Top Picks at 26

December 13th, 2019 is my 26th birthday! Hurray! Last year for my 25th birthday I stayed up until 4am finishing this massive post celebrating 25 dream chasers who’ve inspired me. This year I thought I’d keep it simpler and also use this as chance for you to get to know me a little more. It is my birthday after all, so I can do what I want! So here is a list of 26 of my favorite things—my top picks at the age of 26!

1. The Lord of the Rings

I have to start the list with my favorite movie series (and fantasy world)! I watched Peter Jackson’s films of the amazing books by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, when they first came to theaters. I have a memory of my parents even taking me out of school a little early to go see one of the movies. Since The Fellowship of the Ring, I have been in awe and inspired by this series! Tolkien was a HUGE creative inspiration to me…However, I confess I may have just now finished reading through all the books for the first time; please don’t hold it against me! The love of these books/movies is one of the first things that connected and bonded my husband and I as friends when we first met.

I try to watch through the movies every year, and I’m sad every time it ends. Usually I like quite a few years to pass before I watch a movie again, but this is one of the rare films I could easily watch over and over again. Watching the special features on the DVDs as a kid is also what inspired me as an artist—learning about the concept artists who worked on the films. Though I could never make as detailed and creative of a fantasy world as Tolkien, I do hope to one day write and publish fantasy books, including developing my own world. I’ve also been drawing made up creatures since I was a kid; I’m ready to finally put my ideas to some use.

 

2. Jazz

Jazz is my favorite music genre. There are other genres I love (including alternative rock as a top fave), but some good Jazz most consistently gives me goosebumps from how amazing it sounds to me! Fun fact: I played alto saxophone in middle school and in high school jazz band.

 

3. The Giver by Lois Lowry (book series)

These 4 books, starting with The Giver, were my introduction into what would become my favorite story genre: dystopian. I love the mixture of fiction and reality to send a powerful message of “if we continue on this path, this is where we could end up.” Like a prophetic warning. A commentary on society. It’s one thing to write a nonfiction essay to inspire others, but sometimes showing pulls on our heartstrings more than telling, and I believe a well-written dystopian story does just that. It’s also just a fun “what-if” playground for my mind. I plan on one day writing and publishing a collection of dystopian short stories.

 

4. Spider-Man

It’s so hard to choose, but Spider-Man is probably still my favorite superhero and has been for a long time. From the Tobey Maguire movies to getting to play him on PS2 to Andrew Garfield to the newest movies with Tom Holland, Spidey has continued to websling his way into my heart. I wrote more about my connection with Spider-Man in a guest post for NormalHappenings.com for a giant collaboration, The Characters That Define Us. Some of my other favorite superheroes include Doctor Strange, Night Crawler, Batman, and Captain America.

 

5. Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

My favorite candy (since being diagnosed with Celiac Disease 7 years ago and no longer being able to eat anything with gluten) is likely anything having to do with chocolate and peanut butter. Justin’s Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups are probably my top favorite right now. I also enjoy Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, but they’re a bit too sweet for me now; however, they’re still often my favorite flavor at icecream shops.

 

6. HuHot Mongolian Grill

This is currently my favorite place to eat! It’s a stir fry buffet where you pick out your ingredients and they cook it right in front of you! They also are so great about thoroughly cleaning and sectioning off an area on their grill when I let them know I can’t have gluten. I appreciate that so much! It’s probably still a bit of a risk with an open self-serve area for ingredients and still being cooked on the same grill, but so far I have not gotten sick. And the food is so yummy! I love getting their gluten-free rice noodles.

 

7. Christmas

I looove October, November, and December! They are the best months of the year, and I’d say Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year. I have so many wonderful memories. It’s also one of the few times all of my immediate family are together and usually for a whole week! I’m very close with my family and we always have such an amazing time together! I love watching all those sappy Hallmark Christmas movies even though they’re pretty much just the same 4 repeated plots. I love the decorations and all the fun traditions! I’ve also had fun starting new traditions with my husband.

 

8. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

It’s really hard to choose, but I think Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is still my favorite television show. They’re about to start their last (7th!) season! I highly recommend it if you’re a Marvel fan. I also really enjoy Doctor Who, Stranger Things, and A Million Little Things. For past shows, Gilmore Girls and Parks & Recreation are a couple of my favorites.

 

9. Purple

Purple has been my favorite color for as long as I can remember. I prefer a dark deep hue of purple.

 

10. Smoothies!

I’m a huge fan of smoothies! They’re probably my favorite drink. I enjoy making protein smoothies (strawberry banana is one of my favorites!), and look forward to trying new recipes. I also love Smoothie King…so much that I even got smoothies from there for myself and my bridesmaids on the morning of my wedding! Their Dark Chocolate Banana is currently my favorite flavor.

11. Favorite YouTube Video I’ve Made

This was so hard to choose because I love some of my videos for different reasons and they each taught me different lessons as I created them. But I guess if I had to choose, right now my favorite video is Encouragement to Keep Working Toward Your Goal. I’m still amazed it got so much positive feedback because it was the first video that I didn’t script first. I was struggling to create my video and I felt this message on my heart that I wanted to share, so I just winged it. Usually I need my script to do well, so I was surprised when it turned out great and ended up being a lot of people’s favorite video. A few more of my favorites include: The Hero’s Journal Unboxing (because it was my 1st unboxing video and I also experimented with some new techniques), Lessons on Division & Unity from X-Men (because I loved the messages I shared, as well as my passion), and I Recorded My Self-Talk for 30 Days (because of the experience of recording my self-talk, and I had a lot of fun playing around with some creative elements in this video).

 

12. Paramore

Paramore probably isn’t my favorite band, but it’s definitely been my most listened to this year, along with Panic! at the Disco. I have such a hard time choosing a favorite singer or band. I love so many for different reasons. Ingrid Michaelson, Lauren Daigle, Switchfoot, Michael Buble, Jack White, All Sons & Daughters, Sara Bareilles, Rage Against the Machine. Those are some I love, but I honestly don’t know if they’re my top favorites; I can never remember what I like on the spot lol. Also shoutout to my friend, Antonio, who is definitely one of my top favorite singers! Check out their music by clicking here. It’s really good!

 

13. Favorite Season: Autumn

Autumn is my favorite season! I kind of hate summer and think it’s overrated. All it gives me is sweat, bugs, and sunburns. Autumn has some of the most perfect temperatures—not too hot and not too cold—the perfect sweater weather! Plus all of my cute clothes are for Fall. It’s also so gorgeous with the changing colors of the leaves. There’s apple picking, pumpkin carving, lovely fall walks, crunchy leaves to step on, cozy blankets, hot cocoa or apple cider.

 

14. Lasagna

This is also a hard one to choose, but I think my current favorite food is lasagna. I don’t get it very often since it’s hard to find gluten-free, so it’s extra special to me now. I love almost all kinds of pasta.

 

15. Steampunk Munchkin

My favorite board/card game is Munckin! Look it up! And my favorite version of the game is Steampunk Munchkin.

 

16. Super Smash Bros.

This has been my favorite video game since playing it as a kid on N64. As a kid I prided myself in being able to beat all my friends with Pikachu or Kirby. My husband and I recently bought a Nintendo Switch as a birthday/Christmas present to ourselves; I look forward to when we can get Super Smash Bros!

 

17. Drawing

I have a gazillion hobbies, but I think my favorite is making digital illustrations. It especially makes me happy whenever I draw cards for my friends and family; I love using my art to bring joy and encourage people. I still have a long way to go because I rarely practice, but that’s something I hope to improve this year.

 

18. Doctor Who

My favorite fandom is probably Doctor Who. My mom first introduced me to it at the start of the reboot with Christopher Eccleston. If you care to know, currently David Tennant is my favorite Doctor, and Donna is my favorite companion. I’m also big into Marvel, DC, Disney, Pokemon, Star Wars, Star Trek, and probably many others. Strike up conversation with me about any of these things, and we will likely be quick friends!

 

19. England

I have never been outside of the United States. There are so many places around the world that I would love to visit, but the top country on my list is England. I’m not sure when my love of England started, but I definitely fell in love with it the more I watched Doctor Who and other British shows. I now have friends there (and friends close by in other European countries too) I’d love to go visit someday.

 

20. Favorite Blog Post I’ve Written

Oh wow, this is hard to choose too because I have over 100 posts over 4+ years of blogging at the time I am writing this. I think I’d have to say that currently my favorite blog post is The Dream Chasing Guide for Overthinkers. I really like the points I made in that post and it seems to have encouraged a lot of fellow overthinkers. A couple other of my favorites are How to Bravely Be Yourself in a Sea of Same and 3 Keys to Reaching Your Goals.

 

21. Calvin & Hobbes

There are so many comics I enjoy, but Calvin & Hobbes has been one of my favorites since I was a kid and it still brings me so much joy today.

 

22. Guitar

I love hearing different instruments, but if I had to pick one I’d probably say guitar is my favorite to listen to, especially music from talented guitarists who inspire me to continue practice my picking. I think piano might be my second favorite, and I would love to learn it someday.

 

23. The Latest Kate

“The Latest Kate” is currently my favorite artist to follow on Twitter because of how she uses her art—she regularly posts adorable animal drawings with encouraging messages. They constantly brighten my day when they show up in my feed, and it inspires me. As I mentioned before, I love making cards to use both my skills of creativity and encouragement, but I’d love to create more images with inspiring messages for social media someday, like Kate, Color Me Happi, and Chibird do. (Check them all out for some regular encouragement and positivity in your Twitter feed!)

 

24. Aardvark

My favorite animal is the aardvark. My love for aardvarks started in high school when I went on a trip with my friend and her parents to Chicago, and we saw aardvarks eating avocado at the zoo. They were so adorable!

 

25. Favorite Song

Currently my favorite song is Christmas Valentine by Jason Mraz and Ingrid Michaelson. I’ve played it so many times since it’s recent release at the end of November. It’s such a catchy, heart-warming song. Makes me so happy! Listen to it and check out the music video here.

 

26. Favorite Quote

My favorite quote comes from Walt Disney in the movie Saving Mr. Banks:

“That’s what we storytellers do. We restore order with imagination. We instill hope again and again and again.”

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What are some of your favorite things? Do we have any favorites in common? Comment below!