2014 Goals…Overkill

I may be setting myself up for failure here with this monstrous list of goals (and random to-do’s) but this is all stuff I want to change, I’ve tried to change, or NEED to change!  Let’s do this!

Financial Goals

• Make $200 a month from side hustles (pet/baby sitting, house cleaning, surveys, Fiverr, etc).
• Pay off all credit card debt (including hubby’s) by December 2014 – That’s about $410 a month, doable.
• Add about $25 to our savings account after each pay day to grow our emergency fund to $1000 by the end of 2014.
• Budget better (pre-purchase junk food) for long underways or deployments that hubby goes on this year.
• Look into some kind of retirement savings (because relying on death or the future NFL success of my best friend’s barely one year old child aren’t smart options).
• Weigh the pros/cons of pet insurance.

Career Goals

• Relearn the programs that are relevant to my Media Arts & Animation degree.
• Create a minimum of one piece of art to add to my portfolio each month.
• Have a portfolio website up and running by August 2014.
• Start freelancing again by September 2014.

Blog Goals

• Have several blog posts written in advance, schedule them.
• Have guest posts on my blog and write guest posts.
• Decide on a domain and redesign!
• Look into affiliate programs and ways to make money through blogging.

Artistic Goals

• Carry a sketchbook with me in my purse, and use it.
• Complete a 30 Day Drawing Challenge.
• Practice face painting and caricatures (would make great side hustle income).
• Get my air brush working!
• Sew at least once a month – I have so many pairs of pants that need hemming and would love to be able to create and alter clothes that fit me.

Health Goals

• Take all of my medications and supplements (Prilosec, fiber, probiotics, etc.)
• Every night complete the Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye dental care regimen.
• Exercise regularly!
  • On days I don’t work Thursday mornings, go to the free zumba class on base.
  • Sign up for the Friday evening adult gymnastics class and begin kip training by February.
  • Take a daily walk, eventually add running spurts and run a damn mile by December 2014.
• Eat healthier!!
  • Meal plan weekly.  Cook more and utilize the slow cooker my mom got me for Christmas!
  • Log my food/calorie intake on MyFitnessPal and keep up with the Fit for Fourteen group.
  • Cut back on processed food, eat less sugar.
  • Prepare meals/snacks ahead of time and don’t waste the fresh produce!

Personal Goals

• Continue my TMJ and Speech therapy at home.
  • Relax (meditate) for 15 minutes with the heated blanket wrapped around my head.
  • Twice daily do neck and tongue depressor exercises.
  • Read out loud, slowly, over-exaggerate enunciation.
• Sit up straight.
• Revamp my 15 things I should be doing daily list and print or write out this list and place it around my apartment so I see it daily.
• Develop some kind of feeding routine for my cats so they stop thinking I will feed them every time I get up from my computer chair.
• Create a daily skin care regimen.
• Schedule and manage my time better (cleaning, cooking, exercising, reading, relaxing, wake up and bed time routines).
• Spend less time on Facebook – There’s no reason I need to see EVERY single post I missed since I last logged in.
• Spend less time watching tv shows (except the ones I really enjoy).

Knowledge Goals

• Take a workshop at Home Depot (learn to use power tools, refurbish furniture?)
• Reread H.O.T. Web Design book.
• Learn to knit.
• Learn a little sign language.

Home Goals

• Sort through Hubby’s boxes/piles of stuff.
• Get rid of/sell things we have not used since we moved in.
• Organize the bedrooms and linen closet.
• Acquire a kitchen table, a microwave stand/cart, and a coffee table.
• Hang decorations that I have and create new ones.

Relationship Goals

• Work on being less of a snarky bitch towards Hubby.  (Happy thoughts…hold my tongue for three seconds before responding).
• Do more things with Hubby (shooting range, out to eat, movies, etc.)
• Make more friends and actually do things beside work with them.  (Book club, board game night, etc.)

And here’s my 2014 list of 15 Things I Should Be Doing Daily:

1. Take ALL medication and supplements.
2. Wear sunblock.
3. Dental care regimen.
4. Read out loud.
5. Stretch (legs, arms, neck stretches).
6. Walk or exercise for 15 minutes minimum.
7. Log food/calorie intake on MyFitnessPal.
8. Consume one piece of fruit (solid or liquid form).
9. Draw something.
10. Brush cats, this will help keep cat hair at bay.
11. Play with cats prior to meal time.
12. Scoop all litter boxes.
13. Vacuum at least one room.
14. Clear clutter and dust/wipe down counters and surfaces.
15. Dishes, either wash them by hand or put dirty ones in the dishwasher before bed.

Uhh…that’s a lot of stuff, kind of overwhelming.  One day at a time!  I’m on Pinterest now looking up other ways to help me change my habits…from printing lists, writing lists on my bathroom mirror, using real post-it notes, etc.  I definitely need to find a better way to organize my random notes and to-do’s because my desktop is plastered with sticky notes and it’s kind of overwhelming.

I think I need to get a planner!  Until then, I created this weekly planner page that I can insert into a plastic cover thingy and use a dry erase marker to fill in all the details.  On the bottom, I have a section where I can schedule cleaning, blog, art, exercise and meals categories daily.

2014 shall be the year of lifestyle changes.  Yes, yes it shall and YOU will be my witness!

Happy New Year!

Happy 2014!  It’s that time of year where you have to get used to writing 2014 on everything you date!

I can’t believe it’s been a year since I came up with these resolutions.  I feel like it was just a few months ago. No excuses for the lack of crossing off more items!  Here’s how I did with my goals for 2013.

Improving time management.  While I still procrastinate a bit, being busy with work and volunteering has helped me be more productive.  I have somewhat of a morning routine to clean instead of hopping on the computer right away, which helps set the pace for the day.  I’m not exercising daily but there have been some improvements and attempts.  Sleeping schedule with a bed time routine is a joke and I need to fix this, badly!  I’ve attempted meal planning and cooking more but I really need to stick with it every week.

Finding passion in art.  I’ve successfully been able to separate the anxiety I once felt when creating art. I’m still not creating art every day, but I’m working on it.

Some other things I want to do in 2013:

• Go to the shooting range with husband – Won’t happen in 2013 but it’s on my list of things to do with the hubby while he’s on leave.
• Visit my family
• Pay off credit card debt – I paid off one card, still have one to go!
• Run a mile easily – Hahaha.  Yeah.No.
• Use my Waterpik habitually – Didn’t even try.  Finally cleaned off my bathroom counter, took it out of the box and WILL start using it!
• Develop a skin care regimen – Didn’t try this either.  Now that everything is organized, I just need to make this a daily habit/routine.
• Read more – I read a couple books but slowed down the past few months.  Recently joined a book club so hopefully that will help with the more aspect.
• Update portfolio/demo reel and design new website – Nope.
• Kip training (click the link to see what a kip is) – Not at all.
• Sit up straight, improve posture – Not really.
• Meet people/make friends and do fun things!  Have met a few new people and hope to meet more in 2014 to do fun things with!
• Spend less time on the computer!  Work and volunteering has kept me away, but I want to spend less time on Facebook, specifically.
• Improve time management – develop daily routines (exercise, cleaning, working/side hustling, bedtime routine)  Getting better!

DAILY GOALS – 15 THINGS I SHOULD BE DOING DAILY

Some of these things overlap my goals for the year.  Sadly, I have failed at most of these things.  Playing brain games and laughing have been successes and a few others are getting a lot better but still not daily.  I need to print/write out this list and post it around the apartment so I can see it every day and truly work harder at doing these all.

1. Brush cats, this will help keep cat hair at bay.
2. Play with all the cats, encourages them to get into trouble less.
3. Scoop all litter boxes.
4. Vacuum at least one room.
5. Dust/wipe down counters and surfaces.
6. Dishes, either wash them by hand or put dirty ones in the dishwasher before bed.
7. Use my Waterpik.
8. Go for a walk.
9. Eat fruit!
10. Read.
11. Play brain games (sudoku, word search, etc).
12. Laugh.
13. Take ALL medication, including vitamins/supplements.
14. Stretch and do balance exercises.
15. Wear sunblock.

Some goals I have for getting debt free ASAP:

These are goals I made a year ago and after reexamining them, I don’t think they’re very realistic as I’m months behind.

• Within 2 months:  Brainstorm/begin new and creative ways to make extra money. – Did that, just took a while to actually make extra money and it’s still not a significant amount.
• Within 3 months:  Have a job, even if it’s part-time minimum wage. – Took 10 months.
• Within 4-6 months:  Learn to love to create art again.  Update my portfolio.  Build a website and start freelancing! – Still no love but I’ve cleared the anxiety.  No real progress on portfolio/freelancing.
• 6 months to a year:  Credit cards paid off! – Just one down, one to go (two if you include my husband’s new credit card).
• 1 year:  Smallest private loan with co-signer paid off!  Not.Even.Close.  I’ve gotten this loan just below my original principal balance.
• 3-5 years:  Have all private loans paid off!  With interest, this probably isn’t reasonable but I’m not nixing it yet, especially now that I have a job (or two).
• 10-15 years:  Federal loans paid off.  Unlikely, but still hopeful.

I’m getting pretty detailed about my steps towards achieving goals for 2014 and since this post is already pretty long, that’ll be for another day!

Happy New Year, readers!  How did you do with your goals for 2013?  What new ones do you have for 2014?

Happy Fiscal New Year!

PFFT!  With the government shutdown, this isn’t something I’m thrilled about.

Image source: http://www.crisismagazine.com/2013/stupidity-a-malady-of-the-cultural-elite

 

Yeah, that’s not a party hat…

I’ve been seeing a number of posts about resolutions and new years.  Erin, from Red Debted Stepchild, posted on My Diary Entry about Autumn being like January 1st.  Girl Meets Debt posted about there being 99 Days Left in 2013 to achieve your goals.  That was seven days ago so there’s now 92 days of 2013 left!

I haven’t been doing a very good job completing my monthly goals.  I don’t think I completed any of my September Goals.  Maybe one of them, for part of the month.  Oops!  It didn’t help that I was gone visiting a friend for about 10 days this month and most evenings they ended up ordering take out.

Let’s see how I’ve been doing with my resolutions…

Resolutions Revisited

Basically, I suck at sticking to my goals.  But there’s still 92 days left in the year!  I have hope!

Improving time management (lose procrastination) is one key resolution.  I need to develop some sort of routine, where I spend less time on the computer and more time working to pay off my debts, volunteering, creating art, exercising regularly, develop a cleaning schedule (once we move) and even have a sleeping schedule with a bedtime routine.  With a routine in place, I will be more productive, get regular exercise, meal plan, cook more and overall eat and be healthier.  Hopefully by volunteering, working, and taking zumba classes, I will meet some people in this area and make friends so I can get out and do some fun things in 2013.

I have volunteered, tried out zumba (volunteer interferes with zumba), meal planned a couple times, ate slightly healthier, cooked just a wee bit more, and have developed somewhat of a sleep schedule.  I still procrastinate quite a bit.  I don’t have a routine, I spend all day on the computer, I don’t exercise regularly or create art, no cleaning schedule (been moved for 6 months), and I still don’t have friends in the area, though I did recently join local area Facebook groups to hopefully remedy that situation before the real new year!

Finding passion in art is another key resolution.  I need to somehow separate the anxiety/indebtedness that I have come to associate it with.  I need to learn to lose the anxiety altogether.  I mentioned anxiety about dealing with my resolutions.  Change is difficult and difficult things cause me anxiety.  It shall be overcome!

Not there yet.  The desire to create things has returned, I just haven’t pushed myself to actually create anything.  It’d be nice to one day try selling the things I create to earn extra income…that gives me a bit of motivation but I’m still a procrastinator.  It’s nearing Christmastime and I want to make gifts for my nieces! I’ll find that passion again, I promise!

Some other things I want to do in 2013:

• Go to the shooting range with husband
• Visit my family
• Pay off credit card debt
• Run a mile easily
• Use my Waterpik habitually
• Develop a skin care regimen
• Read more
• Update portfolio/demo reel and design new website
• Kip training (click the link to see what a kip is)
• Sit up straight, improve posture

I’m getting there!  I think all of these, aside from updating my portfolio/demo reel and designing a new website, are doable within the years’ end!

Readers, have you been noticing any posts in all bold text?  Despite re-editing posts to ensure no posts are all bold, they keep showing up that way from my home page.  If I click on individual posts, the boldness goes away.  Anyone else notice this?  Thanks for your input!

How are you doing with your goals and resolutions?

New Year Resolutions

Happy New Year!  May 2013 bring you good things!  What are some of your resolutions?

I got into a lazy funk during 2012 and just thinking about my giant list of resolutions for 2013 is causing me a lot of anxiety about how to approach them.  I seriously have four pages in a spiral notebook filled with goals for the new year.  A lot of them overlap in categories and the task of organizing and explaining how I’m even going to start is filling me with anxiety.  Resolutions are all about forming new and better habits so I need to make like Nike and just do it!

Improving time management (lose procrastination) is one key resolution.  I need to develop some sort of routine, where I spend less time on the computer and more time working to pay off my debts, volunteering, creating art, exercising regularly, develop a cleaning schedule (once we move) and even have a sleeping schedule with a bedtime routine.  With a routine in place, I will be more productive, get regular exercise, meal plan, cook more and overall eat and be healthier.  Hopefully by volunteering, working, and taking zumba classes, I will meet some people in this area and make friends so I can get out and do some fun things in 2013.

Finding passion in art is another key resolution.  I need to somehow separate the anxiety/indebtedness that I have come to associate it with.  I need to learn to lose the anxiety altogether.  I mentioned anxiety about dealing with my resolutions.  Change is difficult and difficult things cause me anxiety.  It shall be overcome!

Some other things I want to do in 2013:

• Go to the shooting range with husband
• Visit my family
• Pay off credit card debt
• Run a mile easily
• Use my Waterpik habitually
• Develop a skin care regimen
• Read more
• Update portfolio/demo reel and design new website
• Kip training (click the link to see what a kip is)
• Sit up straight, improve posture

Those are the main things on my list.  I have a lot of little to-do list items that I’m not going to bother posting.

A friend of mine started a new blog,  The Progressive Planner, which is about achieving her goals for the new year.  She used the Wheel of Life to find areas that need improvement or balance.  If I made my own wheel of life if it would be somewhat balanced, however it would be a tiny wheel.  I’m not happy with a lot of those categories.  Spirituality would probably be the highest because I’m content with my current beliefs.  Lots of improvement needed in the other areas (home environment, career, finances, health, personal, relationships, and knowledge).

One thing I didn’t take into consideration about my debt payoff is that my student loans gain about $350 in interest each month.  Since I’ve been paying more than the minimum, my loans will only accrue $290 in interest this month.  I just paid $300 for the first half of the month, so a whopping $10 more went towards that overall payoff.  Feel like I’m getting nowhere, fast!

Merry Christmas

To all those that celebrate, Merry Christmas!  My husband has duty today.  It’s no big deal.  We do not exchange gifts.  We don’t even decorate for the holidays.  It’s never really been a religious holiday for my family and has always basically been about presents.  Very materialistic.  Sure, it is fun to watch my young nieces open their presents on Christmas and I can’t lie, I like receiving gifts myself.  But since moving so far away, it’s hard to get into the spirit.  By February most of their gifts are lost or forgotten anyways.  Both of them are completely spoiled and get way too many gifts.  I’m only going to be giving them hand-made gifts from now on.  They seem to cherish those more and are less likely to go missing.

We signed our lease!  Originally the landlord wanted $900 for rent.  After we viewed the property and talked to him for a long time (him and hubby can be blabbermouths), he offered $850, “military discount.”  When we went to sign the lease on Sunday it said $800 with a $50 rebate for the first four months.  We initially thought the rebate was him reducing the rent from $850 to $800 and that it would go back up to $850 after four months.  Instead, he handed us a $50 bill/rebate!  He probably figures he’ll cut us some slack because he hasn’t gotten the place cleaned up yet and we offered to help.  He has some medical conditions that prevent him from doing a lot of the work and his hired help hasn’t been very reliable.  The previous tenants left a pretty big mess.  They painted over wallpaper with a lime green color so he’s completely stripping the bathroom to get the wallpaper off.  Their dogs peed all over the hardwood floor and he’s going to use one of those buffer machines and get it waxed.  We went there today to help but there wasn’t much to do.  He just wanted us to clean the baseboards and a closet to prepare for painting.  Hopefully we’ll be able to help more once he’s ready to paint.  He’s having surgery in January and won’t be able to do anything for a few weeks.  Hopefully everything will be finished during the first week of January.  That’s when hubby’s holiday leave is and would be the perfect time to move.

Once I find a job, I need to look into reconsolidating my private loans.  During my final year at AI I was approved for a private loan with no cosigner and I want more than anything to get my co-signer released.  My credit is decent and if I have a job, maybe, just maybe I could be approved with no co-signer to reconsolidate.  I wish!

I did some calculating and will hopefully have my credit cards paid off by June or July of 2013.  My US Bank card has a balance of about $4500 and the interest starts up in April.  I have about $400 I’m going to put towards it by the end of the month.  Then I have an additional $300 coming in each month (someone paying me back for helping them).  Utilities will hopefully be low for January and February.  Hubby is going underway for sometime early in 2013.  With him not around, I will save on utilities, food and transportation costs so I could probably put at least $300 towards the bill…possibly more.  I keep forgetting that rent won’t automatically be deducted from his account anymore…possibly could double that $300 for a month or two.  Hopefully I will have a job by the end of January.  It’s possible I’ll have the entire US Bank card balance paid off by April, when the interest starts accruing.  That’s the goal!

Speaking of goals…it’s almost New Years and resolution-making time!  I’m sure I’ll have a large list of goals and resolutions for 2013!  What are some of your goals and resolutions for 2013?