Hello, my bucket list friends! It is crazy that I’m writing this right now ! This year really surprised me with how fast it went by. I’m still going to catch up with my 2025 blog posts but I will also be writing about my adventures in 2026 at the same time to prevent me from getting even more behind. 2025 was a year that was full of adventure, learning , resilience, creativity, and most of all faith. I crossed off a good amount of bucket list items this year. I have not counted them yet but I will in another blog post. Some of this year’s highlights included going to Las Vegas, getting a new tattoo, going on three different road trips, (including two during the summer) , visiting Idaho twice, going to a few different zoos, going to two Mets game, my summer mall weekend, spending time with some of my favorite people ,going to Salvation Mountain, doing lots of shopping, and creating art. I also turned 35 this year and that is hard for me to believe. I don’t feel like I am 35 but truth is truth. Anyways, overall this year was a good one that was full of many blessings. I got back into teaching Sunday school and I attended two wreath making events at my church. I’m looking forward to all the blessings that 2026 has in store. I hope all of you had a blessed year.
Hello, my bucket list, friends! Well, here we are at the end of another year! This year was a reminder of how blessed I am. Even in the hard times, God’s blessings stood strong. As with every year, I made progress in some areas, and I had setbacks in others. However, I would say that this year was overall good. I’ve highlighted some of my biggest moments of the year below. I hope you all had overall good years as well.
The not so great moments – I decided to start with this category to get it out of the way so I can focus on all the positive things for the rest of the post!
My dad had a heart attack – I don’t think I wrote about this in my blog, but in May, my dad had a heart attack. It was a very scary thing, and I’m incredibly thankful to God for being with my family and helping us all through this difficult time.
My unstable job situation – At the beginning of this year, I was working at a health food store. Early on in the year, I found out that the store would be closing. I went on a job search, and I was hired at a store that sells houseplants. During the summer, I got the news that the store would be closing. I was not happy that I had to go on another job hunt. Even though it was stressful, I ended up getting hired at Walgreens in August, and I have been working there since then. Job hunting is very stressful, but I’m thankful that I have a stable job now.
My emergency surgery – While I was unemployed after losing my job at the plant store, I ended up having surgery after going to ER because I was in awful pain. It turned out that I had a grapefruit sized ovarian cyst that had twisted. I had to have it removed right away, and I was very scared because I had never ben put under before. My surgery ended up being successful, and I was able to go home soon after it was finished. I’m very thankful that my surgery went well.
Bucket list items that I crossed off – I crossed some more bucket list items off this year! I’m happy with the items that crossed off, and I’m excited to see which items I will cross off in 2024.
#265 visit the Pez factory – This was a very fun item to cross off! I highly recommend exploring this place if you get the chance.
#15 Go to Las Vegas – I finally went to Las Vegas! I went with my mom and my friend it was a great trip!
#272 – Eat at the Amy’s drive through restaurant – This item was crossed off by surprise! I did not know that they had this restaurant at the airport we were going to. I was very excited when I saw it.
#306 Eat cake from a vending machine – I crossed this item off while I was in Las Vegas it was a very simple item to cross off but I enjoyed it!
#301 Tie Dye a plush animal – I got little build a bear craft kit online to cross this item off.
#295 take a typing test – I enjoyed crossing this item off more than I thought I would. I was very proud of myself for improving my score until I got one that I was happy with.
#257 Read 50 books in a year – I just recently crossed this item off it was a challenge but I’m so happy I did it!
Travel and day trips – I went on my fair share of adventures this year, including some bucket list locations. I also went on some fun day trips, including going to the Jelly Belly factory on my birthday.
Day trip to Point point Lobos – This was a fun day trip that I went on early this year. It was a very beautiful place.
Vacation to Connecticut – This trip was so much fun! I loved exploring this beautiful state and going to the zoo
Road trip to Oxnard – We went to Oxnard to see the Dallas Cowboys at their training camp. On the way we stopped at a zoo. We also spent time in Santa Barbra.
Idaho – I went to visit family here but we also went on a day trip to a hot spring. I also got to do some thrift shopping while I was there as well.
Jelly Belly factory – I had been here once before but it was a long time ago so I decided to go on my birthday.
Movies I saw in theaters – I enjoyed watching some movies in theaters this year. Here is a list of what I saw!
80 for Brady- This movie was a great one to start the year with. This is a fun movie about friendship and adventure. It definitely has a bucket list feeling to it. I would love to watch this movie again.
The sound of freedom – This was a different kind of movie than I would usually go see, but it was a good one, sad but good and powerful.
The journey to Bethlehem- This was a really good movie the music was so much fun!
Wonka- I saw this movie on Christmas day it was even better than I was expecting it to be.
Hobbies – I made time to enjoy some of my favorite things this year!
Art and crafts – I did a good amount of art and craft kits as well as digital art this year. You can see some of my art in my Red Bubble store.
Thrift shopping- I did a lot of thrift shopping this year my favorite thing that I got was Courtney the American Girl doll.
Toy collecting- I expanded my toy collection a lot this year. I love collecting many different kinds of toys but I think Barbie dolls are my favorite and I got a bunch of them this year.
Other highlights- Here are some more things that I enjoyed this year!
Alice Cooper’s new album – I love Alice Cooper’s new album called road. I listened to it a lot this year.
Winning an American Girl doll as a raffle prize – This was so exciting this was the second time that this happened!
Spending time with some great people- I loved getting to see some great people this year and meet new people as well.
Thank you for reading about my highlights for 2023 ! – Christina Epperly
Hello, my bucket list friends. I can’t believe it’s already time to write this post! This year went by super fast, and I’m already looking forward to next year’s adventures, but before we move on to next year, let’s go over this year’s highlights!
Bucket list items- Since I have the words Bucket list in the title of my blog, let’s start with the items I crossed off this year. I am happy to say that I crossed off eight items this year!
Get a mohawk – I was nervous to cross this item off, but I did it! ( You can read about it HERE )
Go to the Goodwill outlet – This was a fun item to cross off ! ( You can read about it HERE)
Go to the Denver art museum – I went on a wonderful vacation in June, and this was a part of it. ( You can read about it HERE )
Go to Denver – I stayed in Denver for my Colorado vacation. ( You can read more about my vacation HERE )
Tweet 10000 times – I was very proud of myself for crossing this item off my list. ( You can read about it HERE)
Go on a Warner Brothers studio tour – I crossed this item off on my December trip to Los Angeles! It was a very fun item to cross off! ( You can read about it HERE)
Go to a blow dry bar – I loved the way my hair looked when I was done crossing this item off my bucket list. ( You can read about it HERE)
Go on a vegan picnic – Another item I crossed off in Los Angeles ( You can read about it HERE)
Travel- I got to go on a few vacations this year. I also went on so day trips. I’ll post the links so you can read more about them
Muir Woods – This was a fun day trip that I went on early in the year. ( You can read about it HERE)
San Louis Obispo and Paso Robles – This trip was mainly to go see Alice Cooper, but of course, we did some exploring too! ( You can read about it HERE )
Big Sur- Another fun day trip! ( You can read about it HERE)
Colorado – This vacation was a lot of fun! I did a lot of things, including crossing off two bucket list items. ( You can about it HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE
Summer Idaho trip – This was a fun trip that included a trip to a museum and going swimming. ( You can read about it HERE)
Monterey day trip – I love day trips! ( You can read about it HERE )
Birthday weekend trip – I went on a little weekend getaway for my birthday! ( You can read about it HERE)
Labor Day weekend Idaho adventure – The second trip that took to Idaho this year. This trip included an adventure on the Boise River! ( You can read about it HERE)
October Idaho adventure, including Craters of the moon national monument – My third and final trip to Idaho for the year 2022 included an amazing trip to Craters of the moon national monument. ( You can read about it HERE)
Concerts and events – My biggest highlight in this category was going to see Alice Cooper. I hope I can see him again this coming year. Anyways, on to the list of concerts and events I went to this year.
Disney on Ice – This was a really fun show. I hadn’t been to a Disney on ice show since I was a child. ( You can read about it HERE)
Alice Cooper concert – I got to see a concert from my favorite rock star this year! ( You can read about it HERE)
Point of Grace concert – This was a beautiful concert in a beautiful place. ( You can read about it HERE)
Fourth of July is fun, including a concert in the park! ( You can read about it HERE )
Christmas craft faire- I was so happy that I got to this event this year! ( You can read about it HERE)
Fantasy of lights drive through – I got to go one of my favorite local events this year. ( You can read about it HERE)
Shopping fun – I love going shopping and I had a lot of fun this year going to thrift shopping and more! You can read about some of it below.
Summer mall weekend – I love shopping and summer. I also love putting them together! ( You can read it HERE)
Thrift shopping fun – I got to do a lot of thrift shopping this year! ( You can read about some of it HERE, HERE,HERE, and HERE)
Target adventures – I also made a good amount of trips to my favorite department store this year. (You can read about some of my Target trips HERE,HERE , HERE, HERE, and HERE )
Creativity – I enjoyed being creative this year with art and writing!
I had a lot of fun doing arts and crafts projects. Here are some of my favorites! click on the titles below to read about them!
Writing – In addition to writing on this blog, I also wrote articles on vocal media. Click on the titles below to read some of my articles from this year.
Every year has its hard moments, and this year was no different. In January, I said goodbye to my cat Sherri it was very painful. Time has helped to heal me, but it was a very difficult thing to go through.
Walking away from my career in childcare due to my health , I’m so proud of myself for making this choice. It was a hard conclusion to come to, but I’m glad I did. ( You can read about it HERE and HERE ) My mentel health has improved since I walked away from my career. I’m hoping and praying that 2023 will be the year that my voice acting career really comes together.
All things considered, I have to say that it was an overall good year, and I hope 2023 is an even better year!
Read 50 books – Nope. Unfortunately I didn’t get it done this year but next year is looking good!
Take more baths . – I had to cut back a little bit of this because of the drought in California. However I did take my fair share of relaxing baths this year.
Use 5 new bath bombs! – I don’t have the official count but I’m pretty sure I used way over five!
Start freelance writing- I started posting on Vocal Media this year! I really enjoy it and I want to post more on there next year.
Cross five things off my bucket list ! – I crossed eight items off my bucket list this year!
Hello,my bucket list friends! I can’t believe that it is time to write this post! This year has been a roller-coaster for sure! There have been a fair amount of changes,ups and downs and lots of adventures! Before I dive into 2022, I wanted to take a look back at 2021. Here we go!
Bucket list- I crossed eight items of my bucket list this year! I do wish this number was higher but I’m pretty happy with it overall. I made a list below of all the items I crossed of this year.
1. #297 – Go to three playgrounds in one day.
2. #294- Go shopping at the Gilroy Outlets
3. #290 do a virtual 5k
4. #277 – visit the Getty Center
5. #253 take a bus tour of Hollywood
6. #276 – visit the Griffith observatory
7. #238 – Go to the Grove in Los Angeles
8. #226 – see the La Brea tar pits
Travel- I did a good amount of travel this year! I went to Utah, Los Angeles, Pismo Beach,Monterey, Idaho three times,Redding and Florida! I’m actually in Idaho as I write this right now! I’m very happy with all the travel I did this year. I loved exploring Salt Lake City and Park City in Utah. I also loved going to Tracy aviary in Utah. Los Angeles was a ton of fun! I loved going to the Big American Girl store at the Grove and the La Brea tar pits. I did so many things in Florida,that I haven’t even finished my posts about it yet. I look forward to more travel in 2022!
Work/ career- This year I left the world of retail and entered back into the world of preschool. I currently work in a toddler classroom. It is an exciting and challenging environment to work in. I’m always looking for new experiences and opportunities so I decided to try out voice acting! I’m doing voice acting lessons now and I can’t wait to see where it takes me. I hope to be doing commercials,audio books and more as soon as next year!
Shopping/ collecting – I added a lot of items to my collection this year! I did so much thrift shopping this year. I even thrift shopped in Idaho, Utah and Redding. I also went to two antique malls this year. Some of my favorite items that I added to my collection this year are a Barbie jewelry box art kit from the 90s, A Barbie comforter from the 90s, a Beanie Buddy penguin, a lot of American Girl and Barbie books, as well as many Beanie babies and Barbie dolls. I also got a lot of Barbie color reveal dolls! I really do love the color reveal line by Barbie. In addition to all of that. I also got many fun souvenires from the places I traveled to. I wonder what items I will add to my collection in the upcoming year.
Writing- My love for writing grew this year. I published Sixteen pieces on Vocal Media. I want to continue writing on Vocal this upcoming year. I’m excited to see what I write this year. I also continued to write on this blog. I’m so glad God gave me a talent and love for writing.
Creativity/ art – I let my creativity show this year for sure! I did my fair share of craft kits this year as well as drawing and some painting. I wonder what I will make in this upcoming year!
Mental health/ self care – I continued to work on my mental health this year. I had a lot of ups and downs but I think I’m starting to get better at managing my stress. This is something that I really want to focus on in the new year.
Thank you all so much for reading this blog! I hope you had a wonderful 2021 and that you all have an even better 2022!
Hello, my bucket list friends ! Here we are at the end of 2019. This year seemed to go by very fast like a lot of past years have and I have a lot of things to tell you about ! Here we go !
My 2019 in review
Bucket List items – I crossed 9 items of my bucket list this year ! I didn’t make my goal of 12 items but I’m very happy with the items I was able to cross off . Click on the items below to read about them.
Travel – This year I went on a summer trip to Portland OR. , went on a day trip to San Francisco, visited family in Idaho and enjoyed Christmastime in Disneyland.
Health – This year I made a big step in the right direction for my health by participating in an OCD research study at Stanford. The treatment I received really improved my life. I wrote quite a few posts about this health adventure I’ll link two of the posts HERE and HERE.
Friends and family – I got to spend a good amount of time with some of my favorite people this year. I hope to have even more friend and family time in 2020!
Work – I got hired at pet food express this year ! I love working there so much it’s a really great job . I also gained more experience in the field of massage therapy by getting my first official massage job. Even though I’m not with that company any more , working there gave me a lot of confidence as a massage therapist !
Hello, my bucket list friends ! 2018 was quite a year and it’s hard to believe that it is coming to an end already . The last few months of the year always seem to fly by and 2018 was no exception . So before we move into 2019 let’s dive on into a review of my 2018.
2018 my year in review
2018 was a jam packed year , I was able to accomplish a lot ! I Crossed 9 things off my bucket list including going to the Mall of America, petting a zebra and Meeting Alice Cooper ! I Traveled to some amazing places , passed the Mblex ,became a certified massage therapist, Went to my first comic con, and spent time with the some of the people I love most. I also spent some time doing some of my favorite things such as blogging , drawing , shopping , going on walks, swimming and going to the movies . This year also had some hard times as well . I had my fair share of heath problems this year including a trip to the ER on my birthday and my family went without a refrigerator for way to long . I also lost an irreplaceable friend who had always been in my life . This year was definitely a roller coaster of a year with some amazing ups and really tough downs. This year was a thrill ride for sure and I’m very proud of everything that I accomplished but I hope 2019 is more like a lazy river . Below I have put links to posts of some of this years adventures and some photos from this year ! I can’t wait to share more adventures with all of you in 2019 !
Hello, my bucket list friends! wow this year has been wild! There were so many ups and downs that I lost count. It’s safe to say that I have grown a lot this year. My self-confidence is much higher than it has ever been. I know now that I’m capable of accomplishing much more than I ever thought I could, but this year also had some situations that I had a hard time facing. Let’s take a walk down 2017 lane and I will tell you about some of the most impactful moments of my year.
The Wonderful
This year was full of many wonderful moments, the one that stands out to me first, Is my surprise trip to Disneyland! (you can read about it here) Talk about the perfect surprise at the perfect time. Then there was my Los Angeles bucket list trip! I crossed five items off in just a few days. (you can read about it here) There is no way I could forget about my NHI graduation! (read about it here) Oh and yeah, I turned 27 this year and I celebrated with my little pony birthday (read about it here) I also went to Idaho for the first time ever and I loved going to the zoo and aquarium. (read about it here) This year was packed with wonderful positive memories. I had a Better than expect summer complete with two amazing concerts one from the band Boston at my favorite outdoor venue and the other was a concert on the beach from the band Quite Riot, I did tons of shopping spent lots of time with family and friends including going to my cousin’s beautiful wedding (you can read about my summer here , here ,here. and here) I saw some great movies this year, the my little pony movie was amazing I also really enjoyed the movies hidden figures and COCO and of course Star Wars! There is no way I can forget crossing off #55 (ride on the back of a motorcycle) and #215(get some Lisa Frank clothes) off my list. (read about it here and here) There are so many good things that happened thins year it is hard to list them all, but I’ll do my best. I was so blessed to start two wonderful jobs this year that I love. One is a front desk receptionist at a massage studio the other is as a teacher’s aide at a preschool. Having two jobs that I love has done a lot of good for my mental health. Other fun adventures include my trip to the Walt Disney family museum, ( read about it here) posting a lot of YouTube videos including my bucket list talk videos , ( read about it here ) getting a new smart phone ( I got the Google Pixel and it is my favorite phone that I have ever had ) , Then there was #207 Where I got something that I had been wanting for a long time ( you can read about it here )and of course all the time that I spent with the people I love . As busy as this year was I crossed eight items off my bucket list. This year was filled with great times with great people and I’m excited to have more great times in 2018!
The not so wonderful
As I said at the beginning of this post this year was wild and Like every year there was some challenging things that happened. The one that comes to mind first is my grandparents moving away I’ve wrote a little bit about this and don’t get me wrong I had a great time going to visit them and I’m very happy for them, but it was very hard for me when they moved so far away. I cried plenty of tears over them leaving. Time has been the best healer for this pain and I’m getting much better but that was one of the most difficult things that happened this year. The beginning of this year got off to a rocky start with some pretty crazy weather complete with fallen power polls and trees. The road was blocked for a while and parking was a little hard to come by while work was going on to clean up the mess. Until April I was working retail, I enjoyed working at the store and I loved the people I worked with but sometimes hours could be hard to come by and that’s how it was at the beginning of this year. I was getting called by bill collectors and that was a very stressful thing and I felt helpless. It was not a good feeling at all but here I am ending this year with two amazing jobs that have steady hours. Another very stressful thing that happened this year was when my cat cooper got stuck in a tree for hours! ( you can read about it here ) We had to call a tree service to come get him and it was a night that I had to go to school. As I wrote about in the post before this one, I failed the MBLEX and that was a hard disappointment to face but with the new year comes new opportunities and I’m ready to move past all the hardships of 2017 and go into 2018 with my head held high .
I hope all of you have a blessed 2018 . Rock on – Christina Epperly
