Dance, Dance, Dance

Tonight was a fun night, and a night I got to cross another thing off of my 30 by 30 list. Tonight Mitch and I took our very first dance lesson.

We got a gift certificate from my Mom last Christmas for 3 dance lessons and decided that now was the right time to put on our dancing shoes.

We were kind of intimidated walking into the dance studio but once we were inside it really was a relaxed atmosphere to be in. We were by far the worst dancers in the studio but everyone was kinda of doing their own thing and didn't really notice us or at least we were focused too much on not stepping on each other's toes to notice anyone noticing us.

We both had fun....even though Mitch might deny it in front of his buddies....and plan on going back for a couple more lessons.

Run in a 10K

I set a goal. In my 30 before 30 list I said I wanted to run in a 10K before I turned 30 years old. Last weekend I was able to cross it off my list!

When I wrote the 30 before 30 list I didn't realize I not only was going to be able to accomplish one of my goals but spend some awesome time with a great friend.

When Kate read my 30 before 30 blog post this summer she jumped on the idea of doing a 10K and motivated me to not waste any time and to just go for it. So off to the Internet we went and 10 minutes and $25 later we were committed.


This run not only strengthened me physically but it also strengthened my friendship with Kate.

This run lead to lots of text message and Sunday phone calls to see how those long runs went.
We cheered each other on.

We commiserated on those hard days.

We complained on the days when it was hard to get out the door.

And we enjoyed all the feelings of accomplishement together.


We finished side by side feeling awesome....even if we were passed by a man who ran while jugging 5 balls at once!

Thanks for being such a good friend Kate!

1 down 29 to go...Step out of my sewing comfort zone and sew something I have never done before

I have completed my first item off of my 30 by 30 list. I sewed some cute new pillows for our entry way bench. It wasn't like it was anything spectacular but it was something I had never sewn before and I am really pleased with how them turned out.

I had a slow day work wise....which has been few and far between this summer, and busted out the sewing machine and finished all four pillows including a run to Joann Fabric to pick it all up in an afternoon.


My next sewing projects will be some curtains for our bedroom, which seems like it would be totally easy to make and a heck of a lot cheaper than buying curtains.

I am also liking the peer pressure that has popped up from posting this list online....I have been approach by 3 friends about doing items on my 30 by 30 list! I love it! 1 down 29 more to go!

30 by 30

I have a big life change coming down the line, I am getting married. I am starting the next phase in my life as a married woman and I realized that I keep moving from one phase of life to the next quite quickly. College Student, Girlfriend, Teacher, Home Owner, Fiance....next up Wife. I don't want to just sit back and move from one phase to the next. I want to live in that phase and have an awesome time doing it. I realize I have a few years left before I will be leaving my Twenty-Something (3 1/2 to be exact) phase, and I am ready to fully live within those years. I decided it was time for a list, because that is what I do. So here it is the 30 before 30 list. Basically this is my bucket list on the short term goals list. Here is 30 things I am hoping to do before I turn 30
1. Run a 10K race
2. Run a half marathon
3. Complete a Sprint Triathlon....I can't believe I am even writing this
4. Teach in a foreign country
5. Take a hot air balloon ride
6. Canoe in the Boundary Waters
7. Finish all my schooling...only one licensure to go
8. Take dance lessons
9. Take a cooking class
10. Learn more about photography, take a class
11. Take a pottery class
12. Create a piece of art I love enough to put in my house instead of throw away
13. Learn to successful back up a boat trailer
14. Gain confidence with power tools
15. Build a piece of furniture
16. Learn to reupholster
17. Go watch horse races
18. Participate in the Warrior Dash
19. Write a Children's Book that may or may not ever get published
20. Sky Dive....shhh don't tell my Mom
21. See one of the Natural Wonders of the world that I have left to see
22. Step out of my sewing comfort zone and sew something I have never done before
23. Successfully grow my own vegetables
24. Run in the Freeze yer Gizzard Blizzard Run
25. Take a vacation with a friend
26. Visit a state I have never been to
27. Visit a state I have never been to
28. Visit a state I have never been to....one for each year I have before 30
29. Host a holiday at my house
30. Scuba Dive

There it is...my 30 before 30, let's see how I do!

Smitten List

I have always been and hopefully will always be smitten with travel.

I am the kind of person who is constantly dreaming of my next travel adventure. For quite a few years Machu Picchu has been on the forefront of many of those dreams.

I first read about Machu Picchu in this book and have been trying to finagle a trip ever since. When I first sat down to write down my Bucket List hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu ranked in the top five.

Just check out how amazing this looks...


If I had all the money and time in the world I would be quickly setting off for Peru.

Cross your fingers I find a money tree.

2

Here is a different number for you...2! The number of months I have to wait to go on a vacation.

I love so many things about my job and one of my favorite things is the amazing vacation time we get. Mitch and I take full advantage of my vacation time to run away as often as possible.

A few years ago Mitch and I took the time to write our bucket lists down and one of the items on his bucket list was to see the Panama Canal and one of the items on my list was to stay in an Aqua Lodge. When planning for our Spring Break trip this year we thought we could kill two birds with one stone and plan an awesome trip to Panama.

As we dug more and more into travel books about Panama we found this Aqua Lodge...

How amazing is that?

Mitch and I Will spend 2 days in Panama City checking out the canal and all that the city has to over and then escape out of the city to Boca to stay at the Aqua Lodge for three nights and this Jungle Lodge for two nights....

Yes this is an open aired hut (read fancy tree house) We will be in the jungle with the sloths and monkeys hiking and exploring the wild life.

I know I shouldn't wish time away...but please please please go quickly February and March!

I want a Re-Do!

I want a re-do at this whole blogging thing. I want to be a blogger, I want to document all the wonderful things I have going in my life and I believe every deserves at least one (or two or three) re-do's, so here I go....

Why do I want to give this another go, after 9 (errrr, 10) months of not blogging? I happened to click on my blog under my favorites tab and started ready some old posts and came across this one. A year ago I wrote it down that I wanted to run in a race and I am proud to say that with my mom by myside I can place a check mark next to this item on my bucket list. I believe that if you take the time to commit a desire to words you are more likely to be successful with it. So I am going to write things down that I dream of doing and document that awesomeness when I get to cross it off.

I will write more about about how great it was to accomplish this with my mom later hopefully sooner rather than later!

Run Forrest Run!

After the movie The Bucket List came out a few years ago I decided to make my very own bucket list as well. If you haven't watched the movie is is about two men who are dying of cancer who make a list of all the things they want to do before they "kick the bucket." I wrote all the things I want to do in life from little things (bake a cake from scratch) to big things (see all seven natural wonders of the world). Another item on my list was to run in a race. I know that there is no better time then the present and a few weeks ago I began running.

When I first was writing my Bucket List and I watched my very own fingers type the words "Run in a Race" I felt like I was having an out of body experience. I used to be a firm believer that you are only to run if you are being chased by a man with a crazy mask who is carrying a chain saw; but for some reason though I want to be a runner. I am so envious of the people you see running is a race because you know they made up their mind, set a goal, and are accomplishing all of that hard work and I want to feel that feeling.

I am making great progress in my opinion. I have gone from loathing running to looking forward to the feeling I have after my run is done. I really enjoying the peaceful time I am enjoying in the outdoors while I am running. I continue to run a little bit further with each run and plan on signing up for my first race for this fall. I want to make this a life long hobby and create another passion for myself and be able to cross something else off of my "Bucket List!"