45. Read a children’s book

This week I got to read several children's books with my friend Todd. He is the smart, clever son of my friends Bonnie and Tim.

Todd: The boy, the myth, the legend. (Photo courtesy of Bonnie's FB pics)


After a leisurely dinner full of lively conversation, and an hour or so playing with some trucks and Buzz Lightyear, Todd and I decided to expand our literary horizons by reading a few books before Todd went to sleep.

I had forgotten how forthrightly educational some children's books are. We read about how to build a house - from surveying the property all the way to moving in furniture. I didn't know felt paper was a legitimate building supply.

We also read a book called Be Nice to Spiders.

It's about a spider named Helen who lives at a zoo and helps out the animals by making webs and eating all the pesky flies. There is drama and suspense when the zookeeper tries to get rid of Helen, but I don't want to ruin the ending for you. You'll have to read it yourself to find out what happens.


By the way, I read the book title and author's name aloud each time we picked up a new book. Each time I would ask Todd if the author was his favorite author. Each time he said yes. So, it sounds like we were reading some pretty well-loved authors in Todd's life. Margaret Bloy Graham was no exception. :)

54. Throw a housewarming party for 14th St. apartment

Burgers and dogs on the grill....friends checking out the new digs...delicious food....good times.

And I didn't take a single picture.

Therefore, this blog entry is REALLY lame. My friends that came to our housewarming party, however, are not at all lame.

48. Use my 2 Groupons before they expire

Groupon, in case you aren't aware, is a website set up for several cities around the country that offers local daily deals using a collective buying power approach.

Here...I'll let them explain it. Check out your city's deals here.

So one of the Groupons I've purchased is $40 worth of cupcakes for $20 from Cakelove. (Yes, $40 is what a dozen of gourmet cupcakes costs in DC.) I put it to good use and shared some cupcakes with some dear friends...and then took the leftovers to the office for a pick-me-up for my coworkers.

My favorite flavor:
MMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Thank you, Groupon.


So, 1/2 of number 48 - done! One more Groupon to use...

28. Go out to sing Karaoke

Hole in the wall Japanese sushi restaurant that has a 1990's stereo system and two 28" TVs for karaoke....check.

Seeing DC's hard working souls belt out 80's hits on a Tuesday night..check

Laughing with good friends....check.

Performing "Bust A Move" on the mic......check.

33. Make pillow covers for the pillows on my bed

I think the first thing that I had a hand in sewing was a skirt my mom made for me when I was in Jr. High. It was red and white tablecloth checkered material with gigantic black ants in the print too.

I thought it was a very clever fabric design. I wore it with a white blouse that had a small petal collar. And yes, I definitely thought I was stylish.

After some lessons from my mom, over the years I have made......about 6 things in total: purses out of pants I bought at Goodwill, pillows for my freshman dorm room, and a seersucker skirt.

Fast forward to today, about 15 years after the "picnic skirt" and my sewing skills have somewhat progressed, but I still stick to basically making simple things like pillow covers.

So -- I wanted an upgrade for my bedroom - wanted something with a little color. I bought a panel curtain and made a throw/accent thing for the end of my bed as well as two pillow covers from it. I'm pretty pleased with the end result -- Just don't look too closely because I'm pretty sure I still can't sew in a straight line....

The machine - courtesy of my downstairs neighbor...who also happens to be my sister...In progress:



The final products:

97. Do a blog entry for each of the 101 things I do

Quick update~

I've completed numbers 28, 33, 1/2 of 48, and started 1/5 of 76 since my last update.

Since I knew you'd be hanging on the edge of your seats waiting for my next move, I figured I owed you an update.

When I will get around to actually writing the blog entries for each of those is another story....because I'm busy planning number 9 and preparing for number 54 which is happening on Saturday.

(If you actually look up these number references over there on the right, I'm impressed.)

85. Take a Sunday afternoon nap

The Sunday afternoon nap is an almost forgotten art in my life these days. Whether it's prepping for my junior & senior high girls bible study, scrambling to do laundry for the work week, enjoying a long lunch, or just playing catch up on life, my Sunday afternoons have become anything but restful these past couple of years.

I never thought it would take a conscious effort to make myself rest -- I love a full, busy, life, but I like it at my own, relaxed pace. Lately I haven't had that luxury.

But I've been trying to force myself back into recognizing the necessity of the Sabbath and trying to cram all the (well most of the...) things I need to get done into my Saturdays, leaving Sundays as a time for worship, fellowship, service and REST.


So today -ah, today - I enjoyed an over two hour nap in my comfy bed after a great lunch. Full belly, big pillow -- it was SO nice.

I highly recommend getting to know these strangers called naps. I used to know them quite well, and I was really happy to be reacquainted with them today.