To Do List: 2014

Here's a lovely picture of Magenta totally enjoying her Halloween costume. You're welcome.

December 2013 Goal Updates

→ Keep up with a normal sleep schedule
Ugh, I don't know. I was doing alright, but then I wasn't. So, for all intents and purposes, we'll say I didn't achieve that goal.

→ Bake
Yes ma'am! I made Toll House Chocolate Chip cookies (soooo many!) and a Turtle Brownie thing.

→ Organize hallway closet
Nope. BUT, I was pretty sure that I wouldn't get around to doing this until early 2014 since I wanted to make sure that we had the Christmas stuff all packed up. I don't think this one was a fail, but just not really a good goal for December. Haha.

→ Decorate the apartment
Yep! Check out my awesome Christmas decorations here!

→ Plan a giveaway
I definitely have some things up my sleeve for this year. I'm excited for ya'll! Js.

→ Blog more often
I didn't blog more of my usual blog nonsense, but I think I did nicely with my Countdown to Kitschmas series.

→ Read a full book
Wow. I am disappoint. I have so many books that I'm dying to read, but nope, I did not read even one book in December. Wompwomp.

→ Decide on my next hair transformation
I'm pretty dead-set on keeping my half/half, but doing white and black instead of continuing with blue and pink. Unfortunately I haven't heard back from my friend who does my hair out here and the other lady who has an in-house salon doesn't have the necessary things, so... I'm probably going to ruin my hair by doing it myself.

→ Marathon the Die Hard movies again
You betcha! We watched the first two movies on Christmas (cos they're the Christmas ones) and finished up with movies three, four, and five the next day.

→ Curl my hair
I haven't even opened up my curling iron. Oops.

---

→ Explore Kyushu
I have two more years in Japan and I want to be able to say that I saw things and went places while I was living here.

→ Cook more
So far, so good. My goal is to do at least one home cooked meal a week and I've been cooking more than not since the beginning of the year!

→ Start in-home business
My AMAZING husband got me a Kitchenaid Stand Mixer so I can start selling baked goods while we're out here. I hate having to only rely on Ryan's paycheck, plus I love to bake, so it's a win/win!

→ Keep the apartment more organized
I feel like my space is a mess and I never feel calm when things are messy.

→ Enact makeup spending ban
I need to "shop my stash" and review all of the makeup I haven't gotten to yet!

→ Yoga
I actually went to my first physical therapy appointment this morning and I'll be doing daily stretches. I'd like to upgrade to actual yoga at some point. I loved yoga when I was a teenager and I need more zen in my life.

→ Budget better & save more
Ryan and I just redid our budget at the beginning of the new year; saving more and spending less!

→ Start therapy again?
Hm. I'm still not 100% on this one yet, but I figured that I would put it on the list.

→ Start using a blog calendar/organizer instead of just making lists
I bought a binder and filled it full of organize-y printables and I'm super excited. Js.

→ Reorganize blog
I'm thinking of launching a personal blog and turning Kitsch Vixen into just a beauty/fashion blog. I'll post more about that later!

What are your plans for 2014?



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December 2013 Goals

#TBT: When Ryan and I went to Elendan Gardens on Halloween of 2010. This was right before he proposed!

During November, I didn't make a list of goals and unfortunately I didn't accomplish much at all in October. My anxiety has been going up and down a whole bunch in the past few months, but I'm hoping that in December I can channel that energy into completing the stuff on this list!

Keep up with a normal sleep schedule
So far, it's not so good. Along with not accomplishing much, my anxiety has also been negatively affecting my ability to sleep (more than usual). I was told by a friend that I should pretty much just sleep when I'm tired and eventually my body should be able to regulate my schedule again. That's now my plan. I may change this goal to "revert back to a normal sleep schedule," but for now I'll keep it as is.
Bake
I really do enjoy baking, and what's a better time to do it than the holidays?! I'm thinking cookies and pies, for sure.
Organize hallway closet
Our hallway closet is a mess. We pretty much just have bits and bobs thrown in there, but since it's a super large closet with shelves and everything, it's going to get overwhelming soon if we don't figure out a system for it. I figure this will be at the end of the month when we need to pack up our Christmas stuff.
Decorate the apartment
Hooray for this being our first Christmas living in our own place together! We can't really go all out like we'd like to because of budgeting (since we literally are starting at zero Christmas decorations), but even just stringing up some lights, adding a wreath to the door, and putting together the tree will do!
Plan a giveaway
I've been storing some things away for my next giveaway and I'd like to do one before the end of this year!
Blog more often
Again, this is something very much affected by my anxiety. I've been planning out posts and taking pictures of things, but I need to get everything together. I'm working on a bunch of holiday-themed stuff for Kitsch Vixen right now though! (It hasn't all been my anxiety! I've been having trouble with lighting in my pictures, my skin acting weird, the skin tag under my eye, and still trying to perfect close up shots without a close up lens for my camera. This month will be better, I'm optimistic!)
Read a full book
I might cheat on this goal since I'm expecting a few cute holiday books. Depending on how many things I plan to do for the blog and how everything pans out, I may not have the time to get through a full length novel (I'll also blame the fact that I'm marathoning Charmed). If that's what ends up happening, I'll definitely still read a book, whether it be a super short one or a makeup book that I'm partially through already!
Decide on my next hair transformation
I'm debating whether I should keep on with the pink and blue or change it up the next time I go to get my hair done. Half black and half white has really been my dream hair for years, but I know from experience how much of a pain black can be to get out of hair if/when I want to change it up again. What do you guys think?!
Marathon the Die Hard movies again
Yep. I think I know what I'm doing on Christmas Eve! Haha.
Curl my hair
This and the previous goal are both from my 24 Before 25 list. I think that Christmas would be a great time to actually style my hair instead of just quickly brushing it and throwing it into a bun like I always do.

So, what are your goals this month?



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October 2013 Goals

Oh hey, it's an R2D2 mail droppy thing near my house!

These were my goals for September:
Let my eyebrows grow in so they can be reshaped.
I let them grow out until the 29th and then reshaped them!
Have at least one video done and uploaded onto my YouTube channel.
This didn't happen. Unfortunately my skin broke out like mad in September and I actually didn't wear makeup at all throughout the entire month. With that being said, I really didn't want my first video to be shot with no makeup and on top of that have my skin looking and feeling the worst it ever has.
Figure out how to use my new camera.
I think that I'm satisfied enough to cross this off. I've got most of the basics down.
Do my nails at least once.
Not gonna lie, I literally just got done painting my nails.
Buy a YSL lipstick.
It's on its way through the post right now!
Make funfetti brownies.
This I totally did, but had to throw away a big part of the middle. I'm tweaking the recipe and will be remaking it (and posting about my experiences) soon.
Make an appointment to get contacts.
At my followup appointment for the medication (see below), I asked my doctor to refer me. That's all I really could do because medical out here is ridiculous and you have to go through your primary care physician if you want to see any other type of doctor.
Start taking my medication that I was prescribed in early August.
Yep. Had the followup and everything. It's making me too drowsy to function like a human person though, so we'll see how that goes...
Finish Stone Angel by Carol O'Connell.
I finished this book super early on in the month. It took me two sit-downs to read and was probably my favorite so far in the series.

I think 8 out of 9 is awesome and I'm super proud of myself! I'm really liking this "goal making" thing, so here goes what I want to accomplish in October:

• For real start my YouTube channel.

I finally decided on what I want to film for my first video and I'm actually hoping to do it tomorrow, but I'm putting this up here because sometimes I'm bad at doing things.

• Paint my nails again.

I think I'm going to try to make this at least a monthly thing, if not weekly.

• Make a better batch of funfetti brownies.

I'm hellbent on getting the proportions right! I bought a different mix of brownies that has a closer baking time to the cake, so I'm hoping it turns out better this time.

• Put up listings for at least some of my ill-fitting clothing and shoes on my storenvy.

I have a whole closet full of clothing that no longer fits me (some things I've never even worn) and I just need to get rid of all of my excess belongings.

• Prepare for NaNoWriMo.

I was super unprepared last year and and only got about halfway done with my word count. I'd like to beat last year's word count this time around if I can. I'm bummed that I left my references in the states though. Womp womp.

• Wear fake lashes at least once.

I've not mastered the application technique, so this one will definitely be a doozy!

That's all I have for the upcoming month. Hopefully I'll be spending a whole lot of time taking/editing pictures for the blog, writing posts, and filming/editing videos in October!

What are you goals for next month?

xox

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RTT Vol. 6: September 2013 Goals

Here's a Throw Back Thursday picture of me working at Putney Mountain Winery inside of a Basketville (lolwut) in VT. I miss that job so much! I hosted wine tastings and it was awesome. If I move back to Vermont, I would go work there again without a doubt.

I really like making lists. I know, surprise, right? I also seem to be unmotivated to do much of anything recently, so a list of goals seems like a good idea. Having my husband being on nights makes me feel more tired than normal because I hardly see the sun and I feel like if I make this list of goals, it will hold me accountable to do at least a few of these things. Hooray!

Let my eyebrows grow in so they can be reshaped.
I've been dissatisfied with the shape of my eyebrows for a while, ever since I got them done at the salon on base. They did a number on my brows! Though I get really self-conscious about my super bushy eyebrows, it will be worth it to reshape them next month!

Have at least one video done and uploaded onto my YouTube channel.
I still have no idea what video editing program I should use/how to use a video editing program, nor do I have an idea of where I'll be filming. This one will be the most difficult for me, I think, but the most rewarding for me as well.

Figure out how to use my new camera.
I've already started reading the beginning of the manual, which is SO LONG. I still don't have a memory card, so I haven't even turned the camera on yet.

Do my nails at least once.
I was actually going to do this earlier, but one of my nails broke off way too far down on my finger and got all bloody and gross and painful so I'll have to wait for my nail to grow out enough to where I can shape it a little bit before I do all of my nails.

Buy a YSL lipstick.
This is probably the easiest thing on my list. If I don't manage to pick a color before the end of the month, I'll be super disappointed in myself. Haha.

Make funfetti brownies.
I've already made a pie this month, so I'm hoping I'll still have a bit of that motivation left in me to bake more!

Make an appointment to get contacts.
I'm terrified of the telephone. I am so bad at making appointments because not only do I need to talk to someone I don't know on the phone, but then that means I have to go to the appointment. I do know that most people on base need to wait for months for an actual appointment with the eye doctor though, so maybe that will help? Maybe?

Start taking my medication that I was prescribed in early August.
(Oops!) This kind of goes with the point I made above. Once I start taking the medication, I need to make a follow up appointment within a week.

Finish Stone Angel by Carol O'Connell.
I absolutely adore reading, but it seems like once I don't have a job, I stop doing it on the regular. That sounds weird when you don't know that I had some free time to read at work, whether I was done with everything for the day or on my lunch break.

I think this is a good amount of things to do this month. Wish me luck!
Do you make monthly lists?

xox

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