New Year's List

The first year we were married Brian and I started a tradition that on January 1 we would create a list of things we wanted to accomplish (in terms of goods, trips and improvements to our home) during the following year. The idea behind this was to prioritize our list of needs/wants and focus our spending and how we spend spare time. It's hung on our refrigerator and we cross things off as we can during the year. This year, our ideas got a little out of hand. Maybe that's because last year the only thing on the list was, "kitchen." In any event, 5 days into 2008, we've been able to cross off four items already:
1. Clean Spare Bedroom
2. Cabinets installed in Basement
3. Counter Stools for Kitchen
4. Table Saw

1. The room that we used as a "kitchen" for the summer was still a disaster. It was too easy to just shut the door and forget about it. And forget about it we did. It is now an empty room. We really don't have any plans for that space, but at least it's empty now!

2. While I was pregnant my dad built us some cabinets for the kitchen. We kept them this summer and planned on putting them in the basement somewhere. Initially we planned to put them on either side of the tv in the family room. This afternoon we set them where we thought we wanted them and realized quickly that was a stupid idea on our part. Then, I suggested a different wall and stacking them.
Brian likes this arrangement for a number of reasons but mostly because it covers up a crappy drywall patch from a few years ago. Some of you might remember there used to be a built in fish tank in this corner when we first moved in.

3. We have a breakfast bar on the island and no stools. Friday afternoon that all changed! I ordered three stools last weekend and they came Friday.

4. Brian is going to take up woodworking this year. He bought a new table saw earlier this week. A new table saw is a good place to start to building and refine his skills. Today we attempted to load his dad's old one, which we've had in our basement for some time, in the back of the minivan and take it to the dump. I decided it was physically too hard and suggested we just put it by the side of the road. We left and when we returned two hours later it was gone.