That was 2016, plans for 2017

Last year I joined Yvonne from Quilting Jet Girl to make plans for 2016. She's holding a planning party again this year so I thought I'd join in and try try to be a little more organised this coming year. First I need to revisit last years plans.

1. Lose weight and improve my health.
I lost one stone in weight over the year (and I didn't put it back on over Christmas). I'm really pleased about this and will continue next year to lose another stone. I've been getting a lot more sleep and exercising more. My average steps have increased to 11,000 -12,000 steps a day. I'd like to push this up a little more but it's difficult especially on days when I'm working.

2. Make more items for charity donation.
I wanted to make 6 lap quilts but I didn't manage this due to an increase in working hours. However I did manage to make quite a few prem baby quilts plus 2 cot quilts and 1 lap quilt. 

3. Finish some of my UFO's
The main UFO I wanted to finish was the millennium sampler but this didn't move very far. However I did finish several UFO's, a couple of knitting projects and quilts and other craft projects.

4.Try new techniques.
I wanted to try new techniques not only in sewing but also in cooking and other activities. I used monofilament for quilting, machine stitched binding, tried needle turn applique (which I didn't enjoy) and knitting using a circular needle which I am enjoying a lot. I didn't try new FMQ patterns mostly because of lack of quilt finishes.

5. Read more, write more.
I'd fallen behind with my reading and so set a goal of reading at least a book a month. I didn't manage that but did read 8 books. I also wanted to write more blog posts but due to pressure of paid work I didn't manage this goal. On the positive side I didn't reduce the number of blog posts so I'm happy.

Goals for 2017.

1. Lose weight and stay as healthy as possible.
I lost 1 stone last year without feeling deprived by eating whatever I wanted in moderation. This year I want to lose another stone. I also want to improve my stamina as we are taking the Guides to Switzerland in August and I remember how tiring  it was walking up the mountains. Also need to make sure I continue to get enough sleep.

2. Work on a UFO each month during the year.
There are quite alot to choose from. On the quilt possibilities there is the double wedding ring quilt, or the Austen Family Album quilt (one of the blocks from this quilt).

There is also the hexi quilt,

or the hexie quilt top made for the Rainbow scrap challenge in 2014,

not to mention 'It's a dogs life'.

Then of course there are the embroidery projects and the knitting. Maybe the only way to catch up is to retire? No not an option at the moment as I am really enjoying my job.

3. Reduce,reuse recycle.
I want to get my home and life organised. I have already made a start in small ways but I need to make time to move this goal forward. We have alot of things in our loft from when we cleared my parents house after Dad died and things that belong to our daughters. This all needs sorting and moving on. It's going to be a year of going through loads of 'stuff' and making those difficult decisions of what I keep and what goes. It's also going to be a walk down memory lane which will be fun but emotional.

4. Practice my baking.
When our children were younger I used to bake regularly, both bread and cakes. The cake making developed into quite a hobby including decorating them using sugar art. I used to hand make the bread but then got a bread maker. The machine is still in the cupboard but doesn't get used very often now so this is something that I will recycle in the new year. Instead I want to rediscover the joy of baking. Barbara from Cat Patches has been baking different types of bread recently and reading her adventures has reminded me of the fun of baking.

These are 4 big goals so I'm sticking with that number. I'm hoping 2017 will be a productive year, however if I don't achieve the goals I'm not going to get upset as it's much more important to be happy.

Right I have one more day left of 2016 to do some sewing. I need to do some shopping and then the rest of the day is mine.

Lyndsey