43. Learn about nutrition and change eating habits.

So fascinating! I had no idea how much I didn't know and why it is important to know everything. I really don't understand why we are not teaching kids this stuff in Health class. After taking a 10-week nutrition-based course, I feel like I can finally eat and make good choices. I can see where all the fad diets come from now, too. They seem to take one component of good nutrition and take it to the extreme. The problem is none of those things work without all the other components. It's a lot of work, but I'm getting there. Will probably need to revisit some of the lessons again now I'm getting the hang of it.

41. Put away all my clean laundry.

Done. Doubt I'll be able to accomplish that again for some time, but it is nice to have everything off the floor.

Ramping up for resolutions

Seems like the week before the new year begins is a good time to make a list and check it twice. I'm going to spend some valuable time adding some items and completing others. I'm pretty hopeless at resolutions really, but I like this 101 project. It's interesting.

44. Through diet and exercise, make a measurable difference (blood work, tape measure, and scale) in my health.

Long way to go, but I started a program 10-weeks ago that was designed exactly for this purpose. I've lost several inches, am down on the scale, and have had amazing results in my blood work (down 41 pts on my total cholesterol).

I'm continuing the program for the next 9 months and hope the results will continue as well.

1. Run 3 miles. (Modified.)

Ok, I'm striking this one off my list although, if you are interpreting it literally, I'm sure you will not agree. Here's the thing, I'm not actually running 3 miles. (Although, I really think I might be able to now. Maybe I should try it.)

I'm actually going about 4+ miles on the elliptical at a speed that is way faster than I could ever run. I'm doing this several times a week.

After doing a little research, I'm seeing that this is possibly a far better exercise than running 3 miles (given the potential for injury, the fact that I'm not really a "runner", and the fact that I believe it's true), so I'm calling it done.

4. Learn how to get organized and organize my living room, kitchen, and bedroom.

Pretty much done. My 2 pint-sized tornados are not too much help keeping it neat and I have way too much to do, but I've purged until my house looks like it's in the early stages of bulimia.

31. Stop drinking soda for one week.

Try a month! I've not had soda for over a month now. Yeah.

9. Donate $1000 worth of toys.

Oops! Forgot one! Done. Still have more to purge, but I'm making significant headway.

It may have been 3 months, but...

I have accomplished a lot:

6. Spend at least 2 weeks on vacation with just my kids and husband.

• 1 week Hawaii!
• 2 weeks Florida!
• I excel at vacation.

10. Unpack every box on the next move and dispose of unnecessary moving weight.

• 3 truck loads of junk gone!

15. Decorate my bedroom in our next home.

• Ok, this one is cheating a bit because I moved in to house where the bedroom was already the color I was going to paint it.

33. Register Emma for preschool.

• 3 mornings a week

32. Throw away all my old work materials.

• Done. (Except I didn't throw away the work related to my Master's degree. Might need it.)

37. Read 10 of these books.

1. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende-Love this book. Allende is a great author.
2. Lord of the Flies by William Golding-Read it again. Still hated it.
3. Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
4. Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett -Another good one. Highly recommend.
5. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton -One of my favorite teen angst books.
6. Beloved by Toni Morrison -I know this is probably not particularly popular to say, but I don't really "get" this one yet.
7. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes-Great story for lots of reading levels. Much better than the movie. (As these things usually are.)
8. A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein-Who can pass up another opportunity to read banned children's poetry? Tee Hee Hee.
9. James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl-I like this Dahl book, but I prefer some of his others.
10. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut -I love Kurt Vonnegut, but his short stories are my favorite.

39. Draw at least twice a week for one month.

This one has been very frustrating because it shows me how out of practice I am. It takes me so long for such unsatisfactory results. I'm not going to let it beat me, but I hope I get better soon. I used to be decent at it.

40. Get a pedicure and keep me feet "nice" for one month.

Done. My feet cannot be called a "train wreck" anymore. (At least, not right now. Maybe later.) It may be too much work to keep up though.

7. Wear make-up every day for 3 weeks.

Done. Interesting how much difference a layer of face paint makes.

24. Write in my journal daily for a month.

There was a lot going on this month and so I had a lot to say. I don't think I can keep it up every day, but I did get a lot out of it.

20. Take a "girl's weekend" away with at least one other friend.

Mission Accomplished: I just arrived back from my girl's weekend away China trip and it was awesome! It was the first time I've ever done that and I don't imagine it will be my last. I think I'm addicted.

I put more details and photos on my web site.

It's Harder than it Looks

So far all I've really done is try to come up with a list and I only have 30 items on it. Geesh! So hard!

I am working on the items, but it seems like I'm not knocking them out like I expected.

I wonder why it is so hard to do.

#7. Wear make-up every day for 3 weeks.

Apparently, make-up is the miracle weight loss "drug" because I'm three days into it and I can't tell you how many people have asked me if I've lost weight. Perhaps by the end of three weeks people will just stop noticing me again. Whew, that would be a relief!

#21. Make it through a spin class without puking or passing out.

Done! Yeah, me.

#20 "Girls Weekend Away"

It looks like this one is going to happen much sooner than planned. A friend is coordinating a weekend shopping trip to China at the end of the month and I've added my name to the list. As long as all our spouses can watch the kids, we can go. More soon on that.

#17...Failure

Well, I was planning a little surprise for a friend for #17, but it got nixed at the last minute. Have to try something else there!

Let the Revisions Begin

OK, I'm caving already. Not a good start. I've decided to revise #16 which was: "Say 'no' at least twice a week for 3 months."

I've decided to revise it to once a week for one month. I need something a little more accomplishable. (See how much confidence I have in myself.)

My End Date

Tuesday, November 8th, 2011...hmmmm...I thought it would be further away than that! Eek!

The Challenge: 101 in 1001

My friend Karen started a blog like this and it looks like a fun idea. Think up 101 things that you want to accomplish in 1001 days. Create a blog, post the list, and start knocking items off it. Think big. Go for it.