Just Blog Already…

giphyIn February, I was at a work conference in Vegas and I brought my best girlfriend along. I  work in the Higher Education field and I love being surrounded by people who are doing amazing things on their campuses and beyond. My girlfriend was also feeling the inspiration and one afternoon, we starting mapping out her plan for a new blog.

This past week, she finally put the plan in motion and was daunted/terrified/intimidated by the process of starting up this new venture. I admit, I might have overwhelmed her talking about tagging posts and scheduling and domain names… and content creation and target audience and visual elements… and social media and Introduction vs. Personal Bio…

We have a tentative work day scheduled to get the blogging basics down, but naturally my mind drifted back to this little space. If I’m consulting and helping her build a new online identity, I should probably spend a little time working on my own.

My goal for this first year of working mom-hood was to just time-manage, find a way to get back to single-life productivity while having twin infants and a full household. At the one-year mark, I think I fulfilled that goal with the help of family, a part-time nanny, and my husband’s new job that allows him to work most of the week.

I will be the first to admit that this does feel like cheating. With both parents working from home who can also afford outside help, we didn’t have to compromise as much of our time or our professional lives to make our family function.

I knew that our unique situation would allow me the freedom to create a schedule and work-life blend. It also makes our home a little more egalitarian. I did not have to make sacrifices as the female, my husband does an equal share and spend equal time with the girls, and we are both able to get out of the house as needed for time alone.

So now that I have a new 2020 planner (and have #101in1001 items like “Start a bullet journal/planner hybrid” and “Instate a weekly blog time”), it’s time to put that plan into motion.

Here are my Motivational Prompts to get back to blogging:

  1. Writing comes easier the more you do it.
    I work with authors. They have writing goals. Write often. Make it a habit. Just get the words down.
  2. If you are not excited about what you’re writing, no one else will be. If you’re doing it right, it shouldn’t feel like work.
  3. Ideas have their own lives. 
    If you put your great idea on the backburner for to long, it will find someone else. (As per Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert)
  4. So it is written, so it shall be done.
    I found that the more I write and share my goals, the more I get them done. I posted about every run I had training for my last race. I took photos of my accomplished goals and shared them on Twitter and Instagram. If I want to make a shift and start reaching for higher and higher goals, writing about them makes me accountable and motivated.

This blog doesn’t really have a target audience or a mission. I don’t have a content calendar, and I’m not trying to monetize. It’s about building my home, literally and metaphorically. It’s not inspirational or influential, but if it fills that need in genuine way, then I’m happy.

1,001 day break up

It was pretty easy to calculate. I had just posted my 2nd #101in1001 list, and now I’m back on the blog to prep for my 3rd list.

The period between October 2016 and November 2017 was filled with just that, periods. Troy and I went on a depressing and frustrating trip through unexplained infertility. After we decided it was time to pull out the medium-sized guns via IUI, we finally became pregnant with two ridiculously cool fraternal girls.

Now the girls are closing in on their first birthday and I can get back to writing on this blog, instead of feeling stressed, exhausted, depressed, and wishing all singleton mommy-bloggers would just suck it…

One of the items on my new list is to find time once a week to blog. I’m not really sure about the direction or purpose I want this blog to fulfill just yet. I’m beyond giving people advice just because, and no one needs another “see how cool my life is” social media influencer.

But now that I’ve committed to this project and am over the break-up, I’ll slowly be updating and refreshing the sections of this page, including an updated restaurant list, new photos of our recent home projects, and my new #101in1001 list, fresh from the kitchen.

xoxo, ~Patti

#101 in 1001, Round 2

101-in-1001Start: October 1, 2016
End: June 29, 2019

  1. Create a 2nd list of 101 things to do. (10/1/16)
  2. Everything important not completed from my first list.

Home

  1. Buy a car March 2018
  2. Buy an instant camera June 2018
  3. Create a P+T photo album January 2019 – Japan and Europe photobooks
  4. Finish styling our first house, inside and out
  5. Frame and hang all of our art
  6. Get a rain barrel June 2019
  7. Get a second pet for the family October 2017 – Fitz
  8. Finish landscaping our front and back yards
  9. Host Thanksgiving November 2018
  10. Make emergency kits/food storage June 2019
  11. Scan all of my mother’s photos
  12. Scan/file/back up our photos
  13. Start a garden May 2018 – Ongoing!
  14. Sustain a lemon tree in Atlanta May 2018
  15. Throw a Quentin Tarantino Party

Style

  1. Buy a pair of Louboutins
  2. Buy my first investment handbag
  3. Have a dress made for me
  4. Get everything on Nina Garcia’s 100 list (24 to go)
  5. Invest in a pair of good hiking boots Hiking shoes will do for now

Travel

  1. Continue trying to visit every state (13 to go, got HI and MI off the list)
  2. Go back to Montana
  3. Go back to Paris and stock up on beauty products
  4. Go on a fitness-based trip Wanderlust Festival April 2019
  5. Go on a girls vacation with more than one other person
  6. Go on a trip with my mom August 2017
  7. Go on a west coast road trip June 2019 – Oregon Coast
  8. Go on an overnight hiking trip
  9. Go south of the equator
  10. Go to a Black Tie function
  11. Go to a cranberry bog
  12. Go to the FL/GA game in Jax
  13. Plan a surprise trip for Troy’s 35th April 2019 – Asheville, NC
  14. See a fjord October 2017 – Hood Canal, WA
  15. See a glacier
  16. See the Northern Lights
  17. Start planning a trip for my 35th – Surfing in Coasta Rica August 2020!
  18. Take a photo with a giant Redwood or Sequoia in California
  19. Take another bucket list trip
  20. Take Troy to Portland June 2019
  21. Travel abroad for Christmas
  22. Visit 3 new countries

Culture

  1. Blow glass or create a stained glass ornament
  2. Buy a substantial piece of art
  3. Create a substantial piece of art
  4. Get my library card October 2016 – Fulton Co. Library
  5. Complete a 642 Things to Write About journal
  6. Complete a Wreck This Journal
  7. Go berry picking, then make jam, then can it June 2017
  8. Go for a full day at the spa
  9. Learn calligraphy April 2019 – GA Pinners Conference
  10. Learn darkroom photography
  11. Learn stick shift
  12. Learn to pick a lock
  13. Re-read Portrait of a Lady
  14. Read every Jane Austen Novel (3/7)
  15. Read the entire Dark Tower series (1/7)
  16. Read the Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide
  17. Read Women in Love
  18. Read 50 books (Only got to 32… I blame being pregnant and tired…)
  19. Reinstate Netflix DVD’s October 2016
  20. Watch the rest of the 100 best movies of all time
  21. Re-learn how to play Cribbage
  22. Ride a Vespa January 2017 – Hawaii
  23. See a Broadway Play April 2017 – Waitress 
  24. See Mariah in Concert February 2019 – Las Vegas
  25. Stay up all night and have breakfast at 3am
  26. Take an oil painting course
  27. Go to a rave
  28. *Bonus* Watch another Oscar Best Picture Showcase February 2017

Health & Fitness

  1. Bowl a 150 average
  2. Complete another indoor Tri January 2019
  3. Do an early morning run every day for one week
  4. Do another 3-day refresh February 2017
  5. Do a juice cleanse
  6. Finish a 10k in under an hour (Best time 1:02)
  7. Learn to play golf
  8. Learn to snowboard (better)
  9. Learn to surf (better)
  10. Nail a crow pose and yoga head stand
  11. Ride a mechanical bull
  12. Run another Disney half marathon
  13. Stay at 120 lbs except if pregnant
  14. Take regular boxing classes
  15. Try acupuncture May 2017-May 2018
  16. Visit a chiropractor September 2017-ongoing

Professional & Finance

  1. Create a Living Will
  2. Develop an idea for a novel
  3. Be a guest blogger/writer on someone’s website
  4. Be part of a startup company
  5. Learn how to code
  6. Pay off my entire Student Loan Debt March 2019
  7. Reach 700 Twitter followers
  8. Take a grant writing class
  9. Take an online class
  10. Write an article for a magazine

For Others

  1. Be a part of the SMS Centennial – SMS Alumnae Board Secretary 2019-2021
  2. Organize one big St. Margaret’s fundraiser
  3. Buy someone the absolute best birthday gift January 2018 – Troy TSA Pre-check
  4. Complete another 52-week giving challenge and donate (most) of it 2017

Follow me on Instagram and Twitter at @CoxswainPatti to keep up.

 

3 Month Warning

My #101in1001 list ends September, 29th. That’s 3 months to finish a lot of stuff…

In the last year, I’ve:

  • Run a Disney race/half marathon
  • Visited Japan, gotten harajuku makeover, dyed my hair purple(fuchsia) and got as close as I could to the apex of an active volcano
  • 2 books away from reading 50 books in 2.75 year
  • Seen Taylor Swift in concert
  • Visited New York City and Portland, Maine
  • Completed a 52-week money-saving challenge and donated the bulk of it

But in the next 3 months, I have much much more to tick off the list. Those that do not get accomplished before deadline will be added to my next list, starting October 1st.

Some fun points on my next list: Read The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide and The Dark Tower Series, Host a Thanksgiving, Take regular kickboxing classes, Learn how to can, and Visit Crater Lake.

But before we get to that, I’ve already scheduled my next mud run (Rugged Maniac in August). I need to schedule a fun shopping scavenger hunt to pick up things from Nina Garcia’s One Hundred, and I have to finish re-finishing my great-grandmother’s dresser.

Troy and I have our full-day date planned for this weekend (in Chattanooga), and I am *this close* to making the appointment for my first tattoo.


Yesterday, I got a Facebook comment that dressing up Harajuku is “Kinda weird, no?”. Isn’t that the point? Not to mention, who makes trolling Facebook comments at 32. Get a real life…

I pride myself on being able to walk the line between non-traditional and classic. Building an interesting life with a little bit of old and the experiences of the new. The outcome? I always have something to look forward to.

#101in1001

101in1001noteIn case your curious about the #101in1001 hashtag that I use, it stands for “101 things in 1001 Days”.

I ran into this in December 2013. I make resolutions every year, but they had started to become repetitive and standard. Lose weight, read books, work, etc.

One of my favorite bloggers, Mackenzie Horan from Design Darling, started this awesome concept of a limited-time bucket list. Instead of “Here is ever-growing list of I want to do, but probably never will”, this is “Here are 101 things I want to do in 1001 days (about 2.75 years)”. By giving yourself a deadline, you make yourself accountable. It also helps you look a bit further into the future and put a value on your time.

I keep my list in my wallet, printed in my journal, and on this site so it is always accessible. My list has helped me plan future trips, read more, take some things more seriously; but also it helped me stop being bored and take advantage of my free time. Most of my list is planned or in progress. But with three big trips coming up this year, I expect to check off a lot of things.

One hundred one items does take a little bit to put together, realistically. But you get a lot of ideas after checking out the many 101 lists on Mackenzie’s page. I’ve also been keeping a list on my phone of new items for my second list, which should start October 2016.

Start:  January 2, 2014
End:  September 29, 2016

1) Create a 101 in 1001 list (1/6/14)

Home

  1. Finish styling our first house, inside and out
  2. Have our house featured on a major blog or online magazine
  3. Finish refinishing my Great Grandmother’s bedroom set (2/7)
  4. Completely revitalize my front and back yard
  5. Buy a car
  6. Sustain a lemon tree in Atlanta
  7. Complete our set of Global Knives
  8. Perfectly roast a chicken

Style

  1. Buy my first investment handbag
  2. Cut my hair short
  3. Get everything on Nina Garcia’s 100 list
  4. Have an out-of-the-ordinary engagement photo shoot (9/30/14)
  5. Buy a pair of riding boots that actually look great on me
  6. Dress up more, even though I currently work from home
  7. Go to a Black Tie function
  8. Have a Harajuku makeover in Tokyo (Spr 16)
  9. Have a dress made for me
  10. Buy a complete head-to-toe outfit in one outing for a special occasion
  11. Color my hair purple (August 16)
  12. Buy all new lingerie
  13. Buy a fascinator in London
  14. Buy something amazing and incredibly reduced at a designer sample sale
  15. Figure out how to apply eyeliner perfectly, the first time

Travel

  1. See Britney Spears in Las Vegas (8/27/14)
  2. Travel to England, France and Italy for our honeymoon May 2016
  3. Rent a flat abroad AirBnb May 2016
  4. Travel to Japan for his birthday (2016)
  5. Travel to Spain for my birthday (2016)
  6. See a glacier
  7. Go crazy shopping in NYC
  8. Go on a food & wine tour of Napa and Sonoma
  9. See a Broadway play
  10. See Taylor Swift in concert
  11. See all 50 states, staying for at least one night (20 to go)
  12. Visit the MoMa in NYC (2015)
  13. Go to a Discotheque
  14. Go on a trip with my grandmother
  15. Earn Delta Gold Status
  16. Touch the Pacific Ocean
  17. Ride a Vespa
  18. Eat Lobster in Maine August 2015
  19. Take a last-minute vacation
  20. See a fjord
  21. See the Northern Lights
  22. Go south of the equator
  23. Hike up an active volcano
  24. Go to the FL/GA game in Jax

Health & Fitness

  1. Run a half marathon (February 2016 – Disney Princess Half)
  2. Ride in a hot air balloon October 2015 – Owl-o-ween Kennesaw
  3. Run a Disney race (February 2016)
  4. Finish a 10k in under an hour (2016)
  5. Get under 120 lbs, and stay there.
  6. Go on a fitness-based trip
  7. Complete another longer-distance Adventure/Obstacle Run Rugged Maniac August 2016
  8. Reach the 7,500-minute milestone in N+TC
  9. Cox for one more season
  10. Visit a dermatologist
  11. Improve my shooting skills, nay I say a “sharpshooter”
  12. Bowl a 150 average
  13. Learn to play golf
  14. Tryout for Roller Derby

Culture

  1. Learn stick shift
  2. Read every Jane Austen novel (2/7)
  3. Buy a substantial piece of art
  4. Create a substantial piece of art
  5. Get Tim Lincecum’s autograph
  6. Go to an Academy Awards Best Picture movie showcase weekend
  7. Get my palm read
  8. Read 50 books (Check out my Goodreads page)
  9. Become a better conversationalist at parties
  10. Establish a Sunday ritual of reading in bed in the morning
  11. Re-read Catcher in the Rye
  12. Re-read Portrait of a Lady
  13. Learn darkroom photography
  14. Go to a Roller Disco
  15. Go to a Rave
  16. Stay up all night and have breakfast at 3am
  17. Find a vintage copy of Goose Fair by Cecil Roberts
  18. Read DH Lawrence “Women in Love”
  19. Create an alter ego for one night
  20. Get a tattoo

Professional

  1. Find an amazing new job in Atlanta
  2. Redesign my personal and home blogs
  3. Be a guest blogger/writer on someone’s website
  4. Learn how to code
  5. Blog every day for two weeks
  6. Buy a blog domain
  7. Find the perfect skirt suit for work
  8. Reach 500 Twitter followers
  9. Develop an idea for a novel
  10. Be part of a startup company
  11. Write a speech for an event Charms Chapel May 2014, May 2015
  12. Finish my “real” journal

For Others

  1. Buy someone the absolute best birthday present
  2. Plan a full-day date
  3. Throw an amazing Bachelorette party (4/11-13/14
  4. Organize one big St. Margaret’s fundraiser
  5. Be a mentor
  6. Complete the 52-week money saving challenge and donate it
  7. Work with Lean In, or another female-centric organization

 

Not too bad right? Check out my list page and get started on yours. It’ll be fun, I promise.

~Patti