Staycation

My last official day at the library was Thursday, so I'm officially a housewife/full-time mom. But since my arm is still broken, and I can't lift my baby (or at least I shouldn't) he's still in full-time daycare until it heals. Which leaves me all dressed up in heels and pearls with no floor to vacuum, so to speak. Gus's last day of daycare will be July 13th, barring any unforeseen problems with the healing process (so far, it's gone really well). Which gives me an entire two and a half weeks of stay-at-home-not-mom, Today-Show-watching, bon-bon-eating bliss.

After spending the first two days floundering around and half-accomplishing things, I decided I need a plan. For some people *cough cough Jonny cough* to-do lists are overwhelming and distressing, but for me a plan is like exercise - sure, I might want to skip it, but if I do, I feel guilty and not-awesome, so a 20-minute workout would have saved me hours of worrying and unproductiveness.* Plus, creating and accomplishing a list of tasks makes me feel like a rock star, and who doesn't want that?

So here is my vacation list - my hopes and aspirations for the next few weeks:

1. Develop an exercise habit. Going to the Y with a baby is only marginally harder than going without one (and certainly easier than packing him for daycare), so I want to get in the habit of going several times a week. Plus five minutes of walking and stretching on the off days (five minutes is once around the block - so easy! And I can stretch while I play with Gus on the floor).

2. Develop a devotional habit. Daily Bible reading and prayer, even if it's only five minutes.

3. Clean out my closets. Boy howdy, does this need done.

4. Get an oil change. Done! And they found and fixed a hole in my tire, too. My tires are nail-magnets, apparently.

5. Clean off my desk and keep it clean. Desk is clean. Bed behind it is full of junk that was on the desk.

6. Blog more.


7. Help out other mommas. Where I can, of course. I can't hold their baby either, but I can watch toddlers or just keep an eye out while they do things they are itching to get done. Time is a blessing few moms receive, so I need to be thankful and tithe on all my blessings. Plus, otherwise I'd get lonely.

8. Get a haircut. Haven't decided yet whether this will be a trim or a mom haircut. We'll see.

9. Childproof the house. Crawling is only a short time away!

10. Prioritize pending projects. I have supplies and ideas for so many projects that I'm not even sure what I have or what I want to do. I want to make a list (ok, so I have a list obsession) so I know where to start, and don't freeze in panic when I do have ten spare minutes.

I think I'll stop there - ten is a nice round number. But expect sublists in the future!

Love,

Katie

*In fact, the amount of unscheduled time in Jonny's Saturday is usually directly proportional to his enjoyment of it. Since I am freaked out by unscheduled time and Jon needs it to function, I often plan (in my mind) to leave unscheduled time for him...but of course, I can't tell him when that's happening, since that would kind of defeat the purpose. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the intricacies of a marriage between a task-oriented ESFJ and a people-oriented INTP.

Is it fear or courage which compels you, Fleshling?

There comes a time in every kitteh's life when he is forced to confront his worst fears:

Humans are not exempt from this. Readers, meet my private shame:

My office. Eek.

Private shame, meet readers:

Ok, so this isn't exactly private - we host board game night every Wednesday, so people see it every week. But that doesn't make me feel any less ashamed!

Now before you say anything: I firmly believe that messes are like weight issues. It's not a competition. One person's mess (or weight) is infinitely more frustrating to them than to anyone else. And it never helps to hear, "Well, you're thinner/more organized than me, so what do you know?" It just makes one feel more shameful, not less. So please comment with wisdom and kindness.

Ahem. /rant

So my hope is that by publishing photos of my private shame, I'll be motivated to correct it. It will be more fun to post "after" photos when it's all cleaned up.

Those are just boxes filled with random objects - from batteries to paperclips to USB cords. A banana box and a basket full of objects smaller than tennis balls! Yup...this will be a long haul.

Plus, there are lots of fun projects I've been meaning to create and post about, and I can't do anything until I have a workspace to create in.

So a week from today, I solemnly promise to post "after" pictures of my office, no matter how badly I fail at the organization mission. There will be posts about things that are more exciting than cleaning too, I promise. Thanks for serving as my motivation and support group - everything's better with a party!

Love,

Katie

Wouldn't you like to be a pepper too?

I have absolutely no motivation to do my homework. Only one final project and an exam to go, and then I'd be done for the forseeable future. But when given the choice between long-term and short-term satisfaction, I suppose procrastinating by watching Kitchen Nightmares* and Nostalgia Chick and reading lots of TVTropes seems better than writing a "Reference Pathfinder" or some such nonsense. Especially when I'm sick in bed, my motivation to work ahead is practically nil. ("Ahead" here is relative - I should have started this project months ago.)

So after gluing my eyes to my laptop screen all day, I've become aware of what I have in common with a quirky, deadly-turned-adorkable robot:

INPUT! MORE INPUT!

So in case you're like Johnny 5 and me, here are just five sites I subscribe to or visit for a quick laugh. (We'll talk about the merits of Google Reader another day, yes?)

• Cakewrecks: Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably seen this cake blogger who posts the most horrible cakes you can imagine...and some gorgeous ones on Sundays. This Sunday's Sweets are all literary - perfect for that librarian in your life.
• Not Invented Here: This webcomic about computer software developers has enough relevance to most workplaces to be funny, even if you don't know computers. The geek humor, though, adds a delightful bonus.
• Engrish Funny: On some days, my favorite section of the Failblog/Cheezburger conglomerate.
• Unhappy Hipsters: Pairs photos of modern architecture and design with darkly funny captions.
• Cute Overload: Squeeeeeee!

Any favorites of yours you'd like to share? Leave me a comment - and bonus points if you get what the title of this post references. Here's wishing you and yours a very merry interneting!

Love, Katie

*Not my first choice of Hulu selections, btw - but I'm all caught up on Fringe, Bones, and Castle. What's a girl to do? I do take suggestions...