Tag Archives: goals

January review and February Goals

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Below are my goals for the month of January. Overall, I did pretty well at keeping up with my goals, but this month I want to get better. Especially with updating here as well as doing the sprite stitch challenge.

  • File taxes
  • Write blog posts every week day (Not done but I still did a lot more than I usually do. Yay me!)
  • Participate in the sprite stitch challenge this month (Totally didn’t do this, but I have until the end of February to do it)
  • Read the ISBC book for January
  • Read at least one additional book this month (Read an additional 3.5 this month; still reading Interesting Times)
  • Make/mail gifts to the following birthday people:
    -Aunt Anne (Fail all around on my part)
    -@Sunshine_Guinn (Sent a gift to her, but didn’t make it)
    -Tottendad (Sent a gift to him; but didn’t make it)
  • Make budget for the month
  • Write a letter to a friend
  • Donate clothes (I put them all in bags to be donated, just have to do it now…)
  • Put money in savings
  • Do something special for myself for 25th birthday

So, I think that I did pretty well (over all) when it comes to trying to accomplishing my goals last month. Now to see if I can do it this month! I think since I did a lot more reading than I thought I would, I am going to up the 1+ books to 3+ (would do 4 or 5, but it is a shorter month and I’m only just now finishing up Interesting Times).

  • Read this month’s ISBC book
  • Read 3+ other books
  • Put money in savings
  • Book rental car for vacation
  • Do the Sprite Stitch Challenge
  • Make a budget for the month
  • Write letter to a different friend
  • Write blog posts every week day (failed already yesterday….)
  • Arrange for shuttle pick up/drop off for next month’s vacation
  • Get an average of 70,000 steps a week on the fitbit
  • Stick with the 100 push up challenge

 

Health update and weekly meal plan

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It has been about a week (technically a week and two days) since I started to get back on Weight Watchers. Last week I was unable to go to the gym (the apartment complex has a little gym with weights, treadmills, etc.) because I stuck inside the house and the gym is still being renovated. Yesterday was when I was scheduled to weigh in and I had lost 3 pounds. Not much-I know-but considering I lost that as a result of just eating better (still cheated on Saturday when we went over to Kita’s for game night, but that’s totally my bad) and being more careful with portion sizes. So I remain kind of optimistic. I’m still doing yoga in the mornings and starting this weekend, a friend of mine and I are set to go on a hiking/nature trail once a week. I really do need to get better about getting my blood drawn/tested (late last month was the first time I have done it since surgery), but overall things are good on the health front.

And as far as next week’s meal plan:

Su: Roasted chicken legs, rice and broccoli (~9 points; instead of 5 spice like she used, we are going with a lemon and herb roasted chicken)
M: Sweet and sour chicken with 1/2 cup of rice (6 points)
Tu: Sausage-stuffed shells with side salad (11 points)
W: Crock pot creole chicken (5 points a serving)
Th: Salisbury steak with mashed potatoes and broccoli (7 points)
F: Orange-glazed chicken with 1/2 cup of rice
Sa: Chili (unknown; will update with points)
Breakfast: home-made granola bars with pecans and chocolate (4 points a bar)

Starting on WW again and meal plan for the week of 1/15

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I took the first step in trying to get my weight/eating habits back on track (not just on track, but down to normal, healthy levels) last night. I went and I found all of my old WW stuff that I had saved (I had a bunch of links) as well as found some new recipe sites. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Weight Watcher’s program, you are given a certain amount of points that tells you how much you’re allowed to eat every day (every food item is assigned a point value and there are a lot of free point calculators out there on the webosphere nowadays). So a good chunk of my night was trying to find the formula for determining how many points a day I get (32. Which is crazy high in my opinion, but there you go).

After that, I sat down and completely re-did my meal plan for next week (which is usually done on Tuesdays and then we scour the sales ads on Wednesdays when they come out). The meal plans start on Sunday and go through Saturday; grocery shopping is done every Saturday morning.

So, with all of that said, I figured that it would be easier to post the meal plans (with point values/links/recipes) weekly instead of monthly (since last month showed that it can become a pretty big pain). Sunday is the day where I’m allowing myself a little more freedom with dinners/breakfast so that way it is easier to stick to while I’m starting to get back in the swing of the WW diet. This week’s meal plan includes:

Su-Pesto chicken, peas and cheese tortellini: 15 points
M-BLT salad: 9 points
Tu-Sweet and sour chicken with rice: 7 points
W-Chicken rollatini with spinach alla Parmigana: 4 points. With a side Greek salad: 8 points
Th-Yakiniku don with rice: 9 points a serving
F-Salmon with a ginger, honey, and soy sauce glaze: 7 points. Served with 1/2 cup of rice and broccoli (2 points)
Sa- Stuffed pepper soup: 5 pts/serving
Breakfast for the week- oatmeal bars with blueberries and bananas: 4 points/serving
Snacks-fruit smoothie (recipe given to me by Killface):3 points/serving ; hard-boiled egg: 2 points an egg

 

Looking backward and forward

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Saying/doing something like “I want to be happy” is a lot more complicated than I originally thought. So I decided to spend some time browsing old pictures and tried to remember what my state of mind was like when that picture was taken. It has helped me realize that I’m not as happy as I was 5+ years ago and I want to figure out why (it is also an excuse to share some old pictures).


Me (left) with my little sister (right)-summer of 2004 I think

For a few summers, my family and I would go to BonAire and scuba dive. This picture was taken during my last summer before graduation and I was having a blast. The world was my oyster and all that other nonsense…During this time:

  • I was hella tan then. But I’m ok with not being tan anymore. It’s a pain in the butt to keep up and it’s really easy to get embarrassing tan lines. That and I think I look better pale.
  • I was at my (then) all-time high weight (25 lbs lighter than I currently am). I had just started Weight Watchers and was walking 1 mile every day. No soda and no candy. Occasionally eating out.
  • I had just started to let my hair grow (when this picture was taken, it was nearing my shoulders) after I made the mistake of deciding to cut it off (something I would do again a few years later and regret even more).
  • I whitened my teeth regularly (now they’re this awkward yellow from all the coffee I drink)

Me circa 2005

This was taken the year that I graduated from high school. I was super excited about everything (just figured out that I wanted to pursue a career in InfoSec) and:

  • Reached my all-time low weight (75 lbs less than what I currently weigh)
  • Acne treatment and teeth whitening were really paying off
  • I got my hair lightened regularly and have decided to let it keep growing
  • Made time to read as often as I possibly could
  • Was going out and doing stuff (visiting friends, going to concerts, meeting people and being active)
  • Still on weight watchers, jogging 2-3 miles a day and starting to do yoga every morning.
  • Spending a lot of free time with my friends and (especially) with my goddaughter (I’m ashamed to admit I don’t do either anymore, really…)

Me at DerbyCon 10/2010

Somewhere between then and now, I have gained 95 pounds (have lost 20 since August), bite my nails, stopped getting my hair done/exercising/teeth whitening regularly and just kind of let myself get distracted from what I want and who I want to be and end up with pictures where I’m forcing myself to smile instead of just being happy all of the time. I’m not saying that now I’m a sad sack, I’m not just as happy as I was. Yes, a lot of stuff and experiences have happened between then and now that I wouldn’t change, but I have let myself venture off the path that was working so well for me. I want to be that happier person, who doesn’t have to fake smiles and who actually wants to have her picture taken (instead of insisting on being the one who hides behind the camera) because I’m embarrassed.

January goals

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First, I’d like to wish a Happy New Year to all y’all!

Secondly, I figured that in conjunction with the goals for 2012, it may help if I have monthly goals as well. Some of these goals will have something to do with the long list of goals that I posted. Some of them are just things that I wish to accomplish by the end of the month and may or may not do unless I have it posted somewhere that people can see (it helps to feel like I’m being held accountable for this stuff, even if no one ever reads this or doesn’t give me crap if I don’t achieve these goals).With all of that said, here are the things I wish to accomplish this month:

  • File taxes
  • Write blog posts every week day
  • Participate in the sprite stitch challenge this month
  • Read the ISBC book for January
  • Read at least one additional book this month
  • Make/mail gifts to the following birthday people:
    -Aunt Anne
    -@Sunshine_Guinn
    -Tottendad
  • Make budget for the month
  • Write a letter to a friend
  • Donate clothes
  • Put money in savings
  • Do something special for myself for 25th birthday

New Year Goals for 2012

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I figure that I would go ahead and write up all of the goals that I want to accomplish for 2012 (I will be doing a recap on how the trial run went either tomorrow or the day after) so that I won’t accidentally forget some time between now and the 1st. There are 7 main categories that I want to improve in and there are a few “sub-goals” in each of those categories that I will try to accomplish.

Oh and the song has nothing to do with anything, I just like the cover that these girls did of one of my dad’s favorite Foo Fighter songs.

Health

  • Lose at least 75 lbs by the end of the year (totally doable and will leave me at a still healthy weight)
  • Exercise regularly (weekdays; alternating between cardio and strength exercises)
  • Drink recommended daily amount of water every day (even the weekends, which is where I usually drop the ball)
  • Pay attention to portions
  • Get physicals done at least twice this year
  • Get a cleaning at the dentist at least twice this year
  • Keep up with blood work to keep OBGYN/Oncologist off my back
  • Whiten teeth regularly
  • Don’t drink soda

Finances

  • Pay off all of 2010′s medical bills by year’s end
  • Put money into savings after each pay period
  • Pay off last credit card
  • Start retirement fund and put money in it monthly
  • Make monthly budgets and stick to them

Social (ness? ability?)

  • Update blog every week day
  • Write a letter to any friend at least once a month
  • Initiate conversations with your friends (I kinda suck at that)
  • Call mom and dad at least once a week
  • Visit Florida for at least a week
  • Visit with Nikita more often

Projects

  • Do/make at least 1 thing a month (outside of sprite stitch challenge)
  • Document (photograph) everything that I make
  • Don’t over-commit
  • Do monthly sprite stitch challenges
  • Hand make presents more often than buy them

Organization

  • Find a way to organize mail and bills
  • Donate clothes I don’t wear at least twice a year
  • Donate books I know I won’t re-read
  • Find a way to organize badges, closet, make up, shoes and accessories that won’t drive the bf crazy or look tacky

Knowledge

  • Go through electronics textbook
  • Get a cert
  • Do something that’s mentally challenging and not mentally challenged

Misc.

  • Read at least two books a month
  • Stick with the ISBC throughout the year
  • Do something good for yourself just because at least once a month
  • Have at least a monthly date night with the bf

Tea > Soda

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After yesterday’s post, I spent a lot of time thinking about what I would use to replace soda in the house. Then it kinda hit me like a ton of bricks: tea. It’s kind of one of those “duh” things once you think about it, but it took a while for me to come to this conclusion. Mostly because my dad never drank tea and my momma has very different opinions on taste than I do. So (in my opinion) it was either no tea or really, really gross tea in the house. I would drink it occasionally when I went to visit my little sister because she (at the time) worked at Teavana and would recommend things for me to try with varying degrees of success. I still use a lot of what she gave me (a really, really pretty teapot that reminds me of the beaches at home and a teamaker that would let me steep/strain my tea) and it also helped me learn what kind of tea I do and do not like.

Now I want to give tea a real honest chance by drinking it regularly. The plan is to drink coffee (no coffee past noon unless I want to do all-nighters), water (at least the daily recommended amount), and tea. This should give me something to drink that isn’t soda, but has a lot of variety so I don’t get bored and can satisfy any random taste cravings I may get.

But here’s the problem: I don’t really know much about different types of teas. So if y’all have any recommendations for tea (preferably non-caffeinated rooibos, green, or black tea. Doesn’t matter if it is loose-leaf or not, even though it would be nice to have recommendations for either/both) as well as for things that I could use to easily make/drink it from work, I’d really appreciate it.

Checkpoint

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Since it’s almost half-way through the month and I don’t know what else I want to post today, here is a mid-month review on how things are going on my 30 day trial run on some of my goals:

Be healthier: No soda.

Messed up on one day (yesterday, actually) while I was at Kita’s. I was just *really* craving something syrup-y and sweet (Pepsi). Need to have a contingency plan when one of those random cravings hit. Hoping to keep on track with this goal for the rest of the month (and then the year).

Be financially responsible: Make a monthly budget and stick to it.

Made the budget and it looks like I’m sticking to it more or less (won’t be able to tell for certain until the end of the month)

Be more social (able?): Update the blog every week day.

Doing it! I created a Google calendar where I have a blog post idea on (almost) every day so that I won’t hem and haw on what I should write about. There are a few blanks, but I like it that way since it gives me flexibility in case there’s something that I really want to write about (kinda like last week’s post on how my hormones are driving me crazy).

Do more stuff (crafts/projects): Do monthly sprite stitch challenge (and make a/some updates about it so you don’t procrastinate).

Made the pattern and shared the picture for it here (will update later with the actual pattern). Started to work on it this past weekend and will make a post with a progress shot later this week/early next week.

Get more organized: Find/make a filing system for taxes, bills and mail. Use it for the entire month (I’m open for suggestions).

I think I found something to help organize the mail, but still looking for something that will work out for bills and other important papers.

Misc.: Read at least two books a month (this will be helped partly by the InfoSec Book Club starting up next year, but I don’t want to get lazy with my reading like I was this year).

Already finished with the first book (Deadline) and about to start the second book (re-reading The Colour of Magic because there are some of the Rincewind books that I have not read and I like to read books in order. Plus it gives me an excuse to buy a digital copy of all of the Discworld books…).

Trying to keep SAD from keeping me sad.

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When I lived in Florida, going from Spring to Summer to Fall to Winter didn’t really have a huge impact on me. It meant that, sometimes, I may have to wear a hoodie. Or put on extra sunscreen. The sun was almost always out no matter what season and I spent a lot of time outdoors. I thought that Seasonal Affective Disorder was a load of crap (yeah, I said it). Then I moved to Seattle.

My first winter here (around November-ish), I got really depressed. I didn’t know what was going on, just that I wanted to do nothing but hide in the bedroom all day or just hide. I didn’t want to see anyone or do anything. It got so bad, that when my parents came out to visit for about a week, it took almost everything I had not to drive the car off the road after taking them to the airport (I still cried the whole way and had to stop a few times). And it kept getting worse until February, when Kita and I went on our Epic Road Trip (which spent a lot of time in the sunny south). Then it got better and I was fine for the rest of the season.

Last October, I noticed that I was starting to get down again and recognized that I was falling into the same patterns as last winter decided to bitch-slap me. So, I decided to do a few things that I thought would help keep me from getting down again. I plan on doing the following again this year with only a few minor changes (also listed below):

  • Excercise: The second winter here, I walked to work (about a mile, which is not fun when the sidewalks are icy or have snow all over them) and did yoga every morning. It helped me feel better about myself because I was noticing little improvements here and there (down a pants size, knee didn’t hurt as badly as it usually does, self-esteem improved, etc.). The only thing I’m going to change this year is instead of walking to work, I’ll do 1-3 miles on the treadmill at the fitness center at the apartment complex. It also gives me time to listen to music (which I don’t find enough time to do)
  • Vitamin D: This year, I’ll be adding 4000 UIs of Vitamin D to the list of things that I will be doing (or taking?). The doctor told me that it should help a lot, especially since I’ve gotten extremely deficient in the vitamin since moving here.
  • Full spectrum light: I spend at least 30 minutes under a full spectrum light (before the time that the sun usually goes down). I forget where, but I read that having more light helps to elevate one’s mood. It seemed to work well for me last year, so I’ll be repeating it.
  • Eat better: Along the same lines as exercising, eating better (and taking the time to cook better food) really helps me feel good.
  • Do stuff: I need to do more stuff (crafts/video games/other hobbies) that has me interacting with others. Isolation may be what I think I want during the winter months, but it tends to do me more harm than good. So I will be trying to fight that urge this year.

Goals Trial Run

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Yesterday, I made the random, not well thought-out decision (as a few of my better decisions tend to be) to do a 30 day trial of one sub-goal from each category of goals for the new year during the month of December. I spent most of the evening looking over the list of goals (and the sub-goals) that I want to accomplish next year and then figured out which ones I could try out for 30 days. Some of these won’t be possible (like visiting Florida for at least a week. I mean I could do it in theory, but I’m going to do it in March so we’re all clear there), so I obviously couldn’t choose one of those. I will post the full list near the end of the month, but until then here are the goals I plan on giving a try this month. Below, I have the 7 main goals in bold/underline with the sub-goal I plan on testing this month next to it.

Be healthier: No soda.

Be financially responsible: Make a monthly budget and stick to it.

Be more social (able?): Update the blog every week day.

Do more stuff (crafts/projects): Do monthly sprite stitch challenge (and make a/some updates about it so you don’t procrastinate).

Get more organized: Find/make a filing system for taxes, bills and mail. Use it for the entire month (I’m open for suggestions).

Misc.: Read at least two books a month (this will be helped partly by the InfoSec Book Club starting up next year, but I don’t want to get lazy with my reading like I was this year).