# 40 and # 42

40. Attend Easter sunrise service each year (2/3)

42. Attend Sunday services at least twice a month (27/68)

Yesterday was Easter, and although it was hard, I actually made it to the sunrise service. I went alone, allowing Geoff and Peter to stay sleeping. I also got there early enough to watch the sunrise, as it was one of the years that Easter is so late that the sun rose before the service. I am now one year closer to finishing this item, and it is one of the few repeating ones that I am on track for. Next year it might be harder for me to make it to the service since Easter falls on Peter's birthday, but I will try.

Later, instead of the usual 8 and 10 am services, there were 9 and 11 am services with an Easter egg hunt in between. It was also the day that they were praying for Grandma at the service so I had no intention of skipping it. To take advantage of the hunt, which Peter really didn't understand but still seemed to enjoy, we went to the 9 am service. It is one of the few services a year that we go to that has music, and Peter seemed fascinated when everyone started to sing. My dad also seemed so happy to have Peter there. I really want to start going on a more regular basis.

# 20

20. Try at least two new recipes a month (20/68)

I don't often make fish, so tonight's attempt at Baked White Fish with Fingerling Potatoes was a big stretch for me. I used cod since that is one of the few fish that I eat. I had been hoping to have it ready to share with Peter, but a late start cooking made it a romantic dinner with Geoff instead of a messy family dinner. It was just ok, although I think that might have to do with the fish, and next time I will get fresh instead of frozen. The potatoes were great, and again I was getting hungrier when I smelled them cooking.

I am liking these recipes that call for wine, since it leads to relaxing with Geoff once dinner is over. I don't have any new ones that call for wine on the horizon, but I will look for some.

# 84

84. Read 2 new books a month (11/68)

I can't believe that I haven't finished a book since November. I've started a few, but I never got around to finishing them. Until now. It's been slow going, but I finally finished Toddler 411 by Denise Fields and Ari Brown, MD. It was just as helpful as Baby 411, which I've used as a reference many times in the past year.

I have a couple of fiction books waiting to be read, hopefully, I'll get to them soon.

# 20

20. Try at least two new recipes a month (19/68)

Last night, I made Beef Stuffed Peppers. They were not at all hard to make, and I really liked them. Geoff said that he liked them, but I think that he was expecting something more like the Italian stuffed peppers that his mother makes. I have to admit, while the beef mixture was simmering, it smelled amazing and made me even hungrier. I'm glad that I now have a beef dinner that I really like.

# 20

20. Try at least two new recipes a month (18/68)

Tonight, we had Penne with White Beans and Greens. It was pretty good, and not difficult to make. I used swiss chard instead of the escarole, and next time I'll need to chop it more but I really liked the way that it turned out. Geoff enjoyed it as well, so this is something that we'll be making again.

I will be looking for some new recipes soon, hopefully will have a few before the end of the week.

# 20

20. Try at least two new recipes a month (17/68)

So, tonight I made Easy Beef Goulash. Geoff was a little concerned when I told him what I was making, but it was a big hit. Even Peter enjoyed it, and made a huge mess of himself. The only thing that I would do differently in the future is use less macaroni, other than that it was great. It was easy enough to make, but was not a quick meal, so we will probably have it mostly on the weekends.

This planning out meals might just work out for us.

# 19 and # 20

19. Use the crockpot for dinner sixty times (14/60)
20. Try at least two new recipes a month (16/68)

This might be a bit misleading, since the new recipe isn't for the slow cooker, but it was a new recipe none the less. We had Dan and Sue over for dinner tonight, and we made the Sloppy Chicken Joes that we made last summer, again with turkey but this time with rolls. The new recipe that we tried was Sweet Potato Fries, which was a side dish. As fries, they weren't that great since they weren't really crispy, but they were absolutely delicious. The only spice that I used was about half a tablespoon of cinnamon, but they really didn't need anything else. I will definitely be making them again, although probably not as many.

I have a few new recipes coming up over the next few days, so that will hopefully get me back on track.

# 45

45. Have a monthly date-night with Geoff (9/34)

This past Thursday night, Geoff and I went  to try out the new wine bar in town. It is actually only the second time that we've gone out just the two of us in the past year. It was great to have some adult time, and nice to meet some new people.

I, of course, completely forgot to get a picture of the two of us while we were out, but here is a picture of me with our babysitter. She is quite a good deal, Peter pays her in hugs and kisses.

# 10

10. Frame more pictures around the apartment

Saturday was the big push to get this done, but I finally got some more recent pictures hung in the apartment. These frames hold twenty-four pictures, and are a nice contrast to the black and white wedding/honeymoon pictures that we already had hanging. I know that I have a few more frames/pictures to hang, and especially will after this weekend, but I am counting this item as finished.

I'm also hoping that sometime in the not too far distant future, I will get a digital frame so that I can display more photos without taking up too much space (since I have a few pictures, but just a few).

# 25

25. Get together with friends once a month (15/34)

Last night, the girls got together to celebrate Christine's bachelorette party with dinner and dancing in the city. I had a lot of fun, even though I couldn't stay out too late since I had to catch a train home. We probably won't be able to all get together again until the wedding, but I'm glad that we were able to do something this month (even if we had to leave out the boys this time).