Yes I know it is the 6th already, but I am just now reviewing what did and did not work last month. I decided on a plan broken down in weekly, monthly and quarterly aims. Using January as a base line I am revising the list slightly. How Mom is doing is my litmus test for how my week will go, so I am reducing a few things and will change the way I go about some others. The following is what I had planned for January.
Weekly:
1. Either go to or rent a movie to watch by myself Extreme Fail! I did not rent or go to a movie at all this month.
2. Read 2 books a week Fail but I did read 3 books in January All The Light we Cannot See, The 7 1/2 Lives of Evelyn Hardcastle, Where the Crawdads Sing
3. Have one ethnic meal a week (home cooked) Done
4. Have one day (OK an hour, maybe) dedicated to pampering myself. (Facial, at home manicure/pedicure, or some similarly indulgent thing requiring potions or lotions) Done, but barely
5. Have some sort of outing with TheHub at night. Coffee and conversation/ dinner out/ concert or play/ can be anything as long as we leave the house, so even going to Walmart would count as long as we shop together. (If we are in a hurry and go separate ways in the store to gather and get out as quickly as possible it will not count) Done. We have gone out mid week each week in January, mostly to grab a cup of coffee and talk.
Monthly:
1. Play Christmas music and do one Christmas craft or make a Christmas gift. Partially
2. Eat a meal in the dining room using china, crystal and silver. There is no point saving them for special occasions only, but I have to hand wash it all so once a month is enough. Fail
3. Call a long neglected friend and arrange to take them for coffee and conversation. Fail
4. Learn a new skill Done, Learned the Marie Kondo method of organizing
5. Plan a dinner in or out with another couple Fail
Quarterly:
1.Find and enjoy some live music.
2. Go to a play or comedy club Saw Evita
3. Have a mini vacation (Going to the lake place does not count)
4. Have a small dinner party
Below is the reformatted list. It is mostly the same with minor adjustments based on my January learning curve.
Weekly:
1. Either go to or rent a movie to watch by myself . Most likely I will rent movies. Flu season is here and honestly I will limit my exposure to it
2. Read 1 book a week . Previously I wanted to read 2 per week and there may be some weeks it happens, but it is more realistic for me to aim for 1 per week, unless they are fluff books.
3. Have one ethnic meal a week (home cooked)
4. Have one day (OK an hour, maybe) dedicated to pampering myself. (Facial, at home manicure/pedicure, or some similarly indulgent thing requiring potions or lotions)
5. Have some sort of outing with TheHub at night. Coffee and conversation/ dinner out/ concert or play/ can be anything as long as we leave the house, so even going to Walmart would count as long as we shop together. (If we are in a hurry and go separate ways in the store to gather and get out as quickly as possible it will not count)
6. Spend time in quiet meditation
7. Tackle a room or closet to declutter/rid of excess
8. Facetime with Granddaughter
9. Talk via phone with all 3 sons and wives
Monthly:
1. Play Christmas music and do one Christmas craft or make a Christmas gift.
2. Eat a meal in the dining room using china, crystal and silver. There is no point saving them for special occasions only, but I have to hand wash it all so once a month is enough.
3. Call a long neglected friend and arrange to take them for coffee and conversation.
4. Learn a new skill or try something I have never done before.
5. Plan a dinner in or out with another couple.
6. Find and enjoy some live music
7. Have a seasonally appropriate holiday or other celebratory meal.
Quarterly:
1. Go to a play or comedy club
2. Have a mini vacation (Going to the lake place does not count)
3. Have a small dinner party
Weekly:
1. Either go to or rent a movie to watch by myself Extreme Fail! I did not rent or go to a movie at all this month.
2. Read 2 books a week Fail but I did read 3 books in January All The Light we Cannot See, The 7 1/2 Lives of Evelyn Hardcastle, Where the Crawdads Sing
3. Have one ethnic meal a week (home cooked) Done
4. Have one day (OK an hour, maybe) dedicated to pampering myself. (Facial, at home manicure/pedicure, or some similarly indulgent thing requiring potions or lotions) Done, but barely
5. Have some sort of outing with TheHub at night. Coffee and conversation/ dinner out/ concert or play/ can be anything as long as we leave the house, so even going to Walmart would count as long as we shop together. (If we are in a hurry and go separate ways in the store to gather and get out as quickly as possible it will not count) Done. We have gone out mid week each week in January, mostly to grab a cup of coffee and talk.
Monthly:
1. Play Christmas music and do one Christmas craft or make a Christmas gift. Partially
2. Eat a meal in the dining room using china, crystal and silver. There is no point saving them for special occasions only, but I have to hand wash it all so once a month is enough. Fail
3. Call a long neglected friend and arrange to take them for coffee and conversation. Fail
4. Learn a new skill Done, Learned the Marie Kondo method of organizing
5. Plan a dinner in or out with another couple Fail
Quarterly:
1.Find and enjoy some live music.
2. Go to a play or comedy club Saw Evita
3. Have a mini vacation (Going to the lake place does not count)
4. Have a small dinner party
Below is the reformatted list. It is mostly the same with minor adjustments based on my January learning curve.
Weekly:
1. Either go to or rent a movie to watch by myself . Most likely I will rent movies. Flu season is here and honestly I will limit my exposure to it
2. Read 1 book a week . Previously I wanted to read 2 per week and there may be some weeks it happens, but it is more realistic for me to aim for 1 per week, unless they are fluff books.
3. Have one ethnic meal a week (home cooked)
4. Have one day (OK an hour, maybe) dedicated to pampering myself. (Facial, at home manicure/pedicure, or some similarly indulgent thing requiring potions or lotions)
5. Have some sort of outing with TheHub at night. Coffee and conversation/ dinner out/ concert or play/ can be anything as long as we leave the house, so even going to Walmart would count as long as we shop together. (If we are in a hurry and go separate ways in the store to gather and get out as quickly as possible it will not count)
6. Spend time in quiet meditation
7. Tackle a room or closet to declutter/rid of excess
8. Facetime with Granddaughter
9. Talk via phone with all 3 sons and wives
Monthly:
1. Play Christmas music and do one Christmas craft or make a Christmas gift.
2. Eat a meal in the dining room using china, crystal and silver. There is no point saving them for special occasions only, but I have to hand wash it all so once a month is enough.
3. Call a long neglected friend and arrange to take them for coffee and conversation.
4. Learn a new skill or try something I have never done before.
5. Plan a dinner in or out with another couple.
6. Find and enjoy some live music
7. Have a seasonally appropriate holiday or other celebratory meal.
Quarterly:
1. Go to a play or comedy club
2. Have a mini vacation (Going to the lake place does not count)
3. Have a small dinner party
Good luck.
ReplyDeleteYour lists always make me ashamed of my 'muddle along' life.
I tend to muddle unless I have some pretty specific direction. My days are a little unpredictable so I like to have a path to follow when I get a chance to meander down it.
DeleteI like the ideas of #1 and 2 on your monthly list.
ReplyDeleteI like them too! I know we will go to some plays but the mini vacation? I am not placing any money on it happening. Time will tell I guess.
DeleteYou did quite well in January, given the fact that you needed to be there for your Mom and, sometimes, your time is not your own. I like the revised list for February, too. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteWhatever happens is going to happen, but I am trying to carve out some time to do things I want to do also.
DeleteHow did you like "All the Light"? I thought it was fantastic and I am not one to gush about books much.
ReplyDeleteI loved it too.
DeleteI read that for one of my book club books. It was a really good book.
DeleteYes it was. Right now my bookclub is reading Where the Crawdads Sing. It is a good read also.
DeleteI just finished my book club book, A Man Called OVe, but All the light was highly recommended. You are being very adventurous.
ReplyDeleteI read Ove last year and really did like it. Have you seen the film yet? It is either on Amazon or Netflix but I forget which.
DeleteI loved the film!
DeleteYour Walmart trip sounds like ours. Divide and conquer. However, I guess that we had an outing last night as we looked for construction adhesive together in Walmart. :)
ReplyDeleteHaha. We often have outing like that but most of the time we go separate ways and meet at the checkout. I think that is why we have been going out for coffee because we actually sit and talk in an unhurried setting.
DeleteI am loving your lists of goals. Learning a new skill each month sounds really ambitious. How do you pick which ones to tackle? Where does your inspiration come from? My whole day today was a total fail. I had lots of plans and goals, but my energy levels were not there. The only constructive thing I managed was a two hour nap midday.
ReplyDeleteI am going to be all Zen with my answer and say I am not picking anything. I am letting things pick me!
ReplyDeleteI am ready to have a day that allows me to be at home all day without interruption. I plan on that tomorrow but who knows what Mom emergency, real or imagined, will rear its ugly head.
Hubby and I often peruse the aisles at Lowe's or Home Depot together. It's almost like a date We dream, we plan...lol
ReplyDeleteWe have all kind of "dates" like that. When son3 was a little fellow we would go to Books a Million every Friday night. He would play with the Thomas the Tank Engine set and we would sit on the benches in the children's section, watch him play and talk. If we were really splurging we would each pick up a book from the $1 section.
DeleteWith your mom and anything goes, you are lucky to get any free time, so enjoy whatever you get to do and I say GET.
ReplyDeleteI know you understand!
DeleteI think it's great to have plans and if you don't manage to do all of it, that's ok, at least there was a goal.
ReplyDeleteI do have a plan, I just never seem to follow it! It frustrates me a little but life goes on anyway.
DeleteAll things considered, I think you had a successful January! =)
ReplyDeleteHahaha I figure any month is successful just by living through it. Most months are learning experiences for me and I learn primarily through my mistakes.
Delete