Birthday Eve: The Last Look at the 40 Before 40
It is birthday eve! Here is the final results:
Challenge Legend:
Black =have not started
Green =just started or have a plan
Blue =in progress and success is possible
Purple =VICTORY!
01) Get Married
Success as of July 10th.
02) Read the whole Bible...again.
I made it to Day 186. My reading focus changed around July. Alex and I did a devotional together and since I've been looking at smaller sections of Scripture. I will probably set a goal for the next year to finish. However, this list started a few years ago and have finished the whole Bible in that time so I am counting the victory.
03) Earn 300 Crowns in Spanish Duolingo
I have earned 191 crows. Not the goal, but I did pass story set 18 and kept a 962 day streak going. The goal was to keep going with Spanish. I'm not giving myself the victory but I'm counting it a win.
05) Have a get out of debt plan...and use it
There is a plan and I'm using it. This is a huge win.
06) Write about Grace.
I haven't really been writing much this year.
07) Break a bad habit.
I did well for about six months. I've noticed that keeping my nails painted really helped. If I am unfocused and processing or waiting I slip into the old habit.
08) Complete the 10 x 10 Game Challenge
The 10 x 10 is the goal to play ten different games ten times each.
The 10 x 10 is the goal to play ten different games ten times each.
Our ten games were: Splendor (9), Villainous (9), Sagrada (10), Roam (7), Targi (9), Forbidden Island (5), and the DC Deck Building Game (4), Legends of Andor (3), Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion (5), and Kingdomino (4) for a total of 58 plays.
I really enjoyed this challenge at the start and found it a good in the beginning. 2020 seemed like it should be a perfect year to achieve this challenge. Only we didn't game as much as we had expected.
There is part of me who wants to try another 10x10 again in the future but there were things I didn't enjoy. First, we missed playing games that weren't on the list. Second, there were longer games like Legends of Andor (it takes as long to set up and remember how to play as actual game play) that we couldn't always find large enough blocks to play. And my third issue connects back to the first, there were days we wanted to play a game that wasn't on the list and felt like we couldn't and so ended up not playing anything.
09) Hug Micky Mouse.
We made our Disney plans in January, before covid-19 was a thing. The trip had to be cancelled. This challenge will just have to wait.
We made our Disney plans in January, before covid-19 was a thing. The trip had to be cancelled. This challenge will just have to wait.
10) Meet a Geek Hero.
This happened last year at Comic Con (the same day I met Alex in line waiting for a panel). The actress was the elegant and delightful Gina Torres. It was an unexpected encounter.
This happened last year at Comic Con (the same day I met Alex in line waiting for a panel). The actress was the elegant and delightful Gina Torres. It was an unexpected encounter.
11) See more of Canada.
In the past three years I have had the opportunity to visit BC, Manitoba, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia and visited my first territory, Yukon. I would still like to see more but for this challenge I count this a win!
12) Explore Ottawa.
When I set this goal in 2017 there were are few things I wanted to do:
1) Skate on the Rideau Canal -CHECK -Alex and I did this January, well we walked it because the ice was too slushy but it counts.
2) Tour the Parliament buildings -CHECK -Friends and I went just before they shut down the buildings for renovations. Good thing we went when we did. The center building will be closed to the public for ten years.
3) Visit the National Gallery -CHECK -Alex and I went last year around this time
The only "Ottawa" event that hasn't happened was watch the Canada Day fireworks on the Hill but that couldn't happen this year.
13) Attend a Festival.
Triple success, Alex and I went to a Japanese cultural festival last year, the Winterlude festival this February, and the Tulip Festival in the spring.
I have gathered a few props and some great supplies but I have been putting my limited creative energy into other projects.
15) Try a capsule wardrobe for a season.
I completely forgot about this goal. I think it will need to wait till the 40 While 40. I think an autumn capsule will be fun.
16) Try something new.
The something new that earned the victory was Pho. There were many, many other new things tried in the past four years I don't think I could list them all, but pho was the first.
17) Take a class/course.
Last fall I did a shield maiden course that taught sword fighting. In the effort to be a continual learner I have also signed up for Skill Share and done a few courses.
Not this year.
19) Bake something new.
Alex and I have made bread bread, herb bread, cheese bread, and cinnamon loaf.
It is just not possible this year. Unless you count getting married.
21) Cook the family a Thanksgiving feast from scratch.
Success! Alex and I made this year's Thanksgiving feast.
22) Memorize 40 new verses.
Since 2017 I've memorized 134 new verses. I've been using the Bible Verse app to keep practicing. I am needing to do more review. But I did learn the verses.
23) Read 40 Books.
I read 41 books!
24) Read a book on Theology.
I didn't read any specifically theological, but a number of books about Christian spirituality and life. While I can't give myself a victory, this is another situation were I don't feel like I failed.
25) Reread the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings.
The Return of the King was book 41.
26) Reread Narnia and more C.S. Lewis.
I finished the Chronicles of Narnia in August.
27) Give the blog a make over.
I gave the blog a makeover around January. It was both an aesthetic and template change. I am not sure I like the new template. The navigation I find a bit frustrating; I don't like that you can't easily go from a single post to another post. Maybe it is time for another change?
28) Finish a project.
The project I chose was a set of dice bags I made for my D&D group about three years ago. I have already finished the crocheting. All that was needed to fully finish this project was to add a cloth lining and draw string. I bought the materials, set it aside to do after Christmas...and never picked the project again.
Even though I reviewed my challenges in March, I completely forgot about this project and didn't finish it :(
29) Knit a sweater.
The sweater is coming along, I finished the yoke, separated the sleeves, and am working on the main body. I have 12 inches to go before adding the sleeves. I'm counting this as a win. I am knitting a sweater. Next bucklist might have a finish sweater challenge.
The sweater is coming along, I finished the yoke, separated the sleeves, and am working on the main body. I have 12 inches to go before adding the sleeves. I'm counting this as a win. I am knitting a sweater. Next bucklist might have a finish sweater challenge.
30) Establish a Morning Routine.
This is tricky. I had a great morning routine, then I moved and things changed and I re-established again. Then I got married. There are times in all these transitions that I couldn't say I had a routine as I had intended but I did at times have a kept routines I enjoyed. I think that I will count the times of victory as enough of success.
31) Establish a Night Routine.
The statements above are true for my night routine. And while there are struggles there have been long times of great success. I am learning to celebrate victories and not just keep moving the finish line.
32) Practice Contemplative Spirituality.
I feel like this is the type of goal that is always ongoing but I did have a year of growth in this area of my life.
33) Keep a Food Journal for 30 Days.
I've been using Avatar Nutrition since January to track my food and monitor my health progress.
34) 30 Days of Journaling.
I did this earlier this year but feel I need to try it again.
35) 30 Days of No Sugar.
Alex and I did this last year.
36) 30 Days of Art.
I did a lot of art this year, but was not in a consistent 30 days. I'm going to blame to the ongoing anxiety of 2020 for affecting my creativity.
37) 30 Days of Hair.
This was completed in June.
38) 30 Days of Makeup.
This was successfully completed in April.
39) 100 Days of Dance.
I don't always remember to record all the days we dance. I think it's getting pretty close.
40) Do Something with the Canvas!
I bought the canvas to create something for my 30th birthday. I have maintained another successful year of not touching it. Maybe it a 40th year project.
BONUS GOAL: Virtually Hike the Cameo
AND
After finishing the virtual walk last month we signed up for a second challenge, Hadrian's Wall. We finished the whole journey in 31 days!
Finial Thoughts:
What a year!I don't think any of us could have imaged the twists and valleys the past twelve months have taken us through. At times it was rough but overall a blessed year with precious memories and good things. I am definitely content with the results of this year's birthday bucket list. For the final chart I did remove two of the impossible tasks and replaced them with the bonus victories. Without the bonuses the victories were 68%, still pretty good.
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