As I speed clean my house, I am constantly reminded about what a crazy next month-and-a-half it’s going to be.

I have less than two weeks to get my house completely organized and cleaned.

During the next few weeks, I’m going to a few Albuquerque Isotope games with Denise and need to get ahead on work before the real craziness starts.

I’ll be in Ithaca from Aug. 4-8 to see my best friend, who I haven’t seen since we graduated from Ithaca College in May 2018.

We haven’t planned much for the trip as she is studying for the bar exam. So far, we know we are eating a lot of food in Downtown Ithaca – Ale House, Waffle Frolic, Reds, Collegetown Bagels – going to various waterfalls, seeing the fountains on campus and going to the Ithaca Beer Company.

I’m hoping to also see my favorite professor and a few of the coaches that I’ve kept in contact with since I graduated. There will also be a good amount of time spent in the bookstore.

My hotel room in Ithaca will also be stocked with foods that I can only get when I’m home. I can’t wait for Ithaca Root Beer and the hotel is right next to my favorite grocery store, Wegmans, so I will be all set. There will be a lot of pizza, vanilla milk and popcorn during those few days.

I might have to bring an extra suitcase for the amount of clothing I’ll be buying at the bookstore and the amount of food from Wegmans I’ll be bringing back.

My plane arrives in Albuquerque late at night on Aug. 8. My mom arrives in Albuquerque on Aug. 10 and is here for almost 10 days.

There is a list of what needs to be done before I leave for Ithaca and before she arrives in Albuquerque.

Laundry needs to be done. Clothes need to be put away. Dishes need to be washed. The house needs to be cleaned. Sports memorabilia needs to be put up on the walls. There is a list for each day for what needs to be done. I also need to go grocery shopping.

Mom almost came this past weekend after she didn’t hear from me for a few days.

I called her and she said she was getting ready to buy a plane ticket because she was worried about me… oops. There aren’t many days we go without talking and I mentally took a break from everything over the weekend.

When she is here, there will still be work to do. Mom said she is bringing her lesson plans with her so she can get some work done while I have to work.

There is a list of people she has to meet. There are walks to go on with Cathy and I. There is a soccer game and hot springs to go to.

There is exploring in Albuquerque that needs to happen, along with possibly a round of mini golf as we are both very competitive people.

Right after mom leaves, sports start right up. She was going to come visit August 20-25 until I checked the sports schedule. That week will also be busy as we will be getting ready to cover the county fair for the newspaper.

There is lots to do in this next month and to-do lists might be the only thing keeping me on track (and knowing what my mother’s reaction would be if she saw how my house currently is).

I will somehow get it all done and hopefully not procrastinate too much.

Caitie Ihrig