Planning 101

It seems that my planning and organizing skills are being brushed off and utilized a lot these days.

Not only am I counting down the days to my Great Alaskan Adventure ... but I'm helping My Oldest with a move ... planning to get together with friends ... tending to varying appointments ... a little bit of Zumba-ing ... and oh, I am working as well.

I get to be on the unpacking and organizing end of My Son's move. That will be an exciting place to be, as I explore his kitchen and all of the nooks and crannies of his new home! I was deflated when I heard that he couldn't rent a U-haul the day he had hoped to start moving. But I awoke with the realization that we can load up the cars and get the kitchen and bathrooms organized before the furniture starts coming in. Who needs a U-haul for that?? Onwards!!

I've been trying to organize a day to get together with friends. When you are working with four people's lives and commitments, one never knows how things will come together. It was easy for us to find a time and place to visit. The challenge was to work in a group-pedicure session. Finally yesterday, I simply called the salon and asked what days/times were available. As it turned out, there was only one day that worked. I booked it. Then I called and confirmed with my friends. And it worked!! True to my 'Field of Dreams' fill-in-the-blank-motto: If I book it .... they will come!

I have an array of my own personal appointments to tend to before my holidays. A little of this and a little of that. By the time I sail off, I should leave behind an empty whiteboard (at the moment, it is full of dates/times/and notations for the upcoming weeks).

Zumba. I have lost my Zumba-time this past month. All of the classes I signed up for ended around the time that I was going back and forth to my mom's last month. I hadn't decided what to do about enrolling in the new sessions. Not only had I run out of expendable cash ... I had run out of time. All of the new sessions ran into my Alaskan Adventure dates. The decision was made for me. I told myself that I would just 'drop-in' to some classes instead. But no commitment = no follow through. I haven't been to a Zumba class since March 14th. But ... I have paid and signed up for two Zumba 'Master Classes' this upcoming weekend. I am excited!!

My mom is planning a visit out this way the week before my Great Alaskan Adventure. She will have a chance to see My Oldest's new home, attend a graduation ceremony and a surprise birthday party. We have booked an evening at a Bed and Breakfast ... and I will be surrounded by my mom and siblings the weekend before I leave for the Greatest Adventure of My Life So Far. I am pumped!!

I sat down last night and looked at my budget. All things considered, I am doing okay. This working almost-full-time is a wonderful thing. I can actually budget once again!! I have a very good idea what income is coming in. I know the hours and days that I will be working. I can plan a life around my work instead of planning work around my life. As much as I loved the flexibility of working from home, this is better. Who knew??

Yes, life is busy. A good kind of busy. The kind of busy where 'the more you have to do, the more you get done'.

They say life is what happens when you are making other plans. That was last month. This month? I'm making plans to make the most of this life. So far, it is working.