Attempting Grace: January 2011

When I was 21, I decided to write a list of things I would like to see, do, or accomplish within the next 40 years. There's something very satisfying about making goals and seeing them accomplished! However, full disclaimer: this list is a work in progress. From time to time, I take out things that are no longer important to me or add others that strike my interest. If they are already complete, I leave them, regardless of how trivial some now seem. Along the way, I try to record pictures of the journey when I can. :) Some are things I can do immediately. Others will take time. Day by day, I can't wait to see the adventures to be!

Life's List
Complete: 47/100
In Progress: 11/100

1. Live in another country for a year or spend a year traveling & living like a local

2. Stay in a treehouse, teepee, yurt and/or house boat

3. Take a cruise and/or stay at an all-inclusive resort somewhere beautiful with fun excursions

4. See one of the 7 wonders of the world

5. ~~DONE June 2019 5. Visit a vineyard~~

6. ~~June 2021~~ ~~Teach for at least five years~~

7. Study at least 10 languages [So far: Spanish-proficient, French-basic, Latin-limited basic, Japanese-basic, Indonesian-basic, Portuguese-basic]

8. Learn a language primarily by immersion in a country where it’s spoken learning Indonesian was a glimpse!

~~DONE October 2018 9. Read a book (not for class) in another language~~

~~10. DONE March 2020 Donate 5 feet to Locks of Love (multiple donations)~~

11. Write a book (fiction or non-fiction). Maybe publish it. Nanowrimo progress!

~~DONE 11.3. 11 12. Do karaoke at least once~~

13. Sky dive or bungee jump

June 2024 Chicago to East Coast 14. Go on a cross-country road trip/train trip and/or drive along the western or eastern coast

~~DONE August 2022 15. Eat cheese in Wisconsin~~

QUEBEC August 2017 & 2023 16. Take a Canada road trip to Quebec and another to Banff/Vancouver

17. Make a piece of pottery

18. Capsule wardrobe: Build a higher quality, more sustainably & ethically sourced, and smaller closet in progress

~~TORONTO 2023 19. Take a personal retreat/trip for 5+ days~~

20. Run Detroit Free Press half marathon, crossing to Canada on foot ;) Or do a shorter fun run like color run or inflatable course

21. Buy a house & plant a garden of fresh herbs, flowers, fruit & veggies + fruit tree; create a joyful outdoor space; create a library/reading nook; refurnish an antique piece of furniture

22. Knit or crochet something or make a quilt (i.e. start and FINISH a project)

23. Go white water rafting and/or snorkeling

~~SEPT 2023 24. Visit NYC~~

25. Explore Taiwanese or other South Asian night markets

~~MARCH 2015 26. Learn to ski~~

27. Visit Brazil: Sugarloaf cable car & Christ the Redeemer

~~DONE Summer 2018 28. Travel abroad with my mom~~

~~DONE August 2019 29. Visit the Grand Canyon (also an International Dark Sky Park - see #66!)~~

~~DONE 8.16.17 30. Visit Niagara Falls~~

31. Try geocaching and/or foraging

32. Take a class to learn a practical skill (automotive, nutrition, counseling, etc.)

~~2020 - most! 33. Make Christmas gifts for everyone on my list at least once~~

~~JULY 2023 CLASS 34. Work in a coffee shop/learn to make quality homemade espresso drinks; bonus - learn to roast coffee!~~

~~March 2019 Hamilton! 35. See a Broadway play on or off Broadway~~

36. Visit Mexico (Chichen Itza, Mexico City, Oaxaca, beach) & Spain (Barcelona, Camino de Santiago, Xamaleon ice cream)

~~2016 Detroit 37. See a shooting star~~

38. Visit Griffith Observatory and Kogi Tacos in LA

~~EXPERIENCED Fall 2012 39. Become an early riser~~

40. Eat my way through Italy - take a pasta or other culinary class

~~EXPERIENCED Nov 2014 41. Participate in NaBloPoMo or NaNoWriMo~~

~~EXPERIENCED 10.15.11! 42. See someone I’m close to come to know Christ (hopefully many more to come!)~~

43. Visit caves in Kentucky or elsewhere

~~DONE October 2018 44. Try an escape room.~~

~~DONE November 2017 45. Adopt a cat.~~

46. Go ziplining in a rain forest, across a waterfall or across a mountain range

47. Visit Jerusalem: see Biblical landmarks & put a prayer in the wailing wall

~~DONE 1.7.12 48. Go to a U of M Hockey Game (U of M vs. Lake Superior State)~~

~~DONE 3.13.12 49. Sit in on an engineering class~~

50. Study the Bible; read through every 2-3 years [ongoing]

51. Eat a whole lobster

52. Eat a Georgia peach and visit the Gone with the Wind set

53. Mackinac Island bridge walk

~~DONE 11.23.14 54. Host a Thanksgiving dinner~~

~~DONE 9.28.15 55. Bake bread (with yeast, kneading, and the whole 9-yards); 2021 sourdough experiments~~

~~DONE May 2013 56. Learn to make sushi~~

~~DONE September 2019 57. Learn to make chocolate truffles~~

~~DONE 3.17.11 58. Drink green beer~~

59. Swim in an infinity pool

~~DONE 6.18.16 60.Get cartilage pierced and/or small tattoo on hand~~

~~DONE Summer 2018 61. Ride on the top of a double-decker bus in England~~

62. Visit where my grandparents lived in Scotland (and Harry Potter sites)

63. Hold a koala in Australia and pet a sheep in New Zealand

DONE 64. Translate a longer work or interpret for a day Parent-teacher conferences 3x/yr

65. Visit the first Starbucks & gum wall in Seattle

~~DONE August 2019 66. See the Northern lights or go to an international dark star park~~

67. Take a book-binding, metalwork, and/or culinary class (possibly in another city)

68. Publish a poem, short story, or article

69. Touch all 4 oceans & 6/7 continents 2/4 oceans and 3/6 continents

70. Hawaii: take a language or culture class, visit coffee/chocolate farm, see a volcano (active or not)

71. Learn more about our family's genealogy and my genetics with something like 23 & Me (Ancestry.com)

72. Finish at least one of the “100 books to read before you die” lists [BBC list 58/100]

73. Travel to all 50 states [Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, N. Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, New York, Maine, Massachusetts, Indiana, California, Oklahoma, Utah, Nevada, Wisconsin, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island (24)]

-Visit both Kansas cities

- 4 corners

- Laura Ingalls Wilder spots

74. See the Great Wall of China, visit Hong Kong, travel to southeast Asia

75. Visit the Redwood Forest

76. Get to know my sisters on a deeper level (ongoing)

JAN 2018 77. Be involved in a church plant Detroit

~~DONE 2019 78. Try paintball~~

79. Go to the Alberquerque balloon festival or go on a hot air balloon somewhere else

80. Travel to Japan a second time to visit friends & visit all 3 major islands

~~March 2015 & July 2018 Honduras! 81. Travel to Central/Latin America~~

82. Try Butterbeer at Harry Potter World & visit Disney World

~~DONE January 2012 83. Go to a concert or performance in Hill Auditorium~~

84. Visit India - take a yoga class?

DONE 85. Dance and sing in the rain (a la Gene Kelly) running in the rain summer 2
~~014...there was a tiny bit of singing :)~~

~~DONE 86. Go on a picnic~~

~~DONE 2.26.11 87. Go ice skating~~

~~Summer 2017 88. Try Nitro coffee~~

~~SUMMER 2018 89. Brunch at a French café~~

90. Egypt: see the pyramids & ride a camel

91. See the Pictured Rocks in summer

~~DONE 9.25.11 92. Throw a block party~~

~~DONE August 2019 93. Visit a national park~~

94. Visit Greece or another country on the Mediterranean (Mykonos)

95. Enjoy Creole food in New Orleans

96. Peru: See the view from Machu Picchu & visit Lima

May 2024 Mid-Michigan 97. See the Northern Lights

~~DONE Jan 2019 98. Visit Boston~~

~~DONE June 2019 99. Blow bubbles from the Golden Gate Bridge and visit the Full House set~~

~~DONE 11.11.12 100. Go fairy door hunting~~

God-willing: Get married & have kids ❤️ (Taken off of main list bc these two are truly not in my control!)

Also changed (for now) bc of change in interest/priorities/desire to further specify: learn to play a few favorite songs on guitar or piano, learn to ride a bike/tandem/confidently ride tricycle, take an African dance class > visit Africa > visit any country in Africa > visit the great pyramids in Africa

12: Karaoke with IMAX!