Currently #4

Watching: Arthur and I have been watching Rehab Addict after he wakes up from his nap.

Reading: Finally getting around to reading Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton

Listening: Right now it is quiet in the house. I am loving it.

Making: I need to start making Sarah's Bridal Shower invitations. I've got a few ideas, but I need to play around to determine which one I like the most.

Feeling: I had a horrendous migraine for about four days last week. It seems to be gone thankfully.

Planning: Always planning out our weekly dinners. It's a never-ending process.

Loving: I don't know why but I am constantly turning to iced tea as my drink of choice.

Monthly Life Goals March 2015

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

• 30 Days Challenge: 30 Days to an Organized Life (Pinterest) – Fail... Yeah I didn't follow this at all.
• Work on Arthur’s bedroom and playroom — Success! I have almost every piece done.
• Sort through at least 2 garage boxes – Success! I actually sorted through all six boxes.
• Finish my craft projects before the retreat – Success! I finished everything a week before the retreat.
• Book my plane tickets for spring break — Success!

This month's goals:

• 30 Day Challenge: Meditate Daily-- This challenge has been on my list for awhile now.
• Put up the kitchen curtains -- Yeah they've been sitting there for almost a month. I really need to just hang them.
• Curate at least one Pinterest board -- I really need to fix these boards.
• Have pie on Pi Day -- J may not be around, but Arthur and I are having pie.
• Plan a Favorite Things for Kids Party for May -- We had so much fun doing it at retreat that I want to host one for the kids.

Thank You!

My thanks for this week:

1. Arthur: For getting sick, but being such a trooper through everything. As long as I gave him entertainment, he bravely got through it.

2. Amazon: For quick shipping on a new swim suit just in time for the retreat. I may have actually found one that fits, is flattering, and looks cute.

3. Alameda County Library: For making getting a library card quick and painless. We can't wait to check out all the branches.

4. Our vacuum: For cleaning up all the little pieces of crap that Arthur drops. It's an ongoing fight, but mostly we're winning it.

5. All my amazing mom friends: For an amazing retreat weekend. It was so relaxing and fun. I can't wait to do it again, (Maybe in 6 months?)

Photo of the Week #1

The sorry state of the baby this week. Green marker under the nose and a scrap on his forehead. Somehow he's still adorable...

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness this week:

• So incredibly excited about the retreat tomorrow! I don't think I'm going to make it!
• Think I'm getting my reading groove back. Finished a book in two days. Hope to finish another by Sunday.
• I love browsing at book stores even if I don't buy anything. And Arthur loves playing t the train table at Barnes and Noble. Win win!
• The weather has been very Midwestern in May: 50s to 70s with no clear pattern, light rain, and some fog. Very weird! I'm missing my sunshine.
• Dark chocolate coconut bark is so addictive... having a hard time not eating the entire bag in one sitting
• Watched a movie the other night, Netflix shelved it as romantic, but it was clearly just a drama. Not really any romance in it. I was disappointed as I was wanting to watch a romance... Oh well.
• Feeling like my crafting business may actually lead to something monetary soon

Currently #3

One of my new features. Every other week, I'll be filling out a Currently card for my Project Life album. It's a quick snapshot of life...

Watching: Since finishing reading Outlander earlier this week, I've been binge watching the television series. Oh my goodness! I am hooked!

Reading: Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier. It's our book club selection for this month. I'm not completely enthralled with the writing style, but I do like the story.

Listening: Arthur loves to grab the remote and turn on the stereo. This morning he grabbed it from the couch and happened to turn on the Gorillaz Pandora channel. Good choice baby!

Making: Doing my early prep for March's 30 Days of Lists. I picked my cards (rainbow design), added day numbers, and decorated the three filler cards.

Feeling: Tired... I think I got a total of about 4 hours of sleep last night. Arthur's not feeling well and was having a lot of trouble sleeping last night. Hopefully tonight goes better.

Planning: I'm trying to finish booking out all my March events. I've got my card classes listed out, but I need to finalize parent's group events and family events. Plus, I need to start planning out my March-April trip to Indiana. I've bought my plane ticket, but now need to think about everything else.

Loving: I impulse bought some dark chocolate coconut bark from Target and am not regretting it at all. It is beyond yummy! I'm attempting to ration it out to take some to retreat on Friday. We'll see...

OLW January

Let's take a look at what I did this past month for my OLW. This year's focus is HOME.

My monthly intentions:

1. Project List - Got a master list. Now to start getting those items checked off.

2. Home Management Binder - I wanted to create a place to keep all my to-do lists, coupons, important info, and random bits of whatever that seem to multiple. I checked out a few posts on Pinterest and started formulating my own binder. I have a major projects page, my weekly to-do list, a pocket for coupons, and the rest of my OLW pages.

3. Craft Space Organization - I spent a fair amount of money at The Container Store to organize all the cabinets in my new craft space. It's in a great space right now and so very usable.

4. Daily Housekeeping - My intention was to do at least one housekeeping duty per day. I've been very good sticking to this goal.

5. Curate Pinterest Board - I've got a nice collection of pins right now. I can't wait to really dive into those.

Extras:

-- January PL pages: I just completed all of my monthly pages this week. Loving how this new approach is working.

-- Dining room: We've got most of the pieces in place for the dining room. I just need to add some curtains and this room is complete. Very excited. 

-- Arthur's playroom: I started with a completely blank canvas at the start of January. A few weeks later and things are shaping up. I need a few more decorative pieces and to organize the rest of his toys. Plus, I've got to get some curtains up there. One of next month's intentions!

My OLW Pages:

I decided to add in my monthly OLW pages to my home management binder. My first page includes a nice self-portrait, some decorative cards, and the big prompts from January.

The next two pages hold my monthly intentions. While it wasn't a prompt for January, I wanted to lay out my proposed large projects. This should help my keep me on track throughout the year. I may add to these intentions, but this is a good start.

Currently #2

One of my new features. Every other week, I'll be filling out a Currently card for my Project Life album. It's a quick snapshot of life...

Watching: Finishing the last few episodes of The League. I missed a couple while in Indiana.

Reading: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. Slow going, but I do so love this book.

Listening: One Bad Mother podcasts are my new favorite. Unfortunately the baby only lets me listen while he's napping.

Making: Finishing up the retreat notebooks I'm making. Almost done...

Feeling: Excited about my SU business, the upcoming retreat, my growing baby, Sarah's wedding... generally feeling good about life right now!

Planning: I'm organizing my March craft classes. I'm thinking a floral class and a special occasions class (wedding, baby, sympathy, congratulations) in addition to my Meet and Greet and Crop Night. I'm also starting to plan a Stamp club for June.

Loving: Arthur has been super snuggly lately. It may be because of teeth, but I'll take it. I love snuggling with him on the couch.

Monthly Life Goals February 2015

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

• 30 Day Challenge: Different Daily Outfits -- Fail! I didn't even this one started. Maybe in May or June I'll be in one state all month and can do this.
• Organize my book shelves -- Success! All the books are organized into read/non-read, then fiction/nonfiction, then alphabetized. I love my clean looking bookshelves.
• List our home projects (short and long term) -- Success! I got a ton done house-wise during January. Everything else got put on the master house list for the next few months.
• Finishing planning the mom retreat -- Success! To be fair, not everything has been done, but a majority has. And some of the things left cannot be done until we leave for the retreat.
• Meal planning -- Success! I restarted our meal planning and have been great about sticking to it. One of my goals this year is to attempt planning our meals for the entire month. But for right now, I working about 1 1/2 weeks ahead. Makes it so much easier to get dinner on the table.

This month's goals:

• 30 Days Challenge: 30 Days to an Organized Life (Pinterest) -- Found a great 30 chart to focus my organization and work on daily habits (like wiping down the kitchen). I want to stick to this all month (except for my 3-day retreat vacation).
• Work on Arthur's bedroom and playroom -- This month's room focus is Arthur's spaces. I want to finish his bedroom and playroom organization and decoration. Shouldn't be too hard...
• Sort through at least 2 garage boxes -- There are some random plastic bins in the garage (probably 6). I need to sort through those and trash/donate/put away the contents.
• Finish my craft projects before the retreat -- I now have a system to keep track of my current craft projects, but I want to finish those listed before the retreat.
• Book my plane tickets for spring break -- I need to finish planning my travel plans for March-April.

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness this week:

• Why won't this migraine go away? Seriously... I am over it!
• Loving my new craft space.
• The fog in the morning is really pretty.
• Being able to listen to One Bad Mother podcasts makes driving to South Bay easier.
• Vacuuming everyday is not my favorite task.
• Can't wait for the retreat in February!
• Progress on the house has been steady although there is a ton more to do...

Currently #1

One of my new features. Every other week, I'll be filling out a Currently card for my Project Life album. It's a quick snapshot of life...

Watching: Documentaries for my New Movie January. I was watching fictional movies, but seem to have gotten on a documentary kick this week. Today, I watched Craigslist Joe (review posting tonight).

Reading: Right in the middle of The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer. Really enjoying it so far. Would like to finish by this weekend so I can attempt Outlander before January ends.

Listening: Our ice machine is really loud some days...

Making: Project Life spreads. I need to finish off Arthur's 2014 pages before I allow myself to start January's.

Feeling: Tired. I don't know why, but I kept waking up last night. Today I am just tired.

Planning: Our weekend activities. We have a parent group social on Saturday and book club on Sunday. I need to prep for those. I also need to make my weekend project list for around the house stuff. First thing on my list: fix Arthur's bookshelf. First thing on J's list: put together Arthur's tricycle.

Loving: I forgot how much I love having a couch. Three years in an apartment that could only fit two nice chairs just isn't the same. J and I have staked out our seats on the couch, one at either end, with Arthur right in the middle. He loves sitting up with us after dinner.

Monthly Life Goals January 2015

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

• 30 Day Challenge: December Daily -- Success!  I have a few final pieces to complete but that had to wait until I got home.  Now I've finished up my album and ready to dive into 2015.
• Prep and finish all my year end blogging posts before the 31st -- Success! I took some time each day to knock out a post or two.  I love having a bit of a blogging break to work behind the scenes.
• Create our Christmas break bucket list for the twins -- Success! I got stuff organized in time to actually do some things this Holiday Season.
• Prep my 2015 TBR list -- Success! I have a short list (compared to previous years), but a good list of books I know I want to read this year.

This month's goals:

• 30 Day Challenge: New Movies -- All my other 30 day challenges seemed difficult to do while still in Indiana for the first week of the month.  This one I can complete anywhere...
• Organize my book shelves -- We moved in, J put my books on the shelves, but they are in no way organized. This is one of my first priorities of the new year. I like to have organized book shelves.
• List our home projects (short and long term) -- A new house always comes with a list of projects.  I want to have a running list to work from.
• Finishing planning the mom retreat -- It's scheduled for Feb 19-22. I want to get everything planned and prepped by the end of the month.
• Meal planning -- I want to get back into the habit of meal planning.  First task: take an inventory of the pantry. Second task: start pulling recipes. Third task: schedule them out. Fourth task: Grocery shopping.

One Little Word 2015

After failing at last year's OLW: Explore (let's just not review that), I have thought long and hard about what I wanted to do this year.  And then it hit me:

The perfect word for 2015. Here's why:

• We moved into a new house in November, but I haven't been there to enjoy it yet.
• We moved to East Bay where I don't know anyone or anything.
• We now have a comfortable family of 5, but we don't always feel like home.
• I crave comfort and stability.

This year will be all about creating a home out of the dwelling we live in. They are a few things that I want to focus on:

• Completing home improvement/decor projects
• Cultivating family traditions
• Taking family photos (not just pics of Arthur)
• Documenting family outings
• Creating a family bucket list
• Carving out personalized spaces for each family member

Look for monthly OLW updates in the future!

New 101 in 1001

Last time, I really lost steam about 2/3 of the way through.  I'm going to try and do it again, but be a bit more realistic with my goals.

Start: January 1st, 2015 End: September 28, 2017

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks/goals/challenges in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and represent "stretching."

Ideas:

1. Friends, Family, and Love - Send out homemade holiday cards in December
2. Build a snowman
3. Complete 52 once a week photos of Arthur
4. Spend a day at the beach
5. Date nights x 20
6. Complete a Jar of Life
7. Host a tea party
8. Choose and document One Little Word 2015 and 2016
9. Write a personal manifesto
10. Take a picture of myself every first day of the month
11. Give 5 Just Because gifts
12. Give Arthur 25 pictures books in 25 days for December 2015
13. Pass 500 books for Arthur's 1000 Books Before Kindergarten
14. Throw a Favorite Things party
15. Host a Pinterest party/crafting day/crop
16. Take Arthur and twins to go see Santa
17. Crafting and Culture - Attend an opera or musical
18. Reread the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and The Hobbit
19. Create and order my own personalized stamp
20. Finish one of my Perpetual Reading Challenges
21. Make 10 non-greeting card crafts on my Pinterest boards
22. Ask 20 friends to suggest one book, and read them all
23. Watch a meteor shower
24. Attend 5 concerts
25. Complete 10 Day in the Life posts
26. Read 50 of my owned unread books
27. Tour a factory
28. Read 100,000 pages toward 1,000,000 page goal
29. Finish 2015 and 2016 Project Life book (family and Arthur)
30. Finish 2015 and 2015 December Daily
31. Catch up the twins scrapbook albums
32. Watch 100  different TED Talks and do a short review/analysis on the blog (new series)
33. Watch/rewatch every Academy Awards Best Picture since the year I was born (1982)
34. Make 250 different greeting cards
35. See a drive-in movie
36. Listen to every song by The Beatles
37. Finish watching every Star Trek television episode and movie
38. Have a Pixar movie month
39. Complete The Artist's Way
40. Complete a year of no book buying
41. Learn Ruby on rails
42. Participate in 30 Days of Lists 2x
43. Go to 5 tourist things in San Francisco
44. Food and Drink - Take a cooking class
45. Make 50 new recipes
46. Open a cookbook to a random page and make what ever is one it
47. Give up dining out for one month
48. Try Whole30
49. Make a pie on PI day
50. Meal plan for an entire month
51. Make fresh pasta
52. Learn to make a good martini
53. Do a brewery tour
54. Try 25 new restaurants
55. Try 5 new to me foods
56. No pop for a month
57. Health and Fitness - Lose 2 pants sizes
58. Walk a 5K
59. Get a massage
60. Take a yoga class
61. Get three pedicures
62. Do a spa day
63. Meditate daily for a month
64. Complete a 30 miles in 30 days challenge
65. Get lasik
66. Get CPR certified again
67. Travel - Stay at a Bed and Breakfast
68. Go on a vacation with Josh
69. Visit the Redwoods (any park)
70. Travel to a new state
71. Philanthropic - Give a 100% tip
72. Donate something extra at each MVPA social x 10
73. Pay it forward at Starbucks/coffeeshop
74. Donate to a Kickstarter campaign I love
75. Financial - Two week money fast (starting with full gas tanks and a full pantry)
76. Open an Etsy shop
77. Cash in my piggy bank for something special and frivolous
78. Invest in blog business cards
79. Miscellaneous - Get Arthur's tattoo
80. Get a passport
81. Get rid of 100 things
82. Learn how to use our DSLR
83. Take one free online class
84. Make a chalk mural on the balcony/driveway
85. Finish a Soduku puzzle
86. Grow something from a seed
87. Complete a coloring book
88. Buy the perfect LBD
89. Take an IQ test
90. Play Bingo in a bingo hall
91. Go horseback riding or hiking
92. Participate in 30 Day Wardrobe Challenge
93. Unplug completely for 24 hours
94. Officially close my Hotmail account
95. Go to a convention (blogging, SU, etc)
96. Dye my hair purple
97. Revamp my wardrobe
98. Take real photos of me for my blogs
99. Post a vlog
100. Go apple/berry/etc picking
101. Find and buy a signature piece of jewelry

2015 Goals and Resolutions

It's the New Year.  Time for my yearly goals and resolutions...

Blog and Reading Resolutions:

1. Read 30,000 pages -- Figured I'd try and make this an attainable goal this year.
2. Read at least 75 books -- Passed this number in 2014, hoping to keep the momentum going.
3. Read 20 new fiction authors -- I have a ton of never read authors on my shelves.  Want to get to some of these this coming year.

Life Resolutions:

1. Focus on OLW 2015 Home -- I have an entire blog post about my choice and intentions, but I also put it here to stress the importance of incorporating Home into everyday life.
2. Set up more 30 Day Challenges -- I liked the idea in 2014, I want to continue this for 2015.
3. Write more personal posts -- I don't want to rely on too many memes... I want to write more personal blog posts.
4. Be intentional about meal planning -- Did decently in 2014, really want to focus on this in 2015.
5. Create and stick to an exercise plan -- Yeah... I'm not going to say that I will lose all the baby weight, but I definitely want to start some sort of exercise regime.
6. Work on creating livable rooms -- New house = randomly decorated and placed rooms.  Now to focus on creating a home and truly livable spaces.
7. Make progress on my 101 in 1001 list -- I'm restarting this challenge in 2015 after failing the last one.  Hopefully I made my list challenging by doable.

Revisiting 2014's goals and resolutions:

1. Read over 50,000 pages —Fail. I didn't even make it to 30,000 pages this year.  But my reading was good considering the baby.
2. Get rid of at least one box of books —Success! I ended up taking probably 10 bags of books to sell at HPB over the course of the year.
3. Add in my new features/update weekly schedule —Success!  I changed a few things around and it seemed to work a lot better.  More changes will be coming this next year.
4. Focus on reading my own books — Success!  I really got a ton of those long languishing books read.  Want to keep this up for next year.
5. Focus on my perpetual lists —50% Success! I got a decent start on these lists, but need to read from them more.
6. 30 Day Challenges —Success!  I planned a ton of these and completed at least half of these.
7. Documentation through Project Life —Success!  2014's albums are 90% complete.  Being in Indiana for 5 weeks put me a bit behind, but I'll catch up by the start of February.
8. New food adventures —Success!  We tried some great new restaurants and made some new recipes this past year. Want to keep this going.
9. Losing the baby weight —Fail. Yep, I didn't lose a single pound this year.
10. Exploring the Bay Area —50% Success!  The baby and I explored a ton of parks and baby related spaces, but could have done more.  Next year will include a ton of exploring by necessity.  We now have all of East Bay to explore.

#FitReaders: January

This is a new challenge for myself.  I want to set some monthly exercise goals. Unfortunately I am still in Indiana until January 6th. I just can't get into the exercise mindset until getting back home. It may be cheating a bit, but I'm not going to start until January 7th. Even if I decide on goals today, I know I'm not going to follow them until I get home. That means that I have a few days to accomplish my first goal...

• Get a fitness tracker (looking for a deal)
• Walk at least 4 times a week
• Create an intentional meal plan for the rest of January
• Find a yoga routine I can do at home & start doing it!

2015 goals:

• Lose two pants sizes
• Get more energy
• Create and keep an exercise routine
• Gradually increase my steps goals throughout the year

#FitReaders Sign-up

Welcome to #FitReaders hosted by Geeky Bloggers Book Blog  and That’s What I’m Talking About.

I’m excited about the New Year and the focus on all things fitness.  This post is really a call to arms so you can get excited and prep for the New Year. I am not much for New Years Resolutions so this gives you a few weeks to prep for your new regiment or make tweaks to your current one. I am so proud of all #BookBlogWalkers that have been at this for a year. You guys have done great, kept moving, and were great at motivating each other.

We want to keep that momentum going in 2015 and include all types of fitness. So whatever your fitness regime is please feel free to join us :)

How it will work:

• Jan, Feb, March hosted by Geeky Bloggers Book Blog
• April, May, June hosted by That’s What I’m Talking About
• July, August, September hosted by Geeky Bloggers Book Blog
• October, November, December hosted by That’s What I’m Talking About

There will still be weekly check-in posts and monthly “are you in” posts!

Are you in? Hope to see you in 2015!

One of my big life goals is to be more active and create an exercise routine. I plan on utilizing the giant hills in my neighborhood to get active. Hopefully being a part of this group will help keep me accountable.

Blogging Break

It's the Monday before Christmas so that mean's it time for my annual blogging break.  I like to take the two weeks around Christmas to recharge away from the blog.  I'll be back after the New Year with my 2014 wrap-up posts and new content.

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for this week:

• Usually I hate shopping in person during Christmas, but this year I'm digging it... especially with my little two foot helper in tow
• Having a lot of fun making my December Daily album
• Loving hitting up all my favorite Fort Wayne only (or at least not in California) restaurants: Culver's, Moe's, Seoul Garden (new favorite), Ruby Tuesdays, Tucanos (new Brazilian place), Coney Island, Noodles and Co.
• Kicking myself for not bringing another pair of pants.  Really sick of jeans or cords...
• Will probably throw away these black shoes when I leave Indiana.  They now pinch my toes a bit and the sides are being broken down.  One less thing to haul back home!
• Excited to spend the next two weeks with the twins.  We have to go see a movie, hit some restaurants, and go shopping!
• Randomly lost a #9 for my DD album. Bummer!  Now I need to recreate it after I get home.
• Can't wait for all the packages arriving this week

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

• I forgot how much I loved driving around and seeing the Christmas lights
• Itching to organize my new crafting area
• May have taken on too much with 4 December memories albums (but I'll get them done!)
• Glad I packed a travel craft bag
• Mad at myself for leaving my iPad at mom's house (t-10 hours)
• How have I not watched Marry Me before? That show is hilarious!
• I love getting packages in the mail!