Sometimes I consider not doing these recaps because, really, it's not that big of a deal. But, when I look back at past years it is kind of nice to see what I've done. I have considered not doing a separate post but just linking back to the original post and may do that eventually but for now, here's a look back at what did (and did not) get done.
I've mentioned in other posts that we dealt with sickness and weather in January which derailed a lot of plans including some of my goal planning and that's ok. I'll try to give some insight as I go through the list.
1. Stage 2 of the basement - A) Count all of the bins and then write down what my goal # is by the end of Stage 2. I have a total of about 60 bins/boxes so I'd like to cut it down to 45 B) Spend 20-30 minutes 2-3 days a week sorting, emptying, organizing, and deep cleaning. It was cold. Trying to spend excess time in the basement was not really that enticing! What I did do was put all of the Christmas bins back where they belong because, guess what, there was space for every single one!
2. Scrapbooking - A) Scrapbook 31 pages (at least) in January (one a day). I even have a cute little chart to fill out for each month of the year. B) Reserve January 9-11 as my "scrapbooking weekend" with the goal to scrapbook as many hours as I can. C) Actual accomplish goals are -- Finish 3 months in 2011, Finish 3 months in 2025 and finish one month of memorabilia I am kind of disappointed in myself that I didn't get any scrapbooking completed. My "Scrapbooking weekend" was filled with taking care of Darryl and Nate who both had the stomach flu. Plus I ended up just feeling "off" (Thankfully I never got the flu like the guys did but I think I had the bug just enough to make me want to do nothing).
3. Get my oven looked at (and hopefully it can be repaired!) This took a back seat to 1) Needing to get our well bladder looked at after a power outage (it was making terrible noises but in the end was fine) and 2) A part on my washer went bad and needed replaced. I decided I'd rather have a working washer and continue to use crock pots HA!
4. Monthly Habits - I find a photo recently that I'll post below:
Yes, boring habits but good habits to build on. Each month the focus is on one of them - starting it, getting back to it, or just continuing it. So, January's focus is the beds. Last year I made it a habit to make my bed every day and I never missed a day. I also want to add in a better routine of washing blankets and changing sheets as a habit (so a certain day each week). Other habits I am working to continue from last year are "swish and swipe", taking out all trash on Wednesdays, doing a Monday Morning Reset, and Home Blessings Friday. For the most part this is a "done" item. Laundry plans were interrupted by sickness, waiting on the well to be checked and the washer being down for a few days.
5. Deep Cleaning Goals - Recently I downloaded a cleaning checklist to use to help me better plan for cleaning/deep cleaning each room. I like visuals and this printable is just that - a visual. Part of the plan if to list the top 5 cleaning goals of the month. I'm not sure I really have five. What I do have is what follows: A) Using the new pintable's, do the daily cleaning (For example, on Monday - clean the kitchen, Tuesday- the bathroom, etc.) B) Do my "pick a room" for decluttering/deep cleaning - January's room is the master bedroom. The goal is to get into every nook and cranny and deep clean it all. I think that means I only have 2 top cleaning goals HA! Nope and nope. HA! I've already stated all the reasons for other things and they are the same for why I didn't even start on this yet.
6. 30 day decluttering challenge - this is part of the aforementioned pintable's. I'd like to tackle the list this month to help eliminate some of those "hot spots" that are always catching clutter. So I liked this idea when I wrote it but it didn't have a good flow for me so I didn't end up completing it. I have a different idea for February.
7. Josh' room - Get everything hung up on his walls. This will help clean out some baskets in his room too. Sickness. Enough said.
8. Host Nate's 16th birthday party. You would this this is a sure thing, right?? Nope. Due to the horribly cold temps (like a feels like of -28) forecasted for the morning of his party, we postponed it to March.
9. Complete projects in Nate's room. Sickness
10. Purchase a flash drive and move Solid Rock Documents to the drive. Honesty -- I forgot about even doing this.
11. Clean out the Joyful bins in the basement and use things I have on hand for the coming semester. Done
12. Plan my lesson plans for both of my classes. Done
13. Put together my music binder with songs to play and sing throughout this year. Done
14. Memorize my verses toward my 101-1001 goal. The camp the boys attend with out church is posted verses every two weeks so I plan to use their program to get my verses in! I printed them but didn't study them.
15. Chose an adventure to do with Darryl as part of our 25th year celebration - to complete in either January or February. I have something planned for February that ties in with his birthday.
16. Read! My goal is 130 books this year. Maybe last year was a fluke and I won't read that many but since I read 128 last year I figured I would try again. Reading on Libby helps alot - I don't have to purchase books, I just borrow them, read them, and return them. I find I read more because of this since I'm not spending money. Done - I got a lot of reading done in January since I wasn't feeling up to doing much else.
17. Read non-fiction books toward my 101-1001 plan. Done! I actually got a non-fiction book read this month!
18. Find ways to unplug once a week. So, basically I want to find a way to stay off of electronics even just for an afternoon - but that is not completely accurate. I still need to be able to help with school work which is often on a computer, my books are on a kindle, etc. But I think it is more, just stop the aimless scrolling. Instead, maybe go for a walk, clean something, scrapbook, play a game with the family, or read a regular book (I have a bookshelf full!). I feel like it will help reset my brain, help with anxiety, and help me be more present with my guys. This is hard to measure but I feel like I accomplished this on some level. I worked on setting my phone down throughout the day and going to do something - even as simple as emptying the dishwasher. Again, I also read a lot which was good.
19. My white paint project - First up, find my painting supplies and the white paint; purchase anything I need this month to tackle this project either by the end of the month or in February. While in my head I want to do this, my motivation does not HA!
20. Figure out how to shorten the blinds. This has been on my list since we bought them HA! I'll start with the master bedroom - take them down, shorten them (it looks kind of easy) so they fit the window and then wash them. It was took cold to take down blinds. For real.
21. Write my resume. Not done.
22. Undecorate Christmas - this will include going through my things (some still in bins) and cleaning out what we don't use/don't love. . Done
23. Write out my scripture verses each day. I found a great Facebook group where you journal scripture. I have found that it helps with my mindfulness if I take time to focus on scripture more. I had great intentions but just never acted on those intentions.
24. Focus on Daily Devotions/Bible Reading - I am in an accountability group and we do group devotions 2-3 days a week; I'd also like to work on my own daily Bible Study as well. I picked up a new daily devotional and am looking forward to getting into that now.
25. Plan February Events before February 1st - Superbowl Snacks (HA!), Valentine's Day, Darryl's Birthday, and anything they guys need for Camp, 25th Anniversary activities, Date day with Darryl Done
26. Plan at least one date day with Darryl in January and plan a family fun activity to do this quarter (probably March due to winter camps) Done
27. Pick out dates for camping this summer/fall and get things reserved for at least one of them. I have tentative dates in mind but they won't be confirmed until I can actual reserve them as things fill up.
28. Do final research/planning on my Mediterranean Diet experiment - I'd like to maybe do week 1 the last week of January. While I haven't done "final" research I did order a cookbook (it was free!) and have been looking through that to try and plan some meals.
29. Write a true "Honey Do" list for Darryl with the extra things on it that I like him to do better than doing it myself :-) LOL Done
30. Complete taxes and file them by the end of January if possible. This is in progress. I'm waiting for some final documents so it may not happen but the 31st.
31. Put together my "wish list" for the bathroom decor update since my room to deep clean in February is the Bathroom. Done
So, despite a kind of tough month, I do like the amount of "blue" (done) that I see throughout the list. This has allowed me to see that I have gotten more done then I originally thought which is great! It also shows me that I need to work on conquering a few more things in February.
