Goodness. I suck at regular updating.

Tons of progress has been made.

I've been to one GM event finally. We're going to another today. I think courting mom friends is hard and a little like rushing a sorority (which I also sucked at and only lasted 1 meeting).

I've been reading like crazy. I finished

14. Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult. Her books always leave me feeling slightly dirty.

15. Also read A Tale of Two Sisters by Anna Maxted (I like her and it was on the sale table). I love her books as they are often somewhat unexpected. But this one had ample issues around fertility and miscarriage so not light reading for me.

16. Beauty Shop for Rent by Laura Bowers. Sweet and light YA.

17. She Went All the Way by Meg Cabot. Fun. light. Super super super predictable.

18. Derby Girl by Shauna Cross, which is good YA for those rocker girls who think of themselves as so so different.

The next book is Joanne Harris.

I've been cooking more again and eating out less, which is good.

Next week I start the fat farm diet for 8 weeks, meeting that goal.

We are in the midst of planning Noah and Grace's first birthday parties. What kind of food should we serve? I was thinking potstickers, Teri chicken, noodles? Maybe salad?

In prep for their birthday, I've set up savings accounts for Noah and Grace. They aren't 529s because 529s have lots of hidden fees. Just simple ING accounts. But one for each of them.

I bought daffodils the other day. They look GREAT in the new kitchen.

We also bought a Britax car seat on sale since Little Man is getting bigger.

The baby clothes and other consignment stuff is ready to go. The sale is next week. YAY consignment!

I bought a new pair of jeans and a skirt, but only after getting rid of a bag of clothes. I'm low on pants right now.

I had my eyes checked and I've gotten lots of new pairs of glasses, including a couple of pair purchased from the uber inexpensive Zenni Optical.

I finally got my hair cut. I look so much better with reasonable hair.

And I went to Burke Williams, though they pissed me off.

Anyhow, lots of good progress. Spring break is a good time to get things done.

Super behind. oops.

I fell really far behind because I was working on my 101 list.

Lots of reading. Moving. Packing. Throwing stuff away.

Let's do books first:

I finished:

10. Run by Ann Pacthett. OH but I loved this books. Seriously. But I am a huge Ann Patchett fan.


11. Tunnels by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams. super fun. Extremely readable and enjoyable.


12. Lost and Found by Jacqueline Sheehan. Sad, but still light and fluffy.

I signed my will. I got some of the paperwork situated for the dissolution.

Also, we moved to a new house nearer to Grace. Thank god. So lots has been accomplished, with some throwing stuff away and also getting new towels.

I can't recreate lots of the happy things from the week, though i did pay attention t them. Yesterday's happy thing, looking around a full house of people (okay, 3 extra) and realizing how wonderful my friends are.

Oof tired

I'm getting irked waiting for the dissolution paper work. Grr. Argh. If it doesn't arrive tomorrow, I'll have to follow up.

I have $16 left on my starbucks card. YAY! I've realized that I LIKE having iced tea, but if I have some in a thermos I don't feel the need to stop. So I made some iced tea tonight and its in the fridge.

Dinner was leftovers.

I need to get better about veggies and salad. Sunday for dinner we had a roast with steamed veggies that was surprisingly good.

Happy Thing from Sunday was the yum of dinner.

Happy Thing from Monday was finding a short story by K. Vonnegut and also getting the books for CYRM.

Happy Thing from Tuesday was Gracie time.

Short to do for tomorrow

1. Send rent
2. Mail thank you to Denise, write one to Kristen, mail two packages
3. appointment for haircut
4. print short stories
5. returns, if time
6. buy formula
7. make up memo re: CYRM books
8. call Iwata

Accomplishments make me happy. Met with a lawyer about a will and he's writing one up for us. So I'm making progress. Also I started sorting clothes for consignment and listing them into the system.

AND I made broccoli cheese soup, which was a new to me recipe.

AND I read another book

6. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick.

Progress Notes:

I'm still doing pretty well about eating at home. We had fred steak with steamed veggies on Tuesday and last night I had salad. For lunch today, I brought a sandwich and some yogurt.

Also, I've done a fair amount of research about dissolving the domestic partnership, including working up the forms for a marital separation agreement. I should have everything ready to file by the first of the February. YAY progress.

Wednesday's Happy Thing? Knowing I have only one more ARWP meeting. And then an open mic in June, but I can think about that later.

I have to get on top of writing notes to people. And maybe the holiday card this year will be valentines?

Also, I forgot to mention but last week I went to BW and had my eyebrows waxed. They look good, but it was a weird ass experience.

Happy Thing

My happy thing today? having dinner ready when I came home. YAY crockpot. Dinner was easy: chicken, salsa, beans, diced tomatoes. Then I threw in corn at the end. New to me recipe. With veggies. Was yum! Also, had a salad, which was also okay. I mean, it wasn't grilled cheese, but it was good.

Yesterday and Today

Happy Thing from Friday: seeing ita.

Happy Thing from Today: the sausage cheddar biscuits rock.

Other things done:

• groceries (I remembered both coupons AND to take my own bags)
  
• some food prepped (including soup and the biscuits and I did some of the bake prep)
  
• several rounds of dishes were done
  
• sheets changed (that should totally be one of my 101 things -- change sheets once a week. I think where I have duplicates like taking a cloth bag to the grocery store, I'm adding that instead) and washed
  
• went to yoga with the baby
  
• paid a bill and bought the cutest Sandra Boynton book ever.
  
• tried to get formula at Target, but they didn't have the right kind. Grr. That means I'll have to go to Babies R Us tomorrow so I can use the coupon.

I NEED A NAP.

Backlog

Happy Thing for Wednesday? Dim Sum!
Happy Thing for today? Noah in the bathtub. Too cute. And also getting all of the assessments handed out.

I'm noticing that forcing myself to write down something that makes me happy gets me out of my funk when the funk looms.

I'm not sure I made any more progress. I've been having salad almost every day which puts me on the veg track. But it also means by the time I come stumbling in home from work, I am famished.

Catching Up

Monday's Happy Thing? Leaving work at 3:03 and getting home before 3:30. I love a smooth commute.

Tuesday's Happy Thing? Noah doing so well with occupational therapy. He was sitting up and gurgling and laughing and playing. He worked hard for an hour and then crashed. What a sweet boo.

Also, I deposited $366 into not an ING account but the credit union. That knocks off 057 for the year.

We've been doing a grand time of eating at home. I think since the first of the year, I've eaten out only once, which is sort of very unusual for me. I think tomorrow I will take my mom out for dim sum before she goes back to ohio. It also reminds me, I need to figure out next week's menus and put together a grocery list.

I just finished book two. 2. The Luxe by Anna Godbersen (1/8/08).
Hated it. It's a bloated 19the century gossip girl book. Bleh.

Brief Update:

Went to yoga on Saturday, as part of Mommy and Me. It wasn't great yoga, but it was fun nevertheless.

Yesterday, attended a seminar about estate planning and will making, so I am a minor step ahead on that. We'll meet with the lawyer later in the month as part of a consultation.

Happy Thing from yesterday? Getting off my butt and returning lots of $$ in notions to JoAnn Fabrics. Plus, had pasta papa. It was very very good.

Day in Review

Happy Thing:

A good hot shower. It felt fabulous.

Other things to note: I made sweet potato risotto that ROCKED THE FREE WORLD. Another new to me recipe. Another vege. Another home cooked meal. Actually all meals today were cooked at home.

Tomorrow I plan on:
going to an estate planning seminar
going to farmers market with my mom
finishing the rolly bin
cook up stuff I have planned for next week's menu.

I'm thinking about getting one of these calendar books and I think it would work for scheduling my family but also for tracking this. Must think more on it.

Day Late

Yesterday's Happy Thing: The rain. I really love rain and we've been so drought-y that it's lovely to see rain. But it also caused our ceiling to leak (oof).

I also started clearing the rolly basket. I have one more drawer to go. It's oddly liberating to throw stuff away!

I spent $32 on two new bras. First I went to VS where they told me I was a 38DD which cracked me up. Then another VS worker bee told me I was

Also we set the Starbucks budget and bought a gift card. Basically I'll recharge the gift card on the 5th day of every month and what is on the card is what we use. After it's gone, it's gone for the month. A weird way to budget? Maybe. But it just might work.

Still working out a system

I'm not sure this will work, but maybe if I have labels going it will work better?

To-dos from this week:
Fuzzy blankets for both kids (Grace's and Noah's)
cart cover
get a new cable for the printer
address book on computer
clean rolly basket
take preemie clothes to HMH.

Not related to The List But other To-Dos:
Put up tree and decor
unpack and breakdown boxes
create a menu for the rest of this week and for next
Fill in calendar

Progress Notes:

Completed two tasks today:

I finished the cart cover for Noah and I finished a fuzzy blanket for Grace.

In terms of my happy thing for the day? I have two! I finished something (WOOT) and I had the yummiest grilled cheese ever!

Categorized Part II

On Going


1. Yoga at least 1x a week, for 6 months
2. Run or walk at least 1x a week for 4 months
5. Go to the dentist for teeth cleaning 1x per year
7. Get annual check ups done both at my OBGYN and my regular doc
8. Have eyes checked annually
13. Write letters to my dad at least twice a month for 12 months
14. Read 52 books/year
19. Go on a Starbucks fast for an entire month once a year.
20. Burke-Williams at least 3 times a year.
21. Hair cut at least every 8 weeks
22. For a month, go back to low carb, low fat diet
23. For a month, record everything I eat
24. Pedicures at least every other month for a year.
25. Have something written for writing group at least every other month for a year
26. Attend writing group at least every other month for a year
27. Attempt at least one month of 365 Days photos (sure... it's only 30 or 31 days but still....)
34. Use travel mug at least twice for every 6 visits to a coffee place
35. Buy bottled water no more than once a month (use Nalgene!)
36. Bring at least two cloth bags each time I go to the grocery store
39. Go to Mommy and Me Yoga at least once a month for 6 months.
42. Donate blood once a year.
44. Volunteer for Parent Connection at HMH.
47. Go OUT to the movies at least twice a year
48. Go to Huntington Gardens at least 6 times a year.
53. Set and keep date nights every other week for 6 months.
55. Set a Starbucks budget and stick to it for each month.
57. Put $1/day in an ING savings for a year
60. Collect all change for a year.
61. Roll change and deposit in credit union for N & G.
70. Buy flowers four times a year.
74. Send a thinking of you card twice a month for 6 months to friends.
75. Call a family member ever week for 3 months.
77. Send random holiday cards, such as Valentine's Day cards, st. pat's cards, etc. to friends and family, cycling through everyone at least once.
79. Cook and eat at home at least twice a week.
80. Make soup once a month
81. In winter, spring and fall, roast vegetables once a month
82. In summer, grill vegetables once a month.
83. Eat vegetables at least once a day
85. Try a new recipe at least 4 times a year
86. Bake cookies at least once per winter
87. For one month a year, do not eat any drive-through food.
90. Each winter or summer clean closet and dresser and donate all ill fitting clothes
91. Only buy replacement clothing (each item coming in must be accompanied by an item leaving) for myself
92. Clean the car, top to bottom, at least once every other month for 8 months
96. Take cloth bags to grocery store at least once a month for 6 months.
99. Clean out email folders once a year.
101. Write down 1 thing that made me happy every day.


Given that list,

What I've done today to work towards which goals....

83- had squash for supper
101 - wrote my happy thing
81 - had ROAST squash! (I rock!)
85 - the squash had a new glaze for me (soy-maple)

Happy Thing

Today's happy thing: winning a $50 Old Navy card from a Work It Mom contest.

This is on top of the expensive locket I won from the same community.

FUN!

Final List

Health and Fitness

1. Yoga at least 1x a week, for 6 months
2. Run or walk at least 1x a week for 4 months
3. Drink 80 ounces of water a day
4. Floss at least once a day for 1 month
5. Go to the dentist for teeth cleaning 1x per year
6. Get flu shot
7. Get annual check ups done both at my OBGYN and my regular doc
8. Have eyes checked annually

Family

9. Write a will
10. Resolve Domestic Partner stuff
11. Start 529 College Savings Account
12. Plan and throw 1st birthday party for Noah and Grace
13. Write letters to my dad at least twice a month for 12 months


Self Improvement and Well Being

14. Read 52 books/year
15. Finish Thesis proposal
16. Finish Thesis
17. File for Graduation
18. Graduate
19. Go on a Starbucks fast for an entire month once a year.
20. Burke-Williams at least 3 times a year.
21. Hair cut at least every 8 weeks
22. For a month, go back to low carb, low fat diet
23. For a month, record everything I eat
24. Pedicures at least every other month for a year.


Creativity

25. Have something written for writing group at least every other month for a year
26. Attend writing group at least every other month for a year
27. Attempt at least one month of 365 Days photos (sure... it's only 30 or 31 days but still....)
28. Make a cart cover
29. Knit a lap blanket
30. Make a fuzzy back up blanket for Noah
31. Make a fuzzy blanket for Grace
32. Hem all the pants that are floating around the house
33. Quilt a quilt for myself

Environmental

34. Use travel mug at least twice for every 6 visits to a coffee place
35. Buy bottled water no more than once a month (use Nalgene!)
36. Bring at least two cloth bags each time I go to the grocery store

Baby-Related

37. Learn and use baby signs
38. Sign up for a gymboree class for one session and try it
39. Go to Mommy and Me Yoga at least once a month for 6 months.
40. Go to a GM event
41. Create a year in retrospect of Noah and Grace's pictures.

Giving back

42. Donate blood once a year.
43. Locate one charity and make a donation in the names of friends and family for holidays for one holiday season
44. Volunteer for Parent Connection at HMH.
45. Donate extra preemie clothes to HMH.
46. Cull classroom library and donate books.

Culture and Entertainment

47. Go OUT to the movies at least twice a year
48. Go to Huntington Gardens at least 6 times a year.
49. Go to the Getty Center at least once
50. Go to LACMA at least once
51. Take the baby to see the horses being exercised at Santa Anita
52. Join a children's museum
53. Set and keep date nights every other week for 6 months.
54. Start a small book group

Financial

55. Set a Starbucks budget and stick to it for each month.
56. Create a 529 Account for Noah and Grace
57. Put $1/day in an ING savings for a year
58. Create an ING savings account for Christmas.
59. STICK to what is in the account for holiday gifts.
60. Collect all change for a year.
61. Roll change and deposit in credit union for N & G.

Travel

62. Go to PNW to see Julia and Gordon.
63. Go to Ohio to see Mom and Dad.
64. Pick and arrange a Thanksgiving location that will be affordable.
65. Go camping with K and N once
66. Go to Bay Area for delayed weekend away
67. Take Katie and babies to Wild Animal Park
68. See Keith and Rebecca

Purchases

69. Buy a car seat for a bigger sized baby.
70. Buy flowers four times a year.
71. Buy at least one bra that fits correctly
72. Buy a new bath towels
73. Buy a cable for the printer

Connecting

74. Send a thinking of you card twice a month for 6 months to friends.
75. Call a family member ever week for 3 months.
76. Send a "Family letter" in the summer instead of at Christmas
77. Send random holiday cards, such as Valentine's Day cards, st. pat's cards, etc. to friends and family, cycling through everyone at least once.
78. Update address book and put it on the computer


Cooking and Food

79. Cook and eat at home at least twice a week.
80. Make soup once a month
81. In winter, spring and fall, roast vegetables once a month
82. In summer, grill vegetables once a month.
83. Eat vegetables at least once a day
84. When eating dinner or lunch out, every other time order a salad
85. Try a new recipe at least 4 times a year
86. Bake cookies at least once per winter
87. For one month a year, do not eat any drive-through food.

Clean Up

88. Take baby clothes to consignment sales
89. Sell Medela Classic Breast Pump
90. Each winter or summer clean closet and dresser and donate all ill fitting clothes
91. Only buy replacement clothing (each item coming in must be accompanied by an item leaving) for myself
92. Clean the car, top to bottom, at least once every other month for 8 months
93. Cull books and take to book exchange or friends of public library
94. File and label all PD stuff
95. Clean rolly basket

Random

96. Take cloth bags to grocery store at least once a month for 6 months.
97. Renew subscriptions to Blueprint
98. Find a new place and move into it, one ideally closer to Grace
99. Clean out email folders once a year.
100. For every item not achieved on this list, donate $5 to a charity to be determined.
101. Write down 1 thing that made me happy every day.