February Joy List

I am not exactly sure when and where January went.  It started like any new year month, but somehow or another flew past me.  I did not knock as many things off the Joy List as I would have liked, but it was not a total flop.  Hope springs eternal and February has rolled in.  Maybe this will be the month I actually complete this list.

January Joy List Update
 1 . Send someone who deserves it a hand written congratulations note. Decided to wait until the first trimester is over before sending the note.
 2 . Take care of all thank you notes.
 3 . Buy new address pages and calendar pages for Daytimer.
 4 . Cut bouquet of prematurely blooming camellias I probably have 150 blooms right now
 5 . Wear new funky socks
 6 . Take food to someone having a hard time Single mom having a hard time right now was sick and           needed a little food help.
 7 . Food bank large donation (they dry up after Christmas) Mom was in the hospital so it threw a little wrench into most of my plans this month
 8 . Take coats and blankets to shelter. (It was so hot in December they wouldn't take them)
 9 . Volunteer at IP at least 1 time this month This place has my heart!
10. Eat salad daily Most days but not every single day
11. Work on family cookbook
12. Make 1 Christmas present for next year
13. Purge 10 things per week This was almost too easy
14. Read 3 books Read 5 Not My Father's Son,  Harebrained: It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time,  Now They Tell Me:50 Life Lessons I Didn't Learn In School,  How To Cook A Wolf,   DrySpice Mixes  and am halfway through another and started an additional book . 
15. Watch a movie that will make me cry (I am thinking Madame X with Lana Turner)
16. Force bloom some bulbs, narcissus maybe?
17. Make citrus infused wine for summer Completely forgot about this one
18. Clean dining room buffet (drawers and cabinets)
19. Go through all Christmas decorations and discard anything I will not use again
20. Learn to do something new.
21. Find some free live music and enjoy it Heard a Ugandan children's choir (From an orphanage)
22. Try a new to me recipe
23. Begin learning conversational Spanish (Speaking is much harder for me than reading it.)  Minor attempt with no real dedication.  Hopefully February
24. Take Mom to visit Uncle Bob   She is not ready to go yet
25. Take Mom window shopping
26. Find some kind of mission work for homeless  Found it and ready to start, just not on their calendar yet
27. Attend a lecture or informational meeting
28.  Go to a local museum
29. Try a new to me food (fruit or vegetable) Culantro and it is a Latin herb
30. Finish repairing quilt    Can't find my mending stash!
31. Make some centerpiece for Chinese New Year (Feb 8) This is the year of the Red Monkey

February Joy List

1. Volunteer at Independence Place
2.Volunteer with Homeless Ministry
3. Start tomato seedlings
4. Make a Christmas present
5. Use only meats, chicken or fish from the freezer (No protein buying this month)
6. Make a large dent in the foods in the pantry (Time to use storage items)
7, Start growing sprouts again (I have missed these, especially radish sprouts)
8. Initiate contact with a friend I am no longer in touch with (No one particular but over a lifetime there are many dear folks I have neglected.)  Reconnected with a friend from High School.  Enjoyed the coffee and conversation Carol!
9. Take Mom to visit Uncle Bob (She mentions this weekly and I am available but we still haven't gone)
10. Try a different hair color, even if it is just a temporary rinse
11. Try a new fruit or vegetable
12. Listen to some ethnic music from a culture I  have not listened to before. Bought and listened to some didgeridoo music.  It is beautiful, but a little of it goes a long way
13. See a play Saw Chicago (for the 4th time)
14. Go to a movie solo in the middle of the day.
15. Repair the sewing machine and refashion some frumpy item found in my closet (thinking black dress)
16. Enjoy Fat Tuesday to its fullest, because Lent starts at 12:01 I did not know it was possible to eat that much chocolate in one day
17. Observe Lent without whining (even to myself) Observing, but whining
18. Take the large food donation to the food bank
19. Get rid of 10 items each week (purge) Way more than 40 items
20. Find and enjoy some free live music.
21. Work on the family cookbook.
22. Take food to someone who is having a hard time.
23. Take Mom out to do something at night each week this month. (She and Dad did a lot at night and she misses the night lights.  My mistake for not catching on to this earlier)
24. Have a small dinner party
25. Go for a drive somewhere I have never been before. Bonus points for taking Mom, and even more if we find some quaint little shop to explore.
26. Hand make Valentines My Beloved Sister and I do this every year. Our objective is to make ours to each other funny enough to make them laugh.  Bonus points are awarded if you can catch each other  sipping coffee while reading the card and make them spew
27. Celebrate Chinese New Year (Eat takeout Chinese in the dining room and use the "good" dishes and chopsticks) and Valentine's Day (Dining room candlelight meal, "good" dishes sans chopsticks) And for the record, Valentine's lunch was a grilled hamburger served on China, so no utensils were actually required.
28. Read 4 books. Thanks to Band of Brothers I am on a WW2 kick right now, should be interesting to see what I pick to read.
29. Reserve one night to be completely video/tv/computer free.  Listen to symphonic music only