1. Pay my parents back for all the support (financial...emotional...just all around) they have provided in my adult life. I get a lot of credit for what I have and am attempting to accomplish in my life, but it is completely a joint effort. Justin and I have spent many a night talking about being able to take each of my parents on a vacation. My dad has talked for years about wanting to go to Ireland, but I know he will never do it on his own. I have not nailed down the exact place we would take my mom, but recently I have been leaning towards Greece. I regularly daydream about a Christmas sometime when we are able to wrap up a ticket and a travel book....its makes me smile every time I think about it.
2. Be fit enough to wear a bikini. And be confident enough to strut my stuff it in. We are talking confident enough to not have to find a place to put my towel directly beside the edge of the pool so I can scurry out and wrap up as fast as I can when I get out of the pool.
3. Start my own business. I go back and forth between exactly what I want to do on this one, but I know it will benefit teen mothers. My life was changed forever by become a mom at 18. I often say it saved my life. Amy Falcon from Catholic Social Services will always hold a special place in my heart for what she was to me during that time. I want to be that for someone. Originally I wanted to start a half-way house for single teen moms that had in-house daycare, job training, schooling, parenting classes....everything they would need to springboard into a successful life. Now I am leaning more towards an adoption agency with pregnancy counseling and a teen mothers outreach program. Either way, I have had the name selected for years. Without Wings (or variations: spanish- sin alas; french- sans les ailes; italian- senza le ali) I wrote an article once while in college about my experiences in the teen mom's program....for me, those people were angels on earth--ones without wings.
4. Learn to cook. I mean really learn to cook. Right now, I can follow a recipe and all turns out well. I want to take some classical cooking courses. I want to be able to taste a sauce and know exactly what needs to be added. I want to bake a pie from scratch. I want to make plates of food that look like art.
5. Live close enough to family that I can recreate Wednesday night pizza. One of my favorite parts of my childhood was meeting with the Dolls every week at Pizza Hut. Our numbers went up and down depending on sports or guests, but it always happened. And even when I had a bad attitude and would sit in the car listening to music the minute I was done eating, I always, always loved it. I want my kids to be as close to their extended family as I was. My family makes up my very best of friends. I want nothing less for my children.
6. Learn to Dance. Partner dance, that is. I know Justin's parents were good dancers. They even used to teach dance lessons. I have been whirled around the dance floor a few times by his dad and I am lucky I did not break my neck. I would love to learn the swirly fast high energy country dances and the slow romantic waltz style dances and the fun, goofy swing dances. I would love to go to a wedding dance and be able to do something more than shift from foot to foot while making our way around in a small circle.
7. Travel across the country for the ultimate road trip. Serious, like a month long. I want to start at one coast and head to the other. Justin has talked about wanting to someday get a big conversion van, gut it and customize the inside with a tv and limo-style seats. Don't worry, when I first heard it, I laughed too. But now I imagine loading my kids up and stopping at all the amazing sites that this country holds. Plus, I really want to see Mount Rushmore.
8. Become a foster parent. This is something that scares me, but I know that I will do. Justin and I have talked about this on several occasions and he is onboard. He is such an amazing dad to our two children, I cannot imagine how much he will be able to enrich the lives of children who are in need of a wonderful role model.
9. Be on Wheel of Fortune. I have signed up to be on this show several times, but they have never come calling. I think I could be really good. If it was NFL week, I would ask David Akers to be my partner.
10. Become a runner. I DETEST running. Seriously. Mostly because I run two steps and feel like I am going to die. There for a while, I was up to 1.5 miles of non-stop running. I didn't enjoy it, but I was SO proud that I could do it even though it was super hard for me. I would love to be one of those people who can get up early and get in 5 miles before work in the morning. I think I would have more energy and better mental focus and just become and overall better person.
So there you have it.
What's on your list?
ohhhh man i LOVED pizza night.... i can't remember how many nights we sat in the van chit chatting while the rest of the fam was inside..... soon sarah, soon!!!
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