5 done, 26 more to go

1. hike mt. fuji-done and done
2. live to be 32-in progress; i've survived 3 months of being 31
3. make 5 new friends-haven't started yet
4. avoid great white shark breeding grounds (contributed by my bro, Josh)-in process
5. visit at least 3 new countries-trip booked to hong kong for columbus day weekend!
6. get SCUBA certified-haven't started yet; going to take the class after my MAC certification test is over.
7. grow my hair out-in progress; it's to my chin!
8. get a will-haven't started yet
9. get a japanese massage-done
10. go to tokyo disneyland-done
11. go to the states at least once-done
12. get master in addiction counseling certification-in progress; took my test.  now i'm waiting to find out the results.
13. read more than i watch tv-in progress
14. save my cost of living money every month-in progress
15. learn basics of japanese-in progress
16. walk the seawall by my house every night-in progress; i haven't done it as much as i've meant to but i have been working out 5 days a week so that's something
17. use my vitamix everyday-in progress; i pretty much use it everyday.  best. purchase. ever.
18. use less store bought items, make more things myself-in progress; made homemade fizzing bath balls, sugar scrub, and cleaner.  i'm also working on only using natural products. i'm slowly using up the products i already have and replacing them with natural versions.
19. blog once a week-in progress; i blame the internet.  my internet has been really finicky.
20. email a friend/family member once a week-in progress; doing better but not quite weekly. i'm actually writing more than emailing but i think that counts.
21. actually do the things i pin on pinterest-in progress; i use pinterest ideas all of the time. 
22. get five stars on just dance-done
23. read 5 classics-haven't started yet; i keep spending my reading time on book club books but i have several downloaded on my kindle.
24. be active in my ward-in progress
25. get laser hair removal-haven't started yet
26. sew one thing-haven't started yet
27. keep a daily gratitude journal-in progress
28. use my craft supplies-in progress; i'm planning on being more crafty during the winter.
29. decorate for every holiday-haven't started yet; i plan to decorate for halloween in the next week or so
30. only buy things i really love-in progress; this is something i'm trying really hard to do and i'm doing much better.  i'm going to have to hold myself back in hong kong because the shopping there is supposed to be phenomenal
31. cut back on dairy intake-in progress; i have gotten rid of all the dairy in my house (minus baking supplies) and am working really hard to avoid dairy.  being dairy free seems to be helping my stomach and my skin.

oh, the internet

my internet has been the bane of my existence lately.  one of the recent typhoons ripped my fiber optic cable off my building so my internet was down for two weeks.  i got it fixed and one week later my well-meaning friend was trying to do something fancy with my xbox and somehow made my internet stop working.  after a week of trying a million different things, my home teacher figured it out and got it working, thankfully!  we have another typhoon coming this weekend and i want to research stuff to do in hong kong while i'm stuck inside.  

here are the highlights of the last month or so:

-took my MAC certification test.  just waiting to hear back about my results.  i'm freaking out a little bit but hopefully i'll find out soon and it will be good news.

-i booked a trip to hong kong for columbus day weekend!  i'm supposed to be going with my friend but she may be going on a short deployment at the same time so i may end up going alone.  apparently hong kong is a very safe place for single women to visit alone.  i'm very excited to see the sights and shop in the markets.  it'll be a good experience for me to travel on my own.

-i've been working out with a trainer for about a month now.  we train three times a week.  i've lost 3 inches so far and have gotten tons stronger.  i've really enjoyed the training and have noticed an increase in my energy and mood.

-at work, we moved into our new wing.  it's freshly painted, sound proofed (sort of) with new furniture.  it'll be nice to be in a real clinic setting.

-got a japanese aromatherapy massage.  it was great and very relaxing.  the same day, i got a pedicure.  i was rewarding myself for taking the MAC test.

-we've had a number of typhoons in the last month and have one coming this weekend.  typhoons always come on the weekend.  that's not even an exaggeration.  they come on saturday and sunday and are usually cleared up by monday, just in time for us to go back to work.

-overall, it's been a low-key month but now that i no longer have to study, i can play more!