2018 Fall/Winter Bucket List

So, typically I sit down & write out a “Bucket List” for each season. I’ve been doing it for a while & have really loved brainstorming ideas that are specific to the coming season & being a little more strategic about what I want to do (mostly fun things). Otherwise, I find that time simply slips by & my days blend one into the other.

I did not write a “Summer Bucket List”. I decided to give myself grace this summer & not push myself to do too much. I had the busiest wedding photography season this spring (the busiest season period) that I have ever had and on top of being dreadfully sick from being newly pregnant, I was literally at the max that I could handle. I kept up with my business, still delivered wedding galleries in less time than I was contracted to, but that was about my limit those days. So, when “write Summer Bucket List” popped up on my calendar, I decided not to do it. It’s not like I put a ton of pressure on myself to actually complete these lists (in fact, I should probably put a little more pressure on myself), I just literally could not think about one more thing!

So, I turned my “Spring Bucket List” into a Spring/Summer list. Here’s what I had dreamed of doing over the last few months & what I actually accomplished!

2018 Spring Bucket List

1. Take Emma & Stephen out to lunch (one-on-one) (the last of my siblings)* – COMPLETED
2. Finish creating the “coffee table book” of all the 2017 Abby’s Saturdays & PRINT*
3. Finish creating the “family yearbook” from 2017 & PRINT*
4. Read books 2 & 3 in the Harry Potter series* – COMPLETED (I actually finished the entire Harry Potter series! So many days in the Spring I found myself laying on the couch, exhausted, fighting nausea, and reading was a way to distract my brain – so reading the Harry Potter series was the perfect distraction)
5. Finish the business/marketing course I bought last year*
6. Create a “pretty” engagement session style guide*
7. Go to the Pittsburgh Zoo to see all the animals in spring – COMPLETED (funny story – Braelynn & I went to the Zoo with my Mom & Ruby when I was about 6 weeks pregnant. I was just starting to feel the first-trimester nausea set in & was so worried that my Mom would figure out that I was pregnant! Thankfully, I made it through the day & kept my secret (we waited to tell anyone until I was at least 8 weeks along).
8. Print pictures to fill in all the empty spaces of Braelynn’s baby book
9. Insulate the 3rd floor (!!) to make it useable space – 1/2 COMPLETED (we’re further along with this item than we’ve ever been [and this item has been on my Bucket Lists for many many seasons] With baby boy coming along, we are actively moving Derrick’s office to the 3rd floor, so even though we haven’t insulated the 3rd floor yet [it’s been boiling hot], we have installed both heat & air conditioning up there! We plan to insulate in the coming weeks!)
10. Go down to the Lake for the first time this year (!!) – COMPLETED
11. Spend some extended time with Derrick’s Mom while his Dad is in Africa – COMPLETED (again, this was a tough one to carry out simply because I was about 5 weeks pregnant at the time I stayed with Derrick’s Mom & keeping “the secret” was super super tough!)
12. Have the best 8th wedding anniversary ever! – COMPLETED
13. Decorate Easter eggs – COMPLETED
14. Plan a vacation for the year (or at least a few mini-vacation-trips) – COMPLETED (I actually just blogged about our vacation here!)
15. Plant flowers around the house (and grass where the tree used to stand) *see last item’s note
16. Start “Super Secret Club” (just for KAP Couples) & set up regular helpful emails (started, but never finished implementing – one of these days!)
17. Picnic at the park at least 3 times – COMPLETED
18. Teach Braelynn how to ride her bike outside – COMPLETED (although she truly didn’t need much teaching! She’s so smart, she picked it up almost all by herself!)
19. Buy a hammock for the backyard *see last item’s note
20. Set up the lights around the patio area & make it a really nice, inviting space (I had such big plans for my backyard this summer. I even took a ton of time to send pictures & video to my friend Larissa so she could help me figure out the best way to make it look amazing. ANNDD then first-trimester nausea smashed into me like a freight train & I gave it all up. I literally did not touch my backyard at all. I simply couldn’t. So, next summer – it’s going to be amazing!)

So, out of 20 items, we completed 10 1/2 items and 1 item is a “work-in-progress”. That’s not too terrible for a pregnant lady, right?
So, here is our list for this fall & winter! I’m combining both seasons because I know that this winter is going to be crazy with baby boy’s arrival (and I really just want to take things as easy as possible)! So, this list will start today & will end on March 20, 2019 – the first day of spring!

2018 Fall/Winter Bucket List

1. Finish the business/marketing course I bought last year*
2. Create a “pretty” engagement session style guide*
3. Start “Super Secret Club” (just for KAP Couples) & set up regular helpful emails*
4. Finish creating the “coffee table book” of all the 2017 Abby’s Saturdays & PRINT*
5. Finish creating the “family yearbook” from 2017 & PRINT*
6. Write all of December & at least half of January’s blog posts in advance so when baby boy arrives, I don’t have to worry about keeping up with my blog
7. Take a solid 8+ week maternity leave
8. Have all of my gifts for Christmas bought and wrapped before December 1
9. Bake an apple pie from scratch
10. Let Braelynn jump in a big leaf pile
11. Go to a pumpkin patch & pick pumpkins
12. Finish making the 3rd-floor useable space & move Derrick’s office up there
13. Design, decorate, and set up baby boy’s nursery (!!)
14. Have a laid-back but wonderful 29th birthday
15. Have Ellen take updated family photos for us (before baby boy is born) – preferably sooner rather than later
16. Meal prep for the weeks after baby boy arrives (have at least 2 weeks worth of meals in the freezer!)
17. Attend the Downtown Irwin Light Up Night Parade with Braelynn
18. Write out my business goals for 2019
19. Build a snowman with Braelynn
20. Plan a fun 4-year-old birthday party for Braelynn (approximately 6 weeks post-partum!)
21. Welcome baby boy into the world – YAY family of 4!!

Did I miss something? Is there an activity we should do, somewhere we should go, or an experience we simply should not miss that will happen this fall or winter? Leave me a comment & let me know!