15 Minute Update

I’ve been MIA on the blog recently.  2016 has got away from me.  I read an article recently that was about capturing and embracing what is remaining of this calendar year.  It was an article about focusing on the present versus getting caught up in the hype that 2016 is almost over.  It was about embracing the now versus giving up and waiting for that January 1 fresh start marker.

This year I turned 29.  The idea behind this blog was to capture 30 things that I hoped to accomplish before I turned 30.  30 is getting closer every day!

The reality is that I have already knocked quite a few things off of my 30/30 list, I have just failed at updating this blog.  Also, in my mind I revisit the list sometimes and consider giving it a refresh.  Since I’m changing all the time, there are new things that I want to accomplish and do that might not reflect what I had originally intended when I started this blog.

Things that I have done that I need to update you on:

·      Held a garage sale

·      Saw a show on Broadway

·      Learned to play a new song on the piano

·      365 photo/day challenge

·      Photo collage wall

·      Paid off student loans

·      Started (tried) a craft group

·      Completed wedding scrapbook

·      Identified my signature drink

Things that I want to take on this winter:

·      Swim lessons at the YMCA

·      Learn to knit mittens

·      Take dancing lessons with hubs

·      Send a secret to PostSecret

Time to start updating the blog again!

Practicing Piano

Last year for my birthday my Hubs executed a very special delivery.  He moved my grandmother's piano from my mom's house to ours.  He even got it tuned up and sounding lovely!

I love having it in our home.  It's a beautiful piece of furniture and it's a family heirloom.  Both Hubs and I have tinkered away over the last few months playing old piano lesson songs, Christmas carols, church hymns, and even learning some new pieces!

Earlier this summer Hubs found me some sheet music online of "Rhapsody in Blue."  I LOVE this song.  I first fell in love with it when I heard it in Fantasia 2000.  The sheet music I have isn't the full song, just a piece of it.  I've been practicing it for awhile now.  I'll keep practicing until I reach near perfect.  "Practice makes perfect."

This will mark the new song that I am teaching myself as part of my 30/30 goals.  Maybe I'll get brave and post a video when I'm feeling like I've achieved this one!

March 2015 Highlights

I've challenged myself to take a photo every day of 2015.  I'm 1/4 of the way through the journey! Here are the highlights from March 2015:

I plan to add full documentation in a separate tab to this blog!

Visiting 4 New States

Confession:  I was mid-way through a business trip when I realized that the state I was in was the 4th new state for this 30/30 list item!  Cheers to Indiana - that trip was a whirlwind!!

One of my 30/30 goals was to visit 4 new states.  To catch up on my progress against all of my goals you can check out the full list here.

In my real-life job I'm fortunate to have the opportunity to travel.  All 4 of the states I have visited on the list below were for business.  For the most part, my business travel is very fast paced.  There isn't really any time for personal exploration of each area.  I do hope to re-visit these states someday for more fun in my personal time.

1.  Michigan - Lansing

Highlights from my travel:

• Successfully juggling events on site with virtual meetings.  Learning to become multi-tasker extraordinaire. 
• Braving the snow to walk to a nearby restaurant.

Things I would do if I were traveling for fun:

• Go to a Spartan football game at Michigan State University

via Google Images

•  Explore the Ann Arbor area

2. Tennessee - Knoxville

Shareable Highlights:

• Racing off the plane to a slow cab driver that introduced me to the timing of things in Tennessee.  His hospitality and kindness re-set my "go-go-go" mentality.
• Calling an emergency number at a large event for someone that fainted and directing emergency responders to the scene at a place I had never been before. 
• Walking downtown to Market Square for dinner.

via this website

Things I would do if I were traveling for fun:

• Check out the Sunsphere
• Spend more time exploring downtown Knoxville
• Visit Nashville to go to a concert

3. Texas - San Antonio

Shareable Highlights:

• Meeting and networking with professionals from all over the USA on my own
• Taking a San Antonio River Cruise

personal pic

• Walking River Walk area to get some sunshine
• Checking out the Alamo and the Tower of the Americas

Things I would do if I were traveling for fun:

• Visit the San Antonio Zoo
• Check out Six Flags Fiesta, TX
• Go to a San Antonio Spurs basketball game

4.  Indiana - South Bend

 Shareable Highlights:

• Received a beautiful surprise bouquet of flowers from Hubs at the start of a very busy trip!

• Cab driver asking if I was a student.
• Lots and lots of ironing.

Things I would do if I were traveling for fun:

• Go to a NASCAR race in Indianapolis

via Google Images

• Explore the Amish area Nappanee
• Visit Abe Lincoln's childhood home

I can't believe I've completed this goal just by working!  Next up on the agenda for work travel - California!  I have my fingers crossed I'll get to go to a conference on the west coast later this year. 

Color Run 2014 #happiest5k

Today I ran in a Color Run race!  It was a blast!

I was thrilled to register for a Color Run race in my city.  I have always wanted to run in this race because it looks so colorful and fun.  Last year I raced in a "Color Vibe" race which is pretty much the same kind of running event. 

I was nervous going into this 5k because I haven't been very diligent about running and exercise lately.  Honestly I probably only started running 3 weeks before the race.   I started out easy making myself run 1 mile without stopping, then 1.5 miles, then 2 miles - but I never actually trained myself back to the full 5k length.

This week I went running twice with my friend that registered to run in the 5k with me.  She kept a little bit faster of a pace than I normally do and I was able to keep up!  Phew!

Today we were in the first group of released runners and we kept a good pace.  We ended up doing the race in about 28 minutes.  I usually run an 11 minute mile so I was really impressed with our time!

We ran through 4 color stations:  yellow, pink, purple, and blue.  I wore cheap sunglasses to keep the color out of my eyes.  The color stations were motivating to run towards.  If I felt tired I would focus on the next station and this motivated me to keep going. 

At the end of the race we received color packets and went over to the DJ station where we danced a little and then tossed our color in the air.  After this, we were plastered with color!!  I had so much green color on my face I felt like a ninja turtle!

I had a great time and I highly recommend The Color Run to anyone considering!

Hosting Family Meals

This past weekend we hosted Hubs family for a summer party.  BBQ, pool, and yard games were on the agenda for the day.  We had great weather – sunny and in the 80s!

In total we had 9 adults and 3 children at our house.  It was a full house and we had so much fun!

Hubs Family

We prepared chicken, steak, and veggie shish kebabs, potato salad, fruit salad, and pasta salad for the main meal.  I baked strawberry rhubarb pie, lemon meringue pie, and homemade vanilla ice cream. We picked up a sheet cake and celebrated Hubs dad’s birthday.

I can’t believe I never blogged about it, but last summer we hosted my family for a summer weekend and we prepared essentially the same meal for 10 adults.  Hubs was grilling in the rain last summer for this meal and by the time we finished eating together, the sun came out and we were able to enjoy the pool.

My family

Preparing meals for large groups is a lot of work!  For both families Hubs and I spent time preparing menus, grocery shopping, prepping food, and cleaning house in preparation.   

It is worth it to bring family together for good memories!  We hope to host our families at our home again soon.

There you have it.  This 30/30 item is complete!