summa, summa, summa time...

It seems like everywhere I turn, someone I know (or don't know, but stalk via the blogosphere) is plotting out their summer plans. Andrew and I have been keeping a mental listof things to do, especially since he starts school in August, so I figured I would transcribe it here for good keeping. Release it into cyberspace and there's no turning back.

The first thing on our list, which we crossed off this week, was to spend some time at the beach with the Castrodale/Dixon clan. It was a last-minute rearrangment that allowed us to go, but we pulled it off and had a blast. Here are the other works-in-progress:

• Finish decorating. Okay, maybe that one's only mine, but Andrew helps! I still need to put the finishing touches on almost every room in the house, so my sewing machine better be ready.
• Set up the front porch and patio. We have a couple of pieces that we want to spray paint and we're still on the hunt for some patio furniture. But we did get a grill and I'm pretty sure we've used it for every dinner since we got it. Happy Birthday to us!
• Explore the Farmers Market downtown. The one here is perfect for the essential produce, but the one downtown is supposed to be awesome. And it's open through December! There's one benefit to living in this balmy climate...
• Read, duh. I didn't get started until we went to the beach, but I've already knocked out a couple, including South of Broad by Pat Conroy. It seemed appropriate, given our current situation. I need to finish A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller and then I have a few others on my list. Including Mudbound, which I'm really excited about.
• Make a budget. Andrew keeps our budget in his head and I need it on paper to stick to it. Trust me, it's better this way.
• Venture downtown. I'm sad to say that we haven't been out there yet. We've only been here for 3 weeks, and we've been busy, but I don't want to waste a single second. Or a single morsel of delicious food.
• Get in shape. It's true - we have to do it. Our goal is to at least play tennis a couple of times a week. We'll see what follows. I tried to convince Andrew that a Wii is a good workout, but he's not buying it. Literally.
• Eat whole. I've been reading a little bit here and there about the organic/whole/natural lifestyle lately, but I wasn't sure if I was prepared to make the leap. Then I read Food Rules and realized that it's not as difficult as one would think. And my ever-intelligent aunt proved the same thing when she blogged about the transition this week. So starting this weekend, we're making the jump. More on that later.

I'm known to bite off more than I can chew, so maybe I should stop there. We also need to make a "while we're in Charleston" list, but that will come another day. This should keep us busy for a while.

Happy summer adventures, everyone!