ADVENTURE // AN AFTERNOON

I hinted that I completed another task on my Future 101 list, and I'm here to share all about it.  My mom and I decided to spend an afternoon kayaking on the river.  We typically kayak on a sleepy creek near our house, but we opted for an adventurous 4 mile trek on the Black River through Holland.  It runs through my hometown, empties into Macatawa Bay, and feeds Lake Michigan.  We also passed a Holland landmark, Windmill Island.

You really can't beat that view.  The windmill was imported from the Netherlands way back when.  Not to shabby for a spontaneous kayaking adventure! Have you been on any unexpected adventures lately?

ADVENTURE // A LOVELY DAY

I had a whole day with nothing in particular on my agenda.  My family and friends were working and it felt like a little slice of the world was my oyster. I woke up late and threw a bow in my hair, accomplishing a goal of mine. Then, I made a pb&j to go and went to my favorite place on earth.

Eating lunch on car-top, beachside is the way to go.  I've spent many a summer night listening to music on top of my jeep in this parking lot.  This is my "happy place."  It's a little beach that most people don't think twice about.  I kind of love that.  The beach is spectacular and I had it all to myself the other day.

Since I was at the beach anyway, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to check another thing off my goals list - run down a sand dune.  If you have never ran full speed down a sand dune, you may not understand the awesomeness of this goal.  It almost feels like your flying, and always reminds me of my lakeside childhood.

START:

 
FINISH:

And after my beach time was over, I decided to do a little antiquing and thrifting in hopes of finally finding bookends.  After a few hours of no luck, I stumbled upon this place.

I was tempted to take home the vintage telephones, signage and license plates they had an abundance of.  At first, I felt a little disheartened.  Bookends tend to be both ugly and expensive.  I had almost given up, until I stumbled on a corner of nautical goodness and spotted this guy.

He doesn't have a match, so I got him for $12.  As you can tell, he isn't stay in his current condition for long. After a little sanding and a coat of black semi-gloss spray paint, he was good as new.  I'll be sure to point out the final product when I move him to his permanent location.

For those of you who have lost track, I ticked off five goals off of my list in one afternoon.  Not too shabby.

     - wear a bow in my hair
     - run down a sand dune
     - go antiquing
     - go thrifting
     - find/DIY/buy bookends

I've actually accomplished another goal since, but I'll save that story for another day. It's quite a good one.