I'm Back! :-)

I FINALLY finished my 101 in 1001 goals! Whew! I was starting to wonder if I’d ever finish my list! After a while it’s hard not to just think of generic goals to take up space on the paper. The main reason of doing this whole challenge is to somewhat better yourself, so I had to make sure I didn’t put any silly goals on there. Now, I will admit, some of these do not BETTER me as a person.. but they are things I’d like to do. SO with that said, here are my GOALS!

1 WALK 1 MILE A DAY FOR 30 DAYS
2 DO 25 RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS
3 LOSE UP TO 80 LBS
4 COOK DINNER EVERY NIGHT FOR 1 MONTH
5 READ THE BIBLE COVER TO COVER
6 EXPAND MY VOCABULARY - LEARN 10 NEW WORDS PER MONTH FOR 1 YEAR
7 DO MY HAIR AND MAKEUP EVERYDAY FOR 30 DAYS
8 LEARN TO SEW AND MAKE THINGS
9 READ ONE BOOK PER MONTH FOR 1 YEAR
10 START GRADUATE SCHOOL
11 DON'T SAY ANYTHING NEGATIVE FOR 1 MONTH
12 GET MY TEETH FIXED
13 PAY OFF OUR CREDIT CARD DEBT
14 DO TEN THINGS I'VE NEVER DONE BEFORE
15 IDENTIFY 100 THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY
16 FINALLY GO ON A HONEYMOON
17 TRY ONE NEW RECIPE PER WEEK TO BUILD MY RECIPE CATALOG - FOR 1 YEAR
18 RELEARN FRENCH AND BECOME SOMEWHAT FLUENT IN IT
19 HAND WASH MY DISHES EVERYDAY FOR 3O DAYS - TO SEE IF IT SAVES WATER
20 BE THE AUTHOR OF A POPULAR BLOG
21 CELEBRATE LIFE EVERYDAY
22 START RECYCLING AGAIN - EVERYDAY FOR ONE MONTH
23 VISIT THE TUCCI'S IN TEXAS
24 VISIT THE PEARL HARBOR MEMORIAL
25 HAVE A "NORMAL" BMI
26 MAKE A SCRAPBOOK FOR TRISTSAN
27 MAKE A CUTE COUCH COVER & THROW PILLOWS FOR OUR COUCH
28 DECORATE FOR EVERY HOLIDAY - FOR ONE YEAR
29 SEND A CARD OUT TO FAMILY FOR EVERY HOLIDAY - FOR ONE YEAR
30 GIVE THE PUGS A BATH ONCE A WEEK FOR 6 WEEKS
31 WRITE MY HUSBAND A SWEET NOTE ONCE A WEEK FOR 1 YEAR
32 WRITE MY BEST FRIEND ONCE A WEEK FOR 1 YEAR
33 SEND BIRTHDAY CARDS TO ALL MY FRIENDS FOR 1 YEAR
34 BE ABLE TO RUN A MILE WITHOUT STOPPING
35 PRAY EVERY MORNING AND EVERY NIGHT FOR 30 DAYS
36 MEMORIZE 25 BIBLE VERSES
37 PARTICIPATE IN A VOLUNTEER PROJECT
38 STOP HAVING TO TAKE MY ANTI-DEPRESSANT MEDICATION
39 SAVE $1000 FOR AN EMERGENCY FUND
40 SAVE MY CHANGE FOR 1 YEAR - DEPOSIT WHAT I'VE SAVED INTO SAVINGS
41 TITHE AT CHURCH EVERY SUNDAY FOR A YEAR - EVEN IF IT'S ONLY $1.00
42 ATTEND EVERY CHURCH FUNCTION I CAN FOR 6 MONTHS
43 DO 5 THINGS THAT ARE OUTSIDE MY COMFORT ZONE
44 GO 30 DAYS WITHOUT BUYING ANYTHING EXCEPT FOR NECESSITIES
45 WATCH 5 CLASSIC MOVIES THAT I'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE
46 STOP DRINKING SODA
47 STUDY FOR AND TAKE THE GRE
48 CLEAN OUT GARAGE : DONATE / SELL / THROW AWAY
49 CLEAN OUT MY CLOSET : DONATE / SELL / THROW AWAY
50 SEE HOW MANY DAYS I CAN GO WITHOUT EATING SWEETS : AIM FOR 10 OR 15
51 PACK MY LUNCH EVERYDAY FOR ONE MONTH
52 PREPARE A "TO DO" LIST FOR WORK PROJECTS AND COMPLETE IT EVERYDAY : 30 DAYS
53 ALWAYS ANSWER MY PHONE AT WORK -STOP LETTING CALLS ROLL ON
54 STOP USING MY DEBIT CARD - ONLY USE CASH
55 GIVE MY BLOG A MAKEOVER
56 TAKE MY MEDICINE EVERYDAY - STOP SKIPPING DAYS
57 GET DOWN TO A SIZE 8
58 START A SAVINGS ACCOUNT FOR TRISTAN: SAVE THE FIRST $1,000
59 TRY 5 NEW THINGS THAT I'VE NEVER EATEN BEFORE
60 BE A GUEST BLOGGER
61 GET A TATTOO : THAT HAS A MEANING
62 SLOW MY LIFE DOWN, ENJOY EACH DAY AND EACH MOMENT, TAKE IT ALL IN
63 GET TRISTAN ON A BETTER DAILY SCHEDULE AND MAINTAIN IT FOR 1 MONTH
64 PLAN AN AWESOME FIRST BIRTHDAY PARTY FOR TRISTAN
65 HAVE ALL MY CHRISTMAS SHOPPING DONE BEFORE DECEMBER 2010
66 BECOME THE NEAT, ORGANIZED, SUZY HOMEMAKER PERSON THAT I WANT TO BE
67 PLAN A "GIRLS DAY" ONCE PER MONTH FOR MY LADY FRIENDS/ NAVY WIVES : 6 MONTHS
68 HAVE TRISTAN'S PICTURES TAKEN AT LEAST 4 TIMES IN 2010: PROFESSIONALLY
69 PRAY FOR MY HUSBAND DAILY: CAN CHECK OFF AFTER 30 DAYS STRAIGHT
70 LET GO OF PAST GRUDGES - BE A BETTER PERSON
71 GET MY EYES CHECKED : GET NEW GLASSES
72 PURCHASE A MATCHING BEDROOM SET
73 PURCHASE A MATCHING LIVING ROOM SET
74 COME UP WITH A DÉCOR THEME FOR EACH ROOM AND FINALLY DECORATE OUR HOME
75 VISIT SAVANNAH GEORGIA BEFORE WE LEAVE FLORIDA
76 VISIT MICANOPY FLORIDA BEFORE WE LEAVE FLORIDA
77 COMPLETE THE LOVE DARE BOOK
78 REMOVE ALL THE NEGATIVE PEOPLE FROM MY LIFE
79 BE A BETTER DAUGHTER IN LAW TO SHELBY'S FAMILY : PUT THEM FIRST - IT'S NOT ABOUT ME
80 BE A BETTER DAUGHTER TO MY FAMILY : PUT THEM FIRST - IT'S NOT ABOUT ME
81 BE A BETTER WIFE TO MY HUSBAND - IT'S NOT ABOUT ME
82 BE A BETTER MOTHER TO MY SON - IT'S NOT ABOUT ME
83 BE A POSITIVE LIGHT TO ALL MY CO-WORKERS
84 SPEND OUR TAX RETURN MONEY WISELY: PAYING OFF DEBT - NO EXCUSES
85 PURCHASE NICER CLOTHES FOR MYSELF : EVERYDAY AND WORK
86 LEARN TO LET GO AND ALLOW MY HUSBAND TO BE IN CHARGE IN OUR MARRIAGE
87 MAKE EACH MOMENT I SPEND WITH TRISTAN SPECIAL AND FUN: HE LOVES TO PLAY AND INTERACT
88 MAKE 5 NEW FRIENDS
89 START AN ANNUAL CHRISTMAS LETTER TO SEND OUT WITH MY CHRISTMAS CARDS
90 ANSWER "50 QUESTIONS THAT WILL FREE YOUR MIND"
91 DONATE 100,000 GRAINS OF RICE ON FREERICE.COM
92 ORGANIZE MY WHOLE HOUSE: DONATE / SELL / THROW AWAY
93 HAVE THE BILLS FIGURED BY THE 1ST OF EVERY MONTH: GIVE SHELBY A HANDOUT
94 ORGANIZE MY COUPON BOOK: START UTILIZING MY COUPONS MORE WHEN GROCERY SHOPPING
95 READ A BOOK THEN WATCH THE MOVIE THAT GOES WITH IT: 5 TIMES
96 HAVE TRISTAN WALKING BY HIMSELF BEFORE HIS 1ST BIRTHDAY
97 HOST A COOKIE EXCHANGE PARTY
98 READ TO TRISTAN EVERY EVENING FOR 1 MONTH
99 SEND MY SISTER-IN-LAW A CARD/NOTE/E-MAIL ONCE A WEEK FOR 1 YEAR
100 SEND MY GRANDPARENTS A CARD/NOTE/E-MAIL ONCE A WEEK FOR 1 YEAR
101 START A NEW LIST!


Did everyone have a good Christmas? We did! It was so much fun watching Tristan interact with everything. He did so well opening presents! At first he wasn’t sure what to do, but once he got the hang of it he wanted to open everyone’s presents! My parents came in the weekend before Christmas and we had an early Christmas with them. They left and then Shelby’s parents came in on Christmas Eve and we spend Christmas time with them. Shelby’s sister came too. I really like her. She’s one of the best sister-in-laws a girl could have!

SPEAKING OF TRISTAN: He walked for the first time the other day! WALK! Wahoo! He walked using a new walk/ride toy that we got for him. He was so cute! I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw him pushing that thing across the floor! The 2nd new thing is a TOOTH! He FINALLY got a tooth! It’s his lower bottom left tooth. It’s the small things that make a Momma happy!

I’m trying so hard to get excited and motivated for this NEW YEAR. At first I was SO ready, but now I’m kinda like “eh”. I’m SO tired and I think that’s why I’m having trouble being excited right now. I want 2010 to be a great year for me. I’ve put myself on hold for a long time and it’s about time I did something about it. I really need to push myself. I need to get out of this rut!

Who else is doing the 101 in 1001? Who has some resolutions? Let’s have a little support group for each other! We can ALL have a great 2010!

Are YOU Ready for Christmas??

Hello Everyone!!
Sorry I've been MIA the past several days - my family came into town on Friday evening and didn't leave until this morning.  I've been spending time with them and enjoying an "early Christmas" with them.  My mom and I have ran our little legs off driving all over Jacksonville and SHOPPING.  My mom found some awesome deals!

Sunday evening we had our Christmas.  Tristan was so cute opening his presents! He got so many toys from my parents! Everything makes NOISE! ha ha.  Shelby and I got some really nice gifts from my parents.  Everything we got was SO perfect for us.  One of the cute things my mom got me was a Vera Bradley Lunch bag! I didn't even know they made such a thing! It's perfect because I'm going to start taking my lunch to work everyday.  The BIG gift my parents got for us was a NEW CAMERA!  We're still figuring everything out!!

Today Shelby and I are going to clean our house - it always gets kinda messy with company - and then run some errands around town.  It's SO nice being off work this week.  I have a feeling I'm gonna be jealous of all the people off NEXT week though.. ha ha.

WEll -I've gotta run and get this day started.. BUT I'll post later with some pictures from our visit with my family!

Have a great day!

Happy Monday!

Christmas is only 10 days away. I’m very excited to spend Christmas with my family. I’m also very excited to see Tristan on his first Christmas. I hope we’re able to make tons of wonderful memories with him this year! He’s doing really well and hasn’t decided to attack the Christmas tree yet. I was thinking it was going to be so hard to keep him away from it, but thankfully he’s doing great!

This past weekend was a very relaxing weekend for us. Saturday I got to sleep in until 10:30!! THANK YOU TRISTAN!! Then we got up and did our Saturday cleaning. Shelby was working so it was just Tristan and I. He followed me all over the house – it’s so nice that he’s able to crawl where he wants to go. VERY cute too. All that crawling was hard work! – so he ended up taking an early nap. Shelby came home from work and we had a late lunch and then headed out to the grocery store. That evening we watched the newest Harry Potter movie and just relaxed. It felt SO GOOD to just relax!

Sunday we went to church and then went to our favorite Mexican restaurant for lunch. Afterwards we came home and Shelby ended up taking an extremely long nap. I baked some pumpkin bread and clipped coupons. Yesterday evening we had our Christmas Party at church. It was a lot of fun and it felt great to get out and spend time with friends. Tristan had a great time!

This evening is Shelby’s work Christmas Party – I have to run to Target during my lunch break and find a gift for the gift exchange game. I hope we have a good time! Last year we did, so I’m sure we will this year as well. This Friday my parents are coming to visit – we’re going to do Christmas with them during their visit. They have to leave before Christmas to go back to WV, so I think we’re going to do our Christmas on December 20th. Friday evening Shelby has a holiday concert downtown. I’m looking forward to that! Then, Saturday is MY work Christmas party. After my parents leave, Shelby’s parents and sister are coming to celebrate Christmas with us. We have a busy couple weeks ahead of us!

This Wednesday some of the ladies at the office are getting together to make desserts for everyone. We’re gonna have a “Dessert Buffet”. I’m trying to decide what I want to make! Any ideas?

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. I wanted to take this moment to publicly thank Miss Jennifer Miller for sending me a little Christmas gift. I got it this weekend. She read on my blog about how I LOVE coffee mugs, and she sent me the most adorable gingerbread man coffee mug. THANK YOU SO MUCH – I absolutely love it! She’s been my friend for as long as I can remember, and it’s friendships like that I cherish the most.  :-)

Until next Time ….

Let's Say THANKS!!

I received this as an e-mail this morning and I just wanted to share!  It seems like a great thing for our troops - and it's something easy we can all do! I know it's small - but I do think it would bring some joy to those fighting while we are at home spending time with out families....

XEROX IS DOING SOMETHING COOL

If you go to this web site, www.LetsSayThanks.com you can pick out a thank you card and Xerox will print it and it will be sent to a soldier that is currently serving in Iraq .. You can't pick out who gets it, but it will go to a member of the armed services.

How AMAZING it would be if we could get everyone we know to send one!!! It is FREE and it only takes a second.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if the soldiers received a bunch of these? Whether you are for or against the war, our soldiers over there need to know we are behind them.

This takes just 10 seconds and it's a wonderful way to say thank you. Please take the time and please take the time to pass it on for others to do. We can never say enough thank you's.

Thanks for taking to time to support our military!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like .... Christmas??

I have seen that some of my friends have already decorated for Christmas. Some even BEFORE Halloween! I don't ever remember people decorating this early before! Is this normal? Am I just out of the Christmas loop?!

This year I am planning on decorating the weekend before Thanksgiving week - simply because we will be out of town during Thanksgiving and I will have a decorated house when I get back!  I have to admit I'm extremely excited but I'm trying to contain myself for a few more days.  I'm trying to decide when it's OK to start listening to Christmas music!! ha!

Have you already started decorating? What's your game plan for this year?