30 by 30 {hiking mount moosilauke}

I am so behind in my posting. This summer I have realized how much I really need to post things as they happen so I can keep up with everything. Every time I think I’m catching up, I get busy and get behind again. I need to just post things as they come.

Anyway, on to my post.

On my 30 by 30 list, I have to hike a 4,000 footer. Dan has been doing a ton of hiking so I thought I would add something to my list that I could do with him. His goal is to do the 48 4,000 footers in New Hampshire. I figured I could do 1. 🙂 He invited everyone to come with us so we went on a big group hike.

I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to make it up but Dan chose a mountain that he said would not be very hard. And I made it to the top!

We were ready to go at the bottom and couldn’t wait to get started.

There were 8 of us total, all hiking together. A couple people went ahead and made it to the top before us. The rest of us took it a little slower. It was a really pretty trail.

The views were beautiful as we were approaching the top. It was a little bit of a cloudy day but the sky looked awesome. And we came out of the trees and could see the summit.

I was so excited to make it to the top and was so proud of myself. We hung out at the top for a little bit to let everyone catch their breath and enjoy the views. Everyone was excited.

The clouds were so cool at the top. I’m definitely obsessed with the sky and clouds.

I definitely took some panoramic pictures at the top.

We walked out to different part of the summit to check out a little bit of a different view. It was all gorgeous.

We decided to take a different trail down and it ended up being a little easier.

We could also hit another summit on the way down this trail. It was the South Peak and I’m glad we took a little extra time to climb up. We could see the summit we were just on and the trail through the trees from South Peak which was really cool.

The trail down wasn’t too bad and I’m glad we took a different trail just to see some new things. There was one point where there were a ton of monarch butterflies flying around. I didn’t get too many great pictures but it was a cool thing to see.

A little after the butterflies, it started pouring on us so I had to put the camera away. We all got our rain coats on and continued down the mountain. It stopped raining by the time we got to the bottom and got humid. I felt really good when we got to the bottom and not as dead as I thought I would.

I’m really glad I had this on my list and I’m really glad I completed it and felt so good. I wouldn’t be opposed to doing more hiking like this. Hopefully I can continue getting in better shape so I will be able to keep up better. I’m going to keep working on it and hopefully next summer I can do some more.

30 by 30 {6 month update}

Today is my half birthday!

Anyway, I figured since it has been 6 months since I made my 30 by 30 list, I would post an update on my list.

I have completed a few things on my list and a couple of them are pretty big things. I feel pretty good about my progress so far.

14. get at least one new tattoo {completed 4.15.12}

15. make scrapbooks for bridal shower, bachelorette party, wedding, and honeymoon {bridal shower completed 3.4.12}

17. learn to make DeDe’s chocolate chip cookies {1st attempt 3.1.12} {2nd attempt 4.21.12}

1st attempt

2nd attempt

18. hike a mountain that is around 4000 feet {completed 8.12.12} (I haven’t posted about this yet. Very soon to come)

22. stay at a bed & breakfast for a weekend {completed 6.1.12 – 6.4.12}

That is everything I have accomplished on my list so far. I still have 2 1/2 years so I think I have plenty of time.

I’ve also been thinking about a few things on my list and might change a couple things but we will see. So far so good.

You can see my full 30 by 30 list here if you would like to check it out!

 

1st anniversary {trip to cape cod}

I knew I wanted to do something special for our 1st anniversary. We weren’t sure if we were going to be able to go away somewhere because we’re a little tight on money. I kept checking groupon and living social to see if any good 1 or 2 night trips would come up. Then Dan found this bed and breakfast on cape cod for only $85 a night and we decided we could definitely do that. And I’m so glad we did.

We stayed at the Sea Breeze Inn in Hyannis, MA. It was a really cute little b&b just up the road from the beach. The owners are a Russian couple and they are so nice. We had a nice private room with our own entrance and the dining room where we ate breakfast was so cute with all mismatched tables and chairs. I have been wanting to stay at a b&b for a while {it is on my 30 by 30 list!} and it was a great first experience. I loved it.

We went down to the cape on Friday afternoon and hit no traffic. The first place we went was the Cape Cod Potato Chip factory. They are my absolute favorite chips and we got a couple free samples of my favorite flavor!

We thought about renting bikes but the timing didn’t work out so we decided to do a little rollerblading on a bike trail.

After rollerblading we went on a walking trail that was right on the water. It was a beautiful trail and we got to see a little of the sunset and some gorgeous scenery. It was a nice ending to our first afternoon.

On Saturday morning it was really rainy when we woke up. We didn’t let it get us down though and still decided to go out and explore. We started at the Sandwich Glass Museum where we saw a little glass blowing.

It wasn’t quite as rainy when we left, so we decided to go to the Heritage Museum and Gardens. It was beautiful and the sun ended up coming out a little.

We got lunch and then got ice cream at Cape Cod Creamery. I had a yummy twix ice cream. It was delicious. Then we went back to the room for a bit and decided to go to the movies because it was pouring.

Sunday was a little nicer but still kind of cloudy. We drove up to Provincetown and went to the Pilgrim Monument. It was very tall and very windy at the top but had awesome views.

We found a really cute little cafe to have lunch at and then went to Cape Cod Light. We were allowed to climb up to the top and it was really cool to go all the way up to the light.

There was a crazy cliff by the light house with a beach at the bottom so we decided to go walk on the beach. It was really windy and the sand was whipping all around but we were laughing the entire time.

We were driving towards another light house but we were a little early for the tour, so we went to another beach, which was also just as windy. But the sun was finally coming out and there was actually some blue sky!

We headed over to Nauset Light, another light house we could up in, but it wasn’t as cool as the first one. I did like the red steps though.

Sunday night we got a little dressed up and went out to a really nice dinner. We went out for ice cream again and then went back to the room to just relax. It was a lovely ending to our weekend away.

Monday morning it was raining again so we just got our stuff together and headed home. It was pouring the whole drive home.

We got home and I decided to try our wedding cake. Dan refused to eat it but it actually wasn’t too bad for being frozen for a year.

During this trip I decided to take some ring pictures because we didn’t bring our rings on our honeymoon. I love them all.

It was a really wonderful trip with the hubby and I’m so glad we were able to do something special like this for our 1 year anniversary.

chocolate chip cookies {my second attempt}

So this past weekend we had the celebration for my grandmother. My stepbrother and cousin came up for the weekend and I knew we’d all be hanging out. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try making my grandmother’s chocolate chip cookies again.

Last time I made them, they came out too fat.

So this time, I put a whole extra stick of butter into the batter. That seemed to do the trick. They came out flat!

DeDe’s cookies were always flat and soft. I was so excited to see them flat. They were a little more crispy on the bottom but I think that is just our oven and I need to figure out how long to keep the cookies in so they don’t get crispy.

So I think I have the batter down and now it is just the timing. But I am happy they were flat and everyone enjoyed them and were excited that I am getting close to the perfect cookie! And DeDe always put them in plastic bags and when I put mine in a plastic bag, it looked just like hers. I loved it.

tattoos {to honor my grandmother}

When my grandmother passed away in February, I knew immediately that I wanted to do something in her honor, and I was pretty sure I wanted that thing to be a tattoo. I thought and thought about ideas, trying to come up with something really special. But nothing seemed special enough.

At some point, I came up with a great idea. I don’t even know where the idea came from but I’m so glad it came to me. The idea was to get the words “love you” in her handwriting. I found a card from her that had those words in it and I knew it was perfect.

I told my mom about the idea and she loved it and wanted to do the same thing. So of course we decided to go together. I couldn’t wait. I was so excited. We finally went on Sunday and it was amazing. We went to Congress St. Tattoo in Portsmouth, NH. The tattoo artist, Beth, was so friendly and awesome. I’m going to suggest that any other family members that want the tattoo should go to her.

I have 2 other tattoos and this one definitely hurt the most out of all 3 but it really wasn’t too bad. I had to breath deep a couple times but it only took about 10 minutes so it was fine.

I absolutely love the tattoo. It is soo perfect. And I’m so glad I went with my mom and we got to share the experience together.

I miss my grandmother soo much and I still can’t believe she is gone but I know this is the perfect tribute to her and I get to see it all the time.

Plus, a bonus, I was also glad to be able to cross something off of my 30 by 30. Yay!

 

chocolate chip cookies {my first attempt}

On my 30 by 30 list I have to learn to make DeDe’s chocolate chip cookies. They were the best cookies ever. I didn’t get a chance to learn how to make them from her so I am going to have to try until I figure out the perfect cookie. So, on Thursday, I was home all day and decided to give it a shot.

DeDe’s cookies were always flat and delicious. Mine came out too fat but I will keep trying.

It is rainy here but I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!

30 by 30

So I have seen a few people come up with a list like this. I figured, since I just turned 27, it would be a good idea to figure out some things I definitely wanted to have finished by the time I was 30. That gives me 3 years to finish everything on this list, which should be doable.

So here is my 30 by 30 list:

1. open an Etsy shop

2. get in shape so that I feel comfortable with my body

3. get a teaching job

4. buy a house

5. get a new car

6. have a baby

7. go on a vacation

8. take a photography class

9. get my reading specialist certification

10. learn to be a better cook

11. learn to make a really good whoopie pie

12. plan a surprise weekend away for Dan

13. adopt a dog

14. get at least one new tattoo

15. make scrapbooks for bridal shower, bachelorette party, wedding, and honeymoon

16. take a road trip

17. learn to make DeDe’s chocolate chip cookies

18. hike a mountain that is around 4000 feet

19. run the BCS 5k

20. go skiing more than once a winter

21. learn to use photoshop well

22. stay at a bed and breakfast for a weekend

23. do a wine tasting and figure out what wines I really like

24. take a girl’s trip

25. learn my family history

26. work on paying down my debt – especially credit card

27. spend time volunteering every year

28. make photo books with old pictures

29. take a “kids” trip

30. have a fantastic celebration for my 30^th birthday

I’m not 100% happy with this list. There are a few things that are kind of general and a few I’m not sure about but I think it is a good list as of right now. It might change a little but I wanted to post it so it would feel more real.

Most of the list is self explanatory but I thought I would explain a few.

1. open an Etsy shop

2. get in shape so that I feel comfortable with my body – I have gained weight since my wedding which was about 9 months ago. I would like to lose that weight again, plus a little more, so I feel really comfortable with my body.
   

3. get a teaching job – hopefully this will happen for next year because I really need to move on with my career.
   

4. buy a house – once I get a teaching job, getting a house will be more in reach because we would have more money.
   

5. get a new car

6. have a baby – I have always wanted 2 kids by the time I was 30 but, since I’m already 27, that doesn’t seem really likely. I would like at least one and hopefully be working on the 2nd one.
   

7. go on a vacation – hopefully somewhere really amazing but really anywhere would be great.
   

8. take a photography class

9. get my reading specialist certification

10. learn to be a better cook – Dan does most of the cooking and I can do really basic things. I would like to learn more so I could be a more creative cook and not always just go by a recipe.
    

11. learn to make a really good whoopie pie – I love whoopie pies. I’ve tried making them once. They were pretty good but I would love to experiment and figure out a fantastic recipe.
    

12. plan a surprise weekend away for Dan

13. adopt a dog

14. get at least one new tattoo – I have 2 but I have a few more in mind and I would like at least one of those to be done over the next few years.
    

15. make scrap books for bridal shower, bachelorette party, wedding, and honeymoon

16. take a road trip

17. learn to make DeDe’s chocolate chip cookies – this might be one of the hardest ones on my list. DeDe is my grandmother who just passed away, so she won’t be around to help me, but I will experiment until I get it right because it is really important to me to have this piece of her. ❤
    

18. hike a mountain that is around 4000 feet – Dan loves hiking and I am ok with it sometimes. I figured I would put something on here to push me to do something more with him.
    

19. run the BCS 5k – BCS is my mom’s nonprofit organization for breast cancer. She holds a 5k every year and I would like to be able to run the whole thing one of these years.
    

20. go skiing more than once a winter – The past couple of winters we have been able to go once. I had never skied before a couple of years ago and I haven’t gotten past the bunny slope. We bought me new skis and boots and everything this year and I would like to be able to use them more than once a winter.
    

21. learn to use photoshop well – I want to be able to use photoshop all the time so I need to really learn how to use it.
    

22. stay at a bed and breakfast for a weekend

23. do a wine tasting and figure out what wines I really like

24. take a girl’s trip

25. learn my family history

26. work on paying down my debt – especially credit card – This is kind of general but I’m not sure what I could put down as an actual amount…maybe it would change if I got that teaching job…
    

27. spend time volunteering every year – I usually help my mom at her events which would be considered volunteering. I think I want to try and do other things as well.
    

28. make photo books with old pictures – I have tons of old pictures that I would love to be able to put in photo books just to be able to see them easier than in a folder on my computer.
    

29. take a “kids” trip – The “kids” would be my brothers, cousins, Dan, and I. We would have a blast.
    

30. have a fantastic celebration for my 30^th birthday

So what do you think of my list?

photo challenge {day 20 – handwriting}

So my birthday was yesterday and I decided to come up with a list of things to do before I turn 30. I’ve been working on my list so here is my handwritten list so far. I will definitely post my complete list in the next couple of days.