Setting Myself Up for Success

At the beginning of each new year it is customary for me to set myself some goals.  For the year 2017 I am purposing to try something new or make progress in the following areas:  skill development, culinary, household, art or craft, and memory preservation.

You can read about my successes (well, mostly) for each month at the following links:

January, February, March, April and May.

Over one-third of the year has come and gone and, overall, I am satisfied.  I have completed most of my goals.  April was the first month in which I did not accomplish all the goals that I had set for myself.  I did not accomplish anything in the area of organization, preservation or presentation of family memories.  I want to avoid that this month so I want to think ahead, do a little planning to set myself up for success.

So, here is what I hope to accomplish in the month of June

I have many household related goals for this month.  I hope to continue to make progress on my flower beds.  I need to finish sorting the boy's rooms and prep the attic bedroom for Christian's return.  I will finish sorting the boys clothing and, most importantly, I will remediate the basement.

In the area of art I will be taking a bracelet making class and, also, I will be making a different sort of bracelet with some of Bishop's glass beads.

In regards to organizing, preserving and presenting family memories my intent is to hnag Maceo's show posters and to begin sorting through my photo files and playbills.

I guess my new skill will be learning how to do the mold remediation in the basement.  I have ordered the supplies and now I must get the job done.  I also want to figure out how to mend the gutters.

And finally for the fun stuff...  I want to give these recipes a shot:  Roasted Lavender Honey Chicken , Slow Cooker Tomato, Kale and Quinoa Soup,  and Garlic Cheddar Chive Scones.  I have lavender, thyme, chives, oregano, basil and kale growing in the garden that I can use in these recipes.


It should be a good month!

Another Month and More Successes

For the year 2017 I have committed to making monthly progress or trying something new in five areas:  culinary, skill development, art or craft, memory preservation and household.

I tried several new recipes this month.  I tried several new recipes for a baby shower that I am helping to host in June.  I made these pizza muffins and a sauce inspired by this recipe.  I also made these taco puffs and a version of this dip.  I started out making the dip as the recipe called for but tweaked it and must say that my version is better!
For Memorial Day I made brown sugar grilled pineapple (pictured below just behind the ribs that Bishop made!)...

...and grilled brussel sprouts.

I also made these patriotic cookies.  They were soooo yummy!

I made progress on a lot of projects around the house.  I made significant progress on several flower beds.  I completed a portion of one, it can be seen below in the new skills section.  I also cleaned out the homeschool resource closet.  I significantly pared down my resources and organized them, now I know what I have to use over the next couple of years.

I am pretty proud of myself as this is a project long in the making.  I learned how to build a retaining wall...

...then I cleared it (look at all that I took out of that area) and put in some flowers.

Also, I did a lot of research on mold remediation and will be making progress in the basement this next month.

 I am not making the kind of progress I would like to make in the area of organization, preservation and presentation of family memories but I did get my boxes of photos moved down to a more accessible location.  They are nicely displayed in the living room now.  Maybe I will now make some progress organizing, preserving and displaying the family memories.

I am pleased, however, with my progress in the art area.  I learned how to make some jewelry and a bookmark with the glass beads that Bishop has been making.

It's been a good month!

Another Month of Successes (Well, Mostly)

For the year 2017 I am making a concerted effort each month to try something new or make progress in five different areas:  culinary, skill development, art or craft, memory preservation, and household.

For the month of April I achieved success...well, mostly.
I failed to do anything related to the organization, preservation or presentation of family memories; however, I did make significant progress in the other areas.

I tried several new recipes this month.  I made chicken and potato pastry pies.  I made them one day for dinner and they were so good that I had to make them a second time.  The second time I made them for a picnic.  They were perfect picnic food.  Delish!
I used this recipe as inspiration for a kale salad with a warm vinaigrette.  I included bacon in my dressing.

I used several new recipes for Easter.  I made a loaded mashed potato casserole and garlic parmesan roasted asparagus...

...and carrot cake cupcakes with brown sugar cream cheese frosting.

All delicious!

The special projects that I did around the house this month centered around my garden.
I stacked my galvanized tub and pails and planted some seeds that I had on hand.
I hope the plants come in nicely.  It will look charming if they do.

My major yard project was a bed in the front yard.  This bed had become hugely overgrown with vines.  My goal was to get it cleaned out during the month of April so that the boys could pick out plants for Mother's Day.  I thought that I wasn't going to get it finished as there was still a portion left to do here at the end of the month and a major storm front moved in, three days worth of rain, preventing me from finishing up.  However, today there was a bit of a reprieve and I not only finished the job but took the boys shopping for plants and even got them into the ground.
I wish that I had taken a picture of the bed prior to pulling the vines but I didn't.
I did take photos of the bed before and after the plantings.
Check it out!

There is still work to be done but isn't it beautiful?!?

In regards to working on new skills I did a bit more napkin folding (see my bunny below, cute, huh?0

and chocolate molding.  (More cuteness, huh?!?)

I, also, gave cornrowing a shot for the very first time.  I think I can learn how to do this adequately.

I spent a portion of the month with my camera in one hand and a guide book on basic photography in the other.  I still have a ton to learn but I am proud of some of the images I did capture.

This is my favorite!

Another month of successes I say.

Another Month of Successes

At the beginning of the year I set before myself the goal of trying new things or just simply getting something accomplished in the areas related to art or craft, household, culinary, memory preservation, and skill acquisition.
Now another month has passed, that makes a quarter of the year gone by, and it is time to take a look at what I have accomplished.

I got off to a good start for the month of March.  On day one I tried my hand at the new skill of molding butter.  It is such a simple concept yet it took me just a bit to get them molded with the detail that I desired.  I made little rose shaped butters for Keegan's birthday party and larger heart shaped ones for a family gathering.  Simple but special.

I learned how to make palmiers

Which I made for Keegan's birthday party.
They were a huge hit.

I also tried my hand at meringues and worked on getting more comfortable with making drip cakes.

I counted each of the above as working on a skill although I could have considered them to meet my culinary goal.  However, for that particular goal I made coq au vin.  I actually made it twice.  Improving on the recipe the second time.  It was oh so good.

To meet my goal of creating something new I had intended to make a Beauty and the Beast inspired rose glitter globe for Keegan's birthday party.  I did try to but couldn't get it to work.  Also, I started a cross-stitch project.  It is a Christmas ornament.  I have had the kit for probably a decade and am now determined to just do it.

In regards to memory preservation, I updated all the frames in the house.  It was a project long in the making.  There were many collage frames that have been partially empty for years and years.   It is actually a family joke.  I had the stock photos in for quite a long time and would make up names and stories for them when the family razzed me about them.  But now there is not an empty spot nor a stock photo in sight.  Much better.

  Around the house I finished organizing all the Christmas ornaments, I refreshed the family photo display in the hallway, and I assembled some raised garden beds.

A satisfyingly productive month.

Another Month and More Success

Another month of this new year is coming to a close and it is time for me to report on my progress with my monthly goals.

I love to try new recipes when there are special events and there were definitely special events this month.  For the Super Bowl I made these Homemade Oreos - Football Style.  I did have to tweak the recipe just a bit as the dough was too sticky to mold or roll out on its own.  I rolled the dough out using cocoa powder instead of flour and the used a football-shaped cookie cutter.  They were a HUGE hit!!!  There have already been requests for me to make more!

For Valentine's I made these Triple Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes and Mini Peanut Butter Chocolate Cheesecakes.  I hadn't made a true cheesecake in over twenty years and I had never made any flavored ones.  The chocolate ones were extremely popular and the family is begging for more.  I shall oblige!

I have long been interested in making my own bread.  I have dabbled in it just a bit but have not perfected it and have not made it with any consistency.  This month I opted to try my hand at bread making again and this time I chose to make hamburger buns for the Super Bowl.  They were easy and yummy and I will definitely make them again.

I learned how to fold napkins to look like a rose.  I will be using this next month for a special party tablescape!

My home-related project for the month was to rearrange the master bedroom, caulk the windows and put up new curtains.  I am making progress.

To meet my goal of doing at least one project per month related to the organization, preservation or presentation of family memories I assembled this shadow box full of my 80's high school memorabilia.  Yes, I saw The Kinks in concert!

And, finally, my art project for the month would be a Christmas assemblage.  Serendipitously, I saw some similar things on pinterest while I was sorting through all of my Christmas stuff.  I found the Santa planter in a Christmas box.  It was broken so I felt A-OK using it for a project such as this.  Isn't it sweet?

Setting this simple goal really does seem to be helping focus.
I am pleased with these simple successes.

A New Year and New Goals

January is coming to a close and with it goes one/twelfth of the new year.

At the beginning of each new year I set some goals for myself.  Sometimes the goals have been a simple to-do list, sometimes it has involved more extensive dreaming, and other times it has been very focused on a particular area of life.  This time I have chosen to make goals that impact various areas of my life but in a way that is still loose and free-flowing.  I am committed to doing something intentional in five different categories at least once each month. 

 I am committed to doing at least one art or craft each month.  I have not created in quite a long time yet I have many supplies.  I can't justify taking up space in the house with all of my supplies if I am not using them.  So, I want to make or try to make at least one "something" each month and see if that re-focuses me creatively.  If it does not than I suppose a 2018 goal will be to purge my art supplies.

This month I found myself getting to the end of the month with no project even in mind.  After looking at my pinterest boards I found a quick project that I had all the supplies for - felted soap.  For years I have been wanting to try my hand at wet felting and I have done it!  An added bonus is that I have added a couple of items to my gift stash.  

I have also set a goal to doing something new in the culinary realm at least once per month.  This could entail trying a new recipe or trying a new technique.  

 This month I opted to try my hand at petit fours.  I had a discussion with my sister about tiny cakes which made me think about ways to make petit fours.  I had the SaraLee pound cake in my freezer from the Christmas trifle that I never made and go to thinking that I could slice it, fill it, cut it and glaze it for a petit four.  That's what I did.

 I used some jam that I had in the fridge and the chocolate buttercream that was leftover from Bishop's birthday cake.

 Although I would like to try my hand at an opaque coating for the petit fours, this time I made a transparent glaze (4 cups powdered sugar, 3/4 cup water, 1 teaspoon vanilla - I am pondering using different extracts in the glaze to elevate the flavor profile).

They're pretty cute, right?  I think that there is a certain appeal to the height of my petit fours but I don't think they are traditional.  Next time I will not use three layers.  They were yummy and the bonus here is that I only used ingredients that I had on hand.

Every month I would also like to focus on attempting to acquire a new skill.  The sky's the limit with this one.  It could be an art or culinary related skill (but preferably would be distinct from the above two goals).  It could be identifying more birds or mushrooms or learning to use my camera or my dremel.  So on and so forth.  This should be fun.

This month I tried my hand at making a drip cake, including making a chocolate sail.  You can find it on this post about Bishop's birthday.

It was not a bad first try.  I was proud of it.

Yet another goal for the year is related to family memories and their organization, preservation and presentation.  I want to make progress in at least one project per month.

For the month of January I took the time to photograph each of the kids ornaments before repairing them and packing them away.  My intent is to make a photo book of their ornaments arranged chronologically with pertinent stories included.  Every year I have given the kids an ornament.  Most often the ornament is related to something they have done or accomplished throughout the year.  Sometimes it is just a sweet ornament that reminds me of them in some way.  Throughout the years I have kept a list but I desire to record the information in a more readily accessible manner.  A book is my solution.

It is also my desire to tackle some home related project each month.  It can be editing or curating.  I can be a home repair or remodeling activity.  I just need to continue making progress in the area of creating the space I WANT to LIVE in.

This month we added Herb's household goods to our household.  A significant amount of his belongings are kitchen/cooking related so I worked to sort through our belongings, purging duplicate items, while making space for other items.  He has an enormous variety of spices so I had to relocate the spices which really meant that I had to shift almost all of the food stuffs.  I cleaned out and reorganized all of the pantries.

I think that this approach to goal setting will be fruitful this year.  It gives me some structure to help me be more deliberate while giving me a lot of flexibility.  I am, thus far, satisfied.

Small and Simple Successes

I so often feel as though I am spinning my wheels, falling behind, not accomplishing much of anything that I hope to accomplish. I have great ideas and maybe even greater intentions and yet I accomplish so little. My head, so full of the check lists with so little checked off, becomes cloudy and I become frustrated. But maybe I will experience some clarity and satisfaction if I occasionally make note of my successes, even the small and simple. Today I remembered to take my SilverBiotic and vitamin C in order to help boost my immune system as I believe I may be coming down with bronchitis. I made my husbands favorite picadillo tacos and spicy tacos for the kids complete with freshly fried taco shells and homemade salsa. I tried out my recipe for homemade applesauce prepared in the crockpot. It is almost finished. After I give it a try I'll let you know how it turned out. Small and simple successes or, should I say, slow and steady wins the race.