In With the New...

right now, my goal list is a little light but i'm sure i'll add to it as my brain wakes up. these past few weeks have been mind numbing with all the sickness and funk going on around here. at this point, here are my plans for 2009:

*15 minutes (minimum) a day to play:
-hooping (a friend gifted us with a hoop for the holidays. i've been using it more than the kids. maria is my inspiration!)
-knife throwing (ok, this isn't really 'play' but it is a good source of stress relief and good to have a self defense skill. when i mentioned to a friend that i planned on practicing from several distances so i could hit my target no matter how far away i was from it -within reason, of course- my oldest son choked on his lunch he started laughing so hard. not sure what was funny about that comment, i think i scared him a bit and it was a nervous reaction)
-mandolin (i have had this darned thing for 5 years now. i used to play every day but then came sage)

*gardening and animal efficiency: be more effecient on the garden front and on the amount of animals and our set up with their care/maintenance (this means cutting back on numbers because we cannot afford to feed them all or the time to care for them all)

*budgeting: grocery bill needs to come down, this goes with the effecient gardening. also need to cut costs elsewhere??? as well as try to bring in a more steady income with my herbal business and my new crafting business

*less dvds for the kids, more real play

*purge junk toys and other stuff:
-slim down kids' toys to make room for new ones (and purge some of the plastic crap new ones that relatives (who know us the least) purchased for the kids)
-purge stuff
-organize craft area and purge/make more useful
-find another furniture item with drawers (such as a buffet) to store more craft stuff and create a mini wood working area (see the wordworking for kids video for my inspiration)

*during the summer take a field trip once a week to a nature preserve in the area and spend the day, pack a lunch and just have fun and explore

*complete the wedding certificate. yeah. it's still. not. finished.

*get back into a household routine that includes cleaning. on a regular basis. like daily.

*animal feed: try, try again to grow hay and root crops for the animals

*photographs:
-i have several years (2001? - 2007) worth of photos on the old computer that i need to upload to snapfish, develop and delete off the old computer. that is quite a task.
-put all commitment ceremony photos into their albums
-make files on laptop of etsy, lhc and place all business photos in their correct files so that when i need a specific picture, i can actually find it!
-keep on top of ordering and copying current photos

*homeschooling:
-get into some sort of routine with it. nothing too formal but would like to be a bit more organized, perhaps plan books to read, etc. each week

*gardening journal book:
-update it and get back into the routine of using it daily

*farmwise, i'd like to see us doing:
-more fencing for goats/sheep (take back the land the farmer has been using for free and put it into pasture/hay field)
-shed fixed up (it has been falling down and needs to be repaired)
-garage renovated into guest cottage
-gutters on buildings for water collection (very important)
-research solar/wind since there are new incentives out there
-outdoor solar shower