I know, I'm full of shocking news lately. Yes, we cancelled Italy again! I started to feel like we were really pushing this trip through and it was causing a lot of anxiety. Plan B became a staycation. I can't wait to tell you what we did!

Cancellation Reasons

Everyone encouraged me to not cancel the trip. Four days before we were supposed to leave I turned to Greg and said "We can't go to Italy." And he completely agreed. I didn't buy the insurance this time but we are able to recoup most of that money as long as we book within a year so third times a charm hopefully!

When Abby told us this spring that she was pregnant we were excited for this new little heartbeat but also realized that meant she'd be 25 weeks when we were away. Now the time had come and we just didn't feel right leaving her. I had set up all these people to come help her and then there was the dog to worry about and it was leading to a lot of anxiety. Once we decided to cancel, that all went away and the environment in our house was immediately better. It's funny once you cancel something and then the issues that were prohibiting you all of the sudden are gone. But nonetheless, we decided on a staycation and I got to planning!!

4 Days with Greg

Day 1: We decided to visit a few small towns nearby to do a little boutique shopping. You could still feel the effects of Covid because the store hours were limited and some were only open on the weekends. Then we went to a cooking class and learned how to make pasta. We had fun but might not be "our thing." And then toured Home-O-Rama. It was different than what we were used to.

Day 2: We had a great day in Lebanon, OH. We went to lunch at the Golden Lamb and tried to shop again. I quickly realized all the shops were for women. We found an art gallery though and really enjoyed our time there. We found out we both really like the same artwork and found a few artists that we will keep our eye on. Funny enough some of the artwork was that we had seen in the homes of Home-O-Rama. And then we drove to another little town and we checked into our hotel. There was nothing to do so we waited till the restaurant opened at 4pm. We had a two and a half hour dinner and I was really intentional with the conversations I started. This is "our thing" and I'd like to have more leisurely dinners with Greg.

Day 3: Family needed us so I am glad we didn't stray too far.

Day 4: Last day we were off together and we headed to the Keenland horse track in Lexington, KY. We had a great time. The people watching was fantastic. I discovered I might need to pick up a sundress because this too was something we really enjoyed that I would like to do more of and I like to look the part. When in Rome… It was fun to discover new things we like to do together and it was great to connect with Greg!

Baby Ready

And I got to spend some time with Abby. We spent some special time together really getting her ready for the baby. It was nice to have some undivided time to support Abby.

I can't wait to tell you what I did with the remaining days of my time off. And I want to share with you something I realized about technology and how conversations are more difficult these days because we have all the information coming at us all at the same time. It's not like we are sharing new information with each other. That was why I got so intentional with my conversation with Greg the night of our long dinner.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

• The Sunday Basket®

• Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter

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Sometimes I get wary of sharing how much I plan. But because I plan I get to be more purposeful and present in my life which gives me peace. I'm sharing the 3 phases I go through to plan. I dream. I contemplate allllllllll the possibilities. Then I choose what I want to do from all dreams I came up with. And then I plan it and confidently run that plan knowing I thought of everything.

Holiday Blitz so you can leave the Witches in Oct.

Halloween has passed, you are in the thick of the holidays but you still feel like a witch. Why? Because you are trying to meet everyone's expectations but no one is aware of all you are doing nor do they care. We are putting all this pressure and these expectations on ourselves!! I'm here to share how to shed those witchy feelings with the Holiday Blitz. In the holiday blitz there are 5 videos and printables. After the videos, you will "interview your family" about what makes the holidays special for them BEFORE the holidays. You will dream about what you want the holidays to look like this year. And after talking to your family it'll be easy to choose what you want to execute.

Holiday Mini Planning Day

The Holiday Blitz Mini Planning Day is a taste of what home planning day is like. This is when we take the one Sunday Basket® and divide it into three Sunday Baskets®. You will have a Holiday Sunday Basket® for the meaty experience you want to plan, recipes, gift ideas, and all the holiday cheer you want to provide this year. There will be a "next year" Sunday Basket® where you can safely place paper that doesn't need your attention until next year. You place this Sunday Basket® in another room. And of course, your regular weekly Sunday Basket® for your "new part time job" of being the memory maker; with the additional shopping, decorating, traveling, and so forth. We'll take a look at the week of Thanksgiving and the last two weeks of December and plan in time blocks. And I share tips on how to strategically shop Black Friday to save money all year.

I know not everyone has the capacity or time to plan luxuriously like this. So…I am offering a 30 mini workshop where you can take just a few minutes to plan. I know everyone is really busy but I really want you to enjoy the holidays this year! Stay tuned for more details so you stay sane and present for the holidays.

Home Prep & Planning Day

And we end the year with more planning. Yes I really do all of this planning. But you will see as the year comes to an end you will be already dreaming of what this 2026 year can bring. It's still full of so much potential. Prep day is Monday. You will reset your Sunday Baskets® and update slash pocket labels and contents. Some paper may need to go in your operations binder. And you will have a Taxes Sunday Basket® for a landing place when all the documents start coming in the mail. You'll have one extra Sunday Basket® which will be for your first project in the new year. And then you choose what projects and ideas you will be actually planning for on Wed.

And On Wednesday we'll start getting a plan on paper in the workbook. What will the first 120 days/ 4 months of 2026 look like? In each of these planning phases I dream. How could it look? And then I choose. I make an actionable plan to execute the choices I made. And lastly, run that plan with confidence. Because you take the time to plan, you can peacefully be present.

Once you have experienced the peace of planning, you will find the time to plan. I promise! And the more you plan, you'll want to plan even more!

EPISODE RESOURCES:

• The Sunday Basket®

• Holiday Blitz 2025 (Oct. 27th)

• Holiday Blitz Bundle

• Holiday Mini Planning Day (Nov. 14th)

• 30 Min. Holiday Sanity Saver Workshop (Dec. 5th)

• Home Prep and Planning Day (Dec. 29 - Dec. 31)

• Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

This is your friendly reminder to get registered for the Holiday Blitz…it's FREE! A great gift to yourself for the holidays would be some sanity. This blitz is designed to help you be present and enjoy the holidays too.

We are where the holidays come from. But did you ever stop to ask your family if everything you are doing is meeting their holiday expectations. Often times we have so much fun with one idea that it almost turns into an obligation in the following years. If you stop and just ask your family what makes the holidays special, you may find you can eliminate a lot of things you are doing. Turns out my kids didn't care about decorating all the cookies I made from scratch. Now i just buy the chocolate chip cookie ingredients and my daughter makes them. I don't have to do any of it!!

Take advantage of this free Blitz to see how you can simplify your holidays. Dream about what is possible for the upcoming holidays while you have time to plan. I know if i don't plan, my expectations for the holidays don't even get considered. This way I plan how to execute how I want the holidays to look and feel while confidently meeting my families expectations too.

Registration is open now, Videos drop Oct. 27th!! You get to enjoy the holidays this year too!

EPISODE RESOURCES:

• Holiday Blitz 2025

• CustomerService@organize365.com

• Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media.