Skip to main content

Getting It All Done

I had a huge to-do list at the start of the summer, itemizing a variety home improvement, yard improvement, and personal improvement projects that I wanted to accomplish during my break from working outside the home (I am a high school teacher). I like a challenge. My personal motto, besides "Who dares to teach must never cease to learn" (John Cotton Daana), is probably "Go big or go home" (attributed to Eliza Dushku on the Internet, but used by coaches everywhere). I tend to plan big, and believe I can do it. Sometimes I can, but not always. So far, I have gotten a slow start on my list, but I am gaining momentum. I have exactly three weeks left before work begins again, and I think I'm going to get the majority of my list done.

This last week has been a big one for accomplishments. So far, I (with Average) have:
weeded, pruned, and beautified the front yard
built a kind of retaining wall for the flower bed next to our patio
bought blueberry bushes and a hydrangea to put in the garden
finally filed all of the papers that have been in piles for 3 months +
moved the printer to the living room and reorganized the book shelf
boxed up my non-maternity clothes and put them in the attic

Things we/I got done earlier in the summer:
steam-cleaned all the carpets
touched up the paint along the ceiling edge in our bedroom
planted our garden

Tomorrow night is my first night of prenatal yoga, which is also on my to-do list, and I have high hopes that we can at least accomplish re-surfacing and painting the hallway sometime in the next three weeks. Is that aiming too high? Go big or go home! Yes, I am already at home but you get the idea.

I feel like I am finally in the swing of staying home, and now I have at least two chunks of time per day that I can get stuff done: in the morning after breakfast when Sweet Pea is usually happy to play on her own, and in the afternoon when she is napping. If I can stay motivated and actually utilize that time well (no browsing other peoples' blogs or reading magazines!) I can get a lot done in those couple of hours. But see, here I am writing a blog post when I should be shoveling compost to put into my new garden bed, which currently has rock-hard dead soil and some dried leaves from last year, and some sand. I will try to take pictures of this project as I go, but can't find the camera charger right now (booooo :( ).

I guess the whole point of this post is that I always make these HUGE to-do lists (even daily, not just for the whole summer) and then NEVER get everything on them done. I aim high, and achieve somewhere in the middle. Do you use lists? Do you cross everything off of them? What are your tricks for "getting it all done"? - please share!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Woollybottoms Giveaway

I am hosting my first giveaway! I have been wanting to do this for a while, and I'm so pleased to have it finally planned. The item I chose to give is a new pair of Woollybottoms - wool pants for babies. The retail value of these is $29.00. I have been really into the wool pants thing lately, as you may have noticed from my recent posts (about Nifty Knickers , and my baby blue longies ) so this seems like a good fit. Wool pants can be used as a cloth diaper cover, or just as snuggly warm pants for the winter or for bedtime. These ones are "footies" so they should keep your baby toasty! The pair I am giving to one lucky winner is light blue with fish fabric for the footie part. Maybe a little more boyish than girlie, but Stella would definitely wear these if we got to keep them. They are size medium, and have the following measurements: 8" waist (elastic) 9" rise 18" length Here they are: To enter, simply comment below and let me know why you wan

Summer 2020 - Life in a Pandemic

I'm in my final week of summer before work as a middle school teacher begins again. This time of year I'm always in a reflective mood.  I look back and feel so lucky to have had this time with my kids. We went camping, biking, boating, golfing, and hiking. We celebrated my sister's wedding, we did projects together, watched movies, and just hung out at home. It really was everything that summer is meant to be. There were many events and plans that we canceled due to Covid, but we did all the most important things. We missed friends, but I also reveled in the togetherness with my little family unit. Today, I spent time registering for fall childcare and activities. It's less than usual, but still I can see the pace of our lives picking up. As we move into a season of more busy-ness, more work, and likely more stress, this poem sums up the feelings I'm experiencing.... Vacation End by Leslie Pinckney Hill From the charm of radiant faces, From the days we took to dream

Review: Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! There's a Party in My City!

Attending a live show is always a treat. The Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! There's a Party in My City! show last Monday was no exception. We arrived only about ten minutes early, and it felt a little weird to walk into a venue where I normally attend serious plays and musical performances, full of children, toddlers, and babies, many in costume. I had been to see The Color Purple there two days before, and it was quite a different atmosphere! Unsure how Sweet Pea would react to the show before we went, I was a bit overwhelmed at first and so was she, but after the first few acts she settled in to enjoy it and danced along to the music at times. Overall, it was a fun experience for us all and a happy memory to look back on as our first live performance as a family. The show producers, or planners, or whatever they are, included a few extras for the audience that really added to the experience for the kids. There was confetti that shot out over the crowd, a huge balloon d