Q1 2026: The Paternity Quarter
What I'm doing from January 6 to April 6, 2026
The Rules
Time Budget
3 days/week
3 hours nanny time (9 hrs/week focused)
Weekday evenings
1-2 hours (nap time, unpredictable)
Nights
1-2 hours (not always)
Weekends
variable, good for physical tasks (lamps, frames)
Point Reward System
Convertion Rate: 1pt = 1€
| Quest Tier | Points |
|---|---|
| Tiny | 1 |
| Small | 3 |
| Medium | 5 |
| Big | 7 |
| Huge | 10 |
| Habit Performance | Points |
|---|---|
| 90%+ | 10 |
| 75-90% | 7 |
| 50-75% | 5 |
| 25-50% | 3 |
| 10-25% | 1 |
| Below 10% | 0 |
| Hobby | Points |
|---|---|
| Book read | 7 |
| Audiobooks listened | 5 |
| Boardgame play session | 3 |
| Videogame properly played | 1 |
Quests
Home
| Quest | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Lamps | 1 | Weekend task. Just do it. |
| EV charger insurance | 1 | ✓ Call insurance company→● Buy if needed |
| Garage protections | 3 | ✓ Find existing→✓ Buy if needed→● Install |
| Laundry room | 10 | ● Scout materials→○ Propose to Laura→○ Buy→○ Coordinate handyman |
Kids
| Quest | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Montessori book | 3 | Finish crafting the book from Alicia |
| Potty training Zoe | 10 | ✓ Research methods→● Start→○ Stick with it |
Laura
| Quest | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pitaya buffer | — | Not a quest. Ongoing availability for her business. |
Work
No quests remaining.
Personal
| Quest | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Bookshelf | 1 | Just do it. |
| Frames | 1 | Just do it. |
| ONG research | 3 | Find new organizations to donate to. |
| Photo album | 5 | ○ Select from phones→○ Compile→○ Print Zoe’s first 2 years. |
| Yawl | 7 | Ship to Product Hunt. |
| Homelab Iteration 2 | 10 | Improve and once we’ve validated it covers our needs then cancel subscriptions. |
Completed Quests
Archive of finished quests this quarter.
| Category | Quest | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home | EV station | 1 | Coordinate installation completion after technician visit |
| Home | Cleaner conversation | 1 | January. Decision made, just talk. |
| Home | Buy cat litter | 1 | Just do it. |
| Home | Plants | 2 | Take care of home plants, potentially buy new ones |
| Home | Zoe’s door | 3 | Look for new door → Install + refund errand |
| Home | Entrance buttons and frame | 3 | Fix the buttons. |
| Home | Kitchen Curtains | 5 | Message store → Review with Laura → Order |
| Home | Fix Sofa | 5 | Review damage → Decide approach → Fix it |
| Home | Clean Car (x2) | 5 | Clean both cars |
| Hone | Bike repairs | 5 | Take to the shop. Find shop → Drop off → Pick up |
| Home | ITV | 7 | List repairs → Pick mechanic → Book → Solve Diego logistics → Repairs → Book ITV → Pass |
| Kids | Zoe’s bed transition | 5 | Blocked by door. Then consistency habit. |
| Kids | Zoe’s coat | 1 | Errand: pick up from Zara |
| Kids | Potty (Ikea) | 1 | |
| Kids | Diego’s stroller | 1 | Transform from carrycot to stroller. |
| Kids | Diego’s trolley | 3 | Diagnose handle issue → DIY fix (Check support if stuck) |
| Kids | Montessori toy | 3 | |
| Laura | Economy session | 1 | Review process, do it. Recurring. |
| Laura | Pull & Bear return | 1 | Return items Laura didn’t want |
| Laura | Shared research | 1 | Finish research → Decide together |
| Laura | Bike maintenance | 3 | Buy pump at Decathlon → Inflate wheels |
| Laura | Garden project | 5 | New personal cultivation project |
| Laura | Summer holidays | 5 | Review options in Galicia. Research → Share with Laura → Book |
| Laura | Osteolympics Logo | 7 | Help create the new logo for Osteolympics. |
| Laura | Pitaya Web | 7 | |
| Laura | Italy trip | 10 | Research → Share with Laura → Book |
| Laura | Birthday | — | January 15th. List ideas, buy present, decide kids’ present. No points. Love doesn’t earn rewards. |
| Work | Calendar update | 1 | Block out leave dates. |
| Work | Paternity bureaucracy | 3 | One hour, two websites, five actions. Bonus: update shared holiday file. |
| Work | Performance evaluations | — | |
| Personal | CGT order | 1 | Review process, contact about missing Dragons of Etheriors, follow up. |
| Personal | Kira’s nails | 1 | One-time bonus quest. |
| Personal | Configure laptop | 3 | Blocker for Yawl and Tinkerer Tools. Priority. |
| Personal | Winter sale games | 0 | Return what you didn’t like, set purchase limit. |
| Personal | Homelab Iteration 1 | 10 | Self-host streaming. |
Weekly Habits
| Habit | Target | Recurrence |
|---|---|---|
| Tinkerer Tools writing | 10 min | 4/week |
| Do Sports | +15 min per day | 3/week |
| Friend check-ins | 10 min WhatsApp | 7/week |
| Meditate | 10 min | 5/week |
| No alcohol | — | 7/week |
| No sugar | — | 7/week |
Monthly Hobby Goals
- 3 games properly played
- 6 books read (including audiobooks)
- 15+ boardgame plays
Success Looks Like
By April 6th, if you’ve done these, the quarter was a win:
- Laundry room done
- Curtains up
- Homelab working
- Zoe in her bed
- Zoe better at potty
- Tinkerer Tools with more content
- Projects moving forward
Laura is my accountability partner.
Weekly Tracker
▸ WEEK 01Jan 6-12
Quests +9Habits +3Hobbies +3Spent -10
Total
15
Spent
10
Balance
5
▸ WEEK 02Jan 13-19
Quests +9Habits +3Hobbies +16
Total
28
Spent
0
Previous
5
Balance
33
▸ WEEK 03Jan 20-26
Quests +17Habits +3Hobbies +10Spent -76
Total
30
Spent
76
Previous
33
Balance
-13
▸ WEEK 04Jan 27- Feb 2
Quests +16Habits +3Hobbies +15Spent -28
Total
34
Spent
28
Previous
-13
Balance
-7
▸ WEEK 05Feb 3-9
Quests +7Habits +3
Total
10
Spent
0
Previous
-7
Balance
3
▸ WEEK 06Feb 10-16
Quests +8Habits +3Hobbies +7Spent -27
Total
18
Spent
27
Previous
3
Balance
-6
▸ WEEK 07Feb 17-23
Quests +1Habits +3Hobbies +7
Total
11
Spent
0
Previous
-6
Balance
5
▸ WEEK 08Feb 24 - Mar 2
Quests +12Habits +3Hobbies +10Spent -28
Total
25
Spent
28
Previous
5
Balance
2
▸ WEEK 09Mar 3- 9
Quests +12Habits +3Hobbies +14Spent -22
Total
29
Spent
22
Previous
2
Balance
9
▸ WEEK 10Mar 10 - 16
Quests +13Habits +3Hobbies +9
Total
25
Spent
0
Previous
9
Balance
34
▸ WEEK 11Mar 17 - 23
Quests +7Habits +3
Total
10
Spent
0
Previous
34
Balance
44
▸ WEEK 12 and 13Mar 24 - Apr 6
Quests +15Habits +7Hobbies +21Spent -87
Total
43
Spent
87
Previous
44
Balance
0