it's a MAJOR AWARD!





Please excuse the "Christmas Story" reference above. Couldn't resist! The very sweet Laura Ellen over at Living Like LaLa nominated me for the Liebster Award and I'm very appreciative (even though I'm a little belated getting this post out). The award is given to new or up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers, and it was very thoughtful of LE to include me. Everyone should go check out her blog- lots of wedding planning excitement going on over there!

Here are the 11 random questions that LE posed to me:

1. Where is the most exciting place you have ever been?

To me it doesn’t get more exciting than NYC. No matter how many times you go, the energy in that city can’t compare to anywhere else. Exciting in terms of distance from home? London.

2. Did you make any new years resolutions? If so what were they?

Honestly, I didn’t really make any resolutions this year. Normally I do and fail miserably, so this year I didn’t really bother. Sure there are definitely areas of my life where I could improve and things I’d like to accomplish, but I’m just focusing on being present in each moment. Time is flying by so quickly (have I really been out of college almost SIX YEARS?), and I am fortunate to be blessed with such wonderful family and friends. Instead of creating a checklist for myself in the form of resolutions, I just want to focus on enjoying those many blessings and living in the moment. Like many others, I am guilty of getting sidetracked by our technology-driven world and maybe not enjoying every moment to its fullest. Things like habitually checking the cell phone when together with family/friends, worrying too much about capturing the perfect picture at an event rather than focusing on the event itself, stressing about insignificant details like your house not being perfectly clean before company arrives, bringing home a bad attitude after a long day at work, etc. I want to do less of that stuff. So maybe that is my resolution after all- being happy and grateful for each fun memory as I’m blessed with it. In a nutshell, being present.

3. What is your favorite Sports team?

The Alabama Crimson Tide, who else?

4. What song do you sing to the top of your lungs when it comes on the radio?

Currently, Britney Spears’ “Scream and Shout”, all of Taylor Swift’s new album, and JT’s “Suit and Tie”.

5. Who is your role model?

I have several for different reasons: my mother, my grandmother, my MIL, my grandmother-in-law, my “fairy godmother”, and Meryl Streep

6. Where do you want to be with your life in 5 years?

Motherhood. We’ve been in no rush on that front, but in 5 years I know that both Mr. M and I hope we are lucky enough to be enjoying adventures with (at least) our first little one.

7.If you could make 3 wishes what would they be?

A. To spend one last day with my dad hanging out, watching football, and eating all the desserts our sweet-teeth could handle

B. To buy a gorgeous home and vineyard in France

C. To buy my own private jet for traveling to said vineyard in France as well as various other places (Italy, Ireland, and anywhere tropical)

8.What is your favorite Quote?

Tough because I love SOOO many quotes. I’ll just pick a few of my favorites that I’ve seen recently.

“Say what you will about the South. But nobody retires and moves up North.” – anonymous.

“I don’t know how people get so anti-something. Mind your own business, take care of your own affairs, and don’t worry about other people so much.” – the wise Betty White

“A good laugh and a long sleep are the two best cures for anything.” – Irish proverb

9. If you could only pick one nail polish color to use for the rest of your life what would it be?

OPI’s Bubble Bath

10. Favorite healthy snack?

Fresh pineapple or homemade guacamole

11. Current Favorite TV show?

Yikes. I couldn’t possibly pick ONE favorite. Revenge, Nashville, Scandal, Hart of Dixie.

The rules require that I make up 11 more random questions and tag other bloggers (with fewer than 200 followers) to answer my questions, make up 11 more, and tag more bloggers. Get it? Here goes!

My 11 random questions:

1. What’s the very first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?

2. What beauty product can you not live without?
3. What do you like least/most about the upcoming holiday- Valentine’s Day?
4. What’s your absolute favorite recipe?
5. What concert are you dying to attend?
6. When you think about your taste/style, what three words come to mind first?
7. What tv show do you never miss?
8. What’s your biggest pet peeve?
9. What’s your favorite children’s book?
10. What’s your dream honeymoon/anniversary trip?
11. Where do you see yourself in 5 years (personally, professionally, etc.)?

I tag:
Jane @ Life on the Farris Wheel
Ashley @ The Process of Learning
Stephanie @ Steph's Sweet Life
Calley @ Life as the Ondocsins
Shelley @ Insert Clever Phrase Here
Natalie @ Charles and We

Happy Friday everyone!

miscellany monday

Link Up!

~ 80th ~

This weekend we celebrated Mr. M's grandmother's 80th birthday. We had a lovely outdoor dinner for Granny and about 50 of her closest friends and family. Although it was overcast and sprinkled a little before the party, we were thankful that the rain held out for the event. I loved the rustic fall theme that we used, and I think everyone enjoyed themselves- especially the birthday girl!

~ fall foliage ~

Does it make me sound like an old lady to say that look forward to coming home every afternoon and watering/weeding/fertilizing my fall flowers? I'm a little obsessed with caring for them.

~ october ~

Happy October! Here's a few of the Halloween/Fall decorations that I put out last night around the Miller High Life house.

411

The BLOGGER 411; all you need to know about ME!
{Link-up}

How long have you been blogging? And what got you started on blogging? Has your blog changed?
I made my first blog post ever back in September 2009. After more than 9 years of dating my best friend (high school sweethearts represent!), I was newly engaged and excited to start our wedding. That was precisely the reason for starting the blog- to scrapbook our wedding planning adventures. Even from the beginning there were random tidbits unrelated to our wedding thrown into my posts, but certainly over time as we have settled into married life, this blog has evolved more into a scrapbook of our everyday lives and current events. I love capturing memories with Mr. M, family, and friends here, but I also like documenting my current favorites in music, fashion, beauty products, movies, tv, celebrity gossip, etc. This blog serves as my own personal time capsule, and it’s fun to look back and see what I was doing and what I liked a month ago, a year ago, two years ago…

Did you go to college? If so where, and what did you study?
Roll Tide y’all!!! I am a proud graduate from The University of Alabama, and I can’t imagine having attended any other school. My school pride is no secret on this blog or my real life, and we are fortunate to live close enough for frequent trips back to campus during football season. I majored in Finance and cannot say enough wonderful things about the business school at Alabama. I met some of the most amazing professors during my time there, and still keep in contact with a handful of them. Without a doubt, many many many of my fondest memories occurred while in school there . Older friendships continued to blossom and new friendships started to bud. Today several of my best friends are a direct result of college. I wouldn’t change anything about my college experience.

Where have you traveled?
I have traveled to all the southeastern states touching Alabama, as well as:
South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky, Maryland, DC, Texas, Arizona, and California. Outside of the US, I’ve been to England, Canada, and Jamaica. Our honeymoon in Jamaica was one of the best weeks of my life, but NYC is my absolute favorite city.

If you won the lottery, what would be the first thing you would buy?
Vacay anyone?!?!?! The first thing I would do would be take myself, Mr. M, and all of our closest friends on a 2-week long all-expenses paid Caribbean vacation. After vacation I would set to work house-hunting for a place in Europe, a beach house in the Caribbean, a vineyard in Napa, and an apartment in NYC. And what good would all these houses be without my own personal jet and staff to cook, clean, and run errands? And last but certainly not least, I’d hire the one and only Miz Spears to be my personal dance instructor. Because she’s amazing and girlfran has moves. clearly I’m imaging this to be the largest lottery pot in the history of EVER.

What are your 3 biggest pet peeves?
Slow drivers in the fast lane, gum smackers, and husbands who leave dirty underwear on the bathroom floor.

What is your favorite movie?
Wow, favorite?? I have no idea. You’ve Got Mail, Wedding Date, The Help, Forrest Gump, any and all Christmas movies…

What is your drink of choice; wine, beer, or liquor. Or Water, Soda, Tea?
I won’t even pretend to be fancy- it’s beer. Champagne is a closest second. Ironically enough, I detest “The Champagne of Beers”, which also happens to be this blog’s namesake. More specifically, I love Avondale beer (local brewery), Magic Hat, and plain ole Coor’s Light. When drinking wine, I usually prefer pinot noir. Unless we are celebrating, which obviously calls for BUBBLY! Liquor- vodka and sodas are a stable, and I love a good Bloody Mary.

What is something you enjoy to do when you have me time?
Pedicure. Massage. Book. Blow-out. Nap. Chick flick.

If you could have a $10,000 shopping spree to one store, which store would it be?
Anthropologie. Or Restoration Hardware.

Share with us an embarrassing moment of your past? Or present.
Oh gosh. I don’t even know. I’ve had all the standard answers. Falling in public? Check. Making a ridiculous mistake at work? Check. Texting the wrong person? Check. But I think the most embarrassing moments have occurred because of a “foot-in-mouth” situation.

What day would you love to relive again?
My first thought was my wedding. It all went by so incredibly fast, and I’d love to go back and just slow.it.down. But the more I think about it, I would love to relive Christmas Day 2005. This was our last Christmas with Daddy before he passed away unexpectedly in January 2006, and I remember the day as being so perfect. Waking up to Santa Claus, Christmas breakfast, my family, Mr. M’s family, the big traditional lunch…everyone SO happy and full of love. And together. I’m so fortunate to have such a wonderful recollection of that day with all of the people I love most. But I’m sure reliving the experience would be 10 times as sweet as the memory that I hold so dear.

If your life was turned into a movie... what actor would play you?
Emma Stone- young me. Julia Roberts- middle aged me. Meryl Streep- older me.
Because we look alike? Nope. Because those beeyotches are ah-maz-ing and would make my movie good.

What are the jobs you had in high school/college/the early years?
Runner/office assistant at a law firm in my hometown during high school. Assistant bookkeeper at a law firm during college. Dull, huh? Of course there were the odd babysitting and tutoring jobs, as well.

Show us a picture from high school or college.
You meant picture(S) right? Be glad I limited to 5.

If you could travel anywhere in the world, all expenses paid, where would you go?
Bora Bora, Fiji… somewhere tropical.

Show us the most current picture of you or you, or your family, or anything of meaning to you.

Sadly the only "current" photos I have are phone photos, so this will suffice for current.



Where do you see your life 5 years from now?
Enjoying six years of marriage with my wonderful husband and navigating the joys and adventures of parenthood!

it's ok...

A new link-up for me...

Link up with Neely!

It's okay...

That I’ve taken a questionable amount of Benadryl and gone to bed around 9:30 every night this week. Allergies, ugh.

That I’ve basically given up on fixing my hair this week, what with the 700lb layer of humidity and mugginess in the air each morning.

That I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time looking at pictures of cute braids (to tame said hair in the muggy weather) but have yet to actually attempt one on my head of hair.

That I’ve listened to literally NOTHING this week other than my new Miranda Lambert c.d.

That I got sucked into watching some Beverly Hills nanny show on ABC Family last night.

That I haven’t been motivated to read a page of any book for pleasure in a couple of weeks now.

That in a week I’ll be watching Nicki Minaj live on stage and have NO CLUE what I’m going to wear. Certainly, Nicki calls for something new and hot pink, right??

That I am kinda starting to hate Facebook. Seems like the only thing you can stalk on there these days is what children’s clothes people are hoping to win.

That I swung by Dunkin Donuts on the way to work this morning. Chocolate covered donut- hello lover.

That I’m already reading football articles on a daily basis and getting more than excited about kickoff.

That I finally got my Christmas list finished and have officially bought my first gift.

That I get to go home tomorrow and it’s already all I can think about!

Enjoy your Thursday!!!