2010 Goals-- Organization!

Why don't we take a stroll in my left-brained/task-oriented mind? I'm sure it won't be a complete surprise to most of my readers, who seem to share the same mentality. I read far too many bloggers with the same sentiments!

2009 definitely got away from me. It wasn't the best year and it wasn't the worst either. I didn't lose any family members, although I did lose one that was as good as family (a blog post for another time). I did find myself extremely stressed for the majority of the year though, which put a damper on my personal life and homemaking.

I'm hoping a few tries at good old organization (January is National Organization Month after all) to get me through what is panning out to be a similar year to 2009. So how will this plan for organization make my life better?

1. Reading

I think I mentioned in earlier posts that 2009 was just a blah reading year for me. There were some real gems, but nothing like what I had experienced in previous years. I think my main problem last year was that I was trying to read too much at one time. There were many months where I had five books going at once because I didn't want to spend months on one long classic. I've tried this before and it just makes me frustrated.

In 2010, I'm going to try to do something different. I still want to read classics, no matter how long they are. So, instead of reading classics and modern fiction and nonfiction at the same time, I will read 50 pages of a classic in between other books. So far, I've read 100 pages of Villette which I LOVE so far and am reading my third book for completion for the year. I also want a better variety of fiction reads this year, since I'm no longer working with one particular age group in my profession. So, I'll switch from reading an adult work to a J-Fic work and back to my favorite teen works. All three have a veritable place in literature (it really bothers me when people allude that children's and YA novels are sub-par in any way) and I'm hoping that I can gain a better understanding of all three this year. I may read less classics overall this year, but I think I will have a better understanding of each classic that I do complete.

How on earth am I keeping track of this? Well, on my sidebar, I have a list of books completed for the year (2 so far). I've been doing this since 2007, but I just thought I would point out that it is there. I also have my Goodreads account where I can rate books. Finally, I have a spreadsheet that I keep for personal uses where I can color code reads to make sure that I am staying "well-rounded."

2. Crafting

J and I are both hoping to be a bit more crafty this year. I don't do much beyond embroidering. I prefer to stay in the kitchen. But this Christmas blessed us with a brand new sewing machine. A couple of years back I mistakenly bought dried lavender in BULK. It was funny at the time, but for a long time we had no clue what to do with it. J knows how to use the sewing machine (and I'm hoping to channel my very talented late grandmother to learn things myself as well) so one of these days we'll plan to make drawer sachets out of the lavender. Let me know if you want one because we'll be able to make plenty! Our ultimate goals with the sewing machine? A duvet cover (with hand embroidery embellishments) and modern curtains.

I'm working on a few projects right now... they're all stitching. One is going to be a VERY late xmas present, one a birthday present, and one is stitching names on stockings for our dogs. Maybe one of these days I'll try crocheting again or knitting since I haven't had much luck with crocheting (Ashley, I wish you lived here to teach me).

3. In the kitchen

My parents were very generous this Christmas and decided to gift us a freezer for our basement. I have been lusting after one for a while so this was a perfect gift. J wasn't so sure at first until we spoke with friends of ours who could really speak for its money-saving goodness. When we finally went to purchase one, we found a damaged (no lock) version of the largest model the store had for over $200 off of the normal price. We decided to go for it and save the money for our parents!

I immediately checked out all of the freezer cooking books we have at work and have managed to moderately fill up that sucker. Since we got the freezer, we've only gone out to eat once! I truly think going out to eat was preventing us from saving more money and was also pretty bad for our health. I already notice a difference in my figure because we eat much less processed foods and I feel 5 times better. After an exhausting 10 hour day at work, I can come home and cook a meal that I have already prepared instead of doing all of the planning and preparing that goes with starting something from scratch. I'm hoping to get a lot out of my freezer this year and put the money we save in savings!

I'm hoping all of these attempts at organization in 2010 help clear my mind and make for a more pleasant general well-being. I'll be sure to update as the year progresses.