101 Ways to Fail and Derail Your Own Blog

A few people have asked me how I'm doing with my 101 list, so I thought I'd address that.

Um...yeah, the 101 list... what was that again? Why did I think it was a good idea to give myself MORE to do? Oh yeah, it's because, despite my clear lack of skills, I am strangely ambitious and confident in my own ability. Why is that again?

Here's my new plan: I get a 101 list do-over. I'm not re-starting my 1001 days, I'm not detailing my failures, I'm just cutting myself some slack, acknowledging that I've been less than successful up to THIS point, and starting from now. Ta-dah! Hey, it's my blog, it's my list, and I make the rules.

I will say, I have done some things well. I've tried new recipes and new wines, I've baked bread and planned weekly menus, I've said prayers with Small One and done more family devotions. I've spent special one on one time with my Middle Child, sent more correspondence in the mail, taken more walks, donated to the food bank, and gone to the playground more often.

And isn't that the point? I started the list to push myself towards self-improvement, and I'm improving, despite my failure to stick to the list in any kind of strict way. This is why I'm giving myself a re-do- it's my early Christmas gift to myself, a little slack being cut just when I need a pick-me-up. And really, isn't that what everyone secretly wants for Christmas?

The Thursday... 101?

It's done! I did it, I came up with 101 things! (With a little help from my friends, of course.) Now, following through on the 101 is going to be the hard part...

Anyway, in case you're confused, or missed my first post about this, check out dayzeroproject.com. It's an interesting concept, I think, and I think more people should jump on the bandwagon, even if they don't start on 10/1. For me, I'm doing it because I feel like I've been in a bit of a daze for about four years now. My pregnancy, the broken leg, the broken arm, the broken oven... I haven't felt like myself of late, and I'm ready to make a come back. So, without further ado:

101 Things in 1001 Days!

Spiritual Growth:
1) read every book in the Bible again
2) say prayers with Small One every night
3) pray every day and keep an accurate prayer journal
4) have a family devotional at least 5 nights a week
5) volunteer to teach Sunday school at least twice
6) participate in a women's Bible study

Things to Learn:
7) learn to knit and complete 2 knitting projects
8) learn to cook 10 completely new recipes (1. corn dog muffins 2. frito pie 3.oatmeal pecan laceys)
9) learn to play one song on the guitar
10) learn how to make hairbows
11) once a month, learn a cool new craft to do with Small One

Places to Go:
12) take a no kids trip
13) take a girls only trip
14) take an overnight trip to Chattanooga, just for fun
15) go to 3 festivals
16) take Small One on the Ferris wheel
17) go out and see 3 local bands
18) visit 2 significant places in the us that I've never seen before
19) spend a weekend doing touristy things in Atlanta
20) go to a Christmas parade

Things to Do:
21) watch 3 classic movies I've never seen
22) bake bread once a week
23) make homemade pizza twice a month
24) do something funky with my hair at least once
25) update the baby books (yes, I'm aware the oldest baby is 19!) =P
26) make a book of family and collected recipes
27) plan weekly menus every weekend
28) try three new restaurants
29) buy something at a silent auction
30) try 3 kinds of wine we've never tried
31) once a month, buy a random gift on sale to put in the gift closet
32) sing karaoke

People to See:
33) host a game night
34) go to the movies with a friend once a month
35) once a month, email someone I don't regularly email
36) host 5 dinner parties
37) host a party on a holiday

Family Bonds:
38) have Mom and Middle Child day once a month
39) get a really good picture of the three kids together
40) get a really good picture of me with each of the kids
41) get a really good picture of me with The Man
42) get a really good family portrait and frame it
43) 5 times, mail photos to the in-laws
44) once a month, send a card to my grandmother
45) every other month, mail photos to my parents
46)mail photos to 5 relatives I don't communicate with regularly
47) once a week, go out with The Man
48) once a month, call my grandmother
49) take Small One to 10 community events, like story time at the library
50) take Middle Child to visit 5 college campuses
51) once a month, take Oldest to lunch and talk

Intellectual Growth:
52)read books by 10 authors I've never read before
53) complete an entire book of crossword puzzles
54)find 3 poems with significance to me
55)submit a manuscript for publication
56) blog every day for a month 6 times
57) write a children's story

Setting the House in Order:
58)paint the hallway
59)replace all the hardware in the kitchen
60) clean out the craft closet every 6 months
61) clean out my sewing baskets and complete projects lingering there
62) frame family photos and hang them in the living room
63) organize all snapshots
64) get rid of 50 books
65) sort out 10 boxes from the basement
66) have a yard sale
67) create a truly comfortable guest room/office

Personal Health and Growth:
68) take a walk every day
69) declare one week a month "no sweets week"
70) achieve my goal weight
71) go to bed before midnight at least 6 nights/week
72) train for and participate in a 5k for charity
73) declare one day a month "no technology day"- no phone, no tv, no computer, nothing. the oven is still allowed. =)
74) once a month, do something alone that isn't an errand or chore
75) take a dance class

The Great Outdoors:
76) work in the yard once a week
77) grow a garden every spring
78) add one new thing to the garden each year
79) take Small One to a playground once a week
80) pick blueberries
81) pick apples
82) take a walk in the mountains every fall to look at the leaves
83) watch the sunrise from the beach
84) watch the sunset in the mountains
85) try letterboxing or geocaching

Monetary Matters:
86)set up an Etsy shop
87)have $500 in savings by the end date
88) have $100 in Small One’s savings by the end date, in addition to what’s already there
89) list everything I have set aside for ebay
90) be a seller at a consignment sale every spring and fall

Random Kindness:
91) donate to a food bank once a month
92) spend one holiday doing volunteer work
93) once a week, leave a comment on someone's blog
94) once a year, do something nice for someone anonymously
95) Write and mail an encouraging letter to someone once a week
96) donate to 3 charities to which we've never donated before
97) at Christmas, take Small One to buy a toy for Toys for Tots
98) twice, donate money towards the groceries of the person behind me in line

Keeping it Real:
99)save $1 for every failure on this list
100)update this list weekly on my blog
101)on day 1001, publish a new list and start over!

Edited again, because I realized that updating this publicly is too much pressure! =)