Determination: August Update

Ermahgerd it's the middle of August! (Sorry, couldn't help myself.)  Even though I have completed my summer classes (with three days to spare -- hallelujah!), two more classes begin in FOUR DAYS!!!

Anyways, our goals for August were simple: be prepared for school to begin.  This mainly involved setting up a new Fall schedule and getting our house back in order after the purge of 2012.  This has all been much easier said than done ;)

As far as our "Clean Sweep" goes, we have sorted everything!  Much of what we had leftover in the boxes we were able to combine and re-box; our guest room is much emptier now.  We still need to take care of a few things, like finding somewhere to dump our broken mini-fridge and extra (super old) printer and rearranging the furniture so Doug can work while we still have guests here.  However, we finally have our paperwork sorted and filed neatly, all of our important paperwork is filed, and our new bedroom set-up is working great!  De and Doug 1, Clutter 0.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the new schedule.  I tried going to bed earlier to give me more down time in the mornings, but that has been impossible with Doug's schedule.  (I just can't seem to sleep until he gets home.)  I tried putting mindless things in the morning (like showering and eating breakfast), but that coincided with Doug's morning schedule.  I tried writing myself a "To Do List" the night before.  I didn't even notice it in the morning.  On top of everything, I just am not a morning person. According to my husband, I make "wookie-ish" noises for at least the first 15 minutes I'm awake as a form of communication. You just can't make this stuff up.

Bottom line:  I suck at mornings.  I don't even realize that I should be doing things until I've been up for at least 45 minutes, normally over an hour.

So, I have four days to whip myself into schedule shape.  Here is my plan of attack:
1. Waking Up.  As long as I just wake up when I am scheduled to wake up, I will eventually learn to go to sleep earlier.  I should begin assimilating to the mornings after 4-5 days, so just in time for school beginning.

2. Get Help.  I have enlisted my "morning person" husband to help get me going in the morning; mainly, he just needs to remind me what I am supposed to be doing.  I am also going to post my schedule next to my work area (i.e. on the wall by my side of the bed) and try to look at it a few times every day.  I also want to do things at night to help me in the mornings, like a scavenger hunt.  Why is my shampoo next to the bed?  I need to shower right now!  Why is my yoga mat in the bathroom?  I should stretch!  Seriously.  I need that much help in the mornings.

3. Bank on Adrenaline. I am a school junkie.  Other parents pulled their kids out of the toy section at the store; mine pulled me away from the school section.  I have a secret obsession with graph paper.  I buy new notebooks and composition books even if I don't need them.  I love planners, highlighters, and Crayola skinny markers (10 pack).  I only use Bic pencils and PaperMate pens.  I am "that kid" who raised their hand to answer every question, who found typos in the syllabus, who had already started on the homework or reading the week before class even began.  And "that kid" will be ready to go on Monday morning.

4. Fill up my time.  One of the problems with following my Fall schedule now is that I am not filling it.  I am not attending a class yet, so I am not needing to get in dress clothes, pack a lunch, and get out the door to drive to class.  I do not have homework that needs done.  I do not have extra laundry to do.  Once these things start up on Monday, I will be able to follow my schedule because I will be doing everything on my schedule.

While all this seems crazy, I really do think it will work!  And if it doesn't, that just means I need to re-evaluate and rework my schedule once more.

P.S. I have already read FOUR books this month (all new)!  I am working on a fifth book, and I need to finish at least one book for school by the end of the month.  Plus, I will be going through the Percy Jackson series and the Heroes of Olympus series in preparation for Mark of Athena's release!