Monthly Life Goals December 2014

Before I get to this month’s goals, let’s check in on Novembers’s goals and my progress.

30 Day Challenge: Gratitude Daily -- Success! I actually kept up with it and now have two nice spreads in my PL album.
30 Days Challenge: Pinterest Project a Day -- Fail. Bad idea with all that was going on in November. Maybe I'll try again in February...
Clean out my closet -- Success! I chucked a fair amount of non-fitting things.
Plan and execute a date night with J -- Fail. Sickness and moving got in the way.
Clean out the boys' toys and books -- Success! Now it needs to be put away in the new house.
Take bags to GW and books to HPB -- Success! Well, okay, J physically took the bags, but I did put the bags together.

This month's goals: These are a little different as I am in Indiana all month visiting family.

30 Day Challenge: December Daily -- I'm finally doing it. Now I just need to keep up with everything. I packed myself a small crafting case so that I have some embellishment options for Indiana.
Prep and finish all my year end blogging posts before the 31st -- I always take a blogging break during Christmas break. I like to take some time away from the blog. And it gives me an opportunity to get a jump of early 2015 and finish my year end posts without much rush.
Create our Christmas break bucket list for the twins -- Nothing fancy, but I want to have some ideas before they arrive.
Prep my 2015 TBR list -- I love having my options laid out early. 2015 will be about women authors. I have a giant list, but want to pare it down a bit to those that I am super excited about.

Thanks from Me to You

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!

American Airlines and pilots -- For getting Arthur and I safely to Indiana. Especially the pilots on the Fort Wayne flight for successfully navigating high wind gusts to land.
Family -- For gathering together for the holidays and giving Arthur and I a place to stay for this extended visit.
Online Shopping -- For helping me avoid the crazy that is Black Friday. Already have most of my presents bought.
The weather -- For maintaining a decent temperature to enjoy the downtown lightings on Wednesday.
Ninja Movers -- For successfully getting all our crap (turns out we have a lot of it) to East Bay with nothing lost or broken.

Odds and Ends

My randomness from this week:

Moving is so tiring... I'm already over this and we haven't even moved yet
Moving has helped me decrease my craft supplies
I love grapes
How did I get so far behind on reading my Entertainment Weekly? Good graciousness, I have at least 8 unread issues laying around
Going to the Children's Museum on Veteran's Day was a bad idea
Super excited to start planning our mom's retreat. However I really should finish my current projects first.
Got my 2015 planner; ready to use it to take notes for PL

Monthly Life Goals November 2014

Before I get to this month’s goals, let’s check in on October’s goals and my progress.

30 Day Challenge: Card a Day -- Success! I actually accomplished it as crazy as a plan as it was.
Clean out my closet -- Fail. Seriously has to be done before I leave for Thanksgiving.
Plan and execute a date night with J -- Fail. This month was super busy. Need to do this before Thanksgiving.
Take, print, and send pics for Arthur's 1st birthday -- Success! I printed his monthly pics and sent them to the usual suspects.
Clean out the boys' toys and books -- Fail. Need to do before we move which might be at Thanksgiving.
Take bags to GW and books to HPB -- Fail. Seriously needs to be done.

This month's challenges (lots of repeats from leftover October goals):

30 Day Challenge: Gratitude Daily -- I decided pretty last minute to jump onto the month of gratitude. Instead of blogging daily, I will be adding my daily gratitude to my premade PL pages. Check out what I did to prep here.
30 Days Challenge: Pinterest Project a Day -- This may be another crazy huge project, but I really wanted to participate. Every day I will be actually be doing a pin from one of my Pinterest boards. The projects could be a homemade card, a recipe, a house project, a craft, or anything else that I've thrown onto my board. My only concern is to plan for the week and a half that I'll be in Indiana. I obviously won't have my complete craft stash, but I'm sure I can find little things or online things to complete.
Clean out my closet -- Has to be done before we move!
Plan and execute a date night with J -- Really want to do this before I leave for 6 weeks!
Clean out the boys' toys and books -- Has to be done before we move!
Take bags to GW and books to HPB (currently 4 bags and 5 bags respectively) -- Has to be done before we move!

Thank You Thank You Thank You

1. Peet's Coffee -- For fueling my coffee addiction and giving me a place to escape and blog for a bit.

2. The Awakening by Kate Chopin -- For getting my reading mojo back. I was in a reading slump, but I'm excited for my next book and to finish the year off right.

3. Sleep training -- For getting Arthur back to some sort of sleeping schedule after a bit of a hiccup.

4. Kaiser Permanente -- For keeping all my medical records and automatically assigning me my old doctors. It made changing insurance (again!) just a little less crazy. We switched on Friday and had Arthur's 12 month appointment on Monday. Easy peasy!

5. My fellow members of the MVPA Social Committee -- For helping to throw an awesome fall social/Halloween costume party for the littles. Despite having a weather hiccup and a few mishaps here and there, I think we pulled off a great event.

Odds and Ends

My random thoughts from this week:

I see the light at the end of the tunnel crafting wise... at least for October.
Cows are really big. Being two feet from one made me feel small. And Arthur was not exactly thrilled.
Watching three episodes of Doctor Who in a row makes my head spin, but also love Peter Capaldi even more.
Looking forward to me few hours off Arthur watch next week. I desperately need to organize my blogging schedule and posts.
Christmas in Indiana is coming and I'm getting excited!
Really hope my Halloween costume comes today. Our event is Saturday.
Still haven't put away the party supplies from Arthur's party almost two weeks ago.
Changing medical insurance is a pain, but Kaiser thankfully makes appointments and prescriptions easy with their online system.
It's hard to imagine Arthur as a 2 month old now (new baby in the parent's group is 2 months old!)

Thanks of the Week

1. All my mommy friends -- I've been feeling lost in the shuffle and a bit frustrated lately. Hanging out with some awesome ladies and their babies has helped get me back on track.

2. Starbucks -- For the pumpkin spice lattes making me feel like it's fall even though it's over 90 degrees here lately.

3. South Bay Feminist Book Club -- For providing an arena for me to express my thoughts on feminism. This past month's discussion on transgender exclusion was very thought-provoking. Thoroughly enjoyed the articles and the discussion. I can't for next months reading of The Handmaid's Tale and watching of Half the Sky.

4. City of Sunnyvale -- For still having the water on at their splash pads. I know we are in a serious drought, but when it's 90+ degrees in October, having a bit of water time is great for the littles.

5. The Milk Pail -- For selling some amazing bake-at-home croissants. I am so addicted!

Odds and Ends

Here are my random thoughts from the week:

So many events in October, I don't even know where to start...
I hope the house we're seeing this weekend works out. It looks amazing and is definitely big enough and in a good location.
Why do we have 10+ cookbooks in the house? I only ever use Pinterest and Paprika.
I love fall, especially cider and pumpkin anything
Christmas is coming... already started thinking about gifts and activities
Speaking of Christmas, I want to start my December Daily album like now!
Crafting classes have started off well, but having more than one guest per class would be nice
Feeling the need to drastically change my wardrobe; I at least need to clean out my wardrobe

Monthly Life Goals October 2014

Before I get to this month’s goals, let’s check in on September’s goals and my progress.

30 Day Challenge: Book of Lists - Success! I did it! And really really loved it! I may just have to do this again in March...
30 Day Challenge: Daily yoga - Fail. Morning are so crazy, I just plan forgot.
Finish planning Arthur's birthday party -- Fail! I got the site secured and tons of supplies bought, but I need to finish planning, buying, organizing, and making. I have 11 days. I can do this!
Clean out my closet and random office bin -- Fail! I got the office bin cleaned out but didn't touch my closet.
Clean out the kitchen cupboards -- Success! I did a complete clean out and inventory. Filled an entire garbage bag with expired crap. Filled another half with GW donations. And just reorganized everything. I feel so much better.
Pinterest Challenge: Organize my Christmas themed boards -- Success!I consolidated and then separated out the December Daily posts. Hopefully this helps me get through the holiday season.

This month's challenges:

30 Day Challenge: Card a Day -- Probably a completely crazy plan, but I am shooting for making 30 differently designed cards in 30 days. Let's get this party started.
Clean out my closet -- Seriously need to finish this.
Plan and execute a date night with J -- Now that the babysitting coop is up and running, we need to do this. Even if it's just fondue at Rok, we need a night out.
Take, print, and send pics for Arthur's 1st birthday -- It's been months since I sent family pics of the baby. I'm going to do this!
Clean out the boys' toys and books -- I know there are broken toys and trash in that room. I want to clean out and then hopefully reorganize before we move.
Take bags to GW and books to HPB -- Need to get this crap out of here. The bags have been sitting for awhile.

Thanks For All the Fish

1. Great Clips -- For not screwing up my haircut for once. I actually really like my short flippy do.

2. J -- For making me feel like I'm not the only one in the world that has certain thoughts. Yep, we are in sync when it comes to the multitude of stupidity in the world.

3. Keurig -- For making it easy for me to make a cup of coffee with a baby hanging on one leg and blurry eyed.

4. California -- For the beautiful weather... can't get enough.

5. Bay Area citizens and government -- For providing some awesome parks for the little one and I to enjoy with our friends.

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

My crafting addiction is renewed (not that it really went away...)
Loving pumpkin spice lattes, of course!
Missing the typical fall weather of the midwest
Contemplating Halloween costumes
Trying to develop some business strategies
5:30am wake up calls are so not my jam
I have three book clubs at the end of September/beginning of October and I haven't read a single selection... must get going on this!
Getting super excited about making a December Daily album this year

Monthly Life Goals September 2014

Before I get to this month’s goals, let’s check in on August’s goals and my progress.

30 Day Challenge: Daily picture book – Success! We only read 14 new picture books, but hit some of our favorites to help round out the 30 books.
30 Day Challenge: Daily walk – Fail! Everyday just seems to escape me. I get at least three in a week, so that's better than nothing.
Prep TBR piles for rest of year – Success! I pulled the physical books we have, updated my iBooks accounts, and noted which ones I needed to get from the library. I'm all ready to read for the rest of 2014.
Clean out my closet and random office bin – Fail! Never got around to it.
Pinterest Challenge: Create and weed through a board for Arthur’s 1st Birthday Party – Fail! Completely slipped my mind until the end of the month.
Pinterest Challenge: Try 5 new recipes – Success! I even went beyond my goal of 5 recipes:
- Ham and Cheese Sliders: oh so yummy!
- Cajun Peper Jack and Spinach Stuffed Chicken: spice it up yum
- Apple and Garlic Pork Roast: easy peasy
- Black Bean Soup: added spice and yum
- Reese's PB Cup Bottom Cheesecakes: OMG yummy!
- Sausage Breakfast Casserole: burned top and bottom, but with tweaks could be good
- Cake Mix Lemon Cookies: delicious!
- Potato Ham Bake: mediocre
- Sweet Garlic Chicken: decent

This month's challenges:

30 Day Challenge: Book of Lists - Signed up, prepped my pages, ready to go. Just hope to stay on top of this project.
30 Day Challenge: Daily yoga - I want to be consistent with my yoga. It always makes me feel good afterward. Now to schedule the time...
Finish planning Arthur's birthday party -- The party's not until Oct. 11, but I like to have everything planned ahead of time. Need to get my butt in gear.
Clean out my closet and random office bin -- Carry over from last month. I really do want to get this done.
Clean out the kitchen cupboards -- They need a good weeding out and cleaning. I'm getting sick of how cluttered and crazy my cupboards look at the moment.
Pinterest Challenge: Organize my Christmas themed boards -- I have so many ideas, but I definitely need to get these boards a bit more organized (delete repetitions, check links, make a to-do board).

Odds and Ends

Here is my randomness for the week:

Is it wrong to be that person in the group that says what she says out loud?
A little more sleep from the little one is helping get us back to a happy place
I found my book reading people this week!
Meet some great people on Wednesday night, hope to see them again soon
Excited about all the books
Realized I'm happier with multiple projects going on, they keep me moving
Want to finish prepping my 30 Days of Lists cards this weekend
Mom's Night Out on Saturday -- can't tell you how excited I am
Looking forward to my next crafting event (need to get my craft on)
SU shipment arrives tomorrow -- new toys!

Thank You on Thursday

The things I am thankful for this week:

Chai tea -- Lately I've been switching my coffee for chai tea.
Park playdates -- I love that the weather is perfect almost year round. That means that we can have tons of park playdates with other baby friends.
My neighborhood -- I love that we can walk to Target, grocery, bank, library, restaurants, and good coffee!
Crafting friends -- For lifting my spirits when I get frustrated.
My bed -- My big fluffy yet firm bed. The small amount of hours that I get to spend in it are glorious.

Odds and Ends

Here is my randomness for the week:

Sleep deprivation is no fun...
Really getting inspired to create things -- blog posts, children's books, cards, scrapbooks, etc
I love chocolate!
Straw sippy cups are a huge hit around this house
Laundry never ends
I look forward to the card swaps every month; I get so happy when I get packages back
Backordered SU supplies suck
Looking forward to baby birthday parties this weekend

Late Post

Arthur Update will be late today as the baby decided to just not sleep last night. This meant that I had absolutely no time to do anything requiring two hands and lap.

Monthly Life Goals August 2014

Before I get to this month’s goals, let’s check in on July’s goals and my progress.

30 Day Challenge: Meal plan entire month – So close, I'm going to call this one a success. I had everything planned through when the boys left. The last week of the month, I had to redo everything. But that's still 3/4 of the month planned at the beginning.
30 Day Challenge: Daily picture book – Success! We read at least a book a day. And we managed to add 30 new books to our 1001 Books list.
Clean out twins’ clothes – Success! Right before they left, we cleaned out the closet filling one garbage bag with too small clothing. Anything right on the edge went back with them. I also included some more pants and shirts for Back to School wear.
Update Paprika with all routine recipes – Fail. Good intentions, I just never got there.
Finish two in progress television series – Success! I finally caught up with S1 of Reign and S3 of Once Upon a Time. There are many other in progress shows on the server, but they will have to wait.
Pinterest Challenge: Complete 5 techniques, sketches, challenges – Success! I completed cards for five different online challenges.
Pinterest Challenge: Get rid of 2 retired DSP boards – Fail. I didn't use any of my retired DSP this month. Good intentions, but it never happened...

30 Day Challenge: Daily picture book -- It went so well last month that I thought we should try again!
30 Day Challenge: Daily walk -- I tried this a few months back and failed. I really want to get back on board this month.
Prep TBR piles for rest of year -- I started this last month, but I want to get all my piles prepped, grouped, and readied on the blog.
Clean out my closet and random office bin -- The closet isn't in a bad shape, but it needs another clean out. And the random office bin is just an absolute mess.
Pinterest Challenge: Create and weed through a board for Arthur's 1st Birthday Party -- I've just pinned a ton of crap onto his Space Party board, but now I need to take a critical look at everything. What do I want to make/do/buy/keep?
Pinterest Challenge: Try 5 new recipes -- The twins are gone. That means that I can experiment with new recipes again. I've got an entire Pinterest board to chose from.

Summer 2014 Week 8

Music Monday will be going on hiatus for the summer so I can bring you our weekly recaps. I will be highlighting all the fun pictures and activities we have planned for this summer. Eight weeks of fun!

Monday

We had a day of random errands. The boys got haircuts for back to school. Two haircuts in one summer! Their hair is growing so fast right now. Afterward we dropped off the library books for the last time and then headed to the comic book store. My friend Pam had gotten them gift certificates to a store in Campbell (a friend of hers works there). We traveled over and perused the selection. The boys settled on some Sonic comics and some Yu Gi Oh card packs. They definitely loved looking at everything. In the afternoon, Arthur and I headed to baby playdate at Mariposa Park. The boys got to stay home with J. After dinner, I headed over to Panera for book club while the boys hung out at home.

Tuesday

Tuesday we didn't have the car, but that didn't stop us from exploring. We lunched at Gumba's on Murphy (yum pizza!) and then walked over to the doctor's office for Arthur's 9 month appointment. He had to get a blood draw (anemia check) and didn't even cry. Such a big boy! The afternoon was spent back at home enjoying the pool and lounging. After dinner we all walked over to Tutti Frutti for our last visit. The twins got chocolate with chocolate and more chocolate. Big surprise!

Wednesday

Last full day in California. The boys opted to visit the Golfland arcade one last time. Of course they took advantage of the unlimited arcade pass and used the rest of their tickets on some candy and mohawked duck. While they played, Arthur and I popped over to Target for the usual and then grabbed Wendy's for lunch (boys' choice). After an afternoon of packing, we headed to Panera for dinner (boys' choice). We made sure to have everything ready and prepped before heading to bed.

Thursday

The twins' plane didn't leave until 12:45pm, so we had a bit of time in the morning. We double checked the bags and made a big brunch of eggs and cinnamon rolls. The boys said their goodbyes to Arthur and J and we headed to the airport. After the usual airport nonsense (really hate the airlines!), we made it to the gate right before boarding started. Perfect timing! I got hugs and the boys were off!

Another summer come to a close. This one was cut short due the twin's school's schedule change. We only had 8 weeks, but we made sure to hit all our favorite spots and still have time to relax by the pool.

Summer 2014 Week 7

Music Monday will be going on hiatus for the summer so I can bring you our weekly recaps. I will be highlighting all the fun pictures and activities we have planned for this summer. Eight weeks of fun! Overall this week was pretty quiet in terms of big excursions. This was a lull before the rush to get ready to go back to school and return in Indiana. My photo uploader is being very wonky today, so no photos...

Monday

Today was all about catching up on house chores and resting. The twins played a fair amount of video games.

Tuesday

We finally made it to the Mountain View library's summer song series. Arthur loved every minute of it. The twins chose not to sit on the grass and listen to the music. Instead, they ventured into the library, found some books and a nice quiet spot, and read for awhile. We got a MV library card to check out some of their selections. Arthur and I will definitely have to go back. From there we spent part of the afternoon Back-to-School shopping. The boys grabbed almost all of their school supplies including new backpacks (a must!). That night we had dinner at Panera as I had my card swap. The twins were excited to get their mac and cheese. I was excited to get my swap cards back.

Wednesday

We finished our school shopping by getting some new shoes at Kohl's. Without prompting, the twins each picked a pair of classic Vans slip-on skater shoes. I couldn't be more prouder! I even found a pair of amazingly comfortable black wedges. These are definitely going to be the wedding shoes. Now I just need to find a dress to wear to both of them.

Thursday

J stayed home to work, so the twins got the morning in at home. Arthur and I ventured out to Shoreline for our usual ~4 mile walk with the mom's group. It felt nice to get out and exercise. A very enjoyable morning. In the afternoon, the boys hit the pool and generally chilled out.

Friday

This was our last Great America day of the season. We finally made it to the waterpark section. The twins splashed in the wave pool and the giant play structure filled with cascading water. Arthur even sat and splashed at the edge of the wading pool. He wasn't too sure about the waterfall... After the waterpark, the twins hit their favorite rides for one last time. Good day!

Saturday

J and I split duties today. Arthur and I went to another little baby's first birthday party while J and the twins went go-karting. Yep, they finally made it out to one. Nick had a blast. Alex was not as excited, but I figured that would happen. They had an enjoyable time while I hung out with some other mom's and babies. J and the twins arrived to pick us up just in time to partake in cupcakes and candy. Perfect timing!

Sunday

Sunday was another home day: video games and pool time. We ended the day with our last pizza night.

Odds and Ends

Here is my randomness for the week:

Arthur standing on his own excites and scares me
One week left with the twins, so much to do!
I love back to school shopping even if I'm not going back to school
I need more sleep (this is an ongoing issue)