21 Secrets

21 Secrets is a series of 21 workshops, all by different tutors.  You can choose the order you do them in.  And you have access to the workshops until the end of 2012.

I chose the one by Dina Wakley as my starter.  There were 3 videos to watch and here are my 2 attempts at Intuitive Painted Layers.

The idea was to find images within the abstract (or in my case random) shapes on the page.

I've been watching the World Cycling Championships and found a bicycle in mine and then a rider.

This one was more like Dina's with the pointy people.

I don't 'do' people in my art so I found this a little testing.  However I enjoyed the layers and the 'getting painty'.

Goal review

At the beginning of 2012, for the first time ever I compiled a list of goals.  I thought that as we are a quarter of the way through the year I would look at how I am doing with these goals.

Goals

Soul and spirit:   friends, faith, fellowship, community

Invite people round at least once a month – hasn’t happened

Respond to comments on my blog – have done this occasionally

Meet people for coffee once a week  - met with Liz twice and Rebecca 3 times

Speak to people rather than just text or e-mail - occasionally

Visit Pa more regularly - been once!

Spend time with God: pray, read the Bible  - have been following a daily reading plan for reading the Bible chronologically.

Complete Divine Romance - gave up on this

Completed the Confident Heart book study - gave up on this

Attend Lifegroup - have been every week apart from when I was in Pembrokeshire

Attend church - have been every week I’ve been in Solihull

 

Body:  fitness, diet, sleep

Attend Rosemary Conley weekly  - have attended unless I was somewhere else!

Exercise three times a week  - haven’t kept this up but have been walking more

Go for a long walk each week - have done a long walk every week of this year so far

Drink three glasses of water each day - hasn’t happened

Sleep 6 to 7 hours every night - hasn’t happened

Do the Made to Crave study - gave up on this

 

Mind:   art, reading, Etsy, photography, blog

Art

Complete Scrapbook Life Journal - up-to-date at the end of March

Complete Doodles Unleashed – didn’t complete this as the latter part of the class didn’t interest me, but at least I found out what wasn’t my style

Complete ATC swap each month - have completed the first 3 months

Watch jumpstart videos  - watched all the videos and read the blogs

Do Art Every Day Journal - I don’t necessarily do it every day but the journal is up-to-date to the end of March

Take part in 21 secrets - this only started on 1^st April

Just do art - haven’t done much, particularly in March as I was doing Ashes to Beauty. 

I didn't include One Little Word in this list but I am up-to-date with that also.  I discovered Ashes to Beauty after I had written these goals and I have completed about 75% of it.

Reading

Read a book each week - haven’t necessarily read one a week but have read quite a few books but sometimes several in the same week.* Also in the midst of dipping into at least 4 other books all at the same time.

Complete A Confident Heart book study - gave this up, but will definitely read the book

Photography

Take a photo each day for the 365+1 challenge - gave this up

Take part in Snap:2012 - gave this up

Use the camera in manual at least once per week - have taken lots of pictures this year but have taken them all on automatic

Etsy

Make three mini books per month – I made the basis of 3 journals in January and in February so have 6 ready to be finished.

Investigates new styles of mini books - have been thinking about this

Make three SONflowers per month - haven’t done this at all

Accounts - not touched this and need to be done by May

Blog

Newlycreative: blog 3 times per week - have blogged 22 times out of a potential 39

WhollyCreative: blog once per week - only blogged once this year

Artful Faith: blog once per week - only blogged once this year

Books I’ve read in 2012

Fiction

Psalm 23 Series: The Lord is my Shepherd; I Shall Not Want; Lie Down in Green Pastures by Debbie Viguie

From Ashes to Honor   by Loree Lough

A Sweethaven Summer by Courtney Walsh

They Almost Always Come Home by Cynthia Ruchti

A Hearth in Candlewood  by Delia Parr

The Pastor’s Wife by Jennifer AlLee

Non-Fiction

You’re already Amazing by Holley Gerth

Personality Plus by Florence Littauer

Let Me Be A Woman by Elisabeth Elliot

Restoring Your Spiritual Passion by Gordon MacDonald

I can see that there are areas that need more focus but on the whole I am quite pleased with my focus so far.  I am sure that I have actually achieved more in 3 months than I normally would have done because I wrote these goals down in the first place.

Did you set yourself goals this year?  If so, how are you getting on?  Do leave a comment telling me how you are doing.

Look what arrived today!

No, not Teresa Collins herself, although that would be a treat.

Her very latest book.

I won it by just by making a comment on a blog.   Fabulous.

You have to be in it to win it.

Which has reminded me that I have been thinking for quite a while about doing a giveaway.  So keep popping back to see when it will be.  I have to sort out the goodies first and then photograph them.

Come back soon!