The Monday List

And you thought I was done with the cow pictures.... The babies LOVE to watch the crazy humans. They are very curious creatures.

Last week's list was mostly built around my daughter's surgery, which did - as expected - dominate our week. Interestingly enough, instead of being a complete failure, the list was about compromise.

What worked:
1. The surgery was successful.
2. Surprisingly enough, I did get all of the clothes sorted. In fact, I did that last Monday as a way to relieve stress. It feels VERY good to have all of that taken care of as it's been hanging over my head for months.
8. I did have fun working on that new vest! I've already shared it with you, and am very glad I started it.

The rest of the list falls under the category of "Instead of, " as in:
3. & 4. Instead of cleaning the girls' rooms, my mom helped me to completely clean out and inventory the pantry while she was here on Wednesday. I pitched/donated a full trash bag of things that we didn't want or had expired. It felt very, very good. I've been wanting to do an inventory list for a couple of years, but just never found the time. It really is a two-person job, especially with a pantry that had gotten as out of control as ours had. Now, it just makes me happy. Now, when we take something out we mark it off the list. Now, there isn't anything on the floor. Now, you can actually see what's on the shelves, and everything has its place. It is good.
5. Instead of doing sock samples for the class, I used what I had. There just wasn't time to get samples made up - although that is something I'm going to have to do if I continue to teach this class. Fortunately, two of my students are repeats (a fact which initially dismayed me - as in shouldn't I have done a good enough job with their first class! - but after speaking with them I understood and was good with it). One had a partially completed sock from her first class, which I was able to use to demonstrate heel turns. It worked out beautifully.
6. Instead of blocking my shawl I worked on a new one! Much more fun. I also set up my spinning wheel and had some fun with that, too.
7. Instead of finishing the sample piece, I ...... Suffice it to say that work was done, but that I needed to consult with the designer on several points.

This week, hopefully, our family will return to normal life.

1. I have to finish the sample piece this week so that I can get it in the mail by next Monday.
2. The girls' rooms really need to be cleaned. It's like the one last piece of the puzzle to make a comfortable/clutter-free home.
3. I want to finish up the batch of fiber on the wheel right now. It shouldn't take long.
4. Once that fiber is done, I want to start another batch. Yay! I have some reading to do along with this because I want to start working on specific spinning skills. More on that later.
5. Oddly, I have no specific knitting goals for the week other than to continue enjoying the projects which are on my needles right now. Over the last week I found myself rotating quite contentedly through my projects as the mood struck, and I really enjoyed myself!
6. I take that back, I do want to take time to start swatching for the Princess Shawl. I have a feeling that I'm letting the project intimidate me, and the sooner I start the happier I'll be.
7. It's time to get the sewing machine back out! I'm not sure if I want to work on my quilt this week or if I want to work on project bags. We'll play that by ear.

This week I have a second list which speaks directly to my health and well-being. I've not talked about either for a while for good reason. After an amazing start in February, I fell down hard. The last six weeks or so have been difficult, and I found myself in murky waters that I haven't seen since early college. The intervention of two really close friends forced me to face up to how bad it was, and honestly I thought I was going to have to go back on anti-depressants for a while.

Then, last Tuesday I had the most amazing acupuncture session. As usual, I spoke with Lynn about everything that was troubling me - physical and emotional - hoping to address my problems holistically before I turned to meds. At the end of the treatment, she used a new technique on my ears that directly dealt with my three big bads - frustration, anxiety and depression. (I don't claim to know how this works, but then again I don't really care because it works for me.) Three days after the treatment I awoke feeling as if a great switch inside me had been flipped and the darkness had been exchanged for light. I want to use this week to take full advantage of this feeling.

To that end:

1. I will faithfully follow Weight Watchers.
2. Along with that, I will begin the work in The Writer's Diet.
3. AND I will listen every day to my weight loss guided imagery MP3.
4. I will walk for 30 minutes/day.
5. I will start doing my exercise ball and resistance band workouts again.
6. I will get up early each morning to do my sun salutations and journaling.
7. I will go to bed when I am tired.
8. Most of all, I will take care of myself - because I deserve it.

So there it is! Two lists for the price of one.

I hope you all have a wonderful week!