12 in '12 Linky Party

Hadar from Miss Kindergarten and Kristin from A Teeny Tiny Teacher hosted a linky last year called 11 in '11. This year, they've decided to host a 12 in '12 linky! I decided it would be a good time to reflect on some fun things that happened in 2012, as 2013 is only 22 days away. WHAT. Yep, I said it. Anyways, on to the 12 in '12!

12. Favorite movie you watched:
I'd have to sayyy... Hunger Games or Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part II. These movies BLEW. ME. AWAY. I absolutely loved them!

 

11. Favorite TV series:
I have sooo many favorite shows but a NEW show to me was Walking Dead. I know, I know, I hadn't seen it before this year and now I'm totally caught up - love me some Glenn & Daryl!

  

10. Favorite restaurant:
I only tried three new restaurants this year... promise I'll try more next year... but I have to say that Pit to Plate was my favorite. AMAZING barbecue and awesome cornbread!

9. Favorite new thing you tried:
Blogging. Hands down. I have met some of the most amazing people throughout this journey and I couldn't be happier.

8. Favorite gift you got:
Well, my momma gave me a wooden desk before I moved. I have been in search of a wooden desk for FOREVER. It's going to be the star student desk in my classroom once I get one! It looks kind of like the one below, but mine is BRIGHT red and shiny.

7. Favorite thing you pinned:
Ohhh.. gee, this is a tough one. I'm addicted to Pinterest so I have SOOO many pins, but I'm going to go ahead and say this one is my favorite..

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How does that NOT make you giggle and smile?!

6. Favorite blog post:
Ah gee, another hard one... I'm going to have to sayy... this post about graduation. You'll see why on number 5 :)

5. Best accomplishment:
My BEST accomplishment in 2012 was graduating from college. I could not be happier, nor prouder, of myself and all that I have done in my 22 years of life. I was so involved in college and had an amazing time, earned an amazing education, and have started my "true life" in this world. I am so happy to be able to say that I am a college graduate and I would not have wanted it any other way. PS. I graduated in education - heck yes! :)

4. Favorite picture:
I'm in love with boyfriend. Everyone should know that by now... but he took me to Busch Gardens and I captured this photo of him when we were on the safari ride. The color has been changed (filter), but I love how serious he looks even though he was truly enjoying himself!

3. Favorite memory:
Bahamas with my mother for my graduation present. I wasn't in the best mood the entire time and was somewhat crabby, but I absolutely loved it and am so happy I got to spend time with my momma before we moved away. It was a blast and I couldn't have asked for a better graduation present - spending time with momma :)

2. Goal for 2013:
Get a job. I've graduated, moved, and now I'm settled in. Time to get a job. Another goal is to get into shape. I have NEVER truly ran in my life, worked out in my life, or anything of that nature. It's about time I get into the shape I want to be instead of lazying it up on the couch!

1. One Little Word:
Happy. For 2013, my focus will be on the word "happy." Whether it be making myself happy or making others happy or anything, HAPPY is my focus word.

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What about your 12s?! Go link up!

Have a good night, y'all :)

Fall Favorites Swap

Guess whaaaaaaat? It's time to link up for the Fall Favorites Swap hosted Mia from The Chronicles of Chaos and Kim at The K.O. Jewelry! I was partnered up with Kelly from Messy.Dirty.Hair.

Kelly was an AMAZING swap partner. She really knew me and what I liked! I'm really happy to have been paired with her. Below is what she got me. I LOVE IT ALL.

Confetti Nail Polish

 

Snowflake & Peace glittery ornaments

Christmas cards

 

Fall themed towel & oven mitt - perfect for our new house!!

Kelly - thank you SOOOO much for everything! I truly appreciate it and am so happy I was paired up with you. 

Don't forget about the giveaway & the Advent Calendar Swap sign ups!

Have a good day, y'all!

Fall Favorites Swap Reveal!

Another Fall Favorites Swap with the hosts Holly from A Cajun Belle, Melanie from Fashionably Forty, and J from An Unstyled Life! This Fall Favorites Swap was similar to the other, where we got to know our partners and then send them some fall themed things - it could have been nail polish, pumpkin something, candles, scarves, pictures, ANYTHING that was fall related.

Well, I got partnered up with the amazing Micah, who blogs over at Unabashedly Me. First off, let me tell you that this woman is talented. And I mean TALENTED. She is a writer and has 3 books that have been published. I'm making it a goal of mine to read them by the time the year is over. AKA by December 31st. Anyways, she's so sweet and fun and caring and she sent me the most amazing things in relation to fall.

(Don't mind Jess... he wanted to be in the picture, too!) 

Micah sent me some Dunkin Donuts French Vanilla coffee (MMMMM), Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin lotion/body scrub, and two of my fav smelling candles - leaves & pumpkin cupcake. YUM.

She also sent me a pumpkin plate that broke... STINKIN' POST OFFICE!! And a bag of candy.... which I ate. I know, I know... couldn't help myself! I needed chocolate and that's what she sent so it was PERFECT.

Micah, thank you SOOO much. You are an amazing swap partner and an amazing person in all. Thank you for everything!!

As always, if you're EVER asked to do a swap or have the opportunity.. do it. You never know who you'll meet or connect with.

Have a good day, y'all!

Fall Into Fall Swap

Another swap :) Can ya tell I love these things?! This time, the swap was a "Fall Into Fall" swap that Neely from A Complete Waste of Makeup, Erin from Everything According to Erin, and Tracy from Then I Got To Thinking hosted! The goal was to send some things that remind you of fall to your swap partner. Well, I was paired up with Nicole from The Southbay Newlyweds Plus One. And before I continue, you should probably go check out her blog AND her abso-freaking-lutely adorable baby boy, Andrew. Anyway, she found out what I liked and man, did she do good! We all know I love crafts (Monday Made It, anyone?) and that I love cards/stationary/etc.

So, Nicole got me a Days-To-Remember Calendar where I put in my own months and days with either stamps, stickers, etc. to remember days like birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, and other important dates! How cool is that? Along with that, she got me some stickers - not sure if this is what she intended them for, but each sticker is going to represent something in the calendar (blue = birthdays, yellow = anniversaries, etc.). I LOVE THIS, NICOLE!

Then, she also got me a Michaels gift card (YES!), a pack of Halloween cards, Bath & Body Works nail files (which has a glare.. I apologize), a hand sanitizer rubber thing to hold my hand sanitizers from Bath & Body, and a cute card. In that card, she gave me a little note to let me go buy my own hand sanitizer because she was not sure how it would ship! Nicole, I love your creativity :) And that's my Fall Into Fall Swap with the fantastic hosts and an amazing swap partner! Nicole, you did an amazing job and I absolutely love EVERYTHING you got for me. You knew me like the back of your hand and I surely hope you liked what I got you! In order to see what I got Nicole, head on over to her blog to check it out :)
 Like I've said on all my other posts, if you EVER get the chance to do a swap (no matter what kind), DO IT. You never know who you will meet, nor do you know what you will get. It's all a surprise, and I absolutely love it! Have a good day, y'all!

sunday share..

Since I've joined the bloggy world, I've won TWO giveaways!! Ahhhh, I am so excited!! I won the giveaway at Rebecca's blog titled The Teacher's Chatterbox and the giveaway at Jackie's blog titled Third Grade's A Charm! They are both AMAZING women and have great blogs - make sure to check them out!

Beyond that - it's been a lazy Sunday! I didn't do much today but more homework (ahhh...) and shop at Target (dangerous!). Tomorrow starts week 2 of my SUPER SUMMER SCHEDULE! I cannot wait to see what this week brings me.

I'm calling today "Sunday Share." Below are just a few pictures of my typical life. I just wanted to throw some pictures out there to let y'all get a glimpse into the life of Sara (or Miss V)!

This is one of the gardens my mother has in the backyard. This one is a representation of my father, who passed away when I was 19 in 2010. Him and my mother are my two best friends, so it was definitely a hard moment to go through in life. But, I know he's looking down and watching me!

This is the baby outside. He does NOT know how to leave plants alone, which is also my other "baby." My mother loves, loves, LOVES gardening, so I decided I wanted to pick a plant out for myself and I've kept it ever since then.

I've become obsessed with anchors with Cody, my boyfriend, being in the Coast Guard. Normally, anchors stand for the Navy, but they can also stand for the Coast Guard! This is a keychain I bought and I absolutely love it.

Cody and I went to Busch Gardens when I was down there in early June. We were able to feed giraffes! This is one of the giraffes that we fed.. well, the only one we fed, and she was a doll. Very needy!

I was driving home not too long ago and came across this on the side of the highway. I've always wanted to go up into a hot air balloon, so it was really cool to see this so close to me!

Socks has adopted this box as his new home. When he's not sleeping on my lap, playing fetch with his soft balls, he's hiding in here from me!

This was me as a little girl - boy, was I cute or what?! Who am I kidding.. I'm still cute!! I loved being outside when I was little, but now, not so much... have to work on that one.

 

A couple of my sorority sisters and I went out on a senior outing as seniors at UC and we went to a place called Paint by the Glass. You do a painting of your choice while you have a few glasses of wine. It was sooo much fun and as you can see, I'm a little kid at heart, SO I decided to paint a picture of the ocean! It's typically meant for children to paint, but I loved it so I just had to do it. The picture below is the finished project :]

On the last few days of my internship, I made a few gifts for my mentor teacher. I got this idea off Pinterest here. I absolutely love the way it turned out that I believe I'll be making one for when I become a real teacher in my own classroom!!

If I am outside, I love to be by the pool. This is a picture of the veranda outside Cody's pool when he lived in Florida. This just shows how gorgeous the weather was there, and how pretty the complex was.

Again, here's the baby. Obviously, I'm obsessed with him, too. I'm one happy momma! As I am typing this, by the way, he is cuddled up to my right arm to the point where I am only able to type with my left hand! Talk about Momma's boy!

To go along with my love of being by the pool... I love being by the beach that much more. Over Spring Break, I had Cody take me to the beach in Clearwater to watch the sunset. I LOVE sunsets and we met his sister and her boyfriend there, too. We were walking along the beach and Cody found this heart made from shells! How adorable, right?

 If you know me, you know I have two tattoos. I have one tattoo on my front left hip that says "Live Laugh Love" - I also have another one on my right shoulder blade. This one says "Strength & Courage" - these are both of the two quotes that I live by daily. I believe that if you employ all of those emotion words, you will be incredibly happy. Anyway... I believe I'll be getting this flower as a tattoo on my left shoulder blade with my daddy's initials on one of the petals. I think this is an absolutely gorgeous flower and I adore the color.

Finally, this is half of my sorority family. The woman on the far left is Jennifer. She's my grand little. In the middle, that's my little Melanie. Of course, on the end, is me. I don't know where the other half was at, but these girls mean the world to me. They are amazing women, so bright, fun, and caring. I hope that we stay close as a family, even though I've graduated! Love you girls :]

And well, that's me! I'll be back tomorrow with my Make It Monday! See ya then!

Have a good night, y'all!