cute dog names

joanna
jenny
miso
rhubarb
willow
penny
timmy
ford
wiley

ongoing list of things that make me come alive

 inspired by this post and all the comments, as usual


curated playlists where every song feels perfect for that moment
getting up early on summer mornings to be alone outside with coffee and plants
getting lost in a book
looking in the mirror after a glass of wine and feeling pretty
slow morning coffee
the wind in my face
sadie being so, so excited to see me
long walks with good podcasts (or sometimes no podcasts)
the happy exhaustion after a long day of labor or a workout
being the first one awake in a clean house
evening bike rides
my feet in a body of water
the first warm day after winter with the sun on my face
the first warm day after winter that i can walk outside barefoot
long, juicy talks with a good friend
finding a new show to binge
getting a magazine in the mail
big trees
smelling sadie's fur
holding hands
a kiss in public
hearing my name
fresh bedding
game nights at home
oldies
shower beers
bar trivia
when i say something ACTUALLY funny that makes dillon laugh
doing a good deed
planning a trip
laughing to tears
walking into the woods
eating outside
the feeling of water all around me
a starry sky
dancing until i'm sweaty and laughing
accomplishing something while dillon is asleep
building something by hand
open windows
massages
finally painting my toes / getting a pedicure
treating a friend to something
driving in traffic when the person behinds me tries to pass but gets stuck behind a slower car
a new hair cut / color
laying in the grass
the smell of freshly cut wood
traveling abroad
showering after a day at the beach (and maybe peeking at my new tanlines)
savasana at the end of a yoga session
doing something i thought would be difficult at work but find myself sailing along
falling asleep cuddling
when it starts getting dark later (and when the time surprises me)
discovering a new favorite song
a perfect margarita with chips and salsa
noticing something i've never noticed before even though it's been there the whole time
being read to
taking the biggest breath i've taken all day

list of 100 dreams, pt. 1

1. move out of michigan
2. travel to new zealand
3. buy a house with dillon
4. travel for a month straight
5. get to a 60k salary
6. read one book a week
7. start a real blog
8. get an artist residency
9. get married
10. adopt a child
11. visit a farm sanctuary
12. go on a safari
13. travel to italy
14. buy a new camera
15. achieve clear skin
16. buy an electric car
17. make photography a stream of income
18. start my own business/online store
19. go to every US state
20. travel to france
21. travel to ireland/scotland
22. travel to australia
23. see a therapist
24. make something every day
25. buy old furniture and repaint it
26. complete a 100 day project
27. find my best hair style
28. own a pair of nice pajamas
29. volunteer
30. see a play in NYC or Chicago
31. go to a magic show
32. bake a loaf of bread
33. go zip-lining
34. be a morning runner
35. go apple picking
36. take self-defense or kickboxing classes
37. have a technology-free weekend
38. take an extended train trip
39. be in a band, if only for one day
40. build a piece of furniture myself (maybe with dillon's help)

cute stuff

guy stopping his car in the middle of our street to move a baby bird
deltron the cat coming inside this morning as i got ready for work

sadie dreaming (twitching, softly barking, etc.)

the selfies my sisters were sending me with the baby snapchat filter

making me feel whole today

accomplishing tasks for someone else (addressing and mailing jess' shower invitations)
driving around with sadie in the back seat
coming home to daffodils from dillon
a little hike in a new-to-us nature preserve
taking good pictures
the house to myself (aka dillon asleep after work)
homemade buffalo cauliflower salad, plus seconds, all to myself
supersoul conversations episode with liz gilbert (curiosity, not passion)
just straight up getting shit done

behaviors i want to work on

work/clean for just 30 minutes
act without thinking
promise myself exercise
stop saying "should"

description of today

rain
gray
chilly
sleepy
donuts
3 cups of coffee

i am getting pretty good at

managing my money
saving my money
discovering my taste in books
throwing together meals with "whatever i got"
making phone calls
finding deals
not wasting food
looking on the bright side
making lists

how to know it's may

the basement is flooding
a miserable end-of-april cold streak is finally letting up
i went on a walk and the smell of magnolia trees suddenly hit me
the too-big inside plants get to make their home outside
i seem to have energy again