Hooked On...

I'm linking up to Julia at Hooked on Houses for her "Hooked On..." party! Please check out her fabulous blog today. I love the way she takes readers inside all kinds of homes-from really, really bad MLS listings to celebrity homes, to homes we can find inspiration in.

I'm Hooked on...To-Do Lists!


I have always had a thing for To-Do Lists. There's just something so satisfying about crossing off things I've been able to accomplish. If that makes me a huge nerd, I'm okay with that. (wink)

I haven't made much progress in the list department lately. Probably because my days have been spent doling out crackers, washing sippy cups, and switching on an Elmo video here and there so I can put on minimal make-up so as not to scare the "outside world" when we escape the house run some errands.

I tend to lose lists too. I'll write up a great note detailing all sorts of things I need to work on, and then it gets lost in the caverns of my enormous purses.

Or maybe they go to the same place my keys and Panera card went.

At any rate, I've seen a few bloggers post their summer to-do lists, and I thought that maybe if I make my own up here, I'd be less likely to lose it.

{Amanda's SuMmEr To DO LiSt}

Do:

~Make myself get out of bed early enough to get some make-up on and fix my hair before the girls wake up. It's no fun putting on mascara in front of the mirror while holding one foot on the toilet lid so Michaela Byrd doesn't decide to have another toilet party.

~Find someone to coordinate a Bible study with. I am absolutely an unmotivated slacker when it comes to studying on my own. I need to know that there will be a group to discuss what we are learning, otherwise I just won't do it. Keepin' it real. This is one I'd love to do:

~Continue going through the girls' toys for stuff I can donate to Salvation Army. I have to be stealthy about this and work while they are napping or in bed for the night, otherwise there is much wailing and gnashing of teeth.

~Work on organization!

I got this book a few months ago, and I keep meaning to pull it out and get started, but I can't get organized enough to do that.

~Start a chore/behavior chart for Natalie. The girl is killin' me here. Preschool let out for the summer, and she is wreaking havoc on the T family. I think some motivation is in order. Like most three year olds, she can be coerced with stickers, but I think she'll also enjoy the feeling of accomplishment from following through on simple things like clean-up time, putting dishes in the sink, not murdering her little sister, etc.

~Hang some stinkin' pictures on the giant blank canvas that is our "new room." It is so blah that it makes me want to go to sleep when I walk in there. (L, if you see this, I need help! A play date is needed, stat!)

Make:

~Pillows to coordinate with the chair for my new craft/workspace table.

~Craft storage with some "found items" from my home. I can't wait to share this with you!

~Healthy meals. Since I hosted the GIVEAWAY for the Eat This! Not That! Supermarket Survival Guide, I keep reminding myself to sit down and make some meal plans that do not involve me standing in the aisle at the grocery frantically grabbing frozen dinners while my three year old begs for popsicles and my 17 month old attempts to escape from the cart.

Read:

A few of those books have more than twenty pages and are intended for readers over the age of six. Like these two:

Finances permitting, I want to take a couple of sewing classes from my friend AT.

Also on my reading list?

~Mary Kay Andrews' The Fixer Upper (I adore MKA and her Southern Style. Her heroines are always so much fun!)
~The rest of Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse series. Once again, my friends L and AS have hooked me on a series of fluffy books. I love fluffy books. I read enough fancy frou-frou books in college to last me another ten years. So fluff it is!

Go:

~To the pool! We paid for it; now we need to swim for our money's worth. I'd love to get Natalie swimming by the end of the summer. Then she can forget again until next May.

~To the gym. Regularly. I really really want to take a Hip-Hop class there, but I'll need to enlist my mom for babysitting services, as it is after the girls' bedtime, and T works late on Tuesday nights.

~To bed earlier. 'Nuff said.

What about you?

Do you like to make lists? Do you lose them like I do or do you have a system for staying organized? I'd love your feedback!

Have a wonderful weekend, and I hope you get everything on your to-do list crossed off!