Soup to Dutts

So I've definitely been MIA here the last few months. Sorry! I'm still chugging along on my 99-in-999 , and this weekend, I was able to knock out a pretty big goal: organizing the storage room. This has actually been a goal of mine ever since we moved into this house, almost 3.5 years ago, so it feels incredibly good to finally have it completed. Here's a before pic... This is just a fraction of the clutter. What you can't see is that there are many more piles of stuff just to the right, as well as another shelf in complete disarray. I ended up just taking every single thing out, getting rid of stuff we don't want/need/use, and putting back what was left in a more organized fashion. And after... Yes, it's still cozy, and there's a lot of stuff. But you can walk from one end of the room to the other without having to clear a path! And everything in this room is in a place that actually makes sense, which is more than I could say before this

#2. Watch every Best Picture Oscar winner... Last weekend, Tom and I watched An American in Paris . We both love musicals, and this one was no exception. Gene Kelly was fabulous (as always), and you can't possibly go wrong with the music of George and Ira Gershwin. I do have a question, though: Why did so many musicals from that time have these incredibly long dance numbers that seem to have nothing to do with the rest of the story? I mean, I love watching dance as much as the next person (especially tap, which I've always kinda wanted to learn #confession), but come on. The one at the end of An American in Paris just went on forever. Oh well. I guess it was just one of those things. #19. Have people over for a meal 10 times. So, the first of 10 of these meals is officially in the books. But we didn't just have people over for a meal; we hosted a full-blown 4th of July party! There were 20+ people in our humble abode, which is the most we've had at one time

I just haven't had a chance to post lately! So, here's a quick recap of some of the progress I've made on the list this month. #1. Have a morning retreat with God once a quarter. Tom had this past Wednesday off from work, and he watched the girls while I spent the morning at Panera having an extended quiet time. I may just have to write a separate post about this because it was just so good. #2. Watch all of the Best Picture Oscar winners I didn't watch during my last challenge. I watched Spotlight  at the beginning of the month, as one of the first things I did for this list. (It's available for streaming on Netflix right now, so it was a pretty easy one to knock out.) I gotta say, I've never really taken Mark Ruffalo all that seriously as an actor...maybe because I had only seen him in 13 Going on 30 and the Avengers movies. However, I thought he was fantastic in Spotlight . And the plot...such an important issue, and it was told in a way that I

It's June 1! You know what that means...it's the first of 999 days during which I will attempt to complete 99 personal goals. I really hit the ground running this morning, literally. One of the first goals I want to start working on is to get back in shape, so I went for a run. Well, it was more of a walk/run; I'm using an app that allows you to run in short intervals and gradually work your way up to being able to run a 5K (also one of my goals) and eventually a 10K (another one of my goals). Hopefully I'll be able to keep this momentum going. Only time will tell! For the full 99-in-999 list, click here .

Years ago, I came across a friend's blog about 99 goals she wanted to accomplish in 999 days. It sounded like a fun idea, so I decided to  try it myself ; and I had a great time with it! Not long after that challenge ended, Tom and I started a combined 99-in-999 on which we...didn't really make much progress. 😩 But, given my penchant for lists and crossing things off of them, I've decided it's time to try this again, so I'm excited to say that I'll be embarking on a new 99-in-999, starting June 1! A few things have changed since the last time I did this, though, and many of my goals will reflect that... 1) I became a homeowner. Tom and I bought our first house three years ago. We love living here, but it could use some updating (the house is older than either one of us). Additionally, I've been a little slow when it comes to decorating and what-not, so some of my goals will involve putting our own personal touches on the house and continuing to ma

Spring has sprung! You know what that means: spring rain, spring flowers, and...spring cleaning! I don't know about you, but I have my work cut out for me in that last area. Have you ever heard of the KonMari method? It's a different approach to decluttering that's really taken off in the last few years. Rather than going room-by-room, you gather up everything in a certain category (clothes, books, knickknacks, etc.) and as you sort through each category, you get rid of every item that doesn't "spark joy." Unfortunately, it doesn't work on bills. (Heh.) I tried the KonMari method on my wardrobe this past weekend, and it was a surprisingly enlightening experience! Here are some things I learned. 1) My wardrobe had taken over my house.  At the beginning of the weekend, all of my dresser drawers were stuffed full of clothes. I also had a laundry basket overflowing with clothes that wouldn't fit in said drawers. And a flat plastic bin of clot