Things to do before having children

While bouncing from link to link online the other day, I came across a blog that I hadn't visited in about two years, and one article title really stood out: 70 Things to Do Before Having Children. While any list like this would be specific to any person/couple's personality, likes/dislikes, sense of adventure, etc. there is a valid point that there are many things you won't have time to do or want to do once the baby arrives. With that, here are some of the highlights from this couple's list that Lynne and I can say we were glad we did before having a baby.

1. Live in a high rise condo with an amazing view.
Not really interested in a high rise, but we have had our share of fun apartments/townhouse/fraternity that I don't think we'd change for anything

2. Take a month long vacation on the opposite side of the world in a city with a completely different culture.
I think two months in Bangkok qualifies :)

3. Attend the Super Bowl live.
Of course I think this would be fun, but what's to say that baby-sitting grandparents wouldn't make this an easy one down the road...especially when the Bowl comes to Indy (here's hoping the Bears are awesome that year). Also, I hit the Rose Bowl back in 2000/2001, which is the Super Bowl of college football!

4. Jump out of a perfectly good airplane.
Been there, done that (I doubt Lynne ever will though)

5. Make love in places you aren’t supposed to.
[Redacted]

6. Swim with the sharks
Doesn't seem that interesting...but you never know

7. Scuba-dive to a large ship wreck.
Thanks to my dad, I can actually say that I've been scuba diving multiple times, so that should count for something! And deep sea snorkeling should count for something (which we both did in Thailand, as well as other locales)

8. Audition to be on TV or in a movie… even if you’re just an extra.
I did try my hand at getting on two reality shows (although I sure didn't try very hard) while at Purdue. I made the semi-finals in a campus search for contestants for the old Who Wants to Be a Millionaire rip-off, Greed, but alas, my head shot wasn't very compelling. I also was one of three guys in my fraternity to put together a video entry for a show called "flipped" that was going to run on Fox (or Fox Family, which became ABC Family) and put people in new life situations they weren't accustomed to (like Wife Swap, but with individuals). They wanted a fraternity to participate, but the show never got off the ground. I remember sitting in my room thinking of the options of places they could swap me to, and honestly, I thought they'd all be exciting and eye-opening. Also, the Smiley family was in a Dodge commercial, and Lynne auditioned for theater stuff, which is way more high-brow than TV.

9. Throw the house party of all house parties. Supply all the booze and invite everyone you know.
This sounds like us, right? Well, we did throw a great ATO Semi-formal post party at the townhouse in Lafayette, since it was less than a block from the dance venue. And Lynne threw me a great graduation surprise party, so those count.

[now editing out the ones that really don't apply, for time's sake]

12. Become skilled with a musical instrument.
Lynne's got her voice, Kirk had the sax, and I'm still fiddling away at the guitar when I'm bored.

14. Live in the heart of New York City, Chicago, Boston or another major city for at least a year.
Downtown Lafayette doesn't count?? C'mon, it's a metropolis!

15. Spend a few weeks vacationing on the beaches of Kauai with your partner.
We've covered the beaches of Phuket, Thailand, and we've been to beaches in Florida and South Carolina together. I know we'll have more beaches in our future, but they will be very different trips with kids!

20. Read at least 30 books.
Yeh, we both have that more than covered.

21. Jump off a cliff into a natural body of water in an exotic location.
Why would I ever STOP doing this! :)

25. Drink warm beer out of a barrel in a real Irish pub.
Why is this even on the list? I did it before I drank and appreciated beer, in Ireland, and it was gross, but I'm sure I'd enjoy it more now.

26. Spend a night pub-hopping in London.
I've had the opportunity to do this in London, Ireland, Scotland, and Germany, all thanks to the Oxford study abroad program so graciously provided for free by Purdue University :) Nothing like putting your scholarship stipend to good use. I think Lynne missed out here.

27. Stage dive and crowd surf at a rock concert.
OK, I've never stage dived at a rock concert, but I have crowd surfed at a punk rock concert multiple times.

33. Go snowboarding in the Rockies.
A worthy list would have this item, but replace "snowboarding" with "skiing" since it's way better. I've been lucky enough to ski in the Rockies on 4 different occasions: Winter Park, Breckenridge (twice), Beaver Creek, and Keystone. Good times with family and friends. Lynne's never skied west of Michigan, but we certainly have the intention to get her a real skiing experience down the road (once she re-learns how).

35. Attain a solid understanding of how the government works in your country.
I guess minoring in political science helps, but it would be more fun to attain a solid understanding of how other nation's governments work, for comparison sake.

36. Master one particular style of dance.
While I was in no way a "master," I did get pretty good at swing dancing back in '98/'99 thanks to the musical influence, underage clubs, lessons, and plenty of girls willing to let me throw them around a dance floor. Once Lynne doesn't have a belly getting in the way, she's going to let me teach her :) Lynne also thinks she can waltz pretty well...me, not so much.

37. Fall in love.
Of course, but it is a bit sad that this is included on the list of things to do before you have kids. Too bad it's not a biological prerequisite.

38. Write a book… even if it’s short and never gets published.
I've won some awards for poetry and expository writing, but never ventured into the novel/novella, but I do have some outlines. Throw my poems into a collection, and *pow* you have a book that will never be published. :)

39. Drive through a (somewhat safe) portion of a third world country like Mexico or Costa Rica to gain perspective on what true poverty looks like.
Or, try living in a slum in an unsafe portion of a third world country, walking around it every day, choosing to dive into it instead of taking a skewed view through a car window, through actual encounters with the individuals who live in heart-wrenching conditions every day.

40. Go skinny dipping in a large body of water at midnight.
Who hasn't done this...even Lynne has! C'mon!

41. Take a shower under a waterfall.
If by "shower" you mean you stink and stand under the waterfall, then definitely. If this requires soap, you're doing it wrong.

42. Decide on your current life goals and write them down.
I actually don't make life goals...just go where the Lord leads. What's that line?..."If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans."

43. Spend New Years Eve in Times Square.
We both think that just looks uncomfortable and NOT fun. There are tons more fun places to spend the occasion, and I prefer Disney World :)

44. Go on a blind date (or a couple’s dinner date with new friends you hardly know).
We've done the couple's dinner date thing, it was fun. Lynne's had one blind date, but it wasn't the best.

46. Hit up Oktoberfest in Munich.
I would love to do this, and I really enjoyed being in Munich for a little summer festival they had in 2000. I could spend all day at the Hofbrauhaus.

49. Experience Spring Break in all its glory in Cancun, Mexico or Panama City Beach, Florida.
Um, not a big fan of "Spring Break in all its glory," since "glory" is infinitesimally too strong a word, but Lynne had a spring break trip to Panama City Beach, Florida, and Kirk's spent spring break in Colorado and Cozumel, Mexico, so he's had the snow and sun experiences (snow is better!).

51. Rent a fast sports car and speed down the Autobahn.
I've been the passenger in a car speeding (very much so) down the Autobahn, if that counts. It was fun to see how fast a Volvo station wagon could go!

53. Buy your first house.
So excited that we did that one last year!! We love it!

54. Own a convertible sports car.
Why own, when you can drive a friend's convertible? The perks without the price or the tickets. Although I do like the sunroof on our 2000 Infiniti.

55. Hike the Grand Canyon.
Kirk's been there, but didn't get to hike down in it (other than for a short little hike), and Lynne hasn't been, so this is definitely a locale for a future trip.

56. Attend a Red Sox vs. Yankees game in Fenway Park.
This item is inherently flawed. Who cares about these two teams? Silly east coast bias. How about "Attend a Cubs vs. Cardinals game at Wrigley Field?" That is the ultimate baseball regular season moment, and we've done it twice (and the Cubs won both times)! Also, Kirk got to see the Cubs play at St. Louis last year, and that was a fun experience to be surrounded by the enemy. Of course, the Cubs won that game, too. Go Cubs Go!

57. Spend a whole day making love without every leaving the house.
[Redacted...again!]

58. Learn to make one mixed cocktail like a pro bartender.
As my friends can attest to, I don't make mixed drinks well (Kamikaze a little strong there fella?), although I used to make a mean martini before I disliked vodka (and we don't drink enough for me to perfect a gin martini now). Lynne's probably much better at this.

69. Master a few fancy dinner recipes.
As our friends Alex and Sonja can attest to, we've done some for sure (despite the occasional recipe going horribly wrong...ok, more like slightly wrong, but in my eyes, it was horrible)

70. Finish up your formal education (but continue learning).
Yeh, we are both sooooo done with that! 8 years and 5 years is plenty!

Hooray for the longest post on our blog ever! If you are still reading, you must really love us, or be pretty bored today.