We Have A Lot To Do

It is the week before our first weekend in the woods, Shaker Woods. This week is a bit of a whirlwind, dear reader. The Bibbed Wonder, The Bean, and I are doing everything we can to make our show at The Shaker Woods Festival a success. Eric and Jordan are putting the finishing touches on our products in the soap studio, and I am taking care of everything at the house. On Monday, we took our soap inventory out to our building in the woods. We also took quite a few decorations and display items with us. When we officially go out for our first weekend, we will only have to transport our foaming hand soaps and moisturizers, plus any other decorative items I decide we need.

Jenna will spend the weekends we are at Shaker Woods at the farm caring for the goats and chickens, walking my big BFF, and keeping our senior boy, Chubby, company. We could not do this without Jenna. Although she no longer helps us in the evenings or the weekends, we consider her an integral part of our team. Not only will she hold down the proverbial fort while we are away, but she will attend Ligonier Country Market for us and fulfill any online orders that come in. Jenna is a rock star. I trust her implicitly with our farm, animals, and business. It's good to have friends who become family.

This time of year, I feel like we have a lot of irons in the fire. Not only are we laser-focused on the Shaker Woods Festival, but we are also invested in our home away from home, Ligonier Country Market. Add to that our online obligations, back-to-school preparations, managing the breeding program of our goats, caring for our goats, and preparing for the upcoming holiday season. It's a lot to take in and juggle. There are also chores that have to be done around the farm to prep for the winter months and bigger projects to plan and maintain. My little head swims, trying to keep it all straight and organized. I have lists all over the place of things I have to remember to do. I would fall apart if it weren't for my lists.

Today, I will pack our outfits for the festival. The Bibbed Wonder has special dress-up bibs to wear and specific shirts, and he has requested his favorite socks be washed and packed...sigh. The man has an entire drawer filled to overflowing with socks but he only wears ten or so pairs. However, don't even mention cleaning out that sock drawer and getting rid of the socks he doesn't like. That dear reader, leads to rants about how he will clean out my attic filled with decorations, my side of the closet, and my books. He's a lot. The Bean also has to have special outfits packed. At this point, she is self-reliant. I simply make sure her outfits still fit and are ironed. Then, I will pack for myself. I have to pack my Shaker dresses, chub rub shorts to wear under said dresses, and find shoes that won't make my little feet swell up like melons after standing for eight-plus hours. Getting old is not a lot of fun.

I also have to grocery shop for Jenna, make sure the dogs have an extra bag of food, and remember to show Jenna how to give Buster his anal gland supplements. She's good. She went to school for that. That phrase is our running joke. Anytime I need advice or help with my critters, Jenna responds in the affirmative, "I went to school for that." Anytime I ask her to do something she doesn't want to do, she says, " Tina, I didn't go to school for that." She doesn't usually tell me no when I ask her for help. However, caring for Buster's anal gland issues just might be a deal breaker.

There is much to do and not a lot of time to get it done. On this overcast summer day, stay safe, be smart, stay organized, stay sane, appreciate the rock stars in your life, and keep washing your hands.