Hey, Mrs. Wilson!

I’m not really one to make a New Year’s Resolution. I think they’re dumb. Does anyone even remember their resolution once February hits? How about January 2nd?

Although I do not believe in resolutions, I do believe in fresh starts.

I like fresh starts. A new year, a new month, even a new day. A new chance to do it better this time. To do it right.

I have many things I want to change in the way I go about my day. I’ve found that sometimes I have NO IDEA what to bore you with in my next blog post. Then I realize that it’s because I’ve spent too much time living in cyberspace and not enough time living in real life. It’s no wonder my mind goes completely blank the second I hit the New Post button.

A couple days ago, I read the DEVASTATING NEWS that Miss Heather is taking down her Oh My Stinkin’ Heck blog. Boo. BOO! I will surely miss it.

She’s been writing about prioritizing her time a lot lately, and it’s been inspiring me. No, I’m not deleting my blog. My blog = my memory. Without it, I have NO IDEA what happened last month, last week, or even yesterday. It’s also, in a way, my children’s baby book. It’s not leaving.

But, I am re-evaluating the way I spend my on-line time - and significantly reducing it. You see, I am probably the worst housewife you will ever meet. And, by wasting time online, I am taking time away from my home and my family.

As well as being a bad time manager, I’m a hopeless procrastinator. Case in point? I didn’t send my family’s Christmas presents until the week before Christmas, and didn’t send my dad’s until the week OF Christmas. They were all bought weeks before, but just had to be sent

I guess my resolutions-that-aren’t are mostly to do with time, and how I want to change the way I spend it. For the better.

So, what am I going to do differently?

1. Little to no computer time while my children are awake. I have a solid hour between the time Kaylie goes to bed and the time Noah gets home from work, and I have two hours during nap time. I’m sure I’ll survive.

2. I want to finally take Laura’s advice and schedule what housework I do on what days, because if I don’t, the bathroom may get put off longer than it should and everyone will be out of underwear. I want to keep up with Noah not doing any housework, since he’s gone at work/school 12+ hours a day and shouldn’t have to do anything when he gets home, besides take out the garbage. I’ve been enjoying this time he’s had off school for the holidays though, because he is SO helpful around the house. I’m going to miss it.

3. I want to get dressed every day. I may or may not spend 98 percent of my time in sweats and a t-shirt (much to my husband’s chagrin). I usually get up 15 minutes before my first daycare kid arrives, which gives me just enough time to wash my face and brush my teeth and do a quick tidy-up. Then, for the rest of the day, I have three toddlers. I barely have enough time to use the facilities, much less get dressed or do anything about my hair.

So, I’m going to get up earlier, which also means that I have to go to bed earlier. Mr. Wilson may be able to easily get by on 5-6 hours of sleep, but I cannot. I’m a nicer person if I get my 8-9 hours. I know my husband will appreciate coming home to a nicer-looking recently-showered well-rested wife.

4. I’m going to do a little more long-term planning. Not like planning out the next five years of our life (already done), but more like sending Christmas presents before it costs me more to send them than it cost to buy them. Or like realizing it’s someone’s birthday the week before, instead of the day of, so I can send them a card or gift that gets there on-time instead of three weeks after the fact.

To aid in my new time-management-ness, I bought myself a planner that even has a grocery list and menu planner built into every week. In years past, I’ve gotten myself a ginormous mother of a calendar for my fridge, but it takes up practically all the space on the front leaving no room for the photos we get sent at Christmastime. So, instead, I got a planner and printed off a SAJ calendar page for the fridge. Also, that way I can have it with me and I don’t have to get up (I’m lazy) when Noah calls to ask when his reading break is.

As much as I’m not into the whole New Year’s resolution thing (unless of course you call the above blabbering a resolution), I’m even less into the celebrating New Year’s thing.

Noah and I have yet to celebrate New Year’s together. Our first one together, our only one while dating, I took off to chaperone a youth retreat. There was too much stupid football on that weekend, so Noah did not want to go. Three years ago, our first New Year’s married, I was working a graveyard shift. Two years ago I was an angry pregnant lady that got mad at Noah for something that was probably pretty petty, but huge in a hormonal crazy person’s brain. Last year, we hung out with friends. Separately. Not on purpose, it just sort of happened that way. Friends of ours came over, and Noah and the dude stayed at our place with a couple kids and watched hockey, and I went to their house with my friend and a couple kids and watched a movie. I can’t even remember if we were at separate houses for the countdown or if we had already gone to bed.

Either way, this is our first together. I am not sponsoring a youth retreat, I’m not working, I’m not pregnant, and we don’t have any plans with friends. The plan is to order pizza with gift cards we got for Christmas, and watch a little Dawson’s Creek Season 3, that we also got for Christmas.

We’re party animals through and through.

What are you doing to ring in the new year? Do you have any resolutions? Or resolutions-that-aren’t?

Time? Very limited. Christmas shopping? Done. Christmas cards? Sent. Photo editing? Done. Kaylie’s Christmas concert? Seen. Recorded. Sort of. Scrapbook? Underway.

Yah! Noah and I just got back from our first date in about six months. It was fantabulous to get away just the two of us. For free.

My mom and sister are here, so we had free babysitting. Noah got a $50 gift card to the Keg from work, so dinner (and the tip!) was free. I like free. I also like having adult conversation with Noah not interrupted by spilled milk, dirty diapers, and screeching. I also like steak.

We’re kind of falling behind on our 31 days pictures due to the fact that we have house guests and Noah’s in the middle of mid-term exams.

I got this one with my phone when we voted. Yep, up here in Canada we throw together a vote in two months. We’re just a leeeetle bit different than our neighbors to the south.

Like I mentioned, my mom and sister are here. We have been hopping since the moment they got here. We’ve been trying to fit Regina into two days. Shopping. Museums. Parliament tours. The beautifulness that is Regina. We’ve been fitting it around Kaylie’s school, Liliana’s naps, and the little guy that I babysit. It’s been, um, busy. We’ve been enjoying their company though. I have a few pictures that I will share with you (later), but I don’t have many. Apparently it’s hard to take lots of photos when you’re wrangling 3 children through a bazillion stores while trying to keep your sanity.

Tomorrow we’re heading a little bit west to visit the teeny tiny place where Noah and I went to college. We’re going to show my mom and Erica the place Kaylie and I lived, the dorm Noah lived in, and the place Kaylie went to daycare. All my and Noah’s friends have already graduated and moved on, but Erica’s got a couple friends there to visit with.

Now that you’re bored to tears, I’m off to bed. I ate bad things at dinner, and I have to go to bed to recover. G’night.

Winter is coming, although you cannot tell by the weather we’ve been having. It’s been quite cool in the mornings, but by early afternoon, the temperature is in the low 20s. (Celsius, not Fahrenheit!) And it is ALWAYS sunny here.

As I said, winter is coming. I’ve lived a Saskatchewan winter before and it is COLD. Snot-freezing cold. It’s beautiful, and the snow stays all winter, but outside is not a place for children in the winter.

The whole winter thing, plus the fact that my mom is coming soon, makes me want to find things to do here in this city. We haven’t been bored yet, as we’re totally loving it here, but I’ve been researching some indoor things to do.

Here’s what I’ve found so far.

RCMP Centennial Museum & Heritage Centre
Government House
Saskatchewan Science Centre
Royal Saskatchewan Museum
Legislative Building
MacKenzie Art Gallery
It’s a Blast!
Laser Quest

If anyone here in Regina wants to add to it, I’d greatly appreciate it!