Dining Room makeover

Finally finished the dining room makeover. Removing the wallpaper was the hardest thing to do. I don't know why I put it up in the first place, because I knew that it wouldn't be easy to remove. The border that ran the entire perimeter of the room was a lot easier to remove. The new color "Sagey" seems to work well in the room, as well as the crown moulding that was added to give the room a more formal look. Really wanted to put french doors in, but the expense stopped me. Approx. $4000 to have the windows replaced with doors (a lot of tear out and movement of electrical outlets...ugh) , or $32 for the window treatment.... (shear panels were $10 each and the rod was clearance for $12 )..... guess I'll just have to save for the doors.

A New Year

Journaling isn't my strong point, but I've vowed to give it a try and attempt to document my daily blunders or achievements. My goals this year are as follow:

1. Use portion control at all meals. (If I do this I should loose the 20 or so pounds that have creeped back on this year)
2. Be more active. (I lack motivation in the winter, so I need to find something to motivate me indoors like gardening motivates me in the spring, summer and fall.)
3. Sew more. (I love to sew, so I need to find some projects that will keep me busy.)
4. Cook new and different menus. (I will try to cook something new at least once a week. This shouldn't be hard to do, since I'm always checking out the food blogs and magazine recipes.)
5. Remodel my dining room. (It's outdated -- wallpaper and border has to come down. It was put up 13 years ago when we moved into the house when it was new and needs change. This is probably the cheapest room to remodel, so this is where I'm starting. I want to add crown molding to the room and remove the windows to put in a french door that will open to my sunporch, so it won't be a very cheap remodel.)
6. Take more pictures. ( I'm taking classes to learn Photoshop CS2. I want to be able to post some really nice pictures of my accomplishments to this blog, so taking pictures should be a priority.)
7. Plant more annuals or cutting flowers. (My garden consists mostly of perennials and raised beds for some veggies and herbs. We took an above ground pool down in the fall, so I have a new garden bed to plant. I need to plan this bed this winter. It's full sun, so a cutting garden would grow great there.)
8. Keep in touch with family and friends. (Time flies by fast, so I need to call them more often. Sometimes I wait for them to call me and weeks and months can go by so fast that we loose track of time. I plan to make more lunch dates with my sister, my mom or my girlfriends. I can't let my work absorb all of my time.)
9. Pay it forward. ( I plan to do random acts of kindness, because it always makes me feel good.)
10. Make journal entries at least once a week.