Progress, Productivity, & Procrastination

Hi, my name is Katy, and I'm a procrastinator.    

Whew, it feels good to get that off my chest. In fact, I wanted to write this post last night, but I kept putting it off. I wish I were kidding for the sake of a lame joke, but I'm not. I mean, it's not like I put it off for nothing. I had important things to do… like… play backgammon online... until midnight. (Yes, I said backgammon. I am that much of a nerd.)

A lot is happening here at the zoo—we're trying to buckle down on our budget (gotta love the economy), I'm leaving for Africa in a month, Lamb will be out of school for the summer before we know it, etc—and I'm really trying to bring my A-game when it comes to getting things done around the house. It just gets so darn overwhelming, though. And I hate when a day goes by and I realize I didn't set aside any play time with my kids. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed & frustrated that I just shut down. I wander the house, looking like I'm working, but I don't really get anything done. Or I work halfheartedly on something meaningless because I'm intimidated to attack the project that really needs done.

I'm happy to say, though, that I will be getting lots done today, thanks to a little something that Mr. Fantastic calls "Dogg Night." A few months ago, he and a friend started a work swap night—twice a month they come here and work together on projects for an evening, and twice a month they go to his friend's house to work. (Don't ask me why they call it "Dogg Night"—they're 30-something men and they think it's cool.) I have really admired how much they get done on their evenings together, and I have envied the quality friend time. J So a few months ago a friend of mine and I decided to do the same thing during the day… And by "a few months ago", I mean we did our first work day in January, and then our second one last week. It's been a busy few months. Anyway, I think she's coming over today for Round 3, and I am giddy about how much we can accomplish. Already I am realizing that 1 + 1 equals more than 2. When we work together, we are both so much more motivated than when we're on our own. The work doesn't seem overwhelming because there's someone else to talk to. It's great to have some girl time and not feel like I'm getting farther behind. And even though I do have to set aside some time to take care of Roo, I don't worry about taking time away from my kids because I get so much done in one morning working with my friend that I can devote the afternoon and evening to nothing but my family. It's a good thing. (Plus today after school we're having an awesome playdate with friends at a place that's all full of those inflatable bounce house things. Shhhh… My kids don't know—just in case it somehow doesn't work out—but they are going to be so happy!)

And speaking of procrastination, I finally got my shots for Mozambique yesterday. I know, my trip is still a month away and it seems like I have plenty of time, but one of those immunizations is a 3-shot series over the course of 6 months… so I'll have to go back twice after I come home. And I've known since November that I was planning to go on this Short-Term Mission, so I could have at least gotten 2 rounds in. Oh well. My right arm is quite sore from the tetanus shot, but overall it was not nearly as bad as I had anticipated. I went to our county health department, and it was quite a bit cheaper than anywhere else, the people were friendly and knowledgeable, AND they had self-retracting needles that hardly even hurt. It was a really positive experience!

Oh, and about Mozambique, don't believe the ChipIn on the right—we have had some wonderful donations. THANK YOU to everyone who has contributed. You all are much better at being on the ball than I am. ;-) The ChipIn doesn't reflect this because it only records the online donations, and all of the money so far has come in directly to those of us on the team, or to our church. I don't know an exact total of what we've raised so far as a team, but I know that I am about halfway there for my own portion of the trip. Yes, I said we were planning to do a big giveaway/fundraiser, but I am still mulling that one over. This is partly because the money is coming in pretty well, but mainly because I'm not sure we'd get the participation in a giveaway for a missions trip that we would for something else (like the orphans on Reece's Rainbow)—which is totally fine, but I don't want to be wasteful, you know? I just can't decide if it would be worthwhile. But anyway, thank you again to everyone who has donated to the trip, and please feel free to click on that ChipIn on the right or contact me if you are interested in supporting me! I'll be posting more about my upcoming trip soon—I'm excited to fill you all in as we get closer to the big day!

So… it turns out our chickens are not procrastinators at all. We got our first egg less than 2 days after we picked them up from my brother, and now have 2 (out of 4) laying. As much as I fought having them, I am enjoying the fresh eggs, the kids are loving them, and Mr. Fantastic seems to like them too. (I have only been back to see them once since we got them… a week ago today.)

And while we're talking about progress & productivity, let me give you a little update on Roo, who is my big helper while I am writing this morning. (Darn early risers. Who knew that 2 of my 3 kids would be morning people?!) In addition to his continued reign as Cutest Baby I've Ever Seen, he is now the proud owner of THREE teeth—two on the bottom and one on the top. He is so close to crawling, he can almost taste it. He gets up on his hands & knees, scoots one knee forward, then PLOPS down on his belly, raises his hands and feet in the air, and acts like he's flying, then repeats the whole process. But don't let the lack of crawling fool you—he gets where he wants to go.

Well, as much fun as it is to retype every third word while Roo continually tries to snatch my laptop away from me (He is the most techno-savvy 1-year-old…), I need to run. It's almost time to wake Lamb up for school, and I like to be dressed & ready before she's up… I don't really have time to get that done now, but I've been putting it off for a while… When will I learn?