The Life of Bon: February + March goals

Sunday, March 02, 2014

February + March goals







19 weeks.
Photo cred: Aubrey Zaruba
Tee: Wal-mart
Jacket: Target (old: similar here.)
Boots: Old Navy
Hairtie: Ban.do
Necklace: Mia Earrings (all jewelry on site 20% off with code lifeofbon20) 

A couple of oh-so-important notes on clothes.  1) I absolutely love this hair twist from Ban.do.  You do the twisting yourself, so it's not too tight and doesn't give you a headache.  They have so many adorable patterns.  2) I have searched for a long time for the perfect white v-neck. The problem with white v-necks is that they wear out so quickly.  Once I get a white v-neck that I love I wear it with everything and after two or three months the thing looks dingy and not so white anymore after so much wear and washing.  I spent $20 on a beautiful white v-neck from Victoria's Secret last spring and by the time August hit, it just looked so worn out.  At Wal-mart the other day I saw v-necks for less than $4. Well, shucks.  Sign me up.  I bought three white v necks and now I won't be bugged when they wear out after two or three months.  They only cost $4, I can afford to throw them out after they wear out.

Now, moving onward.  It's March, people!  We have braved the dark abyss, we have chartered unfamiliar territories, and we have successfully conquered winter.  It's over!  Or dang near close to it!

It's time to look at my February and March goals.  At the beginning of the year I made 12 resolutions for 2014- one per month.  Breaking up my goals per month is a much easier way for me to manage them than to try them do all at once.  

FEBRUARY'S GOAL:  WRITE A BOOK
What I wrote at the beginning of the year: "Even just writing that out makes me sick to my stomach.  I have always wanted to write a book, but have been plagued by fear.  Fear of failure, yes, but also fear of the extreme amount of time and energy and dedication it will take.  Who knows if the book will ever get published, but I'm tired of not trying."

Subgoals:
-Write five days a week for 1-3 hours.


HOW I DID:  I'd give myself a 4 out of 10.  Not too hot.  I started the month out writing four or five days a week  I changed my goal from a time goal (1-3 hours) to a word count goal (1,000-2,000 words a day).  I figured the word count goal would make me a bit more accountable.  About a week in, I got extremely frustrated with a portion of the book that was just not working for me, and then I didn't write a thing for 13 days. You know, the normal way to deal with frustration...just up and quit.  The last ten days of the month I got rejuvenated and wrote like a fiend, and now I'm excited again about the book and where it is going.  I started the month with about 5,000 words of writing and now I have 20,000 words.  Good, not great.  

There were a couple of things that were tough for me.  To start with, I had about half the free time that I thought I would.  I thought February would be pretty much free as can be, but the student teaching transition has required more of my time than I thought it would.  It's totally fine and so far it has been a very rewarding experience, I just haven't had the time I thought I would.  I am thinking March will be freer and I am resetting the goal to write at least 2,000 words five times a week.  By the end of the month I want to have 75,000 words written. So let it be written, so let it be done!

What I DID do this month was sign up for a writing conference that will be held in Salt Lake at the end of April.  The goal is to have the book finished and fairly cleaned up for that.  I am terrified and I have no idea what I'm getting myself into.

And now, we move toward March!

MARCH GOAL:  BE A BETTER WIFE
Sometimes I just think Greg deserves a kinder, happier, less insane woman.  That's all.

Sub goals:
- No nagging.
- Do an act of service daily for Greg.
- Say thank you more often.
- Be more willing to do "his activities" and less pouty when we don't do "my activities."
- Tell him I love him and compliment him every day.

March is our anniversary, and so I'm excited to use this month to really focus on our relationship and being a good wife to him.  It's only March 2, and already I have seen a difference.

I'd love some ideas on a daily "act of service" I can do for Greg.  So far I've got two ideas: pick up his towel for him and surprise him with energy drinks.  Other than that, I've got nothing.  Give me some ideas!  What does your significant other love when you do for him?  (You know... appropriate to write on a blog type stuff...)


23 comments:

  1. The stop and start frustration thing will probably continue to happen so be prepared! Some days I can't even look at my novel. I have to step away from it and then I can come back to it again with a fresh eye and I think that's a good thing sometimes. Sometimes I think it sucks and other times I think it's good. I think it's just a natural part of the process. Oh joy!! Your page goals are much more ambitious then mine!! Stick with it. I Love the idea of doing acts of service for my husband. I need to work on that one too.

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  2. Some acts of kindness I do for my fiancé are to fill up his glass at dinner when he's running low. I give him short shoulder massages while watching tv. And I have his breakfast ready for him when he wakes up over the weekend.

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  3. I would recommend looking at NaNoWriMo for inspiration -- I did it this past November for the first time and I met my goal of 50,000 words in a month. The biggest thing I learned was that when you get frustrated, just keep writing, don't edit while you write. I skipped ahead and did all sorts of crazy things, including writing scenes I knew I didn't want to keep in, just to keep the creative juices flowing! Good luck!!

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  4. Things our hubbies like for us to do for them: cook awesome dinners (or a breakfast if you guys usually don't have time to do that together), have their jeans washed and ready to go, surprise them with some of their favorite sweets, a gift card to their fav sandwich shop or lunch establishment, a pair of new wool socks, a sweet text, taking out the trash for him (or doing one of his shores)...

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  5. What day is your anniversary? My boyfriend and mine's is March 29! Thanks for the tip of where to get a white v neck for cheap!! Outfit essential!

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  6. Thanks for the white v neck tip! As far as things to do for Greg - cook him his favourite dinner, make his lunch one day and put a little love note in it, pick up a treat for him that you normally don't get him (for us that's slurpees), surprise him with a night out, random love texts... I like your goal for March - it's a great one.

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  7. Anonymous2:16 AM

    One thing you could do is bring him a warm towel after a shower. When you hear him taking a shower, throw a towel in the dryer. Then when you hear the water go off, go grab the towel and bring it to him. (This might only work if it's still cold...)

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  8. Making lunch in the mornings, so he doesn't have to make it.
    Compliment him on a job well done.
    Tell his parents/family about something nice he did for you.
    Surprise him with tickets to a band/film he wants to see.
    Organise a friend of his to come over for dinner.

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  9. Voicing appreciation is a big one, I think! :)

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  10. -I drink a lot of tea. Whenever I boil water for myself, I ask Beau if he wants something too. Then I fix him a cup of hot tea or hot chocolate along with my own.
    -Beau doesn't take care of his dry skin. I make it more fun to moisturize by giving him a back massage and a foot massage on the weekends while we watch Netflix.
    -He does chores that I hate (changing the sheets on the bed), and I do chores that he hates (the dishes).

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  11. Well the good thing about that is the stuff you've already written is still there and you can finish the book in March! Writing an entire book in a month is CRAZY, in two months? Still crazy. lol

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  12. Pick him up his favorite candy bar one day. Leave a little love note in his sock drawer (or car or wherever). Give him a back massage - just because. Let him decide what to watch on TV. Pick up a new shirt for him just because you thought it'd look good on him.

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  13. It's all about what your guy likes so it's different in any relationship. Like for me, instead of getting annoyed when Sean leaves his dirty dishes in front of the TV again, I take them to get cleaned instead of reminding him for the zillionth time that I need him to not leave them sitting. Or if I have more time than him I do some of "his tasks." On the surprising note, grab something at the grocery store or elsewhere you normally wouldn't but know he'd like....it's all the little things. If you think of it, just do it!

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  14. Well done on your writing Bon! It's not what you expected but it's still something, hopefully we'll get to read it soon? ;)

    guesswhathollie.blogspot.co.uk

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  15. Awesome on the writing!! You'll definitely get a book out in no time (Even if it does seem like forever)!! One thing I try to do for my now hubby is cook a meal he likes out of the blue. Or on our 3 month anniversary of being married since we weren't going to see each other I baked him brownies and wrote him a love letter in a card. No matter what you do it is definitely the little things that will mean the most!

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  16. One recommendation for great ideas is www.thedatingdivas.com - I love, love, love their site and they have some of the cutest ideas. They range from super quick and easy to more intricate but there is something for everyone. So browse through the site and see if you can find a few ideas to let Greg know how much you love him!

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  17. PS. I forgot to mention that your outfit is FABULOUS and you look adorable!!

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  18. I really like your March goals. I might be stealing those :)
    You look awesome in the pics too! Love the baby bump!

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  19. So I buy the men's Hanes 3-pack of v-neck shirts for like $10. I had the same problem with the white shirts getting dingy so I just bought a thing of $2 black dye and dyed the whole batch. Problem solved. They look brand new now.

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  20. Some of the things I do for my husband: use the extra key to his car to "break in" and leave a note on the dash board; send him flirty text messages in between classes; get the coffee ready so that all he has to do is push "on" in the morning; help him lay out his uniform for the next day; back/foot massage; buying him a candy bar from the vending machine in the teacher's lounge and have it waiting in the fridge for him when he gets home. I'm going second the Dating Divas website - tons of great ideas!

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  21. When my husband's in the shower, I'll take his towel and pop it into the dryer until he's about out. Then I'll run and get it for him so it's all toasty warm when he gets out---so he feels like he's at a spa or a fancy hotel or something :)

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  22. I love that necklace!! And thanks for the heads up about the white t's at Wal Mart, I'll definitely have to pick some up :)

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