My Top 10

It's important to have hobbies and interests.  People who have hobbies and interests while they are working seem to have an easier time transitioning right into retirement.  Those of us who never really kept up with our hobbies and interests need to revisit and redevelop old ones or get new ones once we retire.  A lot of people spend the 30+ years before retirement throwing much of their time into their work - especially working mothers.  I was one of those women - I juggled my teaching profession with raising children while at the same time being 100% involved in their activities, playing an active role in their education, keeping a clean and welcoming home, AND serving 20+ years as a member of the executive board of my local teachers' union - 9 of those years as President.  Who has time for hobbies?  All of those years of playing SuperMom sometimes result in losing time spent on our own personal interests.

I struggled with my retirement for a while, most likely because I felt like I was losing my identity which was defined by my role as a teacher and teachers' association President.  I knew that I was going to have to redefine myself and it wasn't going to be easy - but I was up for the challenge.  Although I say that I am on the "no plan" plan, it's difficult to go from years and years of a life according to an agenda to no plan whatsoever.  I decided that a healthy compromise would be to come up with a list of 10 hobbies or interests that would fill my time.

First and foremost, I have a family and my first priority is my family relationships.  Some (but not all) of my time will be spent with my family.  After that, I have hobbies and interests.  If you don't have any hobbies before you retire, get one (or some) after.   I have put together a list of the Top 10 activities that I would like to start with.

• Exercise:  I have a couple of workout buddies I like to meet for cardio and strength training at the gym, I like to attend pilates and yoga classes, I enjoy golf and bicycling with a friend.   I commit to doing some type of exercise at least once a day (sometimes twice) with one day off a week.  
• Food and wine:  I enjoy trying new recipes and going to lunch with friends to try new foods and different restaurants.  This summer, I planted my first vegetable garden with hopes of using my crop for canning salsa and cooking.   Until my crop is ready, I have been creating meals using fresh vegetables and fruit I pick up from the local Farmer's Markets.  Food tastes so much better when it's fresh!  I have always been kind of a health nut so obviously the exercise and healthy eating are high on my list.  I also like to entertain using new and different recipes.  For me, a great evening is sitting around a table, nibbling on appetizers, sipping on wine and having great conversation with my family and friends.  
• Write:  I do love to write.  One reason for starting this blog was out of my love of writing.  On my bucket list (yes, I have an actual wall hanging with a bucket, a list and everything) is "Publish a Book."  After my husband's motorcycle accident several years ago in which he suffered a traumatic brain injury, I vowed to write a how-to book for families with loved ones recovering from a TBI.  That book is still in the plan.   
• Travel:  Retirement and life in general is all about balance.  I did not go into retirement thinking that I had to travel all the time.  That will not only drain your money pretty fast, but it will also burn you out pretty early.  I plan to balance with one or two trips a year.  Of course this does not include my travels to AZ.  I don't really consider those trips since I have to go there frequently to take care of the AZ house.  Don't get me wrong, I love going there.  It's my happy place of alone time and relaxation.  A priority for me is to see the beautiful USA before I start venturing out across the ocean.  I just returned from a trip to Asheville, NC on a girls trip of shopping, sightseeing (the beautiful Biltmore Estate) and the highlight of our trip - a great spa at the Grove Park Inn.  
• Shop:  I do love to shop.  I like shopping at boutiques, specialty shops and antique stores.  I shop for Christmas gifts year-round.  I do not go out "Christmas Shopping" between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I don't like crowds and I don't like lines.  To me, Christmas Shopping during the Christmas season forces you to find a gift for someone under the pressure of a deadline.  Now that I am retired, I do as few deadlines as possible.  When I am out shopping and I find something that a family member or friend would like, I buy it for Christmas or birthday, regardless of how far away that occasion is.  When I was in Asheville, I saw a wallhanging that said "Gigi's Kitchen."  My friend, Grace, is a "Gigi."  I picked it up for her and I will give it to her for her birthday.  
• Garden:  I planted my first vegetable garden this summer and so far I am loving it.  I like working in the garden, watching things grow, and if the bunnies and deer don't bother my plants too much, I am going to love harvesting my vegetables.  I have always had fruit trees - pear, apple. peach - so I am looking forward to taking the time to pick the fruit and create goodies with it.  I have looked into the Chicago Master Gardener Program that starts in the fall.  
• Read:  Although I don't want to join a Book Club just yet, I am looking forward to reading.  I have always been a big reader- both fiction and non-fiction.  My daughter, Kristina, (a high school English teacher) has read more books than anyone I know.  I am looking forward to reading her suggested books all year round!  When I was teaching, I only read during the summer.   
• Create:  I want to make things.  My first challenge is sewing.  I used to sew a few things with my mother's old sewing machine when the kids were little but I never had the time to be really good at it.  My grandmother and my mother could sew.  I am going to get a new sewing machine (you know, the kind that makes sewing easier) and create things.  
• Volunteer:  My Presidency (teachers' union) was passed on to a very competent protégé but there is a lot to know.  I will be offering my guidance in the form of trainings at least for another year.  A President's Handbook is also in the works.  I hope to have it done by August.  😬
• Create and Sell Units:  I have a store on Teachers Pay Teachers where I sell thematic units.  My job during the last few years of my teaching profession was to write thematic units for K-8 that infused the Common Core into interesting and fun topics.  I have decided to download these units into a store, "The Creative Genius," on Teachers Pay Teachers.  If there seems to be an interest in my units after I download them, I may write more! 
• Photography:  I know I said Top 10 and this is #11, but I can't forget my new hobby - Photography.  I purchased a new camera last November.  Between friends, online tutorials and just plain playing around with it, I am teaching myself some photography skills.  I love taking pictures and making photo albums for people.  Every family should have well documented photo albums to hand down to their children.  I give my kids and their spouses a yearbook every Christmas with pictures of them with their family/friends.  

Reviewing this Top 10 list seems a bit overwhelming but once you get a daily routine that includes a couple of things, for instance exercise and gardening, everything else will just fit in where you want it to.  

Bucket List wallhanging created by my daughter-in-law, Brittany.
Find it on her Etsy shop, unINKway.

          The Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC.
                        Girls Spa Vacation

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