the List

So I'm ready to publish the list. I started coming up with the list back in October. My mom was visiting my sister and I at the time and we had many laughs over what the list might include. My sister was the most vocal about my list…she had lots of ideas and I often had to remind her that it was my list. But who am I kidding my sister will be my biggest cheer leader in this and will likely do a lot of the things with me.  

I’ve titled my blog “Be Happy” It seemed fitting given some recent choices I have made that were directly related to me being happy. Not always easy choices…but in the end the right ones. I am a firm believer in the idea of happiness being a choice. It is not to say that sad times won’t come and that tragedy won’t strike. It is more about finding a way to find joy and happiness during and after those difficult times so that at the end of the day, the week, the year or however long it takes happiness always, eventually, outweighs sadness. I also think when choosing to be happy it means making sure you invest in your own life. It means taking time to do things that make you happy when there are other things in life that you can’t always control that might make you unhappy.  I guess that’s what the list is about…taking time to do things that will make me happy. I know there will be things that occur in life that could lead to unhappiness but at the end of the day I want to take control of what I can and be sure it leads to good things. 

I’ve put lots of thought into what the list might include.  There were many things that were on the list but got cut. I needed to keep the budget and timeline in mind. If I had started this list 5 years ago it would have looked different. I would have had time to save and plan etc. but alas I have about a year and 3 months. I wanted it to include things that prepared me for my future but also wanted to spend the time learning things that I’ve wanted to learn for some time. Some of the things I’ve said I would do for years, some even take me back to things I said I would do as a child. Some will be easy to measure, I will know if I have accomplished them or not. Others will be a bit more of a journey and won’t necessarily have an end date. Some are not even entirely in my control. At the end of this all I hope for is that I’ll look back and know that I said I would do something and I tried. Maybe I’ll accomplish it or maybe I’ll fail…but I will have given it a good effort and hopefully had some laughs along the way.

So here it is….

1. Run a Marathon
2. Volunteer
3. Invest more time in friends and family
4. Spend quality time with Emma and Dustin (niece and nephew)
5. Send thirty women who have been an influence in my life a letter describing why they mean so much to me!!
6. Watch the sun set and rise at the ocean
7. Discover 12 new things in my own back yard.
8. Sleep outside under the stars
9. Go on a Cycling Trip
10. Go on a Solo- Spontaneous Road trip
11. Go on a trip with Mom, Aunt Margie, my Cousin Emily, and my Sister Elizabeth
12. Read 12 thought provoking books
13. Learn to Ski
14. Learn more about Photography
15. Learn about wine
16. Take Golf lessons
17. Learn to sew
18. Learn my way around the kitchen
19. Refinish a piece of furniture
20. Do a Boudoir photo session
21. Buy and wear a bikini to the beach
22. Do a 365 Photo project of my year before 30.
23. Go on 10 dates with 10 new people or find true love – whichever comes first :) 
24. Buy a new little black dress (no budget!)
25. Go without ‘coffee to go’ for one year
26. Go one month with no shopping
27. Learn to live on a strict budget (Using Gail Vazoxlade’s Jar Method)
28. Begin planning for retirement
29. Start saving for a home
30. Throw a kick ass 30^th birthday party