Cold weather goals:

I was thinking this morning about everything I want to accomplish this winter. We got pretty much our entire summer list taken care of (minus installing a new floor because we can't find anything we agree on).

We had a pretty hefty list for the summer. And, sad as it is, my list for the winter is just as hefty.

1) Learn how to knit. Complete more than 1 project - successfully. I've already bought my first set of needles and 2 skeins of cotton yarn. I'm working on a scarf for my first project. It is a great way to practice and get a feel for it. The scarf looks pretty good for a first attempt! (Stitch N Bitch is helping me refresh myself. I "learned" how to knit years and years ago but I was never able to master it. I'm already doing better than before.)

2) Learn how to make cheese - specifically, mozzarella and cream.

3) Stop buying bread. There's absolutely no need for it. I can cook. I can bake. Hop to, woman!This means 2 loaves a week in our house.

4) Lose the 5 lbs that I gained after we stopped nursing. Lose an additional 5. Snowshoeing will help this!

5) Finish all of the small, miscellaneous projects I have started that have been sitting idle all summer (paint and put up shelf and finish hanging pocket quilt for Monkey's room; paint our bedroom; etc).

6) I have 2 paint projects I REALLY want to tackle. First is the stairway to the basement. I've already purchased the paint. Second is our kitchen cabinets. See, back when we first bought the house, T felt it necessary to stick his nose into the paint color decision making process. Jodi learned quickly that was a BAD BAD BAD idea. Now I have a wonderful shade of warm sunshine on my kitchen/living room walls... with a deeper shade of puke looking yellow on my cabinets. They need to be re-done. Cream. (For the record - T has since learned to just let me do my thing. Why would I chose an ugly color for our home? Don't pressure me and don't rush me. I'll find the right color. And then I'll make it all come together. Stand back and watch a master at work.)

7) This is a doozy. We started to finish our basement the winter I was pregnant. We had to move the "office" downstairs so we'd have an open bedroom for Monkey and still have a guest room for when our parents/family/friends come down to visit. The new room in the basement is still not finished. We had painted top to bottom but T never finished the trim on the walls (he put tongue and groove cedar the entire bottom half all the way around but didn't trim it out). And it has started to become a storage room again, which is what it was originally. No dice. I've started hanging art and organizing, but I still have a long way to go.

All in all, it doesn't LOOK too terrible. But when I read between the lines I'm yelling in my head "HOW WILL I DO THIS ALL??"

One thing at a time.

Besides, for those that know me, you know very well that I'll end up adding to this list 30 times over before the snow melts.