Maisie’s Bucket List

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On the 9th September, when one of Maisie’s doctors started suggesting a ‘bucket list’ for her, it slowly began to sink in how ill she really was (or would soon become).

In many ways, the idea of a bucket list for your baby daughter is obviously extremely sad, and part of me didn’t like ticking off a list of ‘to dos’ in a slow count down to an inevitable end. But it gave us something really positive to focus on – and it really did help us to concentrate on the important things: living, having new experiences, spending quality time together and enjoying each others company.

When we first wrote this bucket list, we had no idea her life would be cut quite so short. We were hoping for at least a year, but unfortunately that wasn’t to be. Luckily, we did manage to complete most of the things on her list – but the final few, we hope to complete for her in her memory over the coming months.

So this is Maisie’s bucket list – we wrote it for her, as her own probably would have consisted of: breast feed, sleep, cuddle mummy and daddy, watch brother, play with toys, listen to mummy sing, bath, repeat (all of which we gave her in abundance).

Here are the things we managed to complete:

Sing and dance together

Listen to Mum and Dads favourite songs

Read books

Do some finger painting

Beach trips: dip toes in the sea and the sand

Go swimming

Take a train journey

Go to St Ives

Go on a slide

Go in a ball pool

Baby yoga

Hold a boy’s hand!

Go to a wedding

Take a ride in Daddy’s Land Rover

Stay in a hotel

A baby sensory class

Sign classes

A baby music class

Hand a feet casts

Climb Tregonning Hill

Thanksgiving

Visit Mummy’s home town of Shropshire

Go on a picnic

Go to the cinema

Watch fireworks

Enjoy Halloween

Dressing up

Wear a band t-shirt

Go to a farm

 

And those we are going to finish for her:

Get professional photos taken:
We didn’t manage to find the time, unfortunately, as she was in hospital on the day we hoped to shoot on the beach. But a lovely photographer took some beautiful photos of Maisie’s funeral service which we’ll treasure forever.

Go on a bike ride

Go on a swing

Get a Valentine’s card:
We made her some Valentine’s cards in November – and we will write them for her this February.

Go on a cliff top walk

Eat birthday cake:
She was never old enough to eat solid foods (one week too young!) so all she ever ate was breastmilk (and horrible tasting medicines). But she had two birthday cakes, and we continue to bake and sing for her birthday each month.

Paint nails

Have a girls night

Try a pasty / chocolate / ice cream (all our favourite foods!):
Again, she sadly never got to taste all these foods – but we’ll continue to enjoy all of these for her!