Planning vs. Procrastination

I think like a planner, but behave like a procrastinator. I always have a mental image of how I will organize and accomplish certain tasks, but I frequently find that I have wandered off the path to completion. We have a camp-out scheduled with cub scouts this weekend, and I'm in charge of ordering and organizing all the awards. It is a big and detailed job, so I was sure to put it at the tippy top of my "to do" list this morning. It's now the end of the day, and I'm trying to figure out why it isn't done yet. Finely detailed paperwork isn't my strong suit, so I think I conveniently found reasons to avoid the tippy top of the list. I worked from the bottom up all day long. :)


School is going amazingly well. So well, in fact, that I hesitate mentioning it for fear that things will start to fall apart on me. Hayden is hooked on the Encyclopedia Brown books and has been reading a book a day. He is zipping through his math lessons lately and, as of today, knows all his cursive lower case letters. Max is making great progress in his language arts, and has a tremendous recall for what we are learning in history. I'm fascinated by the peaks and valleys of learning. There may be hard times lurking around the corner, but there are also wonderful periods when things click and we taste the sweetness of progress. We have lingered at the homeschool table for two days in a row, but when everyone is learning and displaying such a willing attitude I feel the need to capitalize!


Since school is swimming along smoothly, it goes without saying that the rest of life is a tad frazzled. I have not managed to unpack from our trip yet. I just keep pulling clean clothes out of the suitcases each morning, and I figure that if I keep it up they will be empty by week's end. No worries.
Some new neighbors moved in down the street. I found an inexpensive jar and decided to fill it with homemade gingersnaps as a welcoming gift. I topped it with a piece of fall fabric, a pretty sheer ribbon, and a homemade tag. It turned out so cute that I think I'll make a few more. I need two thank you gifts and a birthday gift, and I think cookie jars will do the trick.


Every few months I try to make a batch of homemade photo cards to send to family and friends. I get an hour or so to satisfy my craving for crafting, and out of town loved ones get a recent picture of the kids. I started a batch during our road trip and finished them off this afternoon. Tomorrow I'll get them ready for mailing. I do believe this qualifies as paperwork, so in essence I was indeed practicing for the important and looming paperwork project.

If procrastination leads to productivity in other areas, is it really so wrong? Sooner or later I'm going to have to face the top of that to do list. Those awards really do need to be organized. Luckily, I think I have a plan. :)