I am so excited to write this post!  My Ultimate Summer Bucket List was truly an inspiration for my life and this website!  While I already knew of The Power of a Bucket List from last summer, this summer my list took on a whole new meaning for me.  Last summer’s bucket list brought about my most favorite summer at that point.  Knowing how the creation of that list had such a strong impact on the outcome of our amazing summer in 2013, I had a desire to tweak this year’s so it would be that much more enjoyable.  For this summer’s list, I took in to consideration that I would be 9 months pregnant and then I would have an infant in tow.  What I didn’t take in to consideration was my Stroke of Luck.  And I most definitely did not take in to account the several additional doctors’ appointments I would have to attend.  But, guess what?  I completed all 70 items on my Summer Bucket List.  Yes, I know, the bucket list on my website only had 50 items.  I had added 20 more items that were specific to my region of the United States.  So, I didn’t let my pregnancy, my infant, my stroke, my tumor discovery, my doctors’ appointments, my two house guests, or anything else keep me from accomplishing my goal.  So, what does this mean for my life and this website?  It means we’re about to embark on the adventure of my Life Bucket List.  My wish is that you will not only follow along, but join in and begin creating and living out your own!

While the completion of my summer bucket list against all odds was certainly inspiring, my desire to focus more fully on my Life Bucket List came from my friends.  As the summer was drawing to a close, my devotion to the bucket list was becoming more widely known and discussed.  One friend suggested that I make a summer bucket list strictly for adults to accomplish in the summer of 2015.  This came about because we have been trying to make this dinner happen, which involves ordering your meat in advance and driving two hours to the restaurant.  Obviously a difficult thing to coordinate among friends with young kids.  She added, “Sara, you should put THAT on your bucket list for next summer, that way we know you’ll pester us to make it happen.”  And pester, I do.  Then, my dearest friend of twenty-five years shared her quote in response to my bucket list success, “Where there’s a will.  There’s Sara.”  I even received jokes about if a stroke or giving my daughter “the birds and the bees talk” (post to come on this topic) was on this past summer’s bucket list.  If they had been, I could have checked those off also!  I’m not sharing all this to toot my own horn.  I’m sharing these remarks because they made me aware that I was out living my life instead of just talking about it.  This made me realize that my daily life could be as fun and rewarding as my summer, if I went after my life bucket list the way I had my summer list.

As I mentioned in my post The Power of a Bucket List, I am revamping my list and I’m shooting for 70 items.  This will include some that I have already successfully completed.  I will not share all 70 on this website, as some are more personal in nature.  In being consistent with my Ultimate Summer Bucket List, I’ll go ahead and focus on sharing 50 of my 70 items here on my site.  I’m still working on the revamp, but some items that you can look forward to are my desire to run a half marathon, learn to cook 14 balanced meals, go on a hot-air balloons ride, and learn to play the piano.  I’ll also share the success (or disappointment) with previous items that were already completed along the way.

I’m pumped up to do this!  I hope you will set some time aside to make your own list and begin planning out how to make each item happen.  Since I am still adding items to my Life Bucket List, I hope you will share some of your ideas with me.  I would love some added inspiration.  In the meantime, stay tuned for some adventure being added to First You Must Begin!