T minus 1 hr 51 minutes

I'm so excited to be starting this! Thank you, Corinne, for the inspiration. I took her list format and played with it a little. I had too many goals, so I combined some and deleted some. I really want this to be a list of things I can accomplish. I know a lot of people have a goal of donating x amount of money to an organization for each item not completed on their list. I was going to do that, but deleted it as a goal and instead it's going to just be a consequence. For every item on my list that I do not complete, I will donate $5 to each of the kids college funds. Hopefully there will only be a few (at the most) things that I don't accomplish, but if there are more, at least it will be going to my kids.

So, without further ado, here is my list:

Art and Music

1. Learn to Sew

2. Complete all of my unfinished knitting projects

3. Use at least 20 balls of stash yarn before buying more yarn

4. Complete a jigsaw puzzle

5. Publish a knitting pattern

6. Complete Level 1 of the master knitter program

7. Make recycled paper

8. Complete a nice cross stitch for my mom

9. Take a photo of myself and my kids every day for six months

Cooking and Food

10. Learn to make sushi

11. Learn to make at least 3 typical Guatemalan foods

12. Learn to bake and decorate cakes

13. Make two vegetarian meals a month

14. Bake bread once a month

15. Make baby food

16. Learn to make pasta

17. Grow basil and make pesto with it

18. Cook 101 new dishes and compile them into a personal cookbook with where I got recipe’s and changes made

19. Try 10 new drinks

Traveling

20. Go on a weekend getaway just hubby and I

21. Vacation in Hawaii

22. Travel interior Alaska in an RV or train

23. Go on a girl’s getaway weekend

24. Go see SIL’s final Young American Performance (or the one of her choosing)

25. Visit Arizona to see if that’s where we want to retire

26. Attend Women of Faith Conference

27. See the start of the Iditarod

Education

28. Learn more about my personality type

29. Read 15 classic books

30. Learn to drive stick shift

31. Watch 75 of the Top 100 movies according to Time

32. Read The Birth Order Book

33. Read 10 historical biographies

34. Learn 5 constellations

35. Complete a First Aid/CPR course

36. Complete a book of logic problems

37. Complete a Sudoku book

38. Read the Bible all the way through

Personal Growth

39. Figure out what I want to be when I grow up and take steps to get there (i.e. degree or find a job, even if part time)

40. Create a new 101 in 1001 list to start after completing the current one

41. Write at least 1 post on each of my blogs per month

Health and Beauty

42. Get 2 manicures and pedicures a year

43. Take vitamins daily for 6 months

44. Get down to 125 and stay there (no more than 3 lbs heavier) for 4 months

45. Cut my hair a style that wouldn’t be expected of me/ Color my hair a unique color (highlights acceptable)

46. Get a NICE bath robe

47. Complete a detox plan

48. Buy a pair of red heels and wear them even when I’m not wearing red clothes

49. Go to optometrist for new prescriptions for glasses and contacts and then wear contacts at least once a week

50. Get a bikini wax – OUCH!

51. Get a piercing or re-piercing

Fitness

52. Complete the C25K program

53. Run a 5 K

54. Learn to kayak

55. Run an 8 minute mile

56. 100 crunches and 100 pushups per day for 45 days straight

Organization/Home

57. Purge files that are out of date/unneeded

58. Organize my craft room

59. Organize our books

60. Keep essential information in the fire safe

61. Back up all photos onto CD’s

62. Purchase an all-in-one printer/scanner/copier/fax

63. Scan and save important photos

64. Redecorate the house

65. Fence in yard

66. Landscape yard

67. Re-stain deck, porch and mail box

68. Organize a recycling center in garage

69. Make my bed every day for 2 weeks

70. Order pictures from Snapfish and fill our empty frames

71. Keep window boxes full of flowers for a summer

Finances

72. Pay off all credit card debt and at least one loan

73. Increase the Roth IRA investment by at least 50% monthly

74. Find a financial advisor and create a plan for investing our money

75. Invest in the TSP

76. Sell 10 items on eBay

77. Complete the US Quarters Collection

78. Complete the ABC’s of Financial Success with my husband

Relationships

79. Make a list of 5 people who have influenced my life and write them letters

80. Send cards to family and friends for special occasions for an entire year

81. Make dh feel loved in his love language - Physical Touch and Words of Affirmation

82. Complete at least 5 couple devotional studies with dh

83. Find 5 friends from my youth that I have lost contact with

84. Complete at least 5 generations of genealogy for both sides of family.

85. Start a secret sisters swap with my group of friends

86. Dance in the rain with my husband

87. Private

88. Have a family picture made

Volunteering and Civil Action

89. Use non-disposable grocery bags

90. Send a care package to a soldier

91. Plant a tree for Arbor Day

92. Volunteer 10 times

93. Use non-disposable napkins

94. Vote in all major elections

95. Donate to Dress for Success

96. Donate to Brother Francis each month (or other shelter if we move)

97. Donate blood for the first time

98. Recycle all recyclables (for the area) for 3 months

99. Donate 1,000,000 grains of rice through freerice.com

100. Participate in the Breast Cancer 3 Day Walk

101. Donate hair to Pantene Beautiful Lengths

April 1,2008 - December 28, 2010

I think this is going to be my start date. Since I've got some goals that are "do ______ once a month", my anal side had to start at the beginning of the month. I almost started it a few days later so that I could be done on December 31, 2010, but nah. So my end date will be December 28, 2008.

I was thinking about going ahead and starting now, but I want to share with my husband what my plans are before I make it official. Plus, I've been changing things every night before bed and every morning as soon as I get up for the past few days. I want a little longer to readjust as I see fit.

For some of my goals, I will be recruiting some of YOU, so be careful, I may be coming after you!

Finding a Start Date

So, while I'm on my quest to discover who I am (do we ever really truly know the answer?) I have decided to start my own 101 in 1001 program. I'll let you know when I start. I need to decide really. It's a hard decision b/c I am very goal oriented, so I want to make sure I do this right and when I will be able to complete it. Hopefully it will happen in the next month or so. Trust me, you'll know when.

You can check out the DAY ZERO phenomenon. I was inspired by an online friend Corinne (I need to ask her permission before linking to her blog). It's taken a long while to compile my list as I really needed to think about things. I'll share it on my first day.

I'll need all the encouragement I can get as I work toward these goals.

Thanks to all!