My Ten :)

Thanks again, Megan of Transmission Me for the Happy 101 Award! It's pretty exciting for me, since this is my first blog award :)

Pretty much the concept is to share 10 things that you love and make you happy, so here goes, in no particular order:

1. My family. They have always supported me in whatever I do, and I love them so much :) My parents, brother, grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, etc. are simply the best a girl could ask for! Thanks, guys!

2. The hubby. I talk about my wonderful hubby (Josh) a lot on this blog, because he's a huge part of my life! I have loved him since I was 13, and I couldn't imagine life without him!

3. Playing guitar/singing. I learned how to play the acoustic guitar very young, since my dad played and I had him teach me. I played and sang in the youth praise band at my church when I was in middle and high school, and I absolutely loved it! I still write songs and play every once in awhile. The photo is from senior year of high school. I played one of my songs at our final chorus concert!

4. Reading. I've loved reading for as long as I can remember. From piles of Babysitter's Club books to magazines to novels to blogs, I am always going to be reading something!

(Right now I am reading this thrifted copy of Just As Long As We're Together by Judy Blume, and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Caroll.)

5. Writing. The only thing I've loved as long as reading is writing. I used to carry around a composition book when I was 11 with my short stories and work on them all the time. My favorite? "My Unlucky Gym Socks" about socks that make everything in the young character's life go wrong! I also wrote "Candy School" about a school made entirely of candy, with gummy bear teachers and caramel pools. Not a bad idea, actually! And, of course, I got my college degree in journalism.

6. Going new places. Growing up, our family

always took the best vacations. My dad earned frequent flier miles through work, and it gave us the opportunity to go everywhere from Alaska to Hawaii to Europe. So amazing! My favorite place? Munich, Germany!

The photo is one that I took while we were there, with a crappy 2 megapixel digital camera! But the old buildings were so beautiful that it looked great anyway :)

7. God. I grew up going to church and a private Christian school. While I am still growing as a Christian (and always will be) God remains a huge part of my life. I love nothing more than rocking out to a great contemporary Christian band and listening to an insightful but not super-long sermon on a Saturday night or Sunday morning.

8. Old things, and finding them.  I thought it would be kind of obvious to put thrifting here, but my favorite thing about thrifting is the thrill of finding old things. I love things with a history! Just imagining what sort of place this item came from and who the past owner could've been is so interesting. There's something so alive about old things compared to new ones.

Pictured is my favorite old Viewmaster and reels that I couldn't believe I found at Goodwill Outlet! These babies were less than a dollar :) It's just amazing to me that I found these discarded in a bin!

9. Polaroids. I've been pretty obsessed with Polaroids since my freshman year of college. I bought a new Polaroid camera back then, and sparingly used photos as they cost so much! Now that they don't make them anymore, they cost even more. But whenever I find some for cheap, I buy the film 'cause it's so neat. I love the old-timey affect of the expired photos, especially.

Pictured are Polaroids I took over Christmas break with thrifted film.

10. Friends, old and new. I have a couple friends back in Florida that I've known forever, some that I got close with in high school and college, and a few I've made in the past year. I'm not the most social person of all time, but I am super thankful for the great friends that I do have! They are absolutely the best :) Even some of you that I've "met" through blogging mean a lot to me! I really appreciate everyone's support in being able to utilize my creativeness and share it with you :)

I'm passing this award to:

Emily of The Daily Fashionista

Alya of Kookulai

Amy of Bargain Hunter Extraordinaire

Thanks again for the award! And thanks for reading through such a super-huge post :) More thrifty-ness tomorrow!

Always,

Amanda

Flowers and Birds

Have you ever heard the saying that something's "for the birds"? I never really understood it! Being a 21st-century gal, I Googled it, and I found it's origin: According to this Web site, the saying came from birds pecking at horse droppings looking for seeds. That's why "for the birds" means meaningless or worthless!

Random, but I just thought I'd share this little tidbit as an intro to my finds from Saturday. I did find floral things, and I did find birds, and I quite like both! One aspect of thrifting/ estate sale-ing that really is for the birds? Crazy people that elbow their way into you so that they can get to the good stuff first! Crazy people :)

Replacement Floral Straw Bag, Estate Sale ($2); Clock, Goodwill (<$1); Floral Wallet, Estate Sale ($2); Wooden Birds, Goodwill Outlet (<$1)

While I may not be a skirt/dress person, I have decided that I am pretty girlie with my accessories! I seem to be quite in love with florals right now, especially.

Funny story about the first floral straw purse I showed you: I tried to clean out the very dirty inside by washing it on the delicate setting in the washer. Um, not my brightest moment. Not only did it not clean it at all, it unraveled most of the straw and destroyed the poor purse! Woops. Awesome that I found an almost identical one at the estate sale I went to Saturday :)

Have a great Tuesday!

Always,
Amanda

PS: I was tagged by my new blog friend Megan from Transmission Me for the Happy 101 Award :) Thanks, Megan- I'll be posting my answers tomorrow! And check out her blog- she has great thrifty style!