Thirty-Two!

Today I turned 32. I love my birthday. Everyone knows this.

In the last few months I feel like my life has been turned upside down and I'll be honest, I've been looking forward to this birthday more than any other. Most people view New Years as the time to 'start new' with a new year ahead. Not me, I view my birthday as a new year. So my birthday this year was a chance for me to have a fresh start. As the years pass, I'm learning that it's not the wild and crazy adventures that mean the most on my birthday, it's who I spend them with that matters.

Although it's only a few hours into my day, the best part by far was waking up next to my favorite boy, Gordie. Who doesn't love puppy snuggles first thing in the morning? :)

This year I've decided to do something a little different. I've made a list of 32 things I hope to accomplish before my next birthday. Some may be things that are fairly easy while others may need a miracle to accomplish but I'm determined to cross them all off my list, I hope.

A 32 year olds must-do list for the year:

1. Go on a road trip to tour breweries
2. Try at least three places on the Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives that I haven't been to
3. Get in the best shape of my life
4. Keep up with my blog on a weekly basis...add a calendar reminder if I have to :)
5. Learn to play one full song on the piano
6. Run a 10k
7. Learn how to sew
8. Visit Fenway Park for a game
9. Play a round of golf and not go over par...on all 18 holes
10. Bait my own hook fishing...with a leech
11. Learn how to snowboard
12. Donate blood
13. Date someone who isn't my 'type'
14. Cook a full meal...appetizer to dessert and everything in between
15. Carve a complex design on a pumpkin...freehand
16. Successfully complete a Pinterest craft project (keyword...successfully)
17. Watch the sunrise after staying up all night
18. Take a leap of faith
19. Finish the full 90 days on P90X
20. Do a 3-day breast cancer walk
21. Step out of my comfort zone
22. Create a book of Instagram photos
23. Make a Halloween costume (after learning to sew)
24. Be more spontaneous
25. Cut back on Caribou Coffee
26. Foster more dogs
27. Join a book club
28. Get a magazine subscription
29. Make homemade espresso
30. Teach Gordie an unusual trick
31. Enjoy a once in a lifetime love
32. Make 32 the best year of my life

Arboretum Adventures

Sunday was spent at one of my favorite places...the Arboretum. It really is beautiful there and makes you forget you're in the city.

Joe and I headed out there to get some exercise and walk around on the trails. They have some of the most beautiful flowers I've ever come across. My favorite part is the dahlia garden. I can't get enough of those flowers. Soooo pretty.

That is one place I could get lost at for hours...literally.

I need to make it a habit to visit more frequently.

Naughty Dog

Gordie has been going to daycare for the last month a few times a week during the day. HE LOVES IT. And Joe and I love it because it helps tire him out. For 9-10 hours during the day he plays with other dogs. And boy does he play hard. He's a complete maniac once he gets there. Possibly a little too much excitement for him.

Joe and I usually watch the doggie video cam feed to see what he's doing and 8 times out of 10, he's always in time out. Haha. This last Friday he got a little too excited and managed to break a door. Yes, a door. So when I went to pick him up I was told he was being put on 'probation'... I guess Gordie didn't find that amusing as he then managed to knock into a display table and make everything on it fall to the ground. Seriously, who's dog is this?! My face immediately must have turned lobster red. I didn't even know what to say. I blurted out, "boy Gord, you know how to make mom proud."

Needless to say, our little probation boy CAN go back to daycare but if he acts out again he's kicked out. Yes, kicked out. What dog gets kicked out of a daycare?! Haha. Only Gordie. He's a little devil sometimes but I love him.

Time

It might take a year, it might take a day, but what's meant to be will always find its way.

That has become my new motto. As many of you know, I do not give up easily if I believe in something. That applies to everything from my personal beliefs, my career, and matters of the heart.

I feel like the question of the day...every day...is "how are you and Joe?" In the words of Joe, "we have our good days and we have our bad days." What exactly does that mean? It means we are working on building our friendship back up. A friendship that was broken due to miscommunication (or lack of legit communication) and due to my hurt heart. So to answer the question completely, we're working on a friendship and letting whatever is meant to happen, happen. Whatever that may mean.

What I am realizing is that 'time' really is the key. It helps you see things more clearly. It helps you realize what you want or don't want. It helps you realize what you miss or don't miss. It helps you see things in a new perspective all together. And most of all, time heals wounds, gives you a new sense of hope and helps you towards new beginnings.

This whole new experience of heartbreak has also helped me learn a lesson about myself and perfection. It doesn't exist. While this may not be a shocking realization to some of you, it has been to me. It is something I strive for day in and day out. It is a flaw. I seek perfection in everything. And ultimately, I've realized that will never be possible. My perfection ways are not the easiest to deal with, especially when I expect it from others as well. I'm learning that the relationship Joe and I had prior to the last two months of it was as close to perfection as anyone could get. In all reality, it was perfect. Perfect for me. Perfect for him. But I didn't see that then. And things changed... A word I'm growing to hate. Change.

Even after having my heart broken, I will be the first to admit I still believe in love. I believe love is the best feeling in the world. There is nothing better than knowing someone is trusting you with their heart and all that they want in return, is yours. I also believe that every person only gets to experience a 'once in a lifetime' love with one person... After all, a successful relationship requires falling in love many times, just always with the same person. I guess 'time' will tell if that once in a lifetime love ever returns

Maybe I read too many Nicholas Sparks novels ;)