Hot Air

This weekend is the annual Coshocton Hot Air Balloon Festival, our third and final one while we live here. It is a real highlight for me, I love hot air balloons and one day I would love to ride in one, maybe even on safari in Africa or something! 

An added bonus for us, living close to the Fairground, is during the launches, the balloons literally fly right over our house, low enough that you can even sometimes hear the people talking in the baskets! Very cool!

As well as riding in a Hot Air Balloon, there are a few other things on my Bucket List. (According to the Urban Dictionary a 'bucket list' is a list of things to do before you die, from the term 'kicked the bucket'!). In our house we often talk about fun things we'd like to do ... but have never written them down anywhere. So, in my recent discovery of the wonders of Pinterest, I have started keeping a record for us to refer to over the years. (To view my ongoing list, click here.)

I would love to one day write a book but don't know what it would be about. I would love to run in the London marathon but right now, couldn't even run around the block. I would love to go the Olympics but will have to wait at least another four years for that, as we have no plans to go this summer. As you can see some of my dreams will require a lot of preparation and/or hard work on my part but it's nice to have a list like that around with more specific things to work towards 'one day'!

About 10 years ago I found an old notebook of mine that as a teenager I'd written a similar list in. I had totally forgotten all about it but as I slowly read down the list I noticed that without realising, I had actually been working my way through the items. Since I'd written it, I had swum with dolphins, I had done a parachute jump, I had scuba-dived ... amongst other things. I wish I still had a copy of it now so I could see how many more things, 10 years later, I am able to tick off.

I appreciate that some of the items on my bucket list may never be achieved and might be just be considered 'hot air' but I don't think any of them are completely unrealistic (so far anyway!) In the day-to-day routine of mummy-dom though, it's nice to have the possibility of things that are a little more out of the ordinary being somewhere on the horizon!

It just leaves me to ask ... What's on your bucket list?