My Etsy Shop and a Giveaway!

For the past year I've been saying I was going to open an Etsy shop and I'm pleased to announce that I finally have.

In celebration of the grand opening I'm doing a giveaway for my readers on here.



My shop is called Around the World in 80 Frames (although I had to shorten it to aroundin80frames). You can find my shop on Etsy here.

You can buy the prints I have listed as is, or I'll customize them to the size and apperance you would like. Also, if you don't see a print you want, but have seen something on my blog, Flick or Facebook that you would like, then let me know and I'll order it for you. I can also do notecards if you'd prefer those. Keep checking my store in the upcoming weeks, as I'll be adding new prints to the shop.

Here are just a couple of examples of what is in my shop:







I'm giving away one 8x10 print of your choice and you can customize it however you like. For one entry, leave a comment, for two entries, blog about the giveaway on your blog and then let me know that you did. Entries close on Sunday the 3rd at 12:00(CST) and I'll announce the winner on Monday.

Snapshot Saturday: Santorini

It's been awhile since I posted an installment in our cruise vacation from this summer, so I thought it was time I posted about Santorini.

Santorini was the third stop on our cruise and my favorite. Eight hours there was not enough, I'd love to go back and spend a few days just relaxing on the island. The town we ended up going to on Santorini was Fira. There are 3 ways up to the top of Fira where the actual town is at. Donkey, cable car or you can walk up a million steps. I chose the cable car. Call me lazy!



I'm a huge fan of the white buildings on Santorini. They really make everything around them "pop".



I loved this bar sign, so naturally I took a picture.



These gates looked out on a spectacular view of the harbor. You can't see it, but I loved the gates just as much.



This is one of my favorite pictures I took on the vacation. Unfortunately the ISO was set high by accident and there is a lot of noise in it. Otherwise, I love it!



Looking back at the town of Fira.



This is on the far side of Fira, looking at one of the churches.



This is what I think of when I think of Santorini. I walked all the way to the far side of Fira just to get pictures of these.

And this:







Looking down at the ships in the harbor.

I didn't take a shore excursion here, my main focus was just to go around and take pictures of the island. Actually, that was my main objective on all the stops on our cruise. Plus shore excursions are expensive and...I'm pretty cheap.

Next up in the installment: Corfu, Greece.

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

Join in over at Wife of a Sailor!



1.What characteristic about yourself has either been strengthened or weakened due to your experience as a Military Spouse?
I used to be really shy and honestly I sometimes still am, but being a military spouse kind of throws you out there and you either sink or swim at being social. I like to think I've been swimming when it comes to that.

2.What is your favorite vacation spot and why?
I love to travel so much that I could never pick just one place. I loved London, I loved Slovenia, I loved Cinque Terre. The list goes on and on!

3.If you could have any fast-food restaurant in the food court on base/post what would you pick?
I'm going to go with Wife of a Sailor and pick Qdoba. I LOVE that place and wish we had one so bad!

4.Where did you go on your honeymoon?
Um...we really didn't have one. We PCS'd to Louisiana, so I guess that could be my pretend honeymoon.

5.If you could have any job in the world regardless of money, degree or experience, which job would you have and why?
I'd be a travel photographer, going around the world traveling on someone else's dime and just taking pictures and enjoying life all around the world.

Brief Hiatus

I'm taking a brief blogging hiatus this week, as I'm in Germany with Sean.

Be back soon!

My First 5K

Today was my first 5K and it started off with a bang.

For starters, it had been raining off and on since last night and it was not letting up this morning at all. In fact, when the race started it was pouring and it continued to pour throughout the race.

I had only intented to run for as long as I possibly could. In fact, on my Couch to 5K plan, I was only up to running for 20 minutes straight and I didn't think there was any way I was going to be able to run the whole 5K since I hadn't ever run that far in my life.

I honestly think what helped is that there were two girls running next to me for pretty much the entire race and I didn't want to fall behind them. One of them just happened to be a fellow mil-spouse blogger that I reguarly read, but I've never actually "met" in person.

I ended up running the entire race, but I'm not sure my time. I started my watch at the starting line, but forgot to stop it when I crossed the finish line. My guesstimate is about 35 minutes, which isn't too bad for me.



I'll admit it, I cried a little in my car after the race, just because I was so happy to have done better than I expected and to accomplish a goal I've had for a long time.

I'm excited to run my next 5K!

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

Join in over at Wife of a Sailor!



1.How do you spend your deployment money, do you save, pay off bills or enjoy the extra money while it is there to buy the things you do not normally have?
Well, this was our first deployment, and as you know Sean ended up being gone only six months. We actually did save a good chunk of it though, but we do use some of it on traveling as well.

2.If you could relive one occasion or moment, what would it be?
Hmm..toughie. I know a lot of people say wedding and although that was a good day, I'd already been married for Sean five months by the time our wedding ceremony rolled around, so I'm going to say the first day we ever spent together.

3.What’s the worst job you ever had and if it was so bad why did you take it?
I worked in the bakery at Sirloin Stockade. I only had the job for about three months before I got sick with mono and quit. It was an AWFUL job. I always smelled like food, the hours sucked and I just hate working in a restaurant, but I was a desperate college student who needed money for rent, so I took the job.

4.If you could play any character on TV, who would you be?
Carrie Bradshaw. She had a crappy love life, but she had great shoes, friends and a rent-controlled apartment in NYC. What's not to like?

5.If you could become the world’s expert in something, what would it be?
Languages. I wish I knew a ton of languages, but I only know English and a smattering of Spanish and Italian.

Ch-ch-ch Changes!

To my hair that is.

I have long hair. It hasn't been highlighted since April because I don't trust the Italians with my hair. (No offense to any Italians out there)

I want it cut and highlighted and I'm a teensy bit tired of having long hair. So I want to mix it up. Plus, my hair grows really fast so I figure if I don't like it, I'm not stuck with it for long.

I like both of these styles:





The only thing I'd add to the second picture is a little less bang and a little more length.

However, I don't know my face shape and I have NO idea what hairstyles look good on me. So, I'm taking a picture of my face for you guys to help me out.



Ok, here's the pic I took like 5 minutes ago, please excuse my unkempt hair and crazy eyes. Yes, I put the pic in black and white because I have no make-up on. Don't judge.

Any guesses on face shape?

Yay or nay on the haircut? Suggestions?