Monkey Two Toe New Year 2008 - a post in three chapters

Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except For Me And My Monkey

The Heart Monkey hats were delivered today, and they were a big hit. And by "a big hit", I mean that they fit J_____ and Heart Monkey, respectively, and that both seemed happy to pose for photos wearing the hats. J____'s hat looks a little small in this photo, but I think she might be wearing pigtails underneath--it didn't seem like it would pop off of her head or anything. Heart Monkey's hat fits just fine, thanks to his squishy head.

Two Toe Tuesday: New Year's Day edition

In other news, I recently finished the Poppy Socks, but I've been holding off on posting them because I just delivered them to E__ (mother of the monkeys above) today. I love this yarn (it's from the Sundara Petals Collection), and am planning to use the ample leftovers for new socks that will be cast on today. I really like this pattern, although the toe is not one that I've used before and I'm not 100% sure that I love it. E__--keep me posted on whether it's comfortable! This is only the third finished pair logged into Ravelry, which feels like a low number to me. Maybe a lot of other people also fell behind in their sock club knitting??

Happy New Year, 2008!

I've been reading a lot about resolutions that people are making and goals that they are setting for 2008, both on blogs and on Ravelry. There are definitely some things that I'm planning to work on this year, but I hate to spell them out because they're soooooooo subject to change, and they aren't that different from anyone elses' resolutions. I've been trying to think of a way to categorize, prioritize, and plan realisically, and while I feel like I'm making progress I don't have an actionable plan ready today, January 1. Also, much of this type of planning feels like what I am responsible for at work, which makes it a less attractive home activity.

So at the risk of sounding totally unoriginal and unrealistic, here are some 2008 goals / things to work towards:

• TCB: Stop falling behind on routine, no-big-deal things that could turn into big problems with neglect. Stop turning things that are fun (like Holiday Cards?) into a chore. Stop turning small chores (putting away one load of laundry) into giant chores (putting away months worth of laundry).
• Cut Back on Spending: I'm starting to plan a big trip in May that will be a lot more fun if I save up plenty of $$ in advance. I'm not talking about deprivation, just not spending on unnecessary things (like one more sock club) or things that add up but that I don't enjoy (like crappy take out lunches).
• Get into a Healthy Exercise Routine: Three or four years ago, I was exercising regularly and weighed a fair amount less. I fell out of this habit during a period of job (or rather no job) related stress, and never quite got back into the habit. Again, my big trip in May will be a lot more fun if I am in better shape, and looking better than I do now won't hurt, either. Because there will be photographs.

Now the tricky part starts--the real planning and execution phase. I'm not sure how much I'll report on these goals in the general course of blogging, but I did want to put them "on paper" so that I have a checkpoint / reminder for myself going forward.