January certainly has been busy for us!

• I received an invitation to attend then United Church Conference Interview Board to become an official candidate to the order of ministry.  The interview is February 9th.
• I wrote 11 pages in response to 15 questions for the United Church Conference Interview Board.  I handed it in on the 26th and have been taking a mental break since then!
• Andrew started Yoga Kids and KinderGym - He seems to really like both of these activities and the Husband reports that Andrew is quite coordinated (which is good because I am very clumsy).
• I trapped my finger in a bank drop deposit box on the 16th and needed a trip to the ER and 6 stitches.  That was a great way to spend a Sunday Afternoon.
• I went on a workshop on how to use MS Front Page (which apparently is obsolete) and have now learned a bit about code and I'm excited to try out my new found knowledge.
• It was like -40 here for a good part of the month.  Good times in Manitoba.  Good times.
• I've been Hive free since the first week of January.  That's exciting.
• We had a dinner party.  I think it went well and our house got a good cleaning!
• I've been steadily working on my yo-yo afghan and I made a pair of slippers!

I think that mostly sums up January.  It has passed quite quickly.  Now, on to the resolutions!


1.  Health And Wellness

Read 25 books in 2011 - I've read 3!
Fling 2011 Things in 2011 - We've flung a lot!

Eat better and Exercise more - I've been eating 2 oranges a day during the week and playing badminton twice a week!

Weekly Honey-Do Jar - Haven't started yet.


2.  Being Green And Activism

1 New Green Item/Activity a Month -Planning to purchase some 'green' dish soap next time we go grocery shopping.
1 New Fair Trade Product a Month - We bought Fair Trade Wine and it was good!


3.  Career And Crafts

Finish that damn cross stitch (maybe) - I took it out of the cupboard...does that count for anything?

Destash down to 1 Plastic Bin And Canvas Bag - I've been destashing.  I'm down to 2 plastic bins, half the canvas bag and 1 basket of little yarns.

Make a totally awesome bedspread for our bed - Still looking for the best pattern ever.


4.  God's Call

Read the New Testament in 2011 - I read 2 books (okay, they were dead short books - Galatians and Titus, but they're still books)
Complete The Leadership Development Module And take 2 MDIV Courses - Waiting to register until after my interview with Conference

5.  Money Matters

$500 in our EF by 2012 - well, we have like $11

Accrue No New Debt! - so far, so good

Build up our Holiday Savings - working on it

Use The Jars/Cash System - we did this for only 1 week this month.  It's hard to not spend willy nilly.

I like it when crafters post pictures of where they do their crafting.  Normally my spot is downstairs in the big comfy chair, but for the last month or so this has been my crafty spot.

My view from the crafty spot

Yep, I've been crocheting on my bed.

It's been pretty chilly outside and the upstairs is warmer then the main floor.  The Husband got a bunch of Xbox games at Christmas and has been playing them.  So while he's doing that I turn on the space heater, settle in with some TV (when I took that picture I was watching Ice Road Truckers, now I'm re-watching Supernatural), and get down to some serious yo-yoing.  Everything I've got fits in to that little basket.  It holds my yo-yo's (I store them in a Juice Carafe, it makes them look pretty), my little balls waiting to be made into yo-yo's, my nail clippers, my hook, and the joining yarn.  I've usually got a book on the bed too and take reading breaks here and there.  Since I've made so many squares, I have had to add another basket to hold all the completed squares.  It's nice being accomplished!


Sometimes, this little guy joins me and lays exactly where all my stuff is.  I don't mind though.  He's pretty adorable.

Bailey, The Dog

We are having friends over on the 22nd for dinner and good conversation.  It's been a while since we've had anyone over...and it's the first time these 2 couples will be coming over to our house.  I think this Dinner Party is part of the reason while I have been so diligently purging and flinging for the past couple weeks.  I want our house to look lovely when they are here.

I've also been thinking a lot about the menu for the evening.  Last time (and I guess the first time all 6 of us got together) we had Greek type foods (souvlaki, greek salad, lemon potatoes, grilled veggies).  It was all kinds of wonderful heavenly goodness.  I want to make something equally as wonderful, but not spend eleventy hours in the ktichen preparing it.  At first I was leaning towards doing a fondue...but The Husband is not that fond of fondues and they are a ton of prep work and I am not ready to dig my fondues out of the basement yet.  Then I was thinking of doing some kind of Mexican or Tex-Mex dish.  Something like burritos and refried beans and dirty rice.  But, I think one of the couples are not very adventurous eaters and are watching what they are eating.  I've had my brainstorming hat on for ages now.

So, in the end I think I've put together a nice menu....

Snacks
Veggies with Dip OR a cheese tray with crackers
Hot Artichoke Dip with Chips

Starter
French Onion Soup with really crusty French Bread and Gruyere Cheese

Meal
Lasagne
Ceaser Salad and Garlic Cheese Toast


Desert
Some kind of Apple Crumble with Ice Cream

It's definitely not a meal that is outside of my comfort zone.  Lasagne is something I like to make.  Same with French Onion Soup.  I've made apple crumble before.

I was thinking about doing just appy's with some cold cut sandwiches (There is a wonderful wonderful wonderful little German butcher by my work that has the best sandwich meats I have ever tasted in my life) but the grown-upness of a sit down dinner kind of lured me away from appetizers and sandwiches.

So, my dear readers, please tell me which meal should I go for?

1.  snacks, soup, and lasagne with desert
OR
2.  appy's with cold cut sandwiches

• Read 25 books in 2011 - I worked on this last year.  It was about the only thing I kept up with, but I didn't make the 25 goal.  I think I ended up at about 19 books read.  I have a problem with getting about half way through a book and losing interest and never finishing it.  Right now I have 4 books on the go...so that's a good start!
• Fling 2011 Things in 2011 - I need to declutter.  We have so much stuff it's becoming ridiculous.  I started this the other night.  We went through our closets/drawers and took out all the old clothing we never wear anymore.
• I want to eat better and exercise more.  But I'm not sure how exactly I want to go about this yet.  I want to eat less chips and walk the dog more, but I don't want to get into so many walks a day and so many veggies a week....it's too much to track and to easy for me to fall of the wagon.
• Honey-Do Jar - I want to make a Honey-Do jar for both me and the Husband to work on - maybe do 1 thing each out of it a week?

• I want to move more into purchasing 'green' products.  Right now we purchase environmentally friendly dishwasher detergent.  I bought green laundry detergent last week.  I want to investigate other products and stick with buying good for the Earth things.  I'm thinking I'd like to add 1 new product or 1 new green activity (ie. hanging clothes to dry or something) every month into what we purchase/do.
• I also want to begin purchasing Fair Trade Products and move them into our rotation for products.  I'm thinking that 1 new product every month is a good as well for this one.

• Build up our EF again.  It's true.  We have no EF anymore.  It's kaput.  Gonzo.  Bit the Dust. I'd like to have $500 in our EF by 2012.
• Develop a realistic plan with regards to paying down our CC debt/loan debt.  I'm not sure what it is yet...but I don't want to declare 'pay off all debt' and then not be able to follow through and lose interest and give up all together (remember, learning from my mistakes this year!)
• Build up our Holiday Savings again.  I'd like to go camping this summer (more then once!) and go somewhere warm next winter too.
• Go Back on the Jars - Living on cash for variable spending is the way to go for us and will make us stop to think about every purchase we make (especially regarding those expensive dinners we're so fond of).

• Finish that damn cross stitch. Or at least get it mostly done?
• Destash - I made a good go at this last year, but I seriously still have so much yarn that I need to do something with it all because it's just sitting in tubs/bins and taking up space.
• Make a bedspread for our bed.  I really want to do this...but I can't find the PERFECT pattern yet.
• Career Stuff?   I dunno.  Keep plugging away?  Apply at what interests me?  I don't really like my job, but I like the benefits and flexibility I get.  The benefits (extra holidays, time off) and flexibility are going to be very important this year.  I think I might just plan on staying put (unless something fabulous drops itself in my lap).

• Complete the Leadership Development Module this spring/summer and register for an appropriate number of MDIV courses (hoping for at least 2) for the fall/winter (dependant on timetabling and scheduling).
• Read the New Testament in 2011 - This was a goal from 2010 that I did not complete.  I read 2 books in their entirety - Matthew & Mark.  I am making this a goal again this year. 

So, I think that's everything that's floating around in my head without going crazy.  Some of them will require daily attention, some weekly, & some monthly.  I wonder if some should be 'must do's!' and if some should be 'would be nice to do's!'  Some of them are no-brainers.  Like taking the Leadership Development Module and working on destashing.

Hello World!  Hello 2011!  Hello Interwebs!  Hello Myself!

I've been pretty much AWOL from blogging over this Christmas Season.  Things have been super busy with work (well, sort of--okay, not really), church,  crafting, preparing for the Holidays, visiting with family/friends, and then recovering from an allergic reaction (HIVES!  HIVES!  Everywhere!  On Me!  2 trips to the ER!  Eleventy!) for the better part of 10 days.  But I am Hive free now (mostly, I can still feel some lurking underneath my skin) and I am finally ready to welcome 2011 into my life.

I remember last year at this time I had so many hopes and plans and dreams for 2010...that all kind of fizzled when bad stuff started happening.  I didn't succeed at any of my goals for 2010...same as from 2009 (oh, heck, lets just say that I have never followed through on any resolutions EVER).  I didn't read 25 books (although I tried...I read more then I've ever read in years).  I didn't read the New Testatment.  Heck, in true Dinah fashion I never even made any goals for half of the areas I wanted to focus on in 2010.

I wrote this January 1st, 2010:

This year, for 2010, I don't want to jump into anything. I don't want to panic and write something just because that's what everyone else is doing. I really need to sit down and examine what I need to work on in 2010 and what I want to work on. I need to have a plan with steps, not just a vague statement. I want to work on what I am passionate about. I want to change myself and the world and my family.


I'm going to hopefully have about a weeks worth of meditative and reflective blog posts detailing what's going to happen in 2010. This might look like a month by month strategy. Or something more open, without any numerical boundaries.


I believe I want to focus on these areas in 2010:


1. Health And Wellness
2. Being Green
3. Money Matters
4. Career And Business
5. God's Call

I'm thinking I should just cross out 2010 in that block quote and replace it with 2011 and try again.  I know I'm on to something here...I know I am dagnabit!

This year, for 2010 2011, I don't want to jump into anything. I don't want to panic and write something just because that's what everyone else is doing. I really need to sit down and examine what I need to work on in 2010 2011 and what I want to work on. I need to have a plan with steps, not just a vague statement. I want to work on what I am passionate about. I want to change myself and the world and my family.


I'm going to hopefully have about a weeks worth of meditative and reflective blog posts detailing what's going to happen in 2010 2011. This might look like a month by month strategy. Or something more open, without any numerical boundaries.


I believe I want to focus on these areas in 2010 2011:


1. Health And Wellness
2. Being Green
3. Money Matters
4. Career And Business
5. God's Call

There.  That feels better.  Hah!  I've got a new(used) plan for 2011. 

Stay tuned!