My “Bucket List”

I struggle with the term “Bucket List” because it seems shallow.  I have always had dreams of travel and adventure, but with a purpose.  Travel has had an impact on my life from quiet lake weekends with my family, jet setting summers with my dad, and a mission trip to Thailand in college.  Those experiences changed me and shaped me into who I am.  For me travel is about getting away from the day-to-day so you are truly spending time with those you love, sharing experiences and overcoming challenges, gaining confidence in your abilities, seeing the world outside of your bubble, gaining a deeper appreciation of what you have, sparking passion about how you can give back and help others, seeing the majestic nature and beauty in creation.  With that said, yes, I have a list!

I first made a “list of things I want to do in the next 20 years” when I was in college before “bucket lists” were even a thing (at least before the movie came out and made it popular).  It had things on it like scuba dive the Great Barrier Reef, read the entire Bible, ski a double black diamond in the Swiss Alps, get married, go on a cruise, go on a mission trip, learn how to surf, see Yellowstone and learn a foreign language.  I like the planning aspect of having a timeline of 20 years rather than just in my lifetime.  If you aren’t actively making plans and preparing to do the things you want to do in life, you will never do them.  I have done several things on my list and it has changed through the years.  My “ski a double black diamond in the Swiss Alps” is now just “ski the Swiss Alps” and that is ok! 

I do have a full list of goals / dreams that I doubt anyone wants to see, but I will share my list of Travels / Adventures to do in the Next 20 Years of my Life.

Where to go in Next 20 Yrs:

• Go on a Mission Trip with my kids
• Hike Grand Canyon and stay at Phantom Ranch
• Zipline the rain forests of Costa Rica (reschedule trip that was cancelled due to COVID-19)
• Scuba dive the Belize Barrier Reef in Caribbean
• Take my kids on 16^th birthday trips to destination of their choice (currently Cayman Islands & Paris)
• Hike a 14er
• Road trip through MO (Elephant Rock State Park, Bennet Springs, Big Springs, Johnson Shut-ins, etc.).
• Go on a safari
• Canoe the Canadian Boundary Waters
• Ski the Swiss Alps
• Hike a glacier in Glacier National Park
• See an active volcano
• Learn to surf
• Whitewater raft through Grand Canyon or Royal Gorge
• Visit a Bioluminescence Bay (Mosquito Bay in Puerto Mosquito, Vieques, Puerto Rico)
• See Orcas in the wild (try again after failed kayak attempt in San Juan Islands)
• Take a cycling trip in Europe
• Take a Mediterranean Cruise
• Watch the sunrise from Haleakala National Park in Hawaii
• Scuba dive Bonne Terre Mine in Missouri
• Go cave tubing in Belize
• Go on a helicopter ride
• Go on a hot air balloon ride
• See the Great Pyramids
• See Niagara Falls
• Bike Katy Trail
• Hike Appalachian Trail
• Revisit our honeymoon spot in Tahiti

Before kids we had an amazing honeymoon in Tahiti where we went scuba diving with sharks.  We also had some incredible adventures like sailing the British Virgin Islands with friends. Considering we are celebrating our 20-year anniversary this year and our oldest is 14 I will focus on more recent itineraries to share!  When the kids were little travel was all about convenience.  We did some local trips with them, but our first airplane vacation for both of my boys was to Destin, FL.  Beach vacations were great when they were little.  We were right on the beach and we could easily go back and forth to the condo for naps and snacks.  We did trips like Disney and a Disney Cruise when they were younger where they were constantly entertained.   We started going snow skiing when they were 4 and 7.  The summer they were 10 and 7 we ventured to Yellowstone.  We were nervous about it as it was a lot of driving, and really the first trip where it was not constant entertainment.  They loved it and it opened a whole new category of adventures for us.   We still love the beach, skiing, and Disney, but we have added more variety as the years have gone by.

Where we have been

Where we have been since having kids . . . future posts coming with detailed plans, itineraries and lessons learned (let me know if there is one you would like to see sooner than later):

• Yosemite National Park, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• Seattle, WA / San Juan Islands, WA (couples trip)
• Destin, FL (multiple)
• Yellowstone National Park, WY
• Everglades National Park, FL
• Washington, DC
• Disney World, FL (multiple)
• Disney Cruise (out of Miami)
• Rocky Mountain National Park / Estates Park, CO
• Granby, CO (skiing – multiple)
• Copper Mountain, CO (skiing)
• Miami / Florida Keys, FL
• San Diego, CA / Legoland
• Phoenix, AZ
• Cancun, Mexico

And local trips to:

• Branson, MO
• Stockton, MO
• St. Louis, MO

Although I clearly value travel and adventure, I am a Dave Ramsey fan through and through.  If you can’t pay for a trip, don’t go on it.  You can have plenty of adventure close to home and travel within your means.  Part of being “Prepared for Adventure” is being prepared financially. So, make your bucket list, prepare, and budget for adventure!