101 Things in 1001 Days - Round 3

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am starting Round 3 of 101 Things in 1001 Days. (See Round 1 and Round 2, if interested.) Hard to imagine that I've really done this twice now, and I'm ready to go on a third. Whoever originally posted about this idea on my favorite bulletin board had no idea what sort of monster they were creating! LOL What can I say, I love lists.

Believe it or not, I've actually already started my round 4 list, which won't go into effect for another 990+ days! Hey, item 101 on this list is "Have new list of 101 items ready by day 1001." May as well start now, right? (In my defense, the round 4 list only has one item on it: do something big for my 40th birthday.) But let's focus on round 3 for now, shall we?

101 Things in 1001 Days - Version 3

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (i.e. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (i.e. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as new year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities. See also Day Zero Project.

Begin Date: October 1, 2011
End Date: June 28, 2014

Body Building
1. Use facial moisturizer twice a week.
2. Use body lotion once a week.
3. Weekly Item #1.
4. Weekly Item #2.
5. Weekly Item #3.
6. Monthly Item #1.
7. Monthly Item #2.
8. Take a multivitamin and doctor-recommended supplements every day for 90 days.
9. Get a pedicure.
10. Learn CPR.
11. Complete the Couch to 5K program.
12. Weigh less on day 1001 than I did on day 1.

Bon Appetit
13. Try 101 new recipes (can include items below). New cooking blog created for tracking.
14. Try 5 new kinds of cheese.
15. Use the crock pot 15 times.
16. Add 5 new meals to the rotation.
17. Have salad (at home) once a month.
18. Try making Mommy Alice's Chicken and Dumplings.
19. Learn to make biscuits and gravy from Mom.
20. Learn to make pizza dough from scratch.
21. Learn to make pecan pie from scratch (including the crust!).
22. Find a barbecue sauce I like (bottled or homemade).
23. Find a homemade taco seasoning mix I like.
24. Try quinoa.
25. Try Israeli couscous.
26. Make popovers.
27. Make bread from scratch.
28. Make oatmeal from steel cut oats.
29. Roast a whole chicken.
30. Deep fry something.

Home and Hearth
31. Have dinner by candlelight once a year.
32. Buy fresh flowers 10 times.
33. Acquire 5 new kitchen tools. Must be "new to me" tools, not just replacing tools I already have.
34. Acquire additional serving pieces and/or soup spoons.
35. Hang curtains in the master bedroom.
36. Replace overhead lights in kitchen and den.
37. Have gutters cleaned once a year.
38. De-Christmas the house every year before February 15.
39. Get rid of 101 things. Current Total = 0
40. Eliminate 30 boxes from the basement. Current Total = 0
41. Use reusable bags for every trip to the grocery store and Target for 3 months.

Penny Pinching
42. Meal plan every week when home.
43. Track coupon savings weekly.
44. Trash expired coupons monthly.
45. Track Costco savings (every trip, roughly monthly).
46. Keep a running inventory of the pantry (top and bottom). Verify monthly.
47. Keep a running inventory of the freezer. Verify monthly.
48. Keep a running inventory of the baking cabinets (include flour in refrigerator). Verify monthly.
49. Keep a running inventory of all surplus/bulk items stored elsewhere (including location). Verify monthly.
50. Find a good method/location for storing bulk items.
51. Finish reading The Complete Tightwad Gazette.
52. Save "Boxtops for Education" for our elementary school.
53. Search for SwagBucks 20 days a month.

Technobabble
54. Backup photos monthly.
55. Backup documents monthly.
56. Backup blog monthly (including photos).
57. "Watermark" all blog photos going forward.
58. Go back and add watermarks to all photos currently on blog.
59. Backup tweets monthly.
60. Review Twitter followers every 6 months. Block all spammers/bots.
61. Reduce number of people I follow on Twitter by 20%. (Remove from lists, too.) Starting Total = 211, Final Total =
62. Reduce total number of feeds on Google Reader by 20%. Starting Total = 275, Final Total =
63. Review email newsletters every 6 months. Unsubscribe from all those not read in the previous 6 months.
64. Purge email inbox(es) every 3 months.
65. Purge the DVR deleted file weekly.

Strike a Pose
66. Continue with Wordless Wednesday on my blog.
67. Take a picture of Luke once a week (different from Wordless Wednesday).
68. Post at least one non-Luke photo (different from Wordless Wednesday & mosaic) on each monthly Round Up blog entry.
69. Take a picture of the three of us together every 3 months.
70. Take a video every 3 months.
71. Post 5 videos (of mine) to my blog.
72. Keep a running folder of favorite photos to be printed. Have prints made every 6 months.
73. Have 8x10 prints made of some favorite photos and hang them.
74. Have family portraits made with parents and brother.
75. Do Project 365 again (photo a day for a year).

Out and About
76. Visit Ikea.
77. Visit Trader Joe's.
78. Visit the Buford Highway Farmers' Market.
79. Try 10 new restaurants.
80. Go out for a day or evening by myself every 6 months.
81. Visit a friend who lives west of the Mississippi.
82. Volunteer for something at Luke's school.
83. Accept an invitation I would normally turn down.

Fun and Games
84. Have cake/dessert for my and/or DH's birthday every year (homemade or bought). Use candles and sing happy birthday!
85. Read 20 new to me books, including: pre-1950 classic, biography/autobiography, non-fiction book other than a biography.
86. See 50 new to me movies, including: pre-1950 classic, "modern classic", foreign language, film I wouldn't normally choose.
87. Read An Echo In the Bone, by Diana Gabaldon (counts towards the 20).
88. Watch 5 movie commentaries.
89. Watch all episodes of a new to us television show. Must be at least 4 seasons.
90. Complete two (new or previously started) LEGO Wii games. (Complete = story mode, free play, all bars and canisters; superstory, etc. are optional)
91. Learn a song on Guitar Hero or Rock Band at expert level on drums.
92. Learn to whistle loudly (or make a sincere effort to do so).
93. Visit a bead show with Mom.
94. Take Luke bowling.
95. Take Luke to Medieval Times.
96. Take Luke to the Tellus Museum.
97. Teach Luke to play a new card game.
98. Attempt to teach Luke to ride a bike.
99. Attempt to teach Luke to swim (either ourselves or with outside lessons).
100. Complete more items on this 101 list than I did last time. Version 2 Total = 52. Current Version 3 Total =
101. Have new list of 101 items ready by day 1001.