In July I dared readers to step out and conquer a bucket list goal that required them to let go. To be wildly free. Something like dancing in the rain. For me that expression of whimsical freedom came in the form of sitting out on my roof eating ice cream sandwiches with my kids –…
family adventures
August Bucket List Life Dare: Seize the Summer Moment
It’s August. Our school district is clamoring for my attention again with registration forms in the mail and orientation reminders in my inbox. As much as I want to ignore it and pretend my mornings will forever be blissfully quiet with kids sleeping late, summer is winding down. School will be starting again. Soon. And…
Lighthouse Bucket List Adventure: An Interview with Cheryl Lynn Cain
I have always admired Cheryl Lynn Cain for being a mom with a passion for making a difference. From hosting refugee families, to organizing a fair trade bazaar, to directing the compassion ministry at her church, Cheryl Lynn is a woman of compassion in action. The same is certainly true for her family bucket list –…
Family Bucket List Wall
Over the past year I’ve been working on my family’s bucket list wall – a pictorial commemoration of the goals we’ve reached and the fun we’ve had living out our bucket list dreams. Here’s the result: I collected these collage frames over time. I knew I wanted to be able to highlight the different types…
New Monthly Blog Feature: The Bucket List Life Dare
It’s one thing to dream about and discuss our bucket lists. But we hit a whole new level of life experience when we take action, any action. Which is why I am introducing a new monthly feature here on my blog: the Bucket List Life Dare. This week my family celebrates two transitions: my middle…
Bucket List Time Travel
Could something you loved as a kid (and then forgot about) be the source of a bucket list dream? Don’t neglect reviewing your childhood for ideas when you make your bucket list. You never know what might be possible! When I was a young girl, I loved the Little House on the Prairie series. I read…
Talk About It: Post-Adventure Family Conversations
What kind of conversations do you have with your kids after you’ve reached a bucket list goal? What does your “debriefing” look like? Over Spring Break our family took a few bucket list adventures. Our eldest daughter spent three weeks on a school-sponsored exchange trip to Spain. The rest of us visited the LEGO Discovery…
Abundance: Bucket List Goals in Community
I recently had the opportunity to gather with more than 30 other members of the writer’s guild I belong to for our bi-annual retreat. We held workshops, learned from industry professionals, and heard the stories of published members about their road to publication. But more than that, we shared our lives – our hopes, our…
Adventurers in Training
Living out a bucket list is not as much about the items on the list as it as about being open to – and inviting – adventure. It is about being transformed into an adventurer. Our family suffered two losses this past week. On Wednesday, my husband’s grandmother died. A spunky Brit with a quick tongue, she lived…
A Family Bucket List Achievement: Trying Middle Eastern Food
It was a chilly December night, but the place was already packed when we arrived with friends. We scrambled to grab two tables as diners cleared their trays to leave. Then our families made our way up to the front counter. Servers behind glass-topped stations took our orders. The chicken shawarma pita caught my attention…