Scrappy Resolutions *ahem* Habits

So while I do have some scrapbooking related habits in my "list of twelve", I thought I should add a few more. 

The trick with goals is for them to be challenging, yet attainable.  Measureable yet reachable. But not have too many that by March I'm feeling like a failure because I haven't followed through with some of my habits and haven't even given the others a second glance.

So for 2012, my habits I hope to make are:
1. Photo organizing -
Tuesday evenings is the plan.  Minimum of 30 minutes to sort through the digital files, organize for Project Life, purge as necessary, upload to Costco, sort through category drawers and storage albums.  I'm not planning to print pictures unless I'm really inspired  or don't actually have much organizing to do ;)

2. Scrappy date with moi -
Friday evenings. I'll bring the wine ;)  Again, I'd like to plan for at least an hour - but depending on whether DH wants to hang out and watch a movie or not, it might be more.

3. UFO Challenge -
I have so many unfinished projects on the go.  On two peas, there seems to be a huge interest for a support group so I'm going to have to plan out all my UFO's and figure out how I'm going to get them all done.

4. Journaling -
As much as I like to talk, I'm surprised I'm having so many issues with this one!! I have probably 3 inches of un-journaled layouts just sitting and waiting for the story to be told.  I can't let myself file unfinished layouts in their albums.  I'm a little anal that way.  My layouts have to be finished before they see the inside of an album.  I'd like to have these layouts in an album by year's end.

5. Photography -
Get better.  I take lots and lots and lots of pictures.  Most of them are OK.  The odd one is amazing. I believe two peas has a 12 week photography course, and I know Big Picture Classes has photography workshops. Hopefully by the summer, when my "must do" classes die down, and I'm faced with lots of sunshine in the summer, I can focus (haha) on photography.

6. Classes/Projects -
There are several classes on my "must do" list and some on the "they sound good but..." list.
Must Do:
BPC - Cathy's Move More, Eat Less
BPC - Ali's One Little Word
*** - Project Life (2012)
??? - Photography class - no idea which one yet.

Sound Good:
BPC - Stacy's Twelve
BPC - May's Technique book

So a small-ish plan, but a plan nonetheless.

Twelve habits for twenty twelve

I'm not one for making New Year's Resolutions.  In my mind, they're just there to set you up for failure.  The year's I've vowed to quit smoking/lose weight/be "better" ...  all gone by the wayside by March.  So I haven't made "resolutions" for years.

But I do aim for better habits ;) 

Thanks to an online class I'm taking at Big Picture Classes, (Reclaiming my Time), I've come to 2 realizations.  1) I multitask. A LOT!!  2) I waste a lot of time ....  surfing, watching mindless TV, doing nothing really ...  So I'm hoping these new habits will help me stay focused on what's important in my life.

Following the fabulous Crisann's lead, these are my twelve new habits for twenty twelve.

Daily:
1. Pack my lunch and make it a good one.  Seriously.  There are days when all I want to grab is a can of Chunky Soup out of the cupboard, but I *know* I need something more substantial and by 4pm I'm tired and cranky.  Noone needs to see that!!
2. Take a picture.  I'd like to work on my Project Life and have a picture for everyday.
3. Write more.  Whether it be a journal at bedtime, this blog, or a list for groceries.  Something needs to be written every single day.
4. Declutter for 15 minutes and clean for 15 minutes. If I just focus a little bit at a time, this house will look amazing in no time.

Weekly:
5. Save money.  Since I currently get paid weekly, I need to save weekly.  Enough said.
6. Make exercise a priority at least 4 times a week.  Whether it's that I drag my butt out of bed at 5:30am or spend a beautiful Saturday morning running, I'm doing something.  AND it's going to get scheduled in my calendar.
7. Do something scrappy every week - whether it's class related, making some cards or a layout or purging that ever groing paper pile, I WILL spend time working in my room.  As of now, I'm scheduling Friday nights for scrapping.
8. Keep up to date on my pictures - either purging, uploading or going through my Category Drawers, it needs to get done.  And on a regular basis is the only way this little beast will get under control.  I'm thinking Tuesday evenings will be the plan for this while the boys are playing video games ;)


Monthly:
9. Plan (and schedule) a super duper scrapping session.  Whether it's a weekend with my girls, or an online crop or a crop at the Memory Keeper ...  something to help me focus on scrapping and keep my mojo going.  This will be a toughie once the nice weather hits so I'll have to get into a good groove over the next couple of chilly months.
10. Take a load to the consignment store.  Whether it's some bins of outgrown clothes, or something being donated to Goodwill ...  at least one box of something is leaving this house every month.
11. Date nights with hubby.  We do go on dates often, but more often then getting out of the house, we end up watching a movie with some vino.  But there's no talking, no connecting .... and we need to get back to having our great connection.
12. Coupons - I'd still like to coupon and I need to find a bit of an avenue to help me get even more organized with this  There's a balance between buying a bunch of stuff to store for awhile and saving a crapload of money.  I need to work on finding that balance.

So here's to a wonderful, healthy, clutterless 2012.  Cheers!

Better late then never ...

So what is it exactly about winter, and maybe even the holidays that brings my mind back to (ahem) "starting" a blog??

Could it be the chilly temperatures causing me to spend more time on the couch with my laptop??
Could it be that the early dark filled evenings are perfect for a cup of tea and some reading??
Could it be that I'm tired of TV, the movies we have and actually focus on what I'm reading for a change??

Who knows, maybe it's even a little of all 3.  But THIS year (well, 2012 that starts in exactly 3 days and a couple of hours), I will be working on keeping this little blog a little more then regular.

I'm participating in several online scrapbooking classes and I'm hoping that sharing some of my class info will help to keep me on track ;)

Stay tuned to see whether my experiment works this time ;)

And so it starts ...

Hello, and welcome to my little place in the world.

I've been so inspired lately from my daily blogs I read, so I thought I'd start my own.  My first bit of inspiration is this - The journey of change starts with a single step.  I'm not sure who originally penned that sentiment, but it's been on my mind lately.

And it's so very true. 

Want to change careers or in career transition?
Go back to school or meet with a recruiter or polish your resume. 

Want to start a hobby?
Take a class, join a group or (as usually in my case) go shopping for new supplies ;)

Want to bake a cake?
Look for a cake mix in your pantry, a cookbook or dust the bunnies off the sack of flour in the cupboard.

Want to start a business?
Research, you talk to people, you read books....

It doesn't matter if it's business or fun.  You always start with a single step.

Think about it - and make that step count!