sprint

All the super-busy days, the short nights, the lack of down time -- it all hit me this afternoon. It may have been a by-product of a great book club get-together last night. I slowed down, I ate a lovely, leisurely meal, I just sat and talked with friends. It was delightful. But maybe it sent a message that those things are fun and fun is good. Or something like that.

I've been thinking that I haven't been all that stressed. At least nowhere near as stressed as I usually am pre-Paris. But I've been having headaches every day and recurrent waves of nausea, so perhaps my body is trying to tell me otherwise.

Jill took Eva and Lucas for the day. Again. She picked them up at 9:30. (All that, and she provides pick-up and delivery as well!) What I did with the day:

• returns at Walmart
• a quick stop at the beauty supply store
• I got my pedicure!! (and finished my book while my feet soaked and were shaved and pumiced to a fare-thee-well)
• went to the bank
• return at Nordstrom
• return/shopping at Lane Bryant
• Costco (couldn't leave it until Saturday!)
• 4 loads of laundry
• cleared all the toys and books out of Eva's room (after culling some for packing purposes)
• cleaned out my bedside table and book basket
• emptied my closet of hanging items I won't be taking

I will freely admit that this surge of productivity has given me kind of a high, but today I just hit a wall. I'm weary. I don't know how much longer I can continue at this breakneck speed. But I don't really have a choice, I have to sprint to the finish.

teamwork

Today I recruited the kids to help me wash all the shutters. Even Eva helped! In all, we have 6 sets of plantation shutters over the windows, and 5 sets of louvered closet doors. We used a solution of Murphy's Oil Soap, ammonia, and hot water. The kids were not keen on the smell, especially Lucas, but we were professionals and we rose above it. It was a major job -- I think it took 2.5 hours -- imagine how long I would have been at it alone! I think they felt the satisfaction of a job well done.

Yesterday I cleaned out the pantry. Another pretty big job.


Other things I've done in the last couple of days:

• picked up the vacuum from the repair shop and vacuumed (ahhhh!)
• designed a couple of advertising emails for my mom's store
• purchased and packaged birthday gifts for niece Fiona and brother-in-law Timm
• stocked up on children's medicines
• bought the last of the books Max needs for English
• paid the bills
• signed us up for all paperless bills
• went to my last YW activity (finished aprons)

I haven't been as super-productive as I would like. I still seem to be adding things to my to-do lists about as fast as I'm crossing them off. I have to get to a point where there are no more things to add, right? And soon. T-6 days.

Now, off to read my book club book!

more progress

Yesterday was not a great, productive day. Eva woke up in the night and woke up early for the day, which left me tired and grumpy -- not the ideal start. My visiting teachers came and stayed for an hour. Then we went out to lunch with Marc's parents which was fun, but, you know, not productive. After that, I got locked out of my house and had to kill time by running some errands. I was so tired I had to go to bed at 9:30.

But today -- oh ho, today! -- Jill took Eva (and Lucas) for the day and I again found my super-productive mojo. (Incidentally, Jill called last night and offered and I was hemming and hawing, thinking I didn't really need the help and surely she had better things to do with her day. But by the time she came this morning I had come around to the beauty of the plan and was blessing her name. When will I learn??)

More items checked off my list:

• went to the dollar store and bought treats and stuff for the (10 hour) airplane ride
• called Old Navy customer service and found out that, contrary to what the store employees told me, they do not make jeans in 28x32. We will wait and look for some in France, where more people are super-skinny
• went to the bank
• bought pink thread just in case I have time to make the skirt for Eva (thanks for the tips on the Gymboree one, but it wasn't what I was envisioning)
• returned a pair of shoes I bought for Eva that she refuses to wear
• started boxing up clothes that I will not be taking with us
• cleaned the oven, the stove, the microwave, and the toaster oven
• totally cleaned the rest of the kitchen
• totally cleaned the bathrooms
• bought some of my favorite lipliner
• mopped
• took the vacuum cleaner to the repair shop
• **talked to the principal of Electronic High School and she resolved our problems and answered all my questions!! This is HUGE!**

So, I'm feeling really good right now, thanks in large part to Jill. The Relief Society president called me today to see if I needed any help, and I could honestly say I was doing fine! This is unprecedented, people (in a pre-Paris crunch time).

I realized that one reason I'm able to get so much done and not be so stressed is that, unlike the last time we were preparing to go on Study Abroad, I did not just have knee surgery! I am not bedridden, I am not in pain, and I can move about freely. Such a blessing.

My reward for crossing so many things off my list is: Creative Friday!

progress report

I'm happy to report that I've been crazy busy over the last two days and that I have done tons of things on my pre-Paris to-do lists!!

It totally helps that Eva has started sleeping through the night again. I know how wrong it is that I'm thrilled my 4-year-old is sleeping through the night, but... it is what it is. And when I get a good block of uninterrupted sleep, it's like I'm a whole new woman. An energetic woman, capable of accomplishing much. Yeehaw!

Anyway, here's what I've done since yesterday morning:

• went to Kohl's and bought Eva 3 pairs of good, comfy shoes (also a couple of outfits on a really good sale)
• took Max to cello
• went to the distribution center (ahh, new garments)
• stocked up on knitting needles in different sizes
• had UPS pick up the package
• went visiting teaching
• made my apron for YW and had part 1 of the apron activity
  
• took Lucas to get a tooth extracted
• went to pack meeting -- Lucas got his Bear
• made bread
• bought Max a camera bag
• sent FSA documentation to the insurance company
• sorted through all of my shoes and culled quite a few more pairs to donate

This morning, I had accomplished two things on my list, baked bread, and put dinner in the crockpot, all by 10:00 a.m.! I was seriously on fire.

(Not all of these things were on the list in my previous post, but they were all on various and sundry lists I have -- my daily lists, my weekly lists, and my master pre-Paris lists.)

The bad thing: I've been too busy to take any photos. The good thing: I've been super-productive! Now if I can just keep this up, I'll be in great shape...

countdown to Paris

I've decided that the hardest thing about getting ready to leave the country for several months is that life gets in the way. Everything doesn't come to a stop so that we can get down to the business of preparation -- I still have to contend with cello lessons, piano lessons, YW lessons and activities, visiting teaching, laundry, grocery shopping, dishes, etc. etc... So I have to try to knock things off my pre-Paris to-do lists on top of all the normal life stuff, and that can be quite stressful.

Here's where I stand at T-15 days.

My list from July 16 (bolded items completed)

• clean out the abominable garage!! (AGAIN)
• get to the bottom of the water leak that we have somewhere, causing our meter to run constantly
• dentist appointments
• doctor appointment
• get my car fixed
• either get the sprinklers fixed or become hose-draggers again
• figure out a way to get 3 months worth of prescriptions, when the insurance company is not entirely cooperative
• get the house organized and ready for a new tenant (our neighbor's daughter is going to live here and take care of the dog for us)
• put my studio back together (still a post-flood disaster)
• pack up and store stuff we're not taking so that said tenant will have room for her own stuff (this does NOT include furniture, thank goodness!)
• help Lucas finish all the Bear requirements for Cub Scouts
• plan Lucas's birthday party, gifts, etc.
• figure out how to get Max's school requirements taken care of (we're trying to do electronic high school, but it is nearly impossible to get into any classes! -- this one is stressing me out)
• get seminary manual for Max
• get new shoes for me
• find and download some iPod Touch apps to keep Eva busy on the plane
  
• thoroughly clean the whole house
• pack

My current list: (edited 8/25)

• Find new jeans for Max (not easy to do, as he wears a 28x32!)
• Find camera bag for Max
• Buy book club books
• Buy books for Max's English class
• Find someone to talk to about Electronic High School so that Max can get his remaining classes squared away
• Buy medicines for the children
• Pack up clothes we are not taking with us
• Empty out closet and dresser space for new tenants
• Resolve the FSA documentation problem
• Return items to a couple of stores
• Check to see if our suitcases are in suitably good condition
• Make a tulle skirt for Eva?? (probably no time)
• Make a sample apron for YW and teach the girls how to do it over the next 2 activities
• Take a package to the UPS store
• Buy new shoes for Lucas
• Clean out pantry
• Clean out fridge
• Clean shutters
• Get the vacuum repaired
• Get a pedicure! (maybe not enough time)
• Clean entire house
• Pack everything we need for 3 months in 2 suitcases apiece

I'm sure I've forgotten something. I keep adding new things to my list just about as fast as I'm crossing them off. Why are we doing this again??

**Edited to add: I also have to prepare a talk for sacrament meeting next week on -- wait for it -- HOME TEACHING! Good grief.

countdown to Paris

I had a request awhile back to post about Paris. I didn't do it before now because I've been in denial. Now, that is no longer possible.

But first, a brief history. We've lived in Paris 3 times before: once for 10 months when Max was 18 months old, once for 6 months when Lucas was 2, and once for 2 months when Eva was 2. (I have no idea why we always lived there when we had a 2-year-old! Crazy.)

The first time we went on our own. Marc was doing research for his dissertation, he found us an apartment, and we had to furnish it completely from scratch. As in, you move in and you have light bulbs dangling from the ceiling and nothing else. Then we had to sell everything when we left. It was a very expensive year. It was also an incredibly fun year. I bought a big map of the city and tacked it to our bedroom wall. Every day I would look at the map and choose a new area to explore. With only one toddler, it was fairly easy to do what I wanted (of course I would throw him a bone every so often as well).

The last two times we have gone with Marc as the director of BYU Study Abroad in Paris. It's much easier to move to a different country when you have a furnished apartment awaiting your arrival. It's also harder to do when you have more children, and older children. Logistically, it's just harder. Plus, they have opinions about what we should do while we're there! (They don't like shopping like I do.) And did I mention how badly I wanted to lose weight before going back to Paris? It's about the worst place in the world to be overweight. And no, I haven't managed to do it. Let's not even go there.

Now we are preparing to go back for another Study Abroad program, this time for the Fall semester. Only 8 more weeks! Marc is a big city kind of guy, and Paris is his favorite city. He would happily stay there forever. I love Paris as well, but I would never go there indefinitely. I'm way too attached to my friends and family. And all of my stuff. And having a car. And customer service.

I don't want to be a whiner -- I know we're blessed to have this opportunity. It's a wonderful education for our kids, and just the kind of eye-opening experience we are determined for them to have. But it's hard, I won't lie. It's hard to get everything ready to go. Hard to pack what we need for 3 months -- and 2 seasons -- in only our suitcases. Hard to resurrect my long-buried French. Hard to take a stroller on public transportation everywhere we go. And just hard to be away from home. But Marc's gift of time to myself every Friday while we're there is definitely sweetening the deal!

So there you have it. I have 8 weeks to get ready to go, and I'm feeling overwhelmed. Here are a few of the tasks I need to complete before then:

• clean out the abominable garage!! (AGAIN)
• get to the bottom of the water leak that we have somewhere, causing our meter to run constantly
• dentist appointments
• doctor appointment
• get my car fixed
• either get the sprinklers fixed or become hose-draggers again
• figure out a way to get 3 months worth of prescriptions, when the insurance company is not entirely cooperative
• get the house organized and ready for a new tenant (our neighbor's daughter is going to live here and take care of the dog for us)
• put my studio back together (still a post-flood disaster)
• pack up and store stuff we're not taking so that said tenant will have room for her own stuff (this does NOT include furniture, thank goodness!)
• help Lucas finish all the Bear requirements for Cub Scouts
• plan Lucas's birthday party, gifts, etc.
• figure out how to get Max's school requirements taken care of (we're trying to do electronic high school, but it is nearly impossible to get into any classes! -- this one is stressing me out)
• thoroughly clean the whole house
• pack

Oh, and entertain Jessie and her kids, they're coming to visit! Hooray!

I'm sure I'll think of more. Wish me luck.

I'm officially freaking...

Since April arrived and blindsided me, I am now counting down the days until we leave for Paris (22) instead of weeks.

Obviously, I knew it was coming, but somehow 4 weeks sounded a lot longer than the 22 days I am now faced with. Yesterday we counted how many more days of school Max and Lucas have -- 12!! -- well, 11 now. That's when the panic started to set in.

Now all I can think about is the long list of things I need to get done before we leave... I bought some new suitcases today at T.J. Maxx, I got the emissions test done on my car, I tried on some jeans at Old Navy (baaaaad idea, we don't have a full-length mirror at our house), and now I am off to get some groceries and pick up my vacuum from the repair shop (hooray!). It seems like I have been pretty productive today, but I'm going to have to get a lot more than done each day if I'm going to get the house, myself, and everyone else ready to go in just 3 short weeks.

I found out that my MRI showed a partially ruptured meniscus and now I have to go see another specialist. I may need a scope done on my knee -- I have absolutely no idea what that means, except that I hope it will mean that I can walk without pain!

Worst of all, I haven't managed to lose the significant amount of weight I really wanted to lose before going to Paris. And, I haven't managed to brush up on my French the way I really need to. sigh. I guess I'll just do what I can between now and then and that will have to be enough!

I am trying to have a good attitude about our stay. I know it sounds crazy to not be totally excited about living in Paris, but I've done this before, and I know how hard it is to live there with kids. Actually, I know how hard it was to live there with 2 kids, and now I have 3! So I have to admit I have been experiencing sort of a low-level dread ever since I found out we would be doing another study abroad program.

But I do love Paris, I love it so. I know it will be a great experience for my kids. It will not be a vacation for me, but I am trying to take a page out of Kristi's book and just want to make the very most of it. Wish me luck!

(I will say that photo is making me a little bit giddy...)