#RAD52in52: My 2015 Bucket List

This list is written in ink in a brand new, beautiful red Moleskine...but what fun is it to keep all of this year's goals and adventures to myself? Here are the 52 things I hope to cross off in the next 52 weeks. I am so excited for this year of exploring and adventuring and trying new things.

In the list below, bold means DONE and italic means IN PROGRESS.


  1. Wake up at 6 am every day for a week.
  2. Watch the sunrise once every month.
    1. Tuesday, January 6 at 7:21 am
    2. Monday, February 9 at 7:06 am
    3. Thursday, May 28 at 5:52 am
  3. Publish a giveaway on my blog.
    1. DONE // January 2-- gave away two books in connected with my 2014 RADreads book list. (Bailey won Jesus Feminist and Katelyn won The Opposite of Loneliness!)
  4. Launch my paper shop.
  5. Take a solo roadtrip for an overnight stay.
  6. Get tattoo #2.
    1. DONE on St. Patrick's Day! Read the story behind the ink here.
  7. Read 50+ books.
    1. The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
    2. Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon
    3. Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed
    4. The Best Yes by Lysa TerKeurst
    5. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
    6. Rosie by Anne Lamott
    7. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
    8. A Moveable Feat by Ernest Hemingway
    9. Leavings: Poems by Wendell Berry
    10. How to be Parisian Wherever You Are: Love, Style and Bad Habits by Anne Berest, Audrey Diwan, Caroline De Maigret, and Sophie Mas
    11. Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin
    12. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
    13. Notes from a Blue Bike: The Art of Living Intentionally in a Chaotic World by Tsh Oxenreider
    14. Scary Close by Donald Miller
    15. Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler
    16. If You Find This Letter by Hannah Brencher
    17. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
    18. Chasing Francis by Ian Morgan Cron
    19. By The River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept by Paulo Coelho
    20. The Purpose of Man by A.W. Tozer
    21. Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan
    22. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
    23. The Crossroads of Should and Must by Elle Luna
    24. Searching for Sunday by Rachel Held Evans
    25. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
    26. Help Thanks Wow by Anne Lamott
    27. The Dinner by Herman Koch
    28. The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis
    29. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
    30. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
    31. All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld
    32. The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan
    33. The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez
    34. The Rescue by Nicholas Sparks
    35. The Crane Wife by Patrick Ness
    36. All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
    37. If You Feel Too Much by Jamie Tworkowski
    38. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
    39. Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin
    40. The Art of Stillness by Pico Iyer
    41. The Vacationers by Emma Straub
    42. Delicious! A Novel by Ruth Reichl
    43. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
    44. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
    45. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
    46. New and Selected Poems: Volume One by Mary Oliver
    47. Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
    48. The Artisan Soul by Erwin McManus
    49. The Secrets of Mary Bowser by Lois Leveen
    50. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling
    51. Encounters with Jesus by Timothy Keller
    52. The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
    53. Life of the Beloved by Henri J.M. Nouwen
    54. Fidelity: Five Stories by Wendell Berry
    55. Mystery and Manners by Flannery O'Connor
    56. Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck
    57. Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
    58. For the Love by Jen Hatmaker
    59. Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari
    60. Rising Strong by Brene Brown
    61. I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
    62. We Were All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
    63. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
    64. The Royal We by Heather Cocks
    65. Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
    66. The Secret History by Donna Tartt
    67. Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith by Rob Bell
    68. When the Heart Waits: Spiritual Direction for Life's Sacred Questions by Sue Monk Kidd
    69. The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life by Twyla Tharp
    70. Brave Enough by Cheryl Strayed
    71. Readings for Meditation and Reflection by C.S. Lewis
    72. MWF Seeking BFF: My Yearlong Search for a New Best Friend by Rachel Bertsche
    73. Dream It. Pin It. Live It. Make Vision Boards Work for You by Terri Savelle Foy
    74. After You by Jojo Moyes
    75. Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissinger
    76. Coming Clean: A Story of Faith by Seth Haines
    77. Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person by Shonda Rhimes
    78. Wild in the Hollow: On Chasing Desire and Finding the Broken Way Home by Amber C. Haines
    79. Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
    80. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
    81. Surprised by Oxford by Carolyn Weber
    82. By the Book by Pamela Paul
    83. A Cry for Mercy by Henri Nouwen
    84. My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers
  8. Visit Uncle Glenn and Aunt Cathy in NYC.
  9. Submit a pitch to Verily Magazine.
  10. Participate in More Love Letters' 12 Days of Letter Writing in December.
  11. Stay in an Airbnb somewhere.
    1. Austin, TX on June 10, 2015 with the Rethink crew! We stayed at the #saharacasa and it was adorable and a great experience!
  12. See the Dawson side of the family.
    1. August 20, on our last night of the #RADnDadventure in Cumming, GA-- saw ALMOST everyone for a great dinner!
  13. Vlog every month with the Speak Up! link-up.
    1. Wild and Free (January)
    2. Heart (February)
    3. Truth (March)
    4. Celebration (April)
    5. If We Were on a Picnic (June)
    6. Independence (July)
    7. Work (September)
    8. Fear (October)
  14. See at least three concerts.
    1. Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors feat. Angaleena Presley -- Feb. 22 at The Broadberry
    2. Moon Taxi -- May 29 at Friday Cheers on Browns Island
    3. Charles Johnson in Flagstaff, AZ
    4. Erin Frye & Drew Kullman -- Decb. 15 at Tin Pan
  15. Bake a vegan/gluten-free cheesecake.
  16. Go stargazing in my Eno.
  17. Go a whole weekend with zero technology.
  18. Go to another Caps game.
    1. March 10 -- Thanks to the sweet generosity of my friends The Herrintons, three of my close friends and I went to the Caps vs. Rangers game and had TENTH ROW seats right on the red line! UNREAL.
    2. May 4 -- ALSO because The Herrintons are really REALLY awesome, we went to Game #4 of the Caps/Rangers second round Stanley Cup Playoffs series-- again, UNREAL.
  19. Write five posts for iBelieve.com.
    1. 6 Ways to Cultivate Friendships That Last
    2. 6 Things Proverbs 31 Doesn't Say About Women
  20. Add $4,000 to my savings account.
  21. Write about my #OneWord365 (selah) four times on my blog.
    1. SELAH: My #OneWord365
    2. SELAH // Three Months In
    3. Selah.
    4. This Sweet Advent Season
  22. Write for Yellow at least once a quarter.
    1. January 13: Rediscovering Authenticity: Accepting the Introvert in You
    2. May 21: The Perfect Playlist for Your Evening Soiree
    3. December 15: How Will You Define 2016?
  23. Publish my photography in some capacity.
  24. Try 10 RVA coffeeshops.
    1. Black Hand Coffee Company -- Jan. 16
    2. Lift Coffee Shop and Cafe -- Jan. 19
    3. Urban Farmhouse Market and Cafe (Norfolk Ave. location) -- Jan. 31
    4. Captain Buzzy's Beanery -- Feb. 20
    5. Lamplighter Roasting Company (Summit Ave. location) -- March 7
    6. Boyer's Ice Cream and Coffee -- March 14
    7. The Daily Grind -- March 28
    8. Crossroads Coffee and Ice Cream -- May 9
    9. Perk! -- September 5
    10. Shockoe Espresso -- October 27
  25. Go to a country concert.
  26. Kayak on the James River.
  27. Go wine tasting at a new vineyard.
    1. Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyard on July 4 with my parents!
  28. Have/be part of a Friendsgiving.
  29. Visit two new states.
    1. ONE. Thanks to my two week #RADnDadventure, I have now visited the following new states:
      1. Tennessee
      2. Arkansas
      3. Oklahoma
      4. Louisiana
      5. Mississippi
      6. Alabama
  30. Write all "Letters to my Future Self" in the book.
  31. See a movie at the Goochland Drive-In.
  32. Order all my Instagram Chatbooks. -- received Feb. 23! (friends! use code WT7WPTZ9 to get your first book free!)
  33. Try 10 new RVA restaurants.
    1. Tarrant's Cafe -- brunch with Meredith, Lizzie and Anna on Jan. 18
    2. Burger Bach -- lunch with Crystal on Feb. 7
    3. Mosaic -- late night snacks with Chris and Melissa on Good Friday
    4. Portrait House -- birthday lunch with Mom and Day on May 2
    5. Continental Westhampton -- brunch with Lizzie on May 30
    6. Southern Railway Taphouse -- interview lunch on Sept. 18
    7. 3 Monkeys -- late night snacks with friends
    8. Travinia -- celebratory dinner with Mom and Dad on Oct. 2
    9. Social 52 -- brunch with friends on Oct. 18
    10. Ellwood Thompson's -- brunch with Melissa on Oct. 14
    11. En Su Boca -- dinner with Sydney on Oct. 19
  34. Paint a huge canvas.
  35. Move back out of Mom and Dad's house.
  36. Plan a Carter Mountain apple picking reunion with the DOEs in the fall.
    1. This didn't happen, but I did go apple picking at Carter Mountain with my parents on October 24!
  37. Go on a 10 mile real bike ride.
  38. Have a picnic in a park.
  39. Visit Drew at USC for a weekend.
  40. Go on a first date with someone new.
  41. Finish my 1,000 gifts journal.
  42. Go to bed at 10 pm every day for a week.
  43. Start a journal of letters to my future (hopefully) husband.
  44. Go on a trip with the cash I've saved in my travel fund jar.
  45. Go one month with no caffeine.
  46. Buy a gold watch.
  47. Order flowers for someone as a surprise gift.
  48. Visit the Jefferson Hotel at Christmastime.
  49. Plant a summer garden with Mom again.
    1. We are already LOVING the harvest from our backyard (new and improved and much bigger) garden!
  50. Make (and spend the night in) a blanket fort.
  51. Go to a hot air balloon festival.
  52. Celebrate turning 23 with champagne.
    1. Done and done. Passionfruit mimosa at The Daily (lunch with Crystal, Micah and Chris) and raspberry lemonade mimosas at home with my parents-- yum.

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