Catching up

It seems like my bucket listing adventures pick up in the spring and summer, and then wane during the fall and winter months. I don't know if it's because the weather lends itself more to activity in warmer months, or if it's coincidence, or another aspect at play. But here I am again in May, putting full focus on my list. Some exciting news on the horizon...Mother's Day is this weekend here in the US, and my husband bought me the ultimate gift for an adventure junkie - a 30 minute flight discovery class, which includes flying an airplane (with an instructor)! I'm excited beyond belief, but also terrified. In other news, I am trying to win free tickets to Cypress Valley Canopy Tours to explore tree canopies and zipline. The two pictures with the most "likes" on Facebook win 4 tickets, and I am in third place now. I am so excited to hopefully win, I can taste it. If you would like to vote for me, please go here and click like on my picture. I did do a few things over the fall and winter months that I would like to share with you. I have done the Houston Zombie Walk previously in 2009, and convinced my friends to join me to walk again in 2011.

I also donated a few hand carved foam pumpkins to some causes I support, such as one to the local fire station and another to a local VFW. I made a third pumpkin especially for the Texas Heart Institute who are responsible saving the life of my best friend's husband twice. Once when he almost died from major heart complications, and again when they gave him a heart transplant. I am forever indebted to them. While I was donating the fire station pumpkin, the great volunteers there invited us inside to tour the station, get a good look at the trucks and where they sleep and hang out while on duty. I would really love to get a ride on Big Red someday! Here's to another Spring and Summer full of adventure!

Sports and Physical Activity

1. Play a round of golf
2. Surf
3. Wake board
4. Water ski
5. Swim in the ocean
6. Sail
7. Scuba dive
8. Snorkle
9. Parasail
10. Wind surf
11. Kayak
12. Canoe
13. Ski
14. Bowl
15. Hit a baseball with a bat
16. Bowl a strike
17. Raft
18. Hike a long trail
19. Mountain climbing
20. Rock climbing
21. Volcano boarding
22. Volcano climbing
23. Catch a fish
24. Deep sea fishing
25. Skateboard
26. Hit a bullseye with a dart
27. Win a game of pool
28. Rappel
29. Spelunk
30. Jet ski
31. Camping
32. Tree Canopy Exploration
33. Ziplining
34. See a Manchester United game live
35. See a Manchester United game in Old Trafford
36. Rope swing into water
37. See a roller derby match
38. Go to a live game for every major sport
39. See a baseball game live
40. See a live basketball game
41. " football
42. " hockey
43. " soccer
44. " tennis
45. " golf
46. " rugby
47. " cricket
48. " lacrosse
49. Attend the Olympics
50. Attend the World Cup
51. Attend the World Series
52. Attend the Superbowl
53. Attend a basketball championship game
54. Attend Wimbeldon
55. Attend the Stanley Cup
56. Attend a wrestling event
57. Run a marathon
58. Go fly fishing
59. Participate in a regatta
60. Catch a sailfish/swordfish or marlin
61. Snowmobile
62. Try fencing
63. Go sandboarding
64. Play paintball
65. Play laser tag
66. Watch a soccer match at a pub
67. Clean/gut a fish
68. Get seasons tickets for something
69. Do indoor sky diving
70. Do the polar plunge
71. Fly on a trapeze
72. Bike across the Golden Gate Bridge
73. Watch sumo wrestling (preferrably live)
74. Throw out the first pitch at a baseball game
75. See a minor league game
76. Take a circus class
77. Do the Great Urban Race

Leave a note in a library book

I went to the local library today to check out a book that is on my reading bucket list, and while I was there, decided to cross "Leave a positive note in a library book for a stranger to find" off my 101 things list. I decided to leave it in a self help book, and chose one by Dr. Phil, as I felt it'd be a popular one for people to check out. I stuck it in the middle of the book, folded up. Here is the letter -

I hope it helps someone!

101 things update

The rubber band ball is coming along nicely! It's already 5 lbs, which is halfway to my goal of 10.

I have started trying to learn to knit so I can knit something, but I'm still having trouble getting started. A few of my friends have offered to give me some assistance, so hopefully with practice and the advice of friends, I will be able to tackle this task.

One mission I did accomplish was getting my pic taken with a drag queen. I went to Pride in Houston this past weekend with some very good friends, and we found Miss Coffee who was perfectly willing and happy to have her photo taken with me and my daughter.


I'm not doing very well so far about watching new movies. I watched Jackass 3.5 and Knight and Day, and that's about it so far. I'm really hoping to view more of my IMDB's top 250 that I haven't seen, and the two movies I just mentioned are definitely NOT on that list!

Make a rubber band ball

I finally started working on a couple of my 101 in 1001 activities. The first was to start a pointless collection. I decided on shot glasses because there are so many neat ones to collect, they are readily available, cheap and they're pointless because I don't drink! You'll notice in all my videos, its my crazy friends who are providing all the drunk entertainment. I'm the sober one of the bunch! I will occasionally try alcohol, like the moonshine and absinthe (someday), but I am not a drinker.

The second thing I started was a rubber band ball. I bought about 5 bags of rubber bands thinking that would last me a week, but it ended up only lasting 2 hours or so. I didn't cheat and use a non-rubber band center. My rubber band ball is pure! Here are some pictures of it so far, but I only started yesterday.

I need to get it over 10 lbs in the next 2 1/2 years to check it off my 101 in 1001 list. It's already at almost 3, so I think I can definitely do it!

Eat a Bug

The first bug I ate was a plate of silkworms in China. I was nervous as heck, not knowing what to expect, but after taking the first trepidatious bite, I realized they just tasted like peanuts.

I became more and more brave after each bite, and soon I was seeking out more types of insect (and arthropod, as scorpions aren't insects) to try.

I even got so brave eventually, as to try a bug from my own backyard. Eating them prepared by a restaurant or street vendor in another country is one thing, but catching them alive and cooking them yourself is a whole different mindset. Here is a video of what happened when my husband told me he didn't think I had the guts to eat one of the june bugs buzzing around us one night.



Are you brave enough to eat a bug? Have you eaten one? If so, what kind?

Adopt a child

I'm going back to July 2006 for this post. Here is a journal entry I made after the adoption of our daughter Mia from Guangzhou, China -

Yesterday we left the hotel at 7am and headed to the airport. I'll skip the flight details and skip to around 11:30am where we were met by our guide Bob. We raced to a van outside and met another family though i am not sure who they were. Bob told me we'd go to the hotel and freshen up, grab some paperwork, the orphanage gifts and cameras then head to the Civil Affairs Building at 2pm to meet Mia. We got everything together and then waited downstairs for the St Johns. They were going to ride with us but the hotel bellhop misplaced their luggage so Bob took us on ahead of them and they followed after. It didnt matter because we waited awhile in the CAB and the St Johns weren't too far after. We waited in a very hot, stuffy room for what seemed like forever but was probably only about 10-15 minutes. Another woman had met her child on the elevator going up so they went ahead and brought that baby into the room for her. The rest of us waited. Soon, a lady came up to the couple next to me and said they were bringing her baby in. Bob told me they would bring Mia in about 3 minutes. I heard the baby belonging to the couple next to us screaming her head off as they walked her down the hall and laughed that Mia would be like that too. Then I looked up at the baby coming in. I jumped up and screamed "that one is MINE!!!!" and grabbed her. She cried and cried and cried....the whole time we were there. I gave the orphanage director and doctor who brought Mia the photo album I had made of the other Huazhou girls who had been adopted. They loved seeing the girls and remembered them all. I could not understand them but they would point and smile then say something to each other, and say things like they were remembering the child. She pointed to two of them and pantomimed her walking them and then pointed to the room we were in. Bob walked back in and she had him tell me she remembered bringing those two girls to this room personally. She told me one of the girls was hen piao liang, which is very beautiful. They gave the book back to me and I had Bob tell them it was for them to keep and they seemed very happy to take it with them. in exchange they gave me a photo album and camera I had sent Mia in Oct, and a photo album they had made for me with pictures of her. They also brought the list of questions I had sent and Bob translated them for me.

She would not stop screaming, crying, kicking and trying to get down when we held her. Finally we were able to leave, which was good because we were all dripping with sweat. At the elevator I asked Mason to hold her for me and when he grabbed her she turned around and reached for me. i grabbed her back and she hasn't cried since as long as i hold her. She still doesn't like Mason at all. At first she would let him touch her or even sit next to her. Now he can touch her and be by her but he cannot hold her or push the stroller when she is in it. Also I cannot leave the room, i have to be with her at all times.

We did some paperwork at the hotel, which from what i read was some papers saying we agree to foster her until the adoption is complete. After that we met Marjorie, James, Sophie and Matthew St John, and Mark, Kari, Kam and Benjamin Ottenbrite for dinner at the Cow and Bridge Thai restaurant. The food was GREAT but there were some weird things on the menu to say the least, like goose feet, pig neck, ostrich livers and more. The St Johns and Ottenbrites are wonderful company and their children are super cute. Benjamin is so handsome that he is downright pretty and gets mistaken for a girl by everyone. Sophie has those huge cute cheeks but isnt as big as she looked in her pictures.