At the end of 2021, I created a list of twenty-two projects to keep my momentum strong in 2022. Here’s my progress one month into the year:

1. Knit Christmas Stockings: I haven’t started or even thought about picking a pattern

2. Catch Up On Family Photo Albums: I am yet to finish one.

3. Set the Kids Up With Their Own Bedrooms: YES! MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! I still have plenty of decorating to do, but the kids have their own bedrooms and everyone is thrilled.

4. Paint the Kitchen Cupboards: No, but I painted Pippa’s new bedroom and this has given me the confidence to (eventually) tackle the cupboards.

5. “Finish” Decluttering: I made progress! But there’s still an ass shit ton of work to be done.

6. Deep Clean the House: I need to finish decluttering first though I did deep clean some kitchen appliances which was enormously satisfying.

7. Publish My First Novel: I hired an editor and sent her my manuscript. I should receive her edits in early March so HELL YES, I am well on my way to accomplish this goal.

8. Write the Rough Draft of My Second Room Mom Novel: I am not going to do this until the first is fully revised.

9. Go Boogie Boarding Five Times: Nope. Mama doesn’t boogie board in Southern California in January.

10. Get a Ping-pong Table: negative. Have to declutter the garage first.

11. Read 100 Books for Myself: I read eight books all for myself in January and am on track to hit 100. (I also read 85% of the Mighty Robot series with Julian, but those don’t count!)

12. Cook with Mushrooms – try twelve new recipes: I don’t know why I have a mental block against cooking with mushrooms, but I do. Last week, though, I got through the block and sautéed mushrooms for dinner using a Mark Bittman recipe in How To Cook Everything. It was simple and delicious. Tonight I am trying a recipe for a sausage and mushroom pasta dish from Milk Street’s Tuesday Nights (my favorite cookbook) so I will end the month ahead of schedule.

13. Use My Button Maker: Oops, this was on my Want To Do list every week, but I was so busy setting the kids up with their own rooms, it didn’t happen.

14. Get A New Enamel Pin Every Month: For January, I got myself a Golden Girls enamel pin and wore it regularly on my favorite green cardigan. Not sure what I’ll add to my collection next month but I am leaning toward either Schitt’s Creek or Frida Kahlo. Except a wombat would also be cute. And then again, something lovey-dovey for February feels appropriate…

15. Learn How To Play The Super Mario Bros. Theme On The Piano: I got the sheet music and played it once. That’s a start, right?

16. Create Another Graphics Heavy Book: I am brainstorming ideas for this. Working Title: The Irreverent Room Mom’s Guide To Cupcakes, School Politics And World Domination. Alternate Working Title: How To Be A Room Mom Without Having A Nervous Breakdown: The Somewhat (Completely) Irreverent Guide. Either way, looks like I need to learn how to spell ‘irreverent.’

17. Learn A Tap Dance Routine To Footloose: This one completely fell off my radar but I still think 2022 is my year to tap.

18. Decorate With Pompoms: All my decorating energy went into Pippa’s new Harry Potter room but this will be great when I finish decluttering.

19. Go To Hogwarts At Universal With Pippa: Not yet.

20. Study Carl Jung: I actually started this!

21. Put Family Photos in Seasonal Frames: Yeah, I need to finish decluttering before I can tackle this.

22. Get A Posh Trash Can For Our Kitchen: I just spent way too much time considering my options on Amazon. And bought nothing. Because apparently I can’t pull the trigger on a freaking trash can.

In sum:

• I completed one project.
• Eight projects are under way.
• And I have not started the rest.

I am very happy with my progress, and my momentum is going strong. Onward!

I did it! The kids have their own bedrooms!

Here is a shot of PIppa’s room as she left it before school this morning:

The bed is unmade and her pajamas are on the floor but hey, the door was closed and if I don’t have to see the mess, who cares? There is still plenty of work to do:

• Her desk chair is on the way from Amazon. I’ll have to assemble that. In the meantime, she’s borrowing my old chair.
• She wants a bulletin board.
• And a peg board.
• And a waste basket.
• Not pictured, but I have to fix the blinds for one of her windows.
• Her closet, also not pictured, does not have doors. The old sliding mirror doors were TREACHEROUS and I stashed them in the garage years ago. Pippa is going to pick fabric and I am going to make curtains for the closet. Spoiler alert: they will most likely be HP curtains.

But my daughter has her own bedroom, and she was happier yesterday than she has been in ages. She was in and out of her room, decorating, inviting people to visit, and then kicking us out. Giving PIppa her own bedroom is a major step in Operation: Reclaim the House, because now, instead of creating messes in every room, Pippa is limited to one space.

Julian’s room is looking very empty because shh, it was 80% Pippa’s room. Julian lived in his pack n’ play for two years and when he was able to climb out of it, we just moved him into Pippa’s room. He slept on a mattress. That was on the floor. For at least a year. His dressesr was in a different room. There was no space for any of his toys. #secondchild

I’ll write more about both kids’ rooms as my work on Operation: Reclaim The House continues.

But for the next couple of weeks, the kids’ rooms are on hold while I declutter the rest of the house. I’m! Sick! Of! The! Clutter!

From the Department of Half-Assed Show Notes:

I already wrote about Operation: Reclaim My Life so darling, if you want to read about it, just hop over to that post.

Because as I mentioned: the six-year-old is home distance learning.

And these show notes are only happening because of YouTube.

But shit, I need the kid to make a little progress on his packet of worksheets.

Le Sigh.

Onward!

My book club thought it would be fun for everyone to share their five favorite books from 2021 at our next meeting. I finally whittled my list down to five. Here they are:

1. The Push: A Novel by Ashley Audrain.

I devoured this psychological thriller. My friend Adrian picked it for our book club during the first half of 2021, and we were still talking about it in December. If I ever make a list of books that are perfect for book clubs, this will be at the top of it.

2. Anxious People: A Novel by Fredrik Backman.

J’aime Fredrik Bakman. I would read his shopping list. As I write this post, Anxious People is the #1 Dark Humor book on Amazon but this is not simply a funny book. Backman’s characters and stories have a lot of depth, and this one is no exception.

3. The Book of Longings: A Novel by Sue Monk Kidd.

What if Jesus had a wife? What would her story be? As a former Catholic school girl, I was immediately hooked by this premise, and the book did not disappoint. I am now really interested in the stories of forgotten women of history.

4. How to Raise An Adult by Julie-Lythcott-Haims.

Damn, I wish I could make How to Raise An Adult mandatory reading for every parent. Or really, every human being – even if you don’t have kids, you will eventually become an adult! Oh my god, if you are at all intrigued by the subtitle, please read this book immediately if not sooner.

5. The Once and Favorite Witches, by Alix Harrow.

This was my absolute favorite book of 2021 – and I’m not just saying that because I picked it for my book club’s October read. Witches! Suffragists! Folklore! It’s the Mists of Avalon for the Salem witches but better.

I listened to the audiobooks for all of my picks, but the audio version of The Once and Future Witches gets an A+++. It involves music that really enhances the story. I hope whoever produced it wins a lot of awards.

Happy New Year! My kids went back to school today — but for how long? With the Omnicron variant here, I’m keeping low expectations for January. After all the holiday hootenanny, I suspect someone in my kids’ classes will test positive for Covid, leading to quarantining, etc.

I’m buying video games as an insurance policy on our January mental health.

In the meantime, I’m starting twenty-two projects to keep my momentum strong in 2022. Projects make me happy. I realized this when I read The How of Happiness: A New Approach To Getting The Life You Want by Sonja Lyubomirsky. (That’s the book whose name I could not remember during the episode!) I was inspired by Gretchen Rubin to pick twenty-two projects for ’22.

I’ve already listed my projects in an earlier blog post, but I love you so I’ll list them again here:

1. Knit Christmas stockings (this won’t happen if I wait until December!)
2. Catch up on family photos albums.
3. Set the kids up with their own bedrooms.
4. Paint the kitchen cupboards.
5. “Finish” decluttering (though I realize this will be a continuous work in progress).
6. Deep clean the house.
7. Publish my first novel.
8. Write the rough draft of my second room mom novel.
9. Go boogie boarding five times.
10. Get a ping pong table.
11. Read 100 books for myself.
12. Cook with mushrooms – try twelve new recipes that involve our favorite fungi!
13. Use my button maker. (Christmas gift I bought for myself.)
14. Get a new enamel pin every month.
15. Learn how to play the Super Mario Bros. theme on the piano.
16. Create another graphics heavy book in the tradition of The Distance Learning Activity Book For Parents Just Barely Holding On To Their Last Shred of Sanity
17. Learn a tap dance routine to Footloose.
18. Decorate with pompoms.
19. Go to Hogwarts at Universal Studios with Pippa.
20. Study Carl Jung.
21. Put family pictures in seasonal frames to rotate throughout the year.
22. Get a posh trash can for the kitchen.

Thanks for listening! And reading! Or both!