Menu Plan ... week of January 14th

Breakfasts:

• Banana bread from the freezer
• Scrambled eggs
• Cereal

Lunches:

• Canned soup and grilled cheese
• Leftovers
• Out for lunch after homeschool co-op

Dinner:

• Monday - Crock Pot Chicken over rice  My new recipe for the week.
• Tuesday -Breakfast for Dinner ... Eggs, sausage links, biscuits and gravy.
• Wednesday - Chicken Quesedillas, Spicy Cheese Dip and Chips, Seven Layer Salad, and Peanut Butter Pie for Marshall's 18th Birthday  (Where, oh where, has the time gone?)
• Thursday - Hamburger and rice from a mix
• Friday - Potato Soup and Homemade rolls
• Saturday - Homemade Pizza
• Sunday - Baked Spaghetti **

**Maybe not in that exact order. 
**Depending on the amount of leftovers, I reserve the right to make one night "Every Man for Himself" Night.

Menu Planning saves me so much money and so many brain cells.  Why don't I do it more consistently? 

I'm linking up over at Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday.

Weekly Goals ... January 14th, 2013

     It has been ages since I have posted a list of weekly goals.  Apparently I have gotten some things done without posting my list because I made it through Christmas without any major disasters.  But it is kind of nice to look back at my previous lists and see what I managed to accomplish.

 

     All too often it feels like I am going through my days and doing the same things and making absolutely no headway.

 

     My to do list doesn't seem to get any shorter.  The same chores need to be done over and over.  I guess it is true when they say "a mother's work is never done."

 

 

Weekly Goals … Week of January 14th, 2013


Family:

• Love note to Gene 

Visit with Mother 

Visit with Daddy

Personal:

• Lose two pounds

Pedicure 

Catch up on Bible reading 

Read some sort of self-help book on Kindle app

Homemaking:

• Clean Abby’s room really well

Paint Abby’s room 

Maintain the rest of the house while Abby’s room is in progress

Finances:

• Track Spending

Menu plan and grocery shop

Holiday:

• Birthday cupcakes for Abby at co-op

Abby’s birthday dinner on Sunday

Kids/School:

• Bible study twice this week

Check Marshall's Semester Final grades 

Relax and regroup and get ready to tackle Marshall’s challenges next week

 If I can get Abby's room painted this week and still check off most of the items on this list, then I am super woman!  When I was growing up, we didn't have a lot of extra money for doodads and clothes.  I never wanted my little girl to feel like she didn't have "stuff."

 

I may have overcompensated.?!

Word of the Year 2013

Finish

When I looked up the word finish, my favorite definition was: something that completes, perfects or concludes.

That is what I want for this year.  To complete things.  To bring them to their conclusion.  To make things as perfect as my imperfect self can make them.

There are too many things that I begin and never see the end of.  Too many projects that I start and never finish.  I am a great starter.  I have good ideas.  I buy the materials, do the research, begin the program ... whatever.  But all too often I give up and start the next new thing before I complete the first thing.

This is the year that I evaluate all of the things that I have started and decide if they are worth my time and energy to finish.  If they are, then they go on the list and this is the year that I bring them to completeness.  If they aren't worth my time and energy, then into the trash they go.  Literally or figuratively.  I am not going to allow them to clutter up my home or my mind any longer.

I am looking forward to the finish.  The conclusion. The perfection.

2013 is going to be the year of the FINISH.

2013 Goals

2012 was a great year.  I learned a lot, my kids learned a lot, and my hubby and I had a breakthrough in our marriage that has literally changed our lives.  I wouldn't change last year for anything, but I sure do want to make this year better.

I didn't really make a list of goals for 2012.  Sure, I had a list in my head, but that didn't go so well for me.  I made a list of 28 projects that I wanted to finish in 2012.  I checked off eight.  Eight?!?  Not even one third of the list.  How pathetic is that?  This year is going to be better.  Things are going to be different.  I am setting some goals.  There are going to be deadlines.  I am putting this list out into cyber space and people are going to be able to judge me.  That is a huge motivator for me. 

I hate to fail publicly.

Failing privately is okay.  No one knows but me.  I can always burn my list in the wood stove and no one will even have to know it existed.  But, if I put it on this blog some random person might see it.  That random person might meet me.  They could possibly ask me if I did what I said I was going to do.  I could be publicly humiliated for my lack of commitment.  Oh, the horror!  See what I mean?  It could be devastating.

Goals for 2013

Personal:

• Read through the Bible.  (Not an online version or on my phone.  A real Bible that I can hold in my hands and make notes in and feel and smell and...  you get the idea)
• Lose 75 pounds.  (A little less than 1.5  pounds a week.  I can do it.  I had Lap Band Surgery for Heaven's sake.  How much more help do I need?)
• Read 48 Books.  (Self-improvement books.  I could read a mystery novel every day with no problem.  I want to make a point to read things that are a bit more substantial.)
• Learn to knit.  (Just for fun.  I crochet like crazy.  Knitting looks harder.  I want to do it.)

Marriage:

• One date a month.  (Just us, no kids.  Even if it is just to run out to the grocery store and get lunch.)
• Four overnight trips.  (No kids, just a little time and money to waste on ourselves.  These kids are going to be grown up soon and I don't want to look around and think. "Who are you, and what am I going to do with you the rest of our lives?")
• Intentionally show appreciation for the sacrifices that he makes by working away form home in a difficult job to take care of our family.  (I want him to know that I notice.  Exactly how I am going to accomplish that is probably best left undescribed in this particular venue.)

Kids/School:

• Finish the current Bible Study this school year and pick out a new one for next year.
• One field trip or interesting adventure per month.
• Get in Marshall's head and figure out how to help him motivate himself to accomplish the goals he has for himself.  (Apparently public failure is not his main motivation.)

Family:

• Visit or have a craft day with my mom once a week.  (She lives alone.  She is probably lonely.  I need to be more intentional about spending time with her.  And anyway, she is my best friend and a lot of fun to be around!)
• Go out to my dad's once a week and spend time with him.  (His health is not so good, and I want to make sure he knows we care about him.)
• See or talk to my Gram once a month.  (She is 96 years old.  Need I say more?)
• Write two notes or send cards once a month.  (Snail Mail.  I like getting mail.  Everyone else must too.)
• Host family get togethers once a month.  (Birthdays, holidays, no reason.  Just make sure I feed everyone once a month.)

Financial:

• $500 a week income for me.  (A teaching job with an online school would be fantastic, but if that is not God's plan for me then I am sure He and I can work something out.)
• End 2013 with no debt except the mortgage. ( It is just a little bit on the credit cards right now, but ending the year with no debt would mean not charging anything for Christmas this year.)
• $20,000 in Savings.  (That is a lofty goal.  Easily doable when I start having an income, but nearly impossible without it.)
• Track spending monthly and lower amount each month.(When I started keeping track of how much money I really spend, I was appalled.  I thought I was frugal.  Not so much!)

Holidays:

• Make one Christmas gift every month.  (Or multiples of one gift.  I want to be done with all of the high pressure crafting before Thanksgiving.)
• Lower Christmas budget by $500.  (I love Christmas and I strive to make it special for everyone, but we spend a lot of money accomplishing that goal.  I want to slow things down and spread things out this year.)
• One project a month that contributes to a more organized Christmas.  (Things like organizing the decorations and deciding on a gift list early on will make things easier and help me have the kind of Christmas I want.
• Finish Christmas prep by Thanksgiving.  (All of the above goals will help me finish up by Thanksgiving.  I just want to spend the month of December decorating my house and making some special cookies and doing all of the fun things we like to do.  I don't want to have to worry that it isn't all going to get done.)
• Celebrate something every month.  (There is some sort of Holiday or birthday every month that I want to recognize in a significant way.  Even if it is something as simple as having apple food for every meal on Johnny Appleseed Day, I want to make sure that we are creating memories.)

Homemaking:

• Plan meals weekly or monthly and try one new recipe every week.  (I never make new foods.  The only new recipes I try are for deserts.  I want to be more adventurous this year.  And I want to be more intentional about what we are eating.  I would like to make more food from scratch and use the vintage cookbooks that I have been collecting.  And then there is Pinterest, too!)
• Grow a garden.  (We got a good start on making our raised bed last year but it fizzled out short of actually planting anything.)
• Redo 3 rooms.  (Abby's room is first on the list because that will be her birthday present this month.  She wants horses, not the flowers and fashion that I envisioned.)
• Make a yearly cleaning plan or follow one online.  (My daily plan is working out very well.  Now I need to figure out the big stuff.)

Blogging:

• Five posts a week.
• Six new income streams.
• Learn or research something new about blogging every week.
• Get a new computer.
• Get a SLR camera.
• Make and stick to a blogging schedule.  (In short, I want to be a real blogger, not just a blogger wannabe!)

I just know that 2013 is going to be my best year ever.  Life is so good.  God is so good.  I can't wait to see how things turn out. 
 
What are you going to do to make 2013 your best year ever?

Weekly Goals ... November 6th and a Pathetic Showing Last Week

Sort of a pathetic showing as far as last week's goals go.  I have more motivation for this week.  I hope I can get more done.

Weekly Goals ... October 29th

Family:

• Bible Study with kids two times. Only once.
• Write Gene a love note. Done
• Finish up the bucket list and start the Thanksgiving Count Down. We have three things left on the bucket list.  Two of them got forwarded to the Thanksgiving Countdown Calendar.

Personal:

• Lose four pounds. I am down a couple pounds.
• Pedicure. Removed my polish but I don't have the color I want to redo them.
• Exercise four times. I got on the exercise bike once all week.  Probably explains why I feel so crummy and I haven't lost any weight.

Homemaking:

• Finish Bathroom list. Done. Plus I added a few things to the list that I hadn't thought of before.
• Finish Laundry Room list. Not even started.
• Tidy all bedrooms. Ughhh!
• Patch and paint cracks in drywall. I did buy sanding screen and primer, but I didn't touch the actual walls.

Finances:

• Keep Spreadsheets current. Done.
• Coupon and menu plan. Lots of great deals at Kroger this week!
• Total October budget and start November. Spending for October was out of control.  I cannot believe the amount of money we went through.  November will probably be ridiculous too since Gene and I are going on a trip and we have to get serious about Christmas gift buying.

Holiday:

• Scrap three months of calendar. I did one month.  It is going to be so cute!
• Granny accessories assembled. Hate the pattern I started to use.  I need to rethink the whole project.
• Bake three things for the freezer. I baked pumpkin bread.  I wasn't in love with it.  I will have to try another recipe.
• Thanksgiving decorations. Decided not to do these until after company comes on Tuesday.  They haven't seen the Halloween decorations and will be back to see Thanksgiving so I decided to put it off.

School:

• Check in every day, especially with Marshall. I checked, but the kids are not exactly truthful.  Threats will ensue.
• Investigate volunteer opportunities. Didn't even send the first email about it.  So lazy!

Only seven things checked off the list last week.  Pretty pathetic.  Next week I have company coming so I know that I will be more motivated!

Weekly Goals ... Week of November 5th
Family:

• Bible Study with kids two times.
• Write Gene a love note.
• Prep kids and self for four days away.

Personal:

• Maintain weight 
• Pedicure.
• Exercise four times.

Homemaking:

• Finish Laundry Room list.
• Tidy all bedrooms.
• Patch and paint cracks in drywall.
• Clean off deck and put away all of the random totes.

Finances:

• Keep Spreadsheets current.
• Coupon and menu plan.
• Figure out budget for trip away.

Holiday:

• Scrap three months of calendar.
• Granny accessories assembled.
• Bake three things for the freezer.
• Thanksgiving decorations.

School:

• Check in every day, especially with Marshall.
• Investigate volunteer opportunities.

I have to get on the ball!  Company is coming on Tuesday evening.  I am leaving for a four day vacation with Gene on Saturday morning and Christmas is only 49 days away.

Last Week's Progress and Goals for the Week of October 29th

I am amazed at how busy we are even though I am a stay at home, homeschooling mom who doesn't really volunteer for that much stuff and whose kids are not involved in sports or many other activities.

How in the world do working moms get anything done?  I applaud you.  I am barely keeping up, and I have all of the time in the world.

I knew this week was going to be a challenge because we were going to be gone three days.  We were supposed to be camping for two, and one day was entirely used up with a field trip and party for the homeschool co-op.

Last week's accomplishments: 

Week of October 22nd

Family:

• Bible Study with the kids two times. Twice!  I may leave my goal at twice a week until after Christmas.  I am struggling to fit this in and it is so important.
• Love note to Gene. Poor guy.  He is so neglected.  I am making this a priority for next week.
• Check two things off the Bucket List. Two big things.  We went on a Fall Field trip with the co-op to Weber Farms and had a nice wagon ride and got to pick our own pumpkin.  The weather was beautiful!  The very next day we were off to the Buckeye Furnace Fall Festival to sell Hobo Pies and help raise funds for the Furnace.  The weather was crummy.  It rained and was cold all day.  We didn't camp as planned.  Kind of disappointing.

Personal:

• Three doctor's appointments. Done.  One more this week.  Ughhh!
• Three blog posts. I may just give up.
• Read a self help book on my Kindle app. I read Crystal Paine's new book 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life.  Excellent.  Now to apply it to my life.

Homemaking:

• Complete Kitchen List. I am calling it finished.  There is still some dusting to do, but I just did it recently and I will have to do it again for company next Monday so I made an executive decision and called it finished.
• One hour in each kid's room. Once again. Ha!  This week for sure!
• One hour in my room. Ditto, above.

Finances:

• Keep Spending Spreadsheet current. Complete, although the total at the end is scary.
• Keep Christmas Spreadsheet current. Complete, here I wish I had more things purchased.
• Menu plan and grocery shop with coupons. Three separate trips to the grocery store, one for our groceries, one for camping groceries, and one for Hobo Pie making groceries.

Holiday:

• Two baked goods in the freezer. Haven't baked a thing.
• Finish scarf. I did finish this.  I may end up having to give it away early.
• Start granny square accessories. I decided on a pattern and started ripping the original piece apart.
• Complete calendar grids. Hours later they are all finished.  Now I can just concentrate on the fun scrapbbooky part.  I don't know why I didn't think of this before.

School:

• Check in with kids every day. (Check on the details)   I did check in, but things were so crazy by the end of the week that some stuff fell through the cracks.
• Post next co-op session details. Posed to the group, agreed upon, and posted.  Looks like this session is going to be very laid back.  Thank goodness!

On to this week!  I have company coming on November 6th that I would sort of, kind of like to think that I am not just a hillbilly.  (Although I know I am.)  So I have a lot of stuff to do around the house to make it look presentable.

The things from last week's list that didn't get done are top priorities, but it all has to get done!

This week I vow ....  I will check off everything on my list!


Weekly Goals ... October 29th

 Family:

• Bible Study with kids two times.
• Write Gene a love note.
• Finish up the bucket list and start the Thanksgiving Count Down.

Personal:

• Lose four pounds.
• Pedicure.
• Exercise four times.

Homemaking:

• Finish Bathroom list.
• Finish Laundry Room list.
• Tidy all bedrooms.
• Patch and paint cracks in drywall.

Finances:

• Keep Spreadsheets current.
• Coupon and menu plan.
• Total October budget and start November.

Holiday:

• Scrap three months of calendar.
• Granny accessories assembled.
• Bake three things for the freezer.
• Thanksgiving decorations.

School:

• Check in every day, especially with Marshall.
• Investigate volunteer opportunities.

Goal Update and Weekly Goals for October 22nd

There were eighteen items on my list for last week and I marked off ten of them.  So, a little better than half.  Unfortunately they were all of the little, easy things that didn't require a great deal of effort.  I blame it on all of the fun running around we did. 

A two day trip to Cincinnati to help my grandmother and an entire day spent at the Ohio Renaissance Festival were definitely worth it, but made it difficult to get things done at home.

Goals for the Week of October 15th

 
Family:

• Bible study with the kids at least two days. Only one day
• Write Gene a love note. Nice long letter.
• Check two things off the bucket list. We did quite a few things this week which sort of explains why not very much got checked off of the rest of the list.  We had a wienie roast complete with s'mores.  We made caramel apple bites, which were delicious!  We opted to go to the Natural History Museum in Cincinnati rather than the Ohio History Museum in Columbus.  We made in to the Ohio Renaissance Festival on the very last day.

Personal:

• Lose four pounds. Not so Much!  I seem to be having some sort of issue with my Lap Band.  Hopefully that can be resolved this week.
• Three blog posts. Nope.  Just one.
• Read one book on my Kindle app. I read a couple of cozy mysteries, but not one self-improvement book from my Kindle collection.  Another reason why I didn't get much done this week.

Homemaking:

• Complete dining room list. No.  Still all of the dusting to do.
• One hour in each kid's room. Nope.  I just glance in and shudder.
• Clean two shelves in the craft cabinet. I actually finished the whole cabinet.  It is so much nicer now that I can see everything!
• Complete Kitchen list. I didn't even start it.  I was out of town for three whole days out of the week.  I didn't do much more than routine maintenance.

Finances:

• Keep spending spreadsheet current. Done.  We spend too much money!
• Keep Christmas budget spreadsheet current. I have a few Christmas presents purchased and that is nice.
• Menu plan around grocery deals. I got some great deals at Kroger this week!

Holiday:

• Two baked goods in the freezer. Nothing
• Scarf. Didn't pick it up.
• Start calendars.  I picked up the Crickit from my mom's house so I can do the boring part of the calendar grids.  At least that is a start.  I ma crossing it off.  I didn't say how much I had to do to call it a start.

School:

• Check in with kids' school every day. Every day that we were home at least.  I need to be more specific about the questions I ask.  They seem to be able to say they did everything but ignore the little details of actual completion.
• Check in about Box Tops.  No one has a big bag to send me that needs clipped and counted, which is nice, because I really don't have time to do it.

This week's list looks depressingly familiar.  Hopefully I can be more focused this week.  I have three doctor's appointments this week plus rehearsal for the kid's part in the ghost stories at the Buckeye Furnace Fall Festival.  Most of the day Friday will be spent at the Homeschool Co-op's fall outing and party and then we are off to spend the weekend camping and volunteering at Buckeye Furnace.

I need to start strong this week. 

Weekly Goals ... October 22nd

Family:

• Bible Study with the kids two times.
• Love note to Gene.
• Check two things off the Bucket List.

Personal:

• Three doctor's appointments.
• Three blog posts.
• Read a self help book on my Kindle app.

Homemaking:

• Complete Kitchen List
• One hour in each kid's room.
• One hour in my room.

Finances:

• Keep Spending Spreadsheet current.
• Keep Christmas Spreadsheet current.
• Menu plan and grocery shop with coupons.

Holiday:

• Two baked goods in the freezer.
• Finish scarf.
• Start granny square accessories.
• Complete calendar grids.

School:

• Check in with kids every day.  (Check on the details)
• Post next co-op session details.

I really only have four days to accomplish all of this!  I need to get on the ball.

There are only 64 more days until Christmas.  Time needs to slow down!