30 Things To Do Before Thirty- UPDATE

If you’ve been following our blog for awhile, you likely caught my original 30 things to do before thirty post. As promised, here is an update on how I’m doing-

1. Take a spontaneous weekend trip Yeah, haven’t tackled this one yet. Must remember to be spontaneous.

I’m the queen of planning when it comes to trips. For once, I think it might be nice to decide on a Friday afternoon to take off somewhere for the weekend without a second thought.

2. Splurge on an item I can’t afford but will last for years Help! I can’t decide what I want! Trying to decide between this, this, and this.

Thinking it’s finally time to purchase that pair of shoes, or designer bag I’ve had my eyes on for years now.

3. Spend time volunteering Accomplished! I was one of several volunteers that helped count the thousands upon thousands of “Believe” letters (to Santa) at Macy’s Herald Square during the holidays. For every letter written, Macy’s is donating $1 to Make-A-Wish. It was announced that this year Macy’s is donating $2M!!

I started volunteering with Make-A-Wish last fall, but between my day job, this website, and life in general, I haven’t been able to dedicate myself to it as much as I would like. I’d like to get more involved over this next year.

4. Go skiing Not sure that this one is going to be accomplished, but hey, maybe I can cross off this one and #1 at the same time

I’ve been fortunate enough to travel to a large portion of the United States, as well as Europe, but believe it or not I’ve never been skiing.

5. Unplug for a full day Ugh, still need to do this.

For one day, I’d love to wake up, turn off all of my devices, and go sit in Central Park with an actual book (not my Kindle or iPad) for the entire day.

6. Visit a state I’ve never been to Accomplished! Last fall I marked 3 more off my list.

I think I’m down to only 15 or so states that I’ve never been to. This year I’d like to cross another one (at least) off my list.

7. Meet someone new TECHNICALLY, I’ve met new people, but not in the sense that I necessarily meant below. I haven’t yet formed a new friendship with someone I’ve actually managed to keep in touch with.

And by this I don’t necessarily mean romantically (although by no means am I opposed to that- Prince Harry are you listening?). Most of my close friends I’ve known for 20+ years. I’m not very good (or comfortable) with making new friends.

8. Live healthier Accomplished! I finally got around to joining a gym. Yay me!

I do eat pretty healthy for the most part, save from the occasional black and white cookie, but I’d like to be more active. So, I’m challenging myself to take more walks and just get up and move more in general.

9. Read a classic book I need some suggestions here. I think I didn’t read some of these the first time around for a reason. They sound so boring! What’s your favorite classic novel?

You know those books you were assigned to read in high school but opted to just read the cliff’s notes instead? I’d like to go back and actually read one of them.

10. Watch a classic movie Watching Christmas movies took up too much of my time last year. Next snowy Saturday night we have I’ll cross this one off my list.

I love movies, and have seen a lot, but there are a few (like Gone With the Wind, Casablanca, Annie Hall, to name a few) that I always hear people referencing that I have yet to see.

11. Learn to cook something new Accomplished! Well, I asked Shelby if she remembers anything new I’ve made and she mentioned some holiday baking I did. When it comes to cooking, I’m not a big recipe follower. I like to think I have good instincts when it come to combining different ingredients and flavors, so while I haven’t really cooked anything brand new to me from start to finish, I have tried to be more creative in my combinations. So I’m calling this one done!

I actually enjoy cooking, and am pretty good at it, but I tend to fall back to the same few things I always make. This year I’d like to challenge myself to make something completely new.

12. Study French Beyond following a French words account on Instagram (@frenchwords if you’re interested) I have not done anything with this. Oops.

I took french in high school and in college but I’d like to at least become conversational with it. Time to brush off that Rosetta Stone I got for my birthday a few years ago.

13. Drink more water Accomplished! I’ve gotten a lot better at this. I try to drink a glass of water before every meal and I do drink water throughout the day as well. When I’m over plain water, I grab a La Croix (the coconut flavor is my favorite!).

I need to get better at this.

14. Pay off my credit cards Still working on this one. Hopefully in the next 6 months this one is checked off

Luckily I do not have that much debt, but it would be really nice to turn 30…100% debt free.

15. Say “yes” more Accomplished! I think I’ve done a good job of making a conscious effort to say yes. If this is something you struggle with (or even if it’s not) I really recommend this book.

I have a bad habit of instantly saying “no” in my head when asked of something. Or if I say “yes” I’m usually trying to figure out how to get out of it. This year I’d like to say “yes” more, and actually follow through.

16. Swim with dolphins Nope. Not yet 🙁

One of those things that has been on my bucket list that I’d love to do this year. Let’s make it happen!

17. Learn a rap song from start to finish Haven’t tackled this one yet either. What’s a good song to learn? I’m not even close to a rap aficionado

This is a silly one but I’m forever trying to sing along to rap songs making up half the words because I either don’t understand what they are saying or am just to lazy to figure it out. Finally learning one from start to finish would be a cool party trick.

18. Set up a “home” Accomplished! As I mentioned, this one was pretty easy to cross off since I was in the process of moving. See our apartment tour here.

Throughout my 20s my living situation has never felt permanent. I’ve always had the mentality that I’d live there for a year or two and then move on. Because of this, I’ve never really bothered to set up an environment that felt like a “home”. I’ve always told myself- what’s the point if you’re just going to move in a year? But now, I feel like I’m at a point where this needs to change. This one should actually be pretty easy (and the first of this list to be accomplished) as I’m literally moving today. Fresh start for a fresh new year.

19. Meet up with friends more Accomplished! I’ve really tried to make an effort to do this the past 6 months and it’s been fun reconnecting with old friends and growing my relationships with those closest to me.

I know we’re all busy, but I’d like to make meeting up with friends a bigger priority this year. And for those long distance friends more skype dates!

20. Entertain friends Accomplished! Another pretty easy one to accomplish since moving. On average, we hosted friends about once a month the second half of last year which I’d call a success!

I love to entertain, and after today, finally have a living situation that is conducive to this.

21. Climb something Unless you count the massive hill between 2nd and 3rd Ave on 91st Street, I haven’t done this yet

It doesn’t have to be Mt. Everest, but this year I’d like to climb to the peak of something (even a hill) and spend time at the top pausing to reflect and enjoying the view.

22. Go zip lining I forgot this was even on my list, ha ha. Maybe this can be accomplished on one of the trips on our 2016 travel bucket list

I’m not adventurous enough to put “go sky diving” on my list but I’d love to give zip lining a go.

23. Take a class Haven’t done this yet, but now that I’ve recently joined a gym, I’m planning on starting Pilates or even dusting off my ballet shoes at a ballet class my gym offers.

There is so much opportunity in NYC. Perhaps aerial yoga? Or maybe a photography class?

24. Send more handwritten notes I think I’ve sent approximately one hand written note in the past 6 months……

I’m really bad at this. And who doesn’t love getting mail? This year I resolve to write more notes and send them via snail mail.

25. Call my family more Here’s the thing with this one. I was back and forth from Texas A LOT the past 6 months between work travel and the holidays. So I SAW my family a lot. Will strive to call more though in the upcoming months where I don’t have as many trips planned.

Now that I live thousands of miles away from my family I realize I took for granted how often I got to see them. I need to get better at calling to catch up.

26. Road trip Accomplished! Did a road trip through the northeast this past fall and it was glorious! Perhaps one of my favorite trips I’ve done in the US. You can read about it here and here.

A fun road trip with friends needs to happen this year. Perhaps upstate New York in the fall?

27. Learn more about wine Accomplished! I’ve learned more things about wine the past 6 months than I thought were possible to learn about wine. And I’m no where near what my brother knows. I am admittedly pretty good at dissecting the flavor notes of different types of wine it turns out.

As my brother has been completing his sommelier certification I’ve realized there is way more to know about wine than I ever thought possible. This year I want to be sure to pick his brain more and take advantage of his vast knowledge

28. Complete a 30 day challenge I cannot mark as accomplished quite yet, but I just started Whole 30, so will have this one crossed off soon!

Whether it’s Whole 30, or a photo a day, or something else entirely I’d like to complete a 30 day challenge this year.

29. Read at least 30 books Well I just counted, and I’ve read 16 books since my birthday, so I’m right on track to accomplish this one.

I used to read all the time. Growing up I would borrow 30 books from the library at once and read them all in a week. So, I’m challenging myself to read at least 30 books this year.

30. Realize that turning 30 may actually be the beginning….

 

So, I’ve accomplished 11 out of 30. Looks like I have some work to do. I’ll do one final update in 6 months to let you know if I succeeded!

-Ash xx