Even though the weather hasn’t gotten the memo yet, Summer is on its way out. Labor Day has come and gone, kids are back in school, and pumpkin spice rules the land. So it’s time to evaluate my Summer of Kathy and start thinking about plans for September through the rest of the year.

Summer fun list success

I did very well with summer fun list, checking off all but two items! I didn’t relax as much as I wanted to and had planned to. Instead, I filled my days with small tasks that, when added up, kept me from doing the deeper work I still need to do emotionally. I guess I wasn’t ready for it, though overall I feel like I’m healing. This is still a work in progress, but that’s to be expected.

Here's the rundown (completed items in red):

• Paint my toenails a color other than pink. (With dubious results, but at least I did it. The jury is still out on whether or not I like teal toenails.)
• Have a bubble tea.
• Try a new obedience training program with Luna (started). Ongoing! 
• Make key lime pie ice cream.
• Plant a small, potted herb garden. And it survived the summer!
• Read a lot. Total books read June through August: 36. Whoa.
• Take a horseback riding lesson. Tank is semi-retired and off for the summer, but there’s a new horse at the barn available for lessons. I haven’t taken a lesson in more than five years, so I need a tune up. Also was able to ride Tank twice!
• Work at least one jigsaw puzzle.
• Have a massage. I’ve been trying to do this since the beginning of the year, but I’ve had to cancel two appointments because of my moms’ failing health.
• Go to a movie with my husband. (Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One.) 
• Bake something from my grandma’s baking book (inherited from my mom).
• Get together with friends—I’ve been mostly unavailable in 2023, so we have some catching up to do.