30-while-30 How’d I do…
So I’ve made a decision about this list. It’s a fun guide of things I want to do, but I’m going to revamp it around my birthday and turn it more into a list of things I want to do overall while in my 30s. Quite a few of the things on this list are going to end up on that list, and some won’t. I’m ok with that because the list is here to remind me to get out there and live life to it’s fullest. Here’s a look at how I’m did on my 30-while-30 list.
Food / Blogging
- Brownie Mosaic Cheesecake – Done!
- Gnocchi
- Donuts – Done!
- Eggs Benedict – Done!
- Laminated dough (either danishes or croissants)
- Make bread at least 4 times – 1: Herbed Bread baked in a Dutch Oven 2: Pumpkin Cinnamon Swirl Bread
- Bake at least 4 layer cakes – 1: Neapolitan Cheesecake Cake, 2: White Chocolate Layer Cake with Blueberry Curd 3: Purple Ombre Cake (I’ve actually made two more layers cakes, I just haven’t gotten around to posting them yet)
- Buy a whole coconut. Open it. Do something (delicious) with it.
- Make at least one thing from each cookbook I own – any cookbooks that don’t get used in a year, donate or giveaway on here – I started making my list of cookbooks…
- Cook with 3 new foods – Being part of a CSA this summer was AMAZING. I’ve definitely already cooked with 3 new foods, including this Summer Shrimp Salad. And Balsamic Fiddleheads!
Relationships
- Send birthday cards to my and Hubby’s families – Done!
- Continue to bake for a good cause – Done / Ongoing!
- Go see my sister’s new house – Done! We got to see Brooke’s house while we were in the Midwest for Thanksgiving
- Go on a girls weekend getaway – Done! I spent a weekend in St Louis with my mom and two sisters in July. It was a great time. I have also done a couple other girls getaways with friends. One to Keene, NH and one to Providence, RI!
- Volunteer 4 times
Random
- Get another tattoo – I have been working on a design for this one!
- Pay off my car – Done!
- Decide on a signature / go-to cocktail – My two go-to cocktails depending on my mood. A dark and stormy, or a Hendricks and tonic. YUM.
- Watch a sunrise
- Read 4 books – 1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 2. Water for Elephants 3. The Hunger Games 4. Catching Fire 5. Mockingjay
Healthy living
- Walk another Avon Walk for Breast Cancer – Done! NYC recap here. Then I got all ambitious and did another one this year! Boston Avon Walk recap here.
- Continue to work out on a regular basis – I was doing really well on this one, then kind of fell off the wagon and am getting back on now.
- Treat myself to 6 massages – Done!
- Get my first facial – Done!
Travel and Life in Boston
- Go to the Head of the Charles
- Visit the New England Aquarium
- See the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
- Go to Top of the Hub for cocktails – Done!
- Visit 3 new cities – 1: St Louis, 2: Niagara Falls 3: Keene, NH 4: Exeter, NH 5: Providence, RI We also visited a LOT of new cities while in Europe. I love traveling!
Reader’s Choice
- Post more how-to tips (including videos) on here (thanks to Mary and Sarah for the suggestion!) – Check out my new How-To tag.
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
Happy Birthday!!!!
I had one of those lists when i was 28 too, then i got pregnant. that was the only thing i got to cross off 🙂 Good luck with your list and enjoy your last year of your 20’s!! What a great way to gear up for 30!! And let me just say that 30 is great, i am having a blast!!!
I saw marshmallows on your list. I have a great recipe and they are seriously easy to make and so delicious that you will never want to eat store marshmallows again!
http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/12/homemade_chocolate_dipped_mars.html
Happy Birthday! I’m starting to create a similar list… good luck accomplishing all of it!
Happy birthday!
I made a list before I turned 30 also. It is addictive so I keep an ongoing list. Then this year I did Mondo Beyondo and list got crazier!
On the chicken tikka front, Cook’s Illustrated did a recent chicken tikka and it is unbelievable! As close to the restaurant as you can get.
And for cooking classes, my husband and I took a knife skills class together in Chicago and it was THE BEST class I have ever taken. I can easily chop like the pros and it has saved us literally hundreds of hours in the kitchen.
Here’s my list for this year:
http://jonandlaura.blogspot.com/2010/03/36-wishes-for-upcoming-year.html
Happy Birthday!
I’ll be 29 in August, so I think I’m going to steal your idea and make a list of my own (probably with a lot of the same things you mentioned!)
Happy Birthday! Hope you have a fabulous day!
I’ve been reading your blog for a while but I think this is my first time commenting. I just wanted to say that I think it’s awesome that you have a list of goals to hit before you hit 30! I’m turning 30 myself in about a month and a half and I’m wondering where all the time went. Maybe I’ll set a couple goals to fulfill within the next several weeks. Happy birthday.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!
These are really great goals. I haven’t been to the beach since moving to Boston 3 years ago either. Ridiculous. Must change this this summer 🙂
I’m turning 29 this year also (ahhhh!) and I love this idea. Good luck on your goals. And definitely keep us updated with your progress.
I really need to make a list like this too! That’s a lot to accomplish in a year, but I think you can do it!
Happy birthday!! 🙂
Sues
Thanks for all the birthday wishes everyone. And thanks for the recipe links! If anyone has any others to share to help me get through my list, I’m all ears!
What a fantastic list!! I need to make one for 35 things to do before I’m 35 hmmm.
Good luck with getting through this list. It looks so fantastic.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Happy Birthday!
This is a great idea – 30s are great – however I only have a couple years left of them.
Love your blog…
Hello and Happy Birthday to a fellow midwest transplant!! I’m from Greenville, OH (it’s 40 miles north and west of Dayton) and now live in Central Massachusetts! Your list is quite similar to mine…especially about keeping in touch and meeting friends babies back home!! It gets tough living so far away. Good luck with the list, and keep baking, I love your recipes!!
I’ve started to make baked donuts. I wish there were more recipes than just plain out there. http://americancupcakeinlondon.blogspot.com/2010/06/mini-cake-donuts.html
I just did a trial at a Bikram Yoga studio. It’s miserable doing it but I lost 1kg after only 4 classes!
I’m organizing a bloggers event but sadly it’s in London 🙁 It’s hard work. I’m trying to get a guest speaker but no one is interested as this is the first one.
Love the list! I just made baked doughnuts… they were beautiful… unfortunately they tasted nothing like doughnuts. Maybe there’s a better recipe out there for you! I’ll look forward to checking back to see if you have any success with those.
Happy Belated Birthday! I check out your blog often and love it! I love the list you got going- I think I need to start one up 🙂
We made bagels the other morning and they are surprisingly easy! If you wanna check them out :
http://sweetebakes.blogspot.com/2010/06/homemade-bagels.html
Happy belated birthday! I had problems accessing your blog for some reason on Thursday, but wanted to pass along well wishes and echo everyone’s thoughts on what a great idea your list is. Alas, similar to Roxan, I’m turning 30 in August but maybe I can set a few reasonable goals to achieve in that short time. 🙂
Great list. I think I’m going to do 1 for my b-day tomorrow. Of things I want to do this year.
First – happy belated birthday! Second – I love the list…what a great idea. I love the name of it too. I may borrow it for my 30 “while I’m in my” 30’s! To be honest though, 30 was a tough birthday, but I’ve never loved life more than I do now!
Hope to see you over at Sunny Bug sometime 🙂