If you REALLY knew me, you would know that...

I'm extremely impulsive & have a tendency to act on a whim

I tend to act on my emotions & have a horrible issue with over thinking everything

I hate confrontation, I would rather sit back and hold in my feelings instead of lash out {But when I do lash out, it's horrible & takes a lot to get me to that place}

I am self conscious to a fault, it's horrible & I'm trying to work on it

I would rather read a good book & have a nice glass of wine instead of going out on a Friday night

If I don't have at least one cup of coffee in the morning you just don't want to deal with me; sometimes {let's be real, most of the time} one cup just won't cut it either

I have successfully filled up two and a half closets with clothes and shoes, I really need to go through them and donate a bunch of stuff

I want to grow my hair long enough and then cut it off to donate to locks of love

I'm extremely loyal but I can forgive... There's no point in holding onto to anger if it's unnecessary to

I treat my puppies like my children, I have conversations with them on a daily basis & of course I act like they respond {it's okay, they love me the most}

On Thanksgiving I will sit and watch every FRIENDS Thanksgiving episode, just has to happen

I own every season of Gilmore Girls, One Tree Hill, The OC, Sex and the City, Laguna Beach, The Hills, Supernatural, FRIENDS & Glee on DVD {Safe to say I watch way too much television}

I have a tendency to get bored easily, I'll start a project and half way through stop to start another... I do end up going back and finishing the first one, it just might take me a while {I know this drives Andrew nuts but I can't help it}

I did Gymnastics my entire childhood {& into high school}; Best sport ever, just saying!

I have ran two half marathons & am working on training for my third this November

I have to sleep with the bedroom door closed, the closet door closed all the way, and the fan on {If these things aren't done, I won't sleep}

I don't like football... I apologize to those of you who absolutely love it, I just don't really care for it, I don't fully understand it all {but I do enjoy tailgating and all of the Sunday festivities that go along with football}

I absolutely can not wait for the premier's of Sons of Anarchy & Supernatural this Fall {Thanks to Andrew for getting me into these two shows lol, definitely not my normal cup of tea so to speak}

My favorite breakfast is two whole wheat waffles with peanut butter and jelly {a breakfast PBJ!}

I love like crazy & do trust blindly, I always will give the benefit of the doubt & do my best to give as many chances as I can to people... however if you cross me too many times I will take myself out of the situation.

So that's pretty much me! I hope you enjoyed :P

On vacation I read roughly four books. Anyone who knows me will realize that was pretty much my paradise {of course the drinks, sand and ocean helped tremendously}

So what did I read you ask?! Well, allow me to share...

First and foremost I finished the Fifty Shades trilogy. I had finished the first book and probably about 15% of the second one when I arrived in Mexico. The point in which I stopped I was getting bored with all of the sex that was going on, I mean I get that's what the books known for but at a certain point it just became too much. When it came to the first book I could understand needing this information to help us fully understand who Christian is and what he needs. Second book came along and it just seemed like he was changing and at that point having that much sex just made me bored, in turn I put the book down and walked away. The more I heard people talking about it I realized I just needed to finish the damn books, I had put a lot of time into reading the first one and was generally interested in how it was going to turn out. Now I won't spoil the ending for those of you who haven't finished it yet {or haven't even started but have considered}... BUT I will admit, I was wrong. I should never have stopped, I should have trucked through and finished the darn books a long time ago. If you are looking for a series to read I would highly suggest this one, and even for those of you who don't want to read it because of all of the hype, I say get over it, if you haven't tried reading it yet you don't know what you are missing. Of course this book won't be for everyone, no book ever is so if you read it and hated it, I apologize but I absolutely loved this series and can NOT wait to see how in the world they are going to create this movie. However I have a few reservations, including...

Stole this from Kate @ Green Fashionista :)

Okay now once I was finished with Fifty Shades I was a little sad, I always get sad when I finish any series that I really enjoy...

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The next series that I picked up to read was another one that I had started & again, abandoned {shameful I know}... I actually put this series down in order to start the Fifty Shades books {ey ey ey} This series is one by an amazing author Kevin Hearne called the Iron Druid Chronicles. Now this is a completely different sort of book, if you're looking for a Fifty Shades/Twilight-esque type of book this probably isn't your thing. BUT if you're interested in trying something new, I would highly recommend. It's a pretty quick read, easy to follow & there's a dog who is absolutely hilarious, I can't even tell you how many times I have literally laughed out loud because of him! So far the series has four books, Hounded, Hexed, Hammered & Tricked. November 27th of this year the fifth book, Trapped will be hitting stores {& kindles :)}

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Here is a little intro from the author's website about the first book, Hounded...

"Atticus O’Sullivan has been running for two thousand years and he’s a bit tired of it. After he stole a magical sword from the Tuatha Dé Danann (those who became the Sidhe or the Fae) in a first century battle, some of them were furious and gave chase, and some were secretly amused that a Druid had the cheek to defy them. As the centuries passed and Atticus remained an annoyingly long-lived fugitive, those who were furious only grew more so, while others began to aid him in secret.

Now he’s living in Tempe, Arizona, the very last of the Druids, far from where the Fae can easily find him. It’s a place where many paranormals have decided to hide from the troubles of the Old World—from an Icelandic vampire holding a grudge against Thor to a coven of Polish witches who ran from the German Blitzkrieg.

Unfortunately, the very angry Celtic god who wants that sword has tracked him down, and Atticus will need all his power, plus the help of a seductive goddess of death, a sexy bartender possessed by a Hindu witch, and some good, old-fashioned luck of the Irish to kick some arse and deliver himself from evil."

If you're interested & decide to pick this one up please please let me know!! :)

November 27th isn't just the day that the fifth book comes out in the previously mentioned series it is ALSO the day that book 14 comes out in probably one my all time FAVORITE series the Dresden Files!! Harry Dresden is a professional practicing wizard {set in present day} living in Chicago. I can't say enough great things about these books, they have made me laugh out loud but also cry quite a bit too. Unlike any other series I really don't think that you have to like "this kind of book" to actually enjoy and love this series. There is absolutely something for everyone in these books {my husband and I both read them, I can't tell you how great it is to have your absolute best friend to talk to about an amazing book... Generally we have such differing tastes and likes so to find a series to suit us both, well that just says it all right there!} If you want anymore information about this series go ahead and check out the authors WEBSITE

While I am glad to be home and getting back in the swing of things I am beginning to feel the Mexico blues. Right about now I should be sitting on the beach under the shade of a nice palm tree, on my second or third drink {yes I realize it's only 10am but hey, while on vacay...} & deeply involved in my current book. This vacation was by far one of the best I have ever been on & I think Andrew would say the same thing. I'm in the process of uploading & edited all of the amazing pictures but for now this one *above* will have to suffice, which was from a mini photo session we did on the beach :)

Have a wonderful Tuesday & be on the lookout for my entire vacay recap coming soon!

Happy Sunday everyone!! As I finish up packing for vacation I wanted to stop by and introduce the guest's that will be taking over my blog this week...

MONDAY: Bree from The Urban Umbrella {I will be guest posting for her tomorrow as well!}

TUESDAY: Ali from All Things Pink & Sparkly {I am actually guest posting for her today so you all should go and check it out!}

WEDNESDAY: Kate from Green Fashionista

THURSDAY: Amanda from For Love of a Cupcake

FRIDAY: TBD {Working on this today!}

MONDAY: Megan from Growing Up Is Actually Kind Of Fun

I hope everyone has a fantastic week!!! See you all next Tuesday :)

Happy hump-day!! We have officially made it half way through the week, which means only a couple more days until the weekend, for me it means only 5 more days until a MUCH needed vacation!!! Seriously, this vacation couldn't come at a better time for me. Over the past few months I have been coming here almost daily and writing my posts to share with you all, and have had so much fun doing it but today I am going to just simply ask for an ear...

Recently I have been thinking about my career path, my life path and then every time I sit down to really think it through, the only thing I ever end up with is... What's next, where do I go from here?! This is a question I have no answer for, at least not yet. I have a long term goal, however I have no short term goals to get me there. I know at the end of the day I love to write, I want to write, it's what inspires me and makes me happy {And sometimes unfortunately for my husband, friends and family, it is my most honest form of communication}. My huge issue, I am extremely picky about what and how I want to write. I am not a fan of journalism, I just can't get excited or into report writing at that level, I don't write well under pressure and I couldn't create an amazing piece on a deadline... I have a ton of respect for those who can do that, and those who are excellent and excel at it, but it's just not me. The downside of my picky-ness, there really aren't many opportunities or jobs out there that will allow me to make a living by just writing. Yes, I know that I should suck it up, and I have thought about it many times, but I just don't think I could stand being at yet another job that wasn't exactly what I wanted. I get that everyone has to start out on the bottom, I have worked my butt off since I was seventeen at jobs that I really didn't care for, I worked my way through college, graduated with my Bachelor's degree without any student loans {I know what it means to work for what you have}, so I feel that I should be allowed to be picky, but at what cost? I have an extremely amazing job right now, as far as pay and benefits go {And the fact that it's with my family, I get to spend a lot more time with my dad and grandpa than I would working anywhere else}; but being a secretary is just not what I want to do forever. I get bored way too easily and having absolutely no room for advancement or even the opportunity to love my job one day, has made it very discouraging {And again, the fact that it's with my family, there is very little no work place etiquette at all, I deserve to be respected}. I love my family, I really do, but working with them every single day can be tiring and can make you look at them in a light that no one should see a loved one. I just want to love what I do, and I want to do what I love, is that too much to ask?! Maybe it is, and I am sure that there will be someone out there who will tell me to just shut it & be thankful for what I have, and I am, I know how lucky I am that I have a great job to go to everyday, one with pretty darn good job security at that. I do not for a second take for granted what I have or the opportunities that have been given to me, I just wish I knew what was going to happen next, I hate the unknown and it seems like I have absolutely no control, it's a terrifying feeling.

I don't really know if there is an answer to any of this other than, "It's just life."



If you made it through all of that, I thank you more than you know. I will leave you with this, something that I need to try my best to remember... "For anyone who is: just keep writing. Keep reading. If you are meant to be a writer, a storyteller, it’ll work itself out. You just keep feeding it your energy, and giving it that crucial chance to work itself out. By reading and writing." Robin McKinley

Okay everyone so I really try to keep my blog down to one post a day but there comes a time in every bloggers life where things just seem too good to pass up & this post is just too good to hold onto any longer. You are all in for a treat {I hope}...

So I have been reading a bunch of bloggers lists of things they want to accomplish within the next year of their lives... & just like all of them I too have a list of things that I would like to accomplish! {My 24th birthday is a little over a month away so I am going to do my 25 things I want to do before I turn 25}

1. Go back to school, it is killing me that I am not in classes right now... Went to Target yesterday with Andrew & as we walked by the school supply section he grabs my hand and goes "I know you are just itching to check out all the school supplies but we have to go"... He knows me too well. I just have to decide what I want to go back for... decisions, decisions!

2. Finish my book... I am on my way & I know this topic keeps popping up in a lot of my posts but it is a big part of what I want to accomplish {not only in the next year but in my life in general}

3. See a midnight premiere of a movie that I want to see {I don't know which one it will be but I have never stayed up or gone to a premiere of anything, maybe the new twilight movie or 50 shades whenever it comes out?}

Anyone who knows me would tell you that I am obsessed with reading... seriously, I can't help myself. I have a huge library of paperbacks along with both a NOOK and a KINDLE! This is strictly because the hubby loves to read just as much, I had a NOOK so to be difficult he chose to get a KINDLE (Epic battle in our home, which is better?!), well long story short, we like a lot of the same books sooo instead of buying them twice, I caved and bought a Kindle so we could share an account and only purchase books once.

Back to my dilemma...

My interests in books is vast, I can read just about any genre as long as it seems interesting, I'm game! Along with my love for reading I have an issue with thinking ahead, and even though I am currently in the middle of a series I am worried about what I need to read next... I have a tendency to stress out a bit when I don't know what's coming next. I am considering starting the 50 Shades of Grey series or Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter but I just don't know nor can I make a decision [again, another flaw, I'm severely indecisive]

This is where you come in... I am hoping that you can help give me some direction as to what I should read next, whether it be one of the two choices from above or something different entirely! I am open to any & all suggestions!!!

What do you think?!?!

<3 Melissa

So for as long as I can remember I have LOVED to read (& write). I absolutely love getting lost in a book, preferably a series because I have a hard time reading just ONE book... I always want more! Recently we have seen a huge surge in teen book series, although I am not a teen I can't help but be completely enthralled! If you don't know by now which series I am talking about let me help you out... Harry Potter, Twilight and most recently The Hunger Games. These series have pretty much become the "it" books & movies of today's teen generation (and adults too for that matter).