Day 17 - Top Five Favorite Things To Do Where You Live

1. Hurricanes Games! We don't get to go too often so it's always a treat when we get to go to one. We're really hoping that at least once this upcoming season we'll be able to take Grant to his first game.




Me and Husband at a Hurricanes game this season.


2. Go to parks. We're so lucky to have so many great parks near our house but also around the city. It seems like everywhere I've lived since moving here has had at least one easily accessible park where you can go for a nice walk. But now with Grant I seem to be taking advantage of them more. It's so nice to have a place nearby to go when you need to get out on a nice day. Great locations for picnics too! I'm looking forward to weekend picnics.
3. Museums and historical sites. There are so many places to visit! And you don't even have to drive that far. I love knowing that on a rainy day I could just pack up Grant and take him to a museum if we need to get out of the house. So many great places to take a curious child.




Me and Grant at the Science Museum


4. Go out to eat. Or for coffee. There are SO many great places to eat here!
5. Shop. Generic, I know...sorry. I don't even know if I'd classify it as a "favorite" of mine because I seem to be losing my excitement for shopping. But, regardless of how much I love or hate it on any given day, there is lots of great shopping here.

Day 16 - Top Five Things In Life You'd Like An Explanation For

1. Why do they sell mint chocolate chip ice cream that isn't green?! Unless I am absolutely desperate for some mint chocolate chip...like gonna-die-without-it desperate...I won't buy it if it's not green. I've even had Husband call me from the freezer section to ask what kind of ice cream he should buy and I tell him "Which ever mint chocolate chip is on sale. Unless it's a kind that's not green. Then get cookies & cream." We've been together too long for him to tell me it's weird.

2. Crocs. This probably should have gone on Day 12 but so many other things were swimming through my brain that day. I don't get them. They're horrible. My mom had a pair (I think they may have been the fake ones) and all she used them for was to pick up poop in the back yard. And that's really about all they're good for.

3. (This one comes courtesy of my sis) Spray cheese. Why is it sooo good?

Ok, ok...I know I'm not being serious and this topic sorta seems like it wants me to be.

4. The Welfare System. I'm not trying to get all political here, but you gotta admit it's a pretty effed up system. Though probably not to the people who are living off of it. Yes, I know there are people out there who do need it. But SO many more that don't. Or they did need it and then found it easier so they just continued to live off the taxpayers rather than going out to find a job and actually working. And then they bring kids into it and their kids grow up seeing how easy it is to live off the government. Sorry...but this is something that really amps me up so I'm going to stop before I get too carried away.

5. Why do bad things happen to good people? I don't mean those people who use facebook as a means to complain about how much they hate their job or what a bad day they had (seriously people...it's a status update, not a diary). I mean those people who have horrible things happen to them - and yes I'm sure they have their moments, who wouldn't? - but for the most part they carry on and try to look at every situation positively. And still do good things and are still good people. Because that's who they are.

Day 15 - Top Five Favorite Beverages

This one feels like a freebie because it really doesn't call for any explanations.

1. Milk (Skim, 1%, 2%, whole - I love it all. Except in cereal, only skim goes in my cereal. But grapenuts is the only cereal I eat with milk, the rest I munch on dry like a snack. Yup, I know it's weird...I never claim to be normal.)
2. Pepsi
3. Coffee
4. Icee (coke flavor preferred)
5. Water

Day 14 - Top Five Things You'd Do If You Had Magical Abilities

1. Make Grant sleep through the night. He's been sick since Tuesday evening and so I'm pretty sure that Monday night was the last time any of us got a good nights sleep. So, yeah, number one priority right there.

2. Make cars fly. I used to watch the Jetsons and I was certain that by now we'd all be driving flying cars and instead of walking to work, we'd ride conveyor belts. Flying cars, check.

3. I'd make it so I can disappear and stuff. Because it would be fun but also really freak people out. I'd probably do it in the middle of conversations or meetings.

4. I'd make my dog talk. I think he'd sound exactly like the Dug the dog from the movie Up. Loyal, lovable, cute...and sometimes a little special.

5. I'd make ice cream, cake, cookies, etc. completely healthy. Imagine sitting down to eat a huge piece of chocolate cake and then actually losing weight. That would be my contribution to society. And I think it would be a big one.

Day 13 - Top Five Dream Jobs

This is going to be semi-quick. Not too much explanation. For most of this week Husband and I have had a very sick munchkin. A very sick munchkin that hasn't slept well. At all. Which means we haven't slept well (less than him, actually). I hope I'm not prematurely saying that I think he's on the road to recovery - but I think he is (here's hoping). I planning to be asleep very soon. Either in bed...or at this computer. If this list is unfinished, well, you know what happened.

1. One of those travel review people who go all over and stay in fancy schmancy hotels and eat in fancy schmancy restaurants and check out local awesomeness and then write about it. I'm sure after a while it would get old living out of a suitcase (I'm a bit of a homebody) but it sure sounds like a dream job.

2. Restaurant critic. Sort of along the same lines as above. I love food and I love to talk about it. Perfect combo right? Plus, what better job for a chubby chick than eating for a living?

3. Archaeologist. It's probably not all as interesting digging up perfectly preserved baby woolly mammoth...but it is in my head.

See, it happened!

4. Mad Scientist. Yes, a mad one. Because I want a job where I get to shout "Eureka!" every once in a while. Plus, it might be fun to have crazy mad-scientisty hair.

5. Santa Claus. He only works one night a year, he makes everybody happy, everyone loves him, and he gets to eat cookies and drink milk all the time! Almost perfect. I'm not cool with hanging out with the reindeer all the time. They're a bit sketchy.

Day 12 - Top Five Trends/Styles You Abhor

Ok, if you've been following this spontaneous challenge then you're thinking: What? Day 12? My cousin AJ, who is my partner in this challenge, sent me a message asking if we could just skip to day 12 because "all the ones in between are lame". I'm already a day or two behind for various reason so he was not getting any argument here.

So on to Day 12.

I am not a trendy person. I'm not saying there have not been trends I like, there have been plenty. But I'm not a trendy person. I don't "get" how a lot of stuff can even be popular. But I don't have to. One celebrity sports it and it's all over the place and people are willing to pay money for something that will be at the bottom of their closet or out of style in a few months. However "abhor" is not the word I'd use when describing how I feel about them. They don't make me angry, I don't necessarily hate them. I just don't like them and do not prefer them for myself.

1. High heels with shorts. Really? I've never once looked at a pair of shorts I own or wanted to buy and thought "I need a great pair of stilettos to go with these". Nope, not for me.

And while we're talking about footwear...

2. Shoes like this:

They're just plain ugly and sort of ridiculous looking.

3. High-waist pants. Maybe it's because I'm kind of a bigger girl so stuff like that would be the very opposite of flattering on me. But I've seen them on smaller girls too...and I pretty much think it's ugly on anyone.

4. Ombre highlights. I don't understand paying money for something that looks like your roots grew out too much and you've just been too lazy to get them fixed. I think this was a lazy celebrity trend that they decided to slap a name on and try to get people to pay for it.

5. Men/boys wearing exceptionally baggy pants. It's ridiculous when a guy actually has to walk differently because their pants are really around their thighs rather than their waist. Or when they have to hold them up while they walk. They obviously have no idea how stupid they look...and no one in their life who's a good enough person to tell them. Almost as bad: men wearing skinny jeans.

Day 7 - Top Five Favorite Historical Figures

Ok,so I guess I'm just destined to be a day behind with this challenge. And this is a weird one for me. Maybe not for everybody, but it is for me. I don't have "favorites" of things like this. I asked my sister to name some people to help my list so some of these are ones she came up with that I find interesting (in no particular order).

1. George Washington - A couple years ago, I took my sister to a museum here to see an exhibit about George Washington. She was super jazzed about it. I'm not joking. Excitement was oozing from her pores. I was impressed that she was so into it. Do you know what she told me? "They have his teeth here! All I really wanna see his teeth!" I'm not kidding. Walking through the exhibit she kept asking me when we were going to see the teeth. And then she just about trampled me and the stroller I was pushing when she locked her eyes on them. It was probably one of the best days of her life.



Yum.

2. JFK - This is not for any political reasons. I recently read a book written by some former Secret Service agents that were on Kennedy's detail as well as some members of his family. It was a really interesting book and made me look at him differently. But I've always found that bit of history interesting.

3. The Titanic - perhaps not a historical "figure" really, but kind of? I've been a Titanic buff since long before Leo and Kate were drawing nudie pictures in a first class stateroom. I watched a National Geographic special about it with my Dad when I was a little kid and I've been into it ever since.



This made me laugh inappropriately loud.

4. Princess Diana...and the rest of the royal family - Yup, I'm one of those people. I watch all the specials and made for TV movies and read the news blurbs about them. I even like the conspiracy theories. I've got a bit of an obsession. I DVR'd I don't know many hours of William & Kate's wedding last year and very reluctantly deleted the post-wedding coverage when Husband said for the millionth time "Are you going to watch this crap or can we get rid of it?" I have a bit of a problem but it's ok if I admit, right?

5. Walt Disney - my sister picked this one. And I needed something for number five. Plus, I've been to Disneyworld and I liked it so I'm good with this pick. I want to go back to Disneyworld someday. But that will have to be after I have Husband brainwashed into believing that it's fun. He did not find it to be the happiest place on earth. We actually bought him a Grumpy coffee mug as a souvenir because that's what he was 92% of the time we were in the park.

Day 6 - Top Five Things That Happened To You This Past Year

1. Grant's first steps and learning to walk - we've been through so many milestones with Grant in the past year that I could have made this whole top five list about just him. But this was a big one and so exciting for all three of us. 
2. Grant's 1st birthday - my little munchkin turning 1 was a big deal. I had it all planned out for months. And then the hurricane came. No really, we had to change the party location from the spacious park shelter to our little house because a hurricane came through the day of the party. But it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I think having it at the house was much more comfortable for Grant and it helped get rid of my anxiety over hosting something like that at our house.  
3. 5 Year Anniversary beach weekend - this past November (18th) was our 5 year anniversary. To celebrate, Husband booked us a beach front room in Wrightsville beach and arranged our first ever night away from Grant. We had a great little mini vacation and Grant did great staying with Grandma.




Husband also sent this to my office the day of our actual anniversary:




Sweet :)


4. Visits from my sister - check some out here and here. My sister has spent the last two Christmas holidays with us. She came down last May for my first Mother's Day and will be spending that week with us again this year. I look forward to her visits (yes, Shauna, I'm admitting it!) and I know she loves to see Grant. He doesn't get to see her often but it takes him about 5 seconds to warm up to her and then he's always sad to see her go :( 
5. My liver tried to kill me and we stopped getting along - so the topic doesn't specify the top five good things that happen in the past year. And I consider my liver ordeal a biggie in my yearly happenings. I'll probably do an update on the latest of my medical drama sometime soon. It's complicated. P.S. I'm posting this late because my liver decided to be moody again. Stupid liver!

Day 5 - Top Five Places You'd Like to Live

1. Anywhere in The 1000 Islands. Since I was kid this has long been one of my favorite places. It's the best combination of the mountains and beach without having to choose one or the other. I absolutely love it there.

2. The mountains. We have visited the mountains here in NC a few times and stayed in a cabin while we were there and I didn't want to leave. It was so peaceful there, at least where we were. We're actually planning to take a trip to the mountains in the fall with Grant and I can't wait!

3. A giant old plantation home. I watch the travel channel and read enough Southern Living to know that if we had the money to buy and renovate (if necessary) a home like that, I could be oh so comfy living in one. They're so pretty with their long driveways, big green lawns, and huge porches. Very wishful thinking!

4. Another country. I'm not sure which one. I'm not sure I'd like to move to one forever, but I'd like to try it out just for a little bit.

5. Somewhere with a kitchen like this:

Yup.

Or like this:

Oh I guess I could be happy cooking there.

Day 4 - Top Five Favorite Things About the Internet

1. Photo sharing/Blogging/Facebook. 99% of my family live somewhere else so it's amazing being able to share pictures of Grant and write my little blurbs so everyone can see what he's doing without having to wait months for me to get around to mailing pictures or a card. It really takes me forever. Although, since I can tell Shutterfly to ship directly to other people, I'm less bad at it than I used to be.
2. E-books! While I'm semi-upset about the lack of lending ability with e-books, I love love love that if I need a new book to read and it's 10:00 at night or smack in the middle of Grant's nap time (and my second cup of coffee) I can pick one out, pay for it, and start reading it in - literally - a minute. As long as I already know what I want.

3. Information and what-not. There seems to be nothing you can't find on the internet. And I don't think anyone really appreciates it like we should (myself included). There seems to be a lot of complaint about it. Remember in school when we had to go to the library for everything? I don't care how slow something is running - you can do a book report in your underwear without even leaving your couch! Plus, I've found tons of great DIY projects lately thanks to Pinterest and people so willing to share their ideas. Great stuff!
4. Online Shopping. I've gotten super lazy about shopping in my old age. I used to love it...now it's like homework. There have been times that if it weren't for Amazon, Grant may not have had Christmas, Birthday, or Easter gifts. I'm not sure if it's the actual act of shopping that I'm starting to despise or if it's the people (who seem to have left their manners at home). It may be both. But either way, I love being able to shop from home!
5. E-mail. I love e-mail. We shoot e-mails around the office all day when we can't talk about something or just to make eachother laugh. Plus, if I'm going to be honest, my friend Elizabeth and I kind of use it like its instant messager. I'd be kinda bored if I didn't have, like, a bajillion e-mails from her to look forward to Monday-Friday. The downside to e-mails is that it makes me actually pick up the phone and call people less.

Day 3 - Top Five Names You Wish Were Yours

Ok, so I find this topic weird because I don't have a list of names I wish were mine. Who does? BUT for a while I was not a fan of my name and it has taken me a long time to actually like it. And since I did look through boy and girl names when I was pregnant and picked out some girl names before we found out we were having a boy this is going to be a list of girl names I like, not that I wish were mine.

1. Sophie - if we (hopefully) have another baby in the future and that baby happens to be a girl, this would be my first choice. For now anyway (because I think it's becoming too popular).
2. Hannah - pretty and not over used
3. Grace or Gracie - pretty but semi over used
4.  Chloe
5. Madeline

Remember to check out my cousin AJ's version of this challenge at Random musings of a wierdo!

Day 2 - Top Five Favorite Books

1. Anything in the Inspector Lynley series by Elizabeth George. I've read them all and I love love love all the characters. She just came out with a new one not long ago and I'm holding off on reading it because then it won't seem like so long until the next one comes out. 

   

   A few of the Elizabeth George books. Stolen from
   last year's 30 day challenge.

   
2. Phantom by Susan Kay. I've read this several times. Its is a different take on the original Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux (which I also loved).

3. Dancehall by Bernard F. Conners. I'm actually re-reading this one right now. I bought it on a day trip to Lake Placid a few years ago. Part of the book is set in Lake Placid and it's based on a true story. I think it would make a good movie too.

4. The Harry Potter series. Who that has read the HP books didn't love them? I was very reluctant to read them because of how popular they were. But I found myself in need of reading material and decided "What the hell, I'll give Harry Potter a try" and I loved them. And I know I'll read them again sometime.

5. The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I was a little later than most reading this one too. I kept seeing it everywhere but never paid much attention to it until I saw the commercials for the movie. I'm so so glad I read it because it was a really great book. And the movie was shockingly good - and accurate - too.

It was tough to pick just five. I loooove to read and wish I had more time to do it. But less time to read makes me appreciate the times that I do get peace and quiet to sit down with some coffee or tea and a good book.

Day 1 - Top Five Favorite Excuses (Blog Challenge)

So, surprise! I'm starting another blog challenge. You might remember AJ from a post from my 30 challenge last year (this post too). AJ started a blog recently yesterday and wanted to do a blog challenge right off the bat. And I spontaneously suggested we do one together. He didn't want to wait. We picked a 30 day challenge of top fives. Since today is our start day...here goes.

Top Five Favorite Excuses

1. "I'm running late" or "I woke up late". This seems to be my excuse Monday - Friday. Can it be considered an excuse if it's the truth? I guess so. My life is running late. It is possible for me to be on time for something, but is rarely possible for me to be early.
2. "I don't feel like it." Usually this applies to cooking dinner. And, oddly enough, on a night when I already have the stuff at the house. I don't even need to stop at the store. It's just that I really don't feel like it...and I usually get away with it.
3. "I'm hungry." This is generally my excuse for being kinda mean when I need to eat. It's usually at work but it happens at home too. Husband periodically calls me out on it.
4. "THIS is what's wrong with the health care system! THIS is why people die instead of going to doctors!" That's what I usually say when I'm frustrated with one of my doctor's offices. Either it's because you call and it goes straight to an automated service or you get a nurses voicemail and she says she'll call you back in 24 hours. Whatever. It's only my excuse...I really just don't want to go. I like to think that whatever is wrong will clear up without having to set foot in an exam room (FYI: not the case when you wake up yellow).
5. "I had a bad day." Generally how I justify a big bowl of ice cream. Or an oreo treat from my favorite little deli place downtown. I know it's not a great excuse but you know what...sad as it is, they do make me feel better :)

So there you have it. I know they're not the most creative excuses you've ever heard but they are my most common ones.

If you want to check out AJ's version of the 30 day challenge, you can check out his blog Random musings of a wierdo.