Friday, Lil sis to the rescue

 I was able to finally finish two wedding dresses and they are already picked up.  But what a day. I have to confess I bring this on myself. I just am not that organized, and I let things get out of control and I start to do dumb things.

Yes, can you believe that Kim does dumb things? It is not totally unusual that I forget to put a due date on a ticket. So, I have no idea when the bride or the bridesmaid needs the dress. But when I see that I have done that I just call, or text and I get the date.  But what if I have neither phone # nor date on a wedding dress? 

The shop was such a disorganized mess yesterday. We want to go camping next week on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.  I need to make sure that the work that needs to be done is done.  Hub's surgery is coming up and I have a girl's trip planned and even though those things are more than a month away, time travels fast. Wedding attire needs to be out in a timely manner, and I am pretty good about getting things out a month in advance if the work comes in on time.  You will always have the last-minute people, but most are timely.

I am surprisingly able to work in very chaotic environments.  Chalk that up to wrangling 120 dancers for years through many, many huge shows.  Chaos is my middle name and I managed to sell out year after year. But there comes a point where I melt down.  I am blaming it on my age, having a husband that needs me more, not feeling as good as I should. (Still coughing a little)

There just comes a time when environmental factors start to get me down mentally. Here is how Kim rolls or comes to a complete stand still. 

1.She feels behind (not that I am I just feel behind)

2. She gets a complicated wedding dress done and goes to call and finds out she has no date or # (so I put dress in done column and went on, they will call right?) (Monday)

3. Pull another 2 dresses and then realize it is take the neighbor to the pantry day and I get so much fruit that I have to process that nothing gets done.  (Tuesday)

4. start to work on two dresses and both are a nightmare although they should have been easy (Wednesday)

5. In the meantime work keeps coming in and the house gets dirtier, but I can ignore it.

6. Determined to get things done, I finish both dresses I have been working on and I start on another. (Thursday) I get three clients in at exactly 10 a.m. and they are lined up in hall.  (It is a small hall).  Two are wedding dresses, one is alterations.  Get alterations out the door first, and then fit one bride and send her off the second one was a perfect fit and I just had to bustle.  Well let's get that done now so I don't have to have another dress in the shop hanging and taking room.  Great that is done, and it is 11 a.m.

7. The shop is a disaster, dresses hanging everywhere, there are 5 that need to be picked up and they are taking up so much room. Luckily, I do have appointments set up for pick up, but the mess is over whelming.

8. Now I am looking for handwork so I can go into the family room and sew.  I don't want to be in the shop as it is too overwhelming. Avoidance mode is not good.

9. I get hand work done and call bride, and then I pull three bridesmaid dresses and see that I have no due date.  Was it next week? I think it was next week. So, I set those aside and start to look around and I have such a mess, I try and start to organize things. Kim melts down.

10. Put a txt into Lil sis that I am spiraling, and I could use some help in the shop for just an hour this evening.

11.  Lil sis shows up, about 3:30. She left work early as she knows I would not txt her unless it was bad.  I really don't want her to see the house, as her house is always spotless. She sits and talks to me about why I am feeling the way I am feeling.  I tell her I want to go empty the garage and wipe everything down and put it back.  I tell her I want to clean my fridge out; I don't want her to see the shop. We talk about my habit of making extra work for myself when I am feeling overwhelmed. (AKA cleaning the garage) I finally allow her to see the shop.  She says nothing but does take pictures.  Great now she can show her friends what a dork I am.  But I am willing to take this to get help.

12.  She starts to organize, and she finds tickets, with no dates, no phone #'s.  She says I just don't understand how you can run a business like this.  I don't know either, but I do, and it is very successful.  I have always been successful. She makes me get on face book and try and pull up the bride's name where I have no # or date.  It is an unusual last name which pulls up relative in Lewiston.  I find a teacher I know well that knows people with the same last name and I Facebook her explaining the problem.  She gets me a #.  Then Lil sis has me txt or phone others for due dates. All this time I am working on paperwork, she is organizing things by due dates.

13. Many piles have no due dates as they are do when you can.  Like hunting pants that need to be out by hunting season.  So, all those things go in a separate place. Dresses (wedding dresses) that are ready for pick up are hung together in another spot. Now she gets a calendar (by the way the wall calendar I have hanging in the shop is from last year, I know, I know it is August or 2022, and I constantly get the wrong dates because of this) Go ahead judge me.  She takes said calendar down, rolls it up and doesn't even hit me with it, like a bad dog. She is loving that way.

14. Now she has things organized by what needs to be done before I leave next week. Not necessarily that it will get picked up but that it is done so I can leave and have a good time.  

15. Then she organizes the things that need to be done before Hub's surgery, so I can have a few days with his needs.

16. Then she organizes everything for October and my girl's trip.  I can now see where I am at.

17. She and I both know that more work will come in, but I know where to put it according to dates. Now I can see if I have too much to do, and I really don't.  I am a little overbooked for next week but remember this is date for getting it done not for when it is actually due out.

18.  Now was I capable of doing this myself?  Certainly, but not in melt down mode. 

Aren't sisters great!  They can rescue you when you are an unorganized idiot. They can judge and still love you.

Work organized by dates.  Lil sis wants dividers, and she is going to take care of this, because well she knows me.

The ironing, guess who is out of clothes?  Guess what I am going to be doing this weekend?

After I get my quota done for the day, and I do know what that is thanks to Lil sis, I am going to clean the house and I am going to iron.  I love to iron when I have the time.  Ironing relaxes me just like sewing relaxes me under the right circumstances.

Now go ahead and judge me. but remember my Sissie and Lil sis, and Slug might find where you live.

Have a great and productive day staying positive while you are in the negative.

Kim