Wrap Up

THE FINISHED (mostly) LIST! 

101 in 1001 2080...or so

12/31/2014 

Finished, meaning I'm closing the books, and only rolling a few forward if I really really want to. 

The items listed in {ALL BOLD} - I didn't even start. 
The items in {regular font} - I attempted, or got partially done with notes in italics. 
The items Crossed Out - completely done with notes in red.

Overall score: B 
I'm above average. I love that!


1)read a new book a month (16/34)

I pretty much suck at this...
Read: 
9 Days in Heaven
Incident at Big Sky
The Love Dare
The Shack
The VisitationThe Oath
House
Boundaries With Teens
MySpace My Kids
My Sisters Keeper
Dropping your Rock
A few others I can't even remember the names of...
2)buy new dishes that we love
Done in March & April 2010
3)communicate with my half brother for the first time
YES! 5/9/2010 THIS WAS NOT EASY FOR ME!
4)take 1 trash bag full of stuff out of my house each month to give away (34/34) 
I'm ahead of the game on this one
5)rehome our troublesome dog
We rehomed him - six feet under :-/
6)build new permanent nestboxes
8 done - only need to install them now!
7)raise a batch of broiler chickens for the F.A.R.M. program (Like a food pantry only with actual fresh meat and poultry)

Maybe some day... but now is not the time. 
8)find a local poultry processor that we can work with long term

Easier than I thought it would be. 
9)learn how to sew a quilt

And I've done SEVERAL!! And I love it.  
10)take a random road trip

That was fun.
11)Plan and save for our 10 yr anniversary trip
In the early stages of narrowing down what we BOTH want to do.

**update: Our anniversary trip turned in to having to attend someone else's wedding out of state. Good: We got in a little road trip. Bad: We still need an anniversary trip just for US! Looking at the 15th anniversary instead :)
12)get a new passport 

you know, in case we take a really cool trip.
13)take a couples only trip each year (3/3)
Newport 1/09, Illinois/Wisconsin 7/09 Las Vegas 11/2010
14)take the kids on a kid-planned trip

Let's do that again some time.
15)do a girls only/guys only weekend with grandparents invited

Attempted, feebly, but not enough participation points. 
16)go shooting with my dad

Easy peasy - just had to ask
17)invite hubby's family over (or out) for dinner every 6 months (3/5)

Could use work here.
18)organize a second homework station for the kids with a computer Completed March 2009
19)make a loft bed for the boys

  (Changed my mind on this one)
20)have game night 1x a month

Funnnn
21)develop a pantry system

Much better than before. 
22)find a smaller entertainment center & mount tv to the wall

Completed 1/2010 - LOVE this
23)make a months worth of menus and grocery list -and actually follow it

Well... it was a good idea.
24)buy Fireproof and share it

Good movie. Love your friends by sharing this movie
25)send flowers to 5 friends out of the blue (3/5)

more more!
26)mail "thinking of you" cards to 60 people who are on my mind (27/60)

It's easier to do "thinking of you"emails. But who doesn't like snail mail??
27)have pizza night w/ the fam every month 

Easy for me :D28)get an annual exam

Definitely not easy for me. But so necessary. 
29)visit the Oregon Gardens with my camera

This one is going on my bucket list
30)take a weekend and go visit my grandma each year
Grandma died. We did get to visit her though!
31)email relatives each month 

Being intentional isn't that hard.
32)have lunch with my husband 2x month 

Planning ahead! Making it fun
33)plant 2 flowering shrubs that I love each spring (2/6)

Hmm... I guess I don't like planting stuff that goats eat, or floods wash out. 
34)plot my garden plans by the end of February 

It doesn't say how many times, but I did it once, so that counts!
35)attend a girlfriends getaway every 6 months Women's Retreat 2009, Women of Faith 2009, LFCC Retreat 2010, WOF 2010, LFCC Retreat 2011, Revolve 2011, WOF 2011, Women's Retreat 2012... I'm good at this one. 
36)see the doctor about pain mgmt

Hmm... how about more physical therapy? 
37)use my bike 1x per week for 2 months straight (2/8)

Someone lost the power cord for the stationary... I guess that goes on the to-do list. 38)take the dog around our acreage 2x month

Exercise and fresh air.
39)adopt another pair of kittens (I keep TRYING, but hubby says no... repeatedly)

YEAH - got it done in 2014... on accident, but still ;)
40)sell my car

Sold it one year, bought it back 2 years later.
41)pay off the suburban early

 (Sold it!)
42)get all our life insurance paperwork together

Let's prioritize, people!
43)install and set up Quicken on my new computer
YES! Finished!! May 8, 2010
44)organize closet

Several times now... haha
45)two trips to Idaho (2/2)
That was almost too easy. 3/2010
46)take kids to a snow park 2x ea winter (4/6)

We made good memories here. 
47)date night with hubby 2x month

Loving this one. 
48)cook a full breakfast one Sunday before Church

I may have done this, I just don't remember. ha!
49)read the entire Old Testament

Still not COMPLETE
50)read the entire New Testament

Still not COMPLETE
51)write a love letter/blog to each child (2/4)

Get to work, Momma!
52)write in appreciation journal for my husband each week for 3 months

Well...some weeks I guess I just wasn't very appreciative. However, I've been working on a list of 1000 things I appreciate. Try it!
53)check oil in car myself for 6 months straight (0/6) 

Cut me some slack, I check the oil in a school bus every single day. 
54)attend two Christian concerts (2/2)
55)complete 10 guitar lessons (4/10)
56)arrange 4 harp lessons for Delayna
I'm a terrible mother.
57)take 12 awesome pictures to put in a calendar (12/12)
Well yeah... that took more time than I thought
58)take my girls and their Grandma C to Tea
Hmm... maybe it needs more planning time.
59)attend a board meeting at camp
Done x 2
60)buy something major for the Chevelle restoration
How about we sell the thing instead? Yes!
61)increase our tithe by another 1% each year
Way happy with this one. 
62)set aside $25 each pay period in emergency fund
Well it was there, but then there was an emergency. Then it was there, then there was... yeah, you get the idea.
63)mail kids' school pics each November
I just stopped having school pictures taken. Eliminated self-imposed stress!
64)schedule pedicure for each May & August
I did this a couple times... now I'm getting much better at taking care of myself. Goal accomplished!
65)sit WITH my kids to watch a movie or TV show each week
How hard is this?? Well...
66)Create a prayer journal
Completed 2/2010
67)replace tub & shower surround
Ugh.... I so wish for this. 
68)get all leaky faucets fixed
Bathtub fixed! Sink fixed. Now the bathtub leaks again. *sigh*
69)clean out my corner of the shop
Minimize, toss, give away... repeat!
70)rebox/the girls' wedding gifts from Grandma Bolton's Estate and other things in shop
Not that hard. Just needed supplies.
71)attend a Weekend to Remember Conference or another Couple's Retreat
Good investment of time and money. Repeated several times. 
72)take in a symphony performance
Want to do this again.
73)take my kids to OMSI
I took one of them... on a school field trip. Does that count?
74)attend another small group series
Several times... great stuff! New friends!
75)get a sewing machine set up
I forgot about this one. I'm so glad I did it!! 
76)get sewing lessons
From several smart people, and YouTube!
77)sew aprons for my girls (0/2)
Come on now...
78)help the kids plant their own flower garden
I'm not doing this. I can't even get my own to grow (See below)
79)grow 50 square feet of cutting flowers only
Planted - let's see if they'll grow!
80)plant daffodils along the entire fenceline (0/500 feet)
I may just have to give up on this dream.
81)plant 8 new trees (5/8)
Just bought two more fruit trees. A Peach and a Golden Delicious Apple
...then another apple and a cherry!
...added a pear tree
81)volunteer at the Crisis Pregnancy Center
Someday, just not yet.
82)get a band together to perform at a youth camp
Simply AMAZING experience Completed July 09, and 10 and 11....and... Family Camp...
83)scan my Mother's Photos
partially done, but I got a D for a grade :/
84)write a year in review annually (3/3)
Not too shabby.
85)submit a photo to Country magazine
Hmm... I could still do this. If I still felt like doing it.
86)make a decent loaf of bread
Learned how to make easy dinner rolls from scratch instead. Yay! 05/2010
87)invite my parents over to make homemade ice cream
Good plans!
88)do a camping trip with friends
Always fun... always.
89)Get a massage
What??
90)send a family away to spend a weekend using our timeshare Done 2009 twice!
Blessed our own socks off.
96)make 20 new blog layouts (18/20)
I got tired of doing this... and moved on to better things.
97)try a new (to me) local restaurant
Got out of the boat of boredom, and it was good.
98)host another summer BBQ at our place
That took a looooong long time to get done (June 2014)
99)find a church closer to home
www.corvallischurch.org   
100)take a multi-vitamin every day for a month (16/30)
I tried this a few times. I've learned that days will be missed. Just keep trying.
101)find a weight loss/get healthy solution that works for me
Over FORTY POUNDS gone - see ya, wouldn't wanna be ya. 

TEN?

Yep, you heard it right. I scratched TEN things off my list today. They didn't all HAPPEN today, but they are scratched off just the same. Yay, it's amazing the things I can accomplish when it's in the back of my mind :)

9, 13, 36, 54, 61, 71, 72, 75, 76, 84 - FINISHED! Yay me!

#3 Better than I could have expected

When I first started this list of "goals" - I combined a list of some of my dreams, wishes and needs as well. I do not cross things off this list intending to never look back, I cross them off with the full intent of bettering myself because of it, and helping myself grow.

When I wrote down goal #3, it was because it was one of those things I could have done years ago, but I was too chicken. I was also impatiently waiting for someone else to do something to make it easier for me. I suppose that something finally happened, but whatever the reason, it still took me a heck load of gumption as well as a "what do I have to lose? -- wait, don't answer that" mentality.

I wrote to my half brother. Or sent him an online message, I should say. Within 48 hours I'd heard back. It was just like that. My goal is crossed off the list - but not the goal of forming a relationship. That is something that will take time, work, and persistence on both parts. I'm just so glad I finally took that first step.
My life is different now - in a wonderful way.

First Year Review

My first year has come and gone, and here's what I've been able to cross off my list:

Read many new books (didn't list them all!)
Took out over 20 bags of stuff to give away or just throw away
Got rid of our troublesome dog
Took 2 couples only trips
Set up a homework/computer station for the kids
Mounted our TV to the wall, and replaced our huge wall unit with a big screen TV instead.
Bought and shared the Fireproof movie
Got an annual exam
Plotted a garden by the end of February
Attended 2 Girlfriend Getaways... Women's Retreat and Women of Faith. Next retreat comes in a month!
Walked my dog more and rode my recumbent bike more often
Sold my car
Organized my closet
Took my kids to the snow 3 times
Took a trip to Idaho
Had many date nights and lunch dates with my husband
Wrote a tribute to one of my four children
Completed 3 of 10 guitar lessons
Set aside more cash in an emergency fund
Got a pedicure
Sat WITH my kids to watch a movie or TV show each week
Reorganized my corner of the shop
Participated in another small group series
Planted 50 square feet of flowers in my garden
Planted 4 new fruit trees
Got a band together to play for a week of Youth Camp
Wrote a Year in Review - once
Sent 2 different families away on vacation using our timeshare
Made seven new blog layouts
Tried out a new restaurant
Found a church closer to home
Took a lot of multi-vitamins
Found a weight loss solution that will work for me. This just means I need to stick to it!

I hadn't realized how many of the items on my list were completed, or in progress until today. I feel accomplished, and excited to see what I'll get done this next year!

#82 Better than Expected

Just completed goal number 82 - and it was done much sooner than I'd anticipated! It was one of those biggies on my list that I really wanted to see happen, and by the grace of God, and only God, it was successfully planned, carried out and completely amazing!

We got a band together, guitarists, keyboard, drummer and vocalists -and led worship for an entire week of High School camp.
Just got home today, time to sleep.

Goal #18 FINITO!

We did it! Got the "Homework Corner" done, connected, and ready to go. You'll have to ignore the stuff on the wall... it was already there and doesn't have a new home yet. This area has already made homework times easier, and the kids will have a central area to go for their supplies, or to do research on the net, or just amuse themselves while I make dinner. There are a couple of really fun sites that I let my Kindergartener use while I need to have some uninterrupted time...

His current recommendation: http://www.starfall.com/

And yes, you do see TWO computers set up there. I put my old laptop there for now, to get all my old files off it. For some reason, it stayed.

Proof!

Goal #1 BOOKS!

Goal #1 Read a book a month

Woohoo! I like this one. I have so many books I'd LIKE to read, and typically I have to carve out time to sit down with something and read it. This past weekend, while we were in Seaside I told the family I'd be reading not one, but TWO books! I had to make an announcement, but I did it! I read Nine Days in Heaven, followed by the rest of the novel: Incident at Big Sky. I got this last book because it has my Uncle in it! He was one of the deputies that helped round up the bad guys - really fun read!