How I Met Your Mother, except that my husband isn't *that* goofy. But I am Lily to a t.... anytime I'm watching the show and she does ANYTHING my husband looks at me and points (isn't our communication great? haha, we just point to the other person and know what that means). He's saying I'm her...I know.... she just gets excited and passionate, okay? There's nothing wrong with that. 

We are similar to couples on TV, but it's hard to find characters that go together that are like both of us. I could say he is Malcolm Reynolds from Firefly, or Dr. House from House, but I don't really have anyone to couple them with that I relate to. If anything from Firefly I'd be like Kaylee haha but she and Mal are definitely not a couple in any way shape or form. 

So I'll stick with Lily and Marshal, just because they have the same relationship dynamic we do where we are attached to each other equally, tell each other everything, and are totally passionate for the other person and would do anything for them and support their dreams. 

Be sure to check out the #LoveBlog linkup going on! 

xoxo,

Alexandra Anne 

Ze Giggles

Was going through my files and found some funnies. Since a lot of bloggers like to just look at pictures instead of reading all those words, here you go! :) Enjoy a giggle or two, on me, I insist. 

My First Anniversary

I have a myriad of interesting nicknames; my favorite of the odd ones include "List girl," "girl who has to know," and "date girl." When I say date, I don't mean getting all dolled up and going out on the town (although I LOVE dates like that), I mean I keep track of time and countdown to things almost religiously. For example, how long has it been since I lived in Italy, how long have I been in Houston, how long til I see my family again, how many hours have I sat in this chair, etc etc etc.

Well, October 4th is a day I have been counting down to for a while now. I didn't even know originally how wonderful a day it would become. First off, it will be my 1 year anniversary with my wonderful man, my guy, my boyfriend Michael.

If I recall correctly, he asked me out on October 3rd, 2011, and I accepted on October 4th, 2011. That's when our relationship started. Our first date was a little less than a week later. :) I don't think I realized back then how much I would fall for this guy, and how much fun we would have! Honestly, I didn't even want a relationship back then. If it weren't for God tugging at my heart that night, I wouldn't have even talked to him. But I am so so so glad I did!

The night he met mom and two of my best friends :) 

His 20th birthday, where I met all of his friends for the first time; talk about nervous! I ended up loving all of them and they're all *my* friends now too ;)

My little brother wanted to be in pics too, so cute!!

Right before our first movie date! Sherlock Holmes 2 :) Such a fun time, even though I spilled popcorn in his new car... whoops =P

We took Jessika (one of many best friends) out to coffee after her recital this summer, and she snapped this shot. I call it, starbucks hug ;)

He's so handsome :) :) :) this was right after I graduated high school!

Can you tell I was sick? We visited Jessika and Jarrod that weekend, and got some early morning pics. I like this one. 

This summer, before I left for school, he took me on a sueprise picnic! I was definitely shocked. He and our moms planned it all out and deceived me ;) good job guys. One of my favorite dates for sure! 

That weekend at Jessika's :) I love this shot. I trust him so much!

Hehe ;)

After my senior recital in July :) 

 Anyway (sorry for the cornucopia of pictures...I'm just happy!)

I am super excited that we have been together for a year now!

But wait....there's more ;)

As of early September, I've been even MORE excited for October 4th. Why?
He's coming to visit me in Houston; yay!!!!!
First, I get to see my best friend/boyfriend for a whole weekend, but also, he is bringing me a part of home. That's what he represents to me right now. Not just someone whose hand I hold, but someone who is part of my home life. I won't see my family until Thanksgiving, which is still 2 months away, so it'll be nice to have part of that here. (Don't get me wrong, I love Houston, and love my new home! But my family will always be my family, so naturally I miss them).

Ever since M got his plane ticket, I have been counting down the days on a little chalkboard in my room ;) yeah, I'm slightly obsessed with countdowns. But it's part of my positivity and optimism. See, my system is such: I try to find something positive to look forward to in each day. It makes the days more enjoyable, and I  then become truly appreciative of each day! (We're never guaranteed tomorrow, make today count!)

So, on October 4th, I might ignore the world for a bit, but I will be cherishing each moment for sure.

Siblings and myself, Christmas 2011; I miss these kiddos!!

Family back home: I miss you lots. You should visit too ;) I'll see you soon though. I love you so much and thank you all for supporting me on this crazy adventure!
Friends back home: I'm sorry for not writing back quickly all the time. But I love ya'll and we must catch up when I am back home! (Feel free to visit ANY time; I have a couch hehe)
Friends in Houston: thank you for making me feel welcome :) I can't wait to meet more of you! It seems every week I make a new friend. This is a lovely town, and I am proud to call it my new home.

Have a good rest of the week, ya'll!
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo, alexandra anne <3 

Dear Monday...Yikes

I'm stuck in bed, so, I feel a blog post is necessary ;)
First, let me give a disclaimer: in my idiocy, I did not write anything on my last post to tell ya'll that Emily (my July sponsor!) wrote it! Ohhh I feel terrible :( I just copied the html she gave me, and added nothing else. *facepalm* So, I will edit that right quick after this post (yes, I am southern, I get to say right quick, ya'll, yonder, reckon, fixin, etc ;) )

So, today is a Dear Monday and a Mingle Monday :) Let's go!

*Dear mouth; I'm sorry I had to get wisdom teeth taken out of you, AND a bad cavity tooth extracted. As I write this I am in immense pain (left side, and my tummy, yup) but am trying to keep the ice pack on you as much as possible. Anyway, thanks for letting me eat melted ice cream and cake.

*Dear music: oh my goodness we had such fun yesterday! My senior recital was like a cloudy dream full of love, happiness, and joy joy joy! I can't wait to see the pictures of my wonderful friends who came to support and celebrate with me. I couldn't be more grateful. Plus we had fun going out to Maggie Moo's for ice cream after. Anyway, music. You rock.

*Dear blogworld, thank you for making me feel welcome! This community is so loving and supportive. I'm still a tiny blogger, but I love to write and connect with new people. So so neat!

*Dear Elise; thank you for nominating me for the Liebster award! My first blog award!! :) I'll get on that in a bit, super fun! I've really enjoyed getting to know you via email and texting :) Again, the blogworld is just such a neat community!

*Dear Daddy, I'm so glad you are here for a few weeks on leave from Afghanistan. Thank you for taking me to my surgery this morning and getting me a milkquake from Krystal. And thanks for being pretty legit and cool. :)

Dad and myself right before my recital. I just love to take goofy pictures, and he is nice enough to let me ;) Ok, we're both goofs haha. 

*Dear Mom, thank you for your never-ending love, support, wisdom, hugs, and crazy sense of humor. You're a light, and I cannot ask for a better mom! You're MY mom. I had you first of course ;) Just me and you against the world. I'm gonna miss you when I leave, but we're gonna have super fun moving in and decorating together. And hey, I can still call you every night at 9:30 and chatter away about random nonsense ;) I'm so glad you're my Mom. You truly inspire me! (I wanna be like you and Dad someday. Ya'll are way too adorable for your own good ;) hehehe).

*Dear ice pack, keep it up. You're doing your job.

*Dear Houston, I can't wait to become your newest resident! Heck, with all this gun-rights garbage talk going on, I'd love to become a full resident, then Texas can secede and life will be great. ;)

*Dear Shabby Apple, and Etsy, please stop being so irresistible. I have no moneys, but your products look so lovely and beautiful and really soothe me when I'm stuck in bed and can't move. :) So, ya'll should have an Alexandra Anne sale ;)

*Dear Michael, thank you for loving this crazy goofy opera chick. I'm wearing my ThinkGeek.com shirt right now, and thinking of you. If it weren't for Firefly, we wouldn't be together ;) I'm super jealous that you're going to DragonCon, but I will get over it ;)

This picture is from when I lived in Naples; the shirt was my first online purchase ever! Says "Also, I can kill you with my brain." ;) (I'll give you a big fat hug, or a virtual one, if you can get the reference) 

*Dear friends and family who came to see me yesterday: ya'll rock!!!!! I will admit, when I first saw how filled up my house was, I did have a bit of a freak out ;) "All these people are here......for me????" (basic thoughts, honestly). But once I started singing, I was so grateful that you were all here. It was a pleasure sharing my joy with you.

*Dear Italia, I miss you...not gonna lie. I really really really miss you. You changed my life :)

*Dear God, Ok. I'm bedridden, so, I'll get the Bible out. Sorry.... I need to be a better witness than that. Thank you so so so so much for your never ending grace and true love. You're the reason we're all here :) You're the creator of This Journey.

Xoxoxo,
Alexandra Anne