Our Ohio Bucket List

We have been living in Ohio for less than a year, but I feel like we have already done a lot of the things we wanted to do. However, we still have several things to check off of our bucket list while living here... and we have about 10.5 months to do so before we move all the way to Texas.

Today, I thought I'd share some of the things we've already done here and the things we still want to do! If you live in Ohio or are visiting the area (specifically Southwest Ohio), you'll recognize some of these items!

We have seen a lot more things since moving here that aren't in Ohio as well. We are so close to some pretty cool places that we've spent some time traveling out of the state... but I want to really focus on accomplishing the rest of our list!

OHIO BUCKET LIST

1. Cincinnati Reds game in Cincinnati

2. Jeni’s Ice Cream in Columbus

3. Cedar Point in Sandusky

4. Columbus Blue Jackets game in Columbus

5. Hocking Hills hike/camp

6. Bike along the Buckeye Trail

7. Try Skyline Chili

8. Donato’s Pizza

9. Piada Italian Street Food

10. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland

11. Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton

12. National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton

13. Underground Railroad Museum in Cincinnati

14. 2^nd Street Market in Dayton

15. Cincinnati Zoo in Cincinnati

16. Columbus Zoo in Columbus

The only things we have left on our list are the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Pro Football all of Fame, the Underground Railroad Museum, and both zoos. Hopefully we can make it to those before we leave!

Do you have any suggestions that we should add to our list?
What is on your bucket list for your current location?


    

30 Before 30 Update

I made a list when I turned 25 (over two years ago) of things I want to accomplish before I turn 30. I have a little under three years to go. I have achieved some of my goals, but I do still have a long way to go for some. What do you think?

PS - I did mean to post this on or near my 27th birthday. That was over three months ago now... in July. Oops.

completed = green
in progress = yellow
not there yet = red

1. Get Married (accomplished on 05/30/2014)

2. Travel to Europe (We went to Italy, Croatia, Greece, Turkey, France, and Germany on our honeymoon!)

3. Get something published somewhere

4. Take a photography class

5. Finish writing a second novel (will be writing for NaNoWriMo this November!)

6. Skydive

7. Paint walls inside a house

8. Travel to South America

9. Sell *more* items on Etsy (sold 267 as of 10/23/2014)

10. See a movie alone in a theater (saw The Book Thief in Denver on 11/23/13)

11. Have a baby

12. Run a marathon  (completed the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon 26.2 miles on April 27, 2014)

13. Learn how to sew (simple things)

14. Host a Christmas dinner for more than three people

15. Travel to Africa

16. Create a cookbook of my favorite recipes (I am in the middle of putting this together - finally!)

17. Visit 10 states I haven’t been to (working on it: Ohio, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Alaska, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia)

18. Travel to Australia or New Zealand

19. Start learning German

20. Go out to dinner (at a real restaurant) alone

21. Swim with fish (terrified)

22. Cook dinner for Dan every night for a month - no eating out!

23. Pay for a stranger’s meal

24. Participate in a Bible study with other women

25. Go on (another) hot air balloon flight

26. Ski a “blue” run (accomplished on "Heavenly Daze" at Steamboat Springs on 12/16/13)

27. Adopt a dog - We took in Dan's childhood dog, Smudge, on 10/12/14 and love him to pieces!

28. Travel somewhere alone

29. Teach in a state other than Colorado

30. Live in (at least) three different states (two down: moved from Colorado to Ohio on 07/17/14)

I have accomplished seven tasks, am in the middle of four tasks, and have an overwhelming 19 to get started on! Eek!

• Do you have a 30 Before 30 list or something similar?
• What's on your "bucket" list? 

30 Before 30 Re-Visit {How I'm Doing}

With about three and a half years to go until I turn 30 (oh my gosh - that sounds crazy), I wanted to look over my "bucket list" of sorts. These are all items I want to accomplish by the time I'm 30. I set these goals on my 26th birthday (last July)... here's an update!

My List to Complete Before July 22nd, 2017:

1. Get Married (less than three months!)

2. Travel to Europe (less than three months!)

3. Get something published somewhere

4. Take a photography class

5. Finish writing a second novel

6. Skydive

7. Paint walls inside a house

8. Travel to South America

9. Sell *more* items on Etsy (sold 50 as of 12/21/13)

10. See a movie alone in a theater (saw The Book Thief in Denver on 11/23/13)

11. Have a baby

12. Run a marathon - registered for Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon on 04/27/14

13. Learn how to sew (simple things)

14. Host a Christmas dinner for more than three people

15. Travel to Africa

16. Create a cookbook of my favorite recipes

17. Visit 10 states I haven’t been to

18. Become fluent in French

19. Start learning German

20. Go out to dinner (at a real restaurant) alone

21. Swim with fish (terrified)

22. Try going vegan for a month

23. Pay for a stranger’s meal

24. Participate in a Bible study with other women

25. Go on (another) hot air balloon flight

26. Ski a “blue” run (accomplished on "Heavenly Daze" at Steamboat Springs on 12/16/13)

27. Adopt a dog (hopefully a high-energy large breed)

28. Travel somewhere alone

29. Teach in a state other than Colorado

30. Live in (at least) three different states

It appears that I am not doing too great. I have sold more items in my Etsy shop (up to 87 sales now), saw a movie alone in a theater (The Book Thief - well worth it!), and skied a blue run at Steamboat Springs. 

In the next few months, though, I'll also be knocking off running a marathon (April 27th), getting married (May 30th), and traveling to Europe (honeymoon in June/July). Who knows - maybe I can sneak a couple other items in before the summer too!

Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center

Over spring break, Dan and I decided to cross another item off of our "Colorado Bucket List". My mom was also visiting us, so she tagged along for this fun excursion. We checked out the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center in Divide, Colorado, about an hour from Colorado Springs. It was amazing, and you can check them out by visiting their website HERE.

The mission statement for this organization is clear, and they want to help educate everyone about how wolves are treated in our country and expose the truth about how wolves live. I learned a lot from this tour, and I highly recommend it to all my animal-loving friends. It was a bit harsh at the beginning hearing about how poorly wolves are treated across the USA, but getting up close with the wolves later on made up for that. Plus, it is important to know. If people don't know, nothing will change. We have to be the change we want to see in the world.

Here is the mission statement, straight from their website:

There were also some chickens, coyotes, and foxes at the wildlife center, and they were super cute as well! 

And now the gorgeous animals:

Adventures like this, my friends, are why I never want to leave Colorado. It's such a wonderful state to live in with so many things to do!