Thanks to Tespo for sponsoring this collection of life-list ideas for women who want to embrace life.
This year I'll be hitting "The Big 4-0." Have you reached this milestone yet?
It seems this fateful day in a woman's life commands at least a tinge of reverence. A moment of pause. You see, during this 40-something period of our lives, we’re presented with a fork in the road, where we have a simple choice: We can either get busy LIVING by excitedly embracing all that's to come in our “Act II” or we can get busy DYING and make a bunch of lame excuses for not participating in life the way we once did.
Think of your friends and family and which of these two "paths" they've chosen for their lives. I'm greatly inspired by my mentor, Patti, who followed her dreams and traveled abroad to New Zealand solo in her 60s. She got busy living the life she dreamed for herself, and I hope that you will too—whatever your age.
Let's ROCK our Act II together!
Okay... so what does that look like? Well, it's different for every woman, but one way to "get busy living" is to create a LIFE LIST to spur you into action from here on out.
Getting Started with Your Life List
I strongly encourage you to focus on the JOY of LIVING while looking through the 200 Life List ideas below. This is not meant to be a "Bucket List" of things to do before you die. It's a subtle—but important—difference, ladies!
The collection of ideas below is meant to be a starting point, so you don't have to feel intimidated by staring at a blank sheet of paper as you create your list of things you want to try yet. (Getting started is always the hardest part of any task.)
Simply pick and choose the ideas below that suit you and your interests best. Then disregard the rest! Hopefully, a few of these suggestions will inspire you to keep adding to your personalized Life List.
200 Life-List Ideas for Women
Watch the Sunrise and the Sunset in One Day
Swim in the Ocean
Find the Perfect Black Dress
Visit Your Childhood Home
Create a Family Tree
Stand Under a Waterfall
Knit a Scarf
Walk on a Black Sand Beach
Make a Candle
Wear Fake Eyelashes
Jump into a Pool Fully Clothed
Attend a Murder Mystery Dinner
Ride in a Hot-Air Balloon
Make a Kiva.com Loan
Get a Henna Tattoo
Eat Fondue
Watch the IMDB Top-50 Movies
Go Whale-Watching
Have No Credit Card Debt
Leave a 100% Tip for a Server
Join a Book Club
Ride on a Ferris Wheel
See a Ballet
Kiss in the Rain
See a Coral Reef
Make Mosaic Art
Drive Route 66
Swim with a School of Fish
See a Broadway Musical
Take Pictures in a Photo Booth
Tour a Vineyard
Attend a Poetry Reading
Do a Boudoir Photo Shoot
Learn a Line Dance
See a Broadway Play
Make Soap
Go to a Drive-In Movie
Take a Bikram Yoga Class
Organize a Family Portrait
See Times Square
... List Continues Below ...
We have two lives: the one we learn with and the life we live after that. — Bernard Malmud
More Life-List Ideas for Women
Design a Room You Love
Take a Vacation Solo
Work on a Pottery Wheel
Do a Random Act of Kindness
Get a Professional Body Massage
Do the Hula
Start a Blog
Have a Dinner Party
Go a Week Without Makeup
Develop a Passive Income Stream
Sing a Karaoke Duet
Create a Flower Arrangement
Go on a Cruise
See Niagara Falls
Take an Art Class
Have Your Palm Read
Hit the Town with Bright-Red Lips
Go to a Book Signing
Make a Tie-Dye Shirt
Eat Southern BBQ in the South
Go to the Movies by Yourself
Put Change into Someone's Expired Parking Meter
Throw a Themed Party
Watch All the Oscar-Winning Movies
Send a Care Package to a Soldier
Serve Food at a Soup Kitchen
Attend a Black-Tie Gala
Do a Cleanse
Create a Piece of Art
Travel Outside of Your Own Country
Get a Foot Massage
Dress in Super-Sexy Lingerie
Duplicate an Outfit from a Magazine
Reconnect with an Old Friend
Ride a Zipline
Participate in a 5K Race
Get a Brazilian Wax
Unplug for a Week
Make Homemade Ice Cream
Hike the Narrows at Zion National Park
See the Northern Lights
Get Fitted for a Bra
Spend the Day at a Resort Spa
... List Continues Below ...
You might also like: 5 Brutally Honest Things Every Woman Turning 40 Should Know.
How we respond to the changes going on with our bodies now—in our 40s—can greatly affect the quality and outcome of our "Act II". Women begin to go through many subtle physical changes after reaching 40.
Check out these 5 brutal truths about turning 40 and what each health reality means to you if you choose to fully embrace your Act II and steer yourself toward healthy aging from the inside out.
READ POST: 5 brutal truths about turning 40
As I approach 40, I’ve been taking steps on making meditation, exercise, and nutrition a priority in my life.
More Life-List Ideas for Women
Take a Mud Bath
Throw a Dart at a Map and Just Go
Have 3 Months' Worth of Bills in Savings
Make Fresh Pasta
Stay in a 5-Star Resort
Take a Cooking Class
Attend a Winemakers Dinner
Get a Bikini Wax
Learn Another Language
Boil a Live Lobster
Get a Complete Makeover
Catch, Cook, and Eat a Fish All by Yourself
Make Paper
Go Canoeing
Cook with Your Partner
Start Fire Without Matches
Eat Breakfast in Bed
Sleep on Satin Sheets
Go Wine-Tasting
Host a Cookie Exchange
Cook a Traditional Dish from a Different Culture
Learn to Use Chopsticks
Pay for the Coffee/Meal of the Person Behind You at the Drive-Thru
Learn to Play an Instrument
Make a Gingerbread House
Cook Every Dish in One Cookbook
Toss Pizza Dough in the Air
Be a Tourist in Your Own Town
Build a Sandcastle
Complete a 1,000-Piece Jigsaw Puzzle
Do the Polar Bear Plunge
Recreate a Childhood Recipe
Finish a Crossword Puzzle
Start an Herb Garden
Learn the Heimlich Maneuver
Own an Original Piece of Artwork
Cook a Fancy Holiday Dinner
... List Continues Below ...
As I work on my own Life List, I realize sometimes we women have to MAKE OUR OWN SUNSHINE. This can mean a lot of things.
For me, the snowy and rainy spring in Wisconsin can get incredibly long and can bring on the winter doldrums. During these gray times of year, I keep lots of bright, cheery colors all around for a visual pick-me-up. Even something as simple as using rainbow-colored markers instead of plain ol' gray pencils (for jotting down work notes or grocery lists) helps to lift my spirits.
With the shorter days, I also have to ensure I get enough Vitamin D (a.k.a. the “sunshine vitamin”). This nutrient is notoriously hard to get from food. So keep an eye out for these clues to ensure you're getting enough Vitamin D year-round.
More Life-List Ideas for Women
Skinny-Dip
Photobomb Someone
Send a Message in a Bottle
Stay at a Dude Ranch
Stay Awake for 24 Hours
Be an Organ Donor
Build a House with Habitat for Humanity
Do 24 Hours of Silence
Participate in a Charity Walk
Climb a Volcano
Entertain Residents at a Nursing Home
Help Someone with a Check on Their Life List
Go for a Fish Pedicure
Learn to Meditate
Give Blood
Plant a Tree
Feed a Homeless Person
Walk on a Glacier
Read a Banned Book
Learn Manual Photography
Ride on a Train
Read a Classic Novel
Read a New York Times Best Seller
Read a Trilogy
Send Flowers to Yourself
Spend a Day Helping at a Children’s Hospital
Play a Game of Paintball
Hug a Redwood
Sail a Boat
Roll in a Huge Pile of Leaves
Skydive
Spend a Week at a Silent Retreat
Get a Spa Pedicure
Stay at an All-Inclusive Resort
Swim with Dolphins
Walk a Suspension Bridge
Go Whitewater Rafting
Get a Makeup Lesson
Sponsor a Child’s Wish through the Make-a-Wish Foundation
Climb to the Top of a Tree
Go to a Renaissance Festival
Make a Snowman
Milk a Cow
Name a Star
Relax in a Natural Hot Spring
Ride in a Horse and Carriage
Drive a Snowmobile
Write a Letter to Your Future Self
Do a Themed Run
Drink Only Water for a Week
Fly a Kite
Go to a Yoga Retreat
Learn the Sport of Curling
Go on a Spontaneous Road Trip
Lay on the Four Corners (4 States at Once)
Play Badminton
Snorkel
Drive an ATV
Take a Biking Trip
Fly in a Helicopter
Own Land
Race a Go-Kart
Ride in a Dune Buggy
Toboggan
Attend a Luau
Climb a Lighthouse
Go to an Aquarium
Stay at a Bed and Breakfast
Scuba-Dive
Explore the Everglades
Go to an Oxygen Bar
Attend a Jazz Festival
Sew Something You Can Wear
Drive a Speedboat
Watch a Caterpillar Turn into a Butterfly
Walk the Las Vegas Strip
Dye Your Hair a Crazy Color
Attend a Unique Small-Town Festival
Do the Half-Dome Ascent in Yosemite
Take a Trip with Your Mom
What would you add to this list? I'd love if you'd share your own ideas in the comments below to provide further inspiration for others.
Now it's time to get out some paper (and some fun colored pens or markers) and get busy listing! These ideas here just waiting for you to create your personalized Life List.
Here’s to a beautiful Act II, my friends. Break a leg.
P.S. A Recent Act II Change for Me...
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been taking steps on making meditation, exercise, and nutrition a priority in my own life. One thing I’ve never been very good about keeping up with is taking a daily vitamin. It seemed like I always remembered to take the pill when I had an empty stomach, which would often make me feel sick, so I’d just skip it. Even when my doctor recommended taking a Vitamin D supplement after a lab confirmed deficiency, I just couldn’t get my act together.
Then today's post sponsor, Tespo introduced me to a system that has been working great for me. Here’s what I'm loving about Tespo liquid (yes, liquid—no pills) vitamins…
When we women take supplement pills to keep ourselves healthy, our body absorbs only a fraction of the nutrients we think we’re getting. Liquid vitamins have an 85%+ absorption rate into the body, compared with 10 to 15% for pills and tablets.
In fact, it’s estimated that 90% of supplements use ingredients that are just manufacturing fillers. Read the “other” ingredients on the back of your container of pills, and you’ll probably find things like Magnesium Stearate, which offer no nutritional value. Check out this list of…
Tespo removed all of the unnecessary ingredients and things that make a pill stick, form, and mold together. The end result? Pure vitamins and minerals in a powdered form.
I admit, I've read about powdered vitamins before and the thought of drinking a nasty-tasting, gritty drink always turned me off. But the Tespo dispenser and formula resolve both of those concerns...
All you have to do is push a button and the Tespo dispenser adds water and thoroughly mixes your chosen formula right there for you. It’s that easy. I have my dispenser set up right next to my coffee machine as a daily visual reminder. (And I know it’s silly, but I love that the little vitamin discs look like flowers. Totally makes me smile!)
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Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored post.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift, or something else of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Tespo. The opinions and text are all mine. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
