40 Things to Do Before I Turn 40

I just had the stark reality hit me that I am indeed turning 40 in 4.5 years - when did I get so old?  There are still so many things that I want to do and see an accomplish.  I have recently been reminded how short life actually is and how you can be fine one day and then your universe can be completely turned upside down the next day.

Leading up to my 25th birthday I had a really hard time tuning "24+1" as I would call it so I made a list of 30 things to do before I turned 30.  Well life got in the way and I met a wonderful man, got married and became a step-mom to 3 awesome kids.  Needless to say this was never completed.  With the youngest graduating in a week it is time that I reincarnate my list and set out to get these completed before December 17th, 2021.

My hopes are to document my adventures and completions here.

1. Take a trip off of North America

2. Go on a cruise

3. Read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen in its entirety

4. Do something selfless for the planet

5. Try something new

6. Have a heart pumping adventure like skydiving or walking on glass

7. See the Northern Lights

8. Re-learn Spanish (I was fluent at one time I swear!)

9. Become certified in scuba diving

10. Complete an unassisted pull-up

11. Go for High Tea

12. Shower in a Waterfall

13. Go on a road trip throughout the US

14. Visit all 50 states

15. Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland

16. Visit Yellowstone National Park

17. Take a hot air balloon ride

18. Ride a Segway

19. Take a train somewhere

20. Go white water rafting

21. Visit a psychic

22.  Ride in a helicopter

23. Attend a murder mystery dinner

24.  Attend an epic festival or event

25. Take a class in something weird

26. Do something I am afraid of

27. Celebrate New Year’s Eve in a foreign city

28. Splurge on a meal at a 3-star Michelin restaurant

29. Volunteer

30. Learn five good cheese and wine pairings.

31. Spend the night on a yacht in the middle of a beautiful body of water

32. Go drink real bubbles in France’s Champagne area

33. Live somewhere that is completely different from my hometown

34. Feel comfortable in my own skin (and maybe possibly a bikini?)

35. Plant succulents (I should be able to keep those alive)

36. Write a letter to myself to read in 10 years

37. Watch the sunset into the ocean with a glass of wine

38. Watch the sunrise over the ocean with a mimosa

39. Attend the Opera

40. Get another tattoo

Happy Holidays!

Sorry it has been so long, I hope everyone is having a great holiday season and is prepared for Christmas Eve tomorrow.  We are lucky enough to have local family so we are not hosting Christmas Eve or Christmas dinner this year.  We did however get to host Thanksgiving which was great considering all of the work we had done on our dining room to get it ready.

This year we did something different and started out with these easy-peasy apple cider mimosas.  The rim was done with a cinnamon sugar mixture.  The good stuff is your favorite apple cider mixed with champagne and an apple garnish.  They were so yummy!

I love decorating and do tablescapes so you can only imagine how fun this was for me!  I received all of my grandmother's china when she passed away in May so it was extra special to host this year.

We made these chargers as well.  They were pretty easy just time consuming and much more cost effective than purchasing their dopplegangers at Pier 1.  You can also see my beautiful hutch that was madeover.  You can see that post here.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!!!

Happy National Coffee Day!

Cold Brew Coffee 

Iced coffee is so refreshing and easy to make. Bonus: No coffee maker needed. 

(Image courtesy of Farm Fresh to You)

Information

Serves:  makes approximately 3 cups coffee

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup ground coffee beans (I used a Columbian blend from Trader Joes)
• water
• ice cubes
• sugar (optional) milk or milk alternative (optional)

Instructions

• In a large jar with a lid, pour the coffee grinds in. Fill with approximately three cups water and refrigerate overnight.
• Place a colander inside a large bowl. Pour the coffee into the colander and let it drain. You can also put a coffee filter in the colander for extra filtering.
• Pour the filtered coffee back into a jar. Get your favorite glass and fill with ice. Pour the cold brew coffee over the ice and stir in milk or milk alternative if desired.
• If you want to put sugar in your coffee, fill a small saucepan with a few tablespoons of water. Bring to a boil and quickly stir in the sugar until it melts. Stir the simple syrup into your iced coffee. 
 

 

Mexican Themed Bridal Shower

Hola! My brother got married over the summer and I was tasked with a typical bridesmaid duty of helping to throw the bridal shower.  Allison's sister is still in college and has never been in a wedding let alone thrown a shower so I took charge on this one with help from all of the bridal party of course.

We decided to go with a Mexican theme due to the fact that their wedding was going to be in Mexico and we decided to make it co-ed so it could double as their at home reception/party for everyone who couldn't make the trip to Mexico.

We set up a salsa bar adorned with homemade salsas, a yummy 7 layer dip and tons of chips.

 The bar was a huge hit with two types of sangria and two kegs.  The logo'd cups were a huge hit and an extra favor for everyone to take home.

 We did the fruit on skewers for the sangria so it didn't clog the jar.

The full bar.

A taco bar spread was a great way to feed a large group and all of the prep was done ahead of time.

 Lots of bright colors and a multitude of hot sauces.

Signage is always a must!

The favor table full of Mexican hot chocolate.  

The Mexican blankets and sombreros served as great decor.

 The dessert table was inside to prevent melting and donned pictures of the beautiful couple.

They opened present in the decorated gazebo.

The decorated deck.

The bride and her girls.

I highly suggest doing a Mexican fiesta next time you have to throw a big party.  It was so fun to decorate and pretty cheap to feed a large group.

NOLA

I was lucky enough to get to go to NOLA at the end of June for Junior Olympics with the volleyball team that I coach.  It was such an amazing experience for the girls (and coaches too!).

The cuisine in New Orleans is amazing and this trip didn't fall short.

 A new take on the traditional NOLA cuisine with Jambalaya Pizza

 Can't come to NOLA and not try alligator, so here is Gator Andouille Sausage.

 One of my favorite low key restaurants in New Orleans is the Rum House.  They have great drinks and about 20 different tacos.

 Shrimp and Grits

Shrimp PoBoy

We were able to do some sightseeing while we were in New Orleans and I am still amazed by the beauty of the cemeteries there. 

Of course this trip was centered around volleyball and there was plenty of that!

 The iconic photo in front of the big volleyball.

Lunch Break!

Big win on Day 3 to secure our spot into the Gold bracket and continue on with our win streak of 8-0.

 

 The win that placed us into the finals!  10-0 at this point.

Finals here we come!!!

Pregame ceremony

 Game time action on the big court.  This photo was taken by a family member from their tv.

Another tv photo right after the win :)

Gold Medal Champions!!!!

Hello? Remember Me....

So yes I know it has been a while, in fact way too long...... but with that being said I have so much to talk about and so many adventures from the summer to catch everyone up on so I promise to do so in the next few weeks.

Here are a few sneak peeks of what I have been up to.

I gained a sister-in-law this summer with the marriage of my brother Kyle.  To say that I love her isn't enough, she is absolutely amazing!  With weddings come all kinds of fun things and believe me we did them all.  I will definitely post more later, but here is a sneak peek.

A wedding in Mexico called for a Mexican themed bridal shower.  We did this as a co-ed shower so Kyle could be involved and it turned out great.  A post on this shower will come later.

Since everyone was traveling to Mexico for the wedding, Allison didn't want to have a large and crazy bachelorette party so we opted for Hat day at the Races which turned out to be a great day of horse racing and wine drinking....two of my faves!

First beer with my stepson upon our arrival to Mexico.  We had to put on our party hats.  I found mine at Buckle and Zachary found his at Spencers.

Photo booths never disappoint and especially when you can get a photo with your mom, aunt and cousin.

At the end of June, I was in NOLA for Junior Olympics where my team just happened to take Gold, how exciting is that!!!  More info to come on this but here is a photo of these little champs.

Love these girls to pieces! 

A week ago we said farewell to summer with a concert at Levi Stadium.  We went to Luke Bryan's "Kick Up the Dust" tour.

A photo of all of the girls.

I promise to post more later, but at least this is a little sneak peek of all of the amazing-ness of the summer of 2015.

Oh Sandy....

I have been glued to the television all day today watching as Hurricane Sandy is getting ready to make her debut.  Here in California, we are obviously not going to be affected by this storm but it is so scary to think of all my friends back east.  We have a storm coming in Wednesday or Thursday but nothing to the magnitude of this one.

I did break out my Uggs this weekend for the first time in a while and my feet were happy to feel the warm fuzz. I have been wondering what style I am going to buy this winter and I am really liking both of these.

Rain boots are always a necessity in these adverse weather conditions as well.