2013 Goals!

Here's my shiny-new goals for 2013! 

 

 

1.       Do a fun craft with Parker every month.  I'm not much of a "crafter" but there are so many fun toddler crafts I see on pinterest.  Parker is a very hands-on type of kid (as I'm sure most are), so I know he would really enjoy doing a neat project every month. 

2.      Take a daily multi-vitamin.  This really shouldn't have to be a goal, but I have a bottle of Vitamin Code vitamins in my pantry that expired in November.  That's how long I've had them.  I'm horrible at remembering to take vitamins, but considering the fact that I'm a mommy, I really should try to take better care of myself.

3.      Wear a bikini this summer.  Don't get me wrong; I've wore a bikini every summer ever since my parents finally allowed me to do so.  Even while I was pregnant (because being pregnant doesn't equal being fat)!  However, I wore a bikini last summer, and really, someone should have stopped me.  Holy cow!  Literally!  So, while I'm not technically saying I'm going to "diet" I do have several plans to help bring my weight down before I hit my all-time high, which, sadly, I'm very close to hitting.  How will I do this?

A.  Do not eat seconds.  (This was so hard to do last night when I made meatloaf and broccoli, cheese and rice casserole).

B.  Do not finish Parker's meal.  (This was so hard to do when he was sick and didn't eat all of his home made lasagna).

C.  Do not drink soda.  I was in denial by telling myself that I only drink one or two Coke's at home.  However, every time we go out to eat (and if you read my last blog post, you can tell we tend to eat out a lot), I order a soda.  No more!  I am now the queen of water or iced tea.

D.  Work out on my wii.  ( I haven't done much of this, but I LOVE doing the Just Dance game and last weekend I bought a Jillian Michaels cardio workout.  )

E.  Have a friendly little weight loss competition with Greg.  (We started keeping track and weighing in right after Christmas...which was dumb considering we always have a big NYE party and then a week later we were going on vacation)  However, I'm proud to say that today is weigh-in day and I'm already down 4 pounds!  Woot!

F.  Eat more fruit.  (Yesterday the box of brownie mix in my pantry was practically screaming my name.  I ignored it and ate a kiwi instead.  Small victories, people!)

4.      Paint all the doors in my house and bunk house.  Sometimes when you do so much remodeling you tend to just say, "eh...screw it!" when it comes to detail items.  But, it's been a year now, and there are several doors in my house that need a coat (probably two) of paint:  my master bedroom door, Greg's closet door, our back door, and if we install a new door for our hall bathroom, that will need to be painted as well.  Also, there are three doors in our bunk house, none of which have been painted. 

5.      Plant sod in my court yard.  Last spring we rocked most of our front yard, but made a "court yard" in the middle with rail road ties.  The idea was to sod it, but we never did, so instead it's a big octagon of weeds and dirt.  It's pretty ugly.  I'm ready to have a nice pretty patch of green!

6.      Read a piece of classic American literature.  Don't ask me why, but I just want too.  And, if I don't accomplish this measly little goal, then someone needs to slap me.  Why?  Because while at a library book sale a few months ago I bought two classics:  The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger.  I read The Catcher in the Rye in high school, and while I remember enjoying it (mainly because it had a lot of curse words, which made me feel like a little bit of a rebel), I don't remember any of the plot.

7.      Go on a Valentine’s date with my husband.  *ahem*  Since VD (the term we lovingly referred to Valentine's Day as when I worked at a florist) is on a Thursday, I would even settle for a day-after date instead.  Anyone want to baby sit?  Mom?

8.      Re-decorate Parker’s room.  Now that Parker is approaching three, I want to give him a proper little boy room.  His nursery has a star theme, and now I'm going to upgrade it to a rock-star theme!  I'm so excited!  In fact, today I even bought some pictures for the walls!  I have visions in my mind of re-doing his entire room on his birthday while he is at day care, so he has a surprise.  We'll see what happens!

9.      Refurbish our living room furniture.  Our coffee table and two end tables are all pieces of furniture Greg had when I met him.  For several years now we have wanted to refurbish them.  However, now that we are trying to make our house look like a beach house, the idea I had pictured for them has changed.  I'd like to paint the two end tables an antique white and then on the drawer and doors, paint a crackle paint with turquoise blue showing in the cracks.  Then, I'd like to paint the coffee table turquoise and distress it. 

10.   Clean out my file cabinet.  This is a task that probably needed to be done a few years ago, but it's one of those "out of sight; out of mind" type of things.  However, with both me and Greg being self-employed, with another business on the horizon (opps, did I just say that?), I think it's time to be a lot more organized, and we need extra filing space!

11.   Organize my kitchen pantry.  It's a little embarrassing right now.  I'm hoping to get some pinspiration real soon!

12.   Become a public notary.  Not only will it be another service I can provide as a Realtor, there are other ways I could use being a notary to make some additional income.  I've toyed with this idea for a few years now and think now is as good a time as ever to become one!

13.   Make a scarf.  Years ago my sister went to some foreign country and bought me some fabric that is a burberry knock off, so I could make a scarf.  However, the scarf has never been made.  I think its been long enough (I can almost see my sister nodding her head!).

14.   Make a facebook page for Texoma Remodeling.  I've been trying (and usually failing) to take before and after pictures of different projects that TR has done.  Now it's time I put those pictures to use! 

15.   Clean my car out at least once a month.  Being a responsible 31 year old woman, I really shouldn't have a car that is always so cluttered.  So, this is my attempt at change (my husband is cheering!).

16.   Have family photos taken by Art and Soul Photography.  I have several amazing talented friends who are photographers.  But there is just something about Art and Soul Photography that I absolutely love, and I have followed her blog for about three or four years now!  I think it's simply that the pictures are always so vibrant and colorful!  I would be proud to hang a family photo on my wall and say it was taken by the amazing Angel Porch.

17.  Yell at Parker less.  I know what you're thinking; HUH?  Before  becoming a mom I knew a mom who constantly yelled at her kids.  I always thought, "I am not going to sound like her when I have a kid".  Now, guess who I sound like?  I feel like since becoming a parent I have lost all patience.  I need to remind myself that the first time I say, "No", I don't have to scream it.  I know that a "no" that is spoken, can still be effective.  I also need to remind myself that I didn't like being yelled at when I was younger, and yelling needs to be reserved for when it's really important or life threatening.

18.  Go to a play.  I have really been having the itch lately to be on stage.  But, since I know that's not going to happen any time soon, this would be the next best thing!

19.  You know.  And although I hate to admit it, this sucker is going to stay on the list every single year until it's done!  I will not give up!

2012 Year in Review

I know all three of my readers are on the edge of their seats to hear how my 2012 goals panned out...right?  Well, do not fret, I'm finally posting how horrible I did...
(To read my explanations as to why I wanted to achieve these goals, click here.)

1.  Give my blog a makeover.  Well, if you've been reading this blog for the past year, you are well aware that with the exception of some added bucket list items, things pretty much look the same around here.  One day I did spend about an hour trying to change things up a bit, but it has been so long since I've done anything to the layout that instead I got a headache and said, "forget it"!

2.  Drink more water.  I do think that I am drinking much more water than I was a year ago.  Case in point:  I'm at the office, it's 2:50 P.M. and I just finished the last swing of water from my 24 oz. bottle.  That's good, right?!

3.  Read 10 books. Well.....this one is kind of iffy.  I did read ten books, but I believe I specifically wrote in my explanatory statement that I needed to read ten books that were on my bookshelf.  Here's the list of books I read in 2012:

1.      * Snow Angels…Fern Michaels

2.      *Fairy Tale Weddings …Debbie Macomber

3.      *Hotel Vendome…Danielle Steel

4.      *Southern Lights…Danielle Steel

5.      *The Ghost…Danielle Steel

6.      50 Shades of Gray….E.L. James

7.      50 Shades Darker…E.L. James

8.      50 Shades Free….E.L. James

9.      *Heaven is for Real….Todd Burpo

10.   Water for Elephants….Sara Gruen

11.   The Help…Kathryn Stockett

12.   *Leap of Faith…Danielle Steel

13.   *L.A. Candy…Lauren Conrad

14.   *The Little Prince…Antoine De Saint-Exupery

* Books that were on my bookshelf.
You be the judge!

4.  Get caught up on Parker's baby book.  I am ashamed to say I haven't even cracked the thing open.  Epic fail!
 
5.  Have a tan.  Score!  I totally did this this year, tan lines and all!  Granted, now they are almost invisible, but I think this summer I will tan a little quicker now that I have a base tan started!  Please keep in mind, I tan very responsibly, with SPF 30!

6.  Take Parker on a fun outing every other month.  Check!  I'm pretty sure I did this!
February-A car ride trip to Colorado!  He got to play with some of his "play group" buddies!
March-A trip to the circus!
April-His 2nd Birthday Party!
June-A trip to the bounce house!
July-A trip to the OKC zoo!
September-A trip to the park!
October-A trip to the pumpkin patch!
December-He was in our community Christmas parade!  We took him to his first movie at a theatre!

Not to mention all the times we went to the beach, had visitors stay with us, went to family members houses for various holidays, etc.!

7.  To only eat out 75 times the entire year.  Lets just say I quit counting some time in March.

8.  Refurbish Parker's rocking chair.  I haven't done this and I'm totally going to blame Greg!  One day I was all pumped up and ready and even hunted down the wood filler.  I asked Greg if he thought the wood filler would be enough to fix it, but after his inspection he said that it needed a whole wooden piece added at the top.  (I'm sure this would make much more sense if I had a photograph to reference too, and if I knew the names of the parts of a rocking chair!).  Needless to say, making a rocking chair that "works" look pretty is not on the top of Greg's priority list.  And, since he does so much for our family, I haven't pressured him about it, either.

9.  Personalize my home-office space. I have started this!  The main thing I want to do is re-furbish the chair that I use at the desk.  It's an antique and I've had many people gripe at me when I tell them what I want to do to it.  So, a guilty conscience has kept me from having fun with the chair!  I also want to get cuter organization items to place on the desk.  So, what did I do?  Remember this? 

10.  Learn how to make fork jewelry.  To get started I will need Greg's help....which means it hasn't happened!  Also, I haven't bought any materials yet.  Maybe one of these days...

11.  Learn how to crack an egg with one hand.  I seemed to forget that I hate to get my hands dirty.  After a few attempts I gave up.  Perhaps I should have watched a youtube video to see how to actually do it!

12.  Exercise at least four times a week.  Ha, ha, ha!  I did buy a hula-hoop and used it a lot in January.  Now it just takes up space in my house.
 
13.  Contribute to our family financially.  Yay!  I actually did this!  Granted, real estate did not pick up as much as I had hoped it would, but at least I contributed!  I also signed up to do BPO's (Broker Price Opinions) which was an option when I sold real estate in OKC but never tapped into it.  All of the BPO's I did did not add up to much, but something is better than nothing!
 
14.  Find a church to attend regularly.  I think this would be easier if I lived in a bigger city.  I would love to find a non-denominational church that has a great youth chapter, but I have yet to find one.  I visited a few different churches, but the services either lasted too long (1.5 to 2 hours!) or they were too far away (45 minutes one way).

15.  Take a wild guess.  If you remember what I was talking about, you could probably take another wild guess and say that I didn't accomplish this goal.  You would be correct!  However, I am still pushing forward!  I worked on two of my photo albums this year, and have labeled every single picture I ordered last year!  It's just a matter of the beginning meeting up in the middle with the end!  And yes, I am still the person who actually orders pictures, I don't just keep them on my laptop.  It's probably safe to say I ordered at least 500 pictures last year alone.

16.  Write a will.  Finally!  I can cross an item off the list!  Granted, we just did this the last week in December.  And the fact that we went on vacation, sans Parker, last week was the real motivation.  However, now that Greg and I both have wills, I think that what we really need is a trust.  But, I'm not really sure.  Being a responsible adult is complicated!

17.  Open a Savings Account for Parker.  Oh!  I did this, too!  Funny story:  Parker LOVES suckers!  Our bank usually has suckers that they will hand out.  Well, one of Parker's great Aunt's sent him $20 for Christmas.  I told him if we went to the bank, they would trade him his $20 for a sucker, and he said, OK!  Obviously, as he gets older, I know it will be harder to convince him that he needs to put money in the bank versus purchasing a toy.

18.  Go to a concert. Concerts are expensive and we are trying to live within our means.  Blah!  Luckily, we will be making up for the lack of concert-going this weekend!  I received two free tickets to the Toby Keith concert for this Saturday night.  Granted, I'm not really a big fan, but I'm looking forward to a fun evening with my husband!

19.  Begin working on my Brokers license.  I did not do this, however, I did look into it.  Unfortunately, since my license was in-active for several years, my license has to remain active for another two years before I can begin taking Broker's classes.  With that being said, now I'm not sure if I will ever do it.  If I were still selling real estate in OKC the decision would be a no-brainer.  However, I'm not enjoying selling real estate in this sleepy lake town as much as I enjoyed the fast-paced sales in OKC.  Getting a brokers license in Oklahoma involves a 90 hour course (none of which are provided near-by, so I would have to do this on-line, which I am not excited about), the course is obviously not free, then you have to pay to take the state test.  I have heard rumors that the hours for the brokerage course are about to increase, which does not excite me either.  Basically, I'm not sure I want to invest the time and money into this added credential when I'm not making much money selling real estate in the first place.

20.  Become active in the community.  I'm really hoping that driving around our neighborhood every night in our ranger counts.  Otherwise, this was another goal that I did not achieve.

21.  Learn CPR.  What really irks me is that this is the last item on my list, and yet again, it's something I did not do.  However, I just discovered last month that they offer CPR training classes in Durant, which is a city that is about 45 minutes from where I live.  This is still a life-saving skill I would like to learn, especially as a mother who lives walking distance to a lake.

There you have it!  Don't worry, I'll be posting my goals for 2013 soon.  I have a feeling there will not be as many!

And the list keeps getting longer...

I was in such a hurry to post my 2012 goals that I forgot these few that have been weighing heavily on my mind.  To check out my other goals click here.

1. Write a will. I think Greg and I have learned the hard way that a will is a very important document for a parent to have. I think this would just be a responsible thing for us to do.
2. Open a Savings Account for Parker. Sometimes Parker receives money from various family members and I like to put it aside for him to use when he's older. It only makes sense to protect this money in a savings account.
3. Go to a concert. Greg and I love going to concerts but we haven't been to one in years. I'm hoping we can go to a concert that we will both mutually enjoy, and not my husbands beloved Jason Boland *gag*.
4. Begin working on my Brokers license. I really think that this is a goal that most Realtors hope to achieve. I would like to start doing my classes this year.
5. Become active in the community. I don't really know how I'm going to do this yet, but I keep having an urge to give back in some way. Plus, it will be a good way to meet people!
6. Learn CPR. Way back when we owned a home that came with a swimming pool I thought it would be in my best interest to learn how to do CPR. But, I procrastinated and never learned. I also have this weird theory that all parents should know how to do CPR. Am I one of those parents myself? No. Which means I'm a pretty big hypocrite. I don't necessarily care about being "certified", just as long as I would know how to do it in case of an emergency.

2012 Goals

Here it is:  another year, another batch of goals!

1. Give my blog a makeover.  Since my hubby is no longer a "wind farmer" it's time to re-name this blog!  I'd love to have a tab to click on to buy my jewelry, too!  Hopefully I can figure this out.
2. Drink more water.  I should have learned my lesson when I got too dehydrated this summer, but nope.  Anyone who has ever spent a day with me probably knows I am horrible about drinking eight glasses of anything in a day.  I don't even finish a full beverage with a meal.  So, I'm hoping that by the end of the year I'll be able to guzzle down 8 glasses of water a day.  This is truly a challenge.
3. Read 10 books.  Ten books that I already own, to be more specific.  I counted the other day, and there are 37 books on my book shelf that I have never cracked open.  That's a little ridiculous. 
4. Get caught up on Parker's baby book.  When I packed all of our stuff up from our Colorado house I thought, "I'll be unpacking in a month and I  can catch up on his baby book then."  Well, we all know how that turned out.  Six months later I finally unpacked the box with his baby book; and still haven't got caught up on it.  This needs to be addressed, pronto!
5. Have a tan.  I mean a real, honest-to-goodness, I've-been-at-the-beach-all-day, kind of tan!  Not the, I-just-got-sprayed/laid-in-a-bed/rubbed-orange-lotion-all-over-me kind of tan.  Granted, this will probably take all summer to achieve because I'm a big believer in sun-screen (yes, you can still get a tan wearing sun screen; it just takes longer).
6. Take Parker on a fun outing every other month.  Not only do I feel like my little guy misses out on social interaction with other toddlers, I also feel bad that we live in such a remote area and he doesn't get to experience very many things.  I figure a special trip every other month can make up for it, even if it just means driving an hour to play with a friend.
7. To only eat out 75 times the entire year.  Yup.  Re-read it and let that soak in.  Considering our family eats approximately 1,095 meals a year, I have a feeling this is going to be pretty hard.  But, I'm going to attempt it nevertheless.  I've already added a little running tally to the top right of my blog so you can keep track of how often we eat out, along with *gulp* how much money we spend doing so.
8. Refurbish Parker's rocking chair.  This is pretty self-explanatory.  I have everything I need to do it, I just need to make myself actually get the job done.
9. Personalize my home-office space.  Our new home doesn't have a room I can designate for a home office, so when we remodeled our kitchen we added a built-in desk.  I have a vision in my mind as to how I want it to look.  And, since it's in the heart of our home, I also want it to match the "beach" theme I want our house to have.  Lets see if I can make it work!
10. Learn how to make fork jewelry.  I know this was on last year's list, but I never really had the time to give this hobby a go.  I can't tell ya'll how desperately I want a fork ring just like this.
11. Learn how to crack an egg with one hand.  Because that would make me feel like a complete culinary bad a$$.
12. Exercise at least four times a week.  Granted, I'm not going to be hitting up the gym, but I do have this awesome inspiration I found via pinterest.     
    
    Source: iowagirleats.com via Felicia on Pinterest
       I am also dying to have a hula hoop!  I plan on re-visiting my fifth grade hula hooping club days!  Oh, yeah!
13. Contribute to our family financially.  This means make my family some money, and not cost us some money like I did last year.  Hopefully real estate in this sleepy lake town will start hopping real soon, if not, I'm gonna have to figure something else out.  Any ideas?
14. Find a church to attend regularly.  Preferably one that my husband won't gripe about would attend with me.
15. Take a wild guess.  If you've been reading this blog for the past few years, you probably have a small idea as to what this is.  I just know this is the year I'll accomplish this goal!
16. Write a will.  I think Greg and I have learned the hard way that a will is a very important document for a parent to have.  I think this would just be a responsible thing for us to do.
17. Open a Savings Account for Parker.  Sometimes Parker receives money from various family members and I like to put it aside for him to use when he's older.  It only makes sense to protect this money in a savings account.
18. Go to a concert.  Greg and I love going to concerts but we haven't been to one in years.  I'm hoping we can go to a concert that we will both mutually enjoy, and not my husbands beloved Jason Boland *gag*.
19. Begin working on my Brokers license.  I really think that this is a goal that most Realtors hope to achieve.  I would like to start doing my classes this year.
20. Become active in the community.  I don't really know how I'm going to do this yet, but I keep having an urge to give back in some way.  Plus, it will be a good way to meet people!
21. Learn CPR.  Way back when we owned a home that came with a swimming pool I thought it would be in my best interest to learn how to do CPR.  But, I procrastinated and never learned.  I also have this weird theory that all parents should know how to do CPR.  Am I one of those parents myself?  No.  Which means I'm a pretty big hypocrite.  I don't necessarily care about being "certified", just as long as I would know how to do it in case of an emergency.

Did I accomplish all of my goals for 2011?

Nope.

Actually I did slightly better than I thought considering this year did not turn out the way I had thought it would.  Meaning:  I had no idea we would be moving, let alone moving twice!  Yikes!  So, I feel like I can't be too hard on myself.  Then again, is that just me making excuses for myself?  You be the judge.

To read my goals, click here.

1. To print, label, and organize all the photos that are on my laptop and place them in photo albums.
*SIGH*  I'm so disappointed in myself, so lets just not even talk about this, OK?

2. To learn and use baby sign language with Parker
I actually did this!  Parker can sign the words:  milk, more, again, please, love, and all done.  Now that he is starting to talk more I don't really push the sign language.  Really there is one other sign that I would like to begin using and that is the word, "help".  I think that one would come in handy!

3. To use coupons
I do occasionally use coupons.  In fact, I've even began shopping at my local Homeland because they double coupons daily!  However, I haven't been printing coupons from the Internet or actually buying the Sunday paper to get coupons.  My mom has actually been helping me with this goal!  If she gets the Sunday paper, she saves the coupon section for me and gives them to me whenever she sees me.  Since I don't see her on a regular basis, I don't get coupons all the time.

4. To paint all the closet and bedroom doors in our house
I did this!  And just in time for us to sell our house!  ;)  Take a peek for yourself:  Don't the doors look better white?

Our master bedroom the day we bought the house.

Our master bedroom right before we sold the house.  Much prettier with white doors!

5. To bake a pie.
Sadly, I didn't do this.  But, now that we've moved back to Oklahoma I have visions of both my mom and my grandmother actually helping me bake a pie.  Doesn't that sound like a lot more fun?

6. To contribute more to my family financially
This is a tough question to answer.  If I want to get technical, I've actually cost our family more money than I have made us.  How is that?  Well, I started selling real estate again.  Which means I had to catch up with my continuing education ($100), then I had to sign up for the MLS and the Board of Realtors ($765), order business cards and car magnets ($135), purchase name riders for my For Sale signs ($85), and then I just had to pay my dues for membership for 2012 ($749).  So far I have had one sale and my commission check was $645. You do the math. 

7. To learn how to make spoon and fork jewelry
I didn't do this.

8. To begin working on my book again
I didn't do this either.  But, I did read the few pages that I had written...does that count?

9. To host a few more Bling On A String trunk shows
Nope. 

10. To finish The Harry Potter series
Finally!  Right when I was beginning to mentally beat myself up, the last thing is something I did!  Does it really count though when I was in the middle of reading the last book when I added it to my goal list?  At this point, I'm going to say YES!

A Leap of Faith

I know it's been awhile since my last post and that's because life for our little family has been nothing short of hectic! We have totally begun a new chapter in our lives. Here's the scoop: we won the lottery!!! Nope, just kidding, but that would be awesome, huh? OK, now this other stuff probably isn't going to sound as cool and exciting, but that's alright. Here we go.....

1. Greg quit his job. Yup, my husband is no longer a wind turbine technician. To catch some of you up; we packed up and moved from Colorado to Texas back in April so that we could be closer to our lake house. As you'll recall, we were not having any luck finding a new house to purchase. Perhaps this was fate, because a few weeks into his "new" job (which was with the exact same company that he worked for in Colorado) he began to hate it. I will spare you the gory details, but lets just say that poor management can really make or break a work place.

Ever since I've met Greg he has talked about being his own boss and having his own business. But, we all know that having your own business is a little scary. OK, it's REALLY scary! Once Greg began loathing his job, we started plotting a way to change our lives. It kind of happened faster than we anticipated, so things are kind of a crazy mess right now....read on.

2. We moved back to Oklahoma!!! To our lake house, that is. This happened just under two weeks ago when Greg quit his job. Don't get me wrong...we had been plotting a move so it wasn't completely sporadic. All of our stuff that we had in storage when we moved to Texas was slowly moved into the shop here at our lake place. This past week has involved unpacking and trying to attempt to fit all of our stuff into a house that is smaller than any of the other homes we've ever lived in. To add a little more confusion to the mess.......

3. We are remodeling our house! This began almost a month prior to Greg quitting his job. The living room and dining room are finished, the kitchen just lacks the backsplash being tiled and a little trim work, and Parkers room was just finished on Tuesday. We plan on remodeling both bathrooms soon as well, but they will have to wait. I want the house to look "beachy" so it has a little different feel than any of our other houses. I think my decor will make it more beachy and I haven't had time to shop for un-tacky beach accessories yet, but it's on my never ending to-do list! Don't worry, I will post before and after pictures in a future post. Now I mentioned that this is the smallest house we've lived in; it only has two bedrooms. Our last two houses both had four bedrooms. Are you starting to understand why I said unpacking is slightly difficult. Because of this, Greg is currently building a guest room/hobby room in our shop that's next to the house. If everything goes according to plan that space will be finished by next weekend. (I'm telling you our list never ends). Everyone who knows me well, knows that Greg and I always finish remodeling and then sell a house. We are busting our butts so we can have this house finished so we can actually live in, and ENJOY, our remodel! We are also trying to work quickly because....

4. Greg is starting his own handy-man/remodeling business! The guy has skill, let me tell ya! Although a few people have not been very encouraging about this move because of the economy, Greg is optimistic enough to believe that he will be able to stay so busy with work that people will hire him to do that he won't have enough time to work on our house. With that thought in mind, we are doing every thing we can to quickly make this "house" feel like a "home". Finally, this whole "new chapter in our lives" wouldn't be complete if we didn't also throw in the fact that...

5. I have re-activated my Oklahoma real estate license and will begin working full time next week! I hung my license with a broker in town back in July (told ya we'd been plotting) with hopes to buy up a couple of rental properties before Greg quit his job and we were both self employed (ie: no lender will probably touch us for a loan for the next few years). Unfortunately, I forgot how long it actually takes to get the ball rolling when you first hang your license with an office and by the time I was able to start scoping out properties, there weren't any we were interested in and we weren't willing to wait around for them to pop up either. Things have changed since 2007 when I put my license on in-active to travel around the country with Greg, but I'm excited to jump right back in! My office is extremely small: just me and two other ladies. In a weird twist of fate, one of the ladies who used to work there just quit to work in another aspect of real estate, and they said I could have her office!! This is a bonus for me, because if I ever have to take Parker to work with me, I can somewhat corral him! And, since I know you're wondering, no, I don't plan on putting Parker in a day care just yet. Greg will watch him on the days that I'm at the office answering phones (which is two days a week) and if I'm showing properties and Greg is off on a job, I'll just take him with me. However, we are both prepared that if both of our businesses take off, we will have no other choice but to put him in day care.

Whew! I feel like I can breath better now that I'm able to tell the world what we've been plotting/scheming/dreaming about for the last several months. What is odd about our whole situation is that I'm not stressed out about it at all. And let me say, I can get stressed out pretty easily! I know that we're taking a leap of faith by Greg quitting a job that more than provided for our family, only for us both to begin working without a guaranteed steady pay check. I was more stressed out when I couldn't find a house I wanted to purchase in Texas. Maybe I'm being completely naive, but I know that faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains. And I have faith that we are exactly where we need to be, doing exactly what we need to be doing.

My 2011 Goals

For the third year in a row, it's time for my yearly goal list! (I can't believe I've been blogging this long!) Here we go!

1. To print, label, and organize all the photos that are on my laptop and place them in photo albums. Yup, it's appearing on my list for the third year in a row. I think I'm starting to get on every one's nerves about this now...but putting this out there really is helping me! Let's see if this is the year I can finally mark this one off the list!

2. To learn and use baby sign language with Parker. I probably should have started this months ago since he's almost nine months old, but I don't really know where to start with this. I'm hoping the library will have a book or two that I can borrow to learn some basic signs.

3. To use coupons. I was so inspired by the "Extreme Couponing" special that TLC did last week that I decided it was worth the time and effort to begin clipping coupons again. I actually went to the store yesterday and used coupons so I'm hoping I can make this a habit. I'm going to Wal-Mart today and will be buying the supplies I need to make my own coupon book to take with me on shopping trips!

4. To paint all the closet and bedroom doors in our house. When we first began remodeling our house our plan was to replace all the closet and bedroom doors with raised panel doors and to paint them white. Currently they are all the brown stained wood flat slat doors. My husband recently decided that since we won't be living in this house very long anyway, it really isn't going to pay us back to replace perfectly good doors. However, thinking about all the priming and painting I'll be sneaking in while Parker is napping already makes me want to pull my hair out!

5. To bake a pie. Two pies to be more specific. I actually love pies but have always been too intimidated to bake one. I have two favorites in mind: my mom's lemon meringue pie and my grandma's chocolate cream pie. Did I mention I plan on making the crust from scratch?

6. To contribute more to my family financially. Greg would love for me to find a well paying full time job. I would love to find a stay at home job so I don't have to put Parker in day care. I'm open to any suggestions!

7. To learn how to make spoon and fork jewelry. I have to say, I've been obsessed with spoon jewelry for a long time now. My mom can vouch for me! The other day I was doing some browsing through etsy and I was curious if anyone had a spoon jewelry store. Guess what else popped up. Fork rings! I was hooked. The next day I told my husband what he could buy me for my birthday (which is all the way in August). He asked what it was and when I said a fork ring and that it cost $150.00 he looked at me like I had lost my mind. But I promised him that it wasn't just a piece of jewelry....it was a piece of art! They are absolutely stunning!

I pulled up the rings and my husband said that he thought I should try my hand at making them myself. He even did a little research for me! I love it when my husband seems supportive of what could be a new jobby (job + hobby) for me!! I think it helps that since I would have to use some pretty heavy duty tools I would be working in the garage and my husband loves any excuse to hang out in the garage!

8. To begin working on my book again. Notice I didn't say specifically how much I would work on it! The only thing that is somewhat motivating me is when I occasionally overhear my husband talking on the phone to someone about my blog. He always tells them that I started writing a book and he doesn't know why I quit. Again, it's nice to know I have his support!

9. To host a few more Bling On A String trunk shows. I think this one is pretty self explanatory! To visit my store click here!

10. To finish The Harry Potter series. This one was on my very first goal list. And, sadly I still haven't finished the series. However, this is one goal that I'm cheating a little bit on. That's because I'm reading book 7 (the last one) right now! Sneaky, aren't I?

There you have it! What are your goals this year?

A Review of my 2010 Goals

Last year around this time I posted (what has become an almost "annual" blog tradition) my goals for 2010. Thankfully I did post them, because knowing that I would have to give my readers my year-end review is sometimes the only thing that kept me on track! So, here we go:

1. To be a better blogger. Well, if you're one of my faithful readers, you probably know that goal went right out the window. In fact, you're probably not even reading this because you pretty much gave up on logging in each week to see a new post by yours truly. Sorry! It's safe to say that taking care of the baby, keeping a clean and tidy house (my husband will laugh if he reads that), and making jewelry pretty much consumes most of my free time. Don't get me wrong! I still love blogging and reading all the comments, so have no fear, you can still read my "thoughts" from time to time!

2. To grow an herb garden. Hmmm....apparently when I made these goals I forgot that I would be giving birth in the spring, which I'm sure was the ideal time for me to plant that cute herb garden I daydreamed about. It's safe to say that idea went right out the window as well!

3. To call my mom more often. I do feel like I'm a lot better at this. However, that came at a price. I think I was calling her once a month until around August. Then, my step-dad was involved in a bad accident that left him being hospitalized for over two months, and eventually landed him in a nursing home. During that time, my phone calls increased to a few times a week. Now, I'm trying to call once a week. Sadly, sometimes an unexpected accident is what it takes for one to realize what's important in life.

4. To complete Parker's baby book. Thank God I posted this as a goal for the whole world to see! Do you want to know what I obsessively worked on last week? You guessed it! Parker's baby book. In fact, one evening I was working on it and my husband asked what I was doing and when I said, "working on Parker's baby book" his response was, "Why?" I didn't bother to tell him it was because I had exactly twenty-seven hours to get caught up because I knew he would think I had gone off the deep end!

Luckily, I did do a pretty decent job of updating a few things here and there each month. But the biggest thing I was dreading involved all those pages about the gifts he received after he was born, along with the gifts I received for him at my baby showers. I have been extremely blessed with awesome family and amazing friends who showered their generosity on our family. Which, meant I didn't want to write all those wonderful items down because I knew it would be time consuming. Luckily for gifts I got in the mail I would write down on a piece of paper and so that really helped! Now, I know what you're thinking; why didn't I just write them down in the baby book as I received them instead of on a piece of paper. Here's why: I want the baby book to be filled out using the same pen. I don't want blue ink mixed with black ink or ball point mixed with uniball gel. Yes, I am a freak of nature. One thing that really helped me whenever I did make time to add to the book was the awesome "baby's first year" calendar that one of my aunts sent me. It came with all kinds of stickers for things such as "clapped hands", "rolled over", "gave kisses", "doctor's appointment", you get the idea. That calendar has been so great in allowing me to keep track of things! And, in case you're wondering why I've been so diligent about my monthly Parker posts, it's because I am supposed to add a picture of him each month. (Yes, I am also a little bit anal about the calendar as well. I always use the same blue pen to fill out his monthly stats!)

There are a few parts of Parker's baby book that make me sad. One of which is the section where I'm supposed to clip a newspaper clipping announcing his birth. The hospital was pretty on top of things, having me fill out a form that they submit to the newspaper for the announcement. Now, this may sound silly, but after I brought Parker home from the hospital, I had anxiety about leaving the house. The idea of having to go to the gas station to buy a paper completely stressed me out. In the town I live in, the newspaper is only printed three times a week. I asked my husband numerous times to stop by the gas station to buy a paper in case Parker's birth announcement was in it, but apparently that was not high on his priority list. I also asked friends to let me know if they saw it in the paper. Sadly, no one told me. I even called the newspaper to see if it had been printed two months after he had been born, but no one could tell me a concrete answer. Our library doesn't keep newspapers on file. The newspaper website is of no help. Needless to say, there is no newspaper clipping in Parker's baby book announcing his birth and that breaks my heart.

5. To host a Christmas Cookie/Ornament Exchange party.Instead, I had my first Bling On A String trunk show at the beginning of December. I figured hosting two parties back to back would be a little too much to handle. But, I would love to do this next year!

6. To be a good Mommy. This is a tough one. I try really hard to be a good mom. And some days I really feel like I am doing a pretty good job at parenting. I read books and websites about parenting. I take care of Parker's essential needs. I make an effort to play with him each day. I give him lots of kisses. But, then I have a moment. And at those moments, I always think, "Oh gosh, I am the worst parent in the world. How could I have done ______. Like the time we were out and about and I suddenly realized I hadn't changed his diaper in five hours. Or the time we were at The Elks and it dawned on me that (duh!) I had forgot to feed him his dinner! (Just so you don't call DHS on me, I had nursed him...just forgot to feed him his solids an hour later. And, he was in such a happy mood I had no reason to think that there was something "wrong" with him). Or like last night when I placed him in the bath tub and the water was too hot (first time that happened in eight months, so I guess I shouldn't be beating myself up. Parker paid me back by peeing all over me as soon as I lifted him out of the water). All I can say is; I try. But, I don't think I'll be winning a "Mom of the Year" award any time soon.

7. To print, label, and organize all the photos that are on my laptop and place them in photo albums.I have a really good excuse as to why this goal wasn't accomplished for the second year in a row: it takes money to print off pictures. For some reason when I made these goals I forgot about the teeny tiny fact that we have a whole house to remodel, along with another person to feed, clothe, and diaper. However, I did make a lot of progress this year! I did get two whole photo albums filled! One of which has all of the photos labeled (It's the type of album where you label to the side of the picture). I even printed off a lot more of the pictures that were taking up space on my laptop. However, I haven't quite got everything printed off. On the bright side, ever since Parker has been born, I've been printing off pictures at Wal-Mart once a month. And, up until November, I was great about immediately labeling and dating the back of the pictures. See: Progress!!!

8. To pay off the hospital bill after having the baby. Well, this didn't happen either, because of the reason listed on #7. Luckily, the hospital gave us an interest free payment plan which allows the balance to be paid off in a year. Trust me, we will be doing a happy dance once it's paid off!

9. To be a MILF. I actually think I've done pretty well about keeping up with this goal! Being a mommy proved to be the best diet for me. Along with finally having a "normal" lifestyle and not living in a fifth wheel where I basically sat around all day. I'm happy to say that I am finally back down to the size I was trying to achieve by dieting. However, my new found look does come with a price. Most of my friends are dieting, so when they see me, they say things like, "gosh, you're looking too skinny" or "I can't wait until I have a baby so I can loose weight", all of which are said with a tone of disgust. As if how dare I be skinny after becoming a mother. Although I would love to whip out a copy of the charts that show what a normal, healthy weight is for someone who is 5'2" (I fall right in the middle, thankyouverymuch) I just smile and hold my tongue. At least one person is truly happy for me: my husband! Along the same lines, I also have limited myself to wearing sweat pants twice a week. It honestly doesn't take any more effort to put on jeans and a cute top than to walk around all week looking like I rolled out of bed. I may not wear make up every day, but I do feel like I've been pretty good about trying to be a MILF! ;)

10. To bring the balance of our Harley down to a certain amount I have in my head. Refer to #7. Sadly, I was the queen of minimum payments this year.

11. Not to be such a control freak. That depends. According to #4, I guess some reading would take that to mean a big, fat, NO! However, I am pretty lax about other things. I made reference to spilt milk in my original goal list. And, since Parker spits up ALL THE TIME, it's pretty safe to say that I'm completely over having clean carpets. If he spits up, I pretty much just dab the spot with a burp cloth and call it good. Unless it's green. Or orange. Gross, I know. I'm sure if I had nice, brand new carpet, I would be signing a different tune!

12. To breast feed Parker for his first year. So far, so good!!!

13. To be more frugal. Well, this didn't happen. I would love to say we bought a membership to Sams Club, but we didn't (in our defense, it is two hours away), and I tried scouring the internet for coupons, but it was so time consuming and always for products that I didn't necessarily use to begin with. Luckily, Huggies and Pampers occasionally sends coupons for diapers and wipes, and I happily use those!

How did all of you do with your 2010 goals?

My First Bling On A String Trunk Show!

On December 9th I had my first Bling On A String Trunk Show! I've been brainstorming about doing a trunk show since August. And it took me that long to get enough inventory made....it's not always easy getting jewelry made with a baby in the house! When all was said and done I had 60 pieces of jewelry available for sale at the trunk show. I was nervous if that would be enough, or if people would be disappointed that there wasn't very much jewelry to choose from. I finally decided that I had to start somewhere and I could always explain that to people if they brought it up (luckily no one did)!

The days leading up to the show were really busy for me! Making sure every piece was tagged with a price, cleaning the house, stressing out, making and sending invitations and evites, and did I mention stressing out? I finally know how an artist feels before their first art show. Would people like my jewelry? Would they think it was over priced? Would they think it was poorly made? Would any one show up? The doubts were endless.

I invited around thirty five people to the trunk show. I had nine people attend. I tried not to let that discourage me. I've been told to always expect a fourth of the people you invite to attend an event, so I guess I did pretty good! I did have one lady attend who did not make a purchase, which of course hurt my feelings. I mean, I for one always intend on making a purchase (even if it's a small one) if I attend a trunk show or a direct sales party. I mean, that is the purpose of going, is it not?

I included a few special offers at my show. I entered guests into a drawing for a free necklace for every $20 that they spent. By the end of the night I had seven entries! I also marketed my slinky bracelets at a "buy two, get $5.00 off", which was a big hit. People loved my large slinky bracelets!
Here's a picture of one of my large slinky bracelets that is currently available for sale at www.blingonastring.etsy.com


After all was said and done, I had sold fourteen pieces of jewelry! I made a deal with my husband, that I would take 25% of my sales and invest it back into my business. I'm hoping that amount will allow me to replace the items that I sold and hopefully make a few more pieces. I figure this way I can slowly build up a decent inventory for future shows! I do hope to have a trunk show at my house every season (four times a year). I would also love to have people volunteer to host a trunk show at their house. I would give them a few hostess "bonuses" as well.

For those of you who have been encouraging and praying for this little venture of mine, I really appreciate you! You know the saying that God works in mysterious ways? Well, I am a firm believer in that. Back in my days of selling real estate, I always knew that if I worked really hard to generate business that God would see my efforts and would reward me. It would never be a result that I expected, but it always panned out nevertheless. For example, I would do mail outs to my entire neighborhood in hopes of landing a new listing. The following day I would receive a listing referral from a friend. In my heart, I always knew that God was rewarding my efforts. The same seems to be true for my Bling On A String business. I had several people tell me that they couldn't attend my trunk show but that they would call me one day just to come by and look at my jewelry. Well, of course people will say that, but do they follow through? Usually not. However, a week later a girl from MOPS that I invited called and said she wanted to come by! She purchased a pair of earrings. I totally wasn't expecting that, but it made my day! Then, the following day, another pair of earrings sold from my etsy store. The bonus was that the person who bought it was a complete stranger. I love it when random people discover my shop and like what they see!!!

Here are some of the pics from my trunk show. Of course, I forgot to take pictures until it was already over, so some spots on the table look a little bare.

So much to blog about....

But so little time to do so!!! In an effort to motivate me to blog here are some tidbits I hope to blog about soon!

*Thanksgiving
*My first Bling On A String Trunk Show
*Decking The Halls
*Parker turning 8 months old (because lets face it....he's not quite there yet but at the rate I've been going he'll be 8 1/2 months old before I blog about it)
*How badly I sucked at keeping up my New Year Goals this year. There. I've said it. Now maybe I can quit stressing out about the fact that I still have a few days to go and maybe just maybe I can at least cross off a few of them. *cough*yeah right*

:)

And....She's Back!

That's what one of my friends wrote on facebook when she saw that I had re-launched my etsy store a month ago. I love creating fun jewelry, but my challenge when we first arrived in this town was that there was not a bead store. So, I put my little hobby on hiatus. However, while I was pregnant, I knew I had to make myself a breast feeding reminder bracelet. Some of you may remember this one that I made for sale a couple years ago.

The great thing about breast feeding reminder bracelets is that not only are they an easy way to keep track of the last time one has fed their baby, but it also plays double duty since one is supposed to switch it from one wrist to the other after a nursing to "remind" the mother which side to begin nursing from. Mine worked perfectly for me after giving birth. I was on a strict nursing schedule (every hour and a half) including waking both myself and Parker up during the night because he had lost so much weight. It was draining and I was seriously sleep deprived. For the life of me I never could (and still can't) remember which side I had left off on. The switching from wrist to wrist was such a life saver for me! Unfortunately, I broke the clasp that the charm is on after a few weeks. And, go figure, there wasn't a store near by for me to buy a replacement clasp. Although the "time" charm could no longer be used, I was thankful that I could still use the bracelet to remind me which side to have him start nursing from.

That's when it hit me. A breast feeding reminder bracelet can only be used by a select group of women. However, a bracelet that any woman could wear, but that could double as a reminder bracelet, seemed easier to market. And thus "Slinky Bracelets" were born! What I love about them is they are so versatile! They can be easily added to complete a "look" since there are no clasps to fumble with. A nursing mother can switch hers from wrist to wrist to "remind" her which side to begin nursing from. An enthusiastic sports fan can show her spirit by wearing one in her teams colors. How fun would these be for high school teenagers to wear one in their school colors on game days? I have high hopes that my "Slinky Bracelets" will catch on. So, with that being said, please visit my little shop at: www.blingonastring.etsy.com




My ultimate goal with Bling On A String is that I can begin producing enough sales in jewelry to allow me to continue to stay at home with Parker. I am not in any way expecting this little vision of mine to happen over night. But, I know that a small business like this cannot have success without the support and encouragement from family and friends. In the upcoming months I hope that I can have enough inventory of hand made jewelry that I can begin having a few trunk shows here and there. I think jewelry is something very personal and most women like to "try on" before they buy. Your prayers and positive thoughts for my little venture would be greatly appreciated!




I know that Christmas is right around the corner, so please consider buying a special lady in your life a gift from Bling on a String! I'm open to custom orders, but those will take a little bit longer to produce and ship. Slinky Bracelets are only $15.00 and would make a great stocking stuffer!

As of right now I am only selling on Etsy. I accept payments via paypal and in order to make a purchase you will have to sign up for an account on www.etsy.com, but it is free and literally only takes a few minutes!!!




Thank you so much for your support! Anyone wishing to "re-post" this blog has my permission.

www.blingonastring.etsy.com

Nothing Tastes As Good As Skinny Feels!

As most of my fellow readers know, last year I began dieting with two goals in mind. Either to reach a certain weight or to be able to fit back into a certain pair of jeans I own. Well, today for the heck of it, I decided to try on those jeans. Greg was watching me from our bed as I pulled them out of the closet. As soon as I pulled them over my hips, his eyes got big and he said, "Whoa! They went past your ass!" Last time I tried to put them on they wouldn't even go that far!! The final kicker was to see if I could get them buttoned. And....I could!!! I'm not sure who is more excited! Me or Greg! Did I mention they were his favorite jeans?

You may be wondering how a woman who just had a baby four months ago is able to fit back into jeans that she was dieting to get into prior to conception. Well, let me just tell you how I did it!

1. I'm breastfeeding.

2. As crazy as this sounds, I swear while I was pregnant my stomach shrank. I was so sick during my pregnancy that keeping food down was impossible. Therefore, I didn't eat as big of portions since I knew I'd be throwing it right up. Basically, life pre-baby I could eat as much as Greg. I'm not kidding. Life post baby, I honestly just can't eat that much!

3. I take Parker out for a walk at least five days a week!

4. We are no longer traveling and I no longer live in a fifth wheel. Living in such a confined space was just not healthy for Greg or myself. It's amazing how much of a workout living in a normal house provides a person! I'm constantly going up and down stairs and just staying busy in general trying to keep a semi-tidy house!

To celebrate, I think I'm going to buy a new pair of jeans!

Procrastinators Unite!

I never used to be a procrastinator. I promise. In fact a lot of times in college my mantra was "Why put off until tomorrow what can be done today". Wasn't it Ben Franklin that said that? Anyway, those days have apparently left the building and bolted the door shut. You may recall when I posted my Goals for 2010 that one of my goals was to finish Parker's Baby Book. I am very proud to say that I have started writing in it! Yay! One page has a family tree and I distinctly remembered having a similar page in my wedding book. I figured the easiest thing to do was to get the wedding book out and copy the names. I know it's horrible that I don't automatically know the names of all the Great Grandparents. Sue me.

I proceeded to get the wedding book out. Being a day dreamer though, I can't just take something like that out and flip to the page I need and shut the book. Nope! I sat down, and opened it to page one and began to read the entire book. Do you know what I discovered? I NEVER FINISHED MY WEDDING BOOK! UGH! There were so many pictures that needed to be taped in and parts that needed to be filed in. Including, you guessed it, the family tree! So much for my wedding book being helpful!!! The thing that really gets me is I never wrote in gifts and who gave them to me. I think I have one list from one of my four showers. But other than that I hardly remember what most people gave me. Great. Granted, I've learned from my lesson and I am going to start writing the list of who gave what present to Parker in his baby book today. Or....tomorrow.

My Goals for 2010

With a new year comes my new batch of goals. Let's see if I do better this year than I did last year!

1. To be a better blogger. I really love blogging and reading the comments from readers. However, I tended to slack off a lot last year. I have so many posts that I planned on writing and never did. Now it just seems pointless. With a new baby due in the Spring, this may get a little challenging. Please check in at least once a week to see if I can keep up with my end of the bargain!

2. To grow an herb garden. Random, I know. But here's what happened. When we were in Sidney, we ate dinner in a local cafe. I wanted a really good salad and asked the waitress if they had "good" Ranch Dressing (I know, I'm a little obsessed about this Ranch business). She said they did and that the owner made it using fresh herbs from her personal herb garden. True to her word, it was delicious! And I immediately had visions of me in an apron bending over my cute herb garden with a quaint watering can in my hand. Homemade ranch dressing with fresh herbs, here I come!

3. To call my mom more often. I am a horrible human being. This should not have to be a goal. But it is. I'm absolutely horrible about picking up the phone and calling my mom. Seriously, I'm pretty sure there have been times when maybe two months have gone by before I'll hear her voice on the other line. My parents are very old fashioned and are the typical folks who don't like "making long distance phone calls". So basically my mom never calls anyone unless she has too. Luckily, my mom is awesome enough to never give me a guilt trip about my lack of phone calls. Now that I'm about to become a mommy myself, I already tear up at the thought of the first time Parker won't be home for Christmas. I'm hoping it's just all my crazy hormones that are making me think this way already. Now that I've moved and settled into a home in a different state, and my sister and her family are about to move to a foreign country, and my brother and his family live in a different state as well, I just feel like it's up to me to make more of an effort.

4. To complete Parker's baby book. You may be wondering why I'm making this a goal. Let me explain. When I got married, I received a wedding book from two of my friends. I didn't even take it out of the box until we had been married for about two years. That was when I learned my mistake. Apparently I should have had a newspaper clipping from our wedding day, wrote down the number one movie at the box office, etc, etc. Luckily I was able to find out most of the questions courtesy of the world wide web! However, I want to be better prepared with Parker. I've already bought his baby book, and I've already opened it! I'm thinking at least an hour a month and I can have it up to date and completed! Wish me luck!

5. To host a Christmas Cookie/Ornament Exchange party. I read about this in a book a few years ago and thought it sounded like so much fun! This may be a little daunting with an eight month old, but I'm determined to host what I hope will be an annual event!

6. To be a good Mommy. I have no idea how I'm going to gage this one at the end of the year. There are so many parents out there that think they are "good" parents, when I think to myself that I would never raise my kid that way. I suppose to each his own.

7. To print, label, and organize all the photos that are on my laptop and place them in photo albums. I know this one is left over from last year, but it really needs to be done!!! And then once I'm "caught up" I can spend one day a month adding the new pictures from that month. Sounds easy enough, but we all know what happened last year!

8. To pay off the hospital bill after having the baby. Yes, we have insurance, but of course the only OB/GYN in this town is not in my network. Luckily I have already called our insurance and have a rough estimate of how much money we will be out of pocket. It's a small price to pay to have our very own little angel, but it's also a price I don't want looming over our heads in 2011.

9. To be a MILF. Yup. I said it. And don't tell me that it's un-lady-like to speak that way. I didn't make up the expression. My reasoning is that it will be so easy to focus all of my attention on the baby that I'll quit taking care of myself. I'm already more comfortable than I should be running errands in sweat pants looking like I just rolled out of bed. Really it's no more effort to put on some decent clothes than comfy ones. And as Parker grows older I want him to be proud of his mama, and not embarrassed by what I'm wearing when I pick him up from school in. I'm sure Greg will appreciate this, too!

10. To bring the balance of our Harley down to a certain amount I have in my head. I'd love to pay it off, but I'm trying to set some realistic goals here!

11. Not to be such a control freak. You know the expression, "Don't cry over spilt milk"? Well, I'm sure it's about to happen when by this time next year I'll have a (hopefully) walking little boy. And when he does throw food, or a bottle, or whatever on my favorite rug, I need to remind myself that a little spilt milk is nothing to cry over.

12. To breast feed Parker for his first year. If a good full time job comes open, I'm not sure how feasible this will be. However, I would really like to try for him to make it one full year. I just think breast feeding is so much healthier, not to mention....it's FREE!!!

13. To be more frugal. As in shopping online for better deals on items we regularly purchase, to use coupons more, to buy in bulk to save money, you get the idea!


What are your goals for 2010?