Still Alive...

It's been almost a week since I've blogged anything.  I have excuses... I've been busy, I've been sick (I ended up getting a cold on top of my sinus infection... it's an interesting experience)... and, I just haven't felt like blogging.  I don't know if I'll finish the "30 Day Challenge", we'll see.  It just seems to me that I have other things going on in my life and writing about random stuff just isn't really doing it for me. =)  

I've done so much stuff around our new house over the last few weeks that I want to share/talk about... so maybe I'll go there... we'll see where the next couple of weeks takes me. =)

Leaving on a Jet Plane

I'm bad... I'm behind (again!) on my blogging, and it's not going to be better all weekend as I'm headed out of town with some friends for a few days and then have house guests... so.... I apologize, but I hope you can wait awhile until I pick up where I left off with my 30 Day Challenge. =)

Have a good weekend everyone!

Day Twenty-Two: What's in a Name?

30-Day Blog Challenge 

The Meaning Behind Your Blog Name

  

The answer to this one is pretty easy... I love the beach and I love sunflowers.  =)  I came up with the name when I started writing about my wedding planning.  "Sand Dollars & Sunflowers" was kind of the unofficial theme of the wedding.  Jacob and I both love the beach, and the first thing we KNEW about the wedding planning was that we were going to have it on the beach, and that our colors were going to match sunflowers on a beautiful day (yellow, blue and white)... and the rest of the planning stemmed from there (little pun intended *wink*).


After the wedding I decided to just keep the name the same... I mean, nothing really has changed... still love the beach and still love sunflowers. =)

Day Twenty-One: Ha! I'm Caught Up!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

First 10 "Shuffled" Songs on Your Ipod

  

With this post I will official be CAUGHT UP!  I will be ending the 21st day of the month with my 21st prompt.  I feel accomplished. ;)



I own a MP3 player, but it's a cheap model that doesn't have a shuffle feature, so, to Winamp I went and here are the first 10 songs that popped up.  I don't necessarily think that they give a full picture of my musical tastes, but I guess it's a good sampling. =)

1. Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad - Def Lepard
2. Last Kiss - Pearl Jam
3. Light up My Room - Barenaked Ladies
4. Head Over Feet- Alanis Morrisette
5. Free - Train
6. Set the Fire to the Third Bar - Martha Wainwright & Snow Patrol
7. Sweet Emotion - Aerosmith
8. Talk Tonight - Oasis
9. Used To - Daughtry
10. Running from an Angel - Hootie and the Blowfish*

*I think Hootie and the Blowfish is my current favorite band... I've been listening to a lot of their music recently and think that I will always remember their song "Hold My Hand" as our wedding song... we didn't dance to it or anything, but Jacob set our sideshow to it, and I love it. =)

Hootie & the Blowfish - New Music - More Music Videos

Day Twenty: Don't Read if You're Hungry!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Picture of Something You Ate Today

  

Looks like my "catch up day" is going to be a bit mouth watering and food focused. lol  Sorry about that. =)  


My parents came over for brunch today on their way through town (they went on a little road trip for the holiday weekend), so I searched the web this morning for something yummy that I could make them.  Here's what I found:

Quiche!  

(The prompt is something you ATE today... not something you will eat.  So, as you can see, we ate, and we enjoyed!).  I found the recipe here after doing a quick Google search, but altered it slightly based on the ingredients that I had in the house and my current dietary needs (remember we're doing a calorie count this month... I'm down about 5 pounds so far!).  Here's the altered recipe:

Fast, Crustless Quiche

1/4 cup shredded cheese
6 slices crumbled turkey bacon
4 eggs
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1/2 chopped broccoli
1/2 cup flour
2 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cup non-fat milk
1/2 tsp salt
Dash of Pepper


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 10 inch pie plate with cooking spray.  Spread the crumbled bacon in the bottom of the plate and sprinkle the cheese on top.  Beat the rest of the ingredients together until well mixed (a minute or two), and pour of the bacon and cheese.  Bake for about 35 minutes. (I used a glass dish and the cooking time increased by about 10 minutes).  Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

Day Nineteen: Mmm Mmm Good!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Recipe

  

When I saw that this next prompt was a recipe, I didn't have to think twice about which one I was going to share!  My momma's chocolate chip cookies are to DIE for (when she makes them, she'll put some in the freezer for me so that I can have them when I come to visit... it's a good incentive lol).  Here's the recipe that she passed along to me... of course they never taste as good as Mom's, but they are still pretty damn good. =)


Chocolate Chip Cookies


3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1 cup Chocolate Chips


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In mixing bowl cream butter and sugars.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Stir in remaining ingredients until well mixed.  Drop by rounded teaspoons, 2 inches apart onto lightly greased baking sheet.  Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Day Eighteen: Travel Porn

30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Picture of a Place You'd Love to Travel

  

I can NOT limit this to a single photo!  There is no way, there are just too many places that I want to travel.  Here are a few of my top dream-destinations right now:

(P.S.  While I did just watching/read "Eat, Pray, Love", know that the common "I" in my travel destinations are in now way a reference to the story... just a funny coincidence!)

Ireland

I don't know what it is about Ireland... something just draws me to it.  When Jacob and I were on our honeymoon in New Zealand, I kept thinking how much the landscapes reminded me of what I thought Ireland would look like... now I want to see for myself! =)

Iceland

A LONG time ago I was watching an episode of Oprah about traveling.  Iceland was one of the destinations that they were talking about and I remember thinking how it sounded like a place that I would love to visit... and a place that I feel like I would fit in.  I remember it coming up in conversation how Icelandic women are tall, blond, and independent... much like me. =)

Italy

Beautiful.  I don't know that there is much more that I can say about my desire to go to Italy... I just do. =)

Greece

I didn't have much of a desire to go to Greece until my younger brother started planning a trip and asked if I wanted to go along with him.  I saved as much money as I could and reading up about traveling in this beautiful country... and then my bro hit some hard times and the trip wasn't able to happen.  Now I really want to go! lol  While I would have LOVED to go to Greece with my brother, the money that I would have used for the trip was put toward the wedding... so, I guess it all worked out in the end. =)

Day Seventeen: Calling all Storks!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

Your Biggest Fear

  

My goal is to catch up by the end of tomorrow... we'll see how it goes.  Time has just kind of gotten away from me the last couple of days.  But it's been for somewhat productive things, so I'm not feeling too bad about it.


Now for this prompt.  I've kind of been dreading writing about this, because it is a real fear that I have, and putting it into words for the world to see if kind of intimidating.  I kind of alluding to something with this post but, here it goes...


I'm afraid I may not be able to have children.

I really have no reason to be fearful of this.  My fertility has never come into question, however I still worry that once I decide that I finally AM ready for this next life step, I'll realize that it can't happen.  I've had some weird medical anomalies over me life (that have never been explained) and I worry that these COULD be related somehow to child bearing (again, absolutely no reason to believe that they would be).  I know that there are many other ways to have children, and I am definitely up for these other options.  In fact, when I was younger, I didn't even think that I wanted to actually have my own children, but rather adopt... and I still think about this from time to time, but I have also come to the realization that I want to experience pregnancy (not childbirth... I could do without that. lol).  I want to know what it feels like to have a little person growing inside of me, and I want to see what Jacob and I can create together (we are going to have some damn cute kids!) =)  

The more I want it, the more scared I get.  Am I alone with this one?  Or is it a common fear among new-parent-aged people?

Day Fifteen & Sixteen: Two Birds With One Stone!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Picture of Someone You Could Never Imagine Your Life Without

or

A Photo of Your Family

  

Wow!  I'm REALLY behind!  Here I am on day 15... on the 18th day of the month.  Oops! =)  In an effort to catch up quickly, I'm going to cover two prompts with one post... since they kind of go together.  Two birds with one stone, right?  Efficiency. =)


Being as I'm recently married, you would think that my answer for the first prompt would be my husband... however, it is not.  Jacob and I had a conversation about this when we were still a dating couple and talking about the prospect of marriage.  Jacob said that he didn't know if he was ready to get married as he hadn't had that "ah ha" moment when he realized that he couldn't picture his life without me.  I told him that I hadn't either, but didn't know if we ever would.  Jacob and I met in our mid/late-20s.  We had careers, friends, and several relationships a piece before we met each other.  We had lived our lives apart and knew what they looked like.  I told Jacob that I WAS able to picture my life without him... but the thing was, that I didn't WANT to.  I knew what my life was like without him, and I didn't like it.  


Maybe if we were high school sweethearts, or had known each other since childhood things would be different... but, at this point in my life I have a different answer to the question of "who I can't picture my life without":

My Family!

I come from a fairly large family (by today's standards).  I am one of four siblings... myself and three younger brothers.  Then there's my mom and dad, who have been married for 30 years now.  Added to the bunch is my nephew, grandmother, Jacob and significant others of all of my brothers.  It makes for a pretty crazy evening around the dinner table! =) 

We are all pretty close in various ways, and I really can't imagine my life without my big, crazy, small-town family!

Day Fourteen: Into the Wind

30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Picture of Something You Want to Do Before You Die

  

Yeah... I skipped a day, I admit it.  But I'm not sorry. =)  Spent yesterday evening curled up on the couch with Jacob watching a movie and just relaxing together... it was a very nice way to spend both Valentine's Day AND our Semi-Anniversary!  (I can't believe we've been married for 6 months already!).

So... back to the challenge.  This prompt is hard for me... 'cause all of the things that I want to do before I die revolve around traveling... and there's a question about traveling coming up in a few more days so I don't want to get ahead of myself.  I'm also not much of a thrill seeker, so bungee jumping or skydiving or something similar is not in the cards for me.... so... hmm.... of course I would like to start a family... but... what else?  One thing that did occur to me last night during the movie that I'd like to do someday is this:

I'm not a HUGE thrill seeker, but I would definitely be up for riding around on the back of a motorcycle. =)  


I'd also (almost) kill to do this:

But that just goes back to my addiction to travel... which I will get to later on. =)

What would you guys like to do before you die??  I need some ideas =)

Day Thirteen: PDX

30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Photograph of the Town You Live In

  

The photos below were swiped from Jake Donahue of Donahue Media Group... he's an awesome photographer and does a fantastic job capturing the beauty that is Portland, Oregon!

I absolutely LOVE Portland and am glad that we made the decision to move here.  It's gorgeous... and it's surrounded by gorgeous places.  It's also a little weird... but I love that about it, too!  Here's a few shots that I've taken of just how odd Portland is (taken via camera phone, so excuse the quality).

Random Christmas Carolers

Wii bowling at the transit stop

Sand sculpture contest... with imported sand

Robotic T-Rex in the square

Day Twelve: I Am Me

(This is post is pre-scheduled... currently on my surprise date! Woo!)

30-Day Blog Challenge 

How Do You Think Others View You?

  

Unfortunately I know how others view me, or, at least, SOME others.  Let me explain.

I am a somewhat shy person when I'm around people I don't know and/or don't feel comfortable with.  I don't talk much, I'm more the "observe and assess type".  And, I've been told, my "neutral" facial expression looks kind of sad.  Problem is, that these elements do not seem to express SHY to onlookers... but rather STUCK UP.

When I was in middle/high school, the kids on the bus used to call me stuck up all the time.  And, of course, being the non-confrontational person that I am, I would just ignore them... which, of course, added to their "stuck up" perception of me.  Part of my boss's critiques for me in my one-year evaluation this winter at my current job was a similar comment--worded a lot nicer--but still the same meaning.

I try hard to be outwardly friendly (most of the time I don't know that I'm NOT).  I've gotten a lot better at putting myself out there since I was a preteen, and I get an A+ at acting it for people that I'm NOT around all the time (I have lots of retail experience... it comes in handy for this sort of thing).  But I can't ALWAYS act... thus I relax, and come across as stuck up.

It often seems like I'm being asked to change for other people... which kind of bothers me a bit.  But, alas, I'm trying.

Does anyone else out there have similar experiences?  Or even do people judge/mis-perceive who you are on a regular basis?

Day Ten: Update!!

This morning I was lying in bed and suddenly remembered a funny story from my childhood! (I do my best thinking in bed... unfortunate for my sleep sometimes!).  So, I thought I'd share. =)

Scene:  Sitting around the dinner table with my family.  I'm about 4 at this point, so my family only consists of my mom, dad, and brother Rob.  We are eating something that requires ketchup and my mother, who is sitting directly across the table from me, is having a hell of a time getting the cap off the ketchup bottle.  There is some problem with the suction or something, and she's struggling.  But, finally, she manages to break through the seal and get the cap off.  Air rushes into the bottle, and ketchup rushes OUT.  I don't mean just quickly onto her plate.  I mean PROJECTILE... right into MY FACE and all over the curtains behind me.

Everyone is silent, staring at me.  My face is covered in ketchup.  I'm more surprised that I've ever been in my life and have no idea how to react.  After a moment everyone breaks out of their shock, I start to bawl while everyone else starts to laugh hysterically.

Today I can look back and realize just how hilarious the situation was (and kinda wish my parents had a video camera as I'm sure we could have won a few thousand bucks from that! lol)

Day Eleven: Scarred for Life!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

Explain How You Got One of Your Scars

  

I have several scars on my body, but only two of them have any sort of a story behind them (one 100% real, the other somewhat questionable).

The first one is a battle wound... and I hold it dear!  

When I was young I lived on a cul-de-sac (I think I mentioned this in the last post).  The asphalt on the street was the kind that, when falling upon it from the seat of a two wheeler, our knee-scrapes were more of a cross-hatch style than just a scrape (much like this):

As I was a kid DETERMINED to learn how to ride a bike, I had many, many a tumble... resulting in one of these on each knee:

As you can see, the scar is no longer really on my knee... but it's kind of like a trees rings... you can see just how much I've grown since then. =)


My other scar with a story is on my arm, and now looks like a birth mark... which, if the story holds true, it really actually is!

I was a C-section baby.  And the story that I have heard (and really have no idea where... I just know that I heard it somewhere) was that the doctor nicked my arm with his scalpel during the procedure, resulting in this mark.  At this point in my life I don't even really care to know if the store is 100% accurate or not... it's an interesting story to hold onto. =)

How about you all out there?  Any interesting scar stories?

Day Ten: The Wheels on the Bus

30-Day Blog Challenge 

Share a Story From Your Childhood

  

Prompts like this one totally put me on the spot... and when I'm on the spot I can't think... at all. lol  I was hoping to come up with a funny "what I was like as a kid" story, but I'm only coming up with stories about my brothers (there are a lot!), stories from middle and high school (that I don't think count as "childhood") and then one not-so-funny story about me... so, I guess I'll go with the not so funny story.

For my early elementary school years I lived on a cul-de-sac in Moses Lake, Washington.  Starting in kindergarten I had to walk just under a mile from my house to a local elementary school (grades 4-6) where I would catch the bus to either the kindergarten or, later, the early elementary school (grades 1-3).  In the early years my mom would walk with me, but as I got older I would walk with my friends*.

One day, early on in my school career, my mom and I were making the morning walk to school.  It was really foggy outside and we could barely see a foot in front of us.  About halfway there my mom noticed that I wasn't carrying my lunch box.  She assumed that I'd just dropped it and told me not to move while she went back up the block for it.  I stood there and waited... and waited... and waited.  I don't know exactly how long I waited for (time is completely different in the eyes of a child) but I waited so long that I was afraid that I was going to miss my bus to school!  As I have always been a conscientious student (even in kindergarten! lol) I know that I did not what this to happen, so I continued the walk to the bus on my own.  I got there, in tears, but in one piece.  I told a friend's grandmother what had happened, and I got on the bus and went to school.

Apparently my friend's grandmother found my mother and told her that I was alright, and then the two of them (and my lunch) got in her car and drove to my school.  My mother was crying, I was crying, but everything was o.k.  My mother ended up having to go much farther back that she'd anticipated for my lunch box and when she finally made it to my "spot" I was no longer there.  She's just lucky I'm a responsible independent girl... if I wasn't and had made a break for it, SCHOOL probably wouldn't have been my destination! =)


*It's sad how 10 years ago allowing your 8 year old and her friends to walk a mile alone to school together was ok... however now it's almost unheard of.  Sometimes I miss THAT world...

Day Nine: C'est la Vie!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

Talk About a Regret You Have

  

I don't look at any part of my past as being "regretful".  I have always  been the type of person that would do what I put my mind to... so there aren't many things in life that I have wanted to do and didn't.  And all the crappy choices I've made over the years have lead to me to where I am now... and where I am now is happy, so I can't complain!


Sure, there's a few times in my life where I wish I would have listened to my gut a little sooner, or made the opposite choice of the one that I made... but everything worked out in the end and who knows where I'd be now if I'd taken the other "path"?


There is one thing though that I never did that I wish I would have.  I suppose this could count as a "regret" (maybe my one and only), and I think about this often... 


I never did a study abroad program in high school or college.  I do feel like I missed out a bit.  


I absolutely LOVE to travel!  But, when I was in college studying French and the opportunity arose I allowed money and a romantic relationship to get in my way... and I really wish I wouldn't have.  


But, like I said before.  I am somewhere/someone I love now, and who knows what would have happened had I jetted off to Europe for a year? =)


Do any of you have "regrets"?  Or maybe something about study abroad programs that would make me feel better about not doing it? ;)

P.S.  I did get a chance to travel to Europe... but only for a couple weeks.  I hope to some day go back!

Day Eight: Laugh a Little

30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Picture That Makes You Laugh

  

It's hard for me to pick a single photo for this post... I have so many ridiculous photos of myself that make me cringe laugh.  So, I figured I'd just keep it to a couple of categories. =)  First off, wedding photos!


There are a number of photos that I highlighted in my "Out Takes" post, but here's a recap of some of the best/most laughable:

I love photos of myself laughing... I think this one ranks up there with this photo I posted earlier this week.

Someone told my nephew to smile.  This is what we got. =)

I don't know what to say about this one. lol  I just know that it makes me laugh every time I see it!

Second category of laugh-worthy photos:  My cat.  He is a constant source of humor, both in person and in photographs.  Here are a few of my favorites (I'm not a crazy cat lady, I promise! He's just so damn cute! lol):

During one of our moves... I think he was hiding. =)

Always sticking his head in small spaces.

It was a hot day. lol

Day Seven: Not Worth it if it's Not Comfortable!

30-Day Blog Challenge 

Describe the Style you had 10 Years Ago

  

Hmm... I think this would have been a much more interesting post had the question been 15 or 20 years ago (elementary/middle school era was a lot more humiliating than high school for me in terms of my fashion sense).  

Ten years ago I was 18, a senior in high school.  My style could best be described as "comfortable".  I pretty much lived in jeans (I still do... when I got my current job and was told that I needed to dress business-y I had to run out and buy several new pairs of pants).  I was no longer in the screen print t-shirt stage (I gave that up when I entered high school), so it was pretty much just any comfortable, non-t-shirty top that I could find and a pair of blue jeans, with a zipper hoodie on cold days.  Occasionally I would want to get girly and I'd wear a skirt or something, but that didn't happen very often.   Here are some photos that I gathered from my late high school/early college days... like I said... nothing too embarrassing. =)

I'm the blonde on the right... we all stuck together back then. lol

Junior Prom.  I had a white boa too... I loved it! =)  Interesting side note, the necklace I'm wearing here is the same one I ended up wearing for the wedding... I just noticed that...

Blonde on the left this time. =)

See?  Not very interesting.  In all actuality, my style hasn't really changed that much.  I"m buying clothes that fit a little better, and stealing accessory/fashion ideas from people I see on the streets (who aren't TOO over the top.. think scarf as accessory and boots over skinny jeans... OMG, right? lol), but my daily wardrobe still consists of comfortable clothing that occasionally makes me feel girly. =)

Have your styles changed dramatically over the last 10 years?

P.S.  I need a new 'do and I'm thinking about cutting my bangs back (again... I've thought about this frequently)... what do you all think? =)

Day Six: Juneau!

 30-Day Blog Challenge 

A Photo that Makes you Happy

This photo is circa 2000.  My friend Josie was taking my senior photos (we bartered the task... I did hers the year before) and my dog decided to "attack".

 I LOVE this photo because it's one of the few photos of myself that I have in which I look GENUINELY happy.  It is, obviously, not the most attractive photo I have of myself, but I am radiating joy... and I love it.

I also love looking at this photo now as my parents no longer have that dog (her name was Juneau, she was a malamute/husky mix) and seeing it just reminds me of all the memories I have of her as well... napping together on the carpet in the kitchen (since she wasn't actually allowed in the house), the first day we got her (and how, in my journal I wrote that it would probably be the best day of my life... besides my wedding of course (oh, the mind of an 8 year old! lol)), and trying to walk her around the neighborhood (when really, she was always the one walking us).  Every kid needs a snuggly pet... and she was a good one.

Just to add another photo to this post, here is a shot of my favorite (and only) pet now.  Scout in one of his usual sleepy-time positions... lol... he's a weird guy, but I love him because of it. =)