Off to a good start

Been missing my blog lately!  But my absence has been filled with all sorts of satisfying projects, like...

...new cabinets to help organize my kitchen...

...and a new kitchen cart to give me more work space...

...which of course has meant cleaning out and organizing my kitchen.  Wow, what a great way to start off the new year!  I took a hard look at all my workspaces and moved out what I just didn't need on a daily basis.  With some new shelving in the basement, I now (mostly) have a place for everything and everything in it's place.

Then there's been the long discussions with SweetPea, trying to make our methods and scheduling for school better.  Such as...in her struggle with Spanish--just not a love--I've added in some variety each day.  I got some simple Spanish children's books from the library, and she spends a bit of her language hour each day translating them, using the Spanish/English dictionary, then checking each sentence in Google Translator online.  She says it's fun!  I'm also throwing in some cultural study like I had in my high school French class--DVDs, etc.--and she does copywork from the Spanish Bible.  Oh, and did I add that she has to get her Spanish done before she gets breakfast??  :-)

And if you'll remember from last fall, I've been the 'project manager' for my Mom, helping to get her book published.  The emails have been flying back and forth with the publisher, involving me in copy editing, checking proofs, discussing marketing ideas, and learning a lot of fascinating inside stuff about self-publishing.  This weekend found me doing "Website 101" for the book, a venture I've never tried before.  Hint--Weebly is a terrific, free website-builder for the complete novice, a drag-and-drop interface and a host of template choices that make you look like you know what you're doing.  Next, it's on to a press packet that we can use with newspapers, etc.  It's all quite an amazing process, more so because you can do it all remotely, thanks to the internet.

And other stuff...SweetPea has just begun another drama class for this semester.  They're producing "The Secret Garden," the familiar classic filled with all sorts of delicious costuming, accents, and interesting characters. When I'm not running her around to practices or art class or ice skating or gym day (how did we got this busy?) I'm writing our church's VBS curriculum again for this coming summer.

Seems like so much of what I've been involved with this past year have all had deadlines, but I've learned that they make me more productive, actually.  So I have a new motto for 2012, a positive spin on what is usually a stress-maker for me:  "A deadline is a goal with a harvest attached to it"!