My Fill-the-Bucket List

Last year I did a post about gratitude where I tried to think about all the awesome things and experiences that I’m so lucky to have in my life.  Recently (or maybe a few months back now…), Maggie at Northern Expenditure did a post about making a “fill-the-bucket” list, instead of a tradition bucket list.  Rather than concentrate on what you haven’t done and want to do, it’s a way to look back on all the awesome experiences that you’ve already had.  My gratitude post and a “fill-the-bucket” list are both similar exercises, but I thought I’d try Maggie’s list too.

Now, me personally, I’ve never made a real “bucket list”, but I know that my bucket is already pretty full, I just need to dig a few things out of the ol’ memory banks to share…  I noticed that a lot of the other posts on this topic are heavily weighted with travel based experiences… It shows that this community really values travel… And I’ve been lucky enough to do quite a bit of traveling so far in my lifetime. It’s hard to pick only a few to share… But I’ve limited my list to only 7 things…

1. Getting my University Degree

This may seem like a silly one to have here, but it has definitely helped fill my bucket.  I made amazing friends at school, found something that challenged me and that I’m also pretty good at, and it has helped define me and my future.

Me (well… sort of…)

2. Surfing in Portugal

I had an amazing opportunity to get a private surf guide while in Portugal over New Year’s when I was in my mid 20s.  I am by no means a good surfer, but it was definitely one of the highlights of that trip.

Surf Beach near Lisbon Portugal

3. The Classic Roomie Road Trip

My roommate and I decided to take a somewhat impromptu road trip to the Calgary Stampede for my birthday one year.  It was one of those things that you can only do when you are young… Sleep in your car with a cheap Walmart blanket, then get up early (because you are freezing) and jump in a lake instead of finding a place to shower… Then insist on a free boot glass from a restaurant because it is your birthday… Yup, so many hilarious memories from that trip…

My “Free” Birthday Boot

4. Somehow Snagging an Amazing Job

I may complain sometimes about my job, but really it is pretty awesome.  I get to work on really cool projects, and travel to some really beautiful and remote locations that I probably would otherwise know nothing about.

One of the Remote Places I Visit For Work

5. Climbing an Active Volcano in Ecuador

With the recent earthquake in Ecuador, I feel especially fortunate to have visited that amazing country not too long ago.  The place is amazing.  Really amazing.  I am sending good wishes for their people and hope that they can recover quickly from this disaster.  We didn’t climb the whole thing, only to the base camp, but it was still an awesome experience.  Oh, and then we jumped on some mountain bikes and biked down…

My Friend and I at Base Camp

6. Getting Married to my Best Friend

My list wouldn’t be complete without including something about my husband.  He has definitely helped to fill my bucket many times over.  We’ve only been married 8 months, but it has been a great 8 months and I expect many, many more happy months in the future.

Wedding Flowers

 

7. Every Part of our European Honeymoon Adventure

And finally, the most recent addition to my bucket, the experiences from our honeymoon.  One highlight, getting upgraded to first class on the flight to Europe.  If you’ve never done it, it is a totally different flying experience.

First Class Champagne!

Another quick highlight was finding a cat at the pub… We did miss our cats while we were gone…

The Pub Cat.

 

Thank you to Maggie at Northern Expenditure for the inspiration for this post!  You should go check out her list and all the lists that she has inspired by her readers!

Do you have a fill-the-bucket list?  What is one of the highlights of your list?