101 List Update – As of December 2012

28. Eat at the Blue Bayou at Disneyland

I didn’t realize this was going to be something I would be able to cross off my list this year… But when my sister Jessica got the news that she would moving across the world to Dubai, her one wish before she left was a family trip to Disneyland. So for a whirlwind weekend my whole family (including my 4 month old niece, Grandma and my brother’s girlfriend) loaded up in an RV and made a road trip down to the most magical place on earth! While we were there we were able to use some vouchers to enjoy a delicious meal at the Blue Bayou – someplace I’ve wanted to eat ever since I was little!

77. Send a shoebox to Operation Christmas Child each year

My parents and I made the trek to Orange County to volunteer at the Operation Christmas Child processing center. We have done this the past three years now and we love it. At the processing center we sort through 100’s of shoeboxes filled with gifts for children in needy parts of the world. People all over the country pack the shoes boxes and our job is to prepare the boxes for their trip around the world. This involves taking out items that might leak or break, adding items to slightly empty boxes, and then taping & boxing them up in a carton. I love watching videos of the children receiving their shoeboxes – for some of them, it’s the first gift they have ever received their whole life! When they are given the gift, it is explained to them that Jesus was God’s gift to us. My friend, Kristen, met up with us this year, and we had a blast! I really encourage everyone to take a look at this opportunity to bless these children and pack a shoe box (or two, or three, or four….) next year!

86. Make cake pops

This was quite the delicious thing to complete. With the help of baker extraordinaire, Jessica, some friends and I were able to make yummy cake pops. We made several kinds, and wouldn’t you know – our favorite ended up being one that isn’t really a true cake pop because the filling is made out of Oreos & cream cheese! But that’s just a minor detail.

91. Leave a $20 tip on a meal less than $20 in cost

A few weeks ago I went out to dinner at one of my favorite places – PF Changs, with my sister Katie and her husband, Josh. Oh and Avery too! Thanks to a free lettuce wrap coupon my bill ended up being pretty cheap! And with it being Christmas time, I decided it was the perfect time to give our server a slightly inflated tip. Here’s the proof that I followed through! It was fun leaving a 200% tip, because how often can you do that? Although it wasn’t too hard to do when it was only a $9 dinner! haha

56. Spend an afternoon at the park or beach flying kites

This almost didn’t happen because after making plans to go on a quick trip to the beach, it was tricky to find a kite in the middle of October! Of all things, the Dollar Tree had some – woot woot! With that said, they weren’t the best quality…. but we had some good laughs running around the beach looking like crazies trying to get our kites to take flight. Probably the best $1 I’ve spent in a long time.








Such a fun day with the sisters, Avie & Coral!