"Bucket" List

I guess a true bucket list is a list of things you want to do before you kick the bucket, if the movie with Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson is a good reference.  However, as I stare my late 30s in the face, I find myself wanting to set some goals to achieve by my 40th birthday.  After all, I find myself in great circumstances to focus on me for, oh, the next 40 or 50 years!

When I got married, I thought that my husband and I would have at least one child of our own.  However, as we got further into our marriage, my biological clock's ticking got slower and slower.  And now that we have been married for a few years, I have come to the conclusion that my biological clock's battery is just plain dead.  I love being married, but I also love having quite a bit of freedom.  I might be selfish, but I don't feel any desire to bring a baby into the family and give up this freedom.  The fact that my husband has raised his own kids already and that we are this close to the finish line makes the thought of starting over with a baby seem like a silly idea.  In about six years, both of my stepsons will be done with college.  I certainly don't want to have a child starting kindergarten at that time!

I turned 34 last month, and this means I have a little less than six years to meet some goals.  To meet the goals, I first need to set some goals though.  So far, most of the goals I have are travel-related.  And right now, there are only about five goals on the list.  I expect the list will expand as I think more about it.  Without further ado, here's what I've got so far:

1. Visit a European country - I don't even have a passport right now.  So I guess the first step there is to get a passport!  I would love to see someplace like Rome or Athens for the historical value of it.  I also would love to see some of the beautiful places I have see in movies, such as Tuscany (Under the Tuscan Sun) or the coast of Greece (Mamma Mia! and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants).
2. Go back to Texas for the first time since we moved away from there is 1986 - I would probably most like to see San Antonio because I used to love going to San Antonio with my family.  However, I would also love to go back to Corpus Christi and even to Pampa to see the places I used to live.
3. See the Pacific Ocean - I have always said that I am not that into California.  I would like to see California someday, but I would actually prefer to visit the coasts of Oregon or Washington.  I would also love to see the Pike Place Fish Market, so perhaps those could be rolled into one trip.
4. Eat at the Frontera Grill in Chicago - Rick Bayless is one of my favorite Top Chef judges and Top Chef Masters contestants, and the thought of eating his Mexican food makes my tummy rumble, even though I already ate dinner.  I could also meet one of my best IIFs (imaginary internet friends) Christy if I went to Chicago.  We met many years ago on eDiets and are still in touch today, and I would love to get together with her.
5. Run a half marathon - I am currently on week 3 of the Couch-to-5K program.  That is a LONG way away from running a half marathon!  However, every day that I work on C25K, I get stronger.  And by the time I am 40, I should be able to do this without a problem.  I can't even imagine how proud I would feel to cross the finish line after a 13.1 mile run, but I can only imagine that it would be a feeling of euphoria.

So that's where I am right now.  I plan to give this some thought over the next months and years and sort of formalize the list a little bit.  I am excited to live life instead of merely exisiting, and making this plan seems like a great first step!