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I am a list maker. I make lists for everything.
At the beginning of each summer I always make a list of things I want to do/accomplish during that time. This year was no exception.
Summer 2009
Teach the girls how to make bread (haven’t done this one yet but we will!)
Put together a college cookbook for Cali (in process)
Go hiking (yes, several times)
Make Cali a quilt (yes, I will share a picture soon)
Finish up Albums (I’m working hard on this one. It turned out to be a much bigger project than I thought. My focus has been Cali’s albums and as of today we have finished those up – yeah!! My main motivation for this is the page size change deadline that Creative Memories has – deadline is the end of August so if you have some CM albums that use the older size pages to finish up you better get busy!)
I’m feeling pretty good about my list but still have work to do!
Well, it is probably no surprise but I have also raised a list maker – my daughter Cali is an amazing list maker.
She and her friend Kat put together an extensive list of things they wanted to do together this summer when they were home from college.
To be honest I hesitated posting this list here on the blog. My initial plan was to blur a couple of the items on the list so that you wouldn’t be able to read them.
You see, I am still struggling with having young adult children. Sometimes the things they want to accomplish just don’t align with the things you would like them to accomplish. Cali is a little bit more of a free spirit than I am but Cali made me promise that if I posted her list I would leave it intact. So here goes….
I just have to make the disclaimer that the number one item on the list and another one farther down are traits she has gotten from her father – not me!!! My sweet, mild mannered husband was a little bit more of a free spirit as a teenager!!
I am grateful that she decided to accomplish #1 in a very dark and secluded place!
Cali and Kat are working hard to finish their list up in the next week before Kat heads to Europe to be a nanny. (To be honest I wouldn’t mind if they didn’t accomplish a couple of them 
Tomorrow they are boating and the drive in movie and campout in our backyard are scheduled for this weekend.
So – what did you have on your Summer To Do List?
Did you get them all done?
I know for some of you that summer has come to an end already and the kids are headed back to school. Fortunately here in Oregon we have a few more weeks left.
If you still have some summer left and need a fun idea on how to spend one of your last weeks of summer come back on Wednesday when I will have a guest poster sharing her families summer tradition of Beach Week – and you don’t have to live near a beach!
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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Im wanting to do the same thing with the college cookbook for 2 of my boys. What format are you using and are you including pictures? I’ve been looking for something to use that is fun and user friendly.
I love the idea of making a list! I think it would be a great idea to do one for spring/summer and fall/winter. When we’re not quite sure what to do with ourselves as a family, we can work on crossing off our list. Since summer’s almost over I’m going to start a fall/winter list right now. Thanks for the inspiration!!
YEAH! I tuned one of my neighbors into your blog and yesterday she surprised me with some blueberry muffins. YUM! Definitely a hit. Mainly on my summer to do list:
Do Grandma Camp with the 7 grandchildren in Arizona
1) Get rid of 3/4 of my stuff–accomplished (had the
garage sale of the century in May)
2) Pack up the remaining stuff for the move from AZ to
WA–accomplished (yes, the homes have not sold, so
the majority of the stuff is still in storage)
3) Raise 40K to send our son-in-law for stem cell
treatment in Costa Rica–actually raised 60K
4) Attend the temples in Seattle and Richland–
accomplished
5) Sell my home–still up for sale
6) Get married and have a fun honeymoon cruising to
Alaska–accomplished in June 2009
7) Remember all the birthdays of the sisters in our
church unit–accomplished, 3 behind right now
accomplished in July
9) Submit 100 names for temple work–getting close
10) Get all the food storage in the house and organize
it–getting close on that one
11) Stick to a food budget (working on that one)
12) Lose 10 pounds (still working on that one)
13) Get my treadmill put back together and walk 4 times
a week–working on it.
14) Go see Leigh Anne and Jim–not accomplished–hope to
do soon
15) Watch Harry Potter movies 2-5, so I can watch #6 in
the movie theater (2-5 watched and a date this week
to watch).
16) Get my piano in the house and tuned–accomplished
17) Write thank yous to the hundreds who helped me with
all my activities–accomplished
18) Meet at least two new people each week–am doing
THANKS for motivating me. I was feeling like I hadn’t accomplished much, but guess we are usually way too hard on ourselves.
I’m working on my fall one now. . . . . .
I do ‘get’ your wanting to delete certain things on the list. Sometimes our kids, spouses, friends, co-workers, church family do things that make us raise our eye brows and wonder. But in the end, stick to your values and keep being encouraging (without too many judgemental comments) and life usually sorts itself out. As they say, you can’t change the world, you can only change yourself. Sometimes that is enough to spur changes on all by itself. Focus on the good points more than the negative stuff. But, you seem to have that figured out (that and daily prayer for them to make good choices and “see the light”). Thanks for being very transparent, Leigh Anne.
Cat
I make a daily/weekly to do list, but sadly, I have never thought of making a summer to do list. Your daughters list was hilarious!!!
Is Creative Memories better than Heritage Makers? I really need to get going on my boys albums, but I don’t know where to get started…
Leigh Anne, I must say I chuckled when I read Cali’s summer to-do list. Thank you for not blotting out the items you wanted. Last summer my free spirit daughter skinny dipped in the Black Sea then blogged about it (and posted pictures, thankfully they weren’t revealing). My hope at the time was that no ward member was reading her travel blog that week (her dad was serving as the bishop,and well, you know how judgmental people can be) What I learned since then, her blog was being read and everyone thought it was great fun. I worried for nothing. I tend to do that. This daughter is now married (temple) and is pregnant. We’ll see if her baby is a free spirit like his/her mom and grandpa or reserved like grandma
Thanks for the smile.
oops, the previous message had the wrong email. Didn’trealize until I pressed submit-sorry
I am a list maker as well. I will have to share mine on my blog. As for your daughter’s list. I love it.
I love your daughters list- and then I thought about it from a Mother’s point of view. You did a good thing posting it as is. It helps me think of how I need to be as my kids are growing!
I’m a list maker, too, and love both of your lists. I was laughing as I read Calli’s….thinking some of the items were not ones you would have chosen. Still, two ambitious lists from the both of you. Want to hear more about the college cookbook. Tell us how you are doing that. How about a cookbook for the rest of us so we can have all your wonderful recipes in one place. There’s an idea…and your friend, Meg, could do the photos. Thanks for sharing.
I did make a list for me and my boys for the summer, and I am grateful that we still have a few weeks left!!
I like that your list was very focused (and therefore realistic). I am TOTALLY in awe of Tamara (post #3) because I would look at that list every day and feel completely overwhelmed and fail. Wouldn’t planning a wedding/honeymoon and having the garage sale of the century be enough for one summer?!?!?!?
I LOVE Cali’s list!! Bravo to her for even thinking of something fun and wild. I would only be worried if it had said “Streaking across the field in a huge stadium while being televised.” She knew to be smart about her escapade, but she’ll still have a fun story to share at school!!!
don’t get my husband started on lists, or he’ll share about my notebook of dream lists and someday to do lists!!