November Goals Report.

Our first snowfall was Nov 4.

Wow.

I set my goals low: and I failed to meet them.

As far as I recall, I had planned to

1. clean the living room and prepare it for Christmas
2. clean the kitchen
3. plan Christmas activities, begin to make progress on Christmas cards and the calendar
4. sew a slipcover for my POANG chair.

Using small pockets of time, as I found them, I rearranged the living room and decluttered the shelves. I took down the inadequate purple drapes and put up the brown ones.

I purchased some Christmas cards and some paper for the Calendar.
I put up my wreath.

We finished sprucing up the back entry way and I spring-cleaned our bedroom. (Thank goodness.)

We moved out our old range.

After we got it down the three steps from the kitchen to the landing, we realised it was too wide to go through the door. My son had the brilliant idea to remove the stove top. It fit--just barely.

That's it.

I am still finding my feet after starting to work part-time. My hours are erratic and I don't know what they are until three weeks before. (For example, I have no idea what days and hours I am working Christmas week.) Some weeks I work 29 hours, some 22. (The 29 hour weeks have been more common, however. Come to Alberta, people. No one has enough staff.) So far, it seems that all I have time for on my days off is running errands and cleaning the house.

A couple of things I've also managed:

1. keeping our budget up to date. By this, I mean I have been recording what we spend weekly, paying bills on time and paying down our debt. This was why I took a job so it's great to see my efforts actually paying off. (you may groan.)
2. menu planning. I do this weekly, now, because I need the flexibility. It is a chore. But I cannot imagine trying to figure out what's for dinner and checking the freezer, the fridge and the pantry to scrounge something together every single day. Once a week is quite enough!

I volunteered with some parents of my daughter's school this month and I was shocked--not one woman in that room besides myself planned dinner further ahead than that evening. One ate out or microwaved something exclusively, all the time--as did her kids. Unfortunately, I was also the fattest person in the room, so I felt I hadn't much credibility in the "but it is better for you" argument. (Though it is and I know my being fat has nothing to do with it. It is better to eat home cooked meals than processed stuff, no contest. I'd probably be even fatter if we didn't eat at home every night of the week!)

So, I will continue to adjust my expectations and organize my time so I can get out of this cycle of work--do dishes-do laundry-clean the house--work--do dishes-do laundry-clean the house--work--do dishes-do laundry-clean the house--work--and so on.

But, probably not in December!