I slacked off with my posting and updates, and I slacked off on the “doing Things” part of it too. I’m not gonna do a complete update, but I did check off things on my official list in my 2017 My Shining Year workbook. Saturday night, December 30, and I’m at 49/100 done. I’m bummed because I wanted to beat last year, which was 58/100. So my goal for the next 26 hours is to do as many Things as I can…. which is just 5 more. The videos (#7-#9) will be easy. I can also write a poem (#22), and do 20 minutes of silent meditation (#24). So that will bring me up to 54 – it’s more than half, and only 4 less than 2016. I can settle for that.

Another goal for the next 26 hours is to write my list of 100 Things to Do in 2018, and to work on other activities from the 2018 My Shining Year workbook. (Actually, I think I’m gonna backtrack to the first year, which was 2010 and I still have the ebook on my computer.) I’m going to write things from the ebook into a notebook that I can color and doodle and write in throughout the year.

If you click on the progress bar in the right side of the page, you can see the complete updated list.

43/100 – Thing 62 – take Charlotte on a picnic at Bowdoin Park, 9/8/17
It wasn’t a picnic, but Charlotte and I went to the park with my parents to play at the playground. And we did sit at a picnic table and eat Smartfood White Cheddar Popcorn, so I’m counting it.

44/100 – Thing 66 – go to the Mid-Hudson Valley Gem & Mineral Show (September-ish), 9/16/17
I was so excited to go to the gem show, because this year I actually saw my high school Earth Science/Advanced Geology teacher! I have gone to the annual show a few times since graduating, always hoping to see him. I took Earth Science as a Freshman, and then chose to take his Advanced Geology class as a Junior. And then, he asked me to come help him out when I was a Senior so I was a student teacher for him. He took up a half page in my Senior yearbook when I asked him to sign it, and I stapled on the opposing page the graduation card he gave me, which had another long personal note for me. I’m sad that we lost touch, and surprised he still has the same email address he had when I graduated 17 years ago! I was almost giddy when I saw him again, and I’m glad to have another chance to keep in touch.

45/100 – Thing 43 – throw Charlotte a 3rd birthday party, 9/23/17
We had a great day! After going apple picking (that should be on my List next year) the Sunday before, we made an apple cake for Char’s birthday party. It was delicious. I used a yellow cake mix and added a teaspoon of cinnamon. I left out the oil, and instead I used two grated apples, and two diced apples. I used a plain white buttercream frosting. My mom was concerned that I added cinnamon and no sugar, but the sweetness of the apples balanced it out. Charlotte had a wonderful birthday, and her favorite present is definitely her LeapPad tablet from Grandma and Grandpa!

46/100 – Thing 26 – attend a flea market, 10/7/17
Mark and I left Char with Grandma and Grandpa, and went to the Stormville Flea Market. Wow, is it huge! The land used to be an airport, and the rows of vendors go on and on. We didn’t buy anything aside from food, but… we did have some really yummy food! It was fun, and it was nice to basically have a date with my husband.

Things Done Each Month:
January – 8
February – 10
March – 6
April – 5
May – 2
June – 2
July – 7
August – 2
September – 3
October – 1

If you click on the progress bar in the right side of the page, you can see the complete updated list, even before my monthly update posts at the end of the month.

34/100 – Thing 15 – get a manicure, 7/7/17
35/100 – Thing 16 – get a pedicure, 7/7/17
My sister got married July 8th, so the day before I went for manicures and pedicures with her and Mom. I went with hot pink polish, which is my usual color.

36/100 – Thing 47 – visit Canada, 7/7/17
I’m going to be creative like I was last year and count this as “done” even though it’s not traveling there as I had hoped. Much of my Dad’s family lives in Canada, and many came to my sister’s wedding. The night before, we had a big dinner out with the Canadians who were in town.

37/100 – Thing 81 – Do a random act of kindness, 7/15/17
I know this is a little thing, but I am checking it off anyway. I was buying a snack at a gas station and left my change in the “Leave a Penny, Take a Penny.”

38/100 – Thing 82 – Order room service, 7/20/17
My husband had surgery this morning, so we ordered up dinner in our hotel room instead of going out that night. The order was not right, and he had to call to have them correct it. The woman who was doing the room service that night was so nice about it, even when we told her she had still forgotten a dressing, and she even let us request a dessert on her.

39/100 – Thing 78 – read the Eve Marie Mont Unbound trilogy (A Breath of Eyre, A Touch of Scarlet, and A Phantom Enchantment), finished 7/26/17
I LOVED this trilogy! My favorite part is that the author didn’t stick with the “character stuck in a book” trope for each book. Instead, while big chunks of the first book were Emma as Jane Eyre, the second book had a lot less time spent in The Scarlet Letter, and the third had some similarity to Phantom of the Opera but Emma retained her identity the entire time. The end of the third book was a shock, not what I was expecting at all but I actually really liked it.

40/100 – Thing 34 – don’t wait until Halloween to figure out a rockin’ costume, 7/31/17
I’m going to count this as done, even though it was hardly rockin’ – for my Halloween in July program at the library, I dressed up as a ballerina. It was a blouse and skirt I wear often, ballet flats, and put my hair in a bun.

41/100 – Thing 100 – Buy something for a total stranger off their wishlist/registry, 8/12/17
Again, maybe I’m being a bit generous by granting myself this one, but that’s okay. It’s not like anyone can judge me for it but me, and I’m okay with it. I bought two items from the registry of a second cousin’s registry for the baby shower for his ____ (wife? girlfriend?) – see? I don’t even know who she is, this definitely counts as buying something for a stranger.

42/100 – Thing 50 – Take Charlotte to a Renegades game, 8/13/17
I took Charlotte to the Princess Party game. She didn’t really appreciate the princess party (maybe it would have been better had Ariel or Rapunzel been there), but she had fun the rest of the night. And our team won the game, yay!

Other Things I’ve started: I started to read Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh (Thing 70) and after 21%, I’ve marked it abandoned because I just can’t get into it. Do Morning Pages for 60 straight days (Thing 14) – I tried earlier this year and missed a day after 45 or so days in a row, which was so frustrating that I had to give up for a while. I started again on August 15, so Day 60 if I keep up with it will be October 13.

Things Done Each Month:
January – 8
February – 10
March – 6
April – 5
May – 2
June – 2
July – 7
August – 2

If you click on the progress bar in the right side of the page, you can see the complete updated list, even before my monthly update posts at the end of the month.