In ten years, I’ll be officially middle-aged.
In the four years leading up to 30 since I started this blog, I accomplished 25 of the 30 tasks on my To Do list – not half bad, especially considering the ones I never hit were “get spiritual” and “be happy just as I am.” I mean… how vague can you get?
What have I learned? Well, for one thing, get more specific with your goals. Also, be open to what comes at you. I, somewhat unexpectedly, became a mom during the process of this, and you know, you’ve got to go with the flow. I started a business – not on the list. We renovated a whole house – not on the list. So what if I didn’t hit Octoberfest or see Machu Picchu yet?
So let’s give this another shot, with a longer timeline, just to keep things interesting. Who’s with me?
TRAVEL A LOT
40. Machu Picchu. Duh.
I actually wrote this blog draft before we went to Peru. So I’m excited to say… um, I’ve done this already!
39. Go to Australia.
38. Go to Africa.
37. Complete Handstands Across America. (To date, I’ve hit GA, SC, NC, TN, PA, WV, VA, FL, AZ, NY, NJ, CT, AL, CO, IL, and WY.)
36. Take Cameron to a place that’s non-English-speaking.
35. Take my mom on a vacation.
MAKE SOME MONEY
34. Increase my income by 10% at least one year.
33. Attend at least 5 networking events each year.
32. Take a continuing education course in a related field.
BE A GOOD MOM
31. Help Cameron with his homework. Even when I don’t understand it.
30. Log at least one solid moment where I go, “My kid made the choice to do the RIGHT thing.”
29. Tell Cameron EVERY SINGLE DAY that I love him.
BE A GOOD WIFE
28. Show Brandon at least once a month how much I really appreciate him – even when he’s driving me COMPLETELY INSANE for whatever reason.
27. Have a date night alone with Brandon at least once a month.
DISCONNECT
26. Give up Facebook (or whatever the hot thing of the moment is) for a SOLID month.
25. Go on at least 10 family outings completely without my phone.
24. Turn off the TV for a month. Before 30, I struggled to do this for a week. Let’s up the game.
STAY HEALTHY
23. Run another 15k.
22. Take fitness classes at least once a week for 6 months – jazzercise, dance, Zumba, kickboxing, yoga… whatever.
21. Go a month without alcohol.
20. Go a month without bread.
BE ADVENTUROUS
19. Participate in a big cultural event (like I wanted to before 30 :).
18. Run for a public office.
17. Learn another new skill (welding, embroidery, calligraphy, etc).
CHILL OUT
16. Do absolutely nothing for a full weekend.
15. Write in a journal every day for a month.
14. Read a few more classic books.
13. Go on vacation somewhere that’s purely relaxing, not necessarily an “adventure” destination, just to enjoy it.
BE A GOOD FRIEND
13. Send care packages to 10 friends for no good reason.
12. Check in more often on friends who are going through crappy times.
PROTECT MY INVESTMENTS
11. Get my retirement savings to $500k by age 40.
10. Diversify my investments – BitCoin? International real estate? Etc?
9. Keep 6 months worth of savings in the bank “just in case.”
8. Keep, and stick to, a freakin’ budget for 6 months (to start).
7. Start a trust fund for Cam, and keep his college money saving.
6. Get smarter about investing – take a class in stock trading or similar.
5. Donate $10k to charity/a good cause.
WOAH, BUDDY
4. Flip/renovate a house.
3. Own chickens.
2. Move internationally for a period of time.
The last 1 is still TBD… could be big, could be small. Time will tell…..
30 Before 30 
Fantastic list! You and I both love lists. May your lists come true :-). (Run for public office?! Wow!) Flip a house – love it! Such good, thoughtful, stuff.