No married soldier ever deploys without a spouse who has a to-do list of epic proportions. It seems as if things like reading the classics; painting the entire interior of the house; losing 50 pounds; and organizing my entire life fall onto more than one spouse's list. The months pass and a couple weeks prior to the homecoming, the spouse mentally checks the list and decides "shaving my legs" and "buying a cute homecoming outfit" will have to do. Things become real really quickly when you're tasked with being a one man band. For me, if the dogs were alive, the kids clean/fed/breathing and the house standing, it was a WIN.
For National Guard families, there is that magical "2 weeks a year" we always hear about that comes in the summer. The soldier goes to Annual Training (AT) and the spouse is left home with a couple weeks.
You would think by now, I would realize that this falls in my busiest time of year. We are less than three weeks from go-time for my bar exam takers. And yet, after all these years, I still think I will be able to accomplish some sort of list while my husband is off doing Army things.
Lists are my thing, though, so in addition to the list of fun things to do before summer keels over and gasps its last halting breath, here is my list of things to do before AT comes to a close:
1) Finish my gigantic book on John Adams so that I can move on to simulataneously read "It Starts With Food" and "The Barefoot Executive." I want to do the Whole 30 while my husband is gone and the author of The Barefoot Executive is coming to the Scentsy convention at the end of this month. I'm a little behind on my reading because work is so crazed. I feel pretty lucky to be able to work in any reading at all at this time of year.
2) Make sure the children end up where they need to be when they need to be there. Three Mondays of piano lessons to remember. Plus, M2 has a soccer registration paperwork turn-in mtg. (note to self: gather this junk together), three days of volleyball camp, and prep for a week long camping trip with her friend to do. M1 likely has her weekly stint of volunteering at a library and then gearing up for her annual trip to Chataqua. I have a feeling I could spend most of my time doing this part.
3) Work my Scentsy business like there is no tomorrow. It's Bring Back My Bar month (my FAVORITE!) and I don't want anyone to miss the chance to order from the list of retired frangrances resurrected for one month. I also will add at least one more person to my team. (See how I did that--positive thinking and self-fulfilling prophecy right there). I'd like to hit Vegas for our convention already having what I need for the month so that it isn't a mad rush those final three days of July.
4) Run. I am registered for a half-marathon again and I have not been running. I need to get out there, figure out my sock situation (no blisters, please!) and probably purchase new shoes before too much longer. My sister has been going to town on her running and I am a lazy pants.
I would also like to clean and organize my bedroom. Paint it and whatever. Cleaning will probably happen. Organizing enough for the cleaning is also possible. Given that I've lived in this house since 1999 and thought upon viewing the house the first time, "this bedroom will need repainted", I seriously doubt this task will ever be complete.
I would also like to figure out what is happening with my tomato plants. I'm losing one to blight for certain. Hoping to salvage the others. We have been under excessive heat warning for DAYS. All plants have been watered religiously, but until the weather breaks at the beginning of next week, I'm not becoming one with my garden. If I try, I may literally become a part of it as in "bury me where I fall." It is simply too HOT!
I also have been gathering information and cheat sheets to teach myself to use the fancy dancy camera I couldn't wait to buy (thank you, Craigslist!) and have not had time to play with enough to figure out yet.
If I could work in finding out what really happened to Amelia Earheart and finding a cure for procrastination, I definitely will. Until then, it's back to work handling the bar exam business.
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