Plan, Do, Review:

Do you ever wonder about the key to success?  I do.


I did come across a tool that has served me well ever since I was going to school to teach preschool. The tool is called Plan, Do, Review from High Scope curriculum.  It is easy to remember and not very difficult to implement.  We were teaching the 3, 4 and 5-year-olds about it, and I thought, hey, why not?  I'll give it a try.

Here is a low tech version to help you remember:

Here is a more complicated graphic with extra details.  It has an atom in the center, so it must appeal to folks older than preschool:

I have been laying out my plans on here, filling you in, especially during this past year.  I have planned to do a lot of stuff.  I carried out some of my plans, and will now review my accomplishments or lack of them.  I interviewed myself, because now I am into being a reporter, and I need the practice.


1.  "Kathy Matthews, how is your backyard garden coming along?  Can we see photos of your raised beds and your chickens?"

Well, that one got postponed until next year.  First it was the weather (it snowed off and on until June) and then it was lack of enthusiasm from my best friend husband and helper.  That turned into a lack of enthusiasm on my part.  And all the baby chickens were sold out at the feed store. I would have had to drive to Redmond or ordered them through the mail.  Hassle after hassle on this project!  

Plus, I decided that I wanted to buy old, leaky stainless watering troughs off of Craig's List to use for my raised beds.  That is a really good idea, actually.  They will never fall apart and are up high enough for old people to sit in a chair and garden. That could add to the resale value of the house, after the initial investment.  

The troughs will hold in the heat, which is important around here.  And, I can paint them up in a darling Mary Engelbreight fashion using stencils.  I just don't know if anybody ever sells used troughs for cheap.  They may be collectors items, for all I know.  


It also didn't help that I took the frame and shelves from my Bi-Mart portable tarp green house and set them up for my finished craft projects in the spare bedroom.  Now I have to get some PVC pipe from work, cut it to the right size, etc.  


The goal for this project is next spring.  I am still in the planning portion.



2.  "I remember last fall when you posted about buying cute polka dot rainboots in order to clean your hot tub.  You were going to clean it with a shop vac.  Have you and your best friend been enjoying soaking your hot tub, now that it is repaired and clean?"

Now that there is another project that hasn't actually been completed yet.  The cleaning isn't that hard (or it wouldn't have been last fall).  But then we need to bring in a concrete mixer truck full of water, lift the chute over the fence to fill up the clean hot tub with clean water.  We do have a hose, but our water has a lot of iron and tannins in it, and using the mixer truck will actually be the best way to come up with a lot of water all at once.
Link: Preparing for Winter


3.  "How did your homemade bath salts turn out?" 

Those turned out great!  Kosher salt and almond oil, put in small canning jars.  Thank you for bringing that project up.
Link: Bath Salts Tutorial


4.  "How is your collection of chicken decorations going?"

I bought two chicken coffee cups for 50 cents each a couple of weeks ago, but otherwise nothing has changed there.  I was told to stop buying things that we could not eat.  I silently added, or can not use to make something.  I too have to admit this house is filled to the gills.  Collecting Chickens


5.  "How have you been doing on your sewing projects?" 

Well, I did get the machine set up and sewed about 10 bean bags.  I just can't get very into sewing right now.  It is hot out and much easier to blog.  I will though.  I need to make cute bags for my cookie mixes.  I did make 38 cookie mixes a while back, and that was a good accomplishment. Link: Cookie Mixes in a Bag


6.  "What about your adventures in canning?"

I am proud of that.  I haven't canned anything since the cornish game hens, but I will be canning from time to time.  I buy a new set of canning jars each week to stock up.  I am happy that I am learning how to preserve things the old fashioned way. 
Canning Cornish Game Hens
My First Time Canning


7.  "You recently mentioned that you were interested in writing a book.  Have you begun that project yet?"

I have!  I have two books in the works.  They are definitely in the baby stages.  The novel has around 900 words so far, and a lot of research information.  Also, I started working on my non-fiction resource book.  The novel is fun.  The other one is more like a school project, but it will be great when I finish it up.  I am not pressuring myself about getting these done right now.  It is a lot of extra work. Books on Writing Books  Oh, yeah, I'm supposed to be helping Cary with his memoir also! Preparing for Cary's Book


10.  "How are you doing with your creative recylcing program?" 

Great!  I really have run out of of storage room, so I set up a recycling center in the kitchen.  We go to the dump ourselves, so I just drop off the glass and plastic there.  I still melt down the wax in the old glass candles, save the containers, and put the wax into canning jars so that I can make my own candles.  I am ready to go when I buy some wicks.  I guess that I need to go into Bend to Micheal's to get those.  Nobody else seems to carry them.  


My decorated wine bottles are ready to be filled with syrup or homemade Kahlua.  I found corks at Walmart. 
From Trash to Treasure
Saving That Candle Wax! 
Homemade Kahlua Recipe
Transforming Your Containers


9.  "Do you have anything that you would like to share with your readers right now, Kathy?" 

Lemon juice really does lighten your hair and age spots.  White vinegar in your laundry rinse water takes a lot of soap and scum that builds up when you have hard water.  It also takes the hard water stains off of your shower for a cheap and non-toxic cleaner.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of my readers for keep coming back to see what is going on here in Mayberry/La Pine.  I appreciate you all very much!  

Not that I am one to give advice, but remember, things do not get done if you don't begin them in the first place.  If you have a dream or a strong feeling about creating, take those baby steps and get going!  Nobody taught me how to make a blog or take photos.  I just decided to give it a try. Best wishes to you.

Plan, do, review.  It works! 

P.S. - I will keep adding more links to this over time and save this link on the top of this page under favorite posts.  It will make it easier for all of us to find things.