A book a week

I officially declare my "read one book per week" goal to be in process! 

This week I read Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson, set in the English countryside. It's all about relationships, with a bit of old fashioned manners and such. It was a fun read! I'm going to do my best to choose books from BBC's Top 100 Books list for my weekly reads, so I can slowly check off two goals at the same time. 

Whoops! I just looked up BBC's list and I've only got fourteen books to go until I've checked that goal off. I may have chosen the wrong list to work my way through- most of these books are old news. Perhaps I'll just finish it off and then set a new literary goal?

On another note, I've decided what I want to do with my square frame that I picked up this week! I know how I'll be spending my Memorial Day weekend!

Craft day!

Today I had an itchy feeling to be crafty, so my friend and I headed out this afternoon to collect a few useful items. We picked up a few dollar items and then hit goodwill and snagged a couple cheapo wall hangings.

K had a plan for her craft, so she found some post it notes that were shaped like letters and stuck them to two different  styrofoam pictures. She then painted one solid color over them, like this:

After letting the paint dry a little, she pulled the post-it's off, and voila! Two nice little prints of a song she loves, ready to hang in her apartment, all for less than $10!

(Sidenote: who has the coolest shirt ever? That girl!! "You're killing me, Smalls!")

The peachy colored print had a bit of a marbley effect, as it has some Monet flowers underneath. I really like the gray print! 

Anyway, here was K, being all creative and productive, and all I managed to produce for my craft was this little plastic container for N. 

I cut a hole in the lid, wrapped duct tape around the edge of the hole so there wouldn't be any sharp plastic edges, and showed him how to stuff pompoms into the container through the hole. Not exactly creative, OR brain surgery, but N thought it was the coolest thing since his afternoon snack, so I count myself a winner! 

Just look at him go! :)

Back to the crafty stuff, though, I picked up a neat square frame that was very nicely showing off the most hideous, filthy sheet of brocadey fabric that I thought I could repurpose. I popped the plate out that the fabric was glued to, ripped the fabric off, and flipped the plate around so I can paint and hang it. I haven't quite nailed down what I want to paint yet, so I saved that project for tomorrow!

N loves it when K comes to visit! He gets so spoiled!

What should I do with my snazzy "new" wall hanging? Should I paint a pattern, or a picture, or print something on it? 

I've also got a trifold dressing screen that I rescued a couple summers ago that was falling apart. I used some filler in a few cracks, but haven't done anything further with it. It's possible that I could coordinate the screen with the wall hanging! 

Guess who's home?

We've had an unlucky streak of doctor visits, strep throat, colds and coughs around here, but not to worry! I'm here!

But more importantly, Unckie Slim is here, too! 

August, 2013, meeting Uncle Slim for the first time, just after he came home from Afghanistan. (Wearing camo in support of Army Uncle:))

We've been having lots of fun, now that Uncle Slim is here and we're not moping around the house feeling sick anymore. (Although we did squeeze a few visits to the neighborhood sheep in, between feeling crummy and feeling sick!)

Hello, sheep!

Welcome home, Uncle Slim!!

My Life List

My life list!

*I reserve the right to add, edit, or remove goals from this list whenever I feel like it.

Family Goals

1. Geocaching with my miniature man.

2. Classic movie marathon

3. Watch our favorite sports team play live.

4. Play in the rain.

5. Color run with punkster.

6. Have a mother/son photoshoot. 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 down!

7. Bury a time capsule.

8. Make a model airplane.

9. Visit a history museum.

10. Paint N's room.

11. Build a bird house.

12. Teach him how to be a gentleman and how to treat a woman.

13. Spend a winter night in a hotel with a pool so the kid can swim.

14. Have the kid's caricature drawn.

15. Take the little man bowling. 12/2015

16. Sign kiddo up for dance/swim/riding/etc class.

17. Do something the spawn has always wanted to do.

18. Journal for when N is little.

19. Lay in the grass in the summer. This is a fun one! We like to do it on the regular. :)

20. Go rock climbing (real or facility).

21. Plan a fishing trip.

22. Wake N up in the middle of the night and go to an all night diner for breakfast.

23. Plan an event for every holiday.

24. Explore local places we've never been. 

25. Get up early and watch the sunrise.

26. See both our favorite bands together.

27. Pick out, buy, and train a puppy. 

28. Buy him his first suit. 

29. Visit a college in every city we ever visit together. **I'm thinking I'm nixing this one.

30. Go to one professional game for every sport we can think of.

31. Look through old black and white photos of our relatives together. 

32. Continue my gene pool. Umm... See: Magoo.

33. Lead N through a hedge maze.

34. Make a bucket wish list come true for N.

35. Write a letter for N for his 18th birthday.

36. Go to the dog park to admire the dogs together.

37. Be an example: Show N that you can do anything you want with hard work.

38. Watch N go to college.

39. Go horseback riding.

40. Go snorkeling in the ocean.

41. Go snow skiing/snowboarding.

42. Fly a kite.  Attempted & flopped in a big way, 08/2015

43. Try archery.

44. Take N to Medieval Times. 08/2015

45. Teach N how to write. 

46. Paint together with N.

47. Read a classic together.

48. Create a family crest.

49. Watch the entire Star Wars collection.

50. Teach him to iron clothes and sew on buttons.

51. Camp in a tent in the backyard. 

52. Create a paper mâché volcano and blow it up.

53. Adopt a senior doggy.

54. Write handwritten letters together.

55. Visit every local museum.

56. Be a godmother.

57. Be a foster parent or adoptive parent.

58. Babysit someone's kids for a weekend.

59. See a play on Broadway.

60. Write a list of qualities N should look for in a woman.

61. Raise N to be a Happy, Healthy, Confident, Cooperative, Responsible, Faithful person.

Physical Goals

1. Take a personal defense class.

2. Run a seven minute mile.

3. Run a mud-run.

4. Run a fun run with N. 

5. Fast for 24 hours.

6. Become skilled at skiing. 

7. Live a healthy lifestyle.

8. Run the Disney princess half marathon.

9. Learn yoga.

10. Bike across the country.

11. Run through Hell, MI when it freezes over.

12. Run a mile in my underwear.

13. Run a 5k together.

14. Run a marathon.

Foodie Goals

1. Cook a Thanksgiving turkey that I shot.

2. Eat a lobster in Maine.

3. Cook 30 recipes from 30 different countries in 30 days.

4. Raise my own food.

5. Catch, clean, cook and eat a fish.

6. Bake a soufflé successfully.

7. Eat at a revolving restaurant. **Technically accomplished in Duluth, during my childhood.

8. Eat at an undersea restaurant.

9. Order dessert first.

10. Drink only water for a year.

11. Make my own pizza from scratch.

12. Create my own barbecue specialty.

13. Create my own kitchen sink cookie recipe.

14. Make homemade ice cream.

15. Develop a signature family recipe.

16. Eat a meal overlooking the Colisseum.

Personal Growth/Learning Goals

1. Sew a quilt.

2. Earn my bachelor's degree.  05/2012

3. Write a grant and get it approved.

4. Grow in my faith.

5. Learn to play the accordion.

6. Write a blog and publish 100+ posts.

7. Read a book each week for a year.  1-12/2015

8. Take a motorcycle class.

9. Send a care package to a soldier.  Uncle Slimmy's 2013 & 2015 Afghanistan tours.

10. Take a first aid course.

11. Earn my master's degree. Check, check! 2016
12. Pass the speech Praxis. Check, check, check! 8/1/16!

12. Read the entire Bible in one year.

13. Do something nice for someone who will never find out. Accomplished! But to be continued...

14. Come up with and check off one goal per friend, per year.

15. Go on a missions trip.

16. Learn how to change a tire/change a flat, if necessary.

17. Read half the books on BBC's Top 100 Books list.

18. Take a gun safety class. Check, check! 07/2016

19. Take a concealed weapons class. Check, check! 07/2016

20. Learn to sew.

21. Learn to ride horseback with skill.

22. Learn to decorate cakes.

Professional/Financial Goals

1. Publish a story.

2. Sell artwork I've created.

3. Become a speech language pathologist.  I'm on my way! Praxis to go, CF to go, August, 2016!

4. Find/publish Pea Soup.

5. Become financially self-sufficient.

6. Become debt free by 2020.  Looking less and less likely, considering current, continued debt accumulation.

7. Start an investment account.

8. Prepare a will.

9. Own a home.

10. Pay off my mortgage by age 50.

Home Goals

1. Create a comfortable home.

2. Plant a tree.

3. Plant a garden.

4. Be green.

Travel Goals

1. Take a spontaneous weekend roadtrip.

2. Take a trip where N's favorite movie was filmed.

3. Take dad and N somewhere special.

4. Go zip lining at Whistler or maybe in Tennessee. 

5. Stay in a cabin on a lake for a week.

6. Visit a big city for a weekend.

7. Go camping a minimum of one time per summer.  2014, 2015

8. Visit all 50 states with N.

9. Get in the car and drive with no plans.

10. Climb a mountain.

11. Hike the Appalachian trail.

12. Go to a Sarah Addison Allen book signing.

13. Go water skiing/wake boarding.

14. Attend a rodeo.

15. Go to NYC together and walk in Central Park.

16. Go to the Winter Olympics.

17. Visit 30 NYC landmarks.

18. Cruise Greece.

19. Stay in the south of France for one month.

20. Shop on the Champs Élysées in Paris.

21. Spend Thanksgiving in NYC.

22. Visit the Smithsonian.

23. Go on a trip by myself.

24. Make a travel nap of all the places I've been and all of the places N and I have been.

25. Attend a unique small town festival.

26. Visit a ghost town.

27. Attend a cirque du soleil show.

28. Attend a cultural festival.

29. Attend a gay wedding.

30. Visit lighthouses/volunteer to be the lighthouse keeper for a summer.

31. Attend a three day music festival.

32. Visit Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. 

33. Ride a cable car in San Francisco.

34. Visit all US national parks.

35. Spend a weekend in a cabin in the woods.

36. Take N to visit Santa in Lapland.

37. See the Hollywood sign.

38. Camp Bestival.

39. Go to Sea World.

40. Take N to Sandusky or Cedar Point.

41. Visit Rita and Sharky with Jess and N.

42. Visit Houston.

43. Go to the children's museum.

44. Visit the Eiffel Tower at night.

45. Go to Talladega.

46. See New England in the fall.

47. Spend a summer in a lake house.

48. Go to Chincoteague for Pony Penning Day.

49. Go to the top of the Empire State Building.

50. Visit Graceland.

51. Go lobster fishing in Maine.

52. Sleep in a castle.

53. Mennonite my way.

54. Go on a cruise with N.

55. Go to New Orleans for Mardi Gras.

56. Drive Route 66. 

57. Go to a Montana ranch for a week of vacation.

58. Go to a big medieval fair.

59. Go to Disneyworld.

60. Visit the Colisseum.

61. Stay on a plantation in the South.

62. Go to every county fair in Indiana.

63. Stay at a bed and breakfast.

64. Go to Glastonbury Festival in England and see Stonehenge.

65. See the aurora borealis.

66. Places to visit:

          A. US National Parks in West roadtrip: Yellowstone, Death Valley, Zion, Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Crater Lake & Glacier National Park.

          B. PEI

          C. Coast to Coast US South roadtrip: GA, AL, TN, MS, LA, TX, NM, AZ, UT, CO, NV, CA.

          D. Multnomah Falls, WA

          E. Mt. Rushmore, SD

          F. Gum Wall, WA

          G. Hoover Dam, NV, AZ

          H. Statue of Liberty, NY

          I. Grand Canyon, AZ

          J. Antelope Canyon, AZ

          K. The Wave, AZ

          L. Yosemite, CA

          M. Hollywood Walk of Fame, CA

          N. Moaning Caverns, CA

          O. Glass Beach, CA

          P. Ice Castles at Silverthorne, CO

          Q. The Road to Hana, HA

          R. Waianapanapa Black Sand Beach, HA

          S. Las Vegas Strip, NV

          T. French Quarter, LA

          U. Niagra Falls, NY, Canada

          V. Times Square, NY

          W. Olympic Games, any location

          X. Sundance Film Festival, USA

          Y. Up Helly Aa Fire Festival, Scotland

          Z. Mardi Gras, USA

Other Experiences

1. Get a professional massage.

2. Jump into a pool fully clothed.  

3. Have my caricature drawn.

4. Wear an itty, bitty, teeny, weeny, yellow, polka-dot bikini.

5. Wear a red string bikini.

6. Milk a cow or a goat.

7. Go spear fishing.

8. Ride a bike along a beach.

9. Watch a combine demolition derby.

10. See the Nutcracker.

11. Own a pearl strand necklace.

12. Go skinny dipping.

13. Ride an elephant.

14. Ride a camel. 

15. Go to the opera. 

16. Watch a Royal Ballet performance.

17. Have my fortune told.

18. Go snowmobiling.

19. Ride in a helicopter.

20. Go white water river rafting.

21. Go to a shooting range.

22. Sleep on satin sheets.

23. Find the perfect black dress.

24. Dress in expensive lingerie.

25. Fill up an entire coloring book.

26. Register as an organ donor.

27. Ride in a hot air balloon.

28. Add something useful to Wikipedia.

29. Send flowers to myself.

30. Go to the crosstown classic.

31. Go to a Bears game.

32. Attend an MLB game.

33. Wear dresses more often.

34. Cover my bed in rose petals.

35. Shear a sheep.

36. Watch every episode of How I Met Your Mother.

37. Build a sandcastle.

38. Watch a meteor shower.

39. Attend a dinner murder mystery.

40. Become a beekeeper.

41. Drive a tractor.

42. Go canoing.

43. Serve at a local shelter or soup kitchen.

44. Buy a motorcycle.

45. See a Broadway play.

46. Go go-karting.

Already a Public Procrastinator

Good news! I've recruited at least a couple people to join my Tough Mudder team! Yahooo!!

On another note, I've been trying to organize my life list and didn't realize so much time had gone by since my last post. It occurred to me Monday and now what day is it? That's right, Wednesday. 

Granted, I logged some crazy hours at work last week (thank goodness) and have had a sad little sicko to take care of this week, but still!

Here's my Official Post Promise: I'll post my life list tomorrow, either a portion of it, but organized, or in full, but highly disorganized. I'm satisfied with either scenario! :)

Goodnight!