Tuesday, November 1, 2011

November 1st --- Live-it List

Today is my brother Kenneth's Social Security birthday -- 62 -- hope you have a totally terrific day! I can't be certain where these past 10 months have gone this year and I know I have definitely not accomplished all I wanted to but ... time marches on, stands still for no one!

Been doin' a lot of soul searching the past several weeks and thinking about my Live-it List -- not yet ready to call it a Bucket List! Have prioritized my first 15 items below:

1. RETIRE ... yes, I am shouting! I want to spend my days in quiet solitude with the Lord, chatting with my hubby, texting with my daughter and my baby sister, volunteering, and creating! What an absolutely glorious thought!

2. Travel ... this category will account for several of my top 15 but the first will be to move to our retirement location -- the jury is still out on exactly where that will be but straw votes say it will be somewhere sunny and hot!

3. Bucharest ... I have had a passion to travel to this location from the time I lived in Europe and missed it while spending so many long weekends in Italy!

4. Women's Retreat ... Would love to be totally immersed in praising the Lord ... of course, I would love to have my sister Becky and my cousin Cathy in attendance with me! God has been so, so good to me and I just need to have an outpouring of the Holy Spirit ... where two or three are gathered ...

5. Family Reunion ... Some of my fondest memories are of family gatherings while my grandmother and mother were still alive! How I long for those rendezvous' with all the aunties, uncles, cousins, siblings! Good food, great conversation, and awesome memory making! Would like to plan one for summer 2012.

6. Volunteer Vacation ... Have been looking through opportunities to help others less fortunate than myself while enjoying the culture and custom of a different location or country.

7. Sophia ... Yes, another place that I have longed to travel to ... I am intrigued with wanting to learn all that I can about this great big ol' Earth of ours -- the people, the food, the culture, the beauty!

8 and 9. Road Trip ... I would like to travel to the farthest point East in the US to the farthest point South to the farthest point West to the farthest point North ... How glorious to discover the history of our country with the greatest history buff -- my hubby Michael -- on a Trike (my no. 9)

10. Broadway ... Just once I would like to go to a Broadway play, sip latte in Times Square, visit Ellis Island (up close and personal -- the grand ol' lady too), and celebrate New Year's Eve there in the wild cacophony of people, sounds, and anticipation of a New Year.

11. Birth ... I want to be in the delivery room as my daughter Melissa delivers her first child ... a baby changes everything and promises hope for a future.

12. Spa Retreat ... I want to be totally pampered ... I miss the days of living in Seoul, South Korea, and going to the public baths for the most luxurious hot soak, pumice stones taking away all the extraneous, and lathering up with the most gorgeous smelling soaps ... scalp massage, facial, the works!

13. Cooking School Experience ... To learn at the master's hand ... I am an avid fan of Food Network and the Cooking Channel and I never grow tired of trying new recipes.

14. Rome ... I want to spend a glorious week in this most romantic city with Michael! We have both lived in Europe but have never experienced the beauty of Rome together!

15. Quilt ... the fabric that binds the heart and home! I want to design and make a quilt for my daughter and each of my siblings that will serve as my hand print in their lives after I have gone home to my Father's house.

This is my entry in the Just Ask Bucket List Getaway Giveaway. Just Ask offers a breast and ovarian cancer screening and is encouraging people to share 15 things that I want to enjoy in my lifetime as a reminder to be aware of my health. Want to enter? Head over to TodaysMama.com to get the details.

Our Grand Prize Getaways include:

A family vacation to Universal Orlando® Resort! (+ prize rules)

A Las Olas Surf Safari!

Family Winter Vacation Getaway at Park City Mountain Resort

More Prizes!

We’ve even got a few $500 gift cards for our extra entries to go towards crossing something off your bucket list. To qualify…

1. Go “like” Just Ask on Facebook. (Come back to this post leave a comment letting us know you did.)

2. Share this tweet: Did you know you can get screened for Breast/Ovarian Cancer http://on.fb.me/JustAskHBOC #justask (Come back to this post and link to your tweet in the comments.)

3. Go “like” Today’s Mama on Facebook. (Come back to this post leave a comment letting us know you did.)

Each item counts as a separate entry.

Contest closes on Saturday, November 12th at Noon MST. Winners will be announced Monday, November 14th. Good Luck!