1) Worked from home: I must say I met this with trepidation. Usually, working from home when my children are present presents it's own challenges. However, this time I out-smarted them! I committed to getting up at 5:00 a.m. and starting work by 5:15 - 5:30. I worked until my kiddos woke up -- usually around 8:30 or 9:00. That's 1/2 a day's work, folks! Then, when they went to bed, or started calming down to read, I would finish out my work day from 9:00 p.m. til 11:30 - 12:00. I found myself getting so much more done than had I been in our office - in fact, my 17 hour week ended up being closer to 25. Not bad if I say so myself :) Work from home: check!
2.) Organize the left-over school supplies: Yes, I do this every single year! The first week of summer is organize the school supplies week. Why? Because I hate dried out markers, broken pencils and crayons. Plus I despise one big bin of art supplies. That's just crazy-making in my humble opinion. Therefore, I take an hour and sort each into its own respective pile. I also keep a trash bin close at hand so I can quickly toss anything that is not keeper-material.
Then, I find bins, boxes, and containers to fit the pile I'm working with. Pencils and colored pencils get sharpened. Every marker gets tested. Crayons? I'm ruthless! If it's not sharp or nearly sharp, I toss it. NO BROKEN CRAYONS in the bin!
Then once everything is sorted and organized, into the art supply drawer it goes. I also sift through notebooks and book covers to see which ones are still good for next year. Organize the school supplies: check!
Here's the finished product.
3.) Enjoy some down-time with the kiddos: This week my husband was away on business. I decided to take my kiddos camping at a local state-park. Alone. All by myself.
In a tent... Must say... it was a blast!
Camping with the kiddos: check!
4.) You get a line and I'll get a pole. We'll go fishing at the....well, you know the rest. This week I also took the kiddos out to my dad's pond. Must say, I should have done it more while he was still with us...but I was always too busy and he was usually playing golf. I spent a good 3 - 4 hours with my sweet step-mother and my sister. Kayla caught 12 fish; Austin and I together managed to catch...1. It was a catch and release kind of day. But we had a great time. It's just strange being there and him not sitting on the front porch with his cross-word puzzle book in hand. Anyway... it was a good time by the pond.
Down time with the kiddos: check!
We've had an excellent week! Summer is turning out to be great, so far!
How is your summer going? What fun things are you planning?
Only By His Grace,
Billie