Tag You're It!

Hiya pals :) How ya doing?

Soooo. I've got a surprise for you!

I vlogged.

Yeah, you read that right.

I VLOGGED, BABY! BOO-YAH.

So, reason for vlogging (pfft, as if I need a reason.). Amy kindly tagged me for the Liebster Blog Award and this is my first time ever actually being tagged for it, so I thought it was a momentous occasion and therefore, I vlogged. Mmm-hmm.

The rules:

1. Acknowledge the blogger who nominated you. (already did)

2. Answer the 11 questions that they give you. (did that in my vlog)

3. Give 11 random facts about yourself. ( Hmmmm, not this time)

4. Nominate eleven bloggers and let them know. (I don't think eleven other bloggers even know about me :P )

5. Make eleven questions for them to answer. (Sure! And please comment on this post if you do end up doing it, I wanna see!)

SO. *deep breath* Here it is:

Well, I hoped you liked it! It was super awkward for me, filming and watching. There was a lot of wincing while watching it. I'm also totally not used to filming myself :P BUT, it was an experience and I will probably do it again now that the first one is over and done with.
This is also my first experience with youtube and it's been interesting. I'm not sure I like it yet.....I guess I just have to get used to it. If you have any interest in subscribing to my channel, here is my link. Let me know if you have any issues!

NOW YOU KNOW WHAT I SOUND LIKE. Eeeeep!

Ahem.

Now for the questions I want you to answer:

1. Who is your favorite Once Upon A Time character and why?
2. What is your opinion of video games and have you ever played them?
3. When you play the game Clue and you get to pick a character first, who do you pick?
4. What is the worst thing about having a cold?
5. Mermaid or Fairy? Why?
6. Have you ever played Pool/Billiards before and did you like it?
7. Did you ever wish you had a twin?
8. Would you touch a snake?
9. Are letters still awesome to get or do you prefer faster technology?
10. What color of door would you have on your hobbit hole?
11. What is your favorite kind of tree?

I shall not tag anybody, because all of the people I probably would have tagged have already been tagged so I won't be an imp and tag them again. See? I'm nice.
However, if any of you lovely people reading this want to participate, please, please do so! Let me know about it in a comment on this post so that I can see it!

Love to all <3

~Mary

Excuses, excuses.....

Well hi there. Remember me? That person who said she was going to post once a week this year? Yeah, funny how that has turned out :P I'M SORRY! I'm a terrible person, I know, but lately things have been....not normal around here and I just haven't felt like blogging. Or when I did I just never sat down to do it.....yeaaaah.

I hope you still love me.

So, about the things that have been going on in my life lately. Well, my boss decided to close down the candy store that I have been employed at for almost two years. Just out of the blue. I didn't think business was that terrible, but I guess she thought differently. So here I am. I have now been unemployed for a week and haven't quite decided what to do with my life yet....I did just finish filling out an application for a full-time job and will be dropping that off tomorrow, so HOPEFULLY I get the position. It would be a huge upgrade from what I've been used to, pay-wise, so it would be worth it, I guess.
The thing is, I reaaaally wish I could just stay home and be successful at the same time. I am going to be (finally) uploading merchandise for my Etsy shop soon, and part of me wants to believe that it's going to be a huge success, but the other part thinks I need to get a job. It's like have dual personalities. They keep disagreeing with each other and it's annoying :P

So yeah, my life has been like, "What am I supposed to do now? Should I get a job? Or should I put all my energy into my Etsy shop, rely on that for income, and hope for the best? Or does that seem selfish and lazy? Should I have gone to college? Should I be taking classes to improve my chances of getting a job? Wait, no, so many college graduates can't even get a job with a degree, so what am I worrying about? And the debt, don't even get me started with all the debt that you can build up. But oh, what are people going to say about me if I don't get a job? Why do I even care? Because I do, even though I shouldn't. Crap. I hate being an adult!" *erupts into random fits of sobbing*

*clears throat* Hehe. The past two weeks have had bits of that going on, and me furiously making stuff for my Etsy shop. I've barely touched the book I'm currently reading (The Two Towers) and there have been days I haven't even been on the internet. *insert horrified gasps* I KNOW.

On a happier note, I've been enjoying being home and will continue doing so while it lasts. And I've been getting a lot of stuff done that I just didn't have time for when I was working so I'm happy about that :)

I am hoping (but not promising) that I will be blogging at least once a week again....but we'll see. I want to see what happens with this job opportunity and if I do get it I still want to keep creating things for my Etsy shop. I don't know why I didn't do it before, but I'm doing it now, so better late than never, right? Right.

*sigh* Life is fun isn't it?

Well, I'll leave you guys with that just so you know that I'm still here and will be here as much as I can! I have a bunch of pictures to share, posts planned, and an Etsy shop to share once I have stuff in it. I also want to devote this time to making my blog exactly how I want it....which will call for a lot of re-searching, so you may see some changes here and there :)

Love you guys!

~Mary

Did That Just Happen? REALLY?!

SoOooOooo, guess what peoples!

I PASSED MY DRIVING TEST ON TUESDAY!!!!!!!! IT'S FINALLY OVER!!!!!!!!!!

It's surreal. I don't feel different at all. All I have is a piece of paper and a little card to prove it..... I think I'm in shock. I'm keeping my cool about the whole thing, which is very odd for me. It's like I'm being an adult about the whole thing. Yick :P Usually I'd be ecstatic about it, jumping up and down, screaming, telling everyone, etc. SO WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME? I'm turning into a boring adult!*squeeks with fear*

I think the test went well. My driver instructor was nice enough, but very serious. She didn't crack a smile at all, but I guess if I had her job I wouldn't either :D That job would suck.
We got started right away, which I liked because then I didn't have time to freak. I hate waiting for things like that :P The first things she had me do was get in the car, buckle up, start the engine, test out my turn signals, brake, and sound the horn. This may sound dumb, but I had never used the horn before in Robert's car and for some reason we passed over that part when he was teaching me all the controls the day before :P So, I hesitated and frantically looked around for the horn. I've used one before (when I was little), but that was in a different car. It didn't take me long to find it and she didn't mark me for any hesitation on the report *phew*

After that we took off for the driving part. We basically just drove around the block :P I didn't have to change lanes, go on a one way, or anything really complicated. Just basic turns and stops. I think it lasted maybe 10 minutes? I didn't time it, but it didn't seem very long.

Then we headed to the maneuverability test area, and she instructed me to go the right of the point cone and guess what?  I DIDN'T HIT ANY FREAKIN CONES!!!!! Robert and I practiced and practiced and practiced some more until I finally was able to do it 4 times in a row both ways the night before the test!!!!! Btw, I'm sorry I left you guys hanging with my last driving-related post! The past few days I was just trying to stay focused and not think about the test too much.

After maneuverability, she had me park the car. (I did a really crappy parking job, guys. I thought I was done for.) Then she immediately started in on all the things I did wrong. My mind was going "ohcrapohcrapohcrap" I figured I had failed. Then I heard her saying that I had passed and it was rather unbelievable. I totally expected to have to take it twice.

I actually passed.

My end results were 85 points on driving and 95 on maneuverability :) UNBELIEVABLE.

So I did a little photo shoot when I got home from work.

I DID IT!

I wore one of my favorite outfits :)

I'M FREE!!!!!!!! Sorry this is blurry :P

*big sigh of relief* It really is over. Now I can enjoy my life :D

To celebrate, I bought myself a thredUP dress that I had been eying for a few weeks now. I'll show it to you when it arrives :) 
Mom also surprised me with earrings and a Sacred Heart of Jesus driving pin to put in the car (It actually belonged to my Maw-maw that passed away in 2012, so it's all the more special now.)

GAH I'm so happy :)

Thanks for all the prayers, support, and encouragement you guys have given me! I know all of it helped me get through it.

And to my hubby: Thanks for being there, giving me your shoulder during my not so fine moments (there were a lot of them :P), and for making me get back in the car and drive. I know I couldn't have done any of it without you :)


Have a goodnight, guys!

Cheerio :)

The Dreadful Driving Test

Some of you know that I still have yet to get my drivers license. *wince*

I have avoided driving like the plague and now I'm 19 and I feel like I just need to get this license thing out of the way :P Cross another fun thing off of my list of "Things I have to do to pass as an adult." Ugh. Double UGH.

Well, my permit expires on the 31st, so this past week I've made myself get in the car and drive. I've had two permits so far, because I wanted to skip the drivers education class (once you're 18 you don't have to take it) and I don't really want to have to pay for a third permit, so here I am. Kicking myself for not practicing more and getting it done earlier.

I think I'm a good driver. Certainly not perfect, put possibly passable for the test. I've been driving a lot lately and I think I've worn off that rustiness from not driving during the long winter we had. So I'm not too nervous about the driver's exam.

That isn't what worries me.

To complete the driving exam in my area, you have to pass the driving test (which doesn't last too long, I hear.) and do all the simple things like braking, starting, driving without hitting anybody, etc. Then, you have to complete a maneuverability test so they can see how well you can back up through orange cones.

This is what worries me:



I don't claim to own this image.

Looks pretty simple, right? I thought so too, until I started practicing yesterday. It's hard. It kicked my butt. I despise whoever thought up this lovely little torture course. I lost count of how many times I tried and failed to do it. I got through maybe once on one side without hitting anything, but that was sheer dumb luck. I wasn't able to repeat it, that's for sure.

I'm thankful I can practice at the actual site, I just have to bring my own markers. A nice man who comes in at work lent me his orange cones for as long as I need them, which was really awesome of him, so that helps.

Robert and I are going to practice it again tonight and I'm just dreading it. I was a puddle of tears yesterday :P I was planning on trying to schedule my test for Friday, but I don't know if I'll be able to pass it now. My confidence level is at it's lowest. I don't want to have to re-take the maneuverability test.

How am I going to get through this? 

Prayers are greatly appreciated. I'm going to need a miracle.

What was your driving test like? Does your state have you do maneuverability or something similar?

Love you guys :) Thanks for listening to my rant. Or reading ;)

Pure Happiness

HI!

I'm extremely happy at the moment, so I wanted to do a quick post!

I FINALLY HAVE A DECENT BLOG HEADER! *squeals with happiness*

You have no idea how happy this makes me. That thing has been bugging me for awhile, but I hadn't given myself the time to research all the different options out there. Thanks to The Wonder Forest, I was able to design my own header :) *dances around* SEE HOW HAPPY I AM?!

"I am most content" - Evangeline, Nanny Mcfee.

Yup, that pretty much sums it up.

Thanks for putting up with my off-center header for waaaaay too long, people!

Pixlr is an awesome site. I'm addicted.

Now I am not very tech-savvy, and if you aren't either, here is a wonderfully helpful Pixlr tutorial on Youtube:

It's fun once you get the hang of it! And probably another time waster......oh well ;)

I feel so accomplished. I can't stop looking at it....it's...so...beautiful. *happy sigh* (Robert is looking at me weird, lol)

 Well, I'm going to float away on my cloud of happiness now. Goodnight, friends!