December Goals

We USE to have many Christmas traditions.  We put the Christmas Tree up either Thanksgiving afternoon - or the next day.  Cards were in the mail by December 1.   Christmas shopping was fun - even if the budget was usually under $200.  We made pancakes with berries and had eggnog for breakfast, and the Ref set up the video camera and each and every present opened was documented - we would draw out present opening just as long as possible - often topping over an hour.   We made cookies or gingerbread houses, and spent at least one evening driving around town gazing at Christmas lights.

But life happens.  And for the past few years - we've not really had a tree at all.  Our budget has been under $50 ... and the size of the family is growing.  I know it seems strange that we want to send something to each of my 26 nieces and nephews - as well as aunts, uncles, grandparents, and more .... but we do.   Special meals ended years ago,  and the video camera doesn't work so good anymore.   The ref usually brings us a little eggnog and usually I get a summer sausage too.  But I think I miss the tree the most and looking at Christmas lights.  Various friends usually take Song and Story out to look at lights though, and they enjoy it so much!  Yes, it's the traditions that I miss the most.

The past few years, with the Ref unemployed, have been hard at Christmas.  Yes - he refs during this time, and good games - but we try to stock up on things that we have run out of during the year - and pray he has a job before we run out again.  God has blessed us with just enough to keep us from drowning.   The past few Christmas', we have been blessed by gifts that were unexpected and filled needs in our home.  Scholar STILL plays with his nanopets.  Story uses her laundry basket.  Song uses her lunch box.  And Sunshine still has conversations with her little crayon buddies.    We also have a few relatives who make sure the kids have something that they want and need.  What a HUGE blessing they have been in our lives.

Specific Events for this month -

Christmas with My family - December 29

Christmas with Best friends family - ???

Christmas with church - December 9

Christmas with the Ref's family - December 24

Christmas on Christmas morning with just us ... the kids usually look through drawers and toy boxes and come up with things to wrap for each other.

Blogging -
1.  Kiddos With Kindles - Write at least 25 Daily Kindle posts (that allows me to forgive myself if I miss a few).  ....  WONDERING .... is this blog worth the time and effort that I am putting into it?
2.  Eagle Nest - Write at least 25 Other Posts on Homeschooling, Crafts, and such.   ---  Considering a series ... Alphabet Christmas???  Wonder if I can come up with enough ideas?
3.  O 'Scarlett - Write at least 4 book reviews  
4.  Wings - my personal scrapbooking blog - Write at least 8 posts and Christmas Letter
5.  Try to skim Google Reader daily. 


Project Household Settled1.  Work some more on Sunshine's room - Declutter
2.  Work more on Scholar's room - Declutter

3.  Work on Craft supplies

4.  Work on Kitchen / Living room / Videos

5.  Work on Master Bathroom organization

6.  FIGHT roaches!

Food
1.  Keep using up the food in the freezers.

2.  Go through freezers again later this month and refill the ones next door - trying to empty the big chest freezer for my Dad.   

3.  Make meal plans to use up as much odds and ends of stored food as possible - to keep the budget down. 

Personal
1.  Be in bed before Midnight - WITH the lights off. 
2.  Have all of the kids in bed by 10pm - and asleep.
3.  More consistent devotional times.
4.  Don't gain weight. 
5.  No eating after 8pm.
6.  Walk a two miles at least 4 times each week.  

7.  Get a schedule in place for chores and routines for the household (minus the Ref).  And get it posted somewhere.

Christmas:

1.  Isolate all of the cards and addresses from the last year or two into a findable location. - Get cards in mail or handed out to save stamp money.

2.  Research ideas for Acts of Service Coupons.

3.  Research ideas for other gifts to give for Christmas.

4.  Make a list of everyone to give a present to for us and Scholar and Sunshine.

5.  Make presents

6.  Wrap presents

7.  Copy lots and lots of cassettes from our OLD tape collection to give to nieces and nephews on MP3's

Goals that will be abandoned until January ....

Project Household Settled
1.  Story and Song get their rooms and bathrooms finished organized.
2.  Ref finished moved into a new office space.
3.  Work some more on Sunshine's room - Declutter
4.  Work more on Scholar's room - Declutter

5.  Work on Craft supplies

6.  Repaint the Master bathroom (not all of it)

7.  Get kitchen under control.

8.  FIGHT roaches!

School

2.  Find somebody to cut the chalk board in half - get half up in Story's room for her, and the other half up in the school room.

3.  Find someplace to put up the posters and charts in the room - or find them a new home.

4.  Finish label and sort so MIL can have her label machine back ASAP

Birthdays:

Find and enter birthday information into the Reminder program that I found to use.

Bonus:
Remove the useless built in sets of drawers in my bedroom, and turn into a functional living/storage space for the crafts and household extra items that we need and use regularly.