Fantasy

Want proof that I'm a witch??

Here it is.

This morning, I woke up thinking about Mariah Carey. Why? I have no idea. Then I started thinknig about how much I L-O-V-E-D her back in the day. Like, way back in the day. Like 20 years ago back in the day.

Case in point, this video:




I was categorically OBSESSED with this video. I loved evvvverything about Mariah in this video as as 11-year old girl. I loved her fashion forward cropped top with hoodie. I loved her half-curled, half-straight hair. I loved her thin eyebrows (yikes). I loved the way she flawlessly roller-skated through this random amusement park and looked like she was having a jolly old time with her friends.

So, back to the witch part. I haven't thought of Mariah Carey in a long time, and haven't listened to her music in years, but I thought of her today. 

And then, when I checked my morning news sources (CNN, Yahoo, People.com<--hard hitting journalism) what do I found out?? It's Mariah Carey's birthday! She was front page, that tricky little diva. I have to admit she looks darn good 20 years later, but I hope I would too with an estimated net worth of $500 million.

I wonder all the time who will be the pop stars that my girls idolize. I grew up in the Mariah Carey, Amy Grant, Janet Jackson-era. What teeny-bop pop star will be en vogue when they're 11 years old and super impressionable?

I don't know, but guess what song is in your head now? You're welcome.

Things I think about at 3:30am

Anna is no longer waking in the middle of the night. Yay, one would think. Well, one, for some reason, my mind has decided that it should still contemplate all of the things in the world at the lovely hour of 3:30am instead of rest. I wake up at this time every morning. For no reason. It's not infuriating or anything.

Here are some of the thoughts that went through my head last night when I was awake for over an hour for no reason whatsoever:

~ Testing myself to see if I knew all the lyrics to "Blue Ribbon Bunny" from Sofia the First (I do).

~ Should I get a haircut?

~ What's that noise? I mean, it's obviously a masked burglar, but I'll just lay here and let it all play out.

~ My hair color in college was unfortunate.

~ What groceries do I need?

~ I'm out of coffee creamer at work (the horror!)

~ The anti-vaccination movement and it's implications on the spread of infectious diseases

~ What color should we paint our basement?

~ I wonder if they'll re-LASIK me for free since I now have to wear glasses for driving like an old dork.

Glasses selfie FAIL

~ Is it worth getting up to go to the bathroom or will that wake me up even more?

~ I think I left my space heater on at work (Update: I didn't burn the building down. Phew).

~ My knee itches

~ What's for lunch tomorrow?

~  Is it gross that I worked out before bed and didn't shower. (Yes. The answer is yes).

~ I forgot to send that student his resume critique

~ What should I wear to work since it's supposed to snow 67 inches?

~ How are they going to film Mockingjay without Phillip Seymour Hoffman?

^^^ All critical things that had to be sorted through before I could go back to sleep.

Yawn. Bring on the coffee. As if I needed another reason for that.

Thoughts on a Monday

I found out last week that, at 29.5 years old, I have my first cavity. Womp womp WOMP. I was mortified. I'm that person who loves going to the dentist and hearing that gratifying "no cavities" spiel each time. My, how I've taken that for granted. Couple that with needing to get glasses and dropping a shelf on my foot (it's probably broken) and essentially, I am falling apart as a human. 

It's freezing in Ohio. Actually freezing. Tomorrow the wind chill is supposed to be -35 with a high of 7 degrees. Are those numbers even real? It's this time of year when I start looking for jobs in the Carolinas, so I have to be very careful not to make any rash decisions due to being cold. This is also why you will never catch me complaining about the heat in the summer. Humidity? Bring it on. Heat rash? Sounds great.

My 'Healthier Me' resolution is actually going really well! I am going to post an update in February, but thinking about how successful the first 4 weeks have been keeping me motivated! See? There's at least one thing I'm doing well right now. 

Proof that my children are better than me - take a look at these eyelashes that my beautiful Anna B did not inherit from her mother.

We started work on our basement this weekend! I am excited about the plans we have for this space. It's going to be a combination of playroom, office, bar, and entertainment area. Yep, all those things in about 700 sq. ft. It'll work. I swear. We have a vision. 

I mean, right now it looks like this:

But is made so much cuter with a smiling toddler right??

And our goal is to have it look like some combination of these:

Sidenote: We had about 45 cans of leftover paint from the previous owners that they kindly left in our basement. On Saturday night, I decided, hey, why not put these cans on Craigslist Free and see what happens? I kid you not, I had no less than 25 emails within 45 minutes, and within an hour all of that paint was gone. Did I mention it was blizzarding at that point? Somewhere down the line if you find me traipsing through the 'Free' section of Craiglist on a Saturday night, looking for people's used garbage, please have a talk with me about my priorities.

Happy Monday!

 

Food, Glorious Food

Today's quick and random post is dedicated to one of the best things ever: FOOD. 

Here are my favorite recipes lately that I'd eat every day if it weren't for a little thing called variety:

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

via

Cajun Seasoning is my new favorite seasoning. It's the red pepper flakes of 2013.

Also, this recipe is not healthy at all, just to warn you. However, I justify it because allegdly I burn 500 calories a day by nursing/pumping. Heck yeah!

Broiled Tilapia Parmesan

via

Pioneer Woman Salmon. 

via

The easiest and tastiest salmon ever. Add some sriracha mayo and I'm in heaven. Actually, add Sriracha to anything and I'll probably love it.

Moving on, here is my sweet Anna B, trying her first "food" of (fittingly) sweet potatoes and she thought they were thebomb.com.

 Lastly, I saw this article on Huffington Post about things that "Hangry" people do, and it just describes my life so much. My personal favorite is #9 because, as a mom, sometimes by the time I get to eat I look like this:

Because it's either shovel your food or don't eat, and you know option B is no option for me.

Happy Thursday!

 

Random Wednesday Musings

 Last night, out of the blue, Emerson said to me "Mommy, you NOT a princess." Huh??? I mean, I know I wear pajamas 95% of the time I'm home, but I still think I'm frickin glamorous.

I can't stop dreaming of this Taco Stuffed Shells recipe. Not the healthiest thing on the planet, but they were so good I wanted to cry. 

My husband and I send text messages like this to each other. We think we're cool and that's that. 

 

I have been listening to a "Waiting for a Star to Fall" station on Pandora regularly for the past 2 weeks. 99% of you have probably never heard that song, and that's okay. I embrace my weirdness. P.S. The station is the greatest thing ever.

Speaking of 80s music, this morning, and not a moment sooner in my 29 years, I realized that Whitney Houston says "Still enough time to figure out how to chase my blues away" instead of "Stealing up time to figure out how to chase my blues away." In 29 years, how could I have never questioned what "Stealing up time" meant in the lyrics to "I Wanna Dance With Somebody."?!?!

We are running out of home improvement projects and instead of feeling relieved, I feel like "What's next?!?!" That is crazytalk. We gave our laundry area a makeover this weekend because I was getting the itch. 

Buzzfeed.com is becoming my new addiction. My dream job would be to be a writer for that website. I have a feeling that is where all my people are. 

My other dream jobs include beach resort critic, food taster, and Disney princess. 

Happy Hump Day!

 

Breathing

My baby can breathe!!

What a ridiculous statement, because obviously breathing is one of those things that is critical to, you know, being alive and all, but my sweet Anna can finally REALLY TRULY breathe!

She went in for her third surgery in less than 6 weeks, and she did great! We got here on Wednesday and we're being discharged today! Our shortest stay at Children's Hospital ever, and hopefully our last ever.

You wouldn't believe the transformation. Right after surgery, even though she was still sleepy, you could see Anna's chest rising and falling so much. It was as if she couldn't comprehend how much air was going into her lungs. So sweet.

And eating... whoa! It makes me sad to think she's been eating her whole life with only one good nostril. Man she is a quick eater now! No wonder she had such a hard time with bottles! 

As an experiment, because I'm her mom and I want to show solidarity, I tried drinking and eating while plugging one side of my nose. It freaking sucked, and I made it about 5 minutes. Poor thing! But it's over now, and she finally gets to experience the sweet sweet joy of fresh air for the first time in her life. Oh the things we take for granted. I feel like everyday I should wake up, take a deep breath, and have a good day because I've made it that far.

So, to insert randomness, because my blog is nothing if not random, I laid awake until about midnight last night trying to come up with a list of popular songs that have the words breathe or breathing in the title or lyrics. Because I am a huge loser.

And here we are:

Michelle Branch, Breathe (the one currently stuck in my head)

Anna Nalick, Breathe

Maroon 5, Harder to Breathe

Matt Kearney, Breathe In Breathe Out

Lifehouse, Breathing

Faith Hill, Breathe

Bush, Machinehead

It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing, Shania Twain

Duncan Sheik, Barely Breathing

That's alot of songs. I know there are more. Clearly this means breathing is cool. And now our whole family can do it! YAY!

Oh, Ohio

On Sunday, we went to the Columbus Zoo. I wore a sweater, no jacket, and wasn't chilly at all. It was the perfect sunny afternoon with family.

Today, it looks like this outside:

  

Ok, just kidding. But seriously, it's snowing. In October. 

It's too bad everyone and everything I love is in the Midwest, otherwise I'd quit my job, move my family to Florida, and fulfill my lifelong dream of becoming a Disney princess. Only I don't meet the height requirement. I'm 5'6 and 1/2 and you have to be 5'7. No, I didn't look into that for real or anything....

Good Tunes

It seems like everytime I'm in the car these days, I'm rushing. Rushing to get to work. Rushing to get home to see the girls. Rushing to get in and out of the grocery store before Anna wakes up and needs to eat.

When I first moved to Columbus, Jon still lived in Akron for 8 months, so one of us usually made the trip up or down every weekend. I'll never forget getting up at 5:00am at Monday mornings and making the 2-hour drive back home. The freeway was mine. I'd get a large McDonalds coffee and listen to my iPod and zone out.  Or practice for my American Idol tryouts.

A favorite car-listening tune:

I feel like it's been forever since I've plugged in an iPod and chilled out listening to some good music. Not to date myself, but I swear, popular music today is total, unadulterated crap. Yeah, pop tunes can be catchy, but I swear if I have to listen to Taylor Swift talking about being 22 one more time... ugh.

(Do NOT even go there and call me hypocritical because there was crappy music in the 90s too; however, I will swear to you that N*Sync wrote true poetry and I have already set my DVR for Sunday)

Anyway, there are definitely times when I turn on the radio and I go "Man! GOOD TUNE!! I haven't heard this in forever!" or I hear a song and instantly love it and want to play it on repeat.

I heard The Eagles on my way home yesterday and seriously got so pumped. It's been years since I've heard this song, and I was instantly in a good mood.

So now, I am motivated to make a new, non-crappy, hours-long playlist on my iPod so that I can spend my commute unwinding and decompressing instead of cursing out little old ladies (I may or may not have done something I'm not proud of yesterday, let's leave it at that).

I am taking suggestions below. Please, help the little old ladies in Central Ohio. Don't let them suffer my wrath because Justin Beiber sucks. It's for a good cause.

Some notes on a Friday

I'm up before both girls!!! This is weird.  I keep staring at them on the monitor wondering why they've blessed me with all this free time. So here I am with my random thoughts.

~ Painting still sucks, but it's coming along. So far we've finished the family room, the eat-in area, the kitchen, entry way, downstairs hallway, and Emerson's room. Almost done with the half bath, but after two coats of paint I decided to change the color scheme so it's back to square one. I hate myself.

~ I'm back on My Fitness Pal. How do non-breastfeeding people do it?? Calories go so fast! But it really works. I've lost 7lbs since I started it - wahoo! Still have 15 to go though to get back to pre-pregnancy weight. Not wahoo.

~ I have yet to find a food that is not more delicious with sriracha sauce on it. I don't know why it took me so long to discover the most amazing condiment since the invention of condiments.

~ Coffee. God, it's glorious.

~ Anna has been sleeping in 6-7 hour stretches - if you know how sleep deprived I was with Emerson, you know this is a huge accomplishment. My darling Em (who to her credit is a wonderful sleeper now) never slept more than 4 hours in a row (except two random times) until we sleep trained her at 5 months.

~ I have daughters. Two children. Two girls. This concept still blows me away every single day.

~ Emerson knows so many words now it's starting to freak me out. She talks non-stop (I am sure this is retribution for how much I talk to everyone ever). We now have to spell things around her, because if we say anything out loud, she immediately wants it. Yesterday I misspelled the word kitchen when referring to her playset upstairs. Yikes. I guess her vocabulary boom will be good for all of us.

Alright, that's enough randomness for now. Anyone want to come paint my house??? Haha, I'm kidding <--- I'm really not. I'm about 2 days away from hiring some nomad off of Craigslist.

The Jennifer Lawrence Guide to Being Awesome

Ok, so can we all just agree that Jennifer Lawrence is the cutest/most talented young starlet in recent years??? She is a refreshing break from all of the vain and talentless "actresses" out there who set women back decades if not centuries (I'm looking at you, KK). 

I came across this article on People.com this morning that only solidified that Jennifer Lawrence and I need to be besties. Anna Kendrick and Emma Stone can come too.

How to be as awesome as Jennifer Lawrence in 6 steps

1. Don't be afraid to get dirty

I mean, I'm a mom. If I don't have some kind of food particle/drool spot left on my clothing from Emerson's tiny hands at any given time, I'm not really doing my job am I?

2. Laugh off your falls

Let's just say no one has ever accused me of being graceful. I'm awkward. I trip all the time. But I really don't ever feel embarrassed about it... probably because it happens so often.

3. When in doubt, call mom

For being the youngest child, I consider myself pretty independent. I can make decisions, take charge, and do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done. But sometimes, you just need your mom or your BFF to give you the validation you need to more forward. Can I get an Amen?

4. Take fashion risks

Though I don't have J. Law's wardrobe budget, I'd like to think I'm a fashion risk-taker. In the sense that I look at my belly in the morning, then look at my closet and I think "Screw convention! I'm gonna wear this cardigan even if I can only button one button. Yeah!"

5. Lose the filter.

It's hard to lose the filter when you didn't have one to begin with. Sometimes things just need to be said. Life's too short.

6. Don't obsess over your body

This is a hard thing to do when you've been pregnant 3 times in 3 years. My body hasn't looked what I would consider "normal" for a long time, but the reasons behind that are well worth the temporary sacrifice. Still, it's wonderful to see a beautiful actress who looks great, looks "normal", and admits that she chows down on Cheetos like the best of us.

Now, 6 steps later, tell me you're not in love with this girl right???

Observations

Despite having a three-day weekend, it didn't feel long enough to accomplish my Mt. Everest-sized to-do list. However, lucky for you all I have made some truly fascinating observations in my time "off.":

If a house is in a perfect location, at a great price, is completely updated, but yet has been sold on average every 18 months for the last 8 years, what are the chances that it's not all kinds of haunted? Slim to none right?!?! Pass.

Selling a house is expensive. And time consuming. Don't do it unless you have to. And even then, do you really have to???

This yum-yum sauce recipe can make ANY homemade dish taste like a Hibachi Chef whipped it up special for you just this afternoon. Right now I am dreaming about my healthy Quinoa Fried Rice for lunch, which will be negated by the cup of sauce I'll put on top. The quinoa is for me, the mayo-based sauce is for the baby. Gotta fatten her up!

The Bachelor is so great this season. Not because it's super exciting or dramatic, but I just think Sean is the real deal. He kicked off the girl whose occupation is "Model" and has already proven himself to be 1765 times the man that Ben was. Word.

My husband still hates The Bachelor. And we only have one TV in the house right now. Sorry I'm not sorry?

98 Degrees, New Kids on the Block, and Boyz II Men are headlining a tour this summer called "The Package." I can't even... 

My daughter is the greatest thing in the entire world. Nothing compares to the love you have for your child. Nothing. 

All I Want...

... is to eat my weight in mashed potatoes on Thursday

... is to be wearing sweatpants right now. I'm afraid I'm one Thanksgiving dinner away from breaking out the maternity pants. And I have no business wearing them yet.

... is to be home snuggling with my baby girl

... is to be home snuggling with my baby girl AND my husband. Sigh.

... is to stop craving carbs and salt. It's becoming a problem. 

... is to get over the fact that sweet Marley from Glee made a cameo as a topless prostitute in my new favorite show, Homeland. And now she's ruined for me.

... is for someone to come clean and organize my house from top to bottom. For free. I'm accepting applications.

... is for this little baby to keep fluttering around in there. Tiny baby movements are the best!

... is for John Mayer to stop being such a mega douche so I can stop being embarrassed that I love his music.

... is to buy a Crock Pot... and then not be afraid to use it. (I can't get over the idea that people leave that thing on ALL DAY. What if my house catches on fire?!?! But every delicious recipe on Pinterest is Crock Potty. Ugh. I digress.)

...  is for this Toad the Wet Sprocket song to be out of my head.

(Just kidding, I love Toad. And 90s music videos were so awesomely bad.)

Remember me???

I used to have lots of things to share. I used to blog on the regular.

But life has been hectic lately.

 Here's a brief synopsis: Jon and I decided now would be the perfect time to sell our house, so we could be in a new one by Christmas. Great idea! We killed ourselves to clean, organize, stage, buy new appliances, light fixtures, paint, etc....

Then we got real and realized, "WTF are we doing?!?" Who is going to buy a house in October? More importantly, who will pay our asking price in October? And then another terrifying thought.... what kind of crap houses will be left for us to buy in November?

So that pipe dream went back out the window, and we're all systems go for selling in March.

Meanwhile, I am nursing every sore ache in every muscle in my body from all of the cleaning, walking up and down stairs, hoisting a baby, moving furniture, and the like.

Phew. I'm exhausted just looking at all that.

In case you were wondering, yes... Emerson is still adorable. Here she is eating Chipotle for the first time yesterday - HUGE FAN!

I am a terrible mother, and have yet to take her 9 month pictures. Gotta do that tonight, considering she'll be 10 months in 13 days. Oops. My monthly updates are losing their timely accuracy.

On another note, does anyone else out there L.O.V.E. the show 'Revenge'? Last night was the premiere, and I feel like I didn't breathe for the entire 60 minutes. And man, Emily Thorne rocked this red dress. She may be my new workout inspiration.

That's all for now... happy Monday!!

Reasons why I'm more of a child than my child

1. I fell asleep on the couch at 7:30pm last night. The Average bedtime for American adults is 10:53pm.

2. Instead of eating my vegetables, all I can think about right now is dipping french fries into a chocolate/strawberry milkshake from Steak & Shake (obviously my sugar post has cursed me!) The seaweed salad I had for lunch is NOT cutting it.

3. I laugh when people fall down. I'm sorry, but as long as you're not hurt, that mess is hilarious!!

4. Every time the Disney World commercial comes on, I stop everything I'm doing, stare longingly at the TV, and whine to Jon that he hasn't taken me there in THREE years. To top it off, he thinks we should wait until Emerson is five before we take her, so she "remembers" it. Nonsense!!!


5. I eat my pancakes and waffles with my hands. Cutting them up into bites takes too long, and I don't use syrup so no fear of sticky fingers here!

6. I know with certainty that Chuck 'E' Cheese has delicious pizza.

7. I can recite every single line of the following films: Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Aladdin, and Beauty and the Beast. Which is all well and good, except for the fact that I cannot name one current Supreme Court Justice.

Infusing pop culture with parenting

Here are the ways I am proving to embrace technology and innovation, while also instilling fundamental values into my daughter's life.

1. Communication

Emerson plays this trick on me.

Me: Say Mama
Her: Dada
Me: Say Mamamama
Her: Dadadada
Me: Say Mama. Say MA-Ma. Say Ma-MA.
Her: DAAAA DAAAAA

So when I first heard the song 'Madness' by Muse, I knew I found the solution! I changed the lyrics of "Ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-mad-madness" to "MamamamamamamaMAMAMA"



We're still working on it...

2. Visual Arts

I pre-ordered the iPhone because I am certain there are apps on there that one cannot find in the classroom. I feel like I've learned so many valuable lessons as an adult by playing Angry Birds.

3. Fashion

I read 'Suri's Burn Book' daily, and one of the most important lessons I've learned is to never let Emerson leave the house barefoot. That's a big faux pas according to Suri.

Audra Lately

Here is a summary of my life right now:

The students are back. I love this time of year, I love working on a college campus, but I barely have time to catch my breath. Oh well - better busy than bored I guess!

I am super stoked to be going to Nashville for my sisters wedding next weekend! This summer has flown by, and I can't even believe it's already here. I feel like just yesterday I was posting about this, and here we are! I know nothing about Nashville. I want to take Emerson to do something fun in our free time - any suggestions???

Jon and I decided that we're going to put our house up for sale next summer. YAY! And also, holy sh%^! We have some work to do to make the house perfect, but considering every single room of the house has been or will be renovated by the time we sell, I am feeling optimistic about it. But seriously, nothing makes me feel more like an adult (except for having a baby that is) than the idea that I might sell my first house. Crazy!

I am sticking to my no-sugar kick - are you as shocked as I am?!? Except for sugar in tomato sauce and Cinnabon coffee creamer, I've only indulged in sugar one time in the last 4 weeks.

One of the perks of not being pregnant in the fall is getting to wear cute high heels again. I bought these two pairs of pumps from Target, can't wait to try them out! It's kind of my MO to buy the same thing in multiple colors, don't judge. I have simple tastes.

Jon started his new job last week, and it's going great! He's home even more, which means more family time. This is one of the big reasons we are looking to sell though, because his home "office" is in our dining room, which has also morphed into Emerson's play room. Kinda hard to work when you're listening to "Welcome to our learning farm, we've got lots to show you" all.day.long.

I'm hoping to catch up with the outside world soon, but until then.... thank God for coffee.

99 things

Is anyone else having the busiest May in history??!?!!

I feel like this month is already flying by, and there's just a little too much going on. What happened to the days of having lots of free time?? Oh, that's right. They are off in a land where I still have a 25 inch waist and no responsibilities.

Anywhoo, I saw this 99 things post on Megan's blog and thought I'd give it a go since I have some new "friends" who've recently joined me. Including a new friend from New Zealand! :-)

This little survey thing is neato because it brings back lots of memories, and points out a few things that I'll need to add to my bucket list (the ones that aren't in bold). Annnnnd here we go!!

1. Started your own blog
~ Nope. This is not a blog. You are currently reading an excerpt from a literary journal on the current state of the economy of Turkey. You are also getting verrrry sleeeeepy.

2. Slept under the stars



~ Bahamas, Spring Break 2006 - my first kiss with my now husband :)

3. Played in a band
~ Does Rock Band on XBox count? Because I play a wicked guitar

4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower
~ I don't know if this counts, but in Colorado I counted 20 shooting stars in one evening - gorgeous. Can we pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars??

6. Given more than you can afford to charity
~ Yes, but at the time it was only $50, but for a broke college student that was way more than I could afford

7. Been to Disneyland
~ I've been to Disneyland Paris, that counts right??

 8. Climbed a mountain
~ In West Virginia and Colorado - booyah!

9. Held a praying mantis
~ I'm good on this one

10. Sang a solo

Everyday in the shower. And once for a tryout in choir in 6th grade. Spoiler alert... I didn't get it because I can't sing. Huh.

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris
~ Back in 2003 with my brother Adam - we had a blast practicing our high school French skills. I was better than he was. Truth.

13. Watched a lightening storm
~ Lots of times from our front porch

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child
~ I had an egg baby in 8th grade health class. I dropped it.

16. Had food poisoning
~ Yes, and it sucks @$.

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
~ Been there, have no interest in going to the top because I hate crowds.

18. Grown your own vegetables
~ Sort of. We want to start a vegetable garden, but we might have to stick with just herbs this year since we're a little late in the game!

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
~ On said trip with bro back in 2003. What was she smirking about I wonder?? The actual painting is much smaller in person than I though it would be.

20. Slept on an overnight train
~ Again, on the trip with my brother, we took a train from Nice, France to Rome. It was pretty cool in an Agatha Christie, European kind of way.

21. Had a pillow fight
~ Yes, and I always lose. I'm not aggressive enough.

22. Hitch hiked
~ No, because I live in America and I don't want to be axe-murdered.

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a Marathon
~ I've run 3 half marathons, so basically that means I've run a marathon and a half.

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse
~ Of the heart.

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
~ In the Bahamas from aforementioned spring break trip. Now that I think back on it, I'm glad we weren't picked up for being drifters. But it was one of the greatest experiences of my life :)

31. Hit a home run
~ Yeah right

32. Been on a cruise
~ Not a real one, but we did a 6 hour cruise to and from the Bahamas. I would LOVE to do a European and an Alaskan cruise.

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
~ Yep. They are neat.

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
~ My maiden name is English, and I've been to England. So that counts.

35. Seen an Amish community
~ They make some delicious cheese!

36. Taught yourself a new language
~ I do want to try Rosetta Stone some day - I've heard it's legit

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
~ Again, yeah right.

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

39. Gone rock climbing
~ In West Virginia

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
~ Not yet - Florence is on my bucket list fo sho!

41. Sung karaoke
~ Way more often than I should

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt



43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
~ Some rich dude bought us a bottle of wine at Hyde Park on Jon's birthday though!

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
~ In the Bahamas and in Florida.... ooh la la!

46. Been transported in an ambulance
~ When I sprained my ankle in my very first (and last) game of intramural soccer

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
~ Yep. It is incredible.

 50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
~ Been to the Eiffel tower, not to the top because again, I hate crowds. Here is the proof:



51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
~ In Key Largo. And I threw up everything I had in my system. I have no interest in experiencing that again.

52. Kissed in the rain
~ The hubs and I have had some romantic moments ;-)

53. Played in the mud
~ Mud pit. Summer camp. 1992.

54. Gone to a drive-in theater
~ It's been awhile, but I can't wait to take Emerson.

 55. Been in a movie
~ My brother is an independent filmmaker, and I played the bit part of bitchy ex-girlfriend of the main character in one of his short films.

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business
~ I would love to open my own froyo shop!

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason
~ I love looking at flowers, but I truly believe they are a colossal waste of money. They die in a week!

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
~ A few times, and I always turn yellow. I truly hate doing it, I won't lie.

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check
~ But I've over-drafted multiple times!

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
~ My favorite toys as a child were books, because I am a huge nerd. R.L. Stine anyone??



70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
~ He looks so honest from way down there.

71. Eaten Caviar
~ No, I can put away a boatload of sushi though!

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades
~ And I received 67 mosquito bites on one leg as a reward. That is not a typo.

75. Been fired from a job
~ This is my worst professional fear; failing an exam comes in close second. Again, big nerd!

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London



~ Yes. This isn't it, obviously, but this guy let me take a picture with him.

77. Broken a bone
~ Nope - I drink lots of milk!

78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
~ And I have zero interest in riding on one of those two-wheeled death machines again!

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican
~ It is massive and beautiful!

82. Bought a brand new car

I had a brand new car right after high school, which I proceeded to annihilate with my terrible driving habits.

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper
~ In our college newspaper from when I was homecoming queen. It still comes up if you Google my maiden name. And so does my unfortunate blonde highlight job.

85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve

86. Visited the White House
~ My friend Jess and I had tickets to tour the inside, but they were for 7am, so ummmmmm.... we didn't make it. But we saw the outside???

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox
~ They were not fun, as I recall.

89. Saved someone’s life
~ This weekend, while pulling weeds, I saw a pregnant spider. Instead of killing it, I picked it up and put it in the yard. So I not only saved her, but all of her spider babies. You're welcome, ma'am.

90. Sat on a jury
~ And you can read all about my experience here

91. Met someone famous
~ The closest I've come is that the weather lady from our local CBS affiliate goes to my OB's office and we were pregnant at the same time.

92. Joined a book club
~ And it's the best one ever! But I haven't been in several months because I, well, had a baby and all.

93. Got a tattoo




~ It looks like this and is on my hip. I want to get one for Jack too but haven't found the right one yet.

94. Had a baby
~ Emerson Elizabeth is my whole world! Jack Benjamin is the most perfect angel in heaven.

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit
~ I get letters for class action suits all the time. Apparently I buy products from shady companies.

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee
~ On my hand on the way to Disney World when I was 8 - my hand was so swollen that I couldn't hold onto the bars on all the rides and I was terrified!

Phew!!! I am exhausted!