{planning to plan}

today, i seem to be in a mood that is lending itself to both planning and being reflective. over the last few weeks things have been different, and changing. change can be good, change can be bad. but ultimately, life is what you make of it and when things change, you must adjust. i'm at the point where i need to shift, once again finding my balance. with an anal quirky personality like mine, you can only function out of balance for so long before you fall off your rocker completely. today, i've decided that it's time to realign. with that, comes the need to plan for some planning (yes, you know you are truly type-a when you have to plan to plan).

if you read the chronicles regularly, you know i was pretty obsessed with the maximize your mornings concept introduced at inspired to action. i still am, but i've fallen off the bandwagon a bit lately due to the changes i mentioned...partially the changes in my work schedule, definitely due to my toddler who has decided to rise at the butt-crack-of-dawn, partially due to spending as much time as possible wrapping up HOA details so that i can let go. i've been able to stick with my daily Bible reading (usually with aforementioned toddler *helping* me). but i haven't really been using my weekly planning sheet and the other parts of my morning routine have fallen off. when i don't do these things, i can tell. i can really tell.

planning to plan:

weekly planning

begin using my weekly planning sheet again. the meal planning and blog schedule really take the pressure off and i've missed them.

daily planning

spend a few minutes in my morning "quiet time" to think about the day even if coleman is already awake. it's still totally feasible. i need to work on going with the flow, instead of caving when my "quiet time" is interrupted.

party planning

lay out a detail plan of execution for the anniversary party (oct 28) and make additional progress on the invitations. continue brainstorming ideas for coleman's party (in february...yes, you read that correctly), and a possible un-birthday party for spencer in the spring.

blog planning

i've done a good job of documenting blog ideas in evernote but i need to increase the level of execution on some of the stronger ideas. one of the things that has suffered in this few week period is this blog. though i've still posted somewhat regularly, the quality of content has been less than i'd prefer. for those of you that are hanging in there with me, it's greatly appreciated. it'll get better. soon. i promise.

holiday planning

we are in the holiday season. in my mind it all starts now with pumpkin patches and carvings, trick or treating and fall hikes...gradually leading us into the thanksgiving season and then the craziness of christmas! i just read a christmas planning e-book that emphasizes planning out your entire holiday season (starting now) and that's what i plan to do (seriously, as if my arm had to be twisted to spend time with a calendar and some lists). this includes thinking about december daily.

• quick digression: as part of the "reflective" mood i mentioned...for the past month or so, i've been sad that summer is gone. by this i mean, school started again and our extra time with spencer is over. i had a list of wonderful, fun ideas for our family to do this summer. we didn't do them. seriously, none. it makes me sad. so, this holiday season, i am committing to making the most of it with my three favorite boys. i'm not talking about over-scheduling a season of craziness...i just mean making the most of everything the season stands for - faith, family and making memories. planning will make this much more feasible...i think this is where i fell short this summer. and summer 2011...watch out! i'm coming full force next year!!!

planning to write

i'm not sure what happened but for a while i was able to journal daily in my "quiet time". but i have been struggling to fit that in now. i haven't written in a while. and my blog posts haven't been of the quality i'd like either. i want to change both of those things, plus i have a guest post to write for publication at marta writes in november! exciting!


so, that's my plan to plan. interestingly, we have a very busy weekend ahead and i don't know how much time/energy i will actually have to accomplish any of this...but i'm hoping to stay inspired and motivated. knowing a plan is in my future is my *light at the end of the tunnel*.