Morning glories!! Have been trying to get this post put together since…well, since before summer began. But we have been in kind of a holding pattern waiting to meet with PC’s surgeon and to know for certain that they got all of the cancer O-U-T. It’s hard to make plans when you are holding your breath and praying all day.
We finally go to the doctor on Friday. And Brennyn, Mustafa, Cady and Declan are coming this weekend so it is time to make some plans. Calling those plans my summer 2023 bucket list.
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Summer 2023 Goals
As I said in the beginning of the year, making seasonal goals works better for me than New Year’s resolutions that I lose track of before the second week of the year. When I share them here with you, I am not only accountable to myself but to you, as well. And then if I get my goals scribbled onto my goal blackboard that’s a real bonus. It puts them out where I see them as I begin my day. Going to get that done as soon as I publish this post.
You might remember that I divided my winter and spring goals into 2 categories. Things that are external I categorized under House. Goals specifically affecting me, my body, my personality I categorized under Home.
Key to My Progress:
- ⏱️ = work on goal underway
- ✔️ = goal met
- ❌ = goal not met
House
- work on coaxing blooms from the bougainvillea: silly thing grows so well but never blooms!! Maybe a single blossom a year. Going to read up on how to make it bloom and see what we can do about that. It would be gorgeous in full bloom beside our patio.
- harvest peaches and try making peach wine again: we tried our hand at making peach wine a half dozen years ago and it was undrinkable!! Could have filled the gas tank with the stuff. But we have another bumper crop of peaches this year so we are going to give it another go. Or maybe a peach sangria as that seems simpler to make and harder to mess up. This one sounds pretty tasty.
- touch up wall paint and paint the pullouts on the front porch: for a 15 year old house, our walls are in very good shape but there are knicks here and there that could be touched up. Also, I have moved art around on the walls, leaving behind nail holes. Would like to get some touch up paint as close to our wall color as possible and fix those spots. We had cracks repaired on the stucco pullouts on our patio, balcony and front porch when the work was being done on the pool. But not all of the pullouts were painted the right color. We have the paint, just need to use it.
- touch up baseboards: when we had the carpeting removed on the stairs, in the hall and my loft last fall, the baseboards were removed and then reattached. They look pretty banged up. Would like to freshen them up with a coat of paint and maybe do the rest of the baseboards, too. The first method demonstrated in this video looks easy enough.
- clean glass and recalk the shower in our bedroom: it has been a mess from the first. The builder forgot to put the pan under the drain in the shower. But we didn’t discover that for months. Then when they ripped out the tile, they couldn’t get tile to match. Grrrr. So, it’s close but no cigar. With our hard water, the glass has never looked nice since the first time we used it. And the calking is pulling up, too. Going to give it the best cleaning I can, replace the rubber sweep at the bottom of the door, and recalk. Found this article on cleaning the shower door (and the rest of the glass in the shower) and it recommends a product I’ve never used. Going to check it out. Apparently, EdFred shower stall and tile cleaner works on pools, too!! I bought something called Pink Stuff for spring cleaning. It worked pretty well and would probably be fantastic if we didn’t live on the side of a mountain where there is so much calcium and scale.
Home
- run on treadmill 2x a week 1.75 miles each run: set a goal of 1.5 miles once a week in the winter, upped it to 1.6 miles 3x a week for spring; increasing the distance for summer but decreasing the number of days I run as I am also swimming this season.
- Supernatural 4X week: maintain from winter and spring goal
- quiet time 4X a week on patio: same goal from winter and spring but enjoying our patio at the same time
- situps/weights/leg lifts 2x a week: another carry-over goal that I never accomplished the first half of the year. Not sure why this is so impossible for me to do!!
- Monday manicures: spring cleaning is done and the house is in pretty fair condition, so I need to routinely start taking better care of my nails and cuticles. I have 3 pairs of rubber gloves, time to use them.
- do something about cracks in pool plaster and grout: can you believe this is on the list? Sad but true. Our fresh pool plaster is cracking and the grout between the lip of the deck and the tile is cracking and falling out. I just cannot believe it. We need to get these issues addressed pronto!
Summer 2023 Bucket List
Have to confess…some of these activities are almost underway in that tickets have been purchased, arrangements made. But that’s okay, right? Just good planning!!
In ABC Order
- “Barbie” movie, baby: this was Mustafa’s bright idea for one of the days during the Ft. Worth kids’ visit…rent a theater and see “Barbie” together. I love it!! Declan and even Cami might struggle with sitting still for the whole movie. If we rent the theater, the kids can walk around, dance, play, even cry without bothering anyone.
- birthday celebrations: July is a big birthday month for us with Cady’s bday on the 28th, Brennyn on the 30th and Lauren on the 31st. Going to celebrate our birthday girls and have half-birthday celebrations for Lucia, Camila and Declan. Cady suggested we adopt a Disney theme for the decorations.
- Chihuahuas Triple A baseball game with the gang: take in a game, allow the littles to play on the splash pads, enjoy a cold beer and peanuts in our beautiful Southwest University stadium.
- family picture: how many years has this been on my bucket lists?? Sure as I hire a photographer, something will happen – yet another round of Covid, anyone? – and we won’t be able to have our pictures taken. But I really want to take a good picture even if it’s just with my phone. Puh-leeez!!!
- finish scrapbooking Mom’s 95th birthday and Declan’s 1st: I have started work on Mom’s birthday celebration from 03.2022, just a few months before she died. Did scrapbook Declan’s birth over the spring and have all of the paper and pictures ready to scrap his first birthday.
There’s More
- iFly: if Cady is game, I want to do this with her. Make a special memory for her 13th birthday. Possibly, the memory of her grandmother breaking her neck. Ha!
- pedicure: finally going to happen!! Maybe Barbie pink??
- complete the summer photo scavenger hunt hosted by Deb at Patio Postcards, here: this actually kicked off last month. Ha, but so did summer!! I am a little late for everything it seems. Here are the prompts for the scavenger hunt. Grab your camera and join the fun.
-
- plant/tree with thorn(s)
- wordless Directional Sign
- something netted or webbed
- something berry, berry delicious
- a bridge
- a school
- something that dangles
- shadows
- crack or pothole in the road or sidewalk
- white flower(s)
- extraordinary water
- summer tools
- sold or for sale sign (not necessarily a house)
- something that rolls
-
- Vintage or thrift clothes shopping with Cady: want to take her to Uptown Cheapskate. She is into thrifting and there are great bargains there.
Now to see how I venture on all of these projects with the 2 months remaining in the season.
Your Turn
So, I mentioned recently that I have started taking a little something (.5 mg of Lexapro) for anxiety. I have been on it almost a week and do feel much better. There is still an underlying nervousness but I am not as tense and worried. Supposed to up my dose to double that tomorrow but not sure I will. This might be enough.
Have you set out some goals to accomplish this summer? Do you have activities on your summer bucket list? I think this is the easiest season to create a bucket list for because almost everyone is able to enjoy a little summer down time. Hope you have big plans and accomplish and ENJOY every one.
Off to dust the house. And put away laundry. Iron a few pieces. Then taking this new kitty to the vet at 3:45 and writing at 6:00. No rest for the weary.
Thank you for being my friend!! Hey, that could be a song.
Hugs and kisses,
Thanks for linking that video- we’ve lived in our house 20 years now and I keep saying I need to repaint all our baseboards and start updating many of our rooms that haven’t been touched in year but I’ve always been hesitant on where to start. I bought this awesome shower cleaner on Amazon– the scrubbing bubbles mega foaming bathroom cleaner that came with it’s own cloth and while I can’t say my shower doors look like new again they definitely look so much better than they did!
I love your ABC order list– all those sounds like such good family fun. Best of luck with the family photo! Our family planned one with all 4 of us kids and our families, my mom and step father, etc. right before my sisters moved down south. We had the location, the photographer and everything all planned and then the day we were supposed to do it the skies just opened up and down poured. We could not put together a back up plan fast enough and we never got our family photos taken. That was the last time we were all in the same state!
Thanks for the product suggestion for cleaning the shower. I guess I have unattainable goals for my glass but it just makes me crazy. I cleaned our fairly new humidifier this week and you should have seen the scale and calcium built up around the heating element. Oh, my gravy. It was like sheets of salt or rock. I had to chisel it off the element. And this humidifier is less than 6 months old. Ridiculous. It is a wonder we can see through the shower glass at all.
Oh, I am so sorry about your family photo plans. We didn’t wind up having a picture taken either. It is just not meant to be. Maybe someday we will both get our family photos.
It has been quite a while since I have done a bucket list. Maybe this fall. We’ll see. I’m envious of your peaches! Congrats on a good crop this year! Peach sangria sounds pretty dang good! I also like your idea about a set aside day for manicures. I am pretty neglectful of such things, but perhaps a weekly routine would help. Best of luck to you in all of these endeavors!
I think the fall is the best time for a bucket list!! Maybe we could round up some gals and all post at the same time.
Your summer bucket list looks like equal parts fun and work. My oldest granddaughter wants to go thrifting, too. It must be something about that age. I need to take her early next week as school starts Wednesday or Thursday. Ugh…I can’t believe what you’ve been through with your pool. I hope you get it fixed soon. And, I will continue to pray for you and PC.
I want to get my bedroom painted. I don’t know what I was thinking when I picked out Antique White because it’s just so blah! I also want to paint the front hallway. Why? Because it’s also Antique White! Beyond that, I want to start exercising again, but just walking the dog to the end of the driveway wears me out. The dr said it would be 4-6 weeks before I felt “normal” again. We will see.
https://marshainthemiddle.com/
Oh, I need to do an update, Marsha. Not sure I am going to get half of what I had hoped to do done. But there’s still a few weeks left to summer so all hope is not lost.
Hope you can begin walking a little more every week. It will help to have cooler temps – surely soon. That will make walking much more enjoyable. I think the whole country has had one hot season.
Thank you for the prayers and support. We are feeling cautiously encourage about PC’s PSA test results. It seems they got all of the cancer. Hurray.
I love the idea of scheduling quiet time outside to relax. I need to do more of that. I love getting outside and we have a nice porch swing on our back patio. I loved the Barbie movie!! And, I hope your peach wine tastes wonderful… that sounds like a fun activity to try and I hope it works out better this time!
Carrie
curlycraftymom.com
Hi Leslie – it looks like you’ve got quite a list to accomplish. Your painting comments brought to mind all the painting we’ve had done in the last month. We paid someone to do it and I’m so relieved we did. We used to paint our other houses whenever there was a need, but with this house it’s been something we keep putting off. Now that the painter has done it all, it’s fresh and lovely and all those little nicks and smudges and hairline cracks are gone – so nice to sit back and admire it.
I hope the shower comes up well after all your efforts – maintenance (including the pool repairs) is such an ongoing chore isn’t it?
Maintenance is just exhausting. Tonight I am worn out with it all. The pool issues continue. Tonight a PVC fitting broke and we can’t run the pump. Just one thing after another. Constantly.
I bet your house looks lovely with its fresh paint. I hope if I can muster the energy to touch ours up it will hold off the need for painting the whole thing for a few more years.
My kids went to see the Barbie movie and they think I should see it. I’m not sure! Zachary has done iFly twice. He likes it, I don’t think I would! As for my summer goals, just getting Gabbie set for college and decluttering, which I’m semi-working on!
Oh, go!! I think it will be fun!! My BFF has warned me that it isn’t appropriate for littles but when I looked up what kinds of things in the movie might be deemed inappropriate for young children, it was things that I think will go over the little ones’ heads.
My father adored fly fishing. Is Zachary back home? My dad would tie his own flies and they were beautiful. He loved fly fishing in Rocky Mountain streams for trout. It is very peaceful.
Ahhh…peach wine, peach smoothies, peaches and creme, peach cobbler, peach pie. You are so lucky. Regarding the bougainvillea. If it is planted in full sun it probably just needs a high nitrogen fertilizer to promote the blooms. If it is in a shady area and doesn’t get at least 7 or 8 hours of sun each day, it probably won’t bloom.
It sounds like you have a long list of summer chores and good times. Best of luck with all.
Thank you for the tips. It gets quite a bit of sun and has bloomed a little bit in the past. I am going to get some high nitrogen fertilizer and see if that works. I always cut it way back in the fall. Maybe I shouldn’t? Also read that trimming a couple of inches off each branch and putting Epsom salts out might help. Fingers crossed!!
Well, well…this makes me think of all the things I need to be doing! Thanks for the kick in the pants 🙂 Yes, to Barbie pink!!
Ha!! I hope I get them all done. It’s easy to write them down and not so easy to get them done.
I’m gradually ticking off the photo prompts!
I do hope this is the year you get that professional photo done – if not, any photo of the family group will be good to have.
Hope all goes well with PC’s check up – hope that he doesn’t have to have any further treatment x
Good for you to be making progress on the scavenger hunt. I am glad it is a rather short list. I have found one of the prompts!! Dangling!!
Goodness, you’re going to be a busy bee. This little bee is trying to get ready for guests again. I do love to have them, but it does take some getting ready for. Hope you can get all your goals/ideas done.
Iris
Oh heavens, you just recuperated from the last round of company. Hope this won’t be too hard on you. I feel much the same way. Getting ready for them is work, having them home is wonderful but can be stressful, and then cleaning up after they are gone is more work.
Ooo! Peach sangria sounds like it would be a hit. I’ll be over soon! Haha! Enjoy!
Would love for you to stop by for a big glass of sangria. If it turns out well, I will share!!
Oh do be careful at that Ifly! Lots of extra grandma points for you but….that is a risky one:) How aggravating with the pool cracks, etc. I hope you can get that fixed soon. I just think it would be amazing to have a pool in my backyard – just sayin! I do hope Paul’s appt. went well and that he is feeling 100 percent!! Have a wonderful week ahead!! Happy Monday:)
Well, we didn’t wind up going to iFly after all. Still want to do that but my daughter was a little worried about me trying it. Maybe I should go check it out first. Just go see what it would involve. Seems like it would feel so good to be weightless and maybe carefree, too…unless I break my neck. Ha!! We are cautiously optimistic about the reports from PC’s surgery and post-surgery tests. Thank you!! Good to be on the other side of this cancer business.
You have quite a few projects on your list! I get it though, I usually do too!!
I hope that all is well with your PC. I will be praying.
I really want to see Barbie! One day I will get to that theater and watch it! Maybe! Lol.
Leslie thanks for the shout out for the SPSH. Like you, our summer so far has been taken up with many many appointments; ours for Mr Man’s eye surgery & ongoing problems. So yes a shorter SPSH list was just the ticket for all of us :). Next check in is Monday August 21st!