First week update.
So it’s been about a week since I started my resolutions. Some resolutions have been successful, some still need some fine tuning or to get off the ground. Here’s my updates:
1. Buy no clothes for a year - no clothes bought by me! Success!
2. Exercise outdoors for at least 15 mins X week for Q1, 30 mins X a week for Q2, 45 mins X a week for Q3 and 60 mins X a week for Q4.– I had forgotten about this one until Friday. Work was slow so I decided what the heck and logged off for 15 minutes to walk around the parking lot. It sucked. But I did it.
3. Ditch the Keurig pods after I run out – including at work – haven’t run out yet. To be continued.
4. Bring my own milk to work – no plastic creamers! – I have done this this week and it was hard. We ran out of milk so I had to use Coffee Mate two days in a row (blech!) Still… kept the little creamer cups out of the landfill!
5. Try to get rid of at least 10 things every week without throwing them away (sell, donate, repurpose) - I probably tripled or quadrupled this number this week. Most of it was Christmas stuff. Even managed to sell some stuff and return some empties to the Beer Store. Money earned so far: $26.40
6. Have at least 3 vegetarian days per week - Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday! DONE!
7. Buy nothing new without making sure it’s needed, it’s replacing something and that the something it’s replacing is no longer good enough and must be trashed. - The only purchases this week were frames for some original artwork. This was artwork we already had or had been given and was framed in order to properly show it off and preserve it. We did find one old unused IKEA frame that would do for one of the prints so we only ordered the matting for this one (full disclosure I didn’t even look – Charlie found it.) I'm ok with these purchases. Also bought new razors as I'm down to 2 and don't know when I'll be hitting Costco again. I have thrown out all the used ones except for the one I’m currently using. I can usually get a week or two out of razor. Also ok with this one.
I will admit to a very close call on this one. Sarah comes to visit with her dog and we need to block off the doorway from the kitchen to the entrance to keep the puppy downstairs. Usually we use old boxes but this hasn't been working too well as the puppy gets older and wiser to our tricks. So the last time Sarah came she brought along the playyard which was very handy. So I thought I would look in MarketPlace or Varage Sale for a playyard for when Riley (the puppy) comes to visit. Smart right? This would mean that we wouldn't have to drive the 3 hours (1.5 there 1.5 hours back) to pick Sarah and Riley up and they could just hop on the train without needing to move a big playyard.
So the playyard we had bought for Sarah to keep at home was $89 + tax on Amazon. I found one in my city on Varage Sale for $75 but the seller wasn't really open to negotiations. Then I found one about half an hour away two cities over for $40. $40!!!! less than half of what we paid for a new one! So I messaged the seller and asked if it was available and it was! But then I thought to myself.. self... ok the boxes are a pain in the butt but they're free and you already have them - weren't you only supposed to buy stuff that you actually needed this year? So smart self me thanked the lady selling the yard and told her to go ahead and sell to the next person in line. Then smart me remembered that we have an old futon frame in the basement that will probably work better than the boxes and is also free and already here. So no playyard was bought. Go Smart Me!
8. Re-use all single use plastics that I can. Recycle those that I can - I sucked at this. This one needs working on for sure - small progress but not near enough.
9. Reduce purchases that come in single use plastics - We only hit Costco this week so there weren't a lot of options. I did buy significantly less than I would normally have spent at Costco so there's that.
10. Get a pap/physical/mammogram/regular bloodwork - pap is scheduled for Jan 8th! Just got the mammogram in October. Going to discuss last bloodwork (taken in mid-December) with Doctor when I go in on the 8th. Fingers crossed!
11. Start monitoring my blood sugar and adjust my diet accordingly - I will have to locate my glucose meter for this one -- Found the glucose meter!!! Now to get batteries....
12. Use up 90% of my yarn before buying more - no yarn bought! Not even tempted. Go me!
13. Save at least $1,500.00 for my RRSPs - this month's contribution transferred to my savings account. DONE!
14. Call my sisters at least twice a month -- they called me to wish a Happy New Year and Happy Birthday.
15. Take 3 trips to Ottawa by myself to recharge and reconnect with my family -- will figure out when my first trip will be soon. I'm thinking February.
16. Clean up the gardens in the backyard and plant low/no maintenance beds -- This will be a springtime resolution.
17. Make and stick to a grocery list -- Did this at Costco! Gunther bought offlist but that's on him. I stuck to mine.
18. Meal plan and do minimal meal Prep -- Need to work on this one. With the holidays it's been a bit whacky. Will definitely meal plan and prep a bit for next week.
19. Reduce screen time (TV, Phone, Computer) at home to no more than 35 hours per week in Q1, 28 hours per week in Q2, 21 hours per week in Q3 and 14 hours per week in Q1. -- this one was a bit tricky what with staying home on the first but I did it. Caveat - I don't include listening to CBC news or reading books (paper or on my phone) in my totals nor do I include Facebook time spent chatting with friends in Messenger or listing and selling/giving away my stuff. My goal was to limit mindless screen time so learning, chatting and selling don't count as they involve my active participation.
20. Tidy/clean 1 room for at least 15 mins every day - Cumulatively? for sure! Might have only done 10 minutes on Thursday night but definitely did way more than 15 mins every other day so I'm ok with that. The nice thing is that as I declutter cleaning is becoming easier and quicker. Of course we all know that -- but it's nice to be reminded of that fact.
So there you have it. I’m still feeling my way around some things others are going quite well.
Looking forward to a mostly successful week 2!
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