Progress on the list...

Yesterday I crossed something off my list--I sat for boudoir photos!  I know, crazy :)  I have been thinking about it for awhile, not so much for my husband (though I am sure that he won't mind seeing the pictures), but for myself.  In doing some research on photography for a friend, I came across some really great sites, and I was struck by how fabulous and self-confident this "regular" women looking in these photographs.  Self-confidence is always one area that has been hard for me and having photographs taken seems like a form of torture at times, so this seemed like a good "test" for me and a way to push myself out of my own box. 

My great friend Steff decided to come up from Portland for the session with me and we had a great time!  I was surprised about how relaxed I felt.  I haven't been that relaxed when being photographed, ever, which is ironic, given the situation.

I haven't seen any of the photographs yet, but I am hoping that there are some that look good and that I--the relaxed me--was captured.  I am nervous about seeing them though, I will admit!

I did learn a good lesson--things that you think are super noticeable are probably not.  I said something about my scar from my recent surgery and the photographer said "what scar?"  

So, part one was a great success--let's see how part two (seeing the photos) goes!  (And no, I am not posting them on the blog :) )

Steps toward Number 6

So...I took a step today toward number 6 on my list--finish a marathon...I bought a book :)  I have a few other running books on my "to read" list as well, but this was the first marathon specific book.  It is called The Non Runner's Marathon Guide for Women by Dawn Dais.  It has been good so far.  I am thinking about which race to sign up for and nervous just thinking about it!  

I don't know why I choose such big goals. I mean, maybe I should start with running a 5k, instead of 26.2 miles!  I tend to do this--go all in with stuff.  I am not a runner--I have never been.  When I did my triathlons a couple of years ago I walked most of the 5k.  My goal was just to complete the triathlon and I did (twice).  I was really slow (I just looked at my times and they are embarrassingly slow), but I finishing and that was my goal.  But most of the "run" portion (5k) was walked.  

So, I am a bit apprehensive about the whole thing but I want to do it (for some reason I can't explain). I am thinking about the Seattle Rock-n-Roll Marathon at the end of June. I think that should be enough time to train.  Hmmmm....guess what I will be thinking about this weekend!!

Sunrise in Seattle

So on Saturday night my husband announced that we were waking up early, but did not tell me why. He likes to surprise me, so I try not to prod and just say okay. Well, when it was before 6 and he is telling me I need to get out of bed...I wasn't exactly a happy camper, but I rolled out of bed, threw on my favorite hoodie and sweat pants. Gess announced that we were going to see the sunrise. At first I got a little excited--seeing a sunrise is on my LIST after all. But then I remembered that Gess doesn't read my blog and probably has no idea what is on my LIST. So, that made me a little sad. Obviously this wasn't romantic gesture that I thought that it might be. But...I put on my happy face and tried to enjoy it anyway and not get mad at him--since he didn't do anything wrong...

Turns out, the reason that we were going was that Clane asked him to, so that they could play with their toys--I mean there very important professional equipment.

Luckily we had good coffee and no rain and got some good glimpses of the view--even though the fog was being difficult. Gess hasn't uploaded any of his photos yet, but here is one of Clane's (thanks!)





One more to cross off the list!!

Checked off the list: Read The Secret

Why is this on my list?: My sister-in-law was reading the book and said it was "interesting" so I decided to give it a try. I bought it awhile ago and it has just sat on my shelf, so I put it on the list to make sure it got read.

How did I do it?: Opened it up and read :)

How did it feel?: I actually really did not like the book at all and I think that it is just a bunch of nonsense (the basic premise is that if you want something you will get it as long as you want it enough and believe that you will get it). I just can't mess that with the horrors that happen to people in this world. Not wanting my time to be entirely wasted though, I took a couple of parts from the book as good reminders. One is to be thankful (thus my Thankful Thursday postings) and the other is to just try to be more positive.

Count: 4/101

Checked of the list: Wear Red Nailpolish

Why did I put this on the list?: It is bold, something that I want to be more of...

How did I do it?: Went to the salon and chose the right color (The color was OPI's Mrs O'Leary's BBQ)

How did it feel?: The nails looked great--I felt a little stylish. Must do again!

Count: 3/102

Checked off the list: Design a logo

Why did I put this on the list?: During my monogram obsession (see previous posts ), I became obsessed with the idea of learning how to do this, so it went on the list!

How did I do it?: Gotta love the Internet. I found a blog with tutorials on making monograms with photoshop and spent a lot of time playing around with it.

How did it feel?: I really love to create--so it was very satisfying to learn to create something in a digital form. I have made several logos/monograms since :) Here are a couple:




Count: 2/101

Checked off the list: Make a blog header

Why did I put this on my list? I kept saying that I needed to make a blog header--said it many times. So, I put it on the list, and did it!

How did I do it? I found a tutorial online and used Photoshop. I did it late at night while I was watching the men's speed-walking event at the Olympics.

How did it feel? I LOVE the header--it looks so cool!! Very happy I did it. :)

Count: 1/101

Trip to the Seattle Art Museum

The Seattle Art Museum is featuring an exhibit called "Inspiring Impressionism" that showcases works of famous impressionists such as Monet, Renoir, and Manet (to name a few) and the classic paintings that they drew inspiration from. I have been wanting to see it for awhile, and it is set to end on Sept. 21st, so we decided to go this weekend. We actually bought a membership to the museum for the year, so hopefully I will be making many more trips there. The facility is really amazing.

I really enjoyed the exhibit. Monet is definitely one of my favorites, so it was neat to see some of his beautiful work in person. Surprisingly my favorite painting was actually a nude by Renoir. I think that it is the bold colors in the background along with the confident look of the model.

Nude on a Couch 1915 Femme nue sur un canapé

Gess's favorite was also a Renoir (called The Wave 1882)

I also loved this Monet:

Zuiderkerk in Amsterdam

Also, visiting an art museum was on my list, so I get to cross something off! Yay! :)

So for the "Checked Off the List" post:

Why did I put this on my list?: I love looking at art, but have only been to the Seattle Art Museum once since we have lived here.

How did I do it?: I really wanted to see this particular exhibit, so I waiting until nearly the last weekend and then made sure we went :)

How did it feel?: Great--I really enjoyed it!

Count: 5/101

101 Things in 1001 Days

I came across this website and thought that it was a fabulous idea! The gist of the idea is to make a list of 101 things that you want to do in 1001 days (about 2.75 years). The things are supposed to be measurable and take some work on your part. I am a big list maker and goal setter, so this sounded perfect.

It turned out to be much harder than I thought it would be to come up with 101 things, and it actually took me about a week to do it. The good news is that I completed 2 of the things on my list while making the list, so I have a start! :) Some of them are going to be hard, but some will be easy...hopefully they will all be fun!

Here's the list:

101 Things in 1001 Days
1. Record song for grandma
2. Sew an article of clothing
3. Sit for boudoir photos
4. Learn to design a logo
5. Go bungee jumping
6. Finish a marathon
7. Write a book
8. Walk/swim under a waterfall
9. Wear red lipstick in public proudly
10. Make a necklace
11. Interview a homeless person
12. Be able to do a full pull up
13. Swim a mile
14. Be comfortable driving a stick
15. Take a solo road trip
16. Get to my healthy weight
17. Learn to snowboard
18. Sing karaoke
19. Design a cool blog header
20. Scan in all our photos
21. Spend a whole (work) day in bed just cause
22. Take a cooking class
23. Watch Casablanca
24. Fly a kite
25. Visit a winery
26. Learn to use photoshop adequately
27. Go to a pumpkin patch
28. Go ice skating.
29. Go skinny dipping
30. Make a quilt
31. Sell something I made (even if for $1)
32. Watch Breakfast at Tiffany's
33. Get my room organized
34. Have a garage sale
35. Finish cross-stitching projects
36. Write a children's book
37. Watch the sun rise
38. Cut my craft stash in half!
39. Identify 100 things that make me happy
40. Start a daily meditation routine
41. Start a business
42. Brush up on Spanish
43. Go through personal training course
44. Find my passion
45. Make bedroom curtains
46. Learn to make a great latte
47. Learn to ride a motorcycle
48. Kayak here
49. Go white-water rafting or river tubing
50. Go to art museum
51. Go on a picnic with my hubby
52. Dance in the rain
53. Learn calligraphy
54. Learn to straighten my hair
55. Eat breakfast in bed
56. Carve a jack-o-lantern
57. Have a outdoor candle-light dinner
58. Learn to poach eggs
59. Take a backpacking trip
60. Go to a hotsprings
61. Camp out in the living room
62. Plan a surprise for Gess
63. Wear red nail polish
64. Organize my recipes
65. Have wedding pictures retaken
66. Spend a day as a tourist in Seattle
67. Go to a drive-in
68. Go to an amusement park
69. Spend a weekend without TV/internet
70. Hike near Mt. Rainer
71. Make contact with an old friend
72. Get rid of clothes that I don't truly love
73. Read The Secret
74. Finish Beck book
75. Finish The Artist's Way
76. Go camping
77. Go to the fair
78. "Camp" in the backyard
79. Go to the San Juans
80. Go down a water slide
81. Build a website
82. Have a snowball fight
83. Go to Bainbridge Island for the day
84. Take a yoga class
85. Take a pilates class
86. Take a kickboxing class
87. Make my music playlists
88. Can something
89. Make my own spa product
90. Make a project out of The Big Ass Book of Crafts
91. Make a purse/bag
92. Get a makeover at one of the makeup counters
93. Make a pizza on the grill
94. Pick new volunteer venture
95. Jump on the bed
96. Blow bubbles
97. Decorate the sidewalk with chalk
98. Plan a dream vacation
99. Bake bread
100. Go rock climbing
101. Celebrate finishing the list!!