What: #42 Host a game night for friends
When: December 3rd
Where: The living room
Why: A part of my personality is that I tend to be content hanging out on my own, and gravitate towards quiet evenings to decompress from hectic days at work. When invitations to go out for social engagements come up, I do accept because I truly enjoy being around friends and meeting new people, but I just don't usually create those opportunities in my own home (my sanctuary!). Recently, I wanted to get together with two groups of my girlfriends, and a game night seemed like a fun way to chat, laugh, and spend a nice evening on my couch with friends.
After buying some snacks and popping some popcorn, I got out the evening's entertainment. This particular group of friends is perfectly suited for a raucous card game, so that's what we played. I had a fun music mix playing, too, so we had background tunes to enjoy. If you haven't played the game before, I highly recommend it with a group of your girlfriends; but be warned that you may need to look up a definition or two on your smartphone for an educational experience you weren't expecting to get!
My next game night might include any friends willing to play dorky board games, so let me know if you are interested!
Showing posts with label Ashley. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ashley. Show all posts
Forty-eight done ... 4 to go...
What: #54 Wear
fake eyelashes to work
When: December 19th
Where: My workplace
Why: It seems that everyone is wearing fake eyelashes these days. Whether it's for a dinner out with friends, or something fancier, it isn't just for Hollywood starlets anymore. I blame Zooey Deschanel. Her amazing eyelashes on "New Girl" and the covers of her albums are so luscious (I really just said that) and the envy of those of us without A) our own natural luscious lashes or B) the ability to put on fake lashes. The only time I wore fake eyelashes before was for my high school dance recital. The effect was a disaster. It was a phase in life where all of us girls were trying to wear too much make up, and I think I could barely open my eyelids, which is quite a hindrance when you're trying to hit your marks on a stage. After that, I just found the perfect combo of eyeliner and mascara to help me achieve a slightly more realistic look, but one that still serves to create enough of a difference in my eye appearance that I look quite haggard in any no-eye-makeup pics of myself.
So, the last day of work before the holidays arrived, and I still hadn't checked this one off the list. And, to be fair, I still don't think I technically stuck to the intent of this one...it's the preposition "to" that got in my way. I tried to get up in the morning to put them on myself, but it wasn't happening. At all. So, I took all of my supplies to work with me and around lunch time, sent my co-worker a text saying, "Weirdest question of the day...can you help me put on fake eyelashes today?" She called to make sure she had correctly understood my text - pretty safe to do with auto-correct running rampant these days - and then told me she could try to help. I honestly thought she had done this before because I've seen her looking extremely glamorous at different events leading up to her wedding and on the day itself, so I assumed she had worn eyelashes.
Well, she couldn't do it, and I couldn't do it, so we enlisted the help of another co-worker...and added to the list of people experiencing my humiliation. This time, we were able to get them both on, but they had been pulled off and re-glued so many times that they were still pretty hard to get to line up with my own lash line. I ended up wearing them only through my lunch and for a walk down the hallway, but couldn't keep them on much longer because it did look pretty silly. I'll have to try next year, maybe to make myself wear them for a WHOLE DAY at work.
When: December 19th
Where: My workplace
Why: It seems that everyone is wearing fake eyelashes these days. Whether it's for a dinner out with friends, or something fancier, it isn't just for Hollywood starlets anymore. I blame Zooey Deschanel. Her amazing eyelashes on "New Girl" and the covers of her albums are so luscious (I really just said that) and the envy of those of us without A) our own natural luscious lashes or B) the ability to put on fake lashes. The only time I wore fake eyelashes before was for my high school dance recital. The effect was a disaster. It was a phase in life where all of us girls were trying to wear too much make up, and I think I could barely open my eyelids, which is quite a hindrance when you're trying to hit your marks on a stage. After that, I just found the perfect combo of eyeliner and mascara to help me achieve a slightly more realistic look, but one that still serves to create enough of a difference in my eye appearance that I look quite haggard in any no-eye-makeup pics of myself. So, the last day of work before the holidays arrived, and I still hadn't checked this one off the list. And, to be fair, I still don't think I technically stuck to the intent of this one...it's the preposition "to" that got in my way. I tried to get up in the morning to put them on myself, but it wasn't happening. At all. So, I took all of my supplies to work with me and around lunch time, sent my co-worker a text saying, "Weirdest question of the day...can you help me put on fake eyelashes today?" She called to make sure she had correctly understood my text - pretty safe to do with auto-correct running rampant these days - and then told me she could try to help. I honestly thought she had done this before because I've seen her looking extremely glamorous at different events leading up to her wedding and on the day itself, so I assumed she had worn eyelashes.
Forty-two done ... 10 to go...
What: #72 Mix
a real drink for friends
When: November 21st
Where: My own kitchen!
Why: I'm not a hostess. This is just a part of my personality that I accept. I love being with my friends, going out to eat or to events, even hanging out at their place, but it is a rare occurrence for me to invite people over to my place. I'm not sure why this is - there are likely many theories - but I wanted to try to be more open to having people over on different occasions. I started too big trying to host a whole themed party the year I started these lists, and so I've since dialed it back to having close friends over for TV nights once in awhile. Those have all been a success, so I was ready to take the next step and invite friends over for happy hour. It seemed fair that I'd make drinks for them, but I realized that all I basically know how to make are fuzzy navels (my fave!). For this particular happy hour - a prelude event to going to see the newest Hunger Games movie - I tried to find something a little bit more unique. It was an added concern that my one friend is about 6 months pregnant, so it had to have a fair amount of ingredients that would make it delicious even as a virgin-style drink. So, what's a girl to do but JFGI...and when I did, I found an amazing list of drink recipes inspired by the Hunger Games! I took one of them, tweaked it a bit, and headed to the store to gather up the ingredients.
After procuring 100% pure pomegranate juice, Vernors, fresh lemons (all good for my pregnant friend!), and vodka (good for the rest of us!), I then had one last step: making simple syrup. The name is quite accurate, and after looking this up in my friend's car prior to heading to the store, I realized that even I could create simple syrup. After a few samples of my concoction prior to their arrival, I went to work as a bartender in my own kitchen. It must have been a huge success because I finished the night making 7 drinks for the 3 of us! And I'm happy to have leftover fixings to make another one or two for myself this weekend!
When: November 21st
Where: My own kitchen!
After procuring 100% pure pomegranate juice, Vernors, fresh lemons (all good for my pregnant friend!), and vodka (good for the rest of us!), I then had one last step: making simple syrup. The name is quite accurate, and after looking this up in my friend's car prior to heading to the store, I realized that even I could create simple syrup. After a few samples of my concoction prior to their arrival, I went to work as a bartender in my own kitchen. It must have been a huge success because I finished the night making 7 drinks for the 3 of us! And I'm happy to have leftover fixings to make another one or two for myself this weekend!
One done ... 51 to go...
What: #53 Go
to a trampoline aerobics class
When: January 11th
Where: SkyZone
Why: In the winter months, it gets harder to be active because it is so cold. Running or biking outside aren't really options, and I loathe the treadmill and stationary bikes. I still climb every week and have started doing yoga with more regularity, yet I still crave new activities to get my heart pumping. And full disclosure: I'm anticipating a possible beach vacation in the near future, so this body needs to be ready for that, and after an extended vacation over the holidays, let's just say I enjoyed a lot of time on the couch with enormous bags of my Dad's famous homemade caramel corn. Yum!
So, after a year-long hiatus, my friends Elizabeth and Sara joined me for another adventure at the "tramp gym" (which, I realize, isn't a great term, but it's sticking around for the fun of it). This time we invited a few other great women to join us and have an impromptu bounce party to kick-off Elizabeth's annual 29th birthday!
The moves are definitely specific to the trampolines, and not really something you could duplicate on your own at home, and it requires the wearing of very cool socks (of which I'm now the proud owner!). A lot of the class was partner work with weighted balls you'd toss back and forth after a series of moves. One fun combination was to do five really high jumping jacks, a full twist, and air splits, all with the weighted ball. There were also a lot of plank movements, which were very difficult on the trampolines. This time, there were no flips, but there was the move where you fall all the way down to your backside and bounce back up to do the next move. I had a hard time doing that without using my hands to brace myself from falling back, which I'm assuming is due to a lack of core strength. Or, perhaps my abs were just exhausted from all the laughing...truly, that is an integral part of this workout!
When: January 11th
Where: SkyZone
Why: In the winter months, it gets harder to be active because it is so cold. Running or biking outside aren't really options, and I loathe the treadmill and stationary bikes. I still climb every week and have started doing yoga with more regularity, yet I still crave new activities to get my heart pumping. And full disclosure: I'm anticipating a possible beach vacation in the near future, so this body needs to be ready for that, and after an extended vacation over the holidays, let's just say I enjoyed a lot of time on the couch with enormous bags of my Dad's famous homemade caramel corn. Yum!So, after a year-long hiatus, my friends Elizabeth and Sara joined me for another adventure at the "tramp gym" (which, I realize, isn't a great term, but it's sticking around for the fun of it). This time we invited a few other great women to join us and have an impromptu bounce party to kick-off Elizabeth's annual 29th birthday! The moves are definitely specific to the trampolines, and not really something you could duplicate on your own at home, and it requires the wearing of very cool socks (of which I'm now the proud owner!). A lot of the class was partner work with weighted balls you'd toss back and forth after a series of moves. One fun combination was to do five really high jumping jacks, a full twist, and air splits, all with the weighted ball. There were also a lot of plank movements, which were very difficult on the trampolines. This time, there were no flips, but there was the move where you fall all the way down to your backside and bounce back up to do the next move. I had a hard time doing that without using my hands to brace myself from falling back, which I'm assuming is due to a lack of core strength. Or, perhaps my abs were just exhausted from all the laughing...truly, that is an integral part of this workout!
27 down ... twenty-five to go...
What: #90 Watch “The
Goonies”
When: June 23rd
Where: Ann Arbor Summer Festival
Why: It often is brought to my attention that I missed out on pivotal adolescent rites of passage, such as reading certain books (ex: Lord Of The Flies and the Diary of Anne Frank) and seeing certain films. This was one of those movies that is frequently referenced by friends, and I had no idea what I was missing. Luckily, there was a big screen showing of "The Goonies" scheduled for this year at Top of the Park - part of the summer festival - and so in addition to finally seeing this flick, it was also a chance to spend time at one of my favorite summer traditions, hang out with some friends, and enjoy a really beautiful summer night under the stars. The movie was really good - altho I think I appreciated it more an an adult than I would have as a tween. It was fun to see Sean Astin as such an "impassioned little speech giver" as Stef said, and that was so accurate! He was really a great child actor! And of course, I love adventure tales (I do own the full set of Indiana Jones movies), especially adventure tales with cheesy happy endings!
When: June 23rd
Where: Ann Arbor Summer FestivalWhy: It often is brought to my attention that I missed out on pivotal adolescent rites of passage, such as reading certain books (ex: Lord Of The Flies and the Diary of Anne Frank) and seeing certain films. This was one of those movies that is frequently referenced by friends, and I had no idea what I was missing. Luckily, there was a big screen showing of "The Goonies" scheduled for this year at Top of the Park - part of the summer festival - and so in addition to finally seeing this flick, it was also a chance to spend time at one of my favorite summer traditions, hang out with some friends, and enjoy a really beautiful summer night under the stars. The movie was really good - altho I think I appreciated it more an an adult than I would have as a tween. It was fun to see Sean Astin as such an "impassioned little speech giver" as Stef said, and that was so accurate! He was really a great child actor! And of course, I love adventure tales (I do own the full set of Indiana Jones movies), especially adventure tales with cheesy happy endings!
11 down ... forty-one to go...
What: #76 Swim with
dolphins
When: February 21st
Where: Punta Cana
Why: The idea of interacting with intelligent animals has always been appealing, especially large mammals. I've had the joy of horseback riding, standing next to wild mountain gorillas, watching elephants and lions on safari, feeding giraffes, and now, playing with dolphins in the ocean! I really have no words, so I'll let the pictures speak for me...
When: February 21st
Where: Punta Cana
Why: The idea of interacting with intelligent animals has always been appealing, especially large mammals. I've had the joy of horseback riding, standing next to wild mountain gorillas, watching elephants and lions on safari, feeding giraffes, and now, playing with dolphins in the ocean! I really have no words, so I'll let the pictures speak for me...
10 down ... forty-two to go...
What: # 96 Be in a swimsuit photo shoot
When: February 20th
Where: Arena Gorda Beach, Dominican Republic
Why: Honestly, this is one of those items I had left as a blank to add if something really intriguing came along that I wanted to include on my list. I feel like the point of the list is to go out of my comfort zone, and believe me, this was way WAY out of my comfort zone. Luckily, I was with friends who were super into it, so they paved the way for me to give it a try.
The resort where we stayed had a set of photographers that asked us if we wanted to do a photo shoot, and I assumed it would be fun pictures of us posing in simple group shots out on the beach. That was a small part of it, but what I did not expect was the extremely realistic bikini-clad photo shoot of each of us individually while passers-by gawked and everyone got to listen to the photographer continually shout "boobies up!" at me. Awkward.
I will say, I seriously have a lot more respect for bikini models. It is actually not pleasant to have sand in every crevice and cold waves splashing up your nose and did I mention getting sand lodged in places? Plus, the poses - while they do in fact look awesome - are super unrealistic and tricky to get into with your head tilted just right and your back arched and your feet in the right positions and your shoulders back and all the while sucking it in like crazy. The final product might look sexy (altho I refuse to show my photo to anyone), but it certainly feels ridiculous to get it!
I will say, I seriously have a lot more respect for bikini models. It is actually not pleasant to have sand in every crevice and cold waves splashing up your nose and did I mention getting sand lodged in places? Plus, the poses - while they do in fact look awesome - are super unrealistic and tricky to get into with your head tilted just right and your back arched and your feet in the right positions and your shoulders back and all the while sucking it in like crazy. The final product might look sexy (altho I refuse to show my photo to anyone), but it certainly feels ridiculous to get it!
 |
| Our classic group shot! |
9 down ... forty-three to go...
What: #50 Check off a
country I’ve never been to
When: February 17th
Where: Dominican Republic
Why: I have wanderlust, big time. I absolutely love watching my passport fill up; I'm on my second, and with this recent vacation, I am now at 14 different countries. It seems so small of a number, but every experience has left an important impression on my life.
This recent journey was a bit different than others because most of my time was spent at an all-inclusive resort complex, so I only saw the real country during an hour or so drive from the airport and to another half-day excursion. There are always comparisons in my head, and this country reminded me a lot of Peru and the more rural areas of Tanzania. It was great to be immersed in the Spanish language again - it is only something I've picked up during my travels, but it comes back in waves so I can communicate in basic conversation. Otherwise, the best part of my time in the country was the incredible weather. Warm and sunny 80s with puffy clouds and ocean breezes every day. I loved laying on the beach in the shade of a palm tree, listening to the waves, reading a couple books, people-watching, and generally unwinding in a gorgeous place.
When: February 17th
Where: Dominican Republic
Why: I have wanderlust, big time. I absolutely love watching my passport fill up; I'm on my second, and with this recent vacation, I am now at 14 different countries. It seems so small of a number, but every experience has left an important impression on my life. This recent journey was a bit different than others because most of my time was spent at an all-inclusive resort complex, so I only saw the real country during an hour or so drive from the airport and to another half-day excursion. There are always comparisons in my head, and this country reminded me a lot of Peru and the more rural areas of Tanzania. It was great to be immersed in the Spanish language again - it is only something I've picked up during my travels, but it comes back in waves so I can communicate in basic conversation. Otherwise, the best part of my time in the country was the incredible weather. Warm and sunny 80s with puffy clouds and ocean breezes every day. I loved laying on the beach in the shade of a palm tree, listening to the waves, reading a couple books, people-watching, and generally unwinding in a gorgeous place.
Fifty-one down...1 to go...
What: # 87 Stay at an all-inclusive resort
When: Booked December 28
Where: Punta Cana
Why: When I travel, I usually do it on a budget, and I typically do all the research to find the best deals on flights, hotels, food, and things to see and do. While I do love planning (a lot!), it is also very time-consuming and at times a bit overwhelming. So, I've lived vicariously through a few friends who have taken trips in the past to all-inclusive resorts, and the idea seemed appealing on a certain level. This year, some friends and I decided to plan our own trip to a resort, and while it did still require a lot of decisions up front about where to go, how long to stay, and the types of adventures to have, it is now completely booked, and we just get to look forward to it; oh, and buy fun new beach clothes and bathing suits for our week of lounging in the sand and at the pools!
When: Booked December 28
Where: Punta Cana
Why: When I travel, I usually do it on a budget, and I typically do all the research to find the best deals on flights, hotels, food, and things to see and do. While I do love planning (a lot!), it is also very time-consuming and at times a bit overwhelming. So, I've lived vicariously through a few friends who have taken trips in the past to all-inclusive resorts, and the idea seemed appealing on a certain level. This year, some friends and I decided to plan our own trip to a resort, and while it did still require a lot of decisions up front about where to go, how long to stay, and the types of adventures to have, it is now completely booked, and we just get to look forward to it; oh, and buy fun new beach clothes and bathing suits for our week of lounging in the sand and at the pools!
Thirty-seven down...15 to go...
What: #68 Host a party at my house
When: Oct 27th
Where: My place
Why: Other than a catered housewarming party when I moved in years ago, I have not been the hostess of any other gathering. I'm just not the hostess type. My skills are not those of a domestic individual. I keep a nice home, I feed myself, I decorate in my own way, but party planning does not appeal to me. Lately, however, I've felt that I wanted a chance to get some of my friends from different circles together to mingle and used the idea I found in a magazine to construct a party idea to do it. It was a clothes swap, something some of my friends and I do very informally on lots of occasions, but nothing ever formal. Today changed that! Everyone was encouraged to bring up to 10 items they were tired of wearing, but that were still perfectly good pieces and would be a fresh addition to our closets.
So, we shared some good stories, watched some big sports games (not very girlie, but important during football/world series season), and I think everyone left with something new they are excited to wear!
When: Oct 27th
Where: My place
Why: Other than a catered housewarming party when I moved in years ago, I have not been the hostess of any other gathering. I'm just not the hostess type. My skills are not those of a domestic individual. I keep a nice home, I feed myself, I decorate in my own way, but party planning does not appeal to me. Lately, however, I've felt that I wanted a chance to get some of my friends from different circles together to mingle and used the idea I found in a magazine to construct a party idea to do it. It was a clothes swap, something some of my friends and I do very informally on lots of occasions, but nothing ever formal. Today changed that! Everyone was encouraged to bring up to 10 items they were tired of wearing, but that were still perfectly good pieces and would be a fresh addition to our closets.So, we shared some good stories, watched some big sports games (not very girlie, but important during football/world series season), and I think everyone left with something new they are excited to wear!
Eighteen down...34 to go...
What: #99 Climb at Planet Rock in Ann Arbor
Where: Planet Rock
When: June 4
Why: In high school, I had the opportunity to do
some wall-climbing and really liked the challenge. In the following years, I've had other chances to do some climbing in a variety of less formal settings - like on a cruise ship (remember my Glamour appearance?). In an effort to keep finding new ways to be active and have fun, I bought a Groupon for climbing at the local Planet Rock gym. Two of my friends are climbing there together now, too, so I went along with them to get my first day in under my belt, or I guess under-my-harness is the more appropriate term. On that note, I learned a few other terms tonight, like "jugs" and "flashing," both of which - I was assured - are real climbing terms. I also learned how to tie some good knots!
As my first time back in a climbing gym after quite a long hiatus, I went through the introductory lesson, and it didn't take long to remember some of the specifics of the process. I did a few climbs up the auto-belay just to get my nerves settled (heights aren't my favorite thing), and then joined in with my friends when they got there. I managed to get up two routes to the top, another one up over an overhanging obstacle (something I'd never done before) thanks to their great encouragement and belay skills, and then attempted a higher degree of difficulty on a later climb (a 5.8 route), but my arms had given out on me by that point. It takes a lot of upper body strength that I'm excited to build, altho less excited that I'm going to have to have stubby fingernails to really improve at all because otherwise, I can't get my fingers in the holds I need. Still, I definitely have the bug to go back again and keep improving!
Where: Planet Rock
When: June 4
Why: In high school, I had the opportunity to dosome wall-climbing and really liked the challenge. In the following years, I've had other chances to do some climbing in a variety of less formal settings - like on a cruise ship (remember my Glamour appearance?). In an effort to keep finding new ways to be active and have fun, I bought a Groupon for climbing at the local Planet Rock gym. Two of my friends are climbing there together now, too, so I went along with them to get my first day in under my belt, or I guess under-my-harness is the more appropriate term. On that note, I learned a few other terms tonight, like "jugs" and "flashing," both of which - I was assured - are real climbing terms. I also learned how to tie some good knots!
 |
| Someday I hope to climb the way Ashley does! |
As my first time back in a climbing gym after quite a long hiatus, I went through the introductory lesson, and it didn't take long to remember some of the specifics of the process. I did a few climbs up the auto-belay just to get my nerves settled (heights aren't my favorite thing), and then joined in with my friends when they got there. I managed to get up two routes to the top, another one up over an overhanging obstacle (something I'd never done before) thanks to their great encouragement and belay skills, and then attempted a higher degree of difficulty on a later climb (a 5.8 route), but my arms had given out on me by that point. It takes a lot of upper body strength that I'm excited to build, altho less excited that I'm going to have to have stubby fingernails to really improve at all because otherwise, I can't get my fingers in the holds I need. Still, I definitely have the bug to go back again and keep improving!