Schedules, Plans and Control

Ahhh, I must confess... I love all these things. I am working at giving up more control. I find my "need" for it can make me a not very nice person.
Schedules and plans, however, I love; and I am trying to get better at them. My friend Stephanie recently blogged about how she get's done all she does in a day. It involved planning things out - so of course I loved it.
What her planning lead me to do was to begin making similar plans of my own - using her method and adapting it to my needs.
So I am proud to say that over this last week I have been more productive and consistent than I have been since I quit my job. I manage to find time for my quiet time, extra reading, house projects, house cleaning and more. I am usually ready for bed by the end of the day - but it feels like a full day, and I'm usually ready for the coming day.
This is basically the lists method, with emphasis on prioritizing the daily tasks that need to get done - making them first on the list. Then to continue on and list the tasks that you would like to work on and complete on that day. For me, there are times when tasks get moved to the next day, but not the important ones.
Anyway, I am just really excited about how well this is working for me. I think my husband is not as big a fan, as he is not really a planner - but he can and does appreciate how it changes my day! Especially since he now gets three homemade/cooked meals a day, on most days....
I would also add that even taking time to write this blog is part of my list. I do enjoy writing and sharing thoughts - I'm just not good at taking the time. So I am making the time. I plan to improve and hope to include more well thought out posts along with more pictures as I progress.
Anyway, thanks for sticking with me through this post. I really am very excited about how well this is working for me. For those interested in reading Stephanie's original post, here is the link: www.stephaniecherry.com/2010/06/all-in-days-work.html

Sunday...

So today my husband and I tried out a new church. It's the first time in a while I didn't have a strong "no, thanks" feeling, and we mutually agreed we needed to try it another time or two. We are hoping to make a move to a church closer to home so we can develop a more active community and fellowship.
This past week has been really strange. I'm not even 100% sure how I feel about everything. I spent most of the week at home, I got a lot done... but it still feels like something is/was missing. I haven't even figured out what's missing. It's an unsettling feeling. I'm praying that a quiet day will put things into perspective. I haven't even figured out what all needs to be done this week. Maybe I'm trying to be too productive?
So that wraps up my day and week, I suppose. This is my rambling edition for today. Until my next post.

Getting things done... FINALLY

So I'm happy to say that the nursery is almost entirely cleared of things that do not belong there. There's still somethings that will move, but some will have to wait as things get shifted around and re-arranged to make room.
The cat, O.W., is officially locked out of the room - no more cat hair in there for the next few years... or for as long as we can manage. Wish we could swing something like that for the master bedroom as well.
Soon the walls will be painted and the carpet removed. I will have pictures for you then. I am getting excited!
Next, I'm about one hour and a proofing away from finishing the last paper for my first class. It will be submitted by Friday morning. At which time, I will start to work on my second class after having requested the test for the first.
When I started this post, I thought I had a lot more accomplished. Maybe it's just because these two topped my "to do" list this week - and it's only Thursday. It could also be that I've been wanting to get these two things done for about six months.
Anyway, I'm also just going to point out that this is another post for me. My efforts to find things to share, and to write them out are slowly succeeding... slowly, for sure.
Well that's all for now. Done with procrastinating on that final hour of paper work. See you on the other side, hopefully with an A and pictures of the progress made on the nursery.

Ahh the growth!

So since my last post, much has changed. So here's a few photos of the growing and the changing.

First: Here is my FINISHED dress number 1. Not perfect, but has character. Very comfortable and fun to wear. Still haven't figured out for sure if making this was more cost effective than buying it, but I'm thinking the more I learn how to sew the more I'll be able to save.



Next up, the yard. This shows the before and after. Before our yard was all weeds, which David and dad tilled up a couple of times. Then seed was planted, patience employed and much watering done.... and the product? The beautiful green lawn.

So, the last picture is our growing bump. It's definitely growing now - though not always obvious. This is me helping accentuate it for the sake of getting a pic of the baby. This was me at about 4.5 months.

So this is what's going on in my life. Lots of changes and lots of growth, with an ever growing desire to finish what I've started... including making a point to post this post!

OK, enough for today. Off to feed the bump and help it grow a little more!