daybook 9.25.11

Outside my window…
Darkness.

I am thinking…
of balance and priorities once again. Many of the moms I’ve talked to last week feel overwhelmed and behind, and it’s only 2 1/2 weeks into the school year.

I worked through Blogging with Amy’s book on Time Management, Tell Your Time, to figure out my schedule, roles, and goals. However, I don’t think I use my goals as a template for decision making as much as I should, especially when it comes to volunteering for school.

I am thankful for…
my son John who celebrated his sixth birthday last Thursday. He’s an amazing kid!

I am pondering…

Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory;
rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves,
each looking out not for his own interests,
but also for those of others.

From today’s mass reading: Philippians 2:1 – 11

Living a green/frugal lifestyle…
Life is not so green and frugal around here with all the rain. I’ve been running the dehumidifier almost daily, and forget about drying the clothes in the basement. Everything smells musty when it’s left down there. I do have drying racks set up in the living room which I use for socks, underwear, small towels, napkins, diapers, wipes and diaper covers.

From the kitchen…
Apparently, my children think homemade is best when it comes to birthday cakes. I used a boxed mix to make a cake for Thursday. The icing, also boxed, received rave reviews; the cake not so much. And these are kids who never turn down dessert.

I am creating…
plans for more time for creativity in my life. I’m feeling the urge to craft, knit, and embroider. I think I may look at the projects that need to be finished today, and decide which ones I can do based on my schedule. I know from the past that knitting and embroidery are crafts I can do in the evening which don’t require much intellectual thought on my part. They’re great for winding down after a long day.

I’m also working on the children’s Halloween costumes, and a family birthday party coming up in October. I’m trying to keep the costumes as simple and frugal as possible since I have to do 4. Today, we’ll pull out the supply of premade costumes from Old Navy to see if the 3 year old will go for one of them.

For the family birthday party, I’ve been on . Since I don’t have a lot of time, I’m going to focus my efforts on decorating the dining room which is where the food is served and we do the cake, and the desserts.

I am going…
to mass, maybe to Michaels for more sequin supplies, and to stay home and craft. I have 2 sequined pumpkins which I need to finish.

I am reading…
magazines for inspiration and getting ready to pull out my collection of past Martha Stewart Living magazines for ideas for fall and Halloween decorating.

Living A Healthy Lifestyle…
With life so hectic at the beginning of September, I feel like I need to refocus during the last week of September and make sure I get my daily walks in plus drinking plenty of water and eating lots of veggies.

I’ve been on a bit of a soup kick. I made 2 soups last week – a chunky tomato soup from Martha Stewart’s Entertaining and Mushroom Soup from Twelve Months of Monastery Soups. I found an orzo and tomato soup in the Twelve Months book which I’m making for dinner this week. I think I may also make another batch of the mushroom soup to use up the mushrooms which are getting a bit old.

I am hoping…
for less rain.

I am hearing…
little feet coming down the stairs. The children are waking up. Time for breakfast.

Around the house…
I had the cobwebs under control, and then school started. I’ve decided to tackle the projects I have on my list for each zone as I clean each zone. However, the biggest project is getting a load of items to Goodwill. I’m just not looking forward to loading the car. Maybe my teenager needs to help?

Around the yard…
apart from the work my husband did in the vegetable garden last weekend, we are woefully behind on weeding and cleaning up the yard for the winter. The rainy weather hasn’t helped, nor has time spent volunteering at my children’s school. I can aim for 15 minutes a day, and start getting somewhere.

One of my favorite things…
felt. I love how easy it is to work with for crafts, and the graphical nature of the thicker felt.

A few plans for the rest of the week:
finally getting our refinance done, a 6 year checkup, lunch duty for preschool and the older kids, soccer, Venturing, and Podcamp Philly next weekend.

A picture for thought…