Life List

Last night I had a hard time falling to sleep- I blame it all on those f*&é"' Kardashians. I was so much better off when we didn't get the E! Channel but French tv is so bad that it makes this stuff look entertaining and suddenly it is 11 pm and I am up past my bedtime wondering if Khloe Kardashian was actually born with a cleft palate and if Scott Disick is the gayest baby daddy I've ever seen. Seriously, sitting through a thirty minute show will lower my IQ by atleast 50 points. Anyways- so I started trying to pull together my Life List, which is much better use of brain space.

Before I forget all the good ideas that I had, I want to post them here. This is definitely a rough draft of The Life List, but its a good start, I think. In no particular order:

1. Plant a flower garden.
2. Hike to Machu Picchu
3. Sail to the Galapagos Islands
4. Go on a shark dive
5. Dive in the Komodo Reserve in Indonesia
6. Frame and hang on my wall a photo that I took
7. Throw an enormous surprise party for someone I love
8. Make an impact (either through my actions or a large financial endowment) on a charity
9. Go in the thermal baths in Iceland
10. Take a surfing lesson
11. Do a zipline in the jungle
12. Do a real safari
13. Make a batch of jam
14. Knit myself a sweater
15. Write a book about my childhood
16. Give a speech at a conference
17. Learn to speak Italian
18. Audit the art history class at the Louvre
19. Do a cooking class with Cordon Bleu
20 Go on a yoga retreat in India
21. See a glacier
22. Scan all the old family photos and give a CD to each of my family members
23. Be up-to-date on all my doctor visits
24. Have my wardrobe sorted out by a professional
25. Embroider my monogram on something
26. Find or have someone take a photo of me that I LOVE
27. Have a library of all the books that I truly love in hard cover
28. Organize a vacation with all my best girlfriends
29. Teach my daughters to cook my signature recipes
30. Make a real difference and improvement in a child's life
31. Go skiing in Switzerland
32. Swim with dolphins
33. See the pyramids in Eygpt
34. Go on a gondola ride in Venice
35. Drive a really fast car
36. Walk on the Great Wall of China
37. Take a road trip across the US
38. Do a silent retreat at convent or monastary
39. Buy a stock on my own with my own money
40. Ride a camel in the desert
41.Visit Tokyo
41. Make ice cream with my kids
42. Rent a helium tank use it to fill hundreds of balloons for a party and the rest for making our voices squeaky
43. Climb one of the major mountains in the world
44. Ride a parade float
45. Take piano lessons again until I can play a song that I love
46. Drink a glass of local wine in each of the top 10 winemaking countries of the world. The countries are Italy, France, Spain, Australia, Chile, United States, Germany, Argentina, Portugal and South Africa
47. Learn how to juggle
48. Build a house with Habitat for Humanity
49. Take a trapeze lesson
50. Eat caviar
51. Take the girls to Disney Land and get a photo of their faces (pure joy) as the characters go to hug them.
52. Surprise someone with the gift that they always dreamed of
53. Volunteer at a soup kitchen on Christmas or another special holiday
54. Try glass blowing
55. Visit Murano
56. Buy a piece by Toso & Barovier
57. Dive at the Great Barrier Reef
58. Host an exchange student
59. Buy a piece of vintage clothing that I look great in and that my daughters lust after.
60. Dance the merengue in Venezuela
61. Take a ride in a helicopter
62. Organize a candlelit party in the park, overlooking the Seine


I would love to have a list of 100 things, so I'm going to keep thinking. Maybe the best part so far about making the list is that I realize how much living I've already done. I've been going through other people's lists, for inspiration, and I'm shocked at how many items I've already done and it does remind me that while I might often feel like I do nothing but sit home and take care of babies, its far from the truth. I've travelled to places that I've dreamed about like Rome and Rio. I've mastered lots of skills like knitting and sewing since I am at home. I've pushed myself to do things like host Thanksgiving or learn a foreigh language. I've made the effort to find time to do things that are important to me, like put together photo albums for my family and throw parties so that I can invite everyone I love.

One of the things that I thought about after my grandfather died in February is how he had such an inspiring way of doing and not talking. He was a great example of someone who just tried things. People talked about him being an eternal student- his whole life, he never stopped trying to learn- but I think that part about him doing things was even more importaint. I remember when I was about 12 and I wanted to help in the kitchen. He would tell me to just do it, stop looking at cookbooks and asking questions, and make something. When I made a TERRIBLE lemon meringue pie one day, he just laughed and threw it in the trash and asked me what I would be trying out the next day. I'm sure he never realized what a huge lesson he was teaching me that day, but its something that has stuck with me ever since. Its so important to go through life with an adventurous attitude and just try things out without worrying what might go wrong. I'm just starting to realize how important that is.

I was thinking that I should be an item on my list 'Teach my children to be adventurers' but it would be redundant. If I do everything on my list, they will learn that automatically.