Upside of being housebound because of the snow

I have a bit of cabin fever because my office has been closed because of the snow we've gotten here in the DC area. But here are a few things that I have accomplished with the extra time I've had on my hands:

• I've spent less money because I haven't done any shopping outside of food since I've been back in town
• I've eaten healthier because I've cooked all of my meals (no fast food or extraneous snacks)
• I finally caught up on all of the great blogs in my reader.
• I finished reading a cute novel
• I started a five page assignment that's due this weekend
• I exercised a bit
• I did all of my laundry
• I started working my way down my task list for my non-profit endeavors (started is the operative word, but I'm still putting it down)
• I watched my latest Netflix movie which has been languishing in my apartment for the last two weeks
• I figured out how to make collages in Photoshop

Verdict is still out on if we'll actually get more snow as they've been predicting for the past few days, but even if we don't I'm feeling good and productive!

February 2010 Goals

There are many things I could add to this list, but I'm only setting three goals for the month of February:

1. Complete my taxes. I put my most of my paperwork together, I just need to sit down for a couple of hours and complete them. This is also a time sensitive goal, because I need to complete my FAFSA for grad school. I expect a refund, so it would be nice to see that sometime soon as well.
2. Start Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred DVD, do workout for the next 30 days. After being inspired by a few other bloggers such as Well Heeled,YBP and Change Affecting Me, I bit the bullet and got the DVD off of Amazon. I've had the DVD for two weeks, but it made no sense for me to start it only to get interrupted by my recent vacation. I started by doing the 20 minute work-out today and hope to see some results soon. I plan to do other exercise, but the 30 Day Shred is the bare minimum.
3. Take time to be creative. This may sound a little vague, but I want to focus more on my creativity be it (non blog) writing, drawing, photography, teaching myself how to use Photoshop to make my point and shoot photos look better. I won't neglect blogging to dabble in my creative side, I'll just have to manage my time better.

I might start doing only three goals every month! I feel like I'm putting less pressure on myself this way. Three is one of my favorite numbers being born in the third month of the year and all : )

Do you have any top priority goals for the month?

Recap of my first trip of 2010

I got back earlier this week from my first trip of 2010; a birthday cruise for my Aunt. I have nothing to compare this trip to, as I had never been on a cruise before, but I enjoyed it. We were originally suppose to go to Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, but were re-routed to Mexico because of a last minute scheduling change. Because this trip was in celebration of my Aunt's birthday, my family decided not to cancel the cruise though we were all bummed not to go to Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. The weather was cloudy at one of our port stops, but it was just nice to relax, chill on the beach and spend time with my family for a few days. I appreciate having had a brief respite from winter weather even more so now because of the snow blizzard we are currently experiencing in the DC area. Here are a few lessons learned on my first cruise:

• A room with a balcony is the way to go. Balcony rooms cost a bit more, but I personally think it was worth the cost. It was nice to get a view of the scenery when we got close to land and I enjoyed reading and drawing, seeing the sun rise/set with a view of the water.
• EVERYTHING is a separate cost on a cruise, so be prepared to budget for that. Everything from alcoholic AND non-alcoholic beverages, to photos, to gym classes, to land excursions cost extra money and I wasn't expecting that. It's also customary to tip (maitre'd, waiters, housekeeping stewards) crew members outside of the tips they include in the price of the cruise package on your last day.
• The food was so-so on my cruise, but there was LOTS of it, so exercising in the gym is a good idea. It was easy to eat more on the days when we were at sea all day, so going to the gym during the trip is a good idea. I was a bit of a slacker and only took took one pilates class during the week, but if I take a cruise in the future, I'll go the gym every day.
• Pack some Dramamine or other motion sickness medicine in case the water is choppy. I got slightly motion sick and should have packed some Dramamine to ward this off. I learned my lesson.
• Pack scarves/cardigans because the air conditioning is ARCTIC. The weather was not exceptionally hot (high 70's and low 80's) for most of the trip, and I'm not a big fan of air conditioning anyway, so packing one or two cardigans and a scarf were necessities I didn't think much about but was so happy that I packed.
• A no-fuss hair style is the way to go. I got a simple hairstyle that was easy to manage and would definitely get the same style again on my next cruise.
• Don't miss the demonstration where they show how to make towel animals next time. I loved getting the little towel animals on my bed each day and was bummed that I missed the demonstration of how to make them on one the the day's activities, I'll be sure to attend the demonstration on my next cruise.

I didn't have to make any unexpected purchases on the trip and bought myself one souvenir, a pair of silver earrings for $35. I paid for the cruise and airfare to and from the Miami Port where the ship left from in advance. Other expenses during the cruise included:

• Hotel for one night in Miami: $95
• Taxis rides (to/from airport, at ports): $60
• Food in Miami: $50
• Souvenirs for other people: $25
• Miscellaneous Tips: $25

The entire trip cost approximately: $1,000 (yikes!)

I've actually accomplished my New Year's resolution to take an international trip in 2010 already! I will now focus on diverting money each month into my depleted travel fund because I plan to take a major trip in the fall, want to make one weekend trip in March for my birthday and another weekend trip in the spring. I'm happy to have trip saving/planning to focus on since winter seems to have hunkered down to stay for a while...