Polishing Off My Summer To-Do List

Random picture of the Jefferson Memorial from one of our summer visits to DC.

Labor Day has come and gone, and though our summer weather often lingers through September, I'm more than ready for autumn!  Which means it's time to report in on how I fared with my Summer To-Do List.

~ Read Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome Fail.  I read the first couple chapters, realized my kids will enjoy it, and set it aside to read aloud to them.

~ Read 4 other books from my TBR shelves Check!  In fact, I read TEN!  They were: Conspiracy of Silence by Ronie Kendig, Dressed for Death by Julianna Deering, A Singular and Whimsical Problem (e-book) by Rachel McMillan, Destry Rides Again by Max Brand, The Trials of Sherlock Holmes by James Moffett, Every Frenchman Has One by Olivia de Havilland, Rules of Murder by Julianna Deering, Echoes of Sherlock Holmes ed. by Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger, Finding God in "The Lord of the Rings" by Kurt Bruner and Jim Ware, and The Lord of the Rings: The Mythology of Power by Jane Chance (reviews for both of those coming during Tolkien Week later this month).

~ Read 5 books from the library Semi-check.  I read three:  Waiting for Normal by Leslie Connor, Careless People by Sarah Churchwell, and Snow White by Matt Phelan.  I'm okay with this number being lower, though, as I'm really concentrating on trying to read books I already own so I can get my TBR shelves under some semblance of control.

~ Watch 5 movies from my TBW shelves Check!  I actually watched eight:  Lucky Jordan (1942), The Great Gatsby (2013), Crossfire Trail (2001), Anna Karenina (1961), The Man who Never Was (1956), O.S.S. (1946), The Fall (2006), and Dark Command (1940).  I think I might have taken more off the shelves than I added to them, for once.  Yay!

~ Rig up a new cover for our deck swing Check!  I got a big vinyl-like window shade from Ikea on clearance, cut it to size, and sewed it to the awning frame with fishing line.  I was rather dubious about how well it would work, and suspected the whole thing would rip off the frame the first time it rained hard, but nope!  It worked beautifully!  I couldn't be more pleased.

~ Finish the skirts and cape I'm sewing for my kids Fail.  Total fail.  Never touched them :-(

~ Finish my Newt Scamander scarf Fail.  But I think it's almost done -- I did work on it now and then.

The Washington monument, from the same trip.

~ Reorganize the shelves where I keep all my homeschooling materials and supplies Check!  I got them all spiffed up before we ever started school up again, and I even improved on my system from last year of how to keep everyone's books organized.  So far, it's been working nicely.

~ Order curriculum for the new school year Check!  I would hope so, right?  I mean, we started school in July, so I'd better have had our curriculum by then.

~ Make lesson plans for the class on creative writing I'll be teaching our new homeschool co-op group Semi-check.  I've got lots of ideas and resources, and I know what I'll be doing for the first lesson, but I haven't yet actually plotted everything else out.  We'll be starting up in a couple weeks, so I'd better get on that.

~ Clean up my crafting corner Semi-check.  I cleaned up and reorganized all my craft supplies that I use for Sunday School and homeschooling, but my crafting table is a disaster still.  Which is why I never managed to touch my sewing projects.

~ Organize my kids' crafting cabinet Check!  I bought some storage boxes and sorting bins so all their papers, stickers, markers, and so on are easy to find and store.

~ Publish "Cloaked" Fail?  Turns out that editing a 40,000-word book takes a lot longer than a 20,000-word story like "The Man on the Buckskin Horse."  However, I'm in the formatting-for-publication stage, so it won't be long now.  I'll be revealing its cover to you TOMORROW!!!

Six checks, three semi-checks, four fails.  Not too bad, considering how insane my summer was.  I'm pleased!

And the Washington Monument one more time cuz it's cool.