30 Before 30

I turn 26 today; a step closer to 30, to 40, to 50, to whichever age I reach. I often feel like my foot is smashing the accelerator pedal and there is no letting up. I am flying past exits that I want to explore in anticipation of a greater destination. 

Despite my fear of growing older, I have decided to embrace each birthday and celebrate it. I hear adults say that birthdays don't matter after a certain age, that they're nothing special. But they are. Birthdays indicate you have lived another year. You have escaped every possible threat to your life, you have persevered for 365 more days, you have made it to today.

I want to create a meaningful life full of creativity, joy, excitement, adventure, beauty, inspiration and achievement. I have daily goals and a life bucket list, but not so much of the in-between. And so, the in-between. 

1. Run the Twin Cities 10-mile race

2. Practice yoga regularly

3. Get (and use) cross-country skis

4. Try stand up paddleboarding

5. Attempt a new exercise class

6. Finish my study abroad scrapbooks

7. Catch up on my concert scrapbook

8. Complete a SmashBook for a full year

9. Paint a large canvas

10. Learn how to sew

11. Take a photography class or seriously learn on my own

12. Redesign my blog

13. Guest blog for someone

14. Meet other bloggers in person

15. Attend NY Fashion Week

16. Get a keyboard or piano and play it again

17. Become proficient in Vietnamese

18. Hone my ability to ice skate backwards

19. Practice writing in different styles (fiction, poetry, etc).

20. Cook a new recipe once a month

21. Travel to Ireland, Scotland and England

22. Cross off 10 of the 30 stadiums of my MLB Stadium Tour (6 down)

23. Visit 25 of the 50 states (21 down)

24. Experience Christmas in New York
25. Act like a tourist in Minneapolis

Image via

26. Overhaul my closet and sell/donate items

27. Maintain a nearly-empty vehicle (get rid of the junk in the trunk)

28. Banish the physical clutter that carries over to mental clutter

29. Sort through inboxes so they are manageable

30. Print photos and backup digital versions

I'll do my best to post my progress. What would be on your list of mid-range goals?