“Springing Forward” Bucketlist

I love Spring:  watching new life bloom, feeling the warmer temperatures, and knowing school will soon be out (can I get a woot woot from all my teacher friends)!  One thing I don’t look forward to is the dreaded “springing forward” of the clocks!  I get why we do it, but man that first week is tough!!  So in order to think more positively about what it means to “spring forward,” we are going to share some of our Bucketlist items.  Because isn’t that what a bucketlist is…the idea of creating something to help you “spring forward” in life.  At least that’s how I’m going to start looking at it.

1. Stay the night in a treehouse.  And I’m not talking about the ramshackle treehouse your dad built in the backyard.  I’m talking about a “Treehouse Masters” kind of treehouse! Some of the most amazing architectural wonders I’ve ever seen have been on that show and I just think it would be a “treerific” (sorry couldn’t help myself) adventure!!
2. Grow succulents including cacti.  If you hadn’t noticed, succulents and cacti are a big thing right now.  But I’ve been eyeing them up for years now! I’ve even done research on how to grow your own.  This will probably be a summer project for me this summer to be honest. And Gina….when are we going to get together and have a “Succulent Party!”

   

3. Go to Bingo.  Yes, I said Bingo.  Other than “Books of the Bible Bingo” in Sunday School or made up Bingo games in school, I’ve never played real Bingo at a Bingo hall or VFW with wiley veterans.  It just sounds like fun!
4. Attend a Mardi Gras parade.  I know the biggest Mardi Gras parade is in New Orleans, but St. Louis is right behind!  I would probably go to one in St. Louis and work my way up to a New Orleans adventure.
5. Napa Valley Road Trip.  If you read my latest hike and wine adventure (here), you would know I love my wine.  And where else would be better to go on a wine adventure than famous Napa Valley! I’m not sure how much hiking goes on there, but I bet there’s enough to keep me happy!
6. Raise Alpacas.  When Caroline and I first started this little blogging adventure, we thought that a llama and an alpaca would be the perfect mascots for us.  Of course, she thought the taller, goofy looking llama would be more appropriate for me, while she was the cute and cuddly alpaca, but whatever!!  LOL. But since that initial conversation, I’ve actually done quite a bit of research on those adorable alpacas and would love to have some of my own!  Now I just have to convince my mom to let me turn a few loose on the family farm!
7. Attend the Olympics.  I love the Olympics.  Summer, Winter, it doesn’t matter!  I just want to go. It would be cheaper if they were closer to home, but then again, I may have quite a wait for that to happen.
8. Landscape Photography Lessons.  Even though I’ve gotten some really amazing pictures with my iphone and a few picture enhancing apps, I would love to get a nicer camera that can take a little bit of a beating on my outdoor adventures.  I feel like I’d probably need a few landscape photography lessons as well so I know how to work said camera.
9. Jeep ride in Moab.  I am a proud Jeep Wrangler owner and will probably have one in my life always.  I’ve said that once my current Jeep is paid off, I’m going to turn her into a toy and just buy another one for everyday driving.  Yes, she is a girl. One place I’d definitely like to go is the Moab desert, which is famous for “Jeeping.”
   

   

   
10. Hurts Donut.  The ads for this place on Facebook have been teasing me for months!!  This establishment is just on the other side of the state, so I can see a stop there sometime within the next year.  I mean they really do “look so good it hurts!” Or my stomach is really going to hurt after eating a baker’s dozen or two.  Nom Nom!!

Everyone is springing forward and I’m springing into another year older. My birthday is at the end of the month which influenced my selection for our guest bucketlister. I have a new coworker this year, Brooke Dugal. She mans the ISS side out there while I have the Alternative side. And strangely enough, we share the SAME birthday with me being a few years older. So I asked Brooke to share 10 items from her list. She was hesitant at first, but I told her I didn’t need need anything lengthy just a list. I’ll share hers in a minute, but first here are mine.

1. ✔️I need to mark one off my list. The last installment I shared attending the roller derby and I made quick time of fulfilling that one. Katie and I with friends and most of our families attended an event just a couple weeks ago. The blog will be coming soon.

2. Symphony – I added this to my list earlier in the winter and thought now is the perfect time to share because I saw just this week how the St. Louis Symphony is doing an evening to honor Tom Petty. It is like fate is inviting me to attend.

3. Hike in the fog – Last month we arrived early to a hike in Lone Elk Park and the fog was still lingering over the lake. It was mystifying and intriguing. It inspired me to want to hike in the fog to become a sort of Lady of the Mist.

4. Grow my own garden – It is that time to start thinking about preparing those gardens. I have attempted a garden, once I believe, but then Hunter began playing baseball the entire summer and it died off. My Grandma and Grandpa Pratt had HUGE gardens that my Aunt Mary still maintains on a smaller scale. I need to try my own.

5. Overnight hike and backpack – I grew up camping in a tent with no electric. I will admit I hated it most of the time. My parents now camp in a fifth-wheel and stay gone weeks at a time. It’s like a second home. I have come to enjoy hiking and think I would enjoy the overnight aspect as well. The idea of only taking what fits on your back is intriguing to me. I don’t want to pack half my house to spend a weekend in the woods. I want to spend my time enjoying the outdoors not preparing for it.

6. Katie mentioned photography classes. I have a Digital Canon Rebel that I have packed around to ballgames and a few times on our hikes. I mainly use the preset modes but would like to become confident in using the manual settings. I just need to find time to devote to it.

7. Visit the Missouri Star Quilt Store – I am quilter and love to explore and learn. I would like to stop and visit the store and see what they have to offer.

8. Finish a quilt for Hunter – If I’m talking quilting I should add to my list to finish a quilt for Hunter. Not a t-shirt quilt, which I have planned, but an adult quilt he can cherish forever – on at least he is suppose to.

9. See a Monet – I had this on my original list ten years or so ago. I had a chance to do this in Atlanta a few years ago and I could kick myself for not going. We were there for a school conference. I was pretty much the only one interested in going to the exhibit and I would have to pass through the not greatest part of town (or so I read). I just didn’t feel comfortable doing it alone or taking the kids, so I didn’t go. I still regret that decision.

10. Take Irish Dance Lessons – As I was clicking my way through ALDI this evening, Aaron asked if I was going to do a little tap dance. I said yes, maybe a little shuffle ball change. He wasn’t expecting that. LOL. I guess in the last three years he has missed that I took dance lessons for about nine years. I’m not sure how he could miss the pictures hanging in my mom’s hallway but oh well. Anyway I would like to give Irish Dance a chance. Channel my inner Michael Flatley. I think Katie and I could both give it a whirl and it would probably look something like an I Love Lucy episode. If anyone wants to join us, we could make it a group venture. 😬

Maybe Brooke should have added Irish Dance to her list, but she didn’t. But she did have the following 10 items on her list.

1. See a Broadway Show

2. Live in a house by the Lake

3. New Year’s Eve in Times Square

4. Road trip across America coast to coast

5. See the Northern Lights

6. Go white water rafting

7. Visit Rio de Janeiro

8. Take an art class

9. Witness a flash mob (not participate!)

10. Visit Sequoia National Park in California

As always share your own lists or items to be checked off!