Number 18 x 2! Number 23. Number 19 AND fourteen!

Willow Tree #1 out in the front. This one is a little bare but we just planted it today.

Willow Tree #2 in the backyard. This one was planted last weekend and as you can see, it's already getting some leaves.

Here are my proud lil helpers. They love playing around and helping me out.

Oregano?

Chives?

The oregano and chives are part of Number 23. I wanted to grow three fresh herbs in the kitchen, so here's 2/3 rds done. Woot.

Number 19
We went to a Birthday party this weekend and I refused to buy gift wrap, even when Jason asked me if I was going to buy a gift bag! We used the comic section of the newspaper and wrapped the gift for Jaxon, the ONE year old. No one noticed. I felt good about it knowing that I was doing my small part.

Number 14
I've recently bought more Vitamin E and have been taking 1200 IU daily. Hopefully this helps out like it did the last time.

#85, 96, & 99

#85 Update Blog at least once a week.
So far just this year I've made 17 blog posts on our regular blogger and this is week #11. YAY! Go me!

#96 Back up all photo's on computer.
Jason bought us a 500 gig external hard drive and has recently uploaded all of our photo's to it. Check! Feels good to know we pretty much have unlimited storage space now.

#99 Create a family piggy-bank for loose change.
I went out and bought a really big glass container and we put ALL loose change and loose dollar bills in it. I have no clue how much we have in there now...but it's a good start! I'm going to decoupage some photos on there of where we will be vacationing....

and the next blog will explain that vacation!!!

#18 and #20

We have TWO weeping willow trees being shipped to us. The plan is to plant one in our front yard and another one in our backyard.

Growing up, I loved the movie My Girl and in it Veda, the main character, writes a very emotional poem about a weeping willow tree and I've always loved them since. One will be for Aiden and the other for Jackson. Awww.

We've done really, REALLY well with not using the dryer and I have to admit, I actually like it a lot. The clothes seem to stay more vibrant longer and I haven't had a single bra get messed up yet!!! THAT'S reason enough to not use the dryer! Haha. We still use it for the "big jobs" like jeans that HAVE to get washed LASTMINUTE and for big thick blankets because we don't have an actual clothes line outside. We have these two stand up clothes hangers that are foldable. I also love the way the house smells with a ton of drying clean clothes! Jackson and Aiden love to "help" me hang the clothes.

#8 and #9

Create (and stick to) a weekly/bi-weekly meal plan.

I've got a week all planned out and I'm trying to get together some more ideas so I can have two full weeks of totally different meals planned. As of right now our meal schedule seems to be working our fairly well. I made sure that it's vague enough (and we use a lot of the same proteins) where it's flexible. We've only gone out to eat (unplanned) once since we put this into effect so I think that's a start.


If anyone has any healthy kid friendly meal ideas that they can pass along, I'd love some recipes. One thing I do is cook a large amount of chicken (simmered down with tons of spices for Jason and I) and I use it in all kinds of foods. We make spicy chicken taco salads, breakfast tacos, ect. so it's not like we have to prepare an entire meal from scratch each day. I've had lots of friends tell me that they will make large portions of soup and even freeze them in single serving containers that are easy to take out and reheat during the week and that's a great idea...except that even in the middle of January it's too hot here to eat soup very often. Today we had the boys out in sleeveless shirts and shorts!!! I think I'm still going to try a soup every now and then.


Anyway, I've also been serving Jason and I less food at each meal. I don't really seem to even notice. Isn't that strange? I guess I'm just used to eating everything that's on my plate even though I'm satisfied with eating less, so yay!!!

Here it is! My List.

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.

2. Stay Focused. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.

3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.

4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.

5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.

(for more information, click here)

Start Date: Tuesday, January 13, 2009
End Date: Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Some of these will be super easy to complete and some....well, I'm not sure that I will be able to complete them but I am going to try. I will keep updating this as time goes on, taking pictures along the way.