Twenty-Eight in Twenty-Eight

Just writing the title to this post made me slightly nauseous and almost caused some type of strange identity crisis. I think I'm in denial that I will be 28 in just over two months. Seriously, I find that unbelievable. Where on earth did the last 10 years of my life go, and how am I almost 30? Ahhh!

Anyway, Erin over at Living in Yellow (a lovely blog that I stalk on the regular) did a fun link up for her 26th birthday, basically listing out 26 things she hopes to accomplish in her 26th year. I'm definitely a list lover, and I'm all for setting fun goals, so I thought I would jump on in and participate. So starting on October 12th (write that down) I hope to accomplish these 28 things before my next b-day rolls around in 2013. Here it goes:

1. Be brave and dye my hair a pretty brunette shade...no more chickening out and ending up with dirty blonde.

Maybe? Too Much? I'm scared.

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2. Start pursuing freelance writing opportunities.

3. Get back to a weight that makes me feel healthy and happy...aka, no more squeezing into clothes that are too tight and then feeling fat all day. Instead of going up a size, make myself fit into them.

4. Knock a few trips off of my looong list of places I want to visit.

5. Be a better wife. I need to become more loving, less critical, and less defensive.

Cute hubs. I should always be so sweet.

6. Attend some type of blogging conference. They always sound like so much fun, but they're usually so far away! I'm determined to make it happen though...

7. Grow this little bitty blog of mine. I don't really have a particular number of followers in mind...maybe 250? That seems somewhat attainable for a year.

8. Start taking more photos. More interesting photos I should say. As adorable as Addie is, she takes up about 75% of the photos on my camera and iPhone combined.

Can ya blame me?

9. Relax. And don't overreact. Arsen calls me dramatic all the time, and he might just be right. I feel like I might live longer if I could learn to stress less and take a moment before reacting...

10. I want to make some sort of baby goal, but I'm not sure...let's just say if a baby happens, I won't be too upset.

11. Maintain a healthier lifestyle. Eat cleaner, exercise more, use more "green" products...I'm starting to realize the amount of junk that I put in and around my body, and Arsen and Addie for that matter. I really want to change that.

12. Be a better friend. I don't think I'm a bad friend, but I can go a month without talking to my very best friends. Not cool.

Some of my very favorites. Love them.

13. Stop buying a million cheap things everywhere I go, and invest in some nicer things. I will head straight to Forever 21 and buy 10 things instead of investing in two nice things. That has always served me well, but I feel like I might be getting a bit too old to keep that up.

14. Send thank you notes. I'm the worlds worst at this. I have a million adorable little notes at home, but I never remember to send them.

15. Stop feeling so guilty all the time. I constantly feel like I'm not calling my parents enough, seeing my friends enough, blogging enough, working out enough, giving Arsen and Addie enough attention...I know I'm doing my best, and I need to accept that.

16. Become a little more crafty- and stop judging myself for not being "creative" enough.

17. Start pursuing some of the dreams I have for myself. I know I can do some pretty great things...I just have to go for it.

18. Read more. Simple enough.

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19. Volunteer more. I would love to get involved with one of the shelters around here...somehow I need to do this without bringing home a million pets.

20. Go to more concerts. Live music is one of my very favorite things, and the past couple of years Arsen and I have really been slacking in the concert attendance thing.

21. Cook more. I've got about 8 million recipes pinned on Pinterest. I might as well put them to use.

22. Be friendlier. I'm naturally a bit reserved, I think out of insecurity, and it's about time I let go of the fear that people don't like me and just jump in there.

23. Learn to be okay with who I am. I have always suffered from horrible insecurity (see above) and I feel like it really holds me back. No one else is focusing on my flaws. Why am I obsessing over it? I've done this since I was a child, and it's something I'm determined to overcome.

24. Go to the movies more. I absolutely love watching movies in the theater, and we rarely do it. Last year we started going every Sunday, but got out of the habit. I'd love to start back up.

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25. Spend more time with my family, and Arsen's family. It's so important, and so easy to let time pass without realizing how long it's been.

26. Buy a bike. And start biking. We've been talking about it for awhile now, might as well do it.

Kid's bike that I want desperately. Too cute.

27. Start treating myself to massages on a regular basis. It's just about my favorite thing ever, why not?

28. Stop wishing time away. I've always been a big dreamer, so I'm always looking to the future...I want to embrace the present and all the amazing things that I have going for me, here and now.

I feel like these are pretty attainable, and things I should be doing anyway. Having them all listed out here will just make it that much easier to stay accountable. So why don't you join me? Make a list of your own and go link up! Actually, you'll have to hurry because I'm a huge procrastinator and the link up is over in like a day...but whatever, go for it.

Can't wait to see what happens for me in my 28th year...I feel like it's gonna be a good one!