30 Before 30

Well folks, I just had a birthday. I'm officially a quarter of a century old. Halfway to fifty. Able to rent a car. I have a single white hair on my right eyebrow as a testament of my increased age and wisdom. Haha!

I had a good birthday week, complete with: a kid-free night out with my man, finally watching Fantastic Beasts, the arrival of my new double stroller (which resulted in several long walks over to the nearest park with the kiddos), watching plenty of General Conference, birthday dinner at the in-laws, and breaking my 2-month chocolate fast. I requested brownies and ice cream for my birthday dessert; brownies have never tasted so good, folks! Oh chocolate, how I have missed you!

Now that I'm halfway through my 20s, it seems like an opportune time to make a bucket list to work on over the next 5 years. Soooooo here are 30 things that I want to do before I turn 30 years old:

***EDIT: I will write a blog post each time I accomplish a bucket list item, and I'll link all of the posts on the master list below! And I'll mark the ones I'm currently working on.***

1) Add a fur baby to our family. Okay, let's be specific... a cat. I want a cat.

2) Travel outside of the continental US.

3) Master at least 5 classic piano pieces. (in progress)

4) Take our kids camping.

5) Get a bike, along with a bike trailer to put the kids in, and go on family bike rides. DONE

6) Learn to love running and set a new personal best mile time. DONE

7) Become flexible enough to do the splits. (in progress)

8) Visit the ice castles in Midway. DONE

9) Go on a cruise.

10) Take the kids horseback riding. DONE

11) Take the kids ice skating. DONE

12) Get professional family pictures taken. (We've never done this, aside from a small wedding shoot.)

13) Read the entire Little House series to Nicole, just like my mom read them to me. (in progress)

14) Find the joy in yard work and get our yards looking picture perfect.

15) Take the kiddos to Disneyland. DONE (3 times so far!)

16) Get the courage to finally dye my hair. DONE

17) See a favorite musician live in concert. Either Michael Buble or John Mayer. Both would be nice. Or see "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" now that it's in the states. No, that's not a concert, but I think I would pick it over John or Michael. (tickets purchased!)

18) Have my home cohesively decorated. This means I'll have to learn some interior design tricks because my eye for balancing home décor and picking out the perfect pieces for a space (as well as how to arrange those pieces) is nonexistent.

19) Participate in a fundraising walk.

20) Get a manicure or pedicure. (I've never had a professional one!)

21) Start the tradition of an annual Galentine's Day party.

22) Visit Doug's grandmother in Arizona.

23) Home reno project: add doors in our kitchen leading out onto a new backyard deck.

24) Read Jesus the Christ in its entirety.

25) Finish decluttering the house. (I've been stuck at about 3/4ths of the way done for a while now.)

26) Stay in one of the rooms at the Anniversary Inn. After some research, I've decided I don't want to go there anymore. Now, the goal is to stay at a 5-star hotel. (was in progress, but coronavirus postponed it)

27) Go on a Girls Trip. With what girls? I don't know (Carissa, ya with me?) but the point is, go on a multi-day trip with no kids or men. (was in progress, but coronavirus postponed it)

28) Learn basic coding and programming. (in progress)

29) Learn a new instrument, and be able to play it adequately. (in progress)

30) Become a certified Zumba instructor.



Bonus items: see a musical/play on broadway, go on a family vacation to Yellowstone, maybe even go to my 10 year high school reunion. :P It looks like a perfectly manageable list to me! Time is ticking... ready, set, go!