I know the universe is driving the bus, yet I’m still amazed by how it put some of my life list items front and center in the last month. Here’s some crazy awesome stuff that happened:

1. In December I crossed #3 (Take my Mom on some kind of fun adventure/vacation) off my list, inspired by a . . . → Read More: Life Lists Work in Mysterious Ways

At first this was going to be a post about what seemed like a multi-pronged attempt by a guy at a local music shop to thwart my attempts to play music again. In a nutshell, I told the music store guy that I wanted to learn to play mandolin (same tuning as violin, I figured it . . . → Read More: Musical Rebirth. Complete With a Crack.

Goodness, what a busy week. Welcoming Violet to the world also meant crossing two things off my life list: I just adored photo journaling my pregnancy (#15 – “Take one picture each week of this miracle pregnancy.”) and couldn’t have asked for a more powerful birth experience (#33 – “Experience natural childbirth. Or even just a . . . → Read More: Life List: #15 and #33, Check!

Well, I didn’t cross #24 (“Learn to make fancy little French pastries. Perhaps while in France.”) off my life list while in France, but the rewards were still pretty sweet.

I love baking, but I’ve never tried making French pastries. I’m not sure whether it seemed too difficult or I simply didn’t want to know about the . . . → Read More: Life List: #24, Check!

For someone who is so get-stuff-done, sometimes it shocks me how stuck I get with certain projects.

Like wielding a hammer and nail.

However, this past weekend I got over my hammer/nail paralysis and gleefully checked off life list item #20: “Finally hang pictures in my living room. (We’ve lived in our home for two years and the . . . → Read More: Life List: #20, Check!

Today’s #reverb10 writerly prompt is:

December 18: Try. What do you want to try next year? Is there something you wanted to try in 2010? What happened when you did / didn’t go for it? (Author: Kaileen Elise)

It was so wonderful to make a life list on my birthday this year. The process made me think of . . . → Read More: #reverb10: Try

[Installment 5 of the Declare & Celebrate Gratitude Project]

This past week I was grateful for…

…unexpected gifts. My friend Leslie sent a book for Laurel and a onesie for Roll totally out of the blue.

…dinner with friends. Monday night we welcomed our friend Taina to our home and Tuesday I enjoyed a ladies night out with . . . → Read More: Gratitude: Mystery Fillings, Music, and More