a productive day.

no more complaining about last week's busy/travelicious week.

i took the day off to do all the things i needed to do to keep order in my home.

i did five loads of laundry

{towels, linens, whites, darks, and stripes}

i unpacked.  from four trips.

two different st. george's.  a california.  and a kenilworth.

i cleaned the bathrooms.

we're talking deep clean.

shower scum chemicals and everything.

i completed my online health + safety training modules.

so maybe i worked a little...

i hosted out of town guests.

and fed them everything i could from the candy cupboard.

... the one that only gets eaten when i host house guests.

i put all my piles away.

piles are my worst enemies.  they attack so easily.  and swoop in in any every room.

i got the mail.

i consider this an accomplishment no matter the busy-factor of my life.

i shopped for a wedding gift.

i've got tricks up my sleeve, ali. clever handmade tricks.

i went to family home evening.

sacrificed a decent cafe rio meal for meatless monday and received "you're not together again, are you?" whispers.

but my most significant accomplishment:

at 8 a.m. i popped out of bed and went straight outside to tackle the backyard.

my mini-me of a backyard.

in 15'x25' i managed to squeeze in a piece of grass, a raised garden bed, six shrubs, a japanese maple, a fire pit, a bbq grill, and a gravel/paver path to the gate.

mice drilled holes all over my grass right before the the first snow last year...

and this is the year i take my yard back.

the forecast called for rain.

and it rained: like crazy.

but there i was...

at 8 a.m.

with pajama pants pulled up around my knees

bent in half

pulling weeds and cleaning muck

in the pouring rain.

this was my day - my only day, i feared - and, so help me, i was going to get all the gold stars on my chore chart.

and i did.

in the pouring rain.