Category: monthly to do list

A May To Do List.

~ emetroka ~ 1 Comment

That time of the month in which I choose everything I’m going to try. Mostly 4 things per category with a few exceptions for a bonus if we have time. You can choose any categories you like! These are just things that are important to me. And choose more or less depending on how much time you have!

In May I want to be outside, be present, and be focused on my family. I do have two little personal goals for the month – everyday blog posting and everyday workouts. I am the type of person who thrives when doing something every day rather than once in a while. I’ll keep you updated on how it’s all going!

Bake (for the weekend)

  1. Last Day of School Bake – Last year I did donuts, the year before, a cake. I’m feeling a pie this year. What do you think?
  2. Blueberry Hand Pies
  3. Angel Food Cake with Raspberry Cream
  4. A new pie from The Book on Pie, by Erin Jeanne McDowell
  5. Neapolitan Pops – ambitious to have 5 things on my May list, but I’ll give it my best shot

Treat (a weekday treat)

  1. Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
  2. Strawberry Ice Cream
  3. Coffee Cake
  4. Mini Cinnamon Buns

Dinner

  1. Kale Caesar with Sweet Potato Rounds
  2. Caramelized Lemon Butter Orzo with Arugula
  3. Hot Honey Chicken
  4. Italian Heroes
  5. Milk Braised Pork with Gnocchi in sage and butter with a salad of bitter greens – literally read this meal in a book and haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since.

Cocktails

  1. Tequila Spritz
  2. Strawberry Basil Shrub
  3. Mint Juleps
  4. Pisco Sour

Date Nights!

  1. SunFest – Jack Johnson and the Killers are playing and I can’t possibly choose
  2. Charcuterie Date
  3. IPA Beer Tasting
  4. After Bedtime Fancy Dinner

Adventures

  1. Charlie Graduates!
  2. Memorial Day Overnight
  3. Zoo or Science Center weekend outing
  4. Boys to a Movie with dad

House Projects

  1. New Doors!!!
  2. Garden Planner
  3. Plant Lettuce
  4. New Couch – playroom

What are your goals this month? Anything exciting? I’d love to hear! Even if it isn’t exciting! Maybe especially if it isn’t. You know I’m all about the mundane, beauty of the everyday. 🙂

Other to do lists if you’re into this sort of thing, and another on the point of it all.

An April To Do List.

~ emetroka ~ Leave a comment

April! The month of daffodils and misty rain and easter goodness. If you’re new here – at the start of each month, I choose four-ish things to do in different categories. Think of it like a bucket list for the month. Just a few things that I want to get around to doing without the month passing me by. I hate that feeling of “oh, we didn’t get to x, y or z”. This really helps me stay focused on the things that are important to me. Categories can be anything you choose, these are just my priorities! I hope you try it sometime!

Bake

  1. Rainbow Bread
  2. Lavender cake
  3. Lemon Meringue Pie (our Easter dessert tradition)
  4. Hot cross buns

Treats

  1. Easter Cookies
  2. Carrot Cake Loaf
  3. Bunny Pop-tarts
  4. Dutch babies with Lemon Curd and Blueberries

Meals

  1. Easter Supper
  2. Homemade Pasta
  3. Tulip Tarts
  4. Chicken lettuce wraps
  5. Panzanella

Cocktails

  1. Sazerac
  2. Lavender Lemonade
  3. Irish Coffee
  4. Boozy Beet Shrub

Boy Things

  1. Dye Easter eggs
  2. Beach Trip
  3. Cousin Visit!!
  4. Outdoor movie night and s’mores

A September To Do List.

~ emetroka ~ 6 Comments

Ah, September, the beginning of apple everything, darkening days, You’ve Got Mail viewings, sprinkling of stalks of wheat and mini pumpkins around the house, and that crisp feeling in the air that means only one thing – It’s (basically) Fall! I have so many things on my list for month. I’m so excited about it I could dance. I do have to make one tiny little disclaimer though that I may change a few things. I just got two magazines (this one, and this one) from the store the other day that have so many great recipes inside, I may have to make a few sub-ins. But I’m also so excited about the lists I already have that maybe I’ll just have to add rather than subtract. There is time to do it all, we just have to make our minds up to do it. So without further ado, The September list.

Baking

  1. Caramel Apple Hand Pies
  2. Pumpkin Bread
  3. Apple Crisp
  4. Salted Maple Pie

Treats

  1. Apple Cider Donuts
  2. Apple Butter with Sourdough
  3. Molasses Cookies
  4. Apple Chips

Meals

  1. Homemade Ravioli in a Sage & Brown Butter Sauce
  2. Whole Roast Onions with Pork Chops & Mashed Potatoes
  3. Mason Jar Chicken Pot Pies
  4. Cheesy Root Vegetable Gratin
  5. No Recipe Galette

Cocktails

  1. Apple Butter Old Fashioned
  2. September Heatwave
  3. Fig Jam & Gin Cocktail
  4. Smoked Manhattans

Dates

  1. New Game Night – Anyone have a favorite game they want to suggest?
  2. Pumpkin Beer Tasting – We’ll probably try 4 or 5!
  3. Couples Book Club – I’ll share the suggestions I got and what we chose!
  4. Top Gun: Maverick Movie Night – Lots of ideas for this one!!
  5. Puzzle Date – I thrifted the cutest little fall puzzle, so we’ll do a puzzle together with drinks, music and chatting.

An August To Do List.

~ emetroka ~ 4 Comments

You guys, I was looking through my blog this morning as my first *School Year Is Starting, But I’m Not Working Yet* order of business, and I really thought I had more on here than I do. Ha! It’s a bit bare bones isn’t it? I have pages and pages full of post ideas. One of my goals for the school year is to get this little spot up and running with regular posts each week. I do still love Instagram, but I know there are mixed feelings on it. This could be a really cool spot with a little more time dedicated to it, couldn’t it? On to this August to do list though!

If you’ve been following me for a while, then you know that every month, I make a list of things to do in certain (favorite! fun! exciting! whimsical!) categories (Bake, Treats, Cocktails, Meals, and Home). Typically, I do four things under each category and then I pick one from each category every week. So every week I’m crossing something off from each little list. I find that if I list everything out like this at the beginning of the month, I automatically eliminate the need to make any crippling decisions during the month. I do it all at once, and then I’m just left with time to actually do those things on my list! It works, trust me. I’m much more productive since I’ve starting planning my months out like this. You could obviously make the categories anything you’re into. And maybe you could just do a couple under each category if you think it’s unlikely that you’ll do something every single week. This is just what works for me. Make it your own!

So (drumroll please) the August LIST! Just click on the text for a link to the recipes!

Baking

  1. Tomato Tart
  2. Blackberry Thyme Cake (with a frosting of my own making)
  3. Peach Pound Cake
  4. Blackberry Mascarpone Hand Pies

Treats (We usually make these on Thursdays after school)

  1. First Day of School Blueberry Muffins
  2. Ice Cream Sandwiches
  3. Peanut Butter Marshmallow Cookies
  4. Mini Dutch Babies

Meals (I typically add more than four in here because well…I have to make dinner every night)

  1. Hamburger Pie – I shared this recipe in stories the other day and it’s saved under my “dinner” highlight!
  2. Street Corn Chowder
  3. Chicken Parm Sandwiches
  4. Churrasco Steak with Chimichurri
  5. Charcuterie Board Dinner
  6. Crock Pot Chicken Gyros
  7. Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

Cocktails

  1. Coffee Old Fashioned
  2. Bourbon Peach Lemonade
  3. Rosé Punch
  4. Peach Basil Shrub

Home – No links for these! Just things I’m planning to do that will maybe inspire you too!

  1. Back Hallway Beadboard and Peg Rack
  2. Apple Garland Craft
  3. Fall Vegetable Garden
  4. Start Knitting Cardigan

A February To Do List.

~ emetroka ~ Leave a comment

Feels a little late to be sharing this, February being a short month and it already being the 9th, but better late than never! But I can imagine this coming in handy next year when I’m looking for monthly to dos. I think I’ll share every month (but hopefully a little earlier next time!).

Now before I dive in, I should explain that I have a little monthly planning hack to help myself get more crossed off of my dreams list. Every month, I go through my calendar, and count how many weeks I have in which to fit a reasonable number of fun things. It’s generally four. So then, I have categories for things that matter to me. Baking, Treats, New Meals, Cocktails, and Home. Sometimes I change the categories, like if I want to focus on organization, for example, or marriage, mental health, physical health, the boys, outings, etc. What I’m saying is that you can choose any category you like. Then, for each of those categories I pick four things (or however many weeks we have) to do. So at the beginning of every new week during that month, I pick one thing from each of my categories and cross them off of my list. Doing my months this way makes me feel like I’m still getting to do what I love and I don’t get overwhelmed with the number of choices out there. Decision fatigue is real! Phew. Maybe I’ll have to post this little monthly planning hack again as a stand-alone post, but (drumroll please), here’s my February to do list – complete with links!

Baking

  1. Sugar Cookies with buttercream
  2. Lemon Meringue Pie Bars (I already made this and wowzas. They were so. dang. good.)
  3. Strawberry Pie
  4. Cinnamon Rolls

Treats (We usually make these on Thursdays after school)

  1. Brown Butter Rice Crispie Treats
  2. Heart Inside Cupcakes
  3. Name Cookies

New Meals

  1. Chicken and Bacon Pasta
  2. Sweet Potato Salad with Grilled Chicken
  3. Chicken Sausage Skillet
  4. Lemon Pepper Meatloaf (recipe coming soon!)

Cocktails

  1. Strawberry Mint Splash
  2. Blueberry Gin Sour
  3. Coconut Blood Orange Margaritas
  4. Blackberry Sage Bourbon Smash

Home

  1. Valentines!
  2. Finish bathrooms
  3. Go strawberry picking with the boys
  4. Work on front yard landscaping