Hi! I'm going to be here, sort of.
It's August.
How did that happen?? When I was a kid, summers seemed almost endless, and now they seem to fly by in the blink of an eye.
Boo.
It's not that I'm particularly in love with the weather (I'm kind of over the whole 100+ degrees thing right now)...it's the fewer-responsibilities schedule that I love about summer, and I'm sad that's going to be over soon.
During the school year, I always think of things I'd like to do, and I mentally file those things away by telling myself that I'll get them done in the summer.
I have gotten some of those things done, but not as many as I'd like to.
And some of those things are kind of pressing, (like, say, getting ready for our school year.
So, for the rest of this week, and maybe next week too, I'm going to pull back a little bit here on the blog in order to help myself cross a few things off of my to-do list. My 365 blog will continue on as usual (those posts are super easy and fun!), but the posts I do here may be a little simpler than usual. And I may miss a day here and there, so don't worry that something horrible has happened to me if I don't post. 🙂
Because I do a more rockin' job of accomplishing things when I make my goals public, here's what I want to get done:
Declutter...
-the linen closet
-Lisey and Sonia's room
-the office (ack!)
-the laundry room
School Prep
-figure out what curriculum I'm using for everyone
-order the curriculum I need
-finish filling out our registration form (we're using a new umbrella group, which is basically an alternative way of reporting to the county homeschool office)
Finances
-write a money email for August
-catch up on Quicken
Ebook (I'm writing one about ways to reuse, repurpose, and refresh old clothes)
-finish writing it (lots of odds and ends need to be done)
-send it off to be edited
-make a cover or hire someone to do it for me
I can get all that done this week, right??
Ok, that might be slightly ambitious, but I find that when I write ambitious to-do lists, I do get more accomplished than if I write a basic list or don't write a list at all. Aim high, I say.
So, are you feeling the end of summer panic too? What's on your get-done-before-summer-is-over list?
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Today's 365 post: I found this in the compost bin.
Joshua's 365 post: Hallo, peoples!
Aim high indeed:)
I have been using the "flylady" technique of 15 minutes at a time. I have an egg timer for this exact purpose. She suggests setting it 3 times for work and then 1 time for a break. Repeat as able. I got a lot done this way.
I'm pretty happy with my summer progress- cleaned windows and horizontal blinds (yuk) and curtains and walls.
You will be missed with the post. But your list seems alot more important!
I am also better if I have a list of things I want to get done!
good luck.
PS I agree that summer is flying by way too quickly!
I'm SO looking forward to the structure in our day with homeschooling, but I'm not ready for summer to be over (I'm not even sure how it went by so quickly!)
I start to get that around this time of year too. I begin to get my planning together fort classes, think of easy meals, do extra cleaning ( impossible right now)...
I'm not particularly behind on chores and projects but I, too, wonder where summer went.
In fact I'm pretty excited on the projects list. Over the past couple of years I've been whittling away at accumulated TTD (things to do). So I can take day trips, or help a friend househunt three weekends in a row, or run in the mornings (when I used to do TTDs), or... I think of freedom to do these things without worry as my reward for all that hard work.
I'm with ya. I've been so busy lately my posts are turning into short little miscellaneous things. But I am prepping a bigger series related to raising girls, so that's taking some time. Oh yeah, and I launched a new photography business, that's been taking some time too! 😉
Good luck getting everything accomplished!
Our lists are always so long, it's pretty depressing. Consequence of an old house and acreage with animals. But what I really HAVE to get done before the tomato canning starts in earnest and I no longer have any free time that doesn't involve boiling water baths is finish the book I'm editing. I do it freelance, so I can do it whenever, but MAN it's hard to sit down for a couple of hours and edit a novel about schizophrenia when I could be working in my garden.
Oh well. The money will help pay for a plane ticket to my sister's bridal shower in January, so it's for a good cause.
oh my goodness. that is a long list. Reminds me... I need to make my list. I also have a lot of things I wanted to get done over the summer... better get off the computer and get crackin! Thanks again for the inspiration!
Hmm, my list of things to do mostly involves visiting places and going hiking. And I am certainly not going to get everywhere I had hoped to. I try to get out as much as possible during the few warm months a year. I can always clean the house when the weather turns bad.
I'm ready for the school year to start and my first grader is definitely ready to go back to school (homeschooling is not for us personally). He is bored beyond belief especially now that I just had #3 a week ago. Plus, I LOVE fall and this summer has been out of control hot. I know we didn't do hardly any of the things we wanted to this summer...but I guess having a baby is a good enough achievement in and of itself. Good luck on your to-do list.
Totally agree. This is one of the hottest summers I ever remember having!
When I have a ton to do, I write out a list and estimate the time it will take for each task. Add about 5 minutes transition time between jobs. It's pretty easy to see if there is even enough time in the day to accomplish it all, and makes it easier to edit the list.
Wow! As I was reading it, I thought this was your list for the MONTH of August, not this week. Ambitious indeed!
Oh Man I am so with you! I have a mountain of stuff to get done before September. Paint the kid's bathrooms at church, finish writing my Bible study (so we can teach it in the fall...really a buzzer buster there), and the list goes on. We can do it!
Thanks for the warning! I appreciate it. 🙂
Loads to do as everyone else... and having the kids with me 24-7 is slowing me down... or rather tidying up after the kids 24-7 is slowing me down! Here's to a productive summer for one and all!
I really can't wait till you have that book done!
Yes to stress. I go to college while the kids are in school. The schedule can be grueling and the laundry will no doubt pile up again. I can keep it clean I just loose all energy to fold it, especially when it is washed so often. Both kids are in uniforms, with the cost we dont own many, so the washer is always running. My goal is to continue the exercise program I started this summer to deal with the stress. Good luck Frugal Girl you can do it!!!!
I'm starting to feel the panic, too, and I feel like the summer is going fast while I'm moving in slow motion trying to get things done and have some fun!
These are my main goals this month:
-Declutter the kids' rooms, especially clothes
-Paper clutter, especially dealing with old school papers and getting ready for new ones
-Other school get-ready stuff - supplies, clothes, backpacks, etc
-Fit in some things that are easier to do in the summer - Dr. appts, playdates
-Get into a better routine of getting up earlier and adding exercise back into my schedule
For office & closet organizing, I find that I'm more consistent if I have attractive boxes/bins to put things in. 🙂 I've acquired a few clear snap-handle boxes for papers that seem to pile up...finances, church stuff, ideas for outings, etc. This way I at least have a place to put it, then can sort by date or whatever is pertinent.
If I may offer a local suggestion for the Ebook you're working on, I've used these folks for some of my own creative interests: http://www.mikejencostanzo.com. They're good at harmonizing the "big-picture" final product with the details along the way.
good luck with the goals. If you ate interested check out http://www.publishamerica.com. they are a tradtional publisher and they do ebooks as well.
Here, we are supposed to be repainting and rearranging bedrooms in anticipation of our new baby that will be here in October. So far, we have 1/2 of a wall done. Yikes! (But I hope you make more progress on your goals than we have on ours 🙂
Ooh, how fun! What a lovely reason to paint and rearrange.
I have to wash my babies clothes before she is born! Then I have to wash and press our babies 2 bassinets. One for upstairs and one for downstairs. (I got them as gifts!) And all the before baby is born sort of thing. I did pack away and buy all the childrens school supplies. I have to buy maybe a few more clothings for the uniform school. And mainting a clean home... I don't have anyother heavy projects so I guess I'm pretty settled. 🙂
Maintaining a clean home is something we can never cross off of our lists, huh?
I cannot wait to see the repurpose clothing book!!!!!! I wish I could help you design a cover - because I am that excited to see it done - but I don't have alot of "skillz" in that arena. I would do it for free though if I could!
Good luck this week!