Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Spring Break 2016.



^^^a trip to Galveston is never complete without a stop at LaKings! Their salt water taffy and ice cream is delicious!! 

Ah, Spring Break. One of the most anticipated weeks in the spring semester. By mid-March, I am always so ready to get away from campus and hide all my school work for a week. While a lot of student's spring breaks are filled with laying by the beach or skiing down a mountain, mine was quite uneventful.

I spent my spring break waiting not-so-patiently for my nephew to be born. I have one older sister, Chloe, and last week she was 37 weeks pregnant with her first child, Hank Owen. I have always wanted to be an aunt and I've been over-the-moon excited for this little man to make his debut.

Last week, her husband was working nights for four days, so I stayed with her so she didn't have to be alone at night so late in her pregnancy. We spent most of those days trying every trick in the book to convince baby Hank to come out. We walked, shopped, ate big meals, ate spicy meals, bounced on a yoga ball, went bowling, and she did a couple other things I won't mention here.

When we weren't taking part in myths, we were either in bed or on the couch watching movies and sleeping. All-in-all, a pretty productive week! However, Hank was being stubborn (he's already so much like his mother) and decided his momma's belly was too comfy to leave just yet.

It was really nice getting to spend so much time with my sister before the baby arrived. As much as I would have enjoyed laying on the beach on a tropical island, being by my sister's side during her last few days of pregnancy were priceless (it was also the best birth control I've ever received, besides watching the actual birth).*

On what was supposed to be my last day in town, my parents and I took a quick trip down to Galveston. I grew up going to Galveston for a week or two during the summer, and I've always underappreciated the island. But I've lately come to really enjoy visiting it. It does have so much charm to it!

Galveston is such a nice destination for a day trip, there is so much food to eat and shopping to do! While I don't always go swimming, my favorite thing to do is to just sit by the water and listen to the waves crash onto shore. It's quite peaceful.

Above are just some of the photos I just while exploring the island a little bit. If you ever go to Galveston, you have to try LaKing's on the Strand. It has everything from homemade salt water taffy to ice cream to coffee to chocolate and everything else you can imagine. The place is jampacked with delicious goodies. It's a Galveston favorite for sure.

Until next time, H

*Incase you were wondering, Hank Owen did finally make his debut, but that's another story for another time.

Monday, March 7, 2016

101 in 1001.

A month or so ago, my best friend shared her list of 101 things she's been trying to accomplish in 1001 days. She started her list the summer before she went to college and the list helped motivate her to really put herself out there and get a full college experience. It also helped her learn more about herself and has already inspired her to create another list when this first 1001 days ends. 

I have a lot I want to do, so much I want to accomplish, see and experience. I spent a lot of my time last year focused on the wrong things and forgetting about what I wanted to do, so I decided to make my own list of 101 things I wanted to do in the next 1001 days. This list is just motivation for me, it's a reminder to experience the hell out of life and take care of myself. It's time to spend less time worrying about everything little thing in my life and just l i v e. 

There are some slightly trivial items on this list (exhibit a: keep my nails painted) but others are quite important to me (exhibit b: traveling to new places). Most of the things on this I'm really excited to do (exhibit c: stargazing) but some I'm not really looking forward to (exhibit d: running a 10K). Regardless, I can't wait to cross every single item off this list! 

The 1001 days starts tomorrow on March 8, 2016 and ends on my 23rd birthday, December 4th, 2018. 
  1. Read five biographies 
  2. Visit three national parks 
  3. Unplug completely for 24 hours once a month 
  4. Host a brunch
  5. Take a cooking class
  6. Visit a flea market
  7. Do at least 5 do-it-yourself projects 
  8. Write ten handwritten letters
  9. Visit five museums 
  10. Read 40 books 
  11. Travel to five new places
  12. Leave a 100% tip
  13. Have a picnic {a classic one, with a basket and red checkered blanket!} 
  14. Attend {at least} 15 live music shows 
  15. Take a trip with my girlfriends
  16. Cook 15 new meals 
  17. Find the perfect LBD
  18. Watch ten "classic" movies
  19. Attend a ballet performance
  20. Run a 5K 
  21. Vote in a presidential election 
  22. Interview my grandparents 
  23. Get lost in a new city
  24. Find the best BBQ in the great state of Texas
  25. Make my bed every day for six months {and hope the habit sticks for a lifetime} 
  26. Go on a real vacation {a sit-by-the-beach-and-do-nothing vacation} 
  27. Watch all of the Best Picture nominees from the Oscars 
  28. Brush up on the geography of the world 
  29. Go stargazing 
  30. Attend a professional sporting event {JJ Watt, here I come!} 
  31. Learn to ski 
  32. Go hiking six times
  33. Run a 10K
  34. Frame a wall-worthy map and start marking the places I've been
  35. Workout at least twice a week for six months {also hoping this habit sticks around for longer} 
  36. Take a trip alone
  37. Graduate college
  38. Learn to french braid my own hair 
  39. Take a trip with someone on a whim 
  40. Try five new restaurants in Austin
  41. Try five new restaurants in Houston 
  42. Take a self defense class 
  43. Learn to meditate 
  44. Do a 30-day ab challenge 
  45. Wake up at 7am {or earlier} every day for a week 
  46. Go paddle boarding
  47. Step foot on the Four Corners 
  48. Go ziplining 
  49. Learn two new songs on the guitar
  50. Attend four plays or musicals 
  51. Learn how to do a proper push {the lack of arm muscle is so real, y'all} 
  52. Adopt a puppy 
  53. Watch the sunrise and sunset of the same day 
  54. Stop biting my nails {once and for all!} 
  55. Get a big girl job
  56. Go horseback riding 
  57. Take tennis lessons
  58. Keep my nails painted for at least three months in a row 
  59. Try a new cuisine
  60. Make homemade poptarts 
  61. Take at least three consecutive conscious breaths every day {el padre's request} 
  62. Give up Netflix, Hulu and all other video streaming sites for three months 
  63. Go on the Port of Houston Ship Channel tour {it's free!} 
  64. Go two-stepping
  65. Visit Marfa, Texas {and stay at El Cosmico!} 
  66. Attend three different UT sporting events 
  67. Go to the Texas State Fair
  68. Have a movie theater marathon {three movies in one day}
  69. Donate blood again 
  70. Vote in a non-presidential election {they're just as important!} 
  71. Spend an afternoon at a botanical garden
  72. Change up my hair {I'd look good as a blonde, don't ya think?} 
  73. See a movie at a drive-in 
  74. Start a blog series
  75. Attend a live-taping of a television show {Austin City Limits, The Tonight Show or Ellen?} 
  76. Do a 30-day squat challenge 
  77. Get a massage {maybe after the squat challenge?} 
  78. Go to a pumpkin patch 
  79. Volunteer more 
  80. Learn the basics of photoshop
  81. Organize my photos 
  82. Read the New York Times every day for three months 
  83. Watch 20 movies off my must-watch list
  84. Try a new food once a month for six months 
  85. Visit the Stockyards in Fort Worth
  86. Improve my posture {the back pain is real, y'all}
  87. Fast for a day {or maybe even two!} 
  88. Develop a better skin care routine
  89. Float a river {Frio River, here I come!} 
  90. See Kacey Musgraves live {honestly, the most important thing. also need some Kacey for Lucchese boots!} 
  91. Visit the caverns in Texas
  92. Discover and listen to a new artist once a month 
  93. Attend a roller derby
  94. Learn to love my hair {and take better care of it!} 
  95. Don't eat out for a week for three months
  96. Get an internship {necessary!!} 
  97. Go skydiving 
  98. Take a ballroom dance class 
  99. Go a week {or two} without sugar
  100. Start doing yoga
  101. Inspire someone else to make their own list 
You can keep up with my progress on the 101 in 1001 tab at the top of the page!
Here's to a 1001 days of accomplishing 101 things! Until next time, H