30 While 30

A few weeks ago, my friend Allison posted about how she was starting a "30 Things to Do Before 30" list.

"What a great idea!" I thought (and said).
"You should do one, too!" She said.

Oh, wait, I have less than 30 days 'til I'm 30. Soooo...  that's probably not going to work. So instead we are calling it my "30 WHILE 30" list, and it was really fun to put together. Hans helped me finalize it tonight and we laughed til we cried. It was a great thing to do together to talk about dreams and goals, something that can get lost in the day-to-day of work and parenting and... life. We enjoyed it so much that he's going to do one, too. I'm looking forward to hearing what are the things he dreams of doing.

Since technically it's Mama Monday, I guess I should tie this list in with being a mama. So here's my [probably unasked for] two cents: One thing I thought a lot about before becoming a mom was whether I would lose myself a little bit. Maybe it's just my character or maybe it's symptomatic of motherhood, I don't know, but I find it easy to put the things I want to learn, do, create, experience on hold in favor of things that I want my child to learn, do, create and experience.

But that ain't healthy for mama, and it ain't healthy for baby, really. A happy mama is a good mama. So even amid the piles of laundry, the swim lessons, the storytimes, the park visits, the play dates, I think it's keenly important for Mom to have things that are just hers. That help her to grow and think and feel fulfilled just for herself.

That's how I picked the things on my 30 While 30 list. Some of these are more "bucket list" type items, things I have always wanted to do. Some are things that I can't believe I have gone 30 years without doing and I guess I think anyone who calls herself an adult should have done by now. Some are small things that I keep saying I'm going to do but always put off.

I'll try to check in frequently so you can keep me accountable for making some progress! And if you have any other suggestions, leave them below. I'm open to making changes and technically I still have a few weeks ;)

30 While 30

1. sew a quilt 
2. learn to knit (and complete one project) 
3. finally design our wedding album 
4. find, scan and organize all photos 
5. sell something I designed (invitations, cards, party packages) 
6. read 20 books from a Top 100 Novels of All Time list (can’t have read before). I like this one generated by librarians.
7. watch 10 of IMDB’s Top 100 Movies of All Time (can’t have seen before) 
8. run a half marathon 
9. try stand-up paddleboarding 
10. take a ballroom dance class 
11. see a ballet 
12.  find at least one family name to take to the temple 
13. attend a session at the San Diego temple 
14. attend general conference 
15. create a 3-month food storage 
16. read the Book of Mormon in french 
17. perform one random act of kindness each month 
18. make homemade ice cream 
19. create my own recipe from scratch 
20. host a dinner party (a fancy one!) 
21. take a cake decorating class 
22. 12 months of cakes (and then deliver each to a different friend) 
23. get a manicure 
24. get a king-sized bed 
25. learn to drive a stick shift
26. visit a new country (can't have been before)
27. *redacted personal goal (hey, sorry. some are too personal to share).
28. go to the State of Texas Fair and Rodeo 
29. try one of Austin’s highest rated restaurants 
30. take a weekend trip with Hans (no baby!) to celebrate