So it's official. I'm 25 and my time frame to complete my 25 Before 25 list is OVER. I by no means completed all of the items on my list (grad school had the tendency to get in the way of pretty much everything in my life!), but I had a great time doing the things that I did cross off! This list really motivated me to try new things, forced me to step outside of my comfort zone, and reminded me to make time to enjoy life when things were hectic. I feel like with every item I checked off my list a grew a bit more as a person which makes me very happy. I highly recommend trying out a challenge such as this, and I hope to attempt another in the near future! Here's my final list: 1. Get my boating license (I've lived on a lake for virtually my entire life, and I somehow still haven't gotten my license.) 2. Conquer a Spartan Race (Louie has been trying to get me to do one with him. I think now is the time!) 3. Visit a new city (I need to travel!)Completed 3/30/2014 4. Play in a lacrosse game again (I miss my sport.)Completed 3/1/2014 5. Take another art class (There are so many out there - it will be great to brush [ha] up on my skills!)Completed 12/23/15 6. Volunteer (I always make the excuse of not having enough time. I need to stop doing that and give back!)Completed 4/6/2014 7. Attend a friend's special event (birthday party, graduation, wedding, etc.) (Same as the above goal. I want to support my friends more and be there for their special moments in life!)Completed 12/21/2014 8. Finish 25 books-for-pleasure (I have a goal to read 10 this year, so that will be helpful!) 9. Go on another road trip somewhere (Even if it's just a trip to the state's only Sonic)Completed 7/20/2014 10. Have coffee or drinks with a previous mentor (This is currently in the works... just need to somehow find a common time!)Completed 3/28/2014 11. Hit triple digits for my YouTube subscribers (This may happen sooner rather than later - I'm currently at 90!)Completed 3/1/2014 12. Purchase myself a GoPro(Possible birthday present to myself?)Completed 12/25/14 13. Accomplish a multi-distance race series (Looking into the Twin Lobster or Triple Threat this year, or the Fool's Duel next spring.)Completed 8/3/2014 14. Climb another mountain (It's been a while since I've been hiking. I miss it.) 15. Purge my closet, donate things to charity, & buy some more "grown up" clothes (I feel like I need a closet re-vamp, and there are some things I just don't wear anymore!) 16. Finish a painting (Not including any paintings I might create during #5.)Completed 11/17/2014 17. Go to King Richard's Faire(This looks like it would be so silly and fun!) 18. Write a letter to myself to be opened in 10 years (Hopefully I don't lose it between the time I write it and the time I intend to open it! I would...)Completed 2/18/15 19. Visit a farmer's market (There's one right down the street from me during the summer. I have no excuse.) 20. Read 3 books from The World Library 100 that I haven't read before (I've read a few for past English & Literature classes.These can count toward my 25 books for #8!) 21. Watch 5 films from AFI's Top 100 that I haven't seen before (Seen a handful of these throughout my life. Want to see more!) 22. Be able to lay my hands flat on the floor when I try to touch my toes (Seriously, I am so inflexible. I need to make regular stretching a thing.) 23. Do three pull-ups without assistance (Upper-body strength is also something that I want to work on.) 24. Go to a shooting range (Seriously always wanted to do this!)Completed 12/24/14 25. Graduate with my Master's degree (This may actually happen a couple days after my 25th birthday, but my coursework should be done by then!)Completed 5/13/15 (Coursework completed 5/11/15 - on my 25th birthday!)
14/25 goals completed
Have you ever attempted a goal challenge like this?
It's summer which means it's time for me to get my running butt back in gear and train for my THIRD marathon - the Maine Marathon! The race is October 4th (which will be exactly a year after I completed the New Hampshire Marathon!) so I've got a few months to train. I'm hoping to be really good about going out on each of my scheduled training runs this time around (though I've already needed to miss two short runs because Orientation training is cray... #12hourdaysforever) and I'm welcoming #SundayRunday (the day I tackle my long training runs) with open arms!
I'm also pumped that my good friend and former student Cassie will be joining me in October to run the 26.2 miles with me for her first ever marathon! I'm strangely excited for the many miles that stand between me and marathon #3. It'll be awesome to have some actual free time to concentrate on training without the stress of grad school looming over me and I'm hoping this will be my best marathon yet! :)
The final two days of our trip were spent in Costa Maya, Mexico and at sea. First stop was Costa Maya, which I was very excited about because that was the day we were going to see the Chacchoben Mayan Ruins! There were many opportunities throughout this trip to go see the ruins in the various locations we stopped at, but because this port had "Maya" right in the name, we thought it would be the best location to see them. The port itself was pretty cool. It was decorated in Mayan fashion, and there were performers all decked out in tribal clothing. One was even dressed up as an owl!
Our excursion took us about an hour away from the port to see the ruins, but our tour guide, Daniel (aka "Jaguar") was awesome and taught us all about Mayan culture and history on the way there. He was actually Mayan himself which was really interesting to discover, as I figured that the Maya were an ancient culture that did not exist today. It turns out there are still many people in Central America who speak the Mayan language and incorporate much of the Mayan culture into their daily lives!
It was SO COOL to see the Mayan ruins in person! It's always so interesting to see landmarks in person that you've only seen in books, and this was no exception. We only had about an hour at Chacchoben before the second part of our excursion, but it was really cool to learn more about the Mayans and the way they lived in ancient times.
(My camera died after this photo, so the rest of the Costa Maya photos are c/o my parents' camera!)
"We touched it!"
(Don't let my outfit fool you - it was HOT that day! I got fried on our excursion in Roatán and
was just trying to hide my poor sunburned arms from the sun.)
Our next stop was at a private beach club which was the perfect conclusion to the day! We had chairs to lounge on, an open bar, and an all you can eat buffet for lunch packed with Mexican and Mayan foods. Mexican food is my favorite so I was basically a walking heart-eyes Emoji the whole time. Of course, I had to grab a margarita and about 40 pounds of guacamole. Ah. May. Zing.
1. Check out dat sunburn. 2. Check out dat PLATE.
That is the face of one happy gal. #takemeback
Chillin' at the beach was the *perfect* ending to a long week of adventuring. Our tour guide Daniel taught us a phrase - "la hache" (unsure if it's the correct spelling...) - which basically means "one more for the road", and he encouraged us all to fully embrace the meaning of it. When we were called back to the bus to head back to the ship, we all grabbed a drink called a Costa Maya (obviously) and hopped on the bus as soon as the clouds opened up and it started pouring. Great timing! Costa Maya was wonderful, and I would love to return!
The next day was our last day on the ship and our last day of our trip before travelling home. It was also Lindsey's birthday! We kicked off the day by participating in a virtual 5K (actually 3.14 miles because the date was 3/14 - Pi Day!) called the Wild Rumpus Run that Mom had signed us all up for. We decided to don our family vacation tees that Dad designed (and everyone was super jealous of) and completed our run on the lower deck. (We even ran into someone who saw our shirts and told us that he knew someone in Maine with our last name!)
I spent most of the day just relaxing and reading my book. (I wanted to really savor the time off before hopping back into the madness that is March-May in Student Affairs) I did make some time to go to a towel folding demonstration that they had on ship, though (I mean I really could not get enough of the towel animals that were left in our cabins, so why not?). The day was a true ~vacation~ and really allowed us all to squeeze every last drop out of our trip.
That night we celebrated Lindsey's birthday with dinner at the French restaurant on board which was AWESOME. (I had escargot! YAS.) We all had yummy desserts and gave Lindsey gifts to celebrate the big 2-7!
This trip was so much fun, and I'm so happy my parents decided to bring my sister and I along for the experience! I can't wait for my next opportunity to travel with my family in the future. We always have so much fun! :) Be sure to watch my last vacation vlog below, and check out the other posts from this series as well!
