**I skipped last week’s goal update so this is for two weeks
1. Walk at least 500 miles this year (112 miles down and 388 to go)
These past two weeks I completed 21 miles by taking Zumba classes, trying out new YouTube exercise videos, walking at the park, and participating in one particularly brutal Powerfit class. **Okay, I tried out a new class at my gym called Powerfit…..ouch! I think we did close to 100 walking lunges (or it felt like it at least) so my behind was killing me for three days…but at least it was the good kind of pain:)
2. Read two nonfiction or classic books each month Accomplished
I am really on my game when it comes to books this month. I have read two nonfiction books so far and am about halfway through my third book. The first book I read was Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. This book is about the luck and practicalities that drive people to be extremely successful in life. **One of my favorite things I read in this book was the fact that it takes about 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert at something.
The other book I finished was called The Healing Power of Faith by Harold Koenig. I mostly enjoyed this book. The book is written by a doctor who studies the impact that religion has on the body’s ability to heal and the increased quality of life that having a religious support system in place gives ailing people. While some of the chapters were pretty dry and filled with lots of scientific data, the other parts were full of stories that the doctor (and others in the study) had documented over the years that give evidence for his book’s premise. I was amazed by how many doctors could not explain (with science) why some people flourished after injuries while others declined rapidly. Everything finally started making sense when doctors came across the idea that having faith helped many patients through their trials and gave them the courage to face life in their new circumstances.
3. Buy nothing new this year
I do not know if I broke my Buy Nothing New streak this week. I found a cheap pair of swimming trunks at Walmart for $6 and immediately put them in my cart. Why were they so irresistible?? Well my son wears a larger size than most people his age and since all boy swim shorts are board shorts…they all reach almost to his ankles! These new swim trunks were advertised as a “short style”, so they fit perfectly:)
Back to my dilemma…I have a clause in my Buy Nothing New challenge that states that “Underwear and shoes may be purchased new”. Now here is the question, can swimsuits be classified as underwear?? You do not wear underwear with them and they lay next to your skin, so it is kind of creepy buying used ones. Hmmmmmm…
**I think my executive decision will be to edit my rules and include swimwear in the exceptions clause, simply because I can!
5. Take each child on an outing by themselves each month
Last week, we took Emma to a local Italian restaurant because she had never been and loves Italian food. She had a delicious Chicken Parmigiana and the attention of both parents so she was very happy:)
6. Learn to knit and crochet
Not yet. I really need to get this goal going!
7. Do one home improvement project each month I actually did two things this month
I transformed a china cabinet into two new things for my house. I took the bottom cabinet and turned it into a beverage station (mainly to save some counter space in my kitchen) I decorated the station with things that I had around the house already and then my mom dropped off a cute coffee-themed decoration on my birthday that really topped it off (Thanks Mama!) The top part I turned into a curio cabinet-type thing for my living room and decided to store my sons many toys inside it. To transform this piece, I had to cut a new board for the top, add legs, and removed the doors to create a bookshelf-type look. I think they both turned out really well and they only cost I had were the new legs I had to buy for the bottom.
The other improvement I did this month was unexpected, yet necessary. My kitchen sink faucet started shooting water out of its base last week, so I tried to tackle a repair on my own. After seven hours, four YouTube videos, and three Home Depot trips I gave up and called my dad. It turns out that the whole faucet was rusted so the simple repair I was trying to make was doomed from the start (so happy it was not all my fault!) Luckily my dad is kind of an expert at these things and he replaced my whole faucet in just one hour. **We all know it would have taken me countless hours to do this repair….
8. Edit and publish my NaNoWriMo novel
I am working on adding more scenery to my first four chapters. Apparently my readers cannot see the setting that is in my mind:)
9. Try two new low carb recipes each month
This week I tried out a new low carb oven fried chicken recipe that I kind of just threw together. It was really tasty and will post the recipe later this week.
10. Spend less than $500 each month on groceries Failed, Failed, and Failed again!!
I did not even keep up with my totals this month because I went grocery shopping crazy earlier in the month and did not want to depress myself (or you) with my totals. Oh well I will try to be better next month…
How are your goals going this year??
The Thrifty Educator 