Life By Kristen

Goals & project update

Happy March!

The first two months of the year has passed and I’m slowly working at my goals and various projects. Here’s an update on how things are going in my little corner of the universe:

1. 12 changes: My change for January ( to wake up on time with alarm and go to bed early) went fairly well and has been sustainable, though I have been still hitting the snooze at least once ( this morning twice!). My February change was to make better attempts at communication and plans with friends. While I did reach out more, send a few more emails, etc. my limited budget did limit my ability to actually go out and do things as much as I wanted. I did, however, have a fun girls’ afternoon last week with some great gals & have sent emails out to a few more friends to try to set things up for March. My March goal is to drink more water ( as I type this I realize I haven’t had any since breakfast)– definitely needing to be more diligent with this.

2. House projects: The ceiling is painted in both the hallway and my bedroom, though the bedroom needs a second coat ( was covering up a beige pink with white). This weekend we will finally get around to sanding and washing the walls of any residual wallpaper glue and paint the trim in both rooms. Last Sunday, my Dad and brother successfully installed a new ceiling light in my hall and I am done ‘decorating’ in my kitchen. Pics of both to come.

3. The No Grocery Challenge: The month is up and I was very successful. From January 29 to February 29, the only things I purchased at the market were a loaf of bread, cheese, vegetables, milk, and a tube of cookie dough. Except for the cookie dough and milk, the supplies were all for the girls’ afternoon ( we had cheese fondue!) last weekend. The milk was the only necessity– though the cookie dough was a purchase made after a really horrible, bad news day. I’m horrible when it comes to emotional eating ( post coming on that too). PS- I gave up cookie dough for Lent.

The No Grocery Challenge will continue in some form as I move forward- not with the strict guidelines of not buying anything for a month, but more to be aware and mindful of what I need and what I am buying. With the exception of the milk, I timed out all of my perishables pretty well to last the month- butter, eggs, and other cheeses are just about to run out and I have only one frozen packet of chicken breast left in the freezer. I won’t be stocking up on pasta or rice any time soon- I still have ample amounts of it, and I think from now on, will try to only have 1-2 items stocked, only buying more if a recipe calls for it. Frustratingly, I didn’t use as many of my pantry items as I had hoped in the month challenge- still have six cans of tomatoes.

4. 2012 Goals progress: I am making a big dent in my movie watching list, but keep adding more things to my book list. In my quest to read fifty books this year, I’m on my 9th book so far. I fell a bit behind with reading for a few weeks but am into some good ones now (currently reading Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum and MWF Seeks BFF by Rachel Bertsche). I’m doing well with making things on my Pinterest boards (last night I made healthy baked chicken nuggests- a win) and while my hair is driving me nuts, haven’t had the urge to cut it yet. Tuesday night I was home early enough for work that the sun was still out so went on a great, brisk walk.

How are you doing on your goals for the year?