What I am Looking Forward to...

Going through some of my pictures from Thanksgiving made me think about what I am looking forward to when I go home for Christmas! There are so many things I love about being home for the Holidays with my friends and family, I thought I would share a few with you.

1. Quality time with the Fam Bam

{Family and Football}

{Daddy Mercado!}

{Bryney Boy}

2. Home Cookin'

{Workin' hard in the kitchen...with Blake by her side}

3. Food Comas

{Lol. No caption Needed}

4. Partying with Good Friends!

{Crazy group of Hooligans}

5. Being Comfy Cozy by the Fire!

{Can you guess which feet are min?}

6. Best Friend Time!

{Yeah. We are awesome.}

7. Seeing the Cutest Nephew in the World...Park City!

{LOOK at that face!}

{Momma and P-Mann}

There are seriously so many reasons why Christmas is my favorite holiday! I love seeing everyone, and spending quality time with my amazing family. And even though I have SO much to look forward to, there are two things I am going to be missing this Christmas...

{Nicholas and Hudson!}

{Conked Out.}

{My Love!}

Unfortunately Nick and my pup won't be there to celebrate Christmas because he is going to spend it with his family. I GUESS that is a valid excuse. But I will miss them so much!!

What are you guys looking forward to for the Holidays?

We're All a Little...

Weird.

But we mean that in the best possible way! Or at least that is what Stephanie, Amanda, Hollie, Kelsey, Olivia, and Tammy decided last week. We all had a mini-holiday meetup at La Jolla Brew House! Several people came up to ask us why we were there, and how we all knew each other. Instead of telling them, we made them guess....Sorority Sisters? All weirdly related somehow? Work together? Circus performers?....Could you believe nobody guessed that we are all bloggers? Maybe it is because a bunch of weirdos (and I mean that in the best possible way) from the internet don't normally meet up and have drinks all the time...but WE DO!

{What other group of girls would all have their Cameras/iPhones out to document the night?}

{Miss Amanda and I!}

It is crazy how I have met some of these girls once before, and yet I click so well with them. We all collectively decided that we all get along so well because we all have that special qualities that one needs to be a blogger...we are all a little weird. Now some of you might think of the term "weird" as a negative, but I personally find it as a compliment. We are anything but ordinary in all the best ways! So say it with me! Weird and proud!

Anyhoooo. We had an awesome time! There was lots of laughs and LOTS of awkward conversations, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Oh and we did a gift exchange, and I was lucky enough to have Miss Stephanie pick my gift out...and let's just say she must be my long lost sister, because her gift fit my personality PERFECTLY! She just gets me. :) What was it you ask?

A freakin' sequined beret! Not only was she aware of my love for hats, but she paired it with my obsession with all things that sparkle! If you know me at all, if you add a little sparkle to something, I am one happy camper. Thanks Steph! I love it! 

{Rockin' my new hat!}

I am so lucky to have met such an amazing group of girls through blogging. They are all interesting, smart, not to mention beautiful people, and I am blessed to know them all. Oh and did I mention we have a girls ROAD TRIP in the works for next mont? I am officially stoked.

Love you ladies!

Christmas Quiz!

{via}

Kelsey got me in the Christmas Spirit so much with her last post, that I thought I would do the same! Here is a little bit about my take on this glorious of all Holidays!

Christmas Quiz!

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Hot Chocolate all the way! But please don't ask me to decide between Marshmallows or Whipped cream because I will NOT!

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? No, no, no. He is much too busy to wrap presents.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? I love the traditional Colored lights...brings me back to my childhood.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? No but what a good idea! Where does one get Mistletoe?

5. When do you put your decorations up?  Sometime during the beginning of December. Nick doesn't let me do anything before Thanksgiving.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? My grandma's Baked French Toast Casserole...I look forward to it every single year! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? When we were little we would be convinced all the presents were done, my family would always bring out one big gift at the end. Usually it was a bike with a big bow on it, or a giant doll house. It was awesome!

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I can't remember how old I was, but I do remember sitting in my grandparent's living room and crying. Everything felt like a conspiracy!

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? My mom used to never allow us to. But now that Shea and Sarah split the holidays with their families, we do their gifts on Christmas Eve. Woo hoo two days of presents!

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? My mom always does a beautiful tree. Very chic. Very designer. She has a great eye for that stuff, and is so good at it! I can't wait until I get my own tree, and start my own decoration traditions.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it? LOVE the snow, but definitely would not enjoy living in the snow for long periods of time.

12. Can you ice skate? Heck yes. That reminds me, I want to go ice skating this month! Thanks Kels!

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I don't think I could name a favorite. I think my favorite gift is having traditions that I still do with my family each year. Cheesy?

14. What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? Coming together as a family and Celebrating the real reason for the season, the birth of Jesus Christ! 

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Cream fo shoooo!

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? I love waking up to see the stockings my grandma made for all of us when we were little all filled! And waiting for everyone to get up to go through all of them. 

17. What tops your tree? I don't have a tree. But on top of my mom's tree is some kind of feather concoction of awesomeness.

18. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving? Giving! I love to see people's faces light up when they get something they really want. Plus, I am awesome at wrapping gifts...so the more I give, the more I get to wrap!

19. Candy canes: yuck or yum? Yumm! Although I never buy them for myself?

20. Favorite Christmas show? My favorite Christmas movie of all time is The Muppets Christmas Carol...i used to watch it religiously when I was little. I wish I could own it now, I think my family has the worn-out VHS somewhere.

21. Saddest Christmas song? Blue Christmas! What could be more blue than that?

22. What is your favorite Christmas song? Baby it's Cold Outside is probably my favorite one...but there are wayyyyy too many good ones out there!

[ Post Idea from mandy @ mama and the dudes ]

The Family that Parties Together...

Fun Fact: My brother and sister-in-law have the SAME birthday! 

Kind of awesome right? What is even more awesome is the Joint Birthday Celebration that comes once a year! You can always expect something fabulous planned, and a group of amazing people joined together to celebrate these two...

I think you guys know how blessed I feel to have my family in my life, but I am not sure if you know how grateful I am for Sarah. Growing up I always wanted a sister, but lets face it I secretly liked the attention of being the only girl. But something was always missing, and I didn't even realize it until Sarah came into this crazy little family of ours. She is the sister I always wanted, and I am so lucky my brother got his act together and put a ring on it! I love them both so much, and love how they both have been there for me whenever I needed it. Thanks you two!

Alright. Enough with the sappy, and on with the party! We had dinner at this great restaurant in Newport called Sol. If you live in Orange County, you should definitely check it out (tacos=amazing). There was a big group of us, some from Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, OC, and of course, San Diego (me!). I guess these two are pretty popular.

There was good food, wine, and lots of a laughter. I think it's safe to say that a good time was had by all. But the night wasn't over yet! It was still early, and we wanted to go out on the town!...take the world by storm!...paint the town red!..well you get the point. Sadly Sarah had to go home early to check on Little P, but we got Old Man Shea to come out with us! (Small victory!)

{A few snapshots from the night!}

{Shea, Tara, and Justin}

Now I didn't think it was possible to find a dive bar in a Newport, but we managed to find a pretty good one. (with live music..bonus!) We ended up at some Irish pub that I can't remember the name of, but I do remember that Moby was performing. You remember Moby right? That techno dude from the 90's? OR it might have been Moby's Doppleganger. The probability for the second option is a lot higher than the first...but I am still convinced it was in fact 90's Techno Legend Moby. Sadly there is no photographic evidence, so you will just have to take my word or it.

Either way, there was music (and a few beers) in the air! And that is all that really matters right?

{Candid Camera}

The night turned out pretty good if you asked me. It would have been perfect if Sarah would have been there though. Next year we will leave Shea at home, and us girls will go out instead! 

I am so grateful to be close with my brothers, and be able to join them in their celebrations. Seriously though. For years I thought I was the dorky little sister, that wasn't cool enough to hang out with my big brothers. Truth be told, I probably wasn't very cool at that time anyways. But I am glad we have gotten to the point in our lives where we can all go out and have a good time together. I think we are pretty lucky to have each other, if you ask me. Or they are pretty lucky to have me...yeah let's go with that second one...

Oh. And in case you were really curious what I looked liked rocking out to a drum solo on a bar table...

You are welcome.

New Start!

Hey! Do you guys remember me? I used to blog every once and a while...on here actually. Well, I have slapped myself on the wrist for being a bad blogger, and am determined to make December my best blogging month ever! To start off the month with a BANG, I thought I would announce the winner of last months giveaway from my very own Momma!

The Winner Is...

Congratulations Anna!  I am so excited for you!! Email me at KMercado988@yahoo.com, and I will give you the details to collect your AMAZING wreath!

I am so excited for December, and what I am bringing to the blog this month! My creative juices are flowin', and I have some fund stuff planned. Also, I am excited to be meeting up with my fabulous blogger friends again this month. I am so blessed to have met such an amazing group of girls through this blog. Kinda makes the whole thing worth it! So, moral of the story is if you stick with me, I promise I won't disappoint!

Happy December!!!

Attention!!

So. I have not given due credit to my AWESOME giveaway that I am hosting from my AWESOME mom. For this reason, I am extending the giveaway until next Monday. That means you have 6 more days to get your entries in. So spread the word! Click on that button right over there to the right! Enter! Enter! Enter!

So Cal Blogger Meetup!

{Via Olivia}

Due to the planning efforts of Olivia, Kelsey, Tammy, and Stephanie, I was lucky enough to attend the First Annual So Cal Blogger Meetup last weekend at Sip in Del Mar! 

{Via Olivia}

{Via Olivia}

{Via Olivia}

Let me just say that I had SUCH a fun time! It was so nice to put a Face to the Blogs that I have read, and meet some truly fabulous ladies. Every single girl there was friendly and full of interesting stories. I had so much fun getting to know everyone, and learning about their lives. And the bonus is they all live nearby, so we can meet up whenever we want!

Olivia, Kelsey, Tammy, and Stephanie (that is a mouthful girls, we need a nickname for your group!) did SUCH a good job planning activities for us to get to know everyone. The first game was you get a pin, and if you say the words "Blog", "Blogger", "Blogging", etc. you get your pin taken away. Needless to say I got my pin taken away in the first five minutes...

{Via Olivia}

{She was on her A-Game!}

But I did come out victorious in the next game! Blogger Bingo!

{Via Olivia}

Each bingo card had facts about all the girls at the Meetup. Our mission to was to find the girl who matched the description, and get her to sign the card. Challenge Accepted! And what was my fact you ask?

"I am a Pint Sized lover of all things Ladylike!"

{Via Olivia}

{Getting to know everyone!}

Love it! So true! Anyways...guess who was the winner of this game? 

{Via Olivia}

Me!! Yay me! And a Target gift card was my prize! Seriously, these ladies are genius, because I LOVE Target! I used the gift card two days later, by the way!

Then it was time for the Giveaways! Our lovely hosts did such a great job at pulling in sponsors who donated seriously AMAZING gifts! I think we can just all agree that these ladies did awesome in general.

{Via Olivia}

And here is the most exciting thing! I won something! If anyone is familiar with my luck, or lack there of, they know I NEVER win anything. Luckily, I had my friend Kelsey to help me out. You see, Kelsey has a ridiculous amount of luck. She has one FOUR concert tickets on the radio!! So before the giveaway she gave me a pat for good luck, and it worked! I won the most awesome gift ever!

A 1 Hour Photo shoot with Karina Irene Photography! She is an amazing photographer, and I am so excited to get to work with her!

{Via Olivia}

{One happy lady!}

Overall, it was a really great night! I loved having a glass of wine and getting to know some great girls, who have the same interests as I do. We all had a common thread that brought us together, and that was really cool to see! I am so grateful to Tammy, Stephanie, Kelsey, and Olivia for putting this whole night together, and I can't wait until the next one! A special shout out to one of my best friends Kelsey, for contributing so much to the night. I can see your passion for this stuff, and I am so proud of you! Love ya!

Cheers to our beautiful hosts!

{Via Karina}

p.s. Olivia MAY have caught me using my camera on my iPhone as a mirror to apply lip gloss.

{Via Olivia}

{I'll get you back Olivia!}

Portland Volume 2: All That Other Stuff

Hey remember that one time I went to Portland two months ago? Well I got more to say about it! Since I have been ridiculous amounts a busy (I promise I will stop using that as an excuse..well probably never), I haven't been able to keep up with my events. What that means, is there is about a month lag between what I do, and what I post. Ah well...

So, Portland! One of my favorite parts of the city was walking around and exploring with everyone. Portland really is gorgeous, and has such interesting things to see. 

{Cool funky wall. Which Sarah told me I should take a picture of for my blog. Sheesh I am a bad blogger.}

{The cutest little family in all the land!}

Did I mention the amount of local breweries? I love trying new beers (ales, IPA, stout...whatever I call them all beer), so this was super exciting for me! Our first stop was a place called Rogue.

{Dead Guy Ale. What a cool name for a beer....I mean ale.}

{The Taster. How cute is this display!}

If you haven't caught a trend by now, we did a lot of eating and drinking on this trip. It is a wonder how I could still zip my pants up after this weekend. The next day we went off exploring again, and stumbled upon a local street fair. 

{Christa's ridiculously awesome purchase. Well played, Christa}

Did I mention their are a whooooole lot of Hipsters in Portland? Well we hit the mother load at this street fair. A Hipster gold mine, if you will. So, naturally my brother and I decided to make a game out of it called "Spot the Hipster". But, in order to be discreet about it, we decided to yell "Hipster" backwards whenever we spotted one. So imagine my brother and I walking down the street yelling "Ritshep!" literally every two seconds. (Yes we are aware that actually isn't "Hipster" spelled backwards. We didn't realize that at the time though.) I wouldn't say we were proud of our actions, but it definitely was entertaining. I totally won the game, by the way. 

{On the prowl for Ritsheps}

Then the big kids went off to their wedding, and I go to spend some time with this guy...

{Cutest. Nephew. EVER.}

Did I mention that not only was I the nanny all weekend, but I was also the official hairdresser as well? I am a jack of all trades really. I had to introduce Sarah to the SJP Bun that we all know so well across the Blogosphere.

{Would anyone like to hire me to do their hair?}

{Presh}

Finally, we ended our trop at another local bar called Life of Riley's, who had the most entertaining waitress/bartender I have ever met in my life. We stayed for a bit and had some good laughs and good beers before hoping on our flight back to sunny California!

{Such a cute couple.}

I seriously had such a fun time, and was so lucky to get to hang out with some of my favorite people in the whole world. I am down to be Nanny Kai for any and all trips in the future (Hint hint broseph). Sorry that was a long post, but I figured I should just get it all out there before another two months go by! 

Get excited, tomorrow I am blogging about the fabulous So Call Blogger Meetup from last weekend!!