As we get ready to head into a new year, I thought maybe I would check in on 11 in '11. Some good, some not so good, but I still and always will, believe in setting goals. Looking forward to 12 in '12 too!
1. I want to cook at home more. We go out to eat quite a
bit, but I want to cut that back to once a week. This of course depends
on our schedules, but I think this is something I can give a go. I have
wonderful tools, great pots and pans, wonderful appliances, access to
great grocery stores. This is a must. One of the things that I love
about the boy and I is that we both love to bring our lunches from home,
and we do so every day. One thing that is going to help with this
though is getting a freezer for home. While I love our fridge, our
freezer is TINY and if I want to freeze soup, stock or sauce, it is
impossible.
Well, good and bad here. With the basement flooding in February, we still have not bought a freezer. I have cooked quite a bit and I have tried quite a few new recipes. I have also had some epic fails of course too. The boy and I continue to bring our lunch from home on a regular basis, rarely eating out, which I think is good. This will be something I will always continue to work at, eating at home more.
2. I want to try a new recipe at least once
a week. I have a ton of cookbooks and this will help with number one.
The boy and I are signed up for a cooking class later this month and I
cannot wait.
While I am not sure if I have succeeded at a new recipe every week, I definitely made a good dent, came up with some great menus for dinner parties and have even added some new recipes to the repertoire which I will keep!
3. A regular exercise routine. Now that my
shoulder is stronger, this is something that just needs to happen. But,
I need to make sure that I come first so that I have more time for
this. I also need to schedule this. I have a Wii which I love, and I
recently bought a pair of the Avia Avi-Motion shoes, which I wasn't too
sure about, but just wearing them around the house, you cannot believe
how much I can feel it! LOVE them!
UGH. This has NOT happened. BUT, I am definitely in a better place. I just need to keep working on this one. I am going to blame the basement a little on this one, the Wii was not hooked up for months on end, my job played into things, but I have some relief now, and I can definitely feel the tide changing.
4. A trip. The boy and I are so over due for a trip it is not even funny. This is a must. Maybe even two trips.
We managed this one. Good and bad on this one, but more on the bad. It was great to see my old stomping grounds and to show the boy around. However, I wound up terribly sick most of the trip and we can back to a flooded basement and months of a huge headache.
5.
Read more. I have this great color Nook now, I need to put it to good
use. I also own a million books that I still want to read. My friend set
a goal of a book a month, I think that is very attainable. But there is
so much I want to read. . . .
I so wish that I would have accomplished this one. This is one that I will definitely keep on the list for next year.
6. Schedule our home
projects so that we can complete them on a more realistic schedule. Next
up is my office, we bought the paint and the curtain rods this past
weekend. My mirrors are painted, now it is just pulling to all into the
room, getting it organized and done. This past week alone I think I
spent over 70 hours in my office, so this is something I am REALLY
looking forward to!
January - Jilly's Office
(almost done - one thing left, still need to photograph this one)
February - Guest Bathroom
- done (maybe not in February due to the basement situation, but it is done)
March - Guest Bedroom
- done (again, not on schedule, but its done and I love the way it turned out)
Everything else is on the list for next year
April - Master Bedroom
May - Media Room
June - Kitchen
July - Living Room
August - Dining Room
September - Basement Bathroom
October - Wine Bar in Basement
November - Storage Room in Basement
December - Done?
7.
De-clutter, organize, donate, store and file. We still have about 20
boxes to go through, and I want to get rid of things and get organized.
One thing that needs to be organized and tagged is the wine collection
that is growing (not quite as fast as I can drink it, but it would be
nice to have it all in a database so I knew exactly what I have where.I
also own a trillion magazines, and I have a hard time parting with them
and finding the time to read them. Now I can get the majority of them on
my Nook. I am going to continue to do so and go through the ones I have
and get rid of them. I have been making a good dent in them this
weekend alone!
I have made progress here, but there is still a ways to go. I have gotten rid of a ton of magazines, but the boxes are still in the garage. We have also made several trips to Goodwill, so we are getting there.
8. Get back to entertaining. We did
quite a bit over the holidays. Family friends for a party, my family for
Christmas eve and a going away send off for some friends we met through
the wine club. I have a few more get togethers I would like to get on
the books. We have a chili cook-off paired with Chilean wines in January
for the wine club which should be fun as well.
We have done quite a bit more on the entertaining front. Small dinner parties, deck parties and wine events. Even though the basement flooded in February, and we had to cancel the Oscar party, we did go on to have some great events this past year. Very memorable.
9.
Plant a vegetable and herb garden. Now that I have a great yard, I am
looking forward to growing some wonderful veggies and herbs. I always
grow herbs, but this year, I am going to do a TON of them and in the
fall, make herb infused oil and vinegars to use as gifts for friends.
Planning ahead for the holidays will really help as well. I have my mom
and dad's pepper plant and rosemary that I am babysitting for them while
they are gone for the winter in AZ. That fresh rosemary is seriously
going to come in handy!
This I did accomplish, for the most part anyway. We had some great fresh herbs all summer and fall. I did not make any herb infused oils or vinegars. BUT, I will give it a go again next year! LOVED all of my fresh herbs, tomatoes, zucchini and cucumbers!
10. Participate in the arts at
least once a month. Whether it is a trip to a museum, a play, the St.
Paul Chamber Orchestra or the MN Orchestra, a play, a musical, whatever
it might be. We are fortunate enough to live in a great metropolitan
area which has a wonderful arts program.
Nope. Hasn't happened. The job got in the way for the most part. We did a lot of fun stuff and we maybe made three or four events, but we need to step it up this year.
11. Be happy. I
usually am, but sometimes I don't always appreciate what I have and
look inside. This year I have set myself up with some tools to help
accomplish this goal. I want to do this at home, work, the Junior
League, with my family and my friends. I am going to try to track this
here as the year goes by.I love having fresh flowers in the house, and I
love arranging them. I have a whole shelf devoted to vases and flower
containers. This is one I did for New Years Eve, I love the bright
cheery colors. It just makes me smile!
I have come a long way on this one. Quitting my job and starting a new one made a HUGE difference. This one is always a work in progress though, but there have been a lot of flowers in my life!
Can't wait to see what 2012 has in store!
Posts
