Thirty by 30

It is safe to say that Natalie (mostly), Liz & I "blog stalk" others.  We have happened upon some pretty cool amazing blogs along the way.  There was one particular blog that stuck out to me-it was a woman in her mid twenties who was a busy wife and a mom among other things.  She wrote a blog titled Thirty by 30 which was a list of things she had hoped to accomplish before she was 30.  It got me thinking. 

What do I want to accomplish by the time I am 30?  Where do I want to do in life?  What do I want for my family?  What is important to me?  If I could only do 30 more things, by the time I reached the age of 30, what would those things be?  What will people remember about me..or will people even remember me?  If I died tomorrow, have I lived my life to the fullest  And what I came up with was my own Thirty by 30:

1.  Do everything I can to be the best Mommy ever to our three boys
2.  To get married (Jesse will have to cooperate for this one to work)
3.  Start taking at least one family trip each year just our little family of 5
4.  Make being on a time a priority (so basically let's say I'll promise to be on time 8 out of every 10 times, is that fair?)
5.  On the summer nights plan at least one fun family night out per week, even if it's just the local park
6.  Buy a house
7.  Learn how to garden
8.  To go back to school and be ready by the time I hit 30 to start working on my BA
9.  Start a home business just for extra money (I didn't say it has to work out-but I have to at least start it)
10.  Do something to honor my brother Steve
11.  Have date night at least once a month
12.  Start decorating for Christmas right after Thanksgiving
13.  Get down to 150 lbs and stay with 5 lbs of that weight (even during the holidays)
14.  Be able to sing karaoke without being embarassed (VOID if I am too well you know..to remember it)
15.  Learn how to swim (this is not a joke and if you are laughing this is not funny)
16.  Get more into the holidays as far as decorating with doing fun holiday things for the kids while they are young and still appreciate those small things in life that sometimes get overshadowed
17. Start an annual Christmas letter to send out with Christmas cards and pictures EVERY year.
18.  Reach out to at least one stranger who has lost a sibling and could benefit from knowing my experience and having me to talk to
19.  Learn how to communicate better..get less mad, stay more happy type of deal I guess
20.  Take family pictures once every 6 months AND send them to family/friends
21.  Read a couple of books a year ("Reading is to the mind what excercise is to the body."  At least that's what they say.  My luck my mind will have more luck losing weight than my body has been able to accomplish.)
22.  Begin a cookbook of my own (for family members not the general public) of family recipes that I should begin gathering before all of the old family members are too old to find/see/remember their recipes
23.  Build a stronger, healthier more loving relationship with Jesse than either of us has known before, something that will show our kids what love and respect looks like and that happiness means much more than money or material things.
24.  Teach our children to be honest, friendly, loving, fun little men who everyone wants to befriend.
25.  Start a journal
26.  Become debt free and have a credit score above 750 (is this even possible, I may put an alternate #26 below in the event I am unable to accomplish this I'd hate to have a Twenty Nine by 30 List) 
27.  Begin hosting Thanksgiving Day family dinner in OUR home
28.  Read bedtime stories to my children several nights a week, on a regular basis
29.  Spend more time with my nieces
30.  STOP TEXTING (so much)!  When I get home from work my phone goes upstairs on the charger, on silent..out of sight, out of mind.  Let's be honest I am codependent.  Which means I should add a number 31.  GET HOUSE PHONE (for emergency calls while home)

Now that I've made the list I am a little overwhelmed!  There is a lot I want to and need to do and although some maybe seem simple or trivial to the reader-it doesn't seem so simple to me.  Life gets busy with three kids and you just kind of tend to take one day after another and lose yourself (maybe this just happens to me).  I am pleased with my list and challenged all the same.

I don't think I made this list for anyone buy myself.  But it felt good to write the list.  And it's going to feel even better to accomplish everything on it!  Time's a tickin'..I officially have 182 more weeks....1279 more days...1,841,760 more minutes...110,505,600 more seconds before I am the BIG THREE OH!

PS LIZ-I beat you to it! In your face with a can of mace!