101 in 1000

I usually avoid blogging trends and overly twee, cutesy ideas. But I came across this 101 in 1000 days idea. You can get all the info at this website. It sounded like a good self-improvement project to occupy my time. So here's my list of 87 in 1001 because I've been working on this for over month and I'm running out of ideas. I'll come up with 14 more eventually. I reserve to the right to change it due to evolving needs/desires in the future (Crossed out have been completed):

Start date: 09/01/2013
End date: 05/29/2016

Health/Fitness

Get to 145 lbs, within healthy BMI
Get to 130 lbs
Get to 120 lbs
Be able to do a double pirouette on both sides
Be able to do the splits on both sides
Do a Pilates class without cheating
Be able to run a mile without stopping
Get back on pointe
Participate in a dance recital

Travel/Day Trips

London, UK
Vancouver, BC
Disneyland
Leavenworth, WA
Deception Point, WA
Spend Christmas time somewhere other than home
Portland, OR
Eugene, OR
Ashland, OR
One other international trip, destination tbd
Drive down the 101 from Astoria (yay Goonies!) to either Florence or Newport

Financial

Pay off credit card
Pay off student loan
Pay off car
Buy minivan
Save 6 months living expenses
Write a living will and living trust
Double contributions to kids's 529 plans
Go a month without spending money on anything other than living expenses
Go a month without eating out
Donate money to a local food pantry
Donate money to the school for a sponsorship of some sort
Switch our accounts in Utah to a local credit union

Home/Garden

Paint hallway
Paint bedroom
Frame and hang the kids's blessing and dol hanboks
Make 72-hr kits
Build 1 year supply
Finish decorating the kids's rooms
Use every type of produce from the garden
Design and commission a piece of art
Create the perfect bed (down comforter, feather bed, high quality sheets, find a bed frame I like-been looking for two years and counting)

Food/cooking

Take a chocolate making class
Take a knife skills class
Learn to make profiteroles and build a croquembouche
Bake a proper loaf of bread (still having problems with bread)
Host a garden party
Host Christmas brunch
With Justin's help, cook an entire meal campfire style with dutch oven
Make pasta from scratch
Learn how to shuck oysters
Learn to make macarons
Try a geoduck
Organize the family recipes into a cookbook
Learn to make hollandaise sauce

Beauty/Fashion

Visit a Korean spa and get a scrub
Get a haircut and deep conditioning at a salon
Be brave enough to wear an all red outfit
Get dressed up in a kick-ass outfit, hair and make-up, and go out on the town

Sewing/Crafting

Sew a Merida dress for Alana
Fold 1000 paper cranes
Knit a sweater
Design, drape and sew a dress
Tailor a coat
Sew a corset

Adventures

See the Nutcracker with the kids
Take the kids to a U-pick farm
Kayak Lake Washington
Go digging for clams
Go crabbing
Take the kids to a star party
Take the kids to a kangaroo zoo
Ride the ducks
Go camping in a yurt (okay, you can stop laughing now)

Cultural/Academic

Take the COMPASS test
Read at least 75 books off the BBC The Big Read list (currently at 51, the Very Hungry Caterpillar but no Agatha Christie... seriously, guys?)
Write a song for the kids
Read all of Kurt Vonnegut's novels (I've read 5/14)
Relearn the Korean alphabet (third times the charm! Maybe this time it'll stick)
Read all of Beverly Cleary's books

Random

Beat Twilight Princess 100%
Host another blog giveaway with something I've made
Do 23andMe
Go one day without a computer
Do Secret Santa for kids about Liam and Alana's age
Family portraits
Get passport for Justin and the kids

Fishes in the Sea and Ants in My Pants

I've had a lot of crap to deal with lately so I'll just post about these two items:

My sister came into town, us three siblings took our kids to the Seattle Aquarium. There's not too much to post about except that both of my kids were obsessed with the jelly fish which they recognized from Ponyo. There's a computer to help identify the fish in a giant tank in the atrium which attracted Liam's interest. And there was a diver vacuuming dead coral out of the tank and Alana completely fell in love:

Diver Jim was very sweet and kept waving to Alana.

We have an ant problem. They live in the walls and come out through the outlets and any gaps in the dry wall. They finally found the pantry but thankfully, due to the humidity in Seattle, I had most of the food in plastic bags or containers, so I ended up only having to throw away some peanut butter crackers and a container of honey. Justin cut some wood strips that we nailed over the gap between the dry wall and back of the pantry door, an area that the builders chose not to finish. Grrrrr.

And because I'm a complete glutton for punishment, I decided to paint the pantry so for three days our kitchen looked like this:

But my kitchen is now back to normal and I've seen nary an ant (in the kitchen). 

In other news, the rhuematologist and I decided to stop the methotrexate as it didn't seem to be working and all my hair was falling out. My hairline is now back about a quarter of an inch and there's inch long hairs all over my scalp from the hair starting to grow back. Fortunately all hair loss is supposed to be temporary.

Vern Yip, are you out there?

I have a very blank wall in my foyer:

We live in the typical Pacific Northwest split level, so this wall is a floor and a half tall. I've narrowed it down to the following:

Source

Giant clock: Bit cliche, but there isn't a clock anywhere in the living area so I don't always know what time it is. I am worried that giant clock in the foyer also gives the feeling of counting down to your ultimate demise, but maybe that's a plus too. Alternate idea: smaller clocks with time zones that mean something to Justin and I. Unfortunately, the only times that are important to us are here and Korea. 

Source

Giant print: This idea is probably the best way to add some colour to the foyer (shoe cabinet and mirror are black) but the chandelier hangs right down in the line of sight if you're in the living room, so it'd be more difficult. Also, the only print I'm interested in is not in colour and also a bit oppressive. It might end up in the living room to scare people there.

Source

Tapestry: Unique but expensive. Also, we don't live in a 11th century castle. 

Source

Giant painted fan: Harder to find one I like, but unique. Hard to hang though.

Art wall: This isn't really my style, but it might be a good use for all the random prints that I collect. The problem is only half the wall is flat flooring and the other half is over stairs so it's difficult to hang one thing, let alone dozens.

Any comments? Suggestions? Offers to come paint a mural with Justin, the kids, and I as the four horsemen of the apocalypse? 

Picture dump

Alternate title: Why can't my children sleep normally?

I took the kids to the beach last week (yay for living less than 10 minutes drive and that INCLUDES wrestling the kids into the car) and took some pictures. My kids aren't very used to me taking pictures, so their facial expressions usually end up more like "WHAT?" or a fake smile that makes them look, um, constipated.

I also notice for the first time since Liam hit his head 18 months ago he'd developed one lone white hair on the back of his head. I'm *obviously* very observant. Sorry kid, you got your first white hair at four.

Liam drew and cut out some items that he was very proud of and wanted me to photograph:

What do they look like? They're sunglasses not bras, you perv.

For the record, my kids each have a double bed complete with mattress and box springs, 2 pillows, a feather duvet and a microfleece blanket. Alana prefers her baby blankets and the floor and Liam has attached himself to a blanket his GRANDFATHER got from a girlfriend in high school. He also wraps himself up so he looks like a turtle:

Also? Pillows are overrated. Angry Birds are better.

My goal this week

Is to try to be a functioning adult. I had a bad week. I felt extremely nauseated most of the time and spent too much time in the sun so I got a little sun sick.

On the plus side, I made lots of dim sum and we had some friends, Patrick and Lindsay over. They're awesome. Patrick hates Utah more than I do and Lindsay doesn't mind that I'm crazy.

I hate English

Me: I did dishes today. That was my contribution to the household.

Justin: And you did some laundry.

Me: Sort of. It's in the washer waiting to be.....

Justin: Hung.

Me: Wow. You knew I was struggling to remember if it was hanged or hung.

Justin: It's hanged if it's a person.

Me: But why past tense.

Justin: "To be hung." Past perfect. Hanging if it's future progressive.

Me: Good. I can feel like I progressed something to day.

Justin: .....

Me: Shut up.

I'm still here

I realized today I haven't left the house since Wednesday. I just sent Justin to the grocery store because the thought of going was freaking me out too much. It's not been a good week. On Thursday, I was so bored that I kept falling asleep every time I sat down. Sigh. Anyway, here's some blurry pictures of Alana at her ballet class to tide you over until I'm not quite so depressed: