My Bucket List

It gives one a new view on living each day to the fullest, to spend time with that person, and enjoy every second of every minute of that time.

We have been through a couple of those, and with retirement getting closer and closer, my husband and I find ourselves wanting to "live" those very special and unique experiences that we had only dreamed of in the past.

We decided to each create our own bucket list, and then pick one thing off each of ours to do each year.

This is mine!

Photo © by Linda Hoxie

1. I want to learn to pan for Gold.

So in my quest to learn to pan for gold, I thought I would start with creating a lens all about it. It creates heightened interest, and helps me to educate myself about gold panning in Idaho.

I have also recently purchased all the equipment I think that we will need. (Gold pans, shovel, tweezers, squirt bottle, glass vial, and a strainer, we already had a bucket)

I watched the video's on the gold panning lens, and studied the youtube video's closely. I think I am ready.

Now we are in the trip planning stage. This may be the first on my list of accomplishments.

September 13th, 2008

We went gold panning, and it was great! I really enjoyed getting out into the back country of Idaho and panning for gold. I don't think the places we found to pan for gold in were very good, but in a couple weeks we are going to try farther north.

My next goal is to find gold by panning for it!

May 31st, 2010 - We went to Sumpter, Oregon. Now if you have never heard of Sumpter it is an old gold Mining Community that has this huge flea market twice a year, on Memorial day and on labor day weekends. It is a very interesting place to visit. The entire Valley was dug up by a huge Gold Dredge that still sits in town that we were able to tour. The Rangers working there told us that the Gold Dredge in "it's day" would dig up a third of an acre, twenty feet deep. But the yield of gold from that dredge only averaged about 30 ounces of gold a day. Sounds like a lot, but it wasn't for the size and the damage it did to the land. If you ever get a chance to see the dredge, it is worth the tour. They also have an old steam train in Sumpter that is so cool!

Which brings me to my reason for adding to my bucket list: during that visit we took a gold panning lesson from the Rangers there. We didn't actually pan, just watched about ten kids and the Rangers pan while we learned. It was great, and re-inspired my desire to find gold in my pan.

June 22nd, 2010 my daughter and I went on a gold panning day trip. We decided to head into Oregon on the Interstate. We stopped at this place that used to let people pay to pan for gold along the interstate, only to find that it is now privately owned and that you have to be a member tto pan there. (Little did they know we wouldn't have stayed long, or panned much and they probably could have made a lot more profit off of us than they could panning themselves. )

We decided to go gold seeking on our own. I wanted to try the Burnt River because it is the same river that runs near Sumpter and we figured, hey if there is "gold in them there hills"... We took the Weatherby exit by the rest area and drove out and found a little creek. We panned for about two hours and guess what?

I found Gold in my Pan. I was so exited to see the sparkle still left at the end when all the rocks and sand had been slowly worked over the rim. Gold, I actually found gold.

Now they tell me you can't get rich panning for gold, but it is sure is exciting to find your first gold that you worked so hard for.

Today, the memories of spending the day with my daughter panning for gold, make me happy.

Now I am off to put a heating pad on my sore back (LOL)

My husband and I have always wanted to go into Canada and explore. After all we live in Idaho, which borders Canada.

This year we bought our passports, and we are planning a trip up there soon.

September 25th, 2008

We did it, we went to Canada last weekend. Canada is so incredibly beautiful, I really loved every single minute of it.

We went up through Northern Idaho and up along the Kootenay Rockies and Kootenay Lake to Kootenay Bay where we crossed with our car on the ferry, then down and back out through Washington.

You can read all about our trip and see the beautiful photo's of Canada at Our trip to British Columbia in Canada

To see an Orca (Killer Whale) in the ocean was a dream of mine for as long as I could remember.

I have always loved Orca's, they are so beautiful. I was just mesmerized with them when we visited Sea World when I was a young girl.

When we went to Seattle, Washington last year, I discovered that the Orcas come into Puget sound. They even have an island that is called Orca's Island. I would love to see them in their natural habitat!

Update: June 8th, 2011:

I am so excited, I may just get to check this one off of my bucket list this summer. In August my son is going to compete in a half iron-man in Lake Stevens, Washington. We are going up to watch him race, then heading over to the San Juan Islands in the Puget Sound just out of Seattle. They have Orca's there and we are going to go out on the whale watching boat. They have a 90-95 percent success rate of seeing Orcas on each trip. How cool is that. I am so excited about both watching my son compete in the half Iron-man and the possibility of seeing an Orca!

August 15th, 2011: We made a trip to Washington to watch our son run an Ironman competition...which by the way was absolutely amazing and so inspirational. I am so proud of my son, he has incredible determination and courage. So proud!

But anyway, we combined this trip with a tour to Orca's Island out on a whale watching boat. I asked the Captain before we went out if he thought we would see an Orca that day because it was on my Bucket list. He said I guarantee we will, and more than one. He came through, we found what they call a super-pod of Orcas which was three Pods of Orca's having a bit of a gathering. In fact that photo above was taken by me. Check out my Orca lens for more about these incredible creatures!

We did it!

We saw Orcas in the Puget Sound just off of Anacortes Washington. We took a whale watching boat out from there on a 6 hour tour and we found the largest group of Multiple Pods of Orcas than they had seen.

There are resident pods of Orcas that live in the Puget sound all year. These Orcas eat the Salmon that live there. Then there are transient pods of Orcas that come and go and they eat live animals,like seals and sea otters.

Well the group we saw was huge. They told us there were all three pods, I think they said J, K and L pod all in the same spot. He said they breed outside of their own pods and may be together for breeding. We estimated about 60....that is right, sixty Orcas or more in one group. There are 88 in those three pods so it could have been as high as that.

They were so beautiful to watch. The breached, played, slapped their tails, pushed babies up to breath, swam right under our boat. We must have watched them for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

I can't even explain how blessed I felt to experience the beauty of their dance in the water. Such gorgeous animals.

Below are a couple more photos I took of the Orcas on the Puget Sound.

Did you know?

Liberty Enlightening the World

Located on a 12 acre island, the Statue

of Liberty Enlightening the World was a

gift of friendship from the people of

France to the people of the United States

and is a universal symbol of freedom and

democracy. The Statue of Liberty was

dedicated on October 28, 1886,

designated as a National Monument in

1924 and restored for her centennial

on July 4, 1986.

I even want to ride up to the top of the statue, and walk around looking out over the skyline of New York and Statin Island. I want to ride in a boat or ferry around the statue of Liberty and be able to look up at her in all her beauty!

Manatees are such gentle giants

To see a Manatee in the wild.

Manatees', the gentle sea cows that live near Florida are just amazing creatures to me. I love to paint them and hope to see one in the wild, or even in a wildlife sanctuary someday.

I'm torn between wanting to scuba dive to see them, because I have seen some awful footage of Manatees' being cornered by swimmers. My desire is to observe them only, preferably from a distance.

Manatees are endangered, mostly from their injuries from the props of boats. They swim very close to the surface of the water and don't move very fast. They seem to have no fear of man.

Sadly in the winter (of 2010) there was a large number of manatees dying from the cold temperatures off the coast of Florida.

Art Classes for painting and drawing

6. I want to take some art classes

I love sketching and painting. I have sketched for years off and on. But just this last year I discovered painting, and have fallen in love with it.

I think that taking some art classes could really help me expand my horizons of my artwork.

The one thing standing in my way is the lack of night classes at our local community college on the subjects that I desire to take.

So I wait, someday...

for now I practice and practice...

Below are a couple of paintings I have done. You can see more of my art at the following page:

The Horse artwork of Artist Linda Hoxie

I really don't desire to see the more populated tourist spots in Hawaii as much as I want to discover the entire sevens Islands of Hawaii.

On Kauai, "the garden isle", it looks so lush and green, sharp mountain spires, lush valleys and jagged cliffs, all draped in a canopy of emerald. I would love to see Waimia Canyon, sometimes called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, the canyon is 10 miles long and more than 3000 feet deep, it looks absolutely gorgeous!

I want to hike into and swim in the clear pool at the bottom of Mana Waipuna Falls.

I want to pick a wild orchid on Ka'ala, Oahu

Watch a sunset from Sunset from Mokuleia Beach.

I want to watch a fire show in Honolulu, Hawaii

Of course, if we go to Hawaii...no, when we go to Hawaii, I want to see the volcano at Mt. Kilauea

On Kauai, "the garden isle", it looks so lush and green, sharp mountain spires, lush valleys and jagged cliffs, all draped in a canopy of emerald. I would love to see Waimia Canyon, sometimes called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, the canyon is 10 miles long and more than 3000 feet deep, it looks absolutely gorgeous!

I want to hike into and swim in the clear pool at the bottom of Mana Waipuna Falls.

I want to pick a wild orchid on Ka'ala, Oahu

Watch a sunset from Sunset from Mokuleia Beach.

I want to watch a fire show in Honolulu, Hawaii

Of course, if we go to Hawaii...no, when we go to Hawaii, I want to see the volcano at Mt. Kilauea

I would love to visit Venice, and ride with the love of my life through the canals of the unique and beautiful city in Italy.

I love to listen to the italian language spoken.

Do they really sing to you while your on the gondola's?

While in Italy, I wouldn't want to leave without seeing the Coliseum in Rome

Bryce (check), Arches (check) Zions (check!) See article below.

The colors of the rocks, the beautiful formations, what creates all these majestic forms?

I will someday make it there, as it is only a days drive from home.

Update: I'm so excited, we are planning a trip in mid March to visit Bryce Canyon. Probably won't make Arches this trip as it is on the other side of Utah. Stay tuned for photo's and the stories about our trip!

We did it, we made it to Bryce Canyon on our trip that we went to Grand Canyon on too. Bryce Canyon is absolutely beautiful. Soon I will create a photo blog of that beauty and share the link with you here!

Honestly I could not choose between the Grand Canyon and Bryce as to which I liked better, because each has it's own unique beauty!

April 5th, 2012 we were able to go see Arches National Park which is absolutely beautiful. There is a lot of hiking at Arches, so if you plan a trip there bring your hiking shoes and plenty of water. We hiked to make of the Arches, but still have a few we missed that were four or five miles further back.

The entire park is beautiful for anyone to drive through. Just all kinds of different rocks, colors and formations as well as many Beautiful Arches that are huge!

We also visited Canyonlands, which most people do not hear of as often as Arches. But if you come all the way to see Arches you should see this one too. Canyonlands has Beautiful deep Canyons with unique rock formations in them. Just gorgeous views. Also a lot less walking than Arches but still many places to do so if you desire.

Moab is where we stayed, and it is surrounded by those beautiful red rocks that Utah is so well known for. They have hiking trails, biking trails, jeep trails that go way back in those beautiful Canyons, some are two to seven day trips. You can rent four wheelers and quads and enjoy some of the back country. Bring your camera, sunscreen, and lots of water if you visit.

The photo above is a view from the Middle Emerald Pools loop in Zion National Park. This my favorite of the three stops on the Emerald Pools three hikes.

They have the lower Emerald Pools, which is pretty cool. You walk under a waterfall, not much water when we went. But my understanding is after a rainstorm it is rushing water.

The upper Emerald Pools is cool too. But definitely make it to the Middle pools if you are physically able to do steps, large and small. Uneven ground. A must to have good knees too! Bring water, good shoes and a walking stick.

This is the pages I have created about some of the hikes we did at Zions:

Exploring Zion National Park

Exploring Zion National Park-Riverside Walk

Exploring Zion National Park-The Middle Emerald Pool Trail

Exploring Zion National Park-The Upper Emerald Pool Trail

Exploring Zion National Park-Weeping Rock Trail

Alphabetical listing of constellations

Adromedae

Antlia

Apus

Aquarius

Aquila

Ara

Aries

Auriga

Boötes

Caelum

Camelopardalis

Cancer

Canes Venatici

Canis Major

Canis Minor

Capricornus

Carina

Cassiopeia

Centaurus

Cepheus

Cetus

Chamaeleon

Circinus

Columba

Coma Berenices

Corona Austrina

Corona Borealis

Corvus

Crater

Crux

Cygnus

Delphinus

Dorado

Draco

Equuleus

Eridanus

Fornax

Gemini

Grus

Hercules

Horologium

Hydra

Hydrus

Indus

Lacerta

Leo

Leo Minor

Lepus

Libra

Lupus

Lynx

Lyra

Mensa

Microscopium

Monoceros

Musca

Norma

Octans

Ophiuchus

Orion

Pavo

Pegasus

Perseus

Phoenix

Pictor

Pisces

Piscis Austrinus

Puppis

Pyxis

Reticulum

Sagitta

Sagittarius

Scorpius

Sculptor

Scutum

Serpens

Sextans

Taurus

Telescopium

Triangulum

Triangulum Australe

Tucana

Ursa Major

Ursa Minor

Vela

Virgo

Volans

Vulpecula

Wow, I really had no clue there were so many different constellations. These are the links for my studies.

My Daughter married on September 24th, 2011!!! Son married June 28th, 2014!

11. I want to see my son and daughter get married

I would love to see my handsome son standing in his tuxedo, looking down into the eyes of his pretty bride as they share their wedding vows.

To see my daughter, walking down the isle looking gorgeous in a beautiful wedding dress, her dark brown eyes sparkling with love for the man waiting for her.

Most of all I just want to see them both happy!

On February 14th, 2011 my daughters boyfriend proposed to her. They will be getting married on September 24th, 2011.

I am so excited! last weekend we went out and picked out her wedding dress. I would say that it was absolutely one of the highlights of my life to see her so excited and happy is more than any mother could ask. I am so happy for them both.

We are working hard on planning their wedding. I have learned so much about weddings too.

I can't share a photo of her in her wedding dress because we don't want her fiancée to see it! But soon I will have more to share.

September 19th, 2011

As my daughters wedding approaches fast I am filled with so much emotions, luckily I am also so busy with all the planning, creating and organizing for the wedding. I am nervous for both of them, hoping everything will go well.

Katie and I have a theme as her special day comes closer...."It's all good!"

When something doesn't work out just perfectly, we just say "It's all good", and remind ourselves that no matter what happens, this day will be a wonderful and special day for her. Filled with sweet memories and love.

Okay, I have to stop writing about this now and get to work, because when I start thinking about her wedding day I get so teary eyed and emotional...I am so thankful she thought of buying lots of kleenex to have at the wedding. I think I will have to have a whole box of them under my chair!

So many people have been so helpful at this time. Her Maid of honor is hiring a dj for the reception, her mom is making all the bouquets boutineers, corsages, and flowers for the tables, as well as the flower girl basket. The grooms mom created all the invitations, and is buying the grooms cake, and flower girl dress.

Her Grandma's have helped with so many ideas and suggestions, been my sounding board and one is making some of the salads for the reception.

Her Aunt is going to organize the food at the wedding while we do photos.

Her cousins are helping with the food prep, one is taking the wedding photos and loaned her the veil for her wedding.

My sisters have offered to help with the wedding.

Her brother is making her an arch for the wedding that can go in her garden afterward, it sounds like it wil lbe beautiful! His girlfriend is making something very special that I can't talk about...shh! I can't wait to see them both.

My co-worker has shared good recipes and ideas for the wedding, don't know what I would do without her!

One of her friends is doing her hair and makeup for the wedding too. She did a practice updo, the other night and it looked beautiful!

"It's all good!"

September 24th, 2011

My daughter Katie married the love of her life, Russell Jordan. She looked absolutely gorgeous in her wedding gown, Russell so handsome in his tuxedo. But most of all the feelng and evident love glowing between these too just made the day perfect for all who attended to help them celebrate that love. It truly was the perfect union of two families, no drama, just a lot of fun and happiness for all!

Below are some pictures taken at the wedding. It was hard for me to leave my camera home, but Katie wanted me to enjoy this day with her.

Update: I am so excited, my son proposed and she said yes! That was last summer, they will be married on June 28th, 2014. I can not wait to see my son and his new bride say their vows. So happy for them both!

06/28/2014 My son, Brandon, married his college sweetheart, Aubrey. What a beautiful wedding, set in a pretty green grassy area, a red barn behind. It was a wonderful union of families and friends. I was so touched at how close they are with their college fraternity brothers and sisters. A very close nit group and a heck of a lot of fun. Loved seeing them give their love to each other.

I would love to take a cruise to Alaska. Now this on this cruise I think a balcony suite would be in order, because I think in Alaska there is beauty to be seen along the whole trip.

There is talk going on right now about making this cruise our next big trip, probably in 2014. I am getting excited that Alaska could be the next thing that I can mark off my list!

13. I want to see the Grand Canyon

Someday the Grand Canyon I will see. It looks so beautiful in photographs. There is a "Grand Canyon of Yellowstone" that my husband and I love to just sit, or walk along for the longest time, both of us just silent in awe of the beauty of it all. I just imagine that is the feeling you get when you see the Grand Canyon.

Somehow experiencing the beauty in nature gives me the feeling of being closer to our creator.

(February-2009)Update: I'm so excited, we are planning a trip in mid March to visit The Grand Canyon. Stay tuned for photo's and the stories about our trip!

(March 16th, 2009)

We did it, we made it to the Grand Canyon, and it did not disappoint us one tiny little bit! It was absolutely incredible, immense in size, solid in strength, millions of years at a glance and the colors are absolutely beautiful!

Please come experience our incredible journey through the wonders of the Grand Canyon with me on the following photo blogs.

We began our adventure from the East entrance to the Grand Canyon.

Our first stop was The Watchtower.

The Peaks of the Grand Canyon

Come visit The Tusayan Ruins of the Grand Canyon with us.

The Colors of the Grand Canyon are absolutely incredible.

You won't want to miss The Tusayan Museum at the ruins in the Grand Canyon.

Grandchildren, what fun they will be

14. Someday I want to have grandchildren

Someday I want to see my grandchildren born, hold them, get to know them and watch them grow. I just imagine that the feeling of love is strong for the babies of your own.

New Update: On October 22nd, 2015 my daughter and her husband were blessed with my first grandson, they named him Dallas Michael and he is just such a sweetheart. He came into this world, right on his due date. His mom went to work (at the hospital OB) and two or three hours later, she was now a patient and a new mom. He had his first helicopter flight that night, but is now doing fantastic, healthy and a happy little blue eyed redhead sweetheart! I love him so much!

I as you can see didn't choose one over the other for my bucket list, but I wonder what you think is more important, or which weighs more heavily on your bucket list, that you would like to do before you die?

Is it the experiences that you seek?

Or is it the sights you have always desired to see?

Or is it a combination of both.

Please choose just one, then add a comment with it. We all would love to hear what the top things on your bucket lists are!

What do you think is more important for your bucket list?

Someday I want to be a Big Squid!

On January 13th, 2009, when I logged onto one of my lenses or (websites) I saw that they had issued me a Giant badge.

Now for those of you that aren't familiar with Squidoo, you should know they only give those badges to people that they choose from hundreds of applicants. It is indeed an honor to be chosen. You must have 50 excellent lenses (or websites) created. You must be trusted by those that are making the decisions.

They have certain criteria that they look for and even then they have to narrow their choices down to a certain amount of Giants. So it is indeed an honor for me.

I have since moved on to writing at hub pages, which I love.

To see the Northern Lights dance in the sky would be spectacular

The Aurora Borealis, the northern lights. I have for some time been fascinated by this phenomena of lights that dance in the skies of the north.

So much so I painted a series of Northern Light ACEOs and created a page about the Northern Lights.

I have actually not seen them in person, but studied them to great extent.

These photographs and many other aurora images are available on Spaceweather.com

Do you know what creates the different colors in the aurora?

Different gases interacting with the upper atmosphere will produce different colors, caused by the different compounds of oxygen and nitrogen. The level of solar wind activity from the Sun can also influence the color of the aurorae.

Most aurorae are green and red emission from atomic oxygen. Molecular nitrogen and nitrogen ions produce some low level red and very high blue/violet aurorae.

The light blue colors are produced by ionic nitrogen and the neutral nitrogen gives off the red and purple color with the rippled edges.

It all just fascinates me!

I would so love to find a glass float on the beach in Lincoln city on the Oregon Coast.

The last two trips we have taken to Lincoln city I spent hours and hours walking the beaches and looking for a glass float.

My husband, the sweetheart, purchased one for me in a gift shop, because he knew how much I wanted one. I will find one someday on the beach too!

I just think this would be so much fun, now imagine this. Calm clear light blue water over white sands, a walkway out across the water that leads to your own little hut that sits right above the water. You have swimming outside your doorstep, the best view in the world. There is a clear glass coffee table that you can sit at and watch the brightly colored fish swimming under your hut, or even your spouse?

I just think this vacation would be a blast!

I discovered these when I was looking at a photo contest one day, and someone had entered a picture of their husband snorkeling beneath their hut!

I want to ride the Hiawatha Trail on my bike. I have heard that it is absolutely one of the most breathtaking scenic stretches of railroad in the country. Some even call it the "crown jewel" of mountain bicycle trails

It lies in the panhandle of northern Idaho. (The part shaped like a handle!) It is twelve miles east of Wallace, Idaho, which is full of history in itself.

Imagine this: You start at the top, and ride the trail gently sloping downward along the old Hiawatha Railroad Trail, for 15 miles. You cross over the gorgeous Bitterroot Mountains between Idaho and Montana. How do you cross the state line? Underneath the ground through the longest of the 10 tunnels along the trail, that tunnel is 1.66 miles long, called the St. Paul Pass or Taft Tunnel. Yes, lights are required. (In fact I think I will have a back up light!) You also cross over 7 very high trestles, like the one pictured above.

The wildlife along the way can include Moose too, among many other critters!

This track has a colorful history which began in 1906 of construction, hardships and calamities, unprecedented electrification, and of carrying passengers and freight from the Northwest to the Midwest, generations of railroaders kept the Milwaukee Road running until it finally went bankrupt in 1977. The last train west of Butte, Montana passed through in 1980. After that the line was abandoned.

The Trail was open to the public in 1998.

Now doesn't that sound like fun?

If you are interested in going, check out the Route of the Hiawatha Website.

When I was a very young girl we went to Disneyland. They have this one little park area full of trees with these lightning bugs, or fireflies that dance and twinkle through the branches.

I was so enchanted with the magic of a bugs that could create their own light display and with my mother's stories of seeing them as a child, catching them and putting them in a jar to watch them closely and then letting them go to light the night again.

Living in the Western part of the United States I have yet to see one, but still dream of watching their lighted dance in the sky.

Recently named as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, Chichen Itza, built they believe around 325 A.D. I can only imagine the architectonic beauty and the feeling of visiting these incredible Mayan ruins of the Temples that must have such incredible memories embedded in the very stone they were built of.

The Mayans well known for building with perfect harmony with nature, each and every temple in the city was built in accordance with the position of the stars and planets.

In the center of Chichen Itza is the Temple of Kukulkan (the Maya name for Quetzalcoatl), often referred to as "El Castillo" or The Castle. This step pyramid has a ground plan of square terraces with stairways up each of the four sides to the temple on top. On the Spring and Autumn equinox, many people come to watch in awe when with the rising and setting of the sun, the corner of the structure casts a shadow in the shape of a plumed serpent - Kukulcan, or Quetzalcoatl - along the west side of the north staircase. On these two annual occasions, the shadows from the corner tiers slither down the northern side of the pyramid with the sun's movement to the serpent's head at the base.

July 14th, 2010 we visited Chichen Itza! Yep that is me in the pic! Check!

I would love to see these historical ruins of the Mayan civilization any time of the year!

Photo Credit IslaMujeres.info

So what is so special about the Isla Mujeres off the coast of Cancun you ask?

1. It is absolutely beautiful!

2. You can go snorkeling in the coral reefs off the island and see the incredible array of brightly colored tropical fish.

3. You can swim with the dolphins if you so choose.

4. For thousands of years the beaches on Isla Mujeres have been nesting grounds for marine turtles that return to the same beach every year. Between the months of May and September, they lay hundreds of eggs and then return to the sea, leaving the babies to fend for themselves. They have a program to help protect the baby turtles on this island and the children help return them to the sea safely.

5. The even have a Wet and Wild water park on this island.

Update: We went to Cancun in July for our 30th anniversary, we had to choose between a whole bunch of different tours, unfortunately we didn't make it out to Majeres Isle this time but we have to save something for our next trip, right! ;)

When we visited Cancun to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary July 12th of 2010, we stayed at a resort called La Blanc. It is in the hotel zone of Cancun with the ocean on one side and the lagoon on the other side.

The people that work at the resort don't talk about it unless you ask them, but they play a huge part in the protection of turtle eggs and the little baby turtles as they hatch.

You see it is turtle season in Cancun now. The mother turtles come up on the beach late and night and lay their eggs. The resort people along with a marine biologist go out with red lens covered flashlights (so they don't frighten the expecting mother turtles away, and guard the turtles as they move onto the beach. They dig a deep hole with their paddle like feet, then lay dozens of leathery eggs in the sand before burying them.

The marine biologist and some of the employees of La Blanc wait until the mothers move away, then gather the eggs very carefully and then bury them in another hole in a protected pen of sorts. Each batch of eggs is marked with the number of eggs, the date it was collected and the date they are expected to hatch.

When they do hatch, they gently help the little baby turtles back to the ocean. They say that each one of those baby turtles that survive will return to the same place on the beach that they hatched from by instinct years later.

We watched from a distance (because we had heard that many guests get too close and take flash pictures that frighten the mother turtles away before they lay their eggs) and honestly it was hard not to go down and watch the mothers lay their eggs.

But I vowed that when we return to Cancun someday, it will be during Turtle season when the little babies hatch so that we can watch them and maybe even participate in returning them to the ocean. From the dates we saw of expected hatching dates my guess is that August and September, maybe even October would be a good time to go to be a witness to the miracle of the turtles hatching in Cancun.

My Dream is to:

Ride a beautiful horse bareback alone on a deserted beach.

The weather can be really any weather, I just want to feel the salty wind on my face, the power of the horses muscles as they move so easily over the sand.

To hear the pounding of the horses hooves as it meets the sand.

Feel the splash of the salt water as the horse runs through the waves.

There is a freedom to riding a horse bareback, you feel as if you are one with the horse, running wild and free.

Not a care in the world, just wildly free!

Yes, Riding a horse on the beach is definitely on my Bucket list!

(Photo credit: Cyro A Silva on wikipedia)

As one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, Christ the Redeemer is one of those things that I have always wanted to visit. The statue has been photographed so beautifully. Every time I see those open arms inviting comfort and peace, a sense of protection.

Visiting Christ the Redeemer is definitely on my Bucket list!

(Photo credit Martin St-Amant - Wikipedia - CC-BY-SA-3.0)

High above the Urubamba Valley in Peru, sits the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu. It is one of the new seven wonders of the World.

Machu Picchu was built in the classical Inca style, with polished dry-stone walls. Its three primary buildings are the Intihuatana, the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three Windows. These are located in what is known by archaeologists as the Sacred District of Machu Picchu.

The trail leading up to it winds up this beautiful lush green mountain and I can just imagine that once you reach the ruins you feel as if you are sitting on top of the world.

Our only hesitation for this one is the elevation which is just under 8000 feet above sea level, which may be too high for my husbands heart to handle. When we visited Bryce Canyon which goes up to 9000 feet above sea level he had a hard time. So this may be one dream I may have to just visit through other peoples photos and descriptions.

What interests me most about the Galapagos Islands is the wildlife of course. These are the islands that Charles Darwin visited that helped prove his theory of evolution and the origin of species. You see the animals here were isolated from other land masses and evolved to suit their needs for survival in their environment.

The Galapagos islands are located in the eastern Pacific Ocean, off the west coast of South America.

The closest land mass is the mainland of Ecuador to the east (the country to which they belong), to the north is Cocos Island and to the south is Easter Island and San Felix Island.

I would love to visit these islands, though I am not sure I would want to walk on them, because of the damage that can occur to the delicate ecosystem from the intrusion of mankind. I would love to take a boat tour around the islands and just view them from a distance with a very large camera lens to photograph the animals.

In June or July of 2010 my son watched an Ironman race in Couer d' alene, Idaho. One of his good friends was running in it and he was swept away and inspired by the people running in it. One man even carried his son that has leukemia on his back while he was racing.

He decided to run in the Lake Stevens Ironman in 2011. I have to be honest when my son first said he was going to do one I thought....umm hmmm...sure you are. Slowly over the following months of him training daily, entering 10 or twelve marathons, and triathlons through the year to build up to the Ironman, he had me convinced that he could run in an Ironman.

The monday before the race he was at work and dropped a 12 foot long six by six post on his foot and thought he broke it. He was so worried that he wouldn't be able to race. He had it xrayed and they found no break, so then he began worked to get it ready for the race in six days.

Check, done, fini (August 14th, 2011)

Still limping a couple days before the race I worried that he would hurt it doing the race, but he did it last sunday!!!

He swam 1.2 miles, rode his bike 56 miles (I guess the muscles in his legs decided to cramp the entire bike ride.) then he ran 13 miles on his hurt foot. He finished the Ironman 70.3 in a little over eight hours.

I was so impressed by not only his physical strength, determination, but incredible mental strength it took for him and everyone that did this race and those like it.

Where do they find that strength?

We watched a blind man who ran tethered to his buddy and rode on a tandom bike. A man with no leg, a woman that swam it with no arm. The oldest man I saw was 73 years old...can you imagine doing this when you are that old?

Just amazing!

So inspirational to watch them.

I found it was more inspirational to see those that struggled so hard and still had the strength and determination to finish than anything else.

Brandon's comment on facebook after the race:

"Finished Ironman Lake Stevens, its wasn't pretty, it wasn't fast but I made it".

Well worth your time to watch the entire video!

Hello my friends, thanks for stopping by.

I would so love to hear your ideas for what is on your own bucket list, and encourage you to find a way to make those dreams a reality!

Don't wait for "someday", it may never get here!

I have a feeling that my bucket list is going to keep growing. I'm going to try to update it as soon as I accomplish something on my list. Of course I will probably keep adding more to it, so I may never find the end of my list, but I think I will have fun trying to get there!

Enjoy Life!

Linda

Credits: I would like to thank dailyventure.com for the use of their beautiful photo's throughout much of this lens

Sincerely,

Linda