Monthly Review of Goals from July

July went by quickly because I worked all month. It was really hard for me to exercise when I was working because I was exhausted each day. I tried to make myself work out but my body just wasn’t as willing as my mind was. All of my goals can be found here.

Yearly goals:

1. Try at least 12 new recipes (one per month).
1. January – Quinoa Meatballs
2. February – Mushroom Lasagna
3. March – Chicken Quesadilla
4. April – Grilled Asian Chicken
5. May – Simple Green Smoothie
6. June - Barbecue Ribs with my father’s secret barbecue sauce. This is the first time I’ve made ribs.
7. July – The plant engineer at the school gave me loads of squash, zucchini, and cucumbers. So, I diced up some chicken and sautéed it with the diced up squash, zucchini, green peppers, onions, mushrooms, and garlic. I added oyster sauce and soy sauce too. It came out really tasty.
2. Reach my target weight by the end of the year. – I lost one pound this month.
3. Knit a Fair Isle vest. (not started yet)
4. Learn to chain ply some handspun yarn. (I finished this in July and I’m glad I tried it. I think I overplied the final yarn though. I need to learn to treadle slower so it doesn’t twist so tightly and kink up on itself.)
5. Dye yarn and fiber. (not started yet)
6. Spin my camel, yak, and cashmere fiber. Amended to add: or try different techniques
1. January - spun camel/merino/silk blend fiber in
2. March – tried drafting back when spinning instead of my usual short forward draft. This made my yarn turn out much loftier.
3. April – Spun my yak/merino fiber

Daily/Weekly/Monthly goals:

1. Daily - Read the bible and keep a log so I can tell how I am doing. – I’ve read it every day in January, February, March, April, May, June, and July.
2. Daily - Do strength exercises for 30 minutes each day. – I have done this every day.
3. Weekly - Walk at least 10,000 steps for 4 days every week. (4.3 miles per day for 4 days/120.4 miles per month)
1. a. January – 159.01 miles (avg. 5.1 miles per day)
2. February – 130.27 miles (avg. 4.7 miles per day)
3. March – 161.13 miles (avg.5.2 miles per day)
4. April – 166.86 (avg. 5.5 miles per day)
5. May - 144.34 miles (avg. 4.7 miles per day)
6. June - 139.99 miles (avg. 4.67 miles per day)
7. July - 117.02 miles (avg. 3.77 miles per day)
4. Weekly - Keep a journal and write down 5 things that I’m thankful for. – Every Sunday I take time to jot down the 5 things. – I did much better in July.
5. Monthly - Read one non-fiction book every month.
1. January - Life in Stitches by Rachel Herron.
2. February – The Spinners Book of Yarn Design by Sarah Anderson
3. March – To Sell is Human by Daniel Pink
4. April – David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell
5. May – The Biography of Shirley Jones
6. June – Spartan Up by Joe De Sena
7. July – Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

I’m pleased with what I did accomplish this month even though I didn’t exercise enough. There are only 2 out of 6 things on my yearly goal list that haven’t been started yet. I’ve also been keeping up with my daily, weekly, and monthly goals so far. By making myself accountable each month, I have been able to accomplish these goals easily.

Image: 'Goals' 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/68131855@N00/739519564
Found on flickrcc.net