My "30 before 30" List

I had this idea in September to create a list of 30 things to do/ accomplish/ etc before I turn 30 years old. I decided to start on my 25th birthday in December so I will have 5 years to check off my list. When I was thinking about turning 25 and looking back at my life so far, all that I've done and realized how much more I want to do! There are things I want to accomplish in my life and what I want my life to be...some are out of my control, but a simple wish on my part. :) So here we go! I'm using this as a documentation of achieving items on my list...and my everyday life too. Hopefully I'm better at this blogging thing than when I tried this before :)


Here is my official 30 before 30 List!
1. Visit Maine, preferably in the fall
2. Go on a mission trip
3. Sell something that I have made- such as a painted canvas, homemade cards, etc
4. Visit Sarah in Denver and go hiking in the Rockies
5. Attend a concert, preferably country!
6. Read through the Bible 2x
7. Get married (this one is pretty much out of my control, but it still makes the list!)
8. Have a baby
9. Road trip to the Grand Canyon
10. Visit Harold and Arlene in Idaho
11. Stay at the Netten Campout the whole week
12. Travel to Honduras to visit Christa
13. Start a retirement plan
14. Mail a card one time a month, every month
15. Spend 2 weekends a year unplugged from internet, email, TV, and phone
16. Go camping in the Boundary Waters
17. Pay off loan from Mom and Dad
18. Finish scrapbooks of Rachel's wedding and Sara's wedding
19. Try a new recipe 6x each year
20. Tithe every month
21. Volunteer at a food bank or something similar
22. Devotional time 4x a week
23. Have a girls' weekend: at least 3 out of the 5 years
24. 30 days of no clothes shopping 3x a year
25. Blog once a week all 5 years
26. Go to a zoo
27. Go on at least 1 date a year
28. Travel to Canada
29. Re-finish/ re-do a piece of furniture
30. Buy a new car


I'm looking forward to crossing things off my list!! It's a good mix of easy things to accomplish and good goals to reach for myself.

getting into the swing of things

Well it's been awhile since I last posted! Life got really busy, and I didn't make time for blogging. I graduate in 3 weeks and couldn't be more excited!! I have a lot to finish for my portfolio book before then, but I'll get it done :) You would think that after 6+ years of college, I would be better at the procrastination thing...

A quick update, I moved out of my sister's house in September and into a condo with 2other girls. We get along great and I love living on my own! It has been fun decorating the place...especially now in the Christmas season. I'm not sure where life will take me after I graduate, but since my lease goes until next September I'm hoping for a job in the cities.

In a couple of days, it is my 25th birthday...I never thought I would be a person scared of my age, but I think I feel "behind on life" since most people my age have already been working for a couple years and I'm just graduating from college. I'm really excited for this next stage of life and where God will take me! Look forward to my "30 before 30" list coming later this week!

dream house continued...

Finals are done!!! Now I can breathe again for 3 wks before going back for the summer quarter!

Continuing on with my "dream house" ideas :) I'll show my favorite inspirational dining and living room spaces...I have quite a few! I just couldn't narrow them down :) All of them have a calming mix of creams, blues, and browns.

I love the idea of having a built-in bench for a kitchen nook eating area. The pendants are also what caught my eye.

Candice Olson is one of my favorite designers. Always adds a little sparkle to the spaces she designs! This would be great for a more formal eating area...lots of room for my big family! Plus, I love the built-in buffet and how it contrasts with the wood floor and blue paint on the wall. And the fireplace looks like you could make the space feel cozy and romantic :)

This living space was designed by John Willey. Love the blue sofas and the bold blue and brown drapes too! It's a good mix of clean lines and texture.

All of the beautiful light coming in from the large windows and french doors are what first attracted me to this living room. I also like the colors and the variety of chairs. (Found at House Beautiful.com)

Those textural old doors are what my eyes always travel to first! I also love the chandelier and rugged coffee and they are the perfect compliment to the clean lines of the sofa and neutral surroundings. (Designed by Kay Douglass)

The striped floors are what I like about this living room, plus the accents of blue :). And I've always wanted to have that star light fixture! I'm determined to have one in my house someday! (Designed by Ginger Barber)

I love the exposed beams, fireplace, and the bright pop of the turquoise chairs in this room! Turquoise is definitely my favorite color and I like all colors that are in its family too :) (From Country Living)

This living room just makes me swoon. Walls of windows, exposed beams, paneled ceiling, simple clean lines that give a sense of comfort...yep I love it! (Designed by Susan Tully)

memory snapshots

Interrupting dream home images to bring you this post :)

This past weekend was full of celebrations...baby shower for my sister Sara and high school graduation for my baby sister Leah and my niece Alisha. It was so much fun having all my siblings around for the weekend. I actually only took 12 pictures on my camera...surprisingly...so here are a few moments I "captured" in my mind.

My sister Leah and niece Courtney playing boxing and bowling on the Wii....SO hilarious to watch! wish I caught it on video :)

My mom attempting to play golf on the Wii....I'm so proud of her for trying!

My brother Naboth standing next to his oldest daughter at her graduation party....I'm sure it won't hit him and his wife that Alisha graduated until they bring her to Chicago in August.

My Grandma Netten helping clean-up after my sister's graduation party. There is no telling her to sit down and not help :)

My dad talking with most of his brothers at my sister's graduation party...they are all so much alike!! Quiet and and very dry sense of humor :)

dream house ideas....for the moment :)

I have a whole folder on my computer dedicated to my inspiration design ideas. I love looking through the pictures when I want to dream about my future house. :) Which is a long ways down the road... haha!

I love porches...and the look of older houses.

Entering into the house: love the bench...with the hooks above and space for displaying pictures

Choosing between all my kitchen pictures was too hard so I had to include more than one :)

I really like the painted cabinets...almost can't believe I'm saying that...used to be such a firm believer in solid wood cabinetry. My mind is opening to new ideas! And I like the bookshelf at the end of the island. Handy for cookbooks and other items you might want to display.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens

I really like the wall paint color in this kitchen...should be no surprise to those who know me! It's in my favorite color family: turquoise :) Also like the chalkboard detail on the side of the cabinet.

Source: Jen Johner blog

The blue subway tiles grabbed my attention here...and the bamboo curtains mixed with the white cabinetry. Gives a good grounding to the kitchen.

In this kitchen, I like the ceiling detail and how the lower cabinets are painted a different color than the other cabinets. And you can catch a bit of the farmhouse sink...they are my FAVORITE!

source: Canadian House and Home

And so this post doesn't turn so long....I'll be back tomorrow with pictures of my dream living room, bedroom and bathroom ideas!

faith lessons

I have loved the sermons at my church lately...speaking to me and pushing me to think more and more about how I'm living my life. So I think about it...but really I need to make changes and put what I'm learning into action. That's always the hardest part right??

A couple of notes I've taken:

Be with Jesus: Just as you are. (this to me means being vulnerable and being okay with not being perfect before you go to God...so hard for me. I need to get past that!)

When it's Jesus plus something, you end up losing Jesus and fall into the deceptions of the "somethings"--gets into the legalisms

More stuff does NOT equal a satisfied life. Just makes us want more stuff. (WOW....I see this so much in the world around me..it's what "they" try to push...and in my own life)

Easy equals Jesus furnishing what you need. (Now I just need to work on my TRUST issues...God has such a better plan than me!)

So that's what I've been trying to process..... it's good stuff. I'm so blessed to have found a church that can feed me just what I need! Thank you God!!!! I've also just started volunteering with the children's department...and I love it :)

Alright on to some cleaning so I can enjoy the rest of my weekend without that on my plate :)

school logo canvas for G

Here is the completed canvas for G, my nephew. It's been done for awhile, but I got away from posting for awhile and now I'm trying to get back into it again :) My brother-in-law added the wood frame and it is a great finishing touch!

G loves it and I think his older brother is a little bit jealous too :) haha!

let in the sunshine

The days of winter can get--excuse me, ARE--long, cold, grey, and freezing cold. :) It can affect my outlook on life and I forget the beauty that is around me...even when life seems "not beautiful". One of my latest favorite songs is called "Hello Sunshine" by the Barlow Girls. It's a great song to listen to on a cold dreary day like today to remind myself to look for the "sun" even when it doesn't seem to be here.
................
Hello sunshine it's been too long since
I felt your beautiful warmth upon my face
And how much have I missed
Because I've been focused on everything wrong
This road just felt so long
I forgot to lift my head to see you

Oh my lovely shining for me
Let my eyes see all the beauty Oh-oh

Hello sunshine since the moment
That I felt your beautiful warmth
I knew that I'd do anything
To keep this feeling of you
My heart comes alive
Oh who could add a day to this life
By drowning every dark sky

Oh my lovely shining for me
Let my eyes see all the beauty Oh-oh

Fill my dark skies
Make me see why
Life is fine so bring in the sunshine Oh-oh

Whoa-oh let in the sunshine
Whoa-oh let in the sunshine
Whoa-oh let in the sunshine
Let in the sunshine

cold winter nights

Tonight is a chill night...no homework...just watching movies on TV, reading, and internet browsing (finding clothes to use my Christmas gift card on :)). Plus, my brother-in-law just started a fire that feels so wonderful on a chilly January night. The following are some images I've saved...Enjoy!!!


(coastal living)

(house beautiful)

(unknown)

(house beautiful)

creative outlet

I have realized even though I go to an "arts school" I need to have another outlet to have as a release. So I picked up painting canvases...I'm doing a lot of experimenting...and usually they aren't meant for anyone other than myself, but it has been a great outlet for me to relaz through painting... no outside expectations...just what I want it to be. And if it is not going the way I imagined...you can paint it over and start again :) So here is just a sampling of what I've done in the past couple months.

The following one I made for my parents (one of my firsts):

This next one was for the one of the neighbor girls...she saw me painting the one for my parents and asked me to paint one for her with her favorite colors. She LOVED it :)

And then her younger sister asked for one too...and I couldn't resist because these girls are so cute :) I ;earned a lot from creating this canvases....and know I have much to improve on, but it is a great process for me.


I'm just finishing up a painting for my nephew...his school's logo. It turned out pretty well for his themed room that I just finished painting this week. I'll post pictures when the room is complete!

That's all for today...now on to the homework :(

what a day.

I cut my head open today. So my day has turned out quite differently than I had planned :) And here the somewhat long story:

I am repainting my nephew's room and was going to paint the stripe today. I had just finished taping the boundaries when I stepped back to observe my "straightness" and I tripped over a lamp cord. Bad move!!! The lamp was on a bookshelf and it had a ceramic base. The base hit my head, crashed to the floor, and I screamed out with pain. I ran to the bed holding my head to lay down...I don't do well with pain so I didn't want to faint. As I was laying crying on the bed, I realized my hand was wet...pulled my hand away and it was full of blood. That freaked me out!! I quickly grabbed a rag and headed to the neighbors for help. Of course this happened while I was home alone. Thankfully, they were home and were able to calm me down so they could take a look at it. They called my sister... even though she was out of town and would be unable to do anything. Once again, thankfully, the cut wasn't deep and closed up right away. I laid down for awhile with a ice pack on my head...and was feeling better, but they still wouldn't let me go home :) But I have to admit, it was great to have someone take care of me and a family to hang out with b/c it had been a pretty lonely weekend. Now I'm back at home and a bit scared to fall asleep... I don't want to accidentally lay on my cut during the night or do something to make it start bleeding again. So instead, I'm watching TV with an ice pack on my head...hoping to fall asleep at some point. Another thing to be thankful for...no school tomorrow so I can get the homework done that I was supposed to get done today!

more trust

I never make New Year's Resolutions...because let's face it, they won't happen. But this year I'm feeling a need to live with less stress and worry so I'm trying to trust God more. I have this idea in my head of what I want my life to be, but God has such a better plan for me. I need to let go of the "perfect world" I've dreamed up because it just lets me down. I'm not going to stop dreaming...but more of living in reality and trust in God. My life has certainly taken a different path than I ever expected. I never thought I would transfer colleges and start a whole new degree. It has been quite the ride and I'm ready to finish this last year out strong! The change has probably brought the most bumps in my road, but I'm ready to embrace them and see them more as a learning experience...instead of the negative way I used to see them.

So this year is all about trust for me. Trust in God that He will bring me where I need to be. Trust in myself that I have the skills and talent to succeed. Trust in my friends that they will be encouraging me along the way. Trust in my family that they will love me no matter what and will be there to help pick up the pieces.

I was flipping through my Bible last night and came across these verses that really seem to fit to my life right now.

"I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord. Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods. Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare." Psalm 40:1-5

I can't say that I was patient...but God is the patient one. Waiting for us to realize how much we need him. Daily. Hourly.