100 Things

One of the best things about Blogger is that little 'Next Blog' tab right up there...on the top of this very page. Hit it! So I like to browse this every so often in hopes of finding jewels or just ridiculous photos. Sometimes I wonder how they sort through the millions of existing blogs and decide on which to show me. All I know is, I get an awful lot of mom and baby blogs.

However today as I was flipping through I seemed to stumble upon general runner's blogs. One in particular grabbed me by his 100 Things post. Pretty soon I'd read through the entire 100 facts of his life and now I feel like I know almost too much about him. But talk about the ultimate list making experience! I love a good list, so here it goes; 100 Facts You May or May Not Know About Laura!

1. I love making any type of list
2. I started making a list of things to do according to my age when I was 21
3. I completed just 7 of those things 
4. One of those things was to travel around Europe which I did
5. It included Sweden, England, Ireland and Italy with the trip originating from Finland 
6. I lived in Finland August 2004-May 2005 
7. I attempted to learn Finnish by taking an intensive course
8. I am still able to count to 10 in Finnish, say good morning, good luck and happy birthday 
9. yksi, kaksi, kolme, nelja, viisi, kuusi, seitseman, kahdeksan, (9?) yhdeksan; moi moi; hyvaa palijon; hyvaa syntymapaiva 
10. I am a terrible speller (both in English and Finnish)
11. I took 4 semesters of Spanish in college and 2 years in H.S.
12. My paternal grandmother was from Mexico 
13. I am barely conversational in Spanish- one of my biggest personal grievances 
14. All 4 of my grandparents have passed away
15. My Abuelita (paternal Gma) when I lived in Finland
16. One of the biggest regrets I have is not coming home for her funeral 
17. I did however write a speech for it that was delivered by my sister
18. I have 2 sisters, no brothers
19. I am a middle child
20. My younger sister did not like me until my older sister moved away to college
21. I went to the same college as my older sister
22. I received a full scholarship to that college 
23. I was in the Top 10 of my graduating class in H.S. 
24. I graduated from undergrad in 2006 
25. My degree is in History
26. I really had no idea what I was going to do with that
27. I applied to Teach for America and Teaching Fellows of NYC in 2005
28. I was accepted into the Fellows for the Summer '06 cohort 
29. The Fellows program told me my 'high-need' area was ESL
30. I was in a group of about 15 others from around the country 
31. I lived in NYC from June 2006-July 2009 
32. I taught 7th and 8th graders English 
33. I lived in 5 different apartments over that time span 
34. The best apartment was in Harlem
35. The worst apartment was in East Harlem 
36. I lived with a girl I met online then my boyfriend then my husband and then my friend in that order
37. I got married in June 2008
38. I had been dating him since the Fall of 2002
39. I have known him since Junior High 
40. We have a son
41. He was born in May 2010
42. I had a normal pregnancy that turned into a high-risk one as a result of a blood clot
43. I was in the hospital for 8 days because of it
44. I have been in a hospital in 3 different countries 
45. Mexico, Greece and the United States
46. Mexico- for a horrible stomach virus 
47. Greece- for general illness (I was on a school trip)
48. US- broken clavicle, blood clot, baby 
49. I broke my clavicle in 2005 playing rugby
50. My parents were both at the game and brought me to the hospital 
51. My dad was very proud, he used to play rugby a lot
52. My parents have not owned a car since July 2008 
53. They cycle everywhere now
54. I bought my first road bike in NYC, it is a blue Giant
55. I cycled around the entire island of Manhattan one Sunday
56. I did my first triathlon in 2009
57. It began in Hoboken, New Jersey and ended in Philadelphia
58. It included a 76 mile bike portion and a 10 K
59. I have run a couple 10 Ks, several 5 Ks and 2 half-marathons 
60. My best Half marathon time is 2:01
61. I registered for the NYC marathon for this year
62. I bought my first car in 2009
63. It is a white Mazda hatchback
64. We bought it because we had moved back to Michigan 
65. I have lived in Michigan from 1986-2006 and 2009-currently 
66. I was born in Valparaiso, Indiana in January 1984  
67. Both of my sisters were born in Michigan 
68. My older sister lives in California
69. My younger sister lives in Wyoming 
70. I love Fall and Winter the best
71. Christmas is my favorite time of the year
72. Trepak is my favorite 
73. I played this every year at my HS Xmas concert
74. I have seen the Nutcracker ballet in Detrot, Grand Rapids and NYC and I can say GR's was best
75. I play the cello 
76. I played soccer, tennis and volleyball in HS
77. I took my first proper swim lessons in 2008 at the YMCA in the lower east side
78. My eyes are greenish hazel
79. My favorite feature are my legs
80. My favorite piece of clothing I own is my yellow skirt from Anthropologie
81. My favorite piece of clothing to dress my son in is a brown bear suit his aunt gave him
82. I like saving money almost as much as spending it
83. I would spend a good portion of my income on coffee drinks and magazines if I could
84. My favorite magazine is ELLE
85. My favorite coffee drink is a tie between Pumpkin Spice lattes and Peppermint mochas 
86. I can't help but love Starbucks 
87. My favorite was on 87th and Lexington
88. My favorite time to eat is brunch
89. Most watched movie of all time is a tie between Little Women and Rudy
90. I applied to the University of Notre Dame and was denied
91. Best sport to watch is professional tennis 
92. I have been to the US Open and saw Nadal lose 
93. I really want to see a match at Wimbledon 
94. If I could be a professional athlete I would want to be a soccer star 
95. I anticipate several career changes in my life
96. If I could live anywhere right now it would be Chicago 
97. Once I get the notion of a possibility of a snow day I am devastated the following morning if it doesn't happen (I am thinking about that right now...)
98. I go to bed around 9:30 on a weekday (sigh)
99. I sing 2 songs to my son every night before I lay him down
100. 'All Around the Cathedral' and 'Silent Night'