points of interest

I live by bullet points these days, it seems.  My clipboard sits under my little netbook on the side table/shelf that sits to the left of 'my side' of the couch, and it secures the papers that need to be secured.  Atop that pile is my beloved Master List- typed, columned and sectioned as necessary.  But that alone isn't enough.  I'm so obsessive about this that I often create additional lists on sticky notes, that get adhered to the Master List and are broken down by day.  So yes, I currently have three sticky note lists that simply repeat the info on the paper just below them, and you know what?  It may sound crazy, but it works for me, and right now that's all that matters, because it seems that my thoughts are being internally listed by their own bullet points:

• My baby girl turns four this weekend.  FOUR.  I'll never, ever understand how it can so often simultaneously crawl and fly in my life.  She's hilarious, adorable, insanely emotional, and clever.  (Which also happens to be one of her favorite words to say aloud, pronounced clev-AH of course, even though I'm pretty sure she doesn't really understand its meaning.)

• I will be welcoming this weekend with wide open arms, for lots of reasons, and I'm SO hoping to see a certain someone who will be attending the opening of the new show Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical.  Yes, the pic will be secured in my bag along with a sharpie, just in case. When my friend bought the tickets as a birthday gift to Red, I'm not sure how much she realized how grateful I would be.

• I'm way more frustrated than I should be about my inability to accomplish my spring cleaning goals.  I'm thrilled that JAM is enjoying baseball as much as he is, but the number of practices and games that take him and Hubby away several nights a week are exhausting me and not allowing me any time to vacuum ceilings and scrub walls.  Long days alone with the kids without being able to 'tag out' make for a grumpy Mama.  I'm weak like that, but I'm trying.

• I love my husband.  This month, we'll celebrate 12 years since we giggled our way through our vows, two incredibly young people standing in amazement at the reality of the moment, but deeply in love.  While we have our ups and downs, we're currently in such a good place, and that fact is ranking high in my thoughts.

• What would a list be without talking about my desire to pare down my lists?  I wish I could hit the pause button on regular life and simply clean my house around the frozen figures of everyone, or sit down at the computer and write blog posts, DC Metro Moms posts, and book reviews.  I've got a ton of ideas-- how to organize closets, what to drag out of the attic to donate or sell, where to resettle the kids things in the soon-to-be-undertaken gender-specification of the kids' bedrooms, whose books I want to read, and when I'd like to get my ass off the couch to actually go work out-- but the number of ideas severely outnumber the number of available hours in my day.  It's hard to be motivated and itching to get things done, but not allowed to leave the hamster wheel of everyday routine responsibilities for long enough to make any significant progress!  

• Many, many of my thoughts are with family members who are working through some health issues that I'm pretty sure they wouldn't be pleased with being broadcast in a public manner.  My love is immense and I'm holding these thoughts close to my heart.

• And finally, lists should always end on a fun note, so let me just say that I heart Facebook. Each and every day I am in awe of my friends' humor, adorable children, witty asides and general support of one another.  If we're not friends yet, why not?  

Well, you survived a bullet pointed tour of my head right now, and you should be proud.  It's a crazy mess in there, and frankly, we're both lucky to have made it out. 


For the love of the list,