Wow, it has been some time

First things first, my baby girl turns 1 this friday, how crazy is that.......I cannot believe how fast it goes. It seems like yesterday she was born, and here we are having her first birthday party on saturday :) With Abigail turning 1, this means I have to return to work. I go back on Valentine's day, not only do I already hate this holiday, but now I really hate it, lol.....I keep trying to think of ways to not have to go back to work, but unfortunately, I have to. With that being said, I'' move onto the progress of my 101 list.

#1 Read 10 new books (progress)

The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

'Scuse me While I kiss the Sky Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child by: David Henderson

Life by Keith Richards

#14 26 movies starting with a different letter of the alphabet

A: Anvil

B: The Bounty Hunter

C: Crazy Heart

D:

E:

F: Fubar 2

G: Going the Distance

H:

I: Inglorious Basterd's

J:

K: Killers

L:Life as we Know it

M:

N:

O:

P: Pirate Radio

Q:

R:

S: Sex and the City 2

T:

U:

V:

W: Winter's Bone

X:

Y:

Z:

45. Take my daughter to see her great grandma in Barry's Bay (She has moved back to Ottawa, but I will take my daughter to meet her there instead) DONE december 28th.

63. Buy a new wardrobe for work DONE wednesday feb. 9th

71. Find 10 new recipes and try them out over the period of 2 months (see below) ** I need to prolong this as I have been slacking on the recipe front.** will keep u posted

1. Turkey Kielbasa soup (Gross)

2. Turkey Meatloaf ( Quite yummy)

3. Crock-pot Pulled Pork ( Sooooo Good)

4. Swiss Steak ( Unfortunately it needed to be cooked longer, the veggies were too crunchy, but otherwise good)

5. Fettuccine a la Carbonara ( To Die For)

6. Chicken Parmigiana ( Again to die for)

7. Chicken Kiev ( Better than M&M's)

8. Fried Chicken with Creamy Gravy

9. Cheesy Italian Meatball Casserole (Done, not as good as I thought)

98. Learn to drive a ski-doo DONE saturday Feb. 5th at Lonnie's farm

I will try and post this weekend about Abby's party, but can make no guarantees as we are super crazy busy with Jason's Mom on sunday for her 50th bday. I am going to try and be more faithful with my postings when I return to work, as I will have my lunches free to do what I please. Until next time, hope veryone has a great end of week and even better weekend :)

**M**

Re-cap on my 101 List

Okay so as usual I am always posting late, or hardly ever at all, but at least I am making an effort. This post is just a re-cap on my list so you can see my progress, as well as the progress on certain things. So again, here is my list:

Mandy's 101 List:

1. Read 10 new books (See below)

The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult

Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

**The rest to follow soon**

2. Go vegetarian for 1 week

3. Go to Las Vegas

4. Sew an article of clothing

5. Go on a radom road trip

6. Take my parents out to dinner

7. Create a blog and post everyday for a week (Done)

8. Go see a film on opening day

9. Rent a cottage for a weekend with my husband and daughter

10. Take Abby on a trip to see Grandma in Chatham

11. Take a cooking class

12. Quit smoking

13. Lose 25 pounds

14. Watch 26 movies I've never seen starting with each letter of the Alphabet (List of movies to follow soon)

15. Watch a 3D movie

16. Learn to play an instrument

17. Spend more quality time with my husband

18. Plant a tree for Abigail

19. Walk 30 minutes everyday for a week

20. Do my wii fit everyday for a whole month

21. Clean out storage closet (Done)

22. Organise our walk-in closet (Done)

23. Do more things as a family

24. Organise my movies alphabetically (Done)

25. Organise my books

26. Save for and purchase new tv and blu-ray

27. Go on a date every 2nd month (at least) with my husband

28. Learn to shoot a gun (Done)

29. Go partridge hunting with my husband

30. Take swimming classes with my daughter

31. Take a class (Yoga, Dance or maybe an art class)

32. Plan family vacation down east and actually go :)

33. Volunteer in a womans shelter

34. Donate to a charity

35. Make wedding and baby scrapbooks

36. Start writing again

37. Plan and host an elegant dinner party for 6 (Done)

38. Cook a 4 course meal for my husband

39. Organise a girls night every other month

40. Participate in the walk for the cure

41. Get a higher position at work

42. Start looking into prefab homes and planning for our house

43. Become debt free (except for car payment as we just got it a year ago)

44. Get a membership at the library

45. Take my daughter to see her great grandma in Barry's Bay (She has moved back to Ottawa, but I will take my daughter to meet her there instead)

46. Learn to make maple syrup with my husband's family

47. Learn to make christmas ragout and tourtiere with my Dad and Granny (see below) Done

December 11, went to make tourtiere

December 23, making ragout

48. Go to a hockey game with my husband

49. Try dog sledding

50. Go for a hike in the Gatineau park with my family

51. Take 10 minutes everyday for a month to clear my mind

52. Make pasta from scratch

53. Write my will

54. Obtain, fill out and submit forms to have my body donated to science when the time comes

55. Somehow help troubled teens

56. Not log onto facebook for a full week

57. Spend a day at the spa with my mom and pay for it

58. Grow an herb garden

59. Learn to make pickles

60. Host a poker night

61. Join a league ( besides baseball )

62. Grow my nails long

63. Buy a new wardrobe for work

64. Try canoeing

65. Make 3 new friends

66. Go horseback riding

67. Learn to crochet

68. Learn another language

69. Play bingo

70. Write a letter to myself to open in 10 years

71. Find 10 new recipes and try them out over the period of 2 months (see below)

1. Turkey Kielbasa soup (Gross)

2. Turkey Meatloaf ( Quite yummy)

3. Crock-pot Pulled Pork ( Sooooo Good)

4. Swiss Steak ( Unfortunately it needed to be cooked longer, the veggies were too crunchy, but otherwise good)

5. Fettuccine a la Carbonara ( To Die For)

6. Chicken Parmigiana ( Again to die for)

7. Chicken Kiev ( Better than M&M's)

8. Fried Chicken with Creamy Gravy

9. Cheesy Italian Meatball Casserole (Done, not as good as I thought)

10. I haven't found one yet, I'll keep you posted

72. Go to an arcade

73. Go to the casino and put 25$ on black

74. Go to the christmas craft sale

75. Get a puppy

76. Go see a play

77. Go see a musical

78. Do a random act of kindness for a stranger

79. Create a recipe book

80. Go without internet for a week

81. Have a spa day

82. Carve my name on a tree

83. Watch the sunrise and sunset in the same day ( Done , December 15, 2010 )

84. Save $5 for every task I complete

85. See a drive-in movie

86. See 10 classic movies I've never seen

87. Leave an inspirational note inside a book for someone to find

88. Put 5$ into a savings account for my daughter for every uncompleted task

89. Have a game night with friends

90. Put up blinds in my daughter's room finally

91. Go to church with my grandmother and daughter on christmas eve

92. Spend a whole day watching movies in bed

93. Send a message in a bottle

94. Go on the haunted walk of Ottawa

95. Go to the war museum

96. Finish reading the Harry Potter books (I'm in the middle of #5)

97. Go skating on the canal with my husband and have beavertails and hot chocolate

98. Learn to drive a ski-doo

99. Go snow-shoeing (sp?)

100. Get a new hairstyle ( Done, I dyed my hair a deep chestnut brown for the winter)

101. Get a tattoo of my daughter's name

Now, I do not want to have to keep re-posting the list everytime I complete something, so what is the best solution for this? Also, how do you "cross"things off the list,a s in put a line through it on here? Any ideas or help would be most appreciated!!!

Hope everyone is well, and is all geared up and ready for the fast approaching holiday season, I know I am. I am very much looking forward to my little pumpkin's first xmas!!!! We bought her an awesome wagon that converts into a sled!!! We also took her to see Santa last week at Carlingwood, what an experience, poor pet cried the whole time :( Hopefully I get to post again before xmas, but if not I wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas!!!! Goodnight to all.

Again, it has been sometime.....

Hope everyone is well out there!! I myself have had better weeks, I am in the midst of quitting smoking!!! I know I know, should have never started, but better late than never right? So I actually went over 72hours without a smoke before I caved, but I will be right back on track as of now! I bought myself enough gum to last a lifetime and will use the nicorette inhaler this time to help with the "nic-fits" I cannot do this cold turkey. So once I have completed this no smoking I can check it off my list as one of the biggest accomplishments on my 101 list. I apologise in advance to all that will have to endure more mood swings from me again.

RE #71 Try 10 new recipes in 2 months

I started this task on October 28th, so I still have time to complete but so far here are the recipes I have tried:

1. Turkey Kielbasa soup (Gross)

2. Turkey Meatloaf ( Quite yummy)

3. Crock-pot Pulled Pork ( Sooooo Good)

4. Swiss Steak ( Unfortunately it needed to be cooked longer, the veggies were too crunchy, but otherwise good)

5. Fettuccine a la Carbonara ( To Die For)

6. Chicken Parmigiana ( Again to die for)

7. Chicken Kiev ( Better than M&M's)

Here are my 3 other recipes to make before my deadline of Dec. 28th:

8. Fried Chicken with Creamy Gravy

9. Cheesy Italian Meatball Casserole

10. I haven't found one yet, I'll keep you posted

If anyone would like a recipe let me know and I will send it to you, I think it would be too long to type them all out in a post.

On another note, I found a daycare for Abigail!!! We went to meet the lady in Aylmer tonight at her home, awesome lady, clean home and Abby took to her right away, I have a great feeling about her! So next week Abby will start a slow integration into daycare, as I have to start paying her as of next week to keep my spot with her, since she is also subsidized, what great luck I had there!!

Hope everyone enjoyed the post and hope to be posting again soon. Cheers to all,

~M~

It's been some time......

Hope everyone is doing well! I am doing okay, Abby has been acting u quite a bit lately, with not sleeping her nights or napping, changed form formula to milk, and having temper tantrums, it has been a super long hunting season for me, since Jason was gone 4 weekends. Needless to say, I am wiped out. Which is why I haven't been blogging much or attempting any tasks on my list :( I am hoping to find that motivation again!!!!

So again I have decided to one of my tasks, the one where I have to read 10 new books. I think it was # 1....

Here is the OLD list:

My Booky Wook by Rusell Brand

Love Janis by Laura Joplin

Always a Bridesmaid by Whitney Lyles

The Petty Details of so and so's Life by Camilla Gibb

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Red, White and Drunk All Over by Natalie Maclean

The Pilot's Wife by Anita Shreve

Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella

Queenpin by Magan Abbott

Nevermind the Goldbergs by Matthue Roth

And here is the start to my NEW list:

The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult

Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (DONE)

Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

There are 3 more but haven't gotten them yet. The reason I changed books was because I read The Tenth circle this weekend and absolutely loved it. I loved the way it was written. So my mom who is a big fan of the author lent me a bunch more of her books, which made me change the list since I just love the style of writing so much. I will still read the books from the old list, just not right away!!!!

Anyways, I will hopefully be back tomorrow with the recipes I promised the last time I blogged, as well as the 7 other new recipes I have to make before Dec. 28th, to complete yet another task :) Have a good night all!!!

~M~

#71

As I said earlier this week I am attempting my 10 new recipes, the first was the turkey kielbasa soup (gross). Last night I made a homestyle country meatloaf with ground turkey instead of beef, sooooo yummy. I will post the recipe later tonight if I have time. Today I made pulled pork in the crock (also new recipe) I hope its as yummy as it smells ( will post recipe if it is ). So far that makes 3 out of 10.

Today has been a long day filled with cooking and cleaning, we have Jason's granny and Aunt coming for dinner, so in case the pulled pork doesn't turn out I also made a double batch of homemade chilli :) I have been craving chilli for some reason, maybe it's the fall weather, but it is such a great comfort food in my opinion!!! I am looking forward to a good night's sleep, the hubby leaves tomorrow after school for the hunt, hope he gets lucky on the first day and brings us home a big monster buck for the freezer!!! Then I can really get cooking!!!! I am going to the halloween party this saturday and am really looking forward to some me time and of course some beers, lol....What's a bday party without a few pints right!!!! Anyhoot, I'm off for now, and I will try and get those recipes posted later or tomorrow!! Have a good evening all.

A few changes

Hope everyone is doing well!!! I am completely wiped out myself, if only my daughter would sleep 1 whole night, ahhh now that would be heaven :)

Okay so here are some changes I have made to my 101 list, as well as things completed. I'll start with the tasks I have completed,

#37 Host a dinner party for 6

Saturday (Oct. 23) I hosted a fancy fondue party for 6 people plus myself. It was a success and a lot of fun too.

#71 Try 10 new recipes in 2 months

I started this today, I made a kielbasa & lentil soup, It was soooooo gross I am not even going to share the recipe, haha. So 1 down 9 to go. Tomorrow I will be a trying a turkey meatloaf recipe, Thursday crock-pot pulled pork sandwiches. I will keep you posted :)

Onto changes made to the list:

#2 Go vegetarian for 1 month has now been changed to Go vegetarian for 1 week

#96 Finish reading the TruBlood series and return to friend has been changed to finish the Harry Potter books. I really can' get into the TruBlood series, I got as far as the 3rd book and I am just not into them. So I will return them to my friend now.

For now that's it for changes and completed tasks. Hope to knock a few more off the list in the upcoming weeks. Hope everyone has a great night :)

HELP!!!!

So I am going to a halloween party next weekend and want to dress up...However I don't own a costume, I was thinking of going as an 80's aerobics instructor or something from the 80's, this is where I need the help. I am looking to get stuff cheap or borrowed, does anyone have any ideas of where to shop or have anything I can borrow? Please let me know, I would like to get this together asap!!!! Hope everyone is having a great day!