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Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Update On Monthly Challenges

 

I have mentioned a few of the things that I’ve done in fulfilling the monthly challenges, but I thought it might encourage others to hear a little more.

I did not do both the challenges each month within that specific month, but I did manage to eventually get all of them done – some just late.  Among other things, I made ganache for friends and family one day, wrote snail mail to my great-aunt in Pennsylvania, and sent off a small package to my husband’s grandmother.  I also sent the text messages in January, as mentioned. 

The March challenge was more focused on our own space, so I’ll give a bit more detail.  I cleaned up a yucky mess on the bathroom floor where the shower door drips and leaves mineral deposits and where my hairspray tends to accumulate.  It was nasty.  I used straight white vinegar and paper towels to soak sections and then cleaned them up.  The stuff came up easily after soaking.  I cleaned up other dirty spots on that floor as well and mopped the whole thing while I was at it.  (No pictures.  It was too embarrassing.)  I also cleaned up some of the mineral deposits around the bottom of the shower door since I was working there anyway.

I got rid of 5+ things in March as well.  Some of them came from the medicine cabinet and had ridiculously old expiration dates on them!  Some I hadn’t used in ages, or they were purchased by mistake (wrong product).  The artificial maple flavoring needed to go because I bought some real maple flavoring.  Since I don’t use flavorings that often there was no reason to keep the fake stuff.  My husband lost one old, holey work shirt from a previous job, and I donated the artificial pine tree that went with my north woods décor that was in my sewing room/guest room in my parents’ old house.

Actually, I’ve found the challenges inspiring, and I’ve done more than the “required” number of some of them.  I wrote a number of snail mails and also sent a package to family in Australia.  I got rid of a lot more than five things in March as well.

April is running fast away, however, and I have not gotten even one of the challenges done yet.  I hope I’ll get to, but I’m running out of time and I can’t just take off and go by myself, so I’m more dependent on other(s) to get this month’s done. :-)

As far as what other readers have done I don’t know much.  I know that one package was sent to a grandmother/great-grandmother who needed cheering, and I’m sure it was a great blessing to her.  Also, that pretty flowery letter that I received from Australia was partly a result of my challenge. :-)  The lady had already been thinking of writing to me, and that prompted her to go ahead and do so.  It was sweet to feel the results so personally on that one.  (Of course, that wasn’t my aim, but it was an added blessing.) :-)

So, have you been participating?
Does anyone want to share with us what you’ve accomplished?

A few have shared in their comments what they intended to do.  It would be an encouragement to hear some of the things that are going on out there. :-)

4 comments:

  1. I'm happy to share what I've managed to accomplish! :)
    January - I wrote a long letter to a friend from NSW who I haven't communicated with in probably close to a couple years - and it was a blessing to hear her delight when she called me to thank me!
    February - I made a special treat for my family, and I sent a surprise package to a friend.
    March - I cleaned up our entryway and managed to throw away several things at the same time.
    April - We explored a shopping centre we had never been to before (which turned out to be a disappointment, so we know not to go back there again!).

    I'm really enjoying these challenges - they're pushing me to get things done that I otherwise might not have "gotten around to"!! Well, we do love exploring new places, so we do that as often as we can anyway, but the others pushed me to do things I don't always prioritise like I probably should! :) I'm looking forward to seeing what other challenges are in store for the rest of the year!

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    1. Yay! Thank you so much for sharing what you've been doing! :-) That really blessed me!

      The challenges have been helping me too, and I'm enjoying it. I've been doing things that were beyond my normal routine, or things I knew I needed to do and wasn't getting done. I'm still hoping to get in this month's challenge before the end of the month. :-) We have a road we plan to explore. Haven't figured out a place to visit yet. That one may have to wait till another month, as some other challenges did. :-)

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  2. THANK YOU for the vinegar and paper towel ideas! I have years of mineral deposits and soap scum that wouldn't come up. I have a chemical sensitivity and tried what you suggested. It is amazing! I had no idea all that grimy stuff was there! Thanks again! :)

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    1. Chava, I'm so glad that idea helped you! :-) I didn't even think about recommending it, I just mentioned the process because it was what I did. It is amazing how something that seems very small to us sometimes is just the thing someone else needed to help them in some area of life. I can really relate to chemical sensitivity. There are many things I don't dare use either.

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