1. Itty Bitty Bible Study with Olivia. - YES! We loved going, and made it to almost every session. I can't say enough great things about this amazing group of parents and kids. Hurray for Saint Mary's!
2. Hiking weekly with the Buena Vista Hiking Club. Yep! Did this too. Once Olivia and I were the only hikers, but we've had some great hikes with my colleagues from work and it's gotten us outside at least once a week.
3. Camping for 2 weeks in the Wallowas. This vacation was blissful and so hard all at once. We were there 14 days, 13 nights. With an under-two-year-old. Yes, we are crazy. But we did it!
4. Run twice a week. Sans stroller. Just for me. ...No. I did do quite a bit of running, but often with the stroller. I did get in a few solo runs though.
5. Speaking of running... This is a two-parter
a) Run the Butte to Butte 10K. Because tradition. YES! And I had family do it with me for the first time ever! So fun
b) Run my dream half marathon: Fueled by Fine Wine in Dundee - half marathon in the morning, wine at the finish line! No longer my dream - it was all hills. No flat. But the wine was extra delicious at the end.
6. Blog weekly. I have had a lot on my mind lately, but am still working out how to get it out. I'm hoping to do some good writing during nap time this summer. Well, I never did figure out how to get it all out. I still have a lot on my mind, but the weekly blogging definitely did NOT happen.
7. Start, if not finish, my first quilt. Nothing fancy, but now that I've done some sewing, I'd like to have an ongoing project, and I just know I'd be proud to have a quilt that I made in the house. I'm making this one blue, because although I didn't start a quilt, I did pick up some fabrics, and I did sew a couple of little things - a dress and 2 skirts for Olivia. So I did sew. Just not a quilt. I'll work on it though. I'm slowly collecting my fabrics.
8. Sleeeeeeeeeeeeep. So many naps for me. Somehow still not enough, but I think I am just one of those people who could always sleep! I do feel rested and (almost) ready to go back to work next week.
9. Take Olivia swimming. My goal was to do weekly pool swimming, which didn't happen, but we did go to Amazon once, and she swam in the hotel pool and Wallowa Lake, and her little kiddie pool, so we got the water covered.
11. Set a weekly schedule for O and I. Technically, yes. I did set a schedule, but we really only loosely followed it. But I never said "set and follow" a schedule, I just said "set." So, yeah. We did this one.
12. Read a book. Or more than 1. Either some old favorites or some new ones. Excited to say I did this one. My reading had fallen off there for a while, but I read Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray," and Marc Seigel's "The Whole Brain Child," (highly recommend!) plus returned to some of my favorite Sherlock Holmes short stories. Ahhhh... reading.
13. Teach my dog to sit, stay, and lay down. Just tested her skills the other day - we're good! Still working on staying for longer than a few moments, but we're making progress! Smart puppy!
14. Do some sort of personal Professional Development. I've been really interested in two things lately: the merit of homework in primary grades (or potential lack thereof), and involving play in the classroom to boost engagement and retention. I'm hoping to find some research based information on one or both, and potentially make some changes or additions to my teaching practice for next year. I did find many articles about homework and decided to change my homework policy for this year. My students will still do a reading log, because that is proven effective, but will work on a chore or personal responsibility task rather than doing paper homework this year. Not as much research on purposeful play, but I think I can work into that as the year goes on. Also the Whole Brain Child has opened my eyes in a lot of ways about how to work with my students, too.
15. Matt Nathanson and Philip Phillips concert with Rob. Celebrated 5 years together at this awesome concert. Loved it!
16. Watch some movies. Does Cinderella daily for 4 straight weeks count? Kind of kidding, but we watched a few others as well as caught up on some shows we like, and watched a lot of Olympics!
17. Fireworks on 4th of July. Olivia's usual bedtime is 7pm, and she made it all the way to the 10:15pm fireworks! I loved them. I think she did too. I was happy on the 4th.
18. Swim in fresh water. Yes! And got in trouble for jumping off the boat dock, too. Oops. Sorry not sorry - it was great.
19. Sunbathe. With SPF 55. Done!
20. Preserve something. Pickles (probably fridge pickles) or jam (not likely), I want to put something pickled in a Mason jar and Instagram it. (and also eat it) Did this! I made verduras en escabeche with veggies from our garden - fridge pickles, but still. I think they are delicious and I had fun making them. Maybe someday I'll get to "real" canning.
21. Garden, garden, garden. I've got a lot going on, and I'd like to focus on many parts of my garden, not just the veggie part. Another blue. Well, I did a lot of gardening. But it was still just in the veggie section - to be fair, I expanded that this year. It has not let me down! We have lots of fresh veggies daily to eat. It's been fun getting creative with eating the same veggies in different ways.
22. Go to the beach. Of course! Yep! Coos Bay and Florence.
We did almost everything on this list and then some this summer. It's been so fantastic, and I'm so grateful to have had time with my family this summer, and that I've been able to do so many things that fill me with joy. I'm not entirely ready to go back to work, but I'm never truly ready. When next week rolls around, I'll return to the classroom refreshed and rejuvenated from a fulfilling summer. Now I'm really glad I made a summer bucket list. Maybe I'll start making these lists more often...
