More on the Half-Year Goal Post
Continuing my thoughts on goals:
In theory, 2008 was my year of focusing on "Finances and Organization." It seems some of those goals have continued to seep into 2009.
• Cleaning routines
I did get a good bathroom cleaning routine in place in 2008, which has been working for me, but the kitchen cleaning timeframe was rather haphazard. Those are the two rooms (technically 3, since we have 2 bathrooms) that I have decided really can't follow a general cleaning policy of ignoring, so I have been focusing on getting a kitchen cleaning schedule in place. It's been working pretty well; although weeks we are gone on a cleaning day means things tend to pile up more than I'd like, and as Nora's naps are getting shorter I'm losing more of my focused cleaning time. She does "help" some with sweeping, but I don't want her wiping down the microwave and dishwasher -- too many buttons for curious little fingers to mess with. Or being around when I do the weekly sorting of the prolific artwork, and some of it goes to the recycling.
I have great admiration for those heroines of old-fashioned novels who are always doing their daily housecleaning chores, sweeping the kitchen floor daily and such. While maybe that should happen in my house, it just doesn't.
Maybe now that I've pretty much got the kitchen cleaning routine down, I can add other rooms/zones into the weekly cleaning. That was the original idea, but it hasn't really happened.
• Decluttering
While I've made much progress over the past couple of years in this area, I still have...a few miles? or at least many meters...to go before I sleep. It had been narrowed down to two rooms, the "office" and the sewing/guest room that particularly contained hoards of stuff. Prior to a family visit earlier this year involving a one-year-old, I took a bunch of stuff out of the sewing/guest room to babyproof it -- and stowed it in the office. This much improved the sewing/guest room (although it converted the office into even more of a disaster area), and the idea is that I will sort/purge/organize in the process of bringing stuff in, rather than just moving everything back willy-nilly.
This project has been going rather slowly, in part because I end up working on other projects during my nighttime window -- which starts at 9 p.m. -- and/or I'd rather be outside these days, now that the weather has finally warmed up, working on outside projects.
I've also made much, much progress on the computer file decluttering, but I still have a few overwhelming full folders of bookmarks that need to have some files deleted and be organized better into subfolders. (For a bit of insight into how much may remain in some of these, the remaining folders are called "recipes," "frugality," and "crafting creativity." I may just have a *wee* bit of stuff in each of these.)
• Computer backup/etc.
I have some things backed up on CDs, and I think almost all my photos are actually backed up on two different online sites (such as shutterfly) rather than being stored solely on my computer, but I still need to get a system in place for regular virus checks, backups, etc. And I need to change the settings on my auto update so it quits trying to update all my programs right when I'm in the middle of something with a deadline -- every. single. time.
• Finances
I've figured out our monthly expenses; taken some steps to reduce them; am working on building a several months' worth emergency fund, etc. I'm also doing a better job this year tracking the amount I save each week on grocery and drugstore shopping, because I want to have this information.
I still need to do quite a few things in this area, though. For one, I need to finish figuring out the budget I started. And get Mommy and Daddy on a good page with that before we start giving some money to Nora to manage (next year). Also, I want to explore changing banks this year; changes to our benefits mean I should be looking at different life insurance options; and, of course, we really do need to do a will.
A few other goals for the year that, for me, fit in the organization category include:
• Reinforce the tabs on my coupon organizer. (They're getting kind of frayed, and I'd like to be able to flip and find better.)
• Figure out online memberships. I have lists of all this stuff, but it's not really filed logically. Also, I think I'm a member of some survey and other sites that are not really working for my advantage -- it's probably time to drop those memberships, assuming I remember that I have them.
• Improve my purse situation. I like to carry a small, hands-free purse that goes over my shoulder for most outings. It's lighter, and it's ultra-practical to have my hands-free. Generally, I put the smaller purse in my larger purse and take it out when needed. Unfortunately, some things (a coin purse, cel phone) don't fit particularly well in my current small purse -- and my large purse is coming apart (the lining is separating so the pockets are becoming dysfunctional -- they don't make things like they used to). The problem is that I'm not really sure what I want as a replacement, which is delaying this project. As I said, it's important to me that the small purse be hands-free and relatively lightweight -- I'm not doing a clutch thing, or a gigantic backpack.
In theory, 2008 was my year of focusing on "Finances and Organization." It seems some of those goals have continued to seep into 2009.
• Cleaning routines
I did get a good bathroom cleaning routine in place in 2008, which has been working for me, but the kitchen cleaning timeframe was rather haphazard. Those are the two rooms (technically 3, since we have 2 bathrooms) that I have decided really can't follow a general cleaning policy of ignoring, so I have been focusing on getting a kitchen cleaning schedule in place. It's been working pretty well; although weeks we are gone on a cleaning day means things tend to pile up more than I'd like, and as Nora's naps are getting shorter I'm losing more of my focused cleaning time. She does "help" some with sweeping, but I don't want her wiping down the microwave and dishwasher -- too many buttons for curious little fingers to mess with. Or being around when I do the weekly sorting of the prolific artwork, and some of it goes to the recycling.
I have great admiration for those heroines of old-fashioned novels who are always doing their daily housecleaning chores, sweeping the kitchen floor daily and such. While maybe that should happen in my house, it just doesn't.
Maybe now that I've pretty much got the kitchen cleaning routine down, I can add other rooms/zones into the weekly cleaning. That was the original idea, but it hasn't really happened.
• Decluttering
While I've made much progress over the past couple of years in this area, I still have...a few miles? or at least many meters...to go before I sleep. It had been narrowed down to two rooms, the "office" and the sewing/guest room that particularly contained hoards of stuff. Prior to a family visit earlier this year involving a one-year-old, I took a bunch of stuff out of the sewing/guest room to babyproof it -- and stowed it in the office. This much improved the sewing/guest room (although it converted the office into even more of a disaster area), and the idea is that I will sort/purge/organize in the process of bringing stuff in, rather than just moving everything back willy-nilly.
This project has been going rather slowly, in part because I end up working on other projects during my nighttime window -- which starts at 9 p.m. -- and/or I'd rather be outside these days, now that the weather has finally warmed up, working on outside projects.
I've also made much, much progress on the computer file decluttering, but I still have a few overwhelming full folders of bookmarks that need to have some files deleted and be organized better into subfolders. (For a bit of insight into how much may remain in some of these, the remaining folders are called "recipes," "frugality," and "crafting creativity." I may just have a *wee* bit of stuff in each of these.)
• Computer backup/etc.
I have some things backed up on CDs, and I think almost all my photos are actually backed up on two different online sites (such as shutterfly) rather than being stored solely on my computer, but I still need to get a system in place for regular virus checks, backups, etc. And I need to change the settings on my auto update so it quits trying to update all my programs right when I'm in the middle of something with a deadline -- every. single. time.
• Finances
I've figured out our monthly expenses; taken some steps to reduce them; am working on building a several months' worth emergency fund, etc. I'm also doing a better job this year tracking the amount I save each week on grocery and drugstore shopping, because I want to have this information.
I still need to do quite a few things in this area, though. For one, I need to finish figuring out the budget I started. And get Mommy and Daddy on a good page with that before we start giving some money to Nora to manage (next year). Also, I want to explore changing banks this year; changes to our benefits mean I should be looking at different life insurance options; and, of course, we really do need to do a will.
A few other goals for the year that, for me, fit in the organization category include:
• Reinforce the tabs on my coupon organizer. (They're getting kind of frayed, and I'd like to be able to flip and find better.)
• Figure out online memberships. I have lists of all this stuff, but it's not really filed logically. Also, I think I'm a member of some survey and other sites that are not really working for my advantage -- it's probably time to drop those memberships, assuming I remember that I have them.
• Improve my purse situation. I like to carry a small, hands-free purse that goes over my shoulder for most outings. It's lighter, and it's ultra-practical to have my hands-free. Generally, I put the smaller purse in my larger purse and take it out when needed. Unfortunately, some things (a coin purse, cel phone) don't fit particularly well in my current small purse -- and my large purse is coming apart (the lining is separating so the pockets are becoming dysfunctional -- they don't make things like they used to). The problem is that I'm not really sure what I want as a replacement, which is delaying this project. As I said, it's important to me that the small purse be hands-free and relatively lightweight -- I'm not doing a clutch thing, or a gigantic backpack.