101 List Progress Check - 16th December 2012

Well, we´re at the end of another week already - time seems to just be racing away at the moment.

I have been rubbish recently with writing my blog - managing the minimum for my 101 progress and very little else. I guess that was the main purpose of the blog in the first place so I shouldn´t beat myself up about not posting more.

So anyway, here´s the latest update on my 101 in 1001 days :o)

I have finished reading Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel and have therefore read all 10 of the books on my prizewinner books list. It wasn´t until I wrote my update last week where I mentioned that I had broken my Kindle and don´t want to be carrying my iPad everywhere with me. I also mentioned that at least it meant I was listening to music each day, but what was I listening to it on...? My iPod... and until that point it simply hadn´t occurred to me that I could just download the Kindle app onto my iPod and carry on from there (temporarily of course - it will never replace my Kindle). I thought I may struggle to read regularly using the iPod seeing how much I hate reading books on the iPad, but actually, I much prefer it, so my life isn´t over :o) The book was fab and I was browsing in the bookshop at the station the other day when I saw another Hilary Mantel book which appears to follow on from Wolf Hall, so it is written in my Filofax ready for the end of my Fabulously Frugal No Shopping Challenge.

Transferring my CDs to iTunes is being continued today, at last - and I seem to be making a fair amount of progress. In fact, I am sat at the pc instead of my MacBook today and therefore have the CD folder right next to me, so am swapping out the CDs as each one completes - yay!!! Once the the ones in the folder are finished I will attack the pile that are in the computer cupboard to transfer across any that haven´t all been done, and then I will get my DF to bring in all the ones that he has in the car as I know that at least some of those haven´t been done yet - and I desperately need Biffy Clyro - Revolutions back on my iPod (everything got wiped off it on Friday when I pulled my Christmas playlist across).

The first of my Flylady habits seems to have kicked in properly now - my kitchen is now gleaming most nights. The only times it isn´t is when I have made a conscious decision not to do it as other things are ore important and I have made sure it is done first thing in the morning so it isn´t lingering in my conscience. As I´m still in the process of decluttering various areas (including cupboards which I am still terrified to open) I am not intending to add a new Flylady habit each month, but will add a new one as and when I feel ready - as she says, babysteps :-) I have started giving my sink area in my bathroom a once over most days, but it is not a habit yet. It will definitely be my next one though - swish and swipe!!!

I felt I had cheated on my Fabulously Frugal No Shopping Challenge on Saturday, but I actually hadn´t. I went into Manor to get small prizes to put into  the crackers that we will be making for Christmas this year and I had a 20 Franc gift card from the last time I went there to buy some gifts for new babies. Unfortunately I couldn´t use it towards the prizes so I found a scarf (paleish turquoise with mainly white and a few pick swallows on - lovely for any time of the year, and some legwarmers - haven´t worn any of those since the 80s... which were reduced to half price). The card was due to run out on December the 24th so I couldn´t use it after completing my challenge, and I guess it is still frugal as I didn´t spend any real money...

I started on my two weeks of taking lunch to work with me on Monday, completely forgetting that I had booked Thursday and Friday off, so to make up for this I shall extend it to cover my working days between Christmas and New Year.

I´m still trying to work out if I am allowed to purchase a new Kindle to replace the one that I broke last week - I am managing without it, but it´s not good for my eyes and I can get a cheaper one as it is a replacement. Does it fall under wear and tear...? I need to decide pretty quick as we have a visitor coming over for Christmas and I would have to get it delivered to them before they come over... hmmm...

I went to a concert on Friday night, although it wasn´t what I had in mind when I wrote it on my list - picture a huge venue with Biffy Clyro or Metallica playing and that´ll give you an idea on what I was thinking. I attended the semi-finals of the Rock Highway competition and saw 8 bands play, including The Real Deal with my fabulous DF as their bassist. It was a really good night, with a few really good bands. The outcome was a bit disappointing, but there is still hope - I may write a separate post about that.

As Christmas is nearly upon us I have spent a bit of quality time with my boys decorating the trees (they have an artificial one upstairs and we have a real one downstairs) - I´m sure there will be a Christmas post coming up soon :o)

Have a great week,

LJx   

101 List Progress Check - 9th December 2012

What a week - it has been tough!!!

Let's start with the good news though:

      I finished my two week challenge to drink 1.5 litres of water a day on Tuesday!!! I am very pleased that I managed not to actually drown during this process, and despite the good intentions of trying to keep to it, I spent the last three days in a planning meeting which isn't exactly conducive to drinking that much (I couldn't really disappear off to the loo every hour without everyone assuming that I'm pregnant), and then came the weekend, which is the hardest time for me to remember to drink. However, back to work tomorrow, so I will try to drink 1.5 litres each day that I am in the office.

      For my Fabulously Frugal No Shopping Challenge... I have been a total angel :-) I resisted the lure of a vintage green Windsor filofax, which was particularly tempting as it was in perfect condition, green and I don't have any vintage filos...  I then had to look for Silhouette Cameo suppliers as this is what my wonderful DF is getting me for Christmas, this obviously led to me having to browse various scrapbooking sites to try to get together a list of the other bits and pieces I need to go with it, and I have found some amazing designs and scrapbooking kits, and all the other paraphernalia that goes with it. So far I have been able to resist, although totally unable to let Ben know what I actually need - I am totally loving the SMASH book stuff from KandCo, I really can't decide which things are most important to get. I have seen so much fabulous stuff that I'm almost tempted to say that I can wait until my birthday for the Silhouette Cameo. It is just so tempting to sneak in an order...

      My kitchen is still (mostly) getting it's final clean of the day before I go to bed so that when we get up in the morning it is nice and tidy - lovely!!! I had a bit of a moment this morning and started cleaning and rearranging the cupboards (rearranging the contents of, not physically moving the cupboards, that would just be crazy - they are fitted...), and now we can get to the things we need most for cooking easily, let's see how long they manage to stay in the right places. Next stop sorting out the food cupboards - my OCD really needs to kick on on those bad boys, instead of just closing the doors and ignoring them :-)

      And this is where it all goes wrong... :-(  I still haven't finished reading my final prizewinner book (Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel), because I had a bit of an accident on the way to the bus stop for work on Monday (imagine full on comedy, slip on ice, legs right up in the air, landing flat on the back and then smacking head on the floor). The accident itself was kinda painful but my neck and head are both OK again now and my lower back is almost back to normal, but my Kindle wasn't so lucky :-( I was carrying it (in its cover) in my rucksack, which was thrown over my right shoulder and took quite an impact when it hit the floor. It wasn't until the end of the day that I realised that it was broken and why (yep, that knock on the head made me pretty useless for most of the day, I was really struggling to think). I had tried turning it on at the bus stop, but the picture wouldn't change, I tried restarting it and still nothing - I figured it was just having a funny five minutes (being totally unaware that it was likely to have been battered in the fall - I'm sure my brain must have fallen out you know).

      Thankfully I can still read it as I have the Kindle app on my iPad, but I hate reading books on the iPad, and simply refuse to carry it to work and back each day - so there goes pretty much all my reading time each day until I can get a new Kindle... why did this have to happen while I'm on my 3 month no shopping challenge - bah, sucks!!! Maybe I will have to give in and start taking my iPad to work... bleurgh!!!

But looking on the bright side - I have been listening to music on the way to and from work, which is really nice as I don't get time to listen to much music usually :-)

Have a great week,

LJx




  

101 List Progress Check - 2nd December 2012

Hiya :o)

Happy day today - I have almost completed my 2 weeks of drinking 1.5 litres of water every day, I am so pleased with myself. It's been a pretty tough challenge for someone who usually manages less than 1 litre per day unless I really make an effort to drink more. It's not that I usually drink squash, tea, juice, coffee, fizzy drinks etc - I mainly drink water, I just don't drink much. I have been told many times that I should drink more, but I just don't feel the need to. But - here is the big question, have I felt any better for upping my fluid intake...? In a word, no. I pee more (unsurprisingly), but that is the only change so far (apart from at times feeling as if I'm going to drown, oh, and a strange feeling on occasion that my head is about to explode...). I may carry on trying to drink this much after the challenge has finished to see if it does have any impact longer term, in a way I'm hoping it doesn't so that I can go back to drinking an amount that I feel comfortable with.

Have I finished reading Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel yet so that I can mark of my "Read 10 Prizewinners books" as complete - no. I am finding it a fascinating read, and am reading pretty much every day, but still have quite a way to go. Today I thought I'd have a quick check on Amazon, and it turns out the book has 559 pages, so I don't feel too bad for taking so long to read it. The book includes historical figures (Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn), and has made me think about reading more about that period - more than any of my history lessons achieved,,,

I have also started on the Flylady path (admittedly I haven't done all the decluttering yet - honestly, I swear that as soon as you've done a room, I start on another area and then the first bit needs doing all over again...) and have been "Shining my Sink". I started doing this when I was off work and hoped to carry on when I went back and haven't done badly so far. I had a couple of nights where it wasn't done due to late finishes at work for month end and I know that I will have to let it slide for a couple of nights this coming week as I am out for dinner on Tuesday and the works Christmas do on Thursday.

As for the Frugal No Shopping challenge - what was I thinking? 3 months? Really??? This is even more tricky now that Moleskine have launched their Hobbit notebooks... Why did I think this was such a good idea? I can see me asking this question lots over the next couple of months, although I have made it through a whole month already. Surely the run up to Christmas and gearing up for yearend will stop me having time to think about buying anything, and then January will be manic at work... maybe it will go quickly :o)

Have a great week,

LJx

101 List Progress Check - Sep 23rd 2013

Hi All,

Woohoo!!! Paperwork sorted? Yes - at last!!!

Here a lovely picture of me sorting paperwork last Sunday evening, in anticipation of the arrival of my Filofax display case and stand.

Surrounded by less than half the paperwork that I had to go through in total.
The stuff on the shelf under the table is all for shredding (that pile grew even
more before I'd finished), and the filled folders are the filing that had already
been done at that stage...

 I have finished reading Schindler's Ark - it is such a good book. I will definitely be reading it again, and really must get hold of the film on DVD (I don't know why I'm insisting on putting myself through this - I can guarantee I will cry...lots).

My de-cluttering is continuing, and although I haven't started doing Flylady routines yet I have set up my 5 week cleaning plan ready to start the rotations. Today I have also listed the daily/weekly tasks that can be delegated to my children which they (currently) are quite looking forward to as it is an opportunity to earn some cold, hard cash :o) We'll see how long they find this a good idea. I am refusing to let them earn money for doing the things they should just do anyway (keeping their rooms tidy(ish), getting ready for school properly in the mornings, putting their toys away etc), but they seem to be understanding that and haven't argued at all. Wish me luck for it lasting the week (or even the rest of the day).

Have a great week,

LJx

101 List Progress Check - May 6th 2012

Oops!!! I thought I had posted an update last weekend, but clearly I hadn't, so here is the latest re my 101 challenge...

Last weekend I managed to cross off my challenge to watch 10 new releases, so here is my final list:

• Thor
• Harry Potter (the last one)
• Captain America
• The Green Lantern
• Happy Feet 2
• Puss in Boots
• Contagion
• In Time
• Jane Eyre
• The Help

For the classic films, I have now watched Brief Encounter and I'd been led to believe that it was supposed to be one of the most romantic films of all time, but I just didn't get that. Some married guy tries it on with a married lady, they kind of hook up, but don't, but fall in love and then it's all over and they are sad - the end... maybe I'm heartless, or maybe I was just expecting too much. I thought I'd be in floods of tears, but just didn't identify with the characters.

I have also managed to blog about my set up for my A5 Filofax - the format of the blog wasn't quite as intended (ie write post for Lucy re my A5 work FF) for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I lost my A5 work Filofax shortly after I wrote my list and since then have moved between various set ups so now I am using one A5 Filofax for everything, and as I have my own blog now it made sense to post the details on here instead of sending it to Lucy to post onto hers. You can see my post re my A5 here, and if you would like to see what binder I am currently in (I have moved twice since), you can see this here.

Prizewinner book number two is ow started - The Shipping News by Annie Proulx. I am finding the short sentence structure that she uses a bit unusual/awkward at times, but it seems good so far.

 I started taking my supplements again on Thursday (after forgetting to take any since my last 101 post when I said that I was going to take my ones for that day when I finished posting, and then not doing so).

This weekend I have been browsing at modes4u and artbox, checking out the funky stationery so I can get some for using in my happiness binder to write quotes/jokes on that make me smile. Unfortunately I now have wishlists totalling approximately £200 - I really need to reduce those lists before I end up with a whole stationery shop in my cupboards...

Today I completed the task of making a birthday cake. As I haven't made a cake from scratch in many years it was an interesting experience... Unfortunately you can't get self-raising flour over here so I had to find out what the right amount of baking powder that I needed was as the recipe book doesn't have that info (despite being a general cook book that gives all the basics), and I didn't have any caster sugar... Oh and I didn't have any sandwich tins so had to stick it into one deeper tin, which I'm sure means I should have adjusted the temperature and times, but never mind. It came out a lot better than I was expecting it to, and although I wouldn't go as far as to say it was a total success, it was far from being a failure and actually tasted really good.

OK - it's far from perfect and as I was rubbish with the 'decorative icing' I made it into a face - and no it wasn't for a
4-year-old, it was for a 36-year-old 

On the work front - I have now managed to finish on time on Mondays and get home in time for DF to go to band practice, and haven't had to bring work home with me (excluding monthends, where I have either left later, but still in time for DF to go and with no work to bring home, or have left work on time and brought some work home with me - which was all part of the deal so that is fine).

Until next time...

LJx

101 List Progress Check - 1st April 2012

A quick update on what's occurring in my list...

Shakespeare - I have read King Lear this week, so that second of my Shakespeare plays is done. This one was another tragedy ... greedy people, a bastard son, people flung out, truths realised, forgiveness sought, but other person dies and therefore much tragedy - a tried and tested formula. I have a historic one next and then 2 comedies.

Prizewinners - I read the first of my 10 prizewinner books last week, Angela's Ashes. It's one of those books that I have seen lots of good reviews for, but never got round to reading before and I am glad it finally happened. It was a very well written memoir, which I love as it's all in the first person and you feel the teller getting older as the book progresses.

Classics - I have started reading the tenth of my 10 classics, Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, and am enjoying it so far. I am surprised at how much I have liked most of the classics that I have read, so may have to put together a new list of them when this one is finished.

On the exercise front, I am near the end of my second week of the latest Beachbody programme that I have started in my quest for ripped abs. I have started Brazil Butt Lift and intend to do this for 8 weeks before moving onto Rockin' Body for 4 weeks. It will then be time for holidays and I am hoping to start P90X again after that.

My Flylady habits have fallen by the wayside somewhat at the moment, and I have realised that I need to be ruthless and throw things away. First stop in this was attacking the front room and clearing those hot spots (the table and the Kachelofen). I have also been looking into getting a steam cleaner (eg the H2O x5 or a Kärcher) as this may help ease the cleaning burden (once the de-junking is done) and will be cheaper than getting a cleaner.

I have also been checking out new DVD releases to see what is around so I can continue with that challenge. I went onto Amazon (after checking out play.com) and found that it was a lot cheaper to buy through them so Amazon now have an order for 5 DVDs from me (admittedly two of them are more for the boys - Happy Feet 2 and Puss in Boots, but they still count, right?).

I also managed to pick up a couple of classic films off my list while I was at the airport on the way home from the UK the other week following a very exciting conference... :-)

LJx

101 List Progress Check - 26th December 2011

Well it's the Christmas season and I'm using that as my excuse reason for getting a bit behind with blogging about my progress, but will keep this short and sweet as I also need to do a Christmas post...

• Make-up - I have now managed a full 3 weeks of wearing makeup every day, even putting it on before opening presents on Christmas morning, 1 more week to go - woohoo!!!

• Skincare - a big fat fail!!! I am rubbish at following a skincare routine, and almost never remember to take my makeup off before going to bed. Although I am getting into a routine in the mornings, so I guess it could be worse...

• Classic books - Jane Eyre is now finished, and was as suspected a damned good read. As it was Christmas week I figured that I should read Dicken's - A Christmas Carol (it wasn't on my list so in theory I can take one of the others off - I'm not sure how it was on my Kindle when it wasn't on my list, but I can live with that). I finished reading it last night and so think I may move on to Tess of the D'Urbervilles next - although I may have to see if I can change the font size as it is quite small - not ideal for reading in bed.

• Films, new releases - a friend of mine came over last weekend and brought a few films with him, so I have now watched Captain America (fab, shame about the ending, but I understand why they had to do it), and Horrible Bosses (quite amusing in parts, but not one I would be likely to watch again and again). I'm not sure if these count as new releases, I need to check when they came out on DVD, but believe it was the second half of this year... we'll see.

• Flylady habits - I'm still on just the 2 habits at the moment, but am very pleased with myself for managing to get the whole place clean and tidy and keeping it that way over Christmas - can we make it through to New Year? And I'll be working on bringing in a third habit soon... maybe sorting out clothes the night before...

• Shows - now that all the Christmas presents have been opened I can reveal which show I managed to get tickets for. We're off to see Batman Live when it comes to the Hallenstadion in Zürich in February - the boys were very pleased when they found out :-)

• Cooking with the boys - Christopher and I started off nice and simply with some shop bought sweet pastry for him to roll out and cut animal shapes out of to have as biscuits - does that count? I've also bought in some biscuit dough from the shop so that we can make some today, he loves cutting out the shapes. I really must learn where I can get self-raising flour from over here (and what it's called...)

I am going to start planning when and how to get all my 101 things in 1001 days done to try to make sure that I complete all of them (or at least most of them - 101 things is a lot to get through...)

LJx

101 List Progress Check - 11th December 2011

Well, there has been limited progress this week, although I am now a whole week through the challenge of wearing make-up every day for 4 weeks :o)

Unfortunately, as sensible as it would have been, I am rubbish at taking my make-up off each evening and have never successfully managed to follow a skincare routine. However, I have now decided on a simple routine that even I should be able to fit in:
                        am       -        Pulp Friction fruity foaming body scrub while in shower
                                             Nivea make-up remover wipes
                                             Moisturise

                         pm      -        Cleanse with cleansing lotion/baby lotion
                                             Tone with Simple toner
                                             Moisurise

I started this morning, so need to keep it up until January 7th - wish me luck!!!

On Friday I bought the newly released Bad Teacher on DVD and actually managed to sit and watch it with Ben in the evening. Not sure that it should really be a 12 rating, but amusing enough, although it is probably one that I wouldn't watch again for quite some time. I will never be able to think of Justin Timberlake in the same way ever again either, which is a bit disappointing, but I'm sure it won't affect me too badly :o)

I actually managed to get an afternoon off on Wednesday and went on a stationery mission to find materials for making dividers for my Filofaxes, but I will write more on that in a separate post.

I have also bought tickets to take the family out to see a show in February, but as it is a Christmas present you'll have to wait to find out what special treat I have in store for them - I can't wait, it'll be great.

Christopher has finally started showing an interest in learning to read, so I'll be able to start the challenge of teaching them to read, as they will only be taught to read German at school. I'm pretty sure that once Christopher has started, Marcus won't be far behind - although he is far more into doing physical stuff than Christopher is, so we'll see.

My Flylady/SHE habits are slowly coming along, although I do have days where I don't do them religiously. I am keeping my kitchen sink shiny, and swishing and swiping in my bathroom most days. So 2 habits into the challenge, and I am not going to beat myself up for not doing the chores every day as I work long hours and have 2 young children. I believe that as long as the habits are being followed often enough to make a difference to our home, then it's all good. It will be time to add habit 3 soon, hmmm - which one to choose...?

And blogging my 101 in 1001 days - I am managing to stay on track - yippee!!!

101 List Progress Check - 3rd December 2011

It's been a while since I've done a proper update on how this is going. I must remember that, as not all tasks are one off events, I need to write the progress checks to see how I'm doing with the repeating activities too.

Reading the classics is going well, faster than I'd planned in fact. I've read Wuthering Heights (a bit tough going due mainly to language), Far From the Madding Crowd (enjoyed this one), Great Expectations (poor Pip), so I thought I'd read something else to break it up a bit. But flicking through my Kindle to decide what to read next made me realise that I'm quite liking the slower paced style of these books, rather than the books that I'm used to, where I find it really hard to stop reading until it is finished. And so the book of the moment is Jane Eyre which I think is going to be pretty good.

One of the guys from work yesterday told me of a big stationery/craft supplies shop in Zurich who have (or seem to have) scrapbooking supplies, so I will be paying them a visit to have a search for nice card to make my dividers and some adhesive film to protect the tabs.

As a start in my quest to become a domestic goddess (anyone who knows me knows just how laughable this is - I managed to burn out a hoover by sucking up a T-shirt and the whole of upstairs ended up full of a weird smelling smoke - I didn't even notice, I was too busy trying to hoover the dust from under the bed with the hose attachment...), I have managed to add two Flylady habits to my daily activities. I now shine my kitchen sink every evening and swish & swipe in my bathroom every morning or evening - although I must confess that the sink didn't get shined yesterday as I was just too lazy...

Surprisingly, I have actually managed to watch two new releases on DVD already, one of which wasn't planned at all (Thor), but still counts so I'm happy. The second one was one that I desperately wanted to see - Harry Potter Deathly Hallows - Part 2, such a good film!!! I will be watching this one again very soon I think :o)

Wearing feminine clothes for a whole week... how frustrating is that one? I was doing really well this week, and wore clothes from my new capsule wardrobe Monday - Thursday and then Friday came, what was I thinking. For some reason I had it in my head that I was supposed to wear feminine clothes for 4 weeks and as I felt like wearing jeans for work I figured that my 4 weeks could start again some other time. It wasn't until I got home last night and did my progress check that I saw that it was only supposed to be for a week - aaargh!!!  But I think I will wait until the summer to complete this challenge. Even though my capsule work wardrobe should help me to wear more feminine clothes, it is a bit chilly out at the moment, and some days all I want to wear is my jeans and a jumper - summer is definitely more conducive to wearing feminine clothes.

Thankfully when I gave up on the feminine clothes challenge yesterday morning I still put the make-up on as it turns out this one is only for 1 week as well, so 2 days and I am free!!! One question though, how do other people put make-up on and it stays all day and looks immaculate? I put mine on in the morning (face powder, or all in one foundation, eye shadow, mascara, eyeliner and lipstick) and by the time I get home all I have left is eyeliner which is smudged under my eyes and making me look worse than if I hadn't bothered.

Christmas cards and presents by the end of November - not this year!!! I have bought all my cards, and most of the presents, but haven't done any more than that, although the Christmas presents for the boys re sorted (or will be when I get round to going to the main station to get the tickets for the Batman show).

Best I get those cards written this weekend or I'll end up having to use them for next year instead...

LJx    

101 Things to do in 1001 Days - List

As promised, here is my magic list of treats, things I need to do, things I want to do. All listed in the hope that having shared with other people what I intend to do I may actually get the majority of these done.

My official starting date was October 2nd, when I finished my list and completed my first task, result!!! 1001 days makes it all seem a little less intimidating, as this means that I have until Sunday June 29th 2014, which currently seems a long way off :-)

Enough waffle, here's the list, split into various categories:

Cultural
1.      Read 10 prizewinner books - completed Dec 2012
                       Angela's Ashes
                       The Shipping News
                       Midnight's Children
                       The Color Purple
                       The English Patient
                       Schindler's Ark
                       Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha!!!
                       Amsterdam
                       The Sea
                       Wolf Hall
2.      Read 5 Shakespeare plays -  completed Jul 2012
                       King John
                       King Lear
                       As You Like It
                       Antony and Cleopatra
                       The Taming of the Shrew
3.      Read 10 classic books - completed Feb 2012
                       Wuthering Heights
                       Far From the Madding Crowd
                       Great Expectations
                       Jane Eyre
                       A Christmas Carol
                       Tess of the d'Urbervilles
                       Lady Chatterley's Lover
                       The Picture of Dorian Grey
                       Northanger Abbey
4.    
5.      Load CDs to iTunes completed Dec 2012
6.      Loads all music on tapes to iTunes tape to MP3 converter received Nov 2012
7.      Buy headphones for iPod - completed Feb 2012
8.      Have music playing all day & no TV/computers for whole family (x 3)
9.      Watch 10 new releases (DVD is fine...) - completed Apr 2012
                     Thor
                     Harry Potter (the last one)
                     Captain America
                     The Green Lantern
                     Happy Feet 2
                     Puss In Boots
                     Contagion
                     In Time
                     Jane Eyre
                     The Help
10.    Watch 10 classic films - films identified, got to find them, 7 down 3 to go
                      Brief Encounter
                      Papillon
                      Taxi Driver
                      The Graduate
                      The Sting
                      The Shawshank Redemption
                      How to Steal a Million
11.    Watch 10 musicals (films) - completed Jan 2014
                      Rock of Ages
                      Half a Sixpence
                      Singin' In The Rain
                      Les Miserables
                      Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
                      Hairspray
                      Cabaret
                      Oklahoma (1955)
                      The Wizard of Oz
                      Mary Poppins
12.    See 2 west End musicals - completed 21 Feb 2012
                      Rock of Ages
                      Wicked
                      We Will Rock You 
13.    Go to 2 concerts - completed Jan 2013
                      Rock of Highway Semi-Final
                      Rock Highway Final   
14.    See 2 dance productions - completed Oct 13
                      Rock the Ballet
                      Romeo & Juliet rock ballet
15.    Read 5 banned books
                      A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
                      A Farewell to Arms - Ernest Hemingway
                      Black Beauty - Anna Sewell
                      Memoirs of Fanny Hill - John Clelland
                      Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher-Stowe

Family
16.    Spend 10 minutes teaching/listening to boy reading - cancelled
17.    One big family day out every month - cancelled
18.    Set up playroom for boys now that they are sharing a bedroom - completed Mar 13
19.    Teach boys to swim (or arrange swimming lessons) - cancelled
20.    1 full week family holiday - completed July 2012
21.    1 weekend family break - completed May 2013
22.    Cooking/baking with the boys 10 times - done 5 times so far
               cupcakes
               cookies x 2
               scones
               pumpkin soup
23.    10 photo sessions with the boys - cancelled
24.
25.    Take the boys to a show - Batman shown. Completed Feb 2012
26.    Go camping - completed May 2013 (Europaparc covered wagon)
27.    Scrapbook three photos of the boys - completed May 2013
28.    Write a short story for the boys - cancelled

Relationship
29.    Go to Vegas - completed July 2013
30.    Get married - July 21st 2013 :o)
31.    12 'date' nights with Ben (at home or out) 6 date nights so far
32.  
33.    Have dinner by candlelight - completed July 2012

Health & Fitness 
34.    Take a 1+ hour walk on my own (x3) - cancelled
35.    Drink a cup of Rooibos tea with honey every day for 2 weeks - completed Sep 2013
36.  
37.  
38.    Drink 1.5 litres of water a day for 1 week (reduced Nov 2012) - completed Dec 2012
39.    Take a supplement (vitamins/minerals and/or probiotics) for 3 months - completed August 2012
40.    Complete Les Mills Combat workout programme - completed Apr 2013
41.  
42.  
43.  

Personal Development & Treats
44.    Write a post for Lucy re purchases from the German Filofax sale - completed 2nd Oct 2011
45.    Write a post for Lucy re my A5 work Filofax - completed on this blog 20th April 2012
46.    Set up a Filofax for the 101 things in 1001 days project - completed 22nd Oct 2011
47.    Knit a scarf - completed 24th Mar 2013
48.    Become confident enough to hold a conversation in German - completed Jan 2014
49.    Embroider a sampler - started Dec 2013
50.    Read 5 books in German (basic please...) - cancelled
51.    Write a poem - cancelled
52.    Learn to walk in high heels - completed Sep 2013
53.    Invest in a capsule wardrobe for work - completed 22nd Nov 2011 
54.    Wear only feminine clothes for a week - completed 31st Jul 2012
55.    Follow a proper skincare routine for 4 weeks - completed Aug 2012
56.    Wear full make up every day for 4 weeks (foundation not essential) - completed 1st Jan 2012
57.    Cook one proper meal for visitors/dinner party - completed 8th Jan 2012
58.    Learn 6 new recipes - 4 down
59.    Take camera on days out and use it - cancelled
60.    Get a post published on Philofaxy - completed 8th Oct 2011
61.    Be a 'Reader Under the Splotlight' on Philofaxy - completed 5th Nov 2012
62.    Do the 30 list in 30 days challenge (another blog find that I need to read up on) - completed Jul 2012
63.    30 mins per day to relax/meditate for 2 weeks (while on 2 week holiday with Ben does not count)
64.    Be nice for 2 weeks (watch my tongue/type IM and delete instead of sending) - completed Aug 2012
65.    Learn to use a proper camera - cancelled
66.    Buy some nice high heels and wear them - heels bought...
67.    Buy a posh/designer handbag - completed Oct 2012
68.  
69.    Give more praise (at home & at work) - completed Jan 2014
70.    Make a birthday cake - completed May 6th 2012
71.    Bake cupcakes - completed Oct 2012
72.    Go for a manicure - completed July 2013
73.    Go for a facial - completed July 2013
74.    Journal daily for two weeks (15 minutes minimum)
75.    Wear false eyelashes - completed 8th Oct 2011
76.    Buy flowers for home - completed Aug 2013
77.  
78.    Donate to charity (sponsoring someone who I would sponsor anyway doesn't count) - Feb 2013
         (Chimwemwe)

Finance, House & Organisation
79.    Keep to a basic household routine using my Plannerisms planner - started Feb 2013
80.    Set up a recipe binder
81.    Christmas presents sorted by the end of November for 1 year - completed Nov 2012
82.    Christmas cards and envelopes written by end of November for 1 year - completed Nov 12
83.    Plan for Christmas using the Dodo Book of Christmas - completed Dec 2012
84.    Make dividers for Filofaxes in various sizes - completed Jan 2013
85.    Blog re the 101 in 1001 project - completed Jan 2014
86.    Have a fabulously frugal 3 months (not immediately after Christmas) - changed to 12 weeks, completed Jan 2013
87.    Take lunch to work daily for 2 weeks - completed Jan 2013
88.    Manage bank accounts properly, update Excel weekly (not monthly/quarterly)
89.    Arrange meeting with financial adviser to sort savings - completed Nov 16th 2011
90.    Save minimum of 60% of 2009 tax rebate - cash committed, completion Jan 2012
91.    Get garden sorted UK - completed May 2011
92.    Get electrics/gas signed off - electrics done Oct 2012, gas done Feb 2013
93.    Get new shower (or whole bathroom) - shower fitted Oct 2012
94.    Set up an events planner - completed Apr 2013
95.    Transfer all data from the Dodo Book of Christmas to the events planner - completed Apr 2013
96.    Finish work on Mondays (ex-monthend) with no work to take home for 3 months - completed May 2012
97.     Finish work on time with no work to take home 2 days a week for 3 months - completed Jun 2012
98.    Work very late for 2 nights at monthend, and 2 'normal' late nights per month with no work to
         take home for 2 months - completed May 2012
99.    As 98, but with hours back in the form of working from home on Fridays with an early finish - completed May 2012
100.  Clean out my closet - completed Aug 12
101.  Organise paperwork - completed Sep 12


10 new tasks to replace those that have been removed above:


-      Sort through the boys clothes - completed Oct 13
-      Make a crafting picture in one of my IKEA picture frames - completed Nov 2013
-      Sort stationery supplies/stickers and post out some RAK packages - completed Oct 13
-      Sort through the hallway cupboards - started Oct 13
-      Package up the big boxes in the hallway and office for recycling - completed Nov 2013
-      Sort through the boxes upstairs that have still not been unpacked
-      Take fish oils daily for 3 months - started Oct 13
-      Take iron supplements twice daily for 3 months - started Oct 2013
-      3 month Facebook ban (apart from personal messages, adding my own photos)
-      3 month Keep In Touch project (letters, calls) - cancelled

And there we have it - my official list of things that I intend to cross off my list by June 29th 2014.

My next blog will include a progress report, to catch up with where I am, but I need to work out how to add photos to my blog first.

LJx