My Bucket List!

Ok, so you may remember a few posts ago I mentioned my Bucket List. I haven't got round to posting it yet and to be honest, it wasn't entirely made up by me, it was taken from a few other people's lists I found online. But all the things on the list are things I would like to try. Some of the things are small, some big, some will take a lot of planning and/or money and some are almost impossible and may take a lot to actually pull off. A couple of them I have done since making the list but I wanted to keep them in.

I plan to do as many things on the list as possible and I would love to finish this year having made a good dent in the list. I plan to blog each time I cross something off the list, as a way of keeping a proper record of my achievements.

My Bucket List:

 

 

Go to New York in December

Go to Santorini or another Greek island

Explore abroad and the uk with children

Go on a hot air balloon

Bungee jump

Go on holiday to the Maldives

Buy a house

Go on a cruise

Write a novel

Be an extra in a film

Try out surfing

Ride a camel

Ride on a horse

Drastic hair cut/colour

Be a tourist in your own city

Spend the day at a spa

Go on a ghost hunt

Do 50 random acts of kindness

Take a flying lesson or discovery flight

Watch a sunrise and sunset in the same day

Try foods I've never tried before

Ride a skateboard

Sing karaoke in public

Feed animals at the zoo

Order room service

Ride in a canoe and/or kayak

Throw someone a surprise party

Ice skate

Roller blade

Ride a segway

Name a star

Bake cookies for your neighbors, co-workers, etc

Take a cooking lesson

Learn to make one really nice meal from scratch

Shoot a gun

Shoot a bow and arrow

Write letters to 5 people who positively influenced you

Host a dinner party

Take a bubblebath by candlelight with champagne

Wish upon a star

Play the lotto

Climb a rock wall

Climb a tree

Send postcards from your home city

Play golf

Build a snowman

Meditate

Make and bury a time capsule

Write your will

Host a scavenger hunt

Take the scenic route

Ride in a limo

Get a caricature done of yourself

Get hypnotized

Play darts

Play pool

Bet on a horse or dog race

Play poker

Donate blood

Learn a dance

Make spaghetti sauce from scratch

Ban negativity from your life

Slide down a waterslide

Ride a rollercoaster

Carve a pumpkin

Be passionate about a worthy cause

Be someone's biggest fan

Plant a tree

Paint a room

Host a theme party

Attach notes to balloons and release them

Get a tan

Go camping

Get something else pierced

Get another tattoo

Get something besides your eyebrows waxed

Make something out of clay

Make homemade ice cream

Go to the opera

Release sky lanterns

Read a classic novel

Take a day trip someplace new

Learn to make a good mixed drink

Hire a maid for a least one day

Research your family tree

Ask your elders to write down their stories for you, or write them down for them 

Write your stories down for future generations

Attend a professional sports game

Do a wine tasting

Eat at a fancy restaurant

Eat with chopsticks

Write down your dreams for at least one week

Try to juggle

BBQ with charcoal

Buy something for a stranger off their wish list/registry

Leave an inspirational message on a sticky note in a bathroom or public place

Write to a celebrity

Be a pen pal

Complete a crossword puzzle without cheating

Sleep under the stars

Try to break a world record

Study a foreign language

Send someone flowers, just because

Continue your education

Complete a couch to 5k challenge

Try 10 new restaurants

Go to another festival

Take an art class

Watch a movie outdoors

Take a hike

Picnic in the park

Do something that completely terrifies you

Learn to love yourself

Choose different pizza toppings

Make and decorate gingerbread men #

Bake homemade bread

Win something

Tie a tie

Learn to play something on the piano and/or guitar

Master the art of self confidence

Hand write letters to your friends and mail them

Have nice undergarments

Take a great picture, print it, frame it and hang it on the wall

Feed the ducks

Spend the day at the beach or lake

Completely plan your dream home down to the fine details

Play truth or dare

Follow people who inspire you on Twitter and/or Facebook

Learn the origins of the holidays you celebrate

Hold the door open for strangers

Join a club or team

Shop at a flea market, swap meet or garage sale

Start a collection

Write a note and leave it in a library book

Walk in the rain

Fast for a few days

Start a retirement fund

Eat something really crazy

Have the restaurant staff sing to you for your birthday

Learn self defense

Learn 5 or more yoga poses

Start a scrapbook with mementos and souvenirs

Stay in a bed and breakfast

Play relaxing sounds or music as you sleep

Nap in a hammock

Write a list of everything you're grateful for

Buy something from an auction

Toast to something with champagne

Get a book signed by the author

Do a 365 day photo project

Try 25 new recipes

Order something different off the menu

Visit a farmer's market

Send a post card to Post Secret

Go bike riding

Beat a video game

Put together a 1,000 piece puzzle

Play Rock Band/Guitar Hero

Spend the day watching cartoons

Go surfing, sledding or 4-wheeling

Have professional pictures taken

Start watching a tv show you've never seen before

Try a new hairstyle

Watch a car race

Have an emergency fund

Buy a word of the day calendar and learn a new word every day

Find the coolest thing in your city and photograph it

Take a photo from a skyscraper or tallest building you can find

Give someone else a massage

Watch a movie marathon

Pick your own fruit

Take a photography class

Watch a documentary

Write a letter for future generations to read

Write a letter to yourself to open in 10 years

Forgive others

Forgive yourself

Have a hot stone massage

Ride in a horse drawn carriage

Try 10 new fruits/berries/veggies

Try juicing or make smoothies

Get lost on purpose

Have a water balloon/water gun fight

Know what you like and not be afraid to articulate it

Do a home repair project yourself

Learn basic car maintenance

Be interviewed on video

Build and fly a kite

Find the event calendar for your city, or a bigger city nearby, and make note of the fun stuff coming up you can do. Set reminders to do them!

Take a morning jog

Say YES more often

Say NO more often

Haggle

Go a full day without spending any money

Eat nothing but fresh food for a week

Make a blessings jar

Go mirrorless for a day

Sit in a sauna

Find someone with your same name

Do a cleanse

Bake a cake

Write to your hero

Start a gratitude journal

Make something out of paper mache

Apologize

Get to know your neighbors

Give up TV for a week

Go commando

Make fresh squeezed juice

Get someone to help you pick out new clothes

Get properly fitted for clothes/bra/etc

Delete your social media profiles for at least a week

Go on evening walks

Get a facial

Host a games night

Ask for a raise

Compliment 20+ people in one day

Read 100 of the greatest books ever written

 

 

Wish me luck!

 

 

 

 

The Perfect Day

So, yet again I've been awful at maintaining the blog. The main issue is that I love to write but I just don't have the time to at the moment. Working full time alongside being a mummy and having now taken up Thai boxing, fitting classes in twice a week, it's just not possible to blog as much as I would like to.

Things have been pretty hectic since I last posted. Work got majorly busy and my depression got worse. I have spoken to the doctor and been put on a waiting list for counselling again so hopefully that won't end up being too long. Valentines day this year was something I was looking forward to but also worried about a bit. As it turned out, I had the most perfect day and it was all down to my amazing boyfriend, Ed.

The day started with a long lie in, which was such a luxury as with work and/or the kids I never get out of bed later than 8am usually. We exchanged cards and gifts. Ed had bought me a gorgeous Pandora charm, which I love.

 Ed went to get breakfast and we had bacon, sausage and egg baps followed by a chocolate covered donut- delicious. After breakfast I stayed in bed some more before finally getting my lazy bum up and getting ready to go. Ed had told me we were going for a 'romantic walk' and to put on shoes I could get dirty.

We drove over to Swanage before turning up at a stables where Ed had booked a surprise horse riding session for us as it was something that was on my bucket list! I was totally shocked. I don't usually handle surprises well, or I tend to guess what's going on so it was pretty amazing to have something like this arranged. I was so happy, I couldn't stop smiling. All the way round the walk I was beaming, even if I was a little terrified when I first got on the horse. It was perfect and I felt free and relaxed for the first time in a long time.

After we had finished at the stables we went down to the beach and had a lovely little walk in the sand.

We got the ferry back across to Poole and, after a quick stop at Tesco's for some alcohol and dessert for later, we went back to get ready for our meal. We went to a Mexican restaurant and had some really yummy food, although I ordered too much and ended up feeling incredibly full I also had a couple of pretty delicious Strawberry Margaritas- adult slush puppies at their best!

It was freezing outside so instead of going for a drink after dinner we just went home and had the dessert and Prosecco before snuggling up in front of the TV.

It was the best Valentines and reminded me how lucky I was to have found someone I feel so right with amidst all the crazy things in life. Life is short. It should be spent with the people you love.

Hello Stranger...

Well I have no idea who the audience for this blog is anymore or whether anyone even reads it, other than a small indication from the page stats that at least some people are clicking through from various weird and wonderful search terms (pregnant in leggings anyone?).... So much has changed since my last post that rather than dwelling on the negatives, I thought I would just start afresh with an introducing myself blog post. If you have read my previous posts then please ignore everything you read, it is probably no longer relevant.... 

My latest tattoo and mantra in life 

So here goes.... I'm Emma-Louise and I live on the beautiful South Coast with my two lovely but lively children who are four and two years old. My journey to this point has been at times rather hectic and some of the things that have happened have made for some stressful periods (but provided brilliant subject matter for this blog!). I work full time at a local hotel where I am Wedding & Events Coordinator, it's my dream job and I love it. 

As well as working and being a mum, in any spare time I get, lately I have been trying to get out of my comfort zone as my (somewhat early) New Year's resolution is to try new things and complete some of my 'bucket list'. 

Having only started a few weeks ago, so far I have done fairly well having been harnessed onto a zip wire that took me from the end of the pier to the beach as part of a charity event for work and attending a gig of a band that was definitely not 'me'. Both things made me hugely nervous beforehand but I actually really enjoyed myself. I am looking forward to trying lots of other new things in 2015. 

So if you fancy reading more about my vaguely interesting life then watch this space... 

Welcome to 2013!

So, another new year is upon us and I know people get fed up of seeing or hearing about resolutions, feeling that they are a waste of time and people never stick to them, but I disagree. I think that even if people don't stick at a resolution for the whole year, they are at least finding something that requires change in their life. Fair enough if you don't have anything you want or need to change in your life, but for a lot of people the end of a year and beginning of a new one is the perfect time to reassess and realise what they can improve. 2013 is set to be a good year for me with Tim moving in next week and preparing for our wedding next February. I have a list of things I want to achieve this year:

1. Lose 1 stone by April

This one is simple. I have a further 1 stone to lose before I am back to (just below) my pre pregnancy weight. I have a huge motivation to lose the weight this time round as I am not allowing myself to go Wedding dress shopping until I have lost it..... torture! I also set the deadline for April as we are having Carly's Christening the end of April and my birthday is the beginning of May, so it will mean I can be a yummy mummy again in time for those events, perfect! I plan to lose the weight with healthy eating, smaller portions and allowing myself treat days at the weekends.

2. Tone up my 'Mum Tum'

Linked to the first, this one is also to help with fitting into a wedding dress and also to help boost my self confidence. Although I am only 23, with two young children, I find it hard to see myself in any way other than mummy at the moment and I want this to change! I am so excited to be starting my old exercise class back up this month, as well as doing plenty of walking with my mum (who is also trying to lose weight and tone up) and getting the good old wii back out of storage for a bit of Zumba.

3. Only drink on special occassions

To be fair, this will be pretty easy as the only real reason I have been drinking more than I would usually lately is because of Christmas and New Year, which are special occassions anyway... It is so much hassle to drink whilst breastfeeding anyway (for those who don't know, it involves using a breast pump to express before and after drinking as well as sterilising bottles you wouldn't usually need to sterilise). For the sake of having a couple of glasses of wine, it just isn't really worth the effort. I also know that by not having the odd glass of wine I will also find it easier to lose the weight so all in all a win win situation.

4. Pay off our wedding

This one will take a little time, but rather than leave all the balances that need to be paid until just before the wedding and being left with a massive bill, we have decided it would be better to spread the cost out over the year and pay off something every couple of months. First on our list is the photography!

5. Take lots of Photos

I love taking photos and having something tangible to look back on in the future. I got a new camera at Christmas from my nan so I plan to take a lot more photos, especially of the kids as they grow throughout the year.

6. Start my business

This has been on the agenda for some time now. Due to having the kids, my career never really set off after graduation, but hopefully this is the year that will change. As soon as Carly is a couple of months older, I plan to start up my own business, and hopefully by the time I am able to have her in nursery for a little while, I will be able to start making it a proper success. I can't wait to be able to work again. Although I love being a mum, sometimes it's nice to use your brain a bit more.

7. Visit people more

This is very dependent on how much money we have as we are going to be on a very tight budget with the wedding. I really miss friends and family who live in other parts of the country and aim to visit as much as I can this year.

8. Get another tattoo

I have had my next tattoo planned for a few months now and can't wait until I can have it done for my birthday. I have a tattoo of a feather with the word believe which is for my grandad who passed away when I was 12 on my left wrist and I want to have a rose on my right wrist with the word love for my nan.

9. Make new friends

To be honest, I am fed up with the way I have been treated in the past by so called 'friends'. 2013 is definitely about getting rid of the people who haven't been there for me in the past, and finding people who actually give a damn.

10. Demand a Smear Test

I know this isn't the done thing, but I actually really want a smear test done. Apparently the risk of cervical cancer increases when you have children, and having now had two and with my mum having had an abnormal result in the past I am really reluctant to wait it out until I am 25 (another year and a half!). I'm not sure whether they will allow me to have one or not, but I am definitely going to try my hardest! I don't understand the women who are allowed to have them and don't go because they are 'scared it might hurt'. I would take a bit of discomfort over a risk of leaving my children alone any day...