100 Things (By Lola)

My sister-in-law did this on her blog, and I thought it was kind of fun. I don't expect you all to read it through, but I thought I'd do it for me. Something to look back on in future years. Maybe we can get Ryan to do one, too, since this is also his blog. We'll see, though. :-)

1. My favorite color is red.
2. I am LDS and it makes me happier than anything and adds so much meaning to everything for me.
3. I want to go on a cruise for every vacation. I love it.
4. I have a fear of heights but I went parasailing on our anniversary trip and it was awesome.
5. My favorite place to be is in the temple, standing in front of the ocean, snuggled in bed with Ryan, or onstage.
6. I don't find myself onstage anymore, but in my teen years it was a regular part of my life. I sang, danced, and acted, but mostly sang.
7. I feel really blessed to be tight with my in-laws.
8. I like dogs, but I'm a cat person.
9 I love anything soft or silky. I'm very tactile. Probably why I'm a cat person.
10. I have the best mom in the whole world.
11. Mashed potatoes are my favorite.
12. A little obsessed with polka dots.
13. Every time I see a cute baby, I want to chew on it.
14. I love to play volleyball.
15. I'm a Democrat.
16. I was born in Boston.
17. I grew up in Portland, Oregon.
18. I've lived in Utah for over 6 years...in my 7th! Crazy.
19. I'm pregnant for the first time. And I love being pregnant.
20. I love herbal tea more than anything. Especially mint. Soothes me and pleases me like nothing else can.
21. I only eat meat 2-3 times a week (maybe more when I'm pregnant).
22. My favorite temple so far is the Portland Temple. Salt Lake is awesome, too. It would be my dream to do work in every temple in the world.
23. I was married in the Portland Temple.
24. July has always been an awesome month for me. When I was younger, I'd travel, fall in love, and have adventures in July. Ryan and I became official in July, I was endowed in the temple in July, I was married in July, and now I'm set to have my first baby in July.
25. I prefer odd numbers. I never like the birthdays in which I turn an even number. I was married 7/11/9.
26. I don't believe in war and never, ever will. I think it's inarguably evil. Don't waste your time trying to change my view about it. I don't care what looks good on paper. "The heart has reasons which reason can't explain."
27. I like all word games. Scrabble, Boggle, TextTwist, etc.
28. I love to decorate my home for holidays.
29. Anne of Green Gables is my favorite movie.
30. Eight Cousins by Louisa May Alcott is my favorite book.
31. I love to ballroom dance, especially Latin, and I'm okay at it, but I love to watch the pros and be impressed/jealous.
32. I like going to Jazz games.
33. I am really close to both my sisters and I adore them.
34. I'm the oldest of 6 kids.
35. I think two boys and two girls would be ideal for kid-having, but we'll see!
36. I speak Japanese.
37. I've never broken a bone.
38. I genuinely enjoy my husband more than anyone else. We can read each others minds and we have so much fun together. People think we're opposites, but we're more compatible than anyone really knows.
39. I love baby laughter, or being somewhere and overhearing someone guffaw. Sometimes people turn around and glare at loud laughers, but I'm glad they're adding some happy noise to the world. I'd love to know why they're laughing so I could laugh, too. :-)
40. I don't much like TV, but I have a guilty pleasure show: Pretty Little Liars.
41. I don't have cable and don't intend to ever get it.
42. I own every season of Friends and Cosby Show.
43. I love pizza with olives, but plain cheese at Escape from New York Pizza on 23rd in downtown Portland is the best pizza in the world.
44. I think in puns all the time.
45. Can't live without my planner.
46. My Aunt Pam lived with us for a lot of my childhood and she's still the best aunt ever. We're really close.
47. My brother Joseph was one of my very best friends during the high school years.
48. I have a "soulmate" friend, Bethany. We share the same birthday, similar hair, same eye color, pale skin, and a lot of the same personality traits.
49. I've been to Canada and Mexico but never outside the continent, and I'd love to travel to Europe and Africa.
50. I had LASIK eye surgery and a couple years later, I have to wear contacts and glasses again.
51. I still have the same BFF I had in the third grade: JuJu. She was a maid of honor at my wedding.
52. When Heidi and I first went to college together, people thought we looked like sisters. I love that she will always be one of my very best friends.
53. I collect children's books.
54. All of my kitchen stuff is red and a red rose is my favorite flower.
55. My friendship with Isaac Holyoak has been one of the most influential of my life.
56. My favorite song is "You'll Never Walk Alone."
57. I cry easily when I'm touched, but not when I'm sad or hurt.
58. Ralph Nader quoted me on the front page of the Oregonian in the 8th grade.
59. I love museums, art galleries, and old bookstores. D.C. was one of my favorite trips because I could wander for free through the Smithsonian museums all day.
60. My mom's family mostly lives in Michigan and I spent some time out there one summer a couple years ago. I loved getting to know my mom's family better.
61. I got a Bachelor of Science from Southern Utah University.
62. My degree was a composite major in Public Relations and Interpersonal Communication, with a minor in Early Childhood Development.
63. I'm really interested in health promotion and positive social marketing and would love to work on health campaigns.
64. I'm a nationally certified prevention specialist.
65. I like everyone. To know me is to be loved by me.
66. I am fiercely protective of my girlfriends.
67. I'm a feminist, but feel like saying that doesn't mean much, because no one really seems to know what feminism is anyway. They say it with such a bad taste in their mouths. It's a little disheartening how uninformed and closed-minded people are about it.
68. I teach special ed preschool and love it!
69. I think I have learned some of my greatest lessons from the very young and the very old.
70. The calling that seems to follow me most is relief society teacher. Even if I have a different calling, it ends up being an aspect of my calling to teach relief society.
71. I think I could live off fruit.
72. If I find out someone is racist, they lose a lot of credibility with me.
73. Being itchy is my biggest pet peeve.
74. I think ignorance is a really ugly trait, especially among people who are supposed to be an enlightened people.
75. My three favorite words in the English language are: Integrity, Peace, and Grace. I strive to live those every day and sometimes fall short, but those are the qualities I strive for and the words I hear in my head constantly.
76. As a general rule, I don't eat red meat, but now and then a REALLY good hamburger hits the spot.
77. I never like steak, though.
78. My first kiss is debatable between two guys. I'm not sure if one of them counts, because it was a New Years out of nowhere kind of thing, but the funny part is they were both Daniels, and they were within a few days of each other.
79. My favorite boy name has always been Ryan, but now I can't use it as a first name because I married a Ryan.
80. I like my name and think my parents are awesome for naming me Lola. I really think it has made life more fun to be a Lola.
81. One of my favorite memories is my senior trip with my best friends at Tyler's ranch in Sisters, Oregon. It's just one of those times you look back on with soft music and lovely sunlight and beautiful smiles permeating the playback of the memory.
82. I believe if you look for the positive, it will be there. I laugh every day.
83. People always ask if I'm Latina, Asian, or Middle Eastern. I blame the name, but sometimes they even ask when they don't know my name. I find this amusing because I think I am very plain-looking.
84. I really enjoy talking to my parents. My mom is a great listener and really supportive. My dad's texts always crack me up. He's funny and gives great advice.
85. I love the Oregon Coast. That's where we had our honeymoon.
86. My whole life I dreamed of marrying a man like Ryan, and never believed such a guy existed, or that if he did exist he'd ever want to spend eternity with me. I feel so blessed and like I'm living a fairy tale every day because of him.
87. I honestly think my husband is the most gorgeous man on the planet. Celebs don't do anything for me anymore. AND, I thought he was super hot before I ever had feelings for him, so I know it's not just marital bias.
88. I get high off of budgeting and saving and using coupons and finding bargains. I love dumping a whole paycheck into a debt and eliminating said debt.
89. I think midwives are awesome and I'm so glad I chose to go that route.
90. I started wearing a bra pretty young and got so much crap for it. The guys harassed me, and the girls were jealous...as if being harassed was fun or something. Sometimes I'd hide in a classroom between classes so no one could holler at me while I walked down the hall. I still have bad posture because of it.
91. I like sage green. I think it's a healing color.
92. I love yoga.
93. I like to cook. It makes me feel happy to make someone else feel happy and full. I try to make my home a healing place - where you know you can always go for a hug, a good friend, a mug of tea, or a warm meal. I've known people and places like that in my life and want to be the same healing presence for others.
94. I plan the menu two weeks at a time.
95. In college I was on student government and made some amazing friends and great memories. I was involved in a lot of other stuff, too, and I think that is the way to go for college. The college years are my favorite memories.
96. One of my favorite college memories is Tues/Thurs Rotunda lunches with my best girlfriends - Marie, Chelsea, Bethany, Kylie, Jordan, Megan, and then whoever else could make it.
97. I knew my hubby for 5 years before we got married.
98. I'm not addicted to caffeine, or sugar, but I am addicted to bubbles. I love anything carbonated. I avoid caffeine, and 100% while pregnant, but I'm still a sucker for any bubbly beverage and suspect I always will be. I love the bite.
99. I love adventure. I love trying something new. I love going to a restaurant I've never been to, or stopping at a little craft fair, or just whatever. I love those events in Portland where you can listen to different musical artists and watch old hippies with long gray hair dance. I just love exploring and seeing everything that is out there.
100. My family and friends are my everything.


Whew! That was long. I hold nothing against you if you did not read it. :-) Have a lovely day!