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. 

Ciao & Howdy!

Hey readers :) How's your week going? I bought jeans yesterday, which is pretty exciting for this girl who mainly sticks to skirts and dresses and the like. (Can I say, I love Plato's Closet prices?!? YEAH! I'm oh so thrifty you see...) and I also attended a movie night with boyfriend and his guys. We had some good laughs, and some good pizza, and I was thoroughly entertained by Captain America and Mystery Science Theater, both of which I had never seen.

Tomorrow I am SUPER excited to meet up with a girly who went to U of Houston as a music major, and we have mutual friends HERE in Alabama! Small world right? We'll be grabbing coffee and such, I can't wait to hear her stories :)

Today I'm linking up with Mrs. Monologues for the monthly blog star link-up! (Where, I have to write about myself....k.........I always feel so vain....)

First off, Hi! I'm Alexandra Anne, but I go by...well, that IS what I go by. I have a plethora of nicknames, you see, and each one has a story and special meaning. You can read about that here.

I'm an 18 (5 weeks shy of 19) year old, about to head off to college full time (I say full time because I HAVE taken college classes, and I HAVE lived on my own, but now I'm doing it all together) in Houston, Texas! I'll be at the University of Houston Moores School of Music as a vocal performance major. This leads me to my next point:

I sing opera. That music where the fat lady sings really really loudly and dresses like a viking? Yeah that stuff. Although in my case it would be more like, that music where the boy is played by a woman, or the woman is a gypsy who dies terribly, or the woman is a sister with very very loose morals, and such. (The joke about my voice type, mezzo-soprano, is our roles are: witches, britches, and ...well there's another word that rhymes but I won't say that on here, for the sake of being polite). 

My Momma blogs too! She also has an Etsy shop (see button on sidebar) and I love to play with her stuff. I mean, I don't periodically stare at her vintage collections...........of course not......... ;) 

I'm dating this guy; I write about him a lot. His name is Michael, but I mainly refer to him as boyfriend. 

I love vintage jewelry, and am obsessed with chandeliers. 

I love to cook for my family.

I love to dance in the kitchen ;) 

I love Jesus, and thank Him for the many many blessings in my life!

I am a nerd. For example, I spend my time as a halfling rogue in D&D, I shoot bad guys with Lara Croft, and I curl up with Neil Gaiman to see what adventures are ahead. I'm a bit of every kind of nerd, really. ;)

I lived in Italy in 2011, for 6 months, and fell in love with the country and with opera. 

My favorite colors are blue, red, and lime green. Aqua blue is my favorite though, if I had to pick one. 

I love to make new friends, and would love it if you would comment/follow, or message me! If you'd like to write for This Journey of Journeys, lemme know; or hey, I love just making new friends and chatting away the day :) 

I blog here (obviously...)

I check email here: chandelier27aaa@gmail.com

I am on twitter here

I wander aimlessly and post here

You can see my pics here

Nice to meet ya! Stick around a while, ok? :) 

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

Meet Emily!

Welcome to my first spotlight post! Emily is my new blog friend, and has been such a pleasure to get to know. Since we are each other's July Sponsors, I have written one guest post for her, and will be writing another one soon (check it out on July 18!) and she has written a post for me that will be available July 22 :) To get to know Emily, I asked her some questions :) Check out her place!

Hello, friends! I'm Emmy and I am a city girl, who after graduating college found myself working as a youth minister in a small town. Other than adjusting from the culture shock, you'll most likely find me reading a good novel (probably Harry Potter), writing on my blog or one of my fictional stories, hanging out with my dog, or helping with the local community theatre.

I've been blogging ever since I was 18, but Love Woke Me Up This Morning has been going since 2010. I love blogging because of what an awesome community of people I've been able to be a part of. I've made so many friends and have kept in touch with friends who live farther away. 

What you'll typically find on the blog is basically my random thoughts that pop into my head! I talk about life, faith, my dog, theatre, books, art, crazy adventures I go on, and especially learning how to live love out.

Life out in the "real world" is crazier than I thought it would be, but with a little bit of love and a little bit of coffee, I make it through one day at a time, as I try to figure out what God has in store for me. I would love for you to join me! 

Twitter: @LoveWokeMeUp
Email: lovewokemeupthismorning@gmail.com
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/lovewokemeup/


Here's our little interview :)

When did you start blogging and why?-  I started "blogging" when I graduated high school. My friend introduced me to "Xanga" (kinda like Live Journal) and we used it to keep in touch and I got a bunch of my college friends onto it. Then when Facebook came around that died out and I would use the "notes" feature to write blog posts . But about a year ago, maybe two now, I decided to start an official blog. Writing has always been a big part of my life. So the question isn't really "why blog?" but "why not?"

What are your top three favorite cities in the world? -Chicago would be my number one city. It's where I grew up. I love the location, we aren't crazy like LA and we aren't as uptight as people claim NYC is. We have awesome sports, theatre, culture, food. You name it, my city has it. Chicago is my forever boyfriend.

I also love New York. I went there for the first time a few months ago and fell in love. I loved how crazy and busy it was, all of the people, the sights and sounds, the theatre, Times Square. I know for sure that I want to go back.

For the third I'll say London. I've never been there, but they have Harry Potter, Doctor Who, the Beatles, and Andrew Lloyd Webber - so it's gotta be awesome, right?

What's on your top played list on your ipod lately? - I can't stop listening to the soundtracks from Newsies and Once. They are completely amazing.

What is your favorite thing about yourself? -Hmmmm. This is a hard one. I really enjoy people. As annoying and as crazy people are, I love them.

If you could give a piece of advice to other bloggers, what would it be? -Get to know other bloggers! You'll get great ideas and more traffic to your own blog. But even beyond that, you can make some awesome friends from around the world and be part of an awesome community!

Isn't she awesome? Keep an eye out for her post! 

Xoxo, Alexandra Anne

By the way....it's ok!

Hey ya'll. Found another linkup, and I quite like it! Yay for positive reinforcement! :)

Today I am convinced that it's ok: 

To dance like a dork while cleaning my room

To wear my new ring from my daddy on my ring finger (haha, I don't care if it looks like I'm engaged, I promise I'm not!)

To love completely without falter

To be in love with opera

To argue with my family about who gets to read a new book in our house first ;) (nerdy family means scrounge for new lit!)

To be slightly obsessed with instagram ;) 

To have too many shoes (but what girl has just the right amount of shoes anyway?)

To already have a bag for Houston even though it's 6 weeks away 

To be sad about friendships ending

To celebrate the love I see every day

To be obsessed with coffee ;)

To totally jam out to orchestral music 

To ask for God's forgiveness :) (He DOES forgive! isn't that great?)

<3 

I Wouldn't Change

Today's challenge from Life of Love  is to answer this:
What's one thing that you would never change about yourself?

I'm pretty sure every female wants to change something about herself physically, and probably emotionally too.
But I will vanquish my self-deprecation even if just for a moment; I am determined to find the love for myself in this post! Huzzah! ;)

Let's start with physical, because that means less (gotta save the best for last, right?): Something I would never change about myself physically....my smile. I love to share my happiness and general positivity with everyone, and a smile can do so much for someone else. I can love others with a smile, and I can appreciate life with a smile. I just love to be happy!

Which leads into personality; I wouldn't change my love for others. I'm a good friend I think. I always listen, always hug and support and offer what bits of advice I can. Even if I cannot change a situation, I can be there for the people I love. I'm loyal. I'm loving. I try to show love in service and words of affirmation. I know I'm a flawed human being, but I am confident that I can love others. And that's my favorite thing to do :)

I'm also linking up with What I;m Loving Wednesday ;)

Sunny days with cooling clouds 

My voice recital is in 11 days; yikes! But I'm enjoying practicing every day :) 

I love this beautiful blue topaz ring from my Daddy! (It has matching earrings and a pendant for a necklace; so lovely!!)

My little brother is super cute, especially with those big blue eyes :) He looks a lot like Daddy sometimes, and I have to tell him every day that you're never too old to hug and kiss your big sister ;)

Another gift from Daddy; yeah, this is pretty much everything I love about life XD

Have a lovely week! 

Xoxo, Alexandra Anne

PS. Follow me on twitter and instagram! AlexandraAnne27 

<3 

Oops ;)

Day 10 of Life of Love's 15 Day Challenge

What is your most embarrassing moment? 


Oh this one is pretty easy, and of course it involves my mommy. (I love her to death, especially because I have sooooo many stories I can tell about her and our adventures; yeah, we're kind of like Thelma and Louise ;) )

So, we were living in England 8 years ago (golly, that is so strange to realize it's been THAT long; wow!), and we lived about an hour or so from London. On one of our visits we went to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre (but yes, it is only a replica because the original burned down long long ago; however, the replica is said to be quite accurate!); my parents met in theatre, of course we're drama nerds who are going to go check out Shakespeare's digs. ;)

It was just the four of us back then: Me, Mom and Dad, and baby Kate (she was only 1, super cute and chubby with baby fat rolls, oh she was adorable!). We decided to take a tour, what better way to get an appreciation for the Globe?

Somehow, in Mom and Alexandra typical fashion, the two of us got separated from our tour group. We found another one, and funnily enough the guide spoke in English AND French. Too bad I didn't know a lick of french back then (nowadays, all I know is a lick, ha!). We didn't seem to mind the bilingual tour, even if it wasn't our group.

Now let me preface this by saying my mom is a true southern lady, and a pretty proper one at that. :)

However. When the tour guide said something about beer, yes beer, my dearest mother said "Yeah!" Oh, did I mention that we were in the back of the group? Yep, the entiiiiiiire group turned around to look at the crazy beer obsessed lady. She made a cute little "oops..." and covered her mouth, while possibly smiling a wee bit. Oh, as a 10 year old kiddo, I was pretty much drop-dead embarrassed. Thank goodness Dad and baby Kate found us soon after! ;)

I love my momma. You can read her blog too! I will hopefully be guesting for her quite soon ;)
Keep an eye out on Emily's place too, as I have just sent her a post for July :)

Would you like to guest post on This Journey of Journeys? Drop me a line! I'd love to have you here!
Have a blessed rest of the week :)

Xoxo, Alexandra Anne

Pshh

Hello blogworld! I haven't written in a few days, but I have been keeping active so to speak.
What am I up to?

*My Daddy comes home in just a few days! We are so so excited to see him for two weeks, especially me because I won't see him again before I leave for school. So our house is preparing for his arrival.

*I need a new ipod...I cannot go off to college without some form of portable music. I'm a MUSIC MAJOR, I think it is a valid need. (Try telling a chemist he can't have a lab, or a copy of the periodic table, or telling an athlete they can't have a bouncy ball, don't tell me I cannot have music!) :)

*Obviously, anyone who has a blog and commits to it must like writing to a certain extent. Well, I love love love writing actually. And as a matter of fact, I've been working on some pieces of fiction in my "spare time." :) It feels so good to be writing again. I haven't composed a story in years, and I am enjoying getting to know my characters.

*I've been going to the pool so so much this year! I'm quite proud of myself, because I honestly detest the public pool (neighborhood pool) but I take my siblings so I get sister-points, AND I get exercise and a slight tan. ;)

*While I haven't been writing here daily, I HAVE been reading other blogs too =) I love the friends I am making! And I can't wait to meet some lovely bloggers when I move to Houston (7 weeks left ya'll....can I make it?)

*My recital is two weeks from tomorrow, but a few nights ago I dreamed it was this weekend. OH MY GOODNESS that freaked me out so so much. I need my two weeks ;) Preparing this music is such a fun adventure though. Hard work, yes, but lots of fun. I can't wait to share my passion with my friends and family!

*Time for a link-up :) Working on that 15 day challenge. I'll not bore you by catching up on missed days, but I shall do today's! 

"Day 7: Recommend a book for us to read. Why is it important/special to you?"

Oh boy. That's a tough one...I have fallen in love with so many books...and in so many different genres...I have to pick one? Mamma mia...Remember, I'm the girl who had to get ANOTHER bookshelf in my room because I just didn't have enough... ;) 
I'm gonna go with Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (sister to Emily and Anne). This classic story has been one of my favorites for a long long time. And while my Dad says the Bronte sisters encourage women to make bad choices in men, I still love this book. 
Why?
I remember the first time I read the story and kept coming upon the word "peruse." I was fairly young when I was reading it, so I didn't know that word yet. Well, it kept showing up, in my face! "Figure me out, you don't know what I mean yet, do you?" Ok, so the word didn't actually taunt me like that. Actually, I eventually came to love the word, because through this book, it revealed its meaning to me :) 

 *PS. I would LOVE to have your button on my page, in fact, for some of ya'll, I already found your button ;) Will you please follow me and grab my button too? Email me if you're interested in free button swaps!*

Have an awesome weekend! <3