101 in 1001 List - Checkpoint #2
101 in 1001, Goals

Checkpoint #2: 101 in 1001 List

101 in 1001 List - Checkpoint #2

On January 11th (just a few weeks away–so weird!), I’ll hit the year mark of when I started working on my 101 in 1001 list. All in all, I have completely fallen in love with this new way of doing resolutions/goals/bucket list items/what-have-you, and I might not ever go back to the traditional practice of simply setting new year’s resolutions.

I’ve found that the timeline of a 101 in 1001 list (of almost 3 years) is perfect to put on some really “big” goals–but still give them a deadline–and to also give plenty of flexibility for when certain goals will be tackled, which is important since our ever-shifting season in life usually dictates what we can/want to focus our extra time and money on. My only complaint about the 101 in 1001 list is that sometimes certain priorities shift over time, so some of the goals I originally put on will likely be changed at some point in the project. In fact, if you read over my post about the goals I have for December, you would have noticed that I’ve set a specific goal to look over my original 101 in 1001 list and see what I want to change (I think I’ll be changing at least five or six). I’ll make sure to do an update when those changes have been decided on!

Because of this list and the roadmap it gives me, 2018 has been one of my most productive and goal-oriented years ever–it has made it so that all of the stuff I’d wanted to do “someday” is starting to become part of my “here and now,” and as we come up on the year mark, I’m happy to say that I’m just about right on track for completing all 101 goals in time (if I keep up this pace). Check out my progress below!

Note: Anything that’s crossed out (but that doesn’t have an explanation below it) was discussed in my first checkpoint post. Items that are crossed out are goals that I view as finished, and any items in red are goals that I’ve made measurable progress on, but that I haven’t finished yet.

There are some affiliate links in this post, which means I get a small commission on any sales made at no extra cost to you.

My 101 in 1001 List

Start Date: Thursday Jan. 11, 2018

End Date: Wednesday Oct. 7, 2020

 

Health + Fitness

1. Run a half marathon in under two hours

2. Go six months without drinking any Diet Dr. Pepper

I officially completed this goal at the end of June, but I’ve currently only had DDP twice since then (and found I no longer really have a taste for it). A major win!

3. Try out a new exercise class

4. Do 50 push-ups in a row

Pregnancy always does a number on my ability to do push-ups, but I’m now back up to being able to do 15-20.

5. Get back to my pre-pregnancy weight

I’m getting quite close on this one! I’ve only got 4 pounds to go.

6. Have a sugar-free month

7. Complete a 12-week BBG (Kayla Itsines Bikini Body Guide)

While I might not be completing the BBG in a twelve-week period (due to sickness, time constraints, and other factors), I do plan to finish out the whole program. As the holidays are super busy, I’m trying to fit in modified versions of the workouts where I can this month and then picking back up officially where I left off (Week 10) in January. If you want to read some of my thoughts about the program and the progress I’ve seen, you can check those out in this post I wrote at the halfway point.

 8. Try 3 new hikes

We’ve currently done two–the Blacksmith Fork River Trail and the Bonneville Shoreline Trail (both up Blacksmith Fork Canyon in Northern Utah).

9. No fast food for two months (including pizza)

10. Get 10,000 steps avg./day for a month

 

Financial

11. Complete emergency fund ($10,000)

We finally made some measurable progress on this one, largely thanks to the challenge we did to save $1000 in 100 days. We’re currently about halfway there!

12. Rollover Matt’s 401k to a Roth IRA

13. Pay $3000 extra on the mortgage

We’re still paying a bit extra on our mortgage every month (about $35 or so, to make it a nice even number). We have plans to get our house re-appraised at the beginning of next year to hopefully be able to get rid of our PMI, at which point we’d keep making the payment we’re making now but with almost $100 extra going towards the mortgage.

14. Set up a sinking fund for car repairs

Personal Development

15. Reach 100% fluency on Duolingo (French)

Although my daily French practice has gone by the wayside since having my son, I still have made some progress since the last time I posted, albeit very little.

16. Set up Facebook page for produce co-op

I finally did this back in September, and I’m only sorry I didn’t do it sooner! It’s already been very rewarding to see less produce going to waste in our city and to see neighbors stepping up to share what they have. Plus, we’ve benefited from the group a few times ourselves, as people have been sharing some of the produce WE’D been wanting!

17. Take a cooking class

18. Type up the rest of my mission journals

This ended up being SUCH a special experience for me–it was almost like getting the chance to relive the whole experience again, which I loved. I even teared up at the end as I finished! (I also love that these are all now in digital format so that I have a backup AND so I can actually do something with these one day, if I choose.)

19. Type up all of my personal journals

20. Establish a personal morning routine + stick with it for a month

21. Cook through a whole cookbook

I decided to cook my way through The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner, which has 208 recipes in it. I’ve currently made 61.

22. Try a dozen new cookie recipes

This one continues to be such a joy to work on, and I’ve made six more since I last posted (bringing the total new recipes made to 9).

23. Go a week with no t.v. time (including movies)

 

Spiritual

24. Read the Book of Mormon in Spanish

25. Visit 3 new temples + do ordinances

Matt and I did a session at the Jordan River Temple (in Utah) in November.

26. Find 100 names for the temple

I actually haven’t been keeping track of the exact number, but if we go by what I said in April (that I had 50), then I’ve probably found about 70 so far. Note: You’ll notice that on several of these goals under the Spiritual section, I’ve included links (just in case you’re curious to learn more about my beliefs as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints).

27. Complete temple work for 15 people

Since Matt and I recently made the decision to start trying to go to the temple weekly rather than monthly, this one is going to be completed much sooner than planned. I’ve currently completed six, but I should be completing four more before the year is out.

28. Make family history photo flash cards

29. Index 1,000 names

I’ve currently done 37 (not much, but it’s a start!).

30. Study all General Conference talks of 2017

31. Study all GC talks of 2018

I have completely finished studying all the talks from April’s General Conference and am now currently studying the messages from October’s.

32. Study all GC talks of 2019

33. Study April GC talks of 2020

 

Books

34. Read 5 books off of my 100 Classics list

I’ve read two (Lord of the Flies and A Farewell to Arms) and am in the middle of a third (Brave New World). I’ve mostly made so much progress on this because of the Assigned Reading I’ve given myself this school year (for the second year in a row).

35. Read 2 plays

36. Read 15 books off of the Newbery list

I’ve read four so far–Three Times Lucky, Out of the Dust, El Deafo, and The War That Saved My Life.

37. Read 5 books off of the Pulitzer list

I’ve currently read just one–The Snow Child.

38. Read 12 books off of the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die list

I’ve read four–Lord of the Flies and A Farewell to Arms counted on this list too, and then I also read Sense and Sensibility and Rebecca.

39. Read 50 books I own

I’ve currently read 15, not including any that I re-read. (In other words, I set the goal with the intention of starting to read through the enormous number of books I own that I’ve never read–which is in the hundreds). I’m also in the middle of three others.

40. Re-read 5 books

I thought it would be a lot harder to get back into the habit of re-reading (since I’d gone so many years without doing it), but I’ve already knocked out 3 and am in the middle of another.The ones I’ve already re-read are Speak, Peony in Love, and The Happiness Project. (The only one that wasn’t as good as I remembered it being was Peony in Love, which resulted in me knocking it from five stars down to three and a half, and it almost didn’t even make that, but I particularly liked the ending.)

 

Travel + Fun

41. Visit Capitol Reef

42. Visit Goblin Valley

43. Visit a new state

44. Celebrate a holiday I normally don’t

45. Visit the ocean

46. Go horseback riding

47. Go to the condo in St. George

48. Go to a musical or play

49. Go fly a kite

50. Complete my Sudoku book

I’ve started semi-regularly working out the puzzles when I’m waiting for stuff to cook in the kitchen, which has been fun for me. Sure, I’ve only completed about a dozen or so (and the book contains over 400). But I’m still counting it all as progress!

51. Go on a picnic

Blogging + Writing

52. Reach 50 people on my email list

I haven’t been too proactive about working on this, but I have gained some new email followers. Once I actually start offering something other than just an update every time I post (like a monthly newsletter or bonus content), I’ll start putting more energy into this.

53. Reach 100 people on my email list

54. Break even with blog expenses/income

I’m not great at making money with blogging (which I’m okay with), but I was thisclose to meeting this goal this year (and the only reason I didn’t is because I won’t receive some of the payments until the beginning of 2019).

55. Make $500 in a year from blogging

56. Reach 200 followers on Bloglovin’

I’ve gained 13 new followers since my last checkpoint, for a total of 163 right now. Considering that I haven’t actively been working on this, I’m pretty pleased about it, actually! (If you’re not following yet but would like to, click here.)

57. Reach 300 followers on Bloglovin’

58. Have a post get 1,000+ views

Mostly thanks to the fact that it’s a top-ranked post in certain Google searches, this post analyzing which grocery store will save you the most money is well on its way to getting 2,000 views soon. Plus, thanks to Pinterest, there are a few other posts coming up on the 1,000+ views mark soon, like this popular recipe for Almond Punch and this post all about what your photographer REALLY wishes you knew about getting your family pics taken.

59. Have a post get 2,000+ views

60. Optimize 20 old posts for Pinterest

I haven’t had too much time to work on repurposing old content lately, but I have worked on some, like this post on 10 books recommended by an English major and this recipe for cinnamon love knots (which desperately needed a better picture). I’m now up to five total, I think?

61. Finish first draft of my novel

62. Make 100 new entries in The Motherhood Diaries

I’ve written 21, including one I shared on the blog here.

Photography

63. Take another photography class

64. Go to an event with the Cache Valley Photographers’ Group

65. Reach 500 Instagram followers

I’ve grown about 60 followers since my last checkpoint post and am currently at around 460, which I’m pleased with. (If you’re not following me already, click here!)

66. Reach 1,000 Instagram followers

67. Complete a self-portrait photo project

68. Pare down photos from 2013-2017

69. Buy a macro lens

Thanks to a couple jobs early in the year, I was able to buy this one right before the arrival of our son, which was perfect timing! (I ended up getting this one.)

70. Buy a tripod

Thanks to a great Black Friday deal and some extra photography jobs, I was able to pick up this one just barely.

71. Give a free photo session to someone in need

72. Launch photography webpage

It’s still a work in progress, but I at least have posted galleries of my recent work, a pricing section, and an About Me section. (If you’re curious to see what I have so far, click here.)

73. Back up all photos

 

Family + Relationships + Service

74. Finish reading over Matt’s book and making suggestions

75. Complete 1,000 book challenge with Raven

Currently we’ve read around 700 (different) titles together, at least as far as I’ve recorded.

76. Create a recent family photo album

Technically I’ve completed this one, but I’ve expanded on it in my head, so I’m not counting it as complete yet. Since I hadn’t made ANY photo albums since we got married over 7 years ago, I decided to make 4-5 albums so that we’re all caught up. I’ve currently made just the first one, which covers more or less the first two years we were married.

77. Sign Raven up for preschool

Raven started going to preschool two mornings a week back in August and LOVES it.

78. Go on 20 dates with Matt

We’ve been a TON better this year about going on regular date nights together, which has been such a blessing. So far, we’ve been on 10.

79. Sign Raven up for swimming lessons

80. Give/send 12 handwritten notes or letters

I’ve sent 8.

81. Get family pics taken twice

Boy, does it help that one of our closest friends recently got really into photography! He did this little mini family session for us right at the end of my pregnancy, which we loved. (And you can check out more of his work here.)

82. Take an overnight trip with Matt

83. Leave a 100% tip at a restaurant

84. Buy someone a just-because gift

85. Give someone flowers

 

Home + Organization

86. Get bed for guest room

87. Fix plumbing out back

88. Complete built-in bookshelves in office

89. Plant at least two fruit trees

90. Build a sandbox out back

We’ve obtained the wood for this and Matt has been prepping it. Come spring, we should be good to put this together in a weekend.

91. Put shiplap up in bathroom

92. Buy curtains for downstairs family room

93. Grow pumpkins

We were able to successfully get two pumpkins for Halloween. (We originally had others, including a really big one, but they went bad on the vine thanks to a massive infestation of squash bugs.)

94. Buy throw pillows for upstairs couch

95. Do a refresh project of 50 Weeks to Organized

Progress on this has been slooooow, but I have been gradually going through my checklist of different areas in the house I still need to go through.

96. Plant an herb garden

97. Make a canvas print to hang in our bedroom

98. Hang pics up in downstairs family room

99. Buy fresh flowers every month for six months

100. Buy/get a grill

101. Review emergency preparedness + make a will

 

Number of Completed Items: 23/101

Number of Items in Progress: 34

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