30 Before 30

Today is my birthday!  I'm 26!  It's not a super exciting birthday, but I'm still happy about it.  I don't really mind getting older and can't imagine that I'll ever be upset about aging, although I suppose it might happen someday.

Birthdays are a big time for retrospection. I don't ever want to reach a birthday and think back over the previous year and not have anything to show for myself.  Since I'm a natural list maker (Is there anything more satisfying than crossing something off a list? I think not!), I thought I would jump on the bandwagon and make 30 goals to achieve before my next milestone birthday (the big THREE-OH):

1. Give Lucia (at least one) little sibling - 11/11/2015

2. Go (tent) camping as a family

3. Go on a weekend getaway, just David and me - 7/17/2015-7/19/2015 (Estes Park)

4. Write a book, even if it's never published and no one but me ever reads it

5. Take David on a trip outside the country

6. Go on a road trip that does not involve moving - June/July 2014 (Colorado & Chicago)

7. Knit a baby blanket - March 2015

8. Sew a dress for Lucia

9. Make BIG plans for New Year's Eve (and follow through with them)

10. Get a DSLR camera and take photography lessons

11. Sponsor a child in an impoverished country

12. Visit a National Park outside of Colorado

13. Read 40 books (20 fiction) {40/40 and 20/20}
          Fiction:

          (1) A Hunger in the Heart
          (2) The Great Gatsby (re-read)
          (3) Ender's Game 
          (4) The Hobbit 
          (5) Exiles: A Novel 
          (6) The Cana Mystery
          (7) Silence
          (8) Pride and Prejudice (re-read)
          (9) Mansfield Park
          (10) Falling for Your Madness 
          (11) Persuasion (re-read)
          (12) Out of the Silent Planet
          (13) Anne of Green Gables
          (14) Anne of Avonlea
          (15) Anne of the Island
          (16) Anne of Windy Poplars
          (17) No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
          (18) The Help
          (19) Anne's House of Dreams
          (20) Perelandra

          Non-fiction:

          (1) Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting
          (2) Sparkly Green Earrings: Catching the Light at Every Turn 
          (3) Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption 
          (4) Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
          (5) My Sisters the Saints: A Spiritual Memoir
          (6) Halfway to Each Other: How A Year in Italy Brought Our Family Home
          (7) After Miscarriage: A Catholic Woman's Companion
          (8) Wholly Mary: Mother of God

          (9) In A Heartbeat: A journey of hope and healing for those who have lost a baby

          (10) A Piece of My Heart: Living Through the Grief of Miscarriage, Stillbirth, and Infant Death

          (11) Angels in My Heart: A Journey of Love and Loss
          (12) Coming to Term: Uncovering the Truth About Miscarriage  
          (13) Catherine of Siena: A Biography
          (14) The Mother of the Little Flower: Zelie Martin 1831-1977 
          (15) My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife 
          (16) Trying Again
          (17) Something Other Than God
          (18) Rome Sweet Home
          (19) Live-Giving Love: Embracing God's Beautiful Design for Marriage
          (20) A Grief Unveiled
          (21) Outliers 
          (22) Amazing Grace for Mothers 
          (23) Running for My Life: One Lost Boy's Journey from the Killing Fields of Sudan to the Olympic Games

14. Consolidate/organize/pare down all my childhood mementos so they fit into my hope chest

15. Turn Lulu's monthly posts into a baby book

16. Give something away to a stranger I see in need of exactly what I happen to have

17. Buy a house

18. Donate to my alma mater

19. Host a dinner party with at least ten other people in attendance

20. Pray in front of an abortion clinic

21. Go to a concert

22. Complete 48 crafts (one per month) {6/48}

          (1) DIY earring holder 

          (2) DIY hair accessories organizer

          (3) DIY elastic hair ties
          (4) Father's Day "I Love Daddy" canvas

          (5) St. Lucia crown
          (6) melted old crayon pieces into multi-colored star crayons
          (7) frame & chicken wire displays 

23. Light a candle in five Catholic cathedrals {0/5}

24. Take piano lessons

25. Start an etsy shop and sell at least one item

26. See all the Best Picture nominees before the Oscars

27. Watch twenty movies made before 1960 {1/20}

          (1) Funny Face (1957)

28. Run a 5k

29. Take my family to pick fruit and make a homemade dessert with it

30. Join a "group" of some kind: book club, mom's group, etc. and participate enough times to be able to really call myself a member

Do you have a list like this?  I'd love to see it!

Don't have a list? Maybe it's time to make one!