Getting There

It's been a pretty good week this week.  I feel like I've achieved quite a lot and got back on top of things since being away.  Holidays are wonderful things, but are very distracting, which is probably the whole point. Nevertheless it always takes a couple of weeks to properly get back into the flow of things.

I've spent a few days this week doing some work and really getting stuck into preparing stock ready for sale.  Before I could do that, I felt compelled to reduce the ironing pile, as it seemed distracting for some reason.  I'm pleased to say that I have now been reacquainted with the bottom of the ironing basket, for the first time in over a month, and it was a wonderful feeling and a couple more items out of it will be finding their way to the charity shop.

The advantage of this, is that once everything is put away, you can truly see how many clothes you actually have and that you really do not need any more, and that's before I've even got out the winter clothes.  Many of my clothes do actually span and get worn in every season, so never actually get stored and really pay their way.

In other parts of the house, the kitchen counters are returning to normal.  As a rule, I like to wash up and leave surfaces clear before going to bed at night, as it gets me off to a better start in a morning, rather than trying to work around dirty dishes and clutter that has accumulated throughout the previous day.  Sometimes, I do lapse, but I do feel I can function with more clarity when surfaces around me are clear.

There's a few little things that still need to be put away, dealt with or recycled, but these should be taken care of  by the end of the weekend and then hopefully by next week I will be able to start afresh and have plenty of time for another round of work related preparations.

I feel more inspired for some reason at the moment and looking forward to the challenge of the next few months, if all goes as well as it has in previous trading years.  I'm also starting to think about Christmas, and all that goes with it, but mainly present buying/giving. I've already bought a few items, which were mostly purchased in the January sales, but I'm going to try to avoid any excess this Christmas, which I have been guilty of in the past.  Stripping things back should be interesting and make life much easier.

It helps that LB doesn't seem to want much in the way of presents this year, (not that she does normally) she's getting to the age where she would prefer cash to spend herself, which is fair enough. It makes more sense that she buys herself things that she will use and wear, than I go out and buy her things that she doesn't and won't. I will be buying her a few things though, including a few small surprises, as to me, that is part of the fun of Christmas.

Outside in the garden, things are a little different and a little work needs doing to remove the cucumber plants, runner beans and sweet peas, which have now all gone over.  I also need to cut down a diseased tree and clear a border ready to redesign the planting in it when I get the chance.

My tomatoes are still going strong, but I think they might be starting to get hit by blight, so I will probably need to remove all the fruit by the end of the weekend to avoid it getting ravaged.  The plants have been keeping me in tomatoes for a few weeks now though which has been good.

I'm hoping I can keep up the momentum and keep myself in a place where I don't feel overwhelmed by everything I want and need to do.