New Year, New Goals

In the grand scheme of things, I am not someone who does resolutions. I don't even think about them normally. However, this last month there's been some kind of heavy thinking going on around here, it feels like we're reaching a transition stage in our lives and we are getting to the point of needing some decisions. Well anyways, I've come up with some new (for us) goals and I'm getting excited to start them! Some of them are simply what they seem, and some are the first steps into a new direction. It should be fun and interesting to see what happens!

1. 2012 will be the first year of us having a budget. I've got it almost all the way worked out, just need N's approval and maybe one or two little tweaks:) I've always thought it kind of odd that we've never had a budget, it just seems like something a married couple should have!  Actually, we have half heartedly tried before, but this time we're approaching it from a whole different angle and I really think it'll work very well for us.
2. Going along with number one, we will be out of debt (except the house) in October. This is huge for me! We've been working on this for the last 5 months and now we can start seeing "real" results.
3. This one is going to be the most challenging, but I'm determined to lose weight and generally start a healthier lifestyle. Seeing as I'm due in April, the losing pounds part will have to wait, but the exercise and better eating have already started. Weight is something I've struggled with ever since I got married and I'm determined to be at my personal goal in 12 months. I know I'll feel so much better and it will be fun to like shopping and buying cute clothes for myself.

So there we have it. Anybody else giving themselves new goals for the new year?

Merry Christmas

And a blessed  happy New Year!



FO's

Or, for you non-knitting blog readers, Finished Offs.  I forgot to take any pictures of the Christmas gifts I was working on, oops. Actually I still have two left to get done, since I was flat on the couch all last week. Put it on my unreliable mental list to take pictures of them, since they were all variations of each other... But here's two that I knitted. They were both really easy and quick, seriously only took me about 2 hours each. And I am NOT what you call a quick knit! The first one was meant to be a gift for N, however halfway into it I realized that it wasn't going to fit. He's got a ridiculously large head. Seriously huge. I even took that into account ( I thought..) and increased both size and length. Just not nearly enough, so at least I have a hat now. 

I like Rory to be my model cause he's pretty much way cuter than me! This was my first project following a chart and also for colorwork; both intimidated me a ton. Actually they still do. The pattern for this was very basic and easy to follow, and hopefully will lead to more adventuresome projects!

This cowl was fun to make, mostly since there was no time to get bored.  Both patterns are from Knit Simple, winter 2011 issue.  I really like that magazine, almost every issue has several things tabbed for future projects. I have bitten the checkbook and won't order it. Really, though, since I'm in the grocery store at least once a week I can quick scan the racks for any new issues. Actually I like that better even though it ends up being more expensive probably. At least if there's nothing appealing I don't have to pay for the whole thing. 

Weird off topic confession: Sometimes I go on Krista's blog just to listen to her playlist :O I can't help it- I like her taste in music and seriously what stations do I listen to?! I have hardly ever heard these songs before. Chalk it up to mind broadening. Thanks Krit!

Another one Leaves the G'rage

Sung to the tune of "(Another one) Bites the Dust"


It's true, I can actually park in the garage. Mostly, it's because the husband re-arranged and moved all the rest of the projects to the sides, but hey. It works. Way back in the spring I stumbled upon two super chippy, white doors with super cool vintage door knobs. Since I had just been shown this post form Dreamy Whites, immediately I nabbed them. Two super cool doors for only $30! I was psyched. They were pretty similar but not exactly the same.

Needless to say, N wasn't even remotely excited when he saw these. In fact his reaction was "What? Don't tell me you actually paid for these things. They better have been free. Someone was laughing all the way to the bank when you stopped at their sale..etc.etc.etc." When I reluctantly told him how much I paid (after much badgering) he about had a heart attack. The conversation went on in the vein of "You had better be kidding me. You're not serious are you?!" So I told him 'fine, if you want to hear that, I only paid 3 for them.' He was much appeased. Even when I told him that I really didn't only pay 3..feeling guilty he believed me..He still felt better. I think he just convinced himself that was all I really paid. Whatever. In the end we are both happy:) Especially after I showed him the prices of other headboards I liked in the PB magazine!

Anyways, after sitting in the garage for 6 months, we finally got around to figuring out a way to make a headboard we both liked. I was initially all for leaning them against the wall, but N was no way gonna do that. He also shot down the idea of screwing the doors to the wall, either horizontally or vertically. In the end he cut a larger portion off the top of one door and the smaller area off the bottom of the other, and built a frame for them which ended up being screwed directly onto the bed frame. He also took the doorknobs off, welded them together so they won't turn and and moved them to an area less conducive to expletives in the middle of the night. 

We also monkeyed quite a bit trying to get the right and left sides to match a little more evenly. We tried staining the wood, priming and then wiping the wood, adding more white paint to some areas on the left side and then sanding. (I even contemplated stripping the whole thing and repainting but that defeated the purpose of the vintage weathered look that I bought them for.) Nothing was working quite how we had pictured it, but in the end we just got sick of  dealing with it. And we needed room in the garage. I have to say that once it got into our room I think it turned out better than I expected. I kind of like the unevenness and now just need to find some little wreaths or something to hang on the knobs.

Duvet from PB, pillow from Target, bedside table GS find