kapachino

Category: goals

  • cross stitch #2 : home sweet home

    home sweet home

    I finally got these framed so I can share! I finished this project months and months ago. It’s from Cross Stitcher magazine and was meant to be pillows but I wanted to frame it because I am not advanced enough to make pillows nor do I really want needlepoint pillows.

    Did you know that it is not very easy to find square frames, especially 12×12 ones? I had to order these from Amazon and then get custom mats cut. It is hard to tell from this photo (and I apologize for the glare, it was impossible to avoid) but the frames are a dark mocha, not black. I am very happy with them and how the modern clean lines contrast with the traditional sampler form.

    This is our breakfast nook, and the table here is roughly the same color as the frames. I am working on “finishing” this area and hopefully I’ll be able to provide photos of it soon. In this space we used to have some large bamboo plates hung and I was so ready for a change. The plates were fine for awhile, but this adds much more life.

    A closer look at the stitching:

    home sweet home cross stitch

    home sweet home cross stitch

    I also did a better job of getting rid of/hiding the wrinkles in the fabric this time around. Overall I am super happy with this project!

  • april goals

    april goals

    The big thing about April is that I took an entire week off work (next week!!) for the specific purpose of crafting, working on projects around the house, and whatever else I want to do. I am sure that I will spend some extra time with Meredith too, but I am pretty excited about the prospect of getting so much done. Therefore, most of my goals this month are personal.

    There is the monthly quilt progress, and then I will actually have to take my sewing machine in to be looked at which is kind of a bummer. No matter what I do the thread on the underside is loopy and loose. I thought it was me being a newbie, but I had my brother’s girlfriend who sews professionally look at it and she couldn’t figure out why it was doing that either. I am hoping it’s an easy and cheap fix.

    On my vacation I also want to do a huge closet purge and organization. I don’t have a ton of clothes and I don’t buy them very often but there are a bunch that I don’t wear and I’m ready to start working on my style and this is the first step. My husband also has a ridiculous amount of old clothes and somehow I need to go through them as well (praying for his cooperation here). Meredith just got a bunch of hand-me-downs and since space is limited in her closet I have to do a purge on her stuff more frequently and it’s definitely time for that.

    I’m excited to get completely caught up on Project Life and also to take on a “just for fun” craft that I didn’t get to do last month. I am also trying to start thinking of my house in terms of small areas or corners instead of by entire rooms so it’s less overwhelming. There are a couple of areas (mainly the breakfast nook and the front sitting room) that are very close to what I’d call “complete” and I think if I put my mind to it I can finish one of them.

    Finally, I want to continue to focus on my marriage. Taking inspiration from The Happiness Project (which I loved and skim through every now and then) I want to do more outward showing of love. No matter how great my feelings or thoughts are toward my husband, he won’t know of them unless I tell him or show him. I tend to let busyness and childcare and fatigue get the best of me and I find myself slacking in our relationship. But if I just put forth a little extra effort life is so much better.

    Also, I realized this morning that I didn’t get my act together to post this month’s Book of Lists on the appointed day, so I’ll be doing that next Monday, April 8.

  • march goals update

    Here’s how I did with my March goals.

    No screens while with people. I think I did really well with this! It was hard at first, but I got used to it pretty quickly and pulled out my phone less and less. I am a little sad that I haven’t been very active on Twitter or Instagram lately, and I do miss that interaction, but my life is very full right now.

    Do The Love Dare. This is a relationship challenge that lasts 40 days and each day includes a few pages of reading, a challenge, and a space for journaling. I have been very consistent in reading each day and I have tried to follow through on the challenge if it applies to our situation. I have done journaling only sporadically but I’ve still appreciated the daily reminder to not neglect my marriage and I feel like in general our relationship has improved because of it.

    Cut all blue triangles for quilt. I completed this in a couple of hours one weekend and it was very satisfying to finally DO something with that fabric. I can’t wait to see it come together.

    Honor the speed limit. I did this. I wasn’t always perfect, but overall I was aware of what the speed limit was and stayed within 5 mph of it. I enjoyed the freedom of not having to worry about getting pulled over, and I felt safer. This, like the “no screens” goal, is a change that feels right and won’t be too hard for me to keep doing.

    One craft or project just for fun. The spirit of this goal was not fulfilled, since I wanted it to be for something completely different and random. I did things for fun, like the quilt cutting, Project Life, working on a cross stitch, and making a birthday card for a friend, but those all served different purposes. Next month I’ll have more time so I think this will be a carry-over.

    Get caught up on bills. After a rough start financially in 2013, we are finally in a much better place. We are caught up on bills and unplanned expenses and should be able to start saving more from here on out.

    More family walks. We did go on more, say 1-2 a week, but before this month we hardly took any walks at all. I would like to do this a few times a week ideally.

    March felt really busy for some reason and was kind of a drag at times. But I am loving the monthly goals format and I’m so glad I chose to do it this year. April goals coming tomorrow!

  • cross stitch #1 : welcome

    cross stitch 1-welcome

    Okay! Today I finally have my first cross stitch project to share.

    This is a pattern that I kind of improvised. I saw something like it in a thrift store, took a picture, and made my own. I chose the colors based on another painting we have hanging in our entryway. I also framed it really quickly so pay no attention to the wrinkles; obviously I have some practice to do. And can you spot the mistake in the second E? I got careless while I was watching a movie and decided it wasn’t worth the trouble to fix it.

    DSCF4087

    And here is where I hung it up. Someone is testing her boundaries in this photo, seeing if she can escape outside. :)

    DSCF4088

    Later that day after I hung this up David pointed it out to me on his own with no prompting on my part and told me that he likes it. So! Success in my book.

  • march goals

    march goals

    Whew. For the past several weeks I’ve felt very off-kilter in my routines, in my relationships, and in my goals. In March I want to get back on track. The first two goals are specifically targeting my relationship with David. I am not going to have my phone out in front of him (or anyone else, including Meredith) at all because I want to be giving my full attention. The Love Dare is a book I got as a gift years ago that I barely gave a second thought to other than assuming it was totally cheesy. But last week I pulled it out and discovered that it has a lot to offer. Each day you read a couple pages about one aspect of love, followed by a challenge to act on that day, and then a space for journaling. It’s actually 40 days long and I’ve already started it, but I want to continue it this month.

    Then we have my monthly quilt goal; originally I wanted to aim for getting ALL the cuts done, but I’ve never done this before and I don’t know how long it’ll take me so I settled for half. Once I get started on this it will deserve a post of its own.

    Honor the speed limit is something that’s been brewing in my mind for awhile. I am not a reckless driver but I tend to go a little faster than the rest of traffic and I really just want to slow down and be more cautious in general. I feel like driving is a good starting point. My intention is not to be annoyingly strict with this, but to be aware of what the speed limit is and stay within 5 mph or so of it.

    I threw the “just for fun” craft or project in there because I’ve been feeling very inspired creatively lately, but haven’t had a chance to act on it. I want to make time to do something extra this month. We’ve been behind financially for a little while and this month we’ll finally be able to get caught up and start saving again. That will feel so good. And finally: the weather has been beautiful, Meredith loves riding in her stroller, we need to be more active, and family walks are the perfect way to spend time together.

    Here’s to spring being right around the corner.