Sunday, April 3, 2011

4/1 Update on My 101 (even though I know it's not 4/1)

I have been very bad about updating my 101 in 1,001 list on here, so I am going to try very hard to update on the first of every month. That's the first goal. The next goal is to blog more and keep it interesting! I have been focusing on my pregnancy updates every weekend, but I would like to start getting creative and blogging more than once a week! So, I am going to attempt to add Sunday blessings posts and go from there. I am going to keep pregnancy updates for Saturdays since that is when my ticker changes. Hopefully I will be able to get more blogging in...baby steps.

My 101 in 1,001: 101 things to tackle in 1,001 days
Start Date: April 24, 2010
End Date: January 19, 2013 (wow that seems like a long time from now!)

Personal Improvement:
Attend yoga at least once a week for two months
Attend kickboxing class at least once a week for two months
Try acupuncture
Not eat out for a month (we have come very, very close to this a few times on our new budget)
Have a no tv/internet week
Participate in some type of run (5k, etc.)
Finish my Master's Degree (DONE!!!! I officially completed my program in October!)
Try a whole Zumba class at the gym
Do strength training exercises twice a week for a month
Jog 3 miles again like I used to be able to do:)
Have a spa day
Get some new jewelry (I am going to go ahead and count the beautiful jewelry that was gifted to me from my mother-in-law and Santi's grandpa. A beautiful ring from Ximena, and a gorgeous silver pendant and matching earrings from Italy that Santi's grandpa purchased. I know I didn't buy them, but they are the nicest and newest pieces I own, and will own for awhile!)
Get an awesome pair of heels and actually wear them
Get a tan! (completed 7/10, I have been spending some time at the pool with my friend Audrey!)
Get teeth professionally whitened

Faith:
Finish reading the entire Bible
Consistently journal my Bible reading daily for at least one month
Share my faith with someone new
Complete a missions trip of some sort
Pray for others every day (work in progress)

Travel:
Visit San Diego (completed 6/10, our five year plan now includes moving here!)
Visit Tombstone
Go camping
Return to Ecuador
Go to the Galapagos
Go on a cruise
Drive route 1 in California (completed 6/10, only the southern portion, we will work on the northern portion!)
Stay at the Venetian in Vegas
Go to the Phoenix Zoo (and not just for Zoolights)
Go to Napa Valley
Stay somewhere new in Sedona
Visit Flagstaff in the winter

Adventures:
Hike Camelback mountain
Hike the Grand Canyon
Learn to play golf
Learn to play blackjack
Try 20 new recipes (8/20)
Learn to make a new mixed drink
Chop my hair off (Done! 5/28/10)
Read 10 new books (read 2 of 10, currently occupied with pregnancy books)
Try the night tour of the Desert Botanical Gardens
Try 5 new hiking trails in Phoenix
Find 10 new restaurants to try in Phoenix (3/10) 
1. Ta Carbon (super yummy Mexican hole-in-the-wall kind of place)
2. Joe's Farm Grill (another restaurant from Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives)
3. Over Easy (great little breakfast place, also from Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives)
Make ceviche again  Done 5/16/2010
Learn to bake and decorate a cake
Get a bike or rollerblades
Go horseback riding again
Go to a concert
Stay for both movies at the drive-in
Go swimming in Lake Pleasant
Find a place to go fishing in Phoenix
Drive across the border
Buy an expensive bottle of wine (more than $20)
Try 5 new sushi rolls (2/5)
1. Hawaiian roll
2. Pink Lady

Family/Friends:
Have a baby (Baby Luca Alberto is due to arrive around July 9th!!!)
Have a girl's weekend with my college roommates (NYC in July 2010, fantastic trip!!)
Have a designated date night once a week for a month
Go on a picnic with my husband
Take my dog to the dog park in Gilbert with the lake (checked it out on 5/16/10, planning to take Tevez eventually)
Get grandma and grandpa out here for a visit
Have a candlelight dinner with my husband once a week for a month
Take a dancing lesson with my husband
Take a mother/daughter trip
Host a wine and cheese party
Go to at least 5 sporting events with my husband (we have tickets to the Rattlers game at the end of the month)
Get professional pictures taken of my husband and I (currently in search of a maternity/newborn/family photographer...I guess baby Luca will just have to be included)

Financial:
Pay off the Nissan Altima (LOVE that I can cross this one off! As of 2/11 we own the Altima!)
Get a minimum of $5,000 in the savings account (technically this could be crossed off, but the savings are for the big fat hospital bill and my maternity leave, so they won't be there long unfortunately)
Reach a point financially where I can stay home or work from home (Now that baby Luca is on his way, I am more desperate than ever to make this happen. Taking suggestions!)
Stick with a budget for five full months (March 11 was our first successful budget month, hopefully we can continue on this path)
Not buy any new clothes for a month
Spend less than $300 on groceries in a month (Done! 3/11...spent around $275 thanks to our new budget)
Put $5 in the savings for each completed task and donate $5 for each incomplete task

Hobbies and Creativity:
Make Shutterfly albums with all of our pictures
Learn some type of new craft
Get a nicer camera and learn how to take great pictures (This one gets partially crossed off. We purchased a fancy new camera, but I won't say we are great at taking pictures yet. I am going to spend some time researching and learning before Luca arrives)
Update blog at least once a month (in progress, and being pregnant makes it much easier!)
Go to a pottery studio

Home:
Redecorate/repaint our bedroom
Buy a sectional sofa with a pullout couch for our guests (Okay, so it's not a sectional because we learned sectionals just don't fit well in our living room, but we did purchase two new sofas with recliners built in and a pullout bed for the guests! Even more important now that the guest room has been converted to Luca's room!)
Finally clean and organize the office  (completed 5/1/10 thanks to my husband!)
Buy something from Etsy (I have started a wish list for Luca's nursery)
Put grass in our backyard
Get some flower pots for the front yard
Have a shredding party and clean out the filing cabinet
Get a digital picture frame (done 7/10, love it!)
Make the bed every day for a week  (done 5/10)
Organize my favorite recipes
Keep up with cleaning for an entire week (done summer '10, does it count since I was on vacation?)
Bake something once a month for three months

Reaching Out:
Volunteer somewhere other than church
Leave a 50% tip for dinner
Give money to one of the homeless people by school
Actually meet and know both of our neighbors names
Lend someone a microloan
Send handwritten notes to each of our sponsor children in Ecuador (We didn't manage to send handwritten notes, but we did send email notes. Unfortunately we had to cut our sponsorship due to baby's arrival and cutting back expenses.)
Pay for the person behind me in the drive through
Make a new friend  (I met Valeri online through The Bump and we have actually gotten together in person twice! She lives in Gilbert, which is way on  the other side of  Phoenix, but she came to my jewelry party and I went to her baby shower. Hopefully we will be able to get together again soon.)
Buy a goat for someone in a poor country

Getting Green:
Use reusable shopping bags every shopping trip for a month
Try a new "green" method of cleaning (I have switched to using mainly Green Works cleaner in the kitchen, but I need to transition to using it in the bathrooms as well. I also want to do the old vinegar/water trick, but Santi gags at the smell of vinegar.)
Eat fruit off the trees in our own backyard (Enjoyed some limes 12/10)
Grow an indoor herb garden (done 6/10, unfortunately there is no good place to keep them and they died)
Learn to garden desert style and actually have a vegetable garden in our backyard

There you have it! If you are interested in starting your own list, here is a great website to get you going:
http://dayzeroproject.com/

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