A few years ago, I wrote a life goal list in lieu of making New Year's resolutions. I was reading over that list the other day and realized I've checked off quite a few since then! Here they are:
1. Build a birdhouse from scratch
I have always been crafty but never got comfortable around power tools, especially our circular saw. I'm working on that one, but in the meantime, Shane helped me with a few steps of this project. This one definitely counts as a Flashback Friday, I made these over a year ago!
Did you know that you can buy a single cedar fence plank at Lowe's for $2-3? And one plank is plenty of wood to make a birdhouse, and maybe have a little left over? Cedar is amazing for outdoor uses, and you don't have to worry about poisoning your little bird family with icky pressure-treated lumber chemicals.
I have a few things I'd do differently next time, like make it just a smidge taller (turns out my interior height was a little too short for most birds) and actually use wood glue in my nail holes (seasonal changes made the wood expand, nails pulled out, and the thing fell apart).
If you're interested in building a birdhouse of your own, I highly recommend this pattern by Martha Stewart. It's Audubon Society approved, which means birds will love it, and you can customize the entrance hole size for your local birds.
19. Actually give up Dr. Pepper for a while. And no cheating.
Seriously, that stuff is diabetes in a can.
I'm honestly still surprised that I accomplished this one. I'm proud to say that I have been Dr. Pepper free for around a year now and have no plans of cracking open a can anytime soon.
Don't get me wrong, I love Dr. Pepper as much as anyone else with working tastebuds. Unfortunately the negative health effects are undeniable, especially when consumed in mass quantity. Since I have no self-control with the sugary goodness that is soda, it has been indefinitely banned from the Horner house.
Banning the good doctor was one of the first steps in our fat to fit weight loss effort and probably one of the most important. It was a really hard step, but we've held strong on it, and I'm so proud of us. My new best friends are our under-sink water filter and my Nalgene bottles, they serve me well.
20. Dye all of my hair pink. (and also blue)
Back in December I quit my job to go back to college full-time (more on that in a future post). Since I wasn't working for 'the Man' anymore, I decided it was time to go crazy with some all over hair color! Life's too short for boring hair anyways.
The plan was always to go pink as soon as I could. I've had pink highlights before but never had the guts to go all the way. Once I got to the Sally's hair color aisle though, I had a moment of panic. They didn't have my preferred brand, and none of the pink options jumped off the shelf at me.
So I went for blue! With a brief stop at Draco Malfoy blonde, thanks to the bleach. Since this was December, a time when a lot of red is worn, and my hair was that perfect shade of turquoise, I looked like Thing 1 for a while.
Sadly, after nearly two months with no touchups, the blue was looking a bit janky. Especially around the roots. I looked like I was going bald. So with a little more bleach and a new dye kit, I went pinky-purple! I got it all over my face, neck, and scalp. Once at the gym I sweat so much during my run that my whole neck turned drippy hot pink, which I'm sure was entertaining for everyone in the row behind me.
I'm not too sure about the brand of dye I used, because it has faded a LOT in the week and a half it's been on. I've got half a bottle of my favorite brand dye in a dark purple and there's a good chance it'll be in use real soon.
22. Run a 5k (Done!). And maybe a marathon (We'll see).
This year we didn't just run a 5k, we ran FIVE 5ks and a 10k! I never thought I'd see the day when I could run for more than a minute without having a heart attack. I am really proud of this accomplishment and I really do hope we are able to keep it up. There is a such a magical feeling when you cross that finish line.
From the big picture and then clockwise, we've got:
1. Maryland Farms YMCA Firecracker 5k - first time I ran an entire 5k without stopping once :) (read more here)
2. Color Me Rad 5k - ran this one with our friends and had a great time! (read more here)
3. East Nashville Tomato Arts Festival 5k - who knew tomato art was such a big deal? Or even a thing?
4. Ugly Sweater 5k - we can't run in sweaters so we went for ugly (but actually cute) t-shirts instead.
5. Farm Bureau Holiday 10k - I ran for an HOUR! Okay, there were some walking bits thrown in there, but it's not my fault the route was super hilly. (read more here)
6. The Great Pumpkin Run 5k - this was honestly my least favorite race this year. Turns out it's really hard to run through a corn maze, because you're constantly worried about slipping, the turns are nauseating, and corn stalks are pretty sharp. (read more here)
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And for scientific purposes, here's the full list! I'd say 4.5 goals complete is pretty awesome progress.
This is just what I've got so far, I plan on adding lots more fun stuff to this list in the future. Let me know in the comments if you have any ideas to add to the list!
My Life Goals
2. Drive a manual transmission car on the interstate and in city traffic.
3. Knit a sweater that is cute, actually fits, and wear it in public.
4. Watch a French movie without subtitles.
5. Change a tire.
6. Wear a bikini to the beach and not worry about how I look.
8. Actually make the wedding scrapbook I promised on our first anniversary.
9. Learn all the words to an epic rap song.
Or just write my own.
Or just write my own.
10. Make 100 hats to donate to charity.
11. Make a YouTube video with 10,000+ views
(and I don't even mind if I'm doing something embarrassing in it!)
(and I don't even mind if I'm doing something embarrassing in it!)
12. Learn to speak with a convincing British accent.
13. Be vegan for a month.
14. Get my scuba license.
16. Perform something, anything, in front of an audience.
17. Develop my own style of drawing.
18. Start my own business.
21. Finally learn how to do a cartwheel.
22. Run a 5k. And maybe a marathon.
23. Write a book, even if it's self published.
24. Bench press 100+ lbs.
25. Join a protest for a worthy cause.
26. Do a handstand.
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23. Write a book, even if it's self published.
24. Bench press 100+ lbs.
25. Join a protest for a worthy cause.
26. Do a handstand.
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What's on your list?
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