Personal Development Goals: May

Well I've been slacking on my goals to keep up with the rest of my life. Sometimes you have to prioritize things just to get through the month.

So how did I do this month?

2011 Personal Development Goals:
- Read at least 3 books per month. Not accomplished. I've been looking for a book to read and keep coming up empty handed. I got some great recommendations this past weekend though so hopefully this will change next month!


- Try 1 new recipe per month. Huge success here.

Spinach Brownies
Delicious! This would make a great side dish or appetizer. I'll definitely be keeping this one around.


- Attempt 6 "Do it yourself" projects. Nothing here.


- Volunteer somewhere at least once per month. Success!!
I actually volunteered twice this month so I am finally getting on track with this goal. I volunteered at 2 car seat events in my county. This is somewhat related to my job but both events were on weekends so they don't count towards my work hours.

Not a bad month!

2011 Personal Development Goals: April

I'm not even sure I want to post these because I've done so poorly with them this month. But in the interest of full disclosure, here we go:


2011 Personal Development Goals:
- Read at least 3 books per month. Fail. I read most of 1 book.

- Try 1 new recipe per month. Nope. It was enough that I managed to eat this month.

- Attempt 6 "Do it yourself" projects. Half success.
Well I did work on my garden this month which is a do it yourself project but it isn't exactly something complicated so I am not sure if that counts. I'll count this as a half success.

- Volunteer somewhere at least once per month. Fail.
I might need to remove this from my goal list since I have failed repeatedly at it. But better to aim high I guess.

So ya, not a great month but that is life for you! Sometimes you have to focus on other things!

2011 Home Remodeling Goals: April

March and April were VERY busy months so there wasn't much time for home remodeling. But I still managed to get a few things done (though not anything on my original list!).

2011 Home Remodeling Goals
- Tile Backsplash for Kitchen - not yet
- Paint rest of house (dining room, hallways, living room, master bedroom) - not yet
- Replace light fixture in dining room - not yet
- Replace kitchen faucet - not yet
- Replace towel racks in all bathrooms - two down, one to go!

Other:
- Replace master bathroom faucet - done!
- Replace 1/2 bathroom faucet - done!
- Decorative elements in foyer - done!
- Front landscaping - done!
- Back landscaping - done!

Financial Goal Update: April

I've had some busy months but I've been able to stay mostly on track with things. Here is where things stand right now.

- Pay cash for all home remodeling goals so far so good
- Make an extra principal payment each month yes!
- Pay off 5% of my mortgage this year. I have paid off 0.99% so far this year. YAY! Almost 1%!
- Up my retirement savings by maxing out my Roth IRA. 68% funded!
- Continue saving for a new car. Yes
- Pay for all travel in cash So far so good and still saving for summer travel :)
- Pay for Christmas gifts in cash Saving for this goal

2011 Personal Development Goals: March

I haven't had too much personal time this month but I did the best I could!

So how did I do this month?

2011 Personal Development Goals:
- Read at least 3 books per month. Only read 2.


- Try 1 new recipe per month.
Well I made a variation of my granola bars (white chocolate and cranberry) but I am not sure this counts as a new recipe. Will have to step it up in future months!


- Attempt 6 "Do it yourself" projects. Yes!
I replaced the fixtures in the half-bath!

- Volunteer somewhere at least once per month. Fail.

2011 Home Remodeling Goals: March

I haven't had too much time for home improvement projects recently but I have made some progress...

2011 Home Remodeling Goals
- Tile Backsplash for Kitchen - not yet
- Paint rest of house (dining room, hallways, living room, master bedroom) - not yet
- Replace light fixture in dining room - not yet
- Replace kitchen faucet - not yet
- Replace towel racks in all bathrooms - two down, one to go!

Other:
- Replace master bathroom faucet - done!
- Replace 1/2 bathroom faucet - done!
- Decorative elements in foyer - done!

Financial Goal Update: March

Well this is a little late but better late than never, right?!?

- Pay cash for all home remodeling goals so far so good
- Make an extra principal payment each month yes!
- Pay off 5% of my mortgage this year. I have paid off 0.97% so far this year. YAY! Almost 1%!
- Up my retirement savings by maxing out my Roth IRA. Not maxed out yet, but contributing!
- Continue saving for a new car. Yes
- Pay for all travel in cash So far so good and still saving for summer travel :)
- Pay for Christmas gifts in cash Saving for this goal

Half bathroom project

I had some downtime this weekend so I thought I would tackle the towel racks in the half bathroom. The ones in place weren't my style so I thought I'd make some updates.

So, the before pictures:

Hand towel rack:
There was a full towel rack behind the toilet which seemed silly since 1. it is a half bath and 2. the rack wasn't high enough above the toilet to have a towel. So that had to go!



So here is the after - I replaced the hand towel and toilet paper holders and added a decoration behind the toilet.




I am pretty happy with the result and the best part - I paid cash!

Financial Goal Update: February

I am feeling good about what I've been able to accomplish this month in terms of my financial goals. I am making a lot of baby steps!

- Pay cash for all home remodeling goals so far so good
- Make an extra principal payment each month yes plus a little extra!
- Pay off 5% of my mortgage this year. I have paid off 0.75% so far this year.
- Up my retirement savings by maxing out my Roth IRA. Not maxed out yet, but contributing!
- Continue saving for a new car. Yes
- Pay for all travel in cash Saving for summer travel
- Pay for Christmas gifts in cash Saving for this goal

2011 Personal Development Goals: February

One month of 2011 is already behind us! How is it possible for time to go so quickly?

So how did I do this month?

2011 Personal Development Goals:
- Read at least 3 books per month. Very close to accomplished!

Percy Jackson and The Olympians Book 5
Book 5: The Last Olympian

I am really happy to have finished this series. The author has written a number of other books that I've started reading!

The Red Pyramid I started reading another series by the same author. They are just so fun!

Clive Cussler book - 3/4 finished so I guess it doesn't count...

- Try 1 new recipe per month.
Yes! I made some wonderful bread in the bread machine. I am now obsessed with it :)


- Attempt 6 "Do it yourself" projects. Yes!
I feel so accomplished this month! I replaced 2 bathroom faucets this month. Even though this was not one of my home improvement goals, I am really happy that I did this!

- Volunteer somewhere at least once per month. Fail.

2011 Home Remodeling Goals: February

Despite doing a few home improvement project this month, I haven't actually crossed any goals off my list! But I learned some skills that will help me accomplish some other goals so it all works out.

2011 Home Remodeling Goals
- Tile Backsplash for Kitchen - not yet
- Paint rest of house (dining room, hallways, living room, master bedroom) - not yet
- Replace light fixture in dining room - not yet
- Replace kitchen faucet - not yet
- Replace towel racks in all bathrooms - one down, two to go!

Other:
- Replace master bathroom faucet - done!
- Replace 1/2 bathroom faucet - done!

What should I do next month?!?!

February Grocery Budget Challenge: Update

So it has been 2 weeks since I started my $20/person/week healthy eating challenge. So how is it going?

Well to be honest, not great. I think it is probably possible for me to spend only $80 for the entire month, but it would require me to cut back on my grocery shopping. Since I am trying to be realistic and spend as I normally would, I don't think it is realistic in the long run for me to stick with the $20/person/week budget.

I am going to continue with the challenge to see how far I get. I'll post another update at the end of the month!

2011 Home Remodeling Goals: January

I am loving all these goal lists. It keeps me so motivated!!

So how did I do on my home remodeling goals this month?

2011 Home Remodeling Goals
- Tile Backsplash for Kitchen - not yet
- Paint rest of house (dining room, hallways, living room, master bedroom) - not yet
- Replace light fixture in dining room - not yet
- Replace kitchen faucet - not yet
- Replace towel racks in all bathrooms - one down, two to go!

I am pretty pleased with what I accomplished this month. In addition to replacing one towel rack, I also started putting money away to pay cash for some of these bigger goals!!

February Grocery Budget Challenge

Crystal has been talking recently about how to maximize your grocery spending and ultimately how to reduce your grocery budget. She recommended starting with $20/person/week and this got a lot of people talking about how this was an unreasonably low amount and how it was impossible to eat healthfully while still maintaining this budget.

Well, that got me thinking. Could I do it? There is only 1 person in my household so this would be a total budget of $80 for the month. That is less than I currently spend.

Obviously I have some items in my pantry so I wouldn't have to purchase every single item that I eat, but I also don't want to survive on pasta and peanut butter sandwiches either (this is not a great way to Fight the Fat).

So here is what I am thinking. My goal is to not only limit myself to $80 for the month but also to eat healthfully throughout the entire month. This mean - plenty of fresh fruits and veggies, limited processed foods, and overall good choices.

Is it possible? Do you think I can eat healthy meals all month for only $80? We are going to see! And to prove that I'm not eating junk - here is a picture of my lunch:



Doesn't it looks great on that blue plate?!? How pretty (and tasty!).

So, I'm off. As added incentive, I've put aside $80 in cash as my grocery money and put the extra (that I typically spend in a month) aside for my home improvement fund. If I need it, I'll take it back but I am hoping that not having it in front of me will encourage me to stick with my goals!

Financial Goal Update: January

Without further ado, here are my 2011 Financial Goals.

- Pay cash for all home remodeling goals so far so good
- Make an extra principal payment each month yes
- Pay off 5% of my mortgage this year. I have paid off 0.25% so far this year.
- Up my retirement savings by maxing out my Roth IRA. Not maxed out yet, but contributing!
- Continue saving for a new car. Yes
- Pay for all travel in cash Saving for summer travel
- Pay for Christmas gifts in cash Saving for this goal

2011 Personal Development Goals: January

One month of 2011 is already behind us! How is it possible for time to go so quickly?

So how did I do this month?

2011 Personal Development Goals:
- Read at least 3 books per month. Accomplished this month!

Percy Jackson and The Olympians Book 1-4
Book 1: The Lightning Thief
Book 2: The Sea of Monsters
Book 3: The Titan's Curse
Book 4: The Battle of the Labyrinth

These books were very entertaining. They are children's books so they are very easy reads but I really enjoyed the story. Now I just need to wait for the library to have the next few available!!


- Try 1 new recipe per month. Huge success here.

Chicken and Dumplings
It was delicious, what can I say?!?! This will definitely be working its way into my meal rotations!


- Attempt 6 "Do it yourself" projects. Half success.
I replaced a towel rack in my master bathroom. But I had done something like this before so I am not sure if this counts. I will count it as half a do it yourself project.

- Volunteer somewhere at least once per month. Fail.
I didn't do any volunteer work this month. But that just means I need to step it up for the remaining 11 months!!

All in all, I'd say this month was a success in terms of my personal goals!

2011 Goals: Financial

I know I have been keeping you all in suspense with my financial goals. I've already mentioned my personal goals and my home remodeling goals but it takes some $$ to get it all done, right?

Without further ado, here are my 2011 Financial Goals.

- Pay cash for all home remodeling goals (so far off to a great start)
- Make an extra principal payment each month
- Pay off 5% of my mortgage this year. Last year I paid off 1.8%. This is ambitious but I like a challenge.
- Up my retirement savings by maxing out my Roth IRA
- Continue saving for a new car
- Pay for all travel in cash
- Pay for Christmas gifts in cash

Maybe some other things will pop up as time goes on, but for now that is what I am shooting for!!!

2011 Goals: Personal Development

As I mentioned previously, I am structuring my goals a little differently this year. The first area I mentioned was Home Remodeling. The second area I want to focus on this year is Personal Development. This means activities that will either teach me something or force me to try something new.

2011 Personal Development Goals:
- Read at least 3 books per month. Topics are flexible but I think the act of reading is important because it keeps me away from the television.
- Try 1 new recipe per month. I find myself repeating the same recipes over and over and while I do enjoy what I cook, I am probably missing out on a lot of other delicious meals. I might even find a new favorite!
- Attempt 6 "Do it yourself" projects. Following MoneySavingMom's example, I am going to try to step out of my box a little and try some new things. Some of these may tie into my home remodeling goals.
- Volunteer somewhere at least once per month. Volunteering has so many benefits - it can even improve your health!

I will try to blog about each of these activities as I complete them so stay tuned!

Booking It in 2011

Another year, another set of goals. I tried to focus on reading a bit in 2010 but didn't have much of a structure to it. I am hoping that by following along with FishMama's Booking It challenge, I'll keep up my motivation to keep up with some reading.

My goal is to read 3 books per month. At this point I don't have any specific topic area goals. Ideally I'd read at least 1 'informational' book and 1 book purely for pleasure.

I'm not sure how this will turn out, but the important thing is to keep up with the reading!

New Year, New Organizational System

One thing I have struggled with is keeping on top of my cleaning. I have a busy schedule and often find myself behind on housekeeping. When this happens I tend to spend a whole night catching up, which is neither fun nor time efficient.

So, with the start of 2011, I am trying out a new type of system (Inspired by Jack's mom). I printed out a list of tasks I try to accomplish in a typical week and laminated it.

Then I taped it into the kitchen cabinet where I keep my office supplies. I go into this cabinet every day so I will see the to-do list regularly. I also put a dry erase marker in there so that I can mark the items that have already been completed for the week.

Hopefully by the end of the week everything will be crossed off! I'll keep you updated on how this system works for me.