#10

i created a list of 30 goals to achieve before hitting the round number of 30 years old

you can read the whole list here

first - i am so exhausted

i had a work trip that i left for friday morning (3am)

my first time flying to the west coast

and surprisingly it went pretty well

we had a layover in dallas

before hopping back on the plane for 3 hours to our destination of corona california

work was work - but thankfully i have a fun boss and we travel very well together

so there were a few extra hours to explore near our hotel

we are also awesome at physical inventories

and were able to have this one wrapped up saturday night so we had all day sunday to play

which meant i would get to cross #10 off my list of 30 before 30

see the pacific ocean

we drove up to hermosa beach and walked around a bit

i was actually pretty surprised at how deep the beaches were - sand for days!

i was also surprised to see people actually in the water too

the pier reported that it was about 64 degrees...wayyyyy to cold for me!

i posed for an obligatory photo - and then my foot was stuck in something very sticky.  i'm going to pretend it wasn't fishing related.

after walking around for a bit, we decided to make our way down to huntington beach

and made sure to get ice cream and the souvenir t shirt.

it was a short trip, and being there for work didn't lend us much time to seek out great restaurants or shops

but for my first time on the west coast - i cannot wait to be back!  and next time have bill along with me!

 

#26

 #26 on my 30 before 30

buy only local fresh eggs.

done!

actually, i've been doing this for a couple months now.

but it didn't feel right to cross the item off my list until i consistently purchased the farm fresh eggs.

so you might be wondering why?

why is this an item on my list

when i decided to stop buying junk and focus buying more produce, more whole foods, and less snacky foods

i realized i needed to start making conscious efforts to buy organic and local when possible.

i waiver back and forth on a lot of produce.  i see the organic aisle, i go the farmers' markets, but sometimes i just cannot justify spending the extra money

which is ridiculous when i think in terms of the chemicals and pesticides i could be ingesting otherwise

and not only produce, but this goes for meat.  i buy very little meat each week, so it doesn't make up a huge percentage of my total bill.  and i am trying to change my thinking - but the consumer in me sees a fryer chicken for $5 and then there's the organic free range happy fryer chicken for $10 - and out of habit i buy what is cheaper.

so when i made my 30 before 30 i thought i could start small.  stop thinking in the big picture.  stop trying to green and localize and healthify my whole shopping list

start with 1 or 2 weekly purchases, alter them, get in the habit, and then move on to another change

so i started with eggs

if you've been reading lately

i eat an egg almost every morning

i love eggs.

i will never be able to stop loving the egg.

and we go through 1 dozen - 1.5 dozen eggs a week.

typically bill and i eat 1 egg every morning - sometimes bill has 2, and on sunday morning we forgo the sandwich and fry up 2 eggs each.

kroger and trader joe's is where i do most of my shopping

regular large eggs run about $1-1.50 at kroger

trader joe's regular large eggs (which are cage free) run about $2.5 (i think)

and any other eggs labeled organic blah blah blah - were $3.5 +

the first day i decided to dive into buying only organic free range eggs i was at rainbow blossom (a local health food store)

and they had local eggs

for $5 a dozen

what the what?

i spent the $5 out of not wanting to stop in another store

but i knew i would not be spending $5 a week on local eggs - organic/free range would have to do

until i remembered a lady at work who raises chickens

and sells eggs.

i asked her how much a dozen was - and she told me $3

i was more than happy to pay $3 - considering they were local, free range, organic eggs and were slightly less than the non local eggs at my grocery store - and considerably less than those at the health food store.

i just bring her my $3 whenever i'm getting low on eggs at home

and she brings me an assortment of beautifully colored eggs

i think that's my favorite part - seeing all the different colors!

and in case you're wondering - i can't tell a difference in taste.

some people swear they will only eat fresh eggs because of the taste - and there are probably people out there who swear they don't taste the same 

but i can't tell a difference.

and if you're still scratching your head on why it matters where your eggs come from

click over to a few of these sources

•  why organic store eggs are a scam - the healthy home economist
• handcrafted coops

 

 

#22

30 before 30

#22

go canoeing - completed on 7-14-13!

done!

when i made my list, i'm not sure if i forgot, but bill and i actually kayaked on our honeymoon

but it was on the ocean

and we had no real destination to paddle to

so this felt more like my first time paddling on the water with a purpose

we headed up to blue river cave country canoes in indiana sunday morning

boarded a bus - which, i can't tell you the last time i was on a school bus

and i'm pretty sure the seats go smaller

and rode down to the water

and then we were off!

we opted for the half day/7 mile trip

which apparently can be completed in 2-4 hours

elite canoers, we are not

we chose the slow and steady method

and stopped for lunch

it's crazy that it's mid july and the water still felt too cold to swim in

which was good, since i had opted out of wearing my bathing suit under my clothes

somewhere past the halfway point we began to question if we really were past the halfway point

and how much further we had left

there's a big difference in 2 miles or 5

so i really tried to paddle hard and deliberately

even exclaiming at one point what a great oblique and shoulder workout i was getting

and as i sit here now i can tell you my back is more than feeling it today...ugh

should have stayed with slow and steady

and let bill do all the heavy work

but we had reached the end in about 4-4.5 hours

on our way back home (about an hour drive to louisville)

i had bill stop at a convenient store

i have been soda free for awhile now

with only a sip here or there

but i NEEDED a diet root beer

and it was the best tasting diet root beer - after a day spent paddling in the hot sun

and because bill and i are masochists we got home and immediately completed day 14 (level 2) of jillian michaels "the shred" - just about halfway!!!

bill cleaned, i cooked dinner

and we were then completely exhausted.

we were laid up on the couch when i believe i shut my eyes around 7:30

and opened them again at 10 pm when bill woke me up to get in bed

it's always a good sign that you had fun when at the end of the day you accidentally fall asleep.

 

30 before 30

so i felt totally inspired by my list of complete/almost complete resolutions

let's not talk about the closet situation

that i decided to set some long (more than a year away) goals

and also because bill and i have been watching a lot of old amazing race seasons

i keep proclaiming that i will learn; bill keeps promising he will teach me - to

1. drive stick - on the rare chance we do make it on the show, it would probably be nice to have me as a backup driver.  but let's be real - i don't trust bill enough with reading a map.  i'm a complete control freak and would be barking in the back of the car the whole time.

so these goals, in no particular order (except for #1...i'm knocking that one out asap) are things i find important to do/experience/live before i hit the milestone year of 30

i will be 28 this december, so i feel like i have ample amounts of time to really sink my teeth into a whole slew of goals

but for naming and titling and cutesy picmonkey makings 

let's round that list to 30

30 before 30 (completed #'s are linked)

so again, number 1...

1. learn to drive stick - for amazing race and other obvious practical reasons
2. travel outside of the country - i've got my eye on madrid and various places in germany
3. install new floors - myself
4. make my own cheese - because i love cheese
5. beat my half marathon time - because i know it's in me
6. ride 50+ miles by bike
7. create a human being
8. sew a skirt
9. read 3 of the 100 greatest novels (that i haven't yet read)
10. see the pacific ocean 
11. learn to weave
12. take a pottery class
13. pickle cucumbers
14. re-learn french (and maybe re-evaluate my travel destinations)
15. write a short story
16. decorate the shelves in the living room
17. go to las vegas
18. visit a national park
19. practice yoga for a month (2 times a week)
20. go to a fancy restaurant
21. have professional pictures taken of bill and i
22. go canoeing (completed 7-14-13)
23. do one pull up - seriously
24. throw a wine and cheese party
25. attend my 10 year reunion - oh my dog...
26. buy only local fresh eggs (completed 8-8-13)
27. attend the trolley hop downtown
28. become a 1 car household
29. take up tennis with bill
30. clean out my closet...maybe in 2.5 years i can accomplish this... 

let's do this!