52 Changes - What week is it?

I'm behind on this again, and I realize it probably looks like I haven't been keeping up.  Au contraire!  I have a sheet of paper on my desk at work that lists out the changes I've made for the past few weeks, even though they haven't made it up here yet.  And, since it appears I've been so lazy, let me tell you that for the last few weeks I have, in order, been on vacation, been somewhat sick, and had all my siblings over to visit.  So it's been hectic, but (aside from feeling lousy that one weekend) it's been a good busy.

Last week's change is to go back to budget tracking.  This is something we have done in the past, and even had a super flashy spreadsheet to track it in.  The spreadsheet had different categories for groceries, dining out, entertainment, and budget goals for each.  It actually worked really well.  So well, in fact, that we had convinced each other that we were really conscientious spenders, and that we'd keep up with budgeting even without tracking.  Har.  Fast-forward to my checking last month's expenditures and finding that we were over 150% of what our budget had been back in the day.  Plus we've had car repairs recently and don't have a huge emergency fund, so it will be good to get back on track.  Our budget goal isn't extremely restrictive; just keeps us responsible.  And this time around there are no categories.  Just one big number we have to stay under for the month.  I know we can do this, because, well, we have already.

The week before that we added the board of labor.  This is a bit of an inside joke that goes back to my brother's board of education.  My brother and sister were home-schooled for several years, and as part of that, my Mom bought a whiteboard to write lessons on, which my brother cleverly dubbed the board of education.  Well, we bought our own whiteboard a few weeks ago, and while I am a fan of lifelong learning, ours is in place to write some daily chores on.  We have tried every system I can think of to keep up on cleaning our house, from pairing each day of the week with a certain activity to leaving it all and "blitz-cleaning" every weekend, with similar (lack of) results.  So we've added a board of labor, and each morning we think of the thing or two that needs the most attention that day, write it down, and make a point to get to it in the evening.  It helps that this board is also the first thing you see when you walk in the door, so it's hard to avoid the work.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly of all 52 (even unknown) changes is from the week of the vacation: live in the now.  You probably know by now that I'm a super organizational, list and plan-oriented person.  A good example is the Washington DC trip, where days were planned out to the hour.  That was great for DC, where there was so much to do, and a ton of it depended on having timed tickets from our Senator in advance.  But this planning can get overpowering if you let it, and you end up worrying about planning every moment in the future rather than simply enjoying the present.  The key, of course, is to strike a good balance between the two.  Some moments need to be planned.  Our wedding comes to mind, which we planned the crap out of, but we really needed to, and it turned out well.  DC, like I mentioned before.  But some things should just be taken as they come.  Like our little vacation this year.

I really wanted to hang out on a beach and relax, so I planted the idea in Stacia's head that we should go to Southwest Michigan, and hang out on the shores of Lake Michigan.  I'd been there once, a long time ago, and it was beautiful, so I wanted to go back.  I'll admit, I did do some planning, primarily to find the best recommended restaurants and sights to see, but stopped well short of planning out itineraries.  We took each day as it came, decided what to do, and had a ton of fun.  Including one event that would certainly not have been on the plan...

South Haven, Michigan, a lovely and picturesque harbor town on the Eastern shores of Lake Michigan.  We were staying in an area B&B, and had just set off to have dinner (local lake perch!) and go to the beach for the sunset.  Suddenly we were stopped in the street by another guest of the B&B that we'd literally spoken to for maybe a minute when we were checking in.  He had a wife sick with food poisoning :( and tickets for a sunset cruise on this boat.

Since he and his wife couldn't go, and the tickets were nonrefundable, he asked if we wanted to go in their place.  To be honest, I started to freak out a bit.  We hadn't planned on this, I do get a bit of motion sickness, and I had no idea what it would be like.  The first thoughts that ran through my head were, how can we get out of this so we can just go to the beach like we'd planned?  But then I thought to myself, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I should just take it.  So we thanked the man, ran off to our dinner, and hurried back to get on board the boat.

Now, I'm a landlubber, myself, so I had no idea what to expect, nor any frame of reference.  So I don't know if the lake was choppy that night, or if I just didn't have "sea legs," but it was a bit unsettling.  Perhaps deep-fried perch and beer weren't the best pre-sailing meal, either.  :)  But I kept it together, especially after the friendly crewman suggested I stand up, look at the horizon, and get my nose in the wind, as he put it.  It was still a rough ride, in my book, but on the other hand, I got to see things like this.

And this

Which I never would have done if I had planned this in advance.  By the time we turned around, I was proud (and thankful) that I wasn't one of the two passengers laying on the deck feeling seasick, :( excited that we'd taken the trip, and in some ways glad to see the shore approaching.  It was an experience that, had I planned a strict itinerary, would never have been possible, and it was truly incredible.  This was us as we turned the ship around and headed back to land.

Our smiles may belie our fears of going overboard and mild queasiness, but in many more ways they're genuine.  We got to see an incredible sunset over Lake Michigan from a unique vantage point that few ever get to see.  I know this is something I'll struggle with, but whenever possible and fitting the situation, that will be me.  Living in the now.