My birthday is this week, and with one year left until I turn 50 (gulp!), it got me thinking of travel or book-related bucket lists and their importance – or lack thereof. There are some people, like myself, who love creating lists of places you want to go or things you want to read by a certain date. And then there are others who hate any arbitrary deadline and don’t think that way. Have you ever made a list like this?
Here are some of my bucket list items – some to get to before 50 and some that will take longer!
Places to go
- States: I have been to 38 states (some just briefly like Idaho!), leaving just 12 on my bucket list. This is not an attainable goal for the next year, but it is on my list to do in general. I love the thought of going to each American state, and it’s a fun activity to do with your entire family! I need a good historical reason to go to Alaska, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington state, and Wisconsin!
- Countries: I have been to many of the countries in Europe, but I would love to explore Germany and Austria!
- Presidential or First Lady historical sites: I have a list of presidential and first lady historical sites that I am trying to visit, but I have two top must-see sites – Springfield, Illinois and all of the President Lincoln-related sites there and the National First Ladies Library and Museum in Canton, Ohio. I really hope to make it to the First Ladies site this summer!
- Historical sites from favorite movies/TV shows/books: I love walking in the footsteps of the characters from my favorite books, movies, or TV shows. I made one of my bucket list dreams come true in 2024 by traveling to Prince Edward Island to follow in L.M. Montgomery’s footsteps. Next on my list are the Laura Ingalls Wilder sites from the Little House book series, Salzburg, Austria from The Sound of Music movie, and the Scottish highlands from the Outlander TV show.
- Historical sites I’d like to revisit: While I tend to prioritize places I haven’t been, there are places I’d like to go back and revisit. Top on this list is the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California which I visited ten years ago. I also want to go back to Wales which I visited in college but only for a short trip to Tintern Abbey ruins. And while I spent a day in Normandy during our European trip in 2018, I think I could go back and spend a week!
- Other top historical sites on my bucket list: The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, Vicksburg Battlefield in Mississippi, the Schuyler mansion and Saratoga Battlefield in New York, Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, and Berlin and Munich in Germany.
Books to Read
I love to have bookish goals. Here are some of the books I hope to get to in the next year before I turn the big 5-0! All links are Amazon affiliate links.
Rereads: So many of my favorite books are ones I read decades ago. I want to revisit some of these to refresh my memory and to make a new assessment at this older stage in life.
Gone with the Wind: I always name this as my favorite book of all time as I read it at least three times before the age of 20! It was the biggest influence on my college major and my writing career. I’d love to reread now as a full-fledged adult. I have a feeling Scarlett’s antics won’t seem as funny now.
North and South trilogy: Another huge influence on my decision to major in history with a Civil War focus, these books (and the fantastic miniseries) are sprawling and epic. I have already reread the first two books in 2024 (North and South and Love and War) and plan to read the third in 2025. I have been horrified that I read books with such language and actions as a teen! Written in the 1980s, these books are definitely not of today’s sensibilities, but the characters and events that John Jakes creates are so compelling, you can’t put the books down.
The Nightingale: I list this as my second favorite book of all time, and with the new beautiful tenth anniversary deluxe edition, I think it would be a perfect time for a reread, especially before my trip to the south of France in June.
Classics: I’ve read many classics, and one of my all-time favorites is Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I haven’t read its sequels, Little Men and Jo’s Boys, so I’d like to read them this year. There are so many other classics I’d like to reread or read for the first time (Emma, Les Misérables, Anna Karenina, etc.) that I think they will be my focus once I finish my Booking It Through History: First Ladies project in late 2026.
Becoming a completist: I am so close to reading all of the books by some of my favorite authors. I have one book to read in Joy Callaway’s backlist and just a few more to read in Karin Tanabe’s backlist. I want to prioritize these this year!
Are there any books you think I should read by age 50? Or places I should visit? Let me know if you make a bucket list in the comments!
I love making bucket lists! And I hope you get a chance to mark everything off of yours!
Thank you!
Fantabulous and Happy Half a Century Birthday! I turn 70 on the 21st! We celebrated with a dreamed-of-trip to the Grand Canyon to ride mules to Phantom Ranch, with LOTS of family! Bucket List! Read on, travel on, and I hope you get to do all those things your are planning/dreaming done!