Revisiting That Summer List

For those of you who have been following along for a few months now, you may recall that back in June, I wrote about being intentional about summer. Though I didn’t share all of the specifics of my Summer 2015 list, I did explain that I had subdivided it into categories such as “things to prep/start early,” “on-going smaller projects,” “bigger projects to conquer,” and “later in the summer.”

Well, now it is definitely “later in the summer!” As much as I hate to admit it, I definitely struggle with the end-of-summer blues. But I have found that looking back on all of the positive, productive things we did is such a mood-booster. I wanted to revisit that summer list I made back in late May, and see what all has been accomplished!

Here’s what I was able to accomplish and enjoy this summer:

– Work on gallery walls in the house (in progress)
– Give our coffee table a makeover
– Start Etsy shop
– Have anniversary pictures taken
– Read for fun! (I definitely cried when this Wingfeather series was over)
– Visit the Amish and spent a day at an Amish auction in MN
– Coffee dates with friends (still need to get together with some people!)
– Spend time with my dear friend Jordan before she has Baby Girl in September! (I even had the opportunity to take Jordan’s maternity photos – what an honor!)
– Start sifting through, editing, and finally posting pictures from Cambodia (Angkor Wat Temples was a fun post!)
– Host friends and family overnight (the guest room has gotten great use this summer!)
– Organize our office room at home
– Host another group giveaway (this one was for Anthropologie bowls – so fun!)
– Intentionally blog on consistent days each week
– Play our piano more
– Organize my childhood room back at my parents’!
– Do a product review post
– Purge and sell clothing, prioritizing having good quality basics
– Begin researching for our upcoming Europe trip(!!!!)
– Coffee bar in house (in progress)
– Start private horseback riding lessons
– Roadtrip in the south with my husband
– Guest post for other blogs
– Enter photography in the county fair (I won grand champion for amateur photography!!)
– Organize filing cabinet of important documents (almost done)
– Garden at my in-laws’
– Work on decorating our rental home and making it feel peaceful, calm, and homey
– Blow-dry my hair as little as possible!
– Organize shoes with rustic shoe storage crates

Photo credit: Hannah Elise Photography

What have you been up to this summer?? I encourage you to look back on all of the fun excursions and the productive tasks you were able to do! (And, just like I need to be reminded, give yourself some grace as to what you may not have accomplished. Hopefully you also got some wonderful rest time in, too!) What were your favorite moments and memories this summer?