A Day in My Life

So what does summer break look like without swim team?

It has rained the last two days.  Otherwise, I would have been at the pool for at least an hour.  However, the rain has been a good thing.  I spend Mondays (when the pool is closed) taking care of routine appointments - sports physicals, eye exams, etc.  I can't see the dentist on Monday because he's not in the office, but I have a tiny window to get all the appointments in before I am back at school, so they are scattered throughout the next month.

Yesterday,  I took care of a doctor's appointment then had lunch with former colleagues.  I then decided to really get serious about purging around my house.  It started with a bag of clothes that Julia set outside of her room a few weeks ago.  I went piece by piece though the bag and tossed the stuff not good enough to donate and donated most of the rest of it.  I then followed suit with some bags of clothing stored in the basement. I found a bag of red, uniform shirts.  I think somebody gave them to us, so I am washing them and getting them ready for the used uniform sale.

Last night and today, I went after my kitchen.  I have emptied three cabinets, replaced or washed the shelf lining and discarded everything that was expired.  For years I have been telling myself that I would buy space saving canisters to store powdered sugar, brown sugar and the various types of flour that Andy uses for baking.  After my workout this morning, I hit Walmart and started buying the containers.  I bought four to gauge what I really need and to figure some things out.  I stopped by the Dollar Tree for more containers knowing that they may not hold up.    All medicine is now in a bin for easy access from the cabinet.  The gazillion cake sprinkles have a box in which they don't quite fit, and my cupcake holders are in clear, round containers that are just big enough to hold their shape and allow me to clearly see that yes, I do already have Valentine's cupcake holders and need not buy more next year. My only issue with the Dollar Tree containers is that they don't stack so nicely with the Rubbermaid ones, so in the cabinets where I used Rubbermaid containers, I will have to get more Rubbermaid containers. My list of containers left to buy includes one for popcorn and one for rice, and one for chocolate chips (yes, they are a staple around here and cleaning out the cabinet revealed how the bags spill without notice), but those will need to await another payday.

My brother has dropped off several boxes of pictures from my parents house, and to be honest I dread going through them.  It's just such a daunting task to think about digitizing them and organizing and distributing them.  I am procrastinating on that one.

Then there is the reading.  As a librarian I typically have a list of ten books that I need to read and be prepared to promote in the fall.  Then there is the school-wide summer read. I am working through them faster than usual - usually I only get through half of them.  I could not get my hands on two of the books, so I will read the others in order of the ones I expect to be my least favorites to the ones I expect to really enjoy.  I did not actually start out that way.

So far I have finished "Turtles All the Way Down" by John Green.  I had heard that it was dark, and I did not expect to like it as much as I did.

I really enjoyed reading "The Girl with Seven Names" (our school-wide summer read).  What an eye-opening look at life beyond the border of North Korea!

"Night Witches" (Historical fiction) was an interesting look at female, Russian pilots during WWII.  I am not convinced that my kids will love it.

I just started "Warcross." It's okay but not really a genre that I love, so I think I may find myself fighting my way through this one, but the protagonist is likable so far, and the reviews are fantastic. Marie Lu is really an exceptional writer.

In addition to reading for work, I hope to catch up on my magazines that are literally still in their plastic dating through the entire school year.  I plan to catch up at the pool.

I have also joined a sweet group of ladies for an inductive study of Revelation chapters 1-3.  I am piggybacking this with a study of the first 11 chapters of Genesis, so I am at both ends of the Bible this summer.  The Revelation study will end in three weeks (I only have a week and a half of lessons left to complete), and the Genesis study is a ten week study that just started today.  It is done online through Lifeway.  They've been offering studies with free access to the video teaching.  This one is "God of Creation" by Jen Wilken.  I am really excited about it.  I love the format, and she has literally changed the way I read the Bible with her "Women of the Word" book, so I am looking forward to going through these chapters with her perspective.  Anyone can join this study.  I was faithful to women's studies at church for years.  When Zach and Savannah hit high school,  a couple of things changed.  1.  I realized how short the time I had left to pour into them was.  2. Andy went through a study that took him away from home for one night a week, and I realized just how challenging it was to be that parent making sure everyone got to where they needed and had what they needed solo.  I backed off for a while, and the introvert in me is winning in regard to study right now, so this online option works for me. I am not locked into a specific time and place to watch the video, and they usually offer a little wiggle room for missed weeks or those who start behind.

Check out the link below if you are interested in the Lifeway study.

God of Creation
 (A little hint: the book is much cheaper at a Lifeway store or online with them than it is with Amazon).

So this is what I've been doing. Now to update on the kids.

Zach is out of state right now at a conference to learn more about loving others well and ministering to them.  He was shoulder tapped for this after attending a class at church, and the church covered the trip for him.  However, he missed his flight and had to pay to get on the next one, and that's all I am going to say about that.  He has not been in touch much, but he is loving it.

Savannah is really enjoying her work with LTN.  She popped in briefly for Father's Day and was back again today because her work is near home, and she dropped off her work partner who was intimidated by driving in a city foreign to her.  Savannah is allowed a three day vacation this summer, and she started that today and headed to St. Louis to visit her college roommate.

Wyatt is pumped!  He and his closest friends are leaving for Bible and Beach tomorrow night.  He's been packing for days, and part of my last few days has included picking up last minute items for the trip.  After our Smoky Mountain trip, both he and Julia wanted water-proof disposable cameras for their summer activities.  A little research online revealed that with processing and the cost of disposable cameras, we were better off to get a cheap, waterproof digital camera, so it will be interesting to see how this works out.

Julia is bummed that we insisted that she finish her freshman year before she joins the rest of the high school youth at Bible and Beach.  Many of her friends are going.  She's excited though that we did okay her participation in FCA leadership camp, so she's counting the days until that starts.  Julia has also been working with a college soccer player to get ready for soccer tryouts.  Yes, she gave up swim and cheer and is hoping to make the soccer team.