Monday, December 27, 2010

Should we start here?

This is me! Well, it's a (ahem...) slightly younger version of me but I like this picture and it's the person I still feel I am deep inside almost 15 years later. I was living in Hawaii at the time, spreading my wings and trying to figure out what I wanted to do next. I've had an amazing life so far and at times I've not fully appreciated this. Along the way I got married, had two children, and stumbled upon the career of my dreams.

So why am I here writing this and what is "50 Things"? I could go on about how I got "here" for quite some time and I am sure that many of you could identify the various scenes from my daily life. I imagine I will touch upon these things along the way, but for now I will tell you that "50 Things" is a commitment for living my life to the fullest now. I recently came across an amazing woman's blog, Alison Travels. In a nutshell Alison Turner was a woman in corporate America who decided to leave a successful career and travel across America, documenting her adventures and insights. Call me restless, and perhaps a free spirit that has a bit of difficulty from time to time feeling settled, but I too have dreamed of this type of adventure quietly from time to time. I had two children now, with the youngest just turning 8. My husband is a more rooted soul who is content with his life as is on most days. He thinks I am absolutely crazy when I try to persuade him to sell everything and move with me back to Hawaii. While reading Alison's blog I came across her list entitled "39 Goals By My 39 Year" and admired her commitment to realizing her dreams. My husband and I always talk about what we would do if we could; about that one day when we are empty nesters and can do whatever it is we want. I was having a particularly hard time with "one day" because I want to have frequent adventures that don't involve racing to pick up kids and get to an appointment before the clock runs out. The girl I was meant to be was screaming to come out and play now. By the time my son is off to college, I will be 53-ish and quite frankly, rock climbing and surfing sounds a bit more challenging at that age. I knew giving myself a list of 44 goals by 44 would be self defeating. I have already done some amazing things, and many of the things I want to do would be a bit challenging for me given my current lifestyle. My list would be "50 things by 50" which would allow me to put some of those bigger dreams on the list and have time to enjoy the journey. Off to the right side you will see my list! I had such a great time putting it together. It felt like I was a kid putting together my Christmas list for Santa!

This blog is my journey and a way to hold myself accountable. I will share my accomplishments and insights along the way, and I hope that you too may find a bit of inspiration to start your own list. Email me, cheer me on, share your successes, but most importantly live your life to the fullest! You don't have give up all that you own and travel the world by a backpack to begin doing some of the things you always wanted to!