Tuesday, February 16, 2010

101 in 1001.... Updated 2/26/10

So, I know, I know, it's been a VERY long time! I promise that I will try harder to keep up with this blog and be more present in the following days. I have a ton of plans and ideas floating around in my head, but it's just a matter of finding the actual time to accomplish any of them.

In an attempt to try and follow-through with some of these plans and reach some of my goals, I have decided to do the list of "101 things I want to accomplish in 1001 days." I'm not sure where this concept actually originated, but I was inspired by my fellow photographer friend over at Just LauraLu.  She had such an amazing list of things that she wanted to do, and I realized, "wow" I really should think about my goals and expectations of the coming years.  I think when we write our thoughts down it makes them more tangible, and we work harder to reach them.  Therefore, I have officially started my 101 in 1001, and I will be keeping track of my progress, good or bad, within this blog.  It should be interesting....

So, here's my list so far, but it's still in progress!

101 in 1001

1. Start a little backyard garden with my daughter

2. Take a trip to Paris

3. Make a trip to the UK

4. Payoff one of our cars completely

5. Update and continue to keep up with my family/sewing blog

6. Drink at least 40oz of water everyday

7. Build a photojournalism portfolio

8. Dedicate one night per month to “date night”

9. Start using all of the scrapbook stuff that I own and actually MAKE a scrapbook for the girls

10. Walk at least 5 miles every week

11. Be able to speak at least 5 full sentences in German before we leave here.

12. Put my oldest daughter in swimming lessons

13. Learn how to ski

14. Teach myself to knit

15. Find a church that my family loves

16. Go a full 7 days without logging into Facebook

17. Read 1 new photography book every month

18. Go to a photography convention

19. Set-up a “real” budgeting system for our day-to-day expenses

20. Save and invest enough to equal a 30% down payment on our next larger home purchase

21. Produce at least 200 stock photography images

22. Payoff my student loan

23. Set-up photography classes in Wiesbaden, Stuttgart, and K-Town

24. Upgrade my camera to a 7D or 550D

25. Make my youngest daughter’s quilt for her bed

26. Do something special for my husband everyday

27. Keep my grocery bill healthy and under $75/week for a family of 4

28. Potty-train my youngest daughter

29. Take a trip to Prague

30. Take a trip to Rome and Naples

31. Take a trip to Amsterdam

32. Read every book on this list: http://www.time.com/time/2005/100books/the_complete_list.html

33. Read the Twilight series, so I can try to understand what all the hype is about

34. Take my 4-yr old to see a movie at the theatre for the first time

35. Schedule a family outing at least once a week

36. Uninterrupted (no computer, no phone, etc…) playtime with my girls for at least one straight hour everyday

37. Make a trip back to the States to visit family and friends

38. Get my office and files completely organized

39. Implement a better ordering system on my website

40. 101 more clients in these 1001 days

41. Sew over 50% of both of my daughters’ wardrobes for one summer season and compare to the usual costs

42. Have one Christmas devoted to handmade gifts for family and friends

43. Take my oldest daughter ice skating

44. Add money to each of the girls’ savings accounts every month, no matter whether it’s just a $1 or $100.

45. No more purchasing meals that come frozen or in a box

46. Beat Super Mario Bros. on the wii

47. Actually have a daily schedule

48. Go to my oldest daughter’s very first dance recital

49. Teach my younger daughter her ABC’s

50. Get my oldest daughter to all of her soccer games and practices every week

51. Have a girl’s night out or day out at least once a month

52. Have “me” time at least 30 minutes every day