My 12 Goals for 2016 : Week 20 of 52

1. Pay Down the Mortgage

We were able to knock 5 payments off our contract in May {1 regular payment and 4 extra “principal” payments}. We didn’t buy anything other than the basics {no clothing, shoes, car stuff, toys,etc.}. There were no dental bills to pay {freakin’ amazing}, our utilities were less thanks to all the nice weather we’ve been having and we came in under budget for our road trip.

2. Buy Nothing New for 1 Year. 

It’s funny. When you fill your days with netflix, gardening, house projects and work… there’s no time left to buy crap. Shocking. I know.

3. Track Spending and Figure Out New Ways to Cut Spending Even More.

I found 2 pairs of jeans {no holes!} in my closet here on the east coast when I arrived. One really good pair, and one somewhat faded pair. The plan is to wear the faded pair as much as possible and to save the good pair for going out in public. If I do that, I think I can make them last until the end of the year without having to wear jeggings. Fingers crossed. There is hope.

4. Try 52 New Recipes.

I made a delicious ham and white bean soup last week.

5. Keep My Grocery Budget Under $100 a Month.

Technically, I am over for the month because I bought the boys a boatload of groceries. I’ll also be digging myself into a bit of a hole in may because I am trying to buy all my groceries locally via the farmer’s market, co-op, a neighbor who sells eggs and a local scratch bakery. I know my overall grocery budget will even out over the next few months with the fresh veggies we’re growing in the backyard so I’m not too worried.

6. Go on 52 Dates with the Handsome Husband 

Although we didn’t go on a date this week {for obvious reasons} I’m confident we’ll catch up in June. 😉 Heard back from the dermatologist… the HH does in fact have a wee bit of skin cancer on his ear that they’ll have to slice off. Stay tuned for that.

So far this year we’ve gone on 14 dates and spent $191.60 out of pocket for our “dates.”

7. Turn My Wool Stash into $5,000.

I won’t be adding any new inventory to my Etsy or Ebay “shops” for a few months {it’s a slow time of year for selling hooked rugs} but my hands are definitely busy hooking away on new projects that I’ll offer up for sale in the fall.

In April I sold $29.99
In March I sold $799.53
In February I sold $1077.27
In January I sold $1563.92

8. Get Rid of 1,000 Things. 

I haven’t had a chance to go through the house yet to see if there is anything to get rid of/donate but I’m sure I’ll find something. But it will be hard seeing how nearly everything here was either purchased second hand or brought here intentionally from our other house. Less is more. And I’d like to keep it that way.

9. Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.

Lately, it’s been all about listening to podcasts and flipping through back issues of rug hooking magazines. Lab Girl is next on my list though. Have you read it? Did you like it? Do you have a book {audio or print} that you can recommend?

10. Track Hours Spent Working on My Vegetable Garden and do a Cost Analysis at the End of the Year.

This morning I shared a new gardening post on Dig for Your Dinner if you want to take a look. News flash: Gardening is pretty RAD no matter where you are in the world. 🙂

So far this year I have harvested 6 pound 8 ounces of fresh veggies from our backyard. I spent $19.40 at the greenhouse.

Time spent working on Vegetable Garden in 2016: 9 hours 30 minutes.

11. 52 House Projects in 52 Weeks.

I had planned on getting some painting done this past week but covered bridges and a folk art museum were calling my name instead. 🙂 It happens, right? So instead  I just worked on pruning hedges {there are a zillion of them}. I am nowhere near finished.

12. Make all Birthday and Christmas Gifts This Year or Acquire Them for Free.

Nothing new to report this week.

How about YOU? Did you set any goals for 2016? How are they coming along?

~Mavis

Read About My 2016 Goals HERE.