So, maybe this photo should really say "Goodbye Summer" but I hate goodbyes so we will keep it at hello! Summer is always a tough call - some years I am all of projects and some years I'm not. I started out strong in June and accomplished quite a bit. July came and there were some hiccups - Darryl ended up being off work for a few weeks but was also struggling with vertigo. Anytime he ends up being home for an extended period of time it takes a bit for me to get into a different routine . . . .he wasn't off quite long enough for me to do that! Added to that - I ended up with poison ivy so I didn't want to do anything because then it would itch and then we all ended up with a summer cold (for real - not covid HA!) . I feel like I spent half of July either trying not to itch or trying not to cough and sneeze!! As August approached, though, I kind of got my motivation and hit my list a little harder. It does help that my extra kids go back to school mid-way through August giving me some more time to work on my list!
1. Reading - I posted my summer reading goal earlier this week. I struggled with reading - I didn't sit out on my swing every day because it was either hot or rainy or the wasps were enjoying my swing too. I was also reading a couple of books that I didn't love but wanted to finish so they took a bit longer. .
2. Scrapbooking - 1) Match the printed album spines to the albums - Done. 2) Order 2011, 2016-2018 photos for September and October and 2020-2021 photos for May, June, July and August by September 1st(ish). I did get some ordered but not all of them! 3) Scrapbook March, April and May 2020 and 2021 4) Scrapbook at least one month in 2011, 2016-2018. 5) Add all memorabilia to any completed album (finally cleaning out my files!) (Whew! These are big goals!) I did not do any scrapbooking this summer for some reason. I went to my first scrapbooking crop since before Covid this past Friday so I did finally get a little done!
3. Completely clean out my file cabinet and organize it (a once a year project!) Done!
4. Progress through my "52 weeks of cleaning" list. I got off track in April as we were getting ready for vacation so it is time to get back on track! I'd like to start September on the right week so I can finish strong. The main room I'm tackling is the kitchen but there is also the dining room, and finishing up the living room. I kind of spun my wheels on this over the summer. I cleaned the dining room a few times, did some work in the basement, and helped Josh clean his room.
5. The basement - due to all of the plumbing things we had done, everything in the basement got shifted to one side. Now the motivation is to get it all cleaned out so I can get to the Christmas decorations HA! My goal for the summer is to finish the storage area of the basement - I had it about 80% done before the big shift so, really, this makes it easier to go through one bin at a time and then move stuff out! This is about 50% done! Josh really helped alot because he needed to make room for drums!
6. Our Co-Op - I'm sign-up to teach two classes this fall. My goal is to have my lessons ready for the first 4 weeks (of 8) of class by September and to have the second 4 planned out. Done!
7. Outside - we are slowly (very slowly) working on some outside projects. We finished one already. The second one is the garage/fence area. We also want to power wash some things and re-stain my swing. We got some projects done and then it stopped because I got hit with poison ivy!!! Uuugg Talk about a motivation killer!
8. Darryl's list - this list is a mile long LOL I'd like it all done ;-)
9. Piano - The kids are starting back up with piano this fall so the goal for them is to practice at least one day a week just to get back what they learned before and to be ready to start again. My goal is to work on my Christmas song I want to "record" and post in December. I don't think any of us touched the piano this summer. Lessons start in September though so the kids need a quite review!!
10. Birthdays and Holidays - 1) 4th of July - We need Fireworks and Fun. Done! :-) 2) Finally celebrating Nate's 11th birthday with HIS day (we put it off due to covid) - Done! 3) Labor Day = our annual camping trip. - Done 4) Josh's 13th birthday 5) Thanksgiving - Done (My mom is hosting!) 6) Nate's 12th birthday and 7) Christmas. I need to plan and/or plan ahead for all of these events.
11. The Olympics - I love them and watch as much of it as I can . .. for real :-) It's important enough to make the list. Done!
12. School - Clean out desks, make sure we have supplies for school and our co-op, figure out handwriting books, devotional books and any other "extra" stuff that is needed for the school year. Done!
13. The Garage - I actually cleaned up the garage a few weeks ago when it was nice and cool out. But, I have some bins that have been sitting in the garage for a few years that I want to sort through and clean out. it will open up some space on the workbench to clean all of that out.
14. Cooking - Remember that Macaroon set I bought in the spring - I want to actually use it and learn now to make them.
15. Finally - just enjoy the summer. It's easy to get wrapped up in a huge to do list and miss out on the sights and sounds of summer. I love hearing the birds and seeing flowers bloom. I enjoy reading outside and listening to the rain with the windows open. So, just . .. breathe. Last summer we stayed home most days due to covid - I found that I actually enjoyed the slowed down pace of life so I'm working purposefully to not get too busy but just enjoy every day. It was a hot summer and a very wet summer at times so the windows were not open much and I didn't get to enjoy the outside relaxing much but I'm hopeful the fall will be better and maybe we can even have some campfires.
I'm actually happy with what I accomplished now that I see it in a list. Could I have accomplished more? Yes but I'm ok with what I did do and I also really enjoyed the summer as a whole!
