Aiyiyi

This week flew by! No blogging since Tuesday?!? Whoops! All week long we had activities some mornings and most evenings. We ate out before Tuesday's PTA meeting, I think we bought cheap takeout pizza Wednesday before dear husband's bowling league, on Thursday the guys dropped me off at home and went out to eat before a kids' program and the library while I went out with MOMS Club friends, and Friday Mark's academic unit at the university had a big back-to-school picnic. And there was stuff during the day, and... Whew!

Despite the busy schedule, I couldn't figure out why I was feeling stressed, until on Thursday I wrote out what turned out to be my List O' Panic! I wrote down all of the major things I needed to do outside the family, and realized I wasn't even paying attention to a couple of big things yet. The list was: (1) Mail a couple of copies of one volunteer newsletter; possible now that the laser printer is back in business. (2) Figure out how to lead a 9-week Sunday school class for adults on prayer and personal spirituality while (3) preparing for a new year co-leading my Godly Play Sunday school class! (4) Actually start the consultant work for a friend. Not to mention, get back up to speed on family finances, inventory food supplies, make a two-week meal plan, and provide class snack for both boys, one on Friday and the other on Monday.

By today, three days later, I have gotten quite a bit done.

On Thursday afternoon, because I silently refused to go to the store just for a class snack, Son1 and I made my special oatmeal cookies for his class snack -- and our after-school snack; multipurpose! Cookies go a lot faster when someone else (Son1) is actually putting the cookie batter on the baking sheets, and he loved it. Yay!

I don't even remember Friday, except that I hunkered down with the computer and worked on urgent stuff. Somewhere between Friday morning and Saturday night I started to figure out the prayer class and how to support in absentia my co-teacher, who will be the primary teacher while I'm doing prayer. I worked out the lesson schedule for both Godly Play classes. I created parent handouts for today's Rally Day see-the-classrooms event at church, one answering "What is Godly Play?" and the other on general ways parents can support their children in Godly Play. I went to a church-related meeting on Saturday and, afterward, spiffed up our classroom for today's Rally Day.

Today at church we had Rally Day. So fun to see the kids and their parents in the Godly Play classrooms! Several of the kids didn't want to leave the Godly Play materials for Rally Day ice cream sundaes in the courtyard, too funny! Then at home, I started trying to figure out how to migrate my Handspring Visor info over to a hand-me-down old Sony Clie -- tricky. This is becoming necessary as the Visor's stylus recognition fails more and more often. We went discount shopping en famille and were reasonably impressed with a local discount grocery store, coming home with huge bell peppers, wonderful fresh corn, guacamole and salsa fixings, and some other stuff. So, on the spur of the moment, we invited some friends over to dinner: chips, homemade guacamole and salsa (love our Tupperware gadget!), grilled chicken and onions and peppers, tortillas, homemade Mexican rice, corn on the cob, and they brought dessert -- yum!

Tomorrow morning Son2 and I will make the other half of the oatmeal cookie batch for his class snack. I will print the newsletter and send it to those who need a printed copy. I'll email the lesson schedule to both Godly Play teachers (my co-teacher and the other class's teacher). I'll work on arranging doorkeepers and substitutes as needed for my co-teacher, so she'll have a good sense of support and direction for this first part of the year; I'll be back in the classroom for Advent and she'll have a break. I need to turn my attention to that consulting project and the family planning stuff as well.

As I told some friends at church, I do all of this (church) stuff up front so when life gets really busy and on a roll, it's all done. The Godly Play-related stuff is challenging, enjoyable, and electric on lots of levels for me, and I spin off all sorts of ideas once I turn my attention to it. All part of the reason I am more and more confident it's what I need to be doing.

I think I'll look through that new slow-cooker book I borrowed from a friend on Friday. It may be just the ticket for some good busy-day meals this week and next. Hmmm. Best to head to bed before "The Patriot" sucks me in and I stay up too late!!