March 2011 Highlight Reel

In March, there were memories to preserve:

• My granddaughter turned 5 this month! Even though I were not there to help celebrate, I did get to spend time with her on Skype several times over the month.
• My youngest son turned 21 this month! I am very proud of him. I know he reads this blog, so, “I love you, Charles, and am very proud of the young man you have become!”
• For the recluse that I am, I had a lot of social interaction this month. We had friends over early in the month for chili and games (we played the card game Fluxx and then some Wii Mario Kart). I met with a cousin for lunch in Tombstone one day and then met with another cousin for a visit to the Tucson Botanical Gardens. Fun times.
• I had my first visit to a Butterfly Exhibit and I want to go again!

In March, there were things that deserved editing:

• This month we experienced continued employment concerns and I have found it more difficult to remain calm in the face of such uncertainty.  Thankfully Bill and I seem to be (mostly) on the same page with this concern, so we’ll get through it.  We should know by next month’s Recap just what we will be doing for the future.

In March, there were the moments that hold our lives together:

• More dental work for me (I’m almost done, except it’ll soon be time for a cleaning again!).
• Clogging class and square dancing on Friday nights.
• Evening walks where Bill and I talk over our day and get some fresh air, sunshine and exercise.

In March, there were mountains climbed:

• I discovered in mid-March, through an exercise on The Dao of Doing, the power of the right affirmation.  I tried to create an affirmation that would help me tackle Quicken and empower me to keep it up to date, but the more I focused on the specific task (accounting), the more discouraged I got.  Finally I stumbled across this affirmation on Chellie Cambell’s Financial Stress Reduction blog:  “ I am full of Joyful Energy!”  The more I repeat that affirmation, the happier I am and the more energy I have.  It really is what got my butt in gear during the last two weeks of March in so many areas of my life, but most particularly with the accounting/bookkeeping stuff that I usually dread (hate) doing.
• Quicken is up to date, as of March 31^st!  Doing our taxes is next, but that will take only a matter of a couple of hours, now that Quicken is current.
• In addition to Quicken being up to date, my Financial Diary is also current.  In the process of getting my Financial diary up to date, I’ve realized how much I really like having this system of keeping our financial life organized.  So much so that I am going to set up a website to “share” my system; I know it has made my life easier and I’m sure others will benefit from my experience.
• I have been able to keep my desk mostly clear of junk.  I process the previous days mail each morning, have kept a very clear spot to the right for the laptop (so I can Skype) and have only one small pile of papers to deal with on the left side of the desk.  Even Bill remarked earlier this week about how clean I was keeping my desk!
• Bill and I started up again with the South Beach Diet.  In two and a half weeks he has lost 10 pounds and I’ve lost 6, but then I’ve not been quite so strict following the diet as he has.
• Thirty-six posts here in March!  I’ve had so much fun with the Mommytography’s 365 Project.

In March, there were pitfalls to overcome:

• Only two posts for the LeapingFromTheBox.com blog and no updates done to the main website.  This is going to be where I concentrate efforts in April (provided I don’t have to spend most of my time in the job hunt process).
• Guitar practice has not been done at all.  Each month I remind myself to begin again with it, and then the month flies by and I realize I have not picked it up even once.  I think, with the stress of the job situation and possible move,  that I am going to let this one go for a while and try again another time.

My favorite picture this month wasn’t even taken by me! Here’s Munchkin with birthday cake frosting on her nose! This picture has been my desktop background all month!