Looking Ahead

Today Ian and I had a snow day...well, I guess it was more of an ice-day, really. He has been busy shoveling ice, snapping pictures, keeping the fire going, and writing about the storm and the look of Quaint Oaks under a half inch of ice. I have been cooking chicken noodle soup, sewing (yes, sewing) a little secret project of mine which I will share later, and looking ahead at 2011. I am not one for New Year Resolutions...too much pressure and eventual let-down. Instead, I thought I should try to look at 2011 and set some general goals that Ian and I hope to meet. They give us some direction to our plans and projects here on the home front. So, here they are...

I think it is fair to say that we can check off January. We wanted to start a blog, and I think that while we are still learning the ropes, we are well on our way.

I may have mentioned this earlier, but right before Christmas, Quaint Oaks looked beautiful! Then, I'm not sure what happened. Gifts? Shopping? Christmas decorating and clean up? Whatever it was, it just doesn't look the same. We have got to re-decorate our house (without buying a thing!) and also tidy up a bit. Also, we have been learning our new camera. By the end of February, I hope to have the house where I want it and the camera mastered (by my standards) so that I can post some after pictures.

In our house tour pictures, you can that we are in serious need of a headboard. I'm thinking an antique door might be perfect in our room. More on this in March.

As you can see from our recent snow and ice pictures, our gutters have taken a beating. We are hoping to replace all of our gutters in April...just in time for April Showers! Maybe we'll even get around to painting the nasty blood red trim outside.

I have been patiently waiting for new rugs in the living room and guest room, and also carpeting under our bed upstairs. It hasn't been at the top of our list of priorities, and because of the rooms' dimensions, everything needs to be custom ordered. May...maybe...fingers crossed!

June brings summer vacation. Perfect time to try something new. More on this later.

Ian and I have been talking about trying to have friends and family over. We are hoping to host something in July. It needs to be a summer month because our house is too quaint to host an indoor party. So, mark your calendars!

If our records are correct, we should be able to pay off at least one of our credit cards by August. That's going to be a great feeling!

When we go back to school in September, we are both going to be pretty busy getting into the swing of our routines. We still have to eat, though! I am going to try to make 10 new recipes...and I'll share them all.

October will be our 2nd anniversary, so it's a perfect time to go someplace new. Someplace in New England? Upstate New York? Canada? We're open to suggestions.

If my math is correct, and if all goes as planned, then we should be able to post our 100th post by November! Maybe we'll even have a few more followers.

I think I am most excited for December. Anyone who knows me, knows that I have always been a Grinch about the holidays. Something about this past year, though...I don't know, but I really got into the spirit. Seeing other blogs and websites with so many great ideas, I was really inspired to try some projects of my own. I already have a notebook with a list of holiday to-do's. I think that 5 crafts is a reasonable goal for the holiday season!

So that's it. If all goes well, we will have a new headboard, new rugs, new gutters, great food, funky holiday crafts, and great memories going into 2012. Oh yeah...and a growing blog.