for some reason my to do list has been giving me dirty looks lately. i've done a few things off of it, and i feel good about it, but it's seeming really daunting. maybe the things i have decided i want to do or should do aren't so realisitic. i don't know. so i've decided to address what my excuses are for not doing the things on the list. maybe by writing it down i'll be more motivated to overcome those excuses by realizing how stupid they are...
-buy new brown shoes - okay, that's easy. i've got no money right now. aside from that, i've tried on lots of pairs of shoes and haven't found any that were particularly comfortable.
-buy new filter for steam cleaner - non-emergent purchase. however, the next time someone pukes on my carpet, i'll really be wishing i had done it. maybe i should move that up on the priority list... ::knocking on wood::
-buy new running shoes - no $$
-buy shane's bear book - well, this involves going to one of my least favorite places - sir plus - with 3 kids. not horrible. doable. i should just get it over with next time i'm out and about. oh! maybe i'll go next monday when i take layla to preschool, then i'll only have to take one kid! check back with me next week.
-choose, print, frame, hang pictures in hall bathroom - ugh. this requires $. it could actually probably be done fairly cheaply and without too much headache. i already know the general type of pictures i want so i just need to sort through the files on my computer and find them and then order them. shouldn't be too hard.
-chop logs - HAHA this is totally dave's job. ask him why he's not doing it.
-clean carpet - this is just a very involved thing that means that furniture needs to be moved and the floor will be wet for days. yuck. what a pain. and besides, i would need to get the filter for the steam cleaner first. but it sooo needs to be done.
-clean off peninsula - i wish all the surfaces in my house were vertical. then nothing could be a clutter trap like my kitchen peninsula. i've started this project many times recently, but never managed to finish it. probably because i don't know what to do with half the stuff on there. do you have this problem? does it seem like most of the clutter in your house is clutter simply because you have no idea what to do with it? what are you supposed to do with it?
-clean off shelf in layla's closet - well, this wouldn't actually be too hard. it's got a bunch of floor puzzles that are still a little too hard for her, some other puzzles that i put up there when i needed to put them away for some reason, a few other toys that she's outgrown and micah isn't quite ready for... so that's not a huge deal. that stuff can stay. on the other side, there is my huge box of photos and doing something with them would check off like 5 other things on this list, but that's another story. there's also 1 crate and one small pile of random stuff to sort through. i hate sorting.
-clean off top of fridge - well, that shouldn't be too hard. there's not a ton up there right now. maybe i'll do it tonight. or tomorrow. or sometime soon. check back.
-clean out gutters - i want this to be dave's job.
-clean out my closet - ugh. this would involve dealing with my 'pile'. you know. the clothes you take off at night that aren't dirty so you don't put them in the laundry, but you've worn them so you don't hang them back up. i've always had a 'pile'. it used to be on this old ugly green chair i had in my bedroom at my parents' house. but then my mother got rid of that chair (grrr... i loved that chair). now it's on the floor of my closet. there's probably a bunch of other random stuff too, like clothes for micah that are still too big. what do you do with those? i never know. they're there waiting. it would be a waste of space and hangers to put them in the closet now, but i don't know what to do with them.
-clear out junk along house in backyard - i don't even know where to begin with this one. there's old rotted wood, a bunch of metal pipe-type things - some with large chunks of cement attached to the ends, some old dog toys... just a bunch of stuff that was here when we moved in. a lot of the stuff is too big to go in the trash can.
-dig weeds and grass out of garden - this requires a chunk of time that i just can never seem to find. i hate getting into my grubbies and going out and getting all dirty and sweaty digging this stuff out, only to have some kid require my attention 5 minutes later. that drives me nuts and doesn't seem worth it. plus, it seems kind of futile because the stuff just keeps growing back.
-do something about shane's room - another overwhelming task. shane's room is a pit. there is no organization. he has all these neato lego creations and there is no place to put them. besides, when they're no longer completely intact, what do you do with them. you don't want to just dump it all into the big lego bin because then it's all just mixed in. but how do you store all these millions of different 'kits'? anyone out there have a good idea? i want to be able to have these things safe from the little ones because he works hard on them and gets really mad if they get messed up. i have no idea what to do about this.
-find a non-lame baptism gift for our godchild to be - well, i'm starting to come to the conclusion that there isn't such a thing. christian bookstores have all the same old stuff. any good ideas? not you mary.
- finish harry potter series - okay, this is doable, but just requires time. i want to do this and i think i made a great stride today by sitting down and reading a novel that i've been waiting for from the library all summer. i'm setting a good trend here.
okay, well i think this is long enough for the time being. i'll do another installment some time later.
-buy new brown shoes - okay, that's easy. i've got no money right now. aside from that, i've tried on lots of pairs of shoes and haven't found any that were particularly comfortable.
-buy new filter for steam cleaner - non-emergent purchase. however, the next time someone pukes on my carpet, i'll really be wishing i had done it. maybe i should move that up on the priority list... ::knocking on wood::
-buy new running shoes - no $$
-buy shane's bear book - well, this involves going to one of my least favorite places - sir plus - with 3 kids. not horrible. doable. i should just get it over with next time i'm out and about. oh! maybe i'll go next monday when i take layla to preschool, then i'll only have to take one kid! check back with me next week.
-choose, print, frame, hang pictures in hall bathroom - ugh. this requires $. it could actually probably be done fairly cheaply and without too much headache. i already know the general type of pictures i want so i just need to sort through the files on my computer and find them and then order them. shouldn't be too hard.
-chop logs - HAHA this is totally dave's job. ask him why he's not doing it.
-clean carpet - this is just a very involved thing that means that furniture needs to be moved and the floor will be wet for days. yuck. what a pain. and besides, i would need to get the filter for the steam cleaner first. but it sooo needs to be done.
-clean off peninsula - i wish all the surfaces in my house were vertical. then nothing could be a clutter trap like my kitchen peninsula. i've started this project many times recently, but never managed to finish it. probably because i don't know what to do with half the stuff on there. do you have this problem? does it seem like most of the clutter in your house is clutter simply because you have no idea what to do with it? what are you supposed to do with it?
-clean off shelf in layla's closet - well, this wouldn't actually be too hard. it's got a bunch of floor puzzles that are still a little too hard for her, some other puzzles that i put up there when i needed to put them away for some reason, a few other toys that she's outgrown and micah isn't quite ready for... so that's not a huge deal. that stuff can stay. on the other side, there is my huge box of photos and doing something with them would check off like 5 other things on this list, but that's another story. there's also 1 crate and one small pile of random stuff to sort through. i hate sorting.
-clean off top of fridge - well, that shouldn't be too hard. there's not a ton up there right now. maybe i'll do it tonight. or tomorrow. or sometime soon. check back.
-clean out gutters - i want this to be dave's job.
-clean out my closet - ugh. this would involve dealing with my 'pile'. you know. the clothes you take off at night that aren't dirty so you don't put them in the laundry, but you've worn them so you don't hang them back up. i've always had a 'pile'. it used to be on this old ugly green chair i had in my bedroom at my parents' house. but then my mother got rid of that chair (grrr... i loved that chair). now it's on the floor of my closet. there's probably a bunch of other random stuff too, like clothes for micah that are still too big. what do you do with those? i never know. they're there waiting. it would be a waste of space and hangers to put them in the closet now, but i don't know what to do with them.
-clear out junk along house in backyard - i don't even know where to begin with this one. there's old rotted wood, a bunch of metal pipe-type things - some with large chunks of cement attached to the ends, some old dog toys... just a bunch of stuff that was here when we moved in. a lot of the stuff is too big to go in the trash can.
-dig weeds and grass out of garden - this requires a chunk of time that i just can never seem to find. i hate getting into my grubbies and going out and getting all dirty and sweaty digging this stuff out, only to have some kid require my attention 5 minutes later. that drives me nuts and doesn't seem worth it. plus, it seems kind of futile because the stuff just keeps growing back.
-do something about shane's room - another overwhelming task. shane's room is a pit. there is no organization. he has all these neato lego creations and there is no place to put them. besides, when they're no longer completely intact, what do you do with them. you don't want to just dump it all into the big lego bin because then it's all just mixed in. but how do you store all these millions of different 'kits'? anyone out there have a good idea? i want to be able to have these things safe from the little ones because he works hard on them and gets really mad if they get messed up. i have no idea what to do about this.
-find a non-lame baptism gift for our godchild to be - well, i'm starting to come to the conclusion that there isn't such a thing. christian bookstores have all the same old stuff. any good ideas? not you mary.
- finish harry potter series - okay, this is doable, but just requires time. i want to do this and i think i made a great stride today by sitting down and reading a novel that i've been waiting for from the library all summer. i'm setting a good trend here.
okay, well i think this is long enough for the time being. i'll do another installment some time later.
At least you've got your list written down so you can actually see what needs to be done and cross it off when you accomplish something!
ReplyDeleteRe: the pile. I've always got one, too, and it's at the foot of our bed. It totally drives Luke batty. I just can't help it though... I don't want to put clothes I've already worn back into the drawer.
Re: Shane's leggos. Have you though about getting some clear (or semi-clear) plastic bins so he can have a separate one for each kit? You could put the cover picture on each bin so he knows which one is for which kit, or tape the instruction booklet onto the top cover or side. That way when it gets partially dismantled, there's a place for it to go instead of into the giant pile of random leggos, never to be seen again.
Re: the baptism gift. Do you know if you're having a goddaughter or godson? For a little girl I've always liked the mustard seed necklaces, but that may be one of the cheesy gifts you're talking about. There's also a children's book paraphrasing Psalm 31. (The one describing what a godly woman is.) I know the author's first name is Elizabeth, but can't remember the last name. If you go into a Christian bookstore, they should know what you're talking about. For a boy, I'm a big blank. Maybe the Jesus Storybook Bible? Our boys were given this at Christmas, and it's great. There's also a book called Jesus and the Twelve Dudes, but I think that's geared toward older kids.
Okay... that's a really long comment. I'm done now. :)
Elizabeth George is the author. She's also written a book called A Woman After God's Own Heart... I think the children's book is called A Girl After God's Own Heart.
ReplyDeleteI know my mom gave you some ideas about the legos, but I had one more. Empty baby wipe containers. As for the too big clothes, for my kids I invested in rubbermaid containers and labeled the outside with what sizes were in the container.
ReplyDelete