Life in This Busy House

Projects

2010-09-10T20:59:00.000-07:00

Well, I didn't win the serger. Oh well, I'll be ok. :-)

I am going to participate in this:

I've also been working on my bedroom. Don't worry- I took before pictures. I'm just still too embarrassed to post them. I have a couple more things to get rid of, but it's looking much better.... dare I say, clean?!

Oh to win a serger!

2010-08-31T19:51:00.000-07:00

Sew, Mama, Sew! is giving away a beautiful Husqvarna Viking s21 Serger.
I have a serger and I would love to replace it! Actually, if I were to win... there is a sweet girl about 5 blocks away that just got married and she has sewn all through high school, she stopped by our house a while ago and saw my serger sitting out and asked what it was. So, I would bless her with my perfectly good, but older serger. I know she would appreciate and use it.

A new serger would help me while I'm working on things for my etsy store. I opened the store to create extra income when my husband was laid off this spring. I couldn't do it without a serger to finish the seams- what a difference it makes to have the right machine for the job!! My husband has found a job, not at all near his white collar profession and I have continued the shop and it helps by things that are a blessing to have, but I wouldn't spend the money on because it's not in the budget.

I love creating clothes for my kids by repurposing fabric and sheets found at yard sales and thrift stores.
Having a serger makes it possible for me to make quality items and with them I can barter for food, babysitting, etc. I've made pajama pants for a friend who makes kefir for us and I've made bibs and clothes for young moms who need a little extra help.
Having a new serger would just allow me to make more things and add more of those special touches to the things I do make.
It would make my life easier by giving more sewing options instead of 1 basic stitch.

PLUS! I'm Swedish, so if I get a Husqvarna I would be in heaven!

AND! All the men in my life would be extremely impressed because it says "Husqvarna" on it. (My husband laughed at me saying I wanted one- he thought they only made power tools!)

I am now off to make some book covers for my kids school books- thanks to Sew, Mama, Sew! I will be using my mom's serger, which I borrowed until I could get mine fixed.

Repurposed Sheets... Boxers!

2010-07-21T21:37:00.000-07:00

I have been looking at garage sales for fabric and I have found alot of old sheets, they normally aren't marked very high and some funky patterns. So, here's my latest: Boxers. All the boys needed new boxers. They sleep in them, not fans of pajamas, and they did request that I not add the fly, so I just folded that part of the pattern in and sewed them up really easily.
I love the polka-dot fabric. And I think sheet fabric is really comfortable. I was even able to get some PJ pants and shorts made for little Titus. 1 sheet has alot of fabric in it!

My mom is the queen of patterns. :-) So I just barrowed a boxer pattern from her. It had all the sizes one could wish for from size 6 boys to Men's XL, all seperate, so I didn't have to trace anything! Yay for me!

Jesse loves the color orange, (can you believe someone had something that bright on their bed, do you think they were even able to sleep??) and I found an orange sheet. I made him a couple boxers and added a little mushroom to one of them so he could tell somewhat of a difference. I picked a mushroom because I catch him drawing mushrooms alot.

Going to Bed With a Shiny Sink!

2010-07-08T21:50:00.000-07:00

This is how I am ending my evening. I ordered a friend Flylady's book and read through the first chapter. I decided I should do what she said and I scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed that sink. But it's pretty isn't it?! I know, the wall behind it needs... a wall. But hey, at least the sink is shining.

I'm having a garage sale on Saturday. I hope we get rid of a ton of stuff so I don't have to haul any of it away. Well, much of it away. LOL, people heard we were having one and keep dropping stuff off... because they were just going to take it to Goodwill, but this is better. :-) Whatever works- maybe we'll get some money for their stuff. :-)

Summer is Here

2010-07-02T08:09:00.000-07:00

Brian has been working longer hours, which means I have alot more time to be bored. But I've been putting that time to good use. I am proud of myself. Oh, I have alot more to go, but it's going better. I've been reading Flylady's messages again (I get them on my email and also on Facebook). And I've been doing what she says. Not with everything- I know I can't start everything at once, I have to do a little at a time. I've been working on keeping the sink shiny... I have been fairly good at keeping the dishes done, they don't pile up. But at the end of the day there might still be a cup and plate in the sink. So I've been trying to even wash the last couple before bed and buff the sink. It is nice to wake up to.
I think my sewing projects have helped lift my blue mood from a few month ago. It does help to see things get finished.
I'm planning to have a yard sale next week, we've been working on building the boys some bunk beds, so I have a bed frame and mattress that needs to go. I also got a new cabinet at an antique store down the road, we got a small TV to fit in it (and it is small- not the smallest, but 2nd to smallest we could find. :-) I love it- I can hide the TV!! And the cabinet is narrow as well, so it doesn't take up much space in our living room. So I have a big old entertainment center and TV to get rid of as well.
Some friends got married last week and need a couch, so they are taking our big couch and chair. I have a metal frame and am planning to build a couch, with storage. Because, sadly, World Market no longer has the storage futon that I had wanted. But it's ok, because building it ourselves, I can make it have more storage than the futon would have.

Upcycled, Repurposed, Whatever- it's fun

2010-06-16T20:19:00.000-07:00

I think sewing is a coping mechanism of sorts... The boys room is all torn up right now, we took down the lowered ceiling (we have awesome high ceilings that someone lowered at some point in time), patched, painted, etc. and are building bunk beds. But right now all the boys stuff is in the livingroom and on the front porch. It really bothers me- there are no clear empty spaces right now. But today I have sewn 1 night grown, made 1 t-shirt for Naomi (oh, I forgot to take pics of it), sewn a pair of pants for Titus and a pair of shorts plus have 2 other nightgowns almost sewn. So I can see what I got accomplished today and it makes me feel good.
The other night I was making my bed and my mom had given me a bunch of sheet sets, I pulled on out and there was a ratty old sheet that was sewn together and had holes in it- my mom probably would have tossed it, but I don't think she even looked in the bags before she gave them to me. So I decided I would try out Naomi's new nightgown pattern. The last one I made her was pretty big, but this one came out great and it was so cute (especially since I had to add that patch) that I decided to cut out 2 more from the old sheet and even got a pair of PJ pants for Titus and a pair of shorts. What fun! All free!!
I did some fish appliqué on Titus' PJ's along with "mr. titus", made them look less like scrubs. I had alot of fun doing it.

Sewing with thrift store fabrics

2010-06-09T12:32:00.000-07:00

I have a new love. Bad, I know. Thrift store fabric. What fun! I can make all kinds of things for only a couple dollars! My most recent fabric is this green- I love the color! I have inherited a bunch of bias tape from someone who passed away at church and so I felt like I was really "reducing, reusing and recycling" with these aprons.

I find that I feel really good and energized when I accomplish something. So... a clean house and creating things.

Summer is Coming!

2010-05-29T13:27:00.000-07:00

Life is going pretty good, Brian's new job is going well and I am finding a couple hours a week to work on creative things- like these tie bibs. Cute, eh? I love Titus in them! I did make some to sell, but I kept some for him too and mailed one to my nephew. Little boys in ties are just cute!
I found some amino acids at the health food store and have been taking them through my "emotional" time in my cycle and it really helps, I'm fairly normal, so what a huge blessing!
We got our garden planted a couple days ago and then yesterday I was at a clients birth. The boys just have a few more days of school and I am so looking forward to an easier schedule!! I've been keeping up with the house pretty well, still going through and getting rid of stuff. Had a garage sale with some friends last weekend and got rid of more as well as making $60 (which is a fair amount considering I didn't take that much to the sale!).
It's been nice to get out during the day after all the snow we had this winter. Titus is enjoying the outdoors and wants to be out there all day... so I might get some reading done this summer too just sitting out there with them.

Our Etsy Shop

2010-04-22T11:27:00.000-07:00

(Visit our Etsy Store here)

I've been on a creative kick lately... maybe since I'm staying away from refined sweeteners I'm so oragnized that I have time to be creative. LOL Or, it could be that my husband has been out of work so I have more time to play around while he chases after Titus (who gets into everything!) I don't know. But I've been having fun! (BTW, he has found a job and I may fill my time with this type of stuff instead of those darn facebook games... and continue my creative kick!) So I wanted to make a photo collage for this post, but our MAC is so old it doesn't run Picasa. Sad, I know. So I searched online for a collage maker and found one, but it made it too big and chopped half of it off when I published it on Blogger. I can't win. So I just uploaded some photos and here's my "sampling:"

So, please stop in and see the cute little aprons and baby things I have for sale! Illusarts Quality Handcrafts

What I've been up to...

2010-03-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

So... I have avoided this blog. I quit my bedroom challenge. I beat myself up for it and felt guilty and I just quit. My emotions have been up and down, the desk looks bad again- though, only 1/2 as bad as it was before I did the desk challenge. I was depressed alot in the last 2 months, and I'm not exactly sure why. So I went out and chopped my hair off.
That's right- that's what I do. When all else fail, chop the hair off. :-)

I have been working diligently on the kitchen. I have kept the dishes done, mostly and the counters clean. If I don't I start feeling down again and beat myself up about it. I am my own worst enemy.
I finished reading Real Food: What to Eat and Why which was absolutely wonderful and I recommend it to everyone. But now I am clueless as to what to feed my family! I will get there- we've changed some things, and left overs the same. I will change eventually, but in my perfectionist disposition, I want to have everything done and figured out now.
So, several times throughout the day, I find myself sighing and trying to justify to myself why everything I want hasn't just happened.

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 9

2010-01-23T15:46:00.001-08:00

Well, I've managed to make the bed most days, but not always in the morning. And I haven't even gotten close to that big pile of boxes in the corner...

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 8

2010-01-22T09:11:00.000-08:00

Last night went well, the boys were around so I put them to work and we got alot of stuff done. I went to bed with a huge pile of clean dishes drying and the other sink empty and clean. I felt much better at the end of the day about getting more of the house clean. I got Brian to help me put the Christmas boxes downstairs and a few other things that needed to go down but were sitting in the kitchen. I went to bed early but it took a while for my mind to slow down, which isn't normally the case, so I felt like I wasn't completely exhausted. I get more energy when the house is picked up.

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 7

2010-01-21T09:11:00.001-08:00

So, a week into the challenge. Not quite- I skipped a couple days and I feel horrible about it. This is what the whole house looks like and I'm so tired of it. I know we need better storage- we need alot of the stuff that is around, other wise I would toss it. We don't have cupboard and stuff can't be hidden away. The dining room looks awful and I see it all the time and the kitchen is so hard to keep on top of and Titus is sick and wakes up when I do the dishes in the morning, but he's been napping in the morning because he doesn't feel good. I'm depressed about the house. Though, I have read a book- which was a great accomplishment for me. I had to make myself sit down while Titus was napping. Naomi happily played near me in the livingroom while I read, it was really nice.
The desk is starting to pile up again... so I have a cycle. I don't clean something, feel lousy about it so I don't clean whatever I'm supposed to clean and then I feel lousy about that... I know this, so the last couple days I have straightened the livingroom and diningroom each morning and I feel better, but by evening it's messy. I know it's part of having kids and I know it helps when the boys chip in and get their chores done. It's times like these I really just want to bull doze the house down.
Flylady calls the way I'm feeling a crash and burn- you wait until you can't stand it and then you go crazy cleaning and then you don't feel like cleaning it for a month- by which time it's driving you crazy again. Ugh.
I'm going to get off the computer and clean something.

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 6

2010-01-19T10:19:00.000-08:00

Notice Brian peeking out of the closet? lol

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 5

2010-01-18T08:55:00.000-08:00

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 4

2010-01-16T10:29:00.000-08:00

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 4

2010-01-15T05:50:00.000-08:00

Not much going on... but the bed got made again. This is a good thing.

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 3

2010-01-14T05:19:00.000-08:00

Ok, I got off my duff and posted some pics. It's improving- slowly, but still improving.

Delayed posting

2010-01-12T12:10:00.000-08:00

So, I realize that I am behind, I was ahead of myself a couple days and then didn't post and spaced it out, working on other things (other than blogging) so, I do have pics of my challenge, I just have been working on other ways to produce an income as I see blogging is not going to work well for that, unless I have 500-1000 readers.
My house is still a huge goal, and I'm working on my 40 day challenge, I'll do a catch up day here pretty soon and post it. Just figured I'd give you guys an fyi. :-)

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 2

2010-01-09T05:46:00.000-08:00

So... I didn't do much, I did hang a couple jackets up. I had a busy day... it was the day I had the car, so I did some grocery shopping and then took the boys to piano lessons, then in the evening we went and spent some time with friends.
I find that when I'm gone in the evening it's alot harder to stay on top of things. In the evening both little ones are sleeping (bedtime is 7pm) and they don't wake up if I make noise. They do wake during the day if I make alot of noise. So, I do play catch up in the evening.

40 Day Challenge: Bedroom, Day 1

2010-01-08T05:38:00.000-08:00

Ok, lest anyone forget- here are the "before pictures."

And then we move on to "Day 1" of the challenge.

Sadly, very little difference.

But this is just the beginning.

I haven't worked on it at all.

I didn't try to improve so that people wouldn't think I'm such a slob.

I'm being honest.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 40!!!

2010-01-07T05:21:00.000-08:00

WOW! I can't believe I have another 40 day challenge under my belt! I'm excited and dreading the next one at the same time. I'm excited because I see how much of a difference it can make... dreading because the bedroom seems like more work then the rest of the house! Well, maybe not more work than the kitchen... but still.

2010 in 2010... up to 18!

2010-01-06T14:58:00.000-08:00

Go here for your own 2010 in 2010 chart.

Kitchen Drawers #7 & #8

2010-01-06T14:43:00.000-08:00

I don't know what to call this drawer... but it has foil, wax paper, baggies, etc. Not alot to do here- removed a couple qt. sized bags I kept, that had been used but probably with granola or something that I figured I would use again and I've forgotten, so now they just look dusty and when am I really going to wash them out and use them anyway?
A couple bag closing things that I won't use, a tortilla chip and the bag that holds the paper bags... not needed.
The "tupperware" drawer. I have 1 lonely piece of genuine tupperware. The rest are ziplock containers. I get rid of anything right away if it breaks, so nothing do to here.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 39

2010-01-06T05:19:00.000-08:00

Day 39! Woot Woot!

Kitchen Drawer #6

2010-01-05T14:19:00.000-08:00

The bib/wash cloth drawer. Spacific wash cloths- only for little hands and faces, nothing else. Because I am OCD with wash cloths. There are bath wash cloths- only used when bathing. Cleaning, only used on floor/toilet, etc. Dish clothes, only used for dishes and then these- only used for little people.
I have made bibs for the kids and so there is a pile of girl bibs and a pile of boy bibs. This drawer didn't loose anything and took 30 seconds to refold 2 bibs.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 38

2010-01-05T05:14:00.000-08:00

2 days left and going strong! Yay!! Hm... maybe I should put away Christmas decorations... yeah, about that time!

Kitchen Drawer #5

2010-01-04T14:09:00.000-08:00

The towel/oven mitt drawer.

This one is not that hard. I'm going for simple here... so let's see.

Put the apron in the "rarely used drawer"...

Got rid of 4 Ikea dish towels that are very cute, but leave fuzzies on glasses if you use them to dry and really don't soak up enough for a hand towel... and then a cute snowman towel that I pull out at Christmas time. Do I really need a towel I only use 1 month out of the year? No. And a nasty pillow case. Weird, one may think. Unless they have a 12 and 13 year old boy folding laundry. Then, it's quite normal. It gets trashed.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 37

2010-01-04T05:11:00.000-08:00

There I brought out the calendar. It shows a week if you leave it open. That's what I plan to do. Since this is the most central place in the house and where I seem to take phone calls. I wonder if it would help me to put my dinner menu on it- then everything would all be right there. Do you use a calendar? How much do you put on it?

Kitchen drawer #3

2010-01-03T13:50:00.000-08:00

So, I open the bottom drawer... my "rarely used utensil" drawer... and I see the steak knives our friends got us last year, because we kept having them over for BBQ and pulling out little paring knives. :-) Maybe I should take them out of the package.
Well, to do that, I need to clean out the eating utensil drawer, because that is where I want them.

Lets see... nut crackers... which I have never used, but you know as soon as I get rid of them someone will give us a bag of nuts, or I'll want to start eating apricot nuts... or something like that, I think I heard they were good for you... I'll put those in the "rarely used" drawer.

A couple paint brushes. I don't remember, but yes, I used them in cooking something.

I opened the knives... and then cut myself. Dork.

I don't think I need to keep washing plastic silverware. Again- Dork.

I had to pull the eating utensil drawer completely out, because it's broken. I decided to put the dry dishes away, well, the silverware and filled the drawer back up. Then, since it was out, I decided to try and fix it. Yes, it was that easy. I don't know why I'm so lazy as to not even look and see how the drawer broke. That look all of 1 minute to get a screwdriver and screw it in again, and Da-Dah! Now I have a working drawer. Whew! Glad that's over.

I didn't toss anything out of the rarely used drawer, I do use my cherry pitter, meat mallet and skewers... and yes, someday, the nut crackers. But hey, at least the steak knives are ready for our next BBQ!!

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 36

2010-01-03T05:08:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I'm so close to being done with this challenge and on to a new one. That means I've actually kept areas clean for almost 80 days! 2 1/2 months. This has been really good. It will be good to move on to the bedroom too...

Next Drawer- Kitchen

2010-01-02T13:40:00.000-08:00

OK, next drawer down. This is my large cooking utensil drawer.
I took out some rarely used items- the potato masher and pasta spoon. I put them in the "rarely used" drawer on the bottom. I took out my canning funnel and put it with the canning stuff and same with the extra canning jar lids I had in there.
I got rid of a serving spatula.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 35

2010-01-02T07:42:00.000-08:00

It's January. I need to pull out the calendar I bought to leave on the desk. If I have my week in front of me, I am hoping I will be more aware of my appointments and what I need to have done on certain days.

2010 in 2010... the Beginning!

2010-01-01T13:31:00.000-08:00

I talked about this here and you can also download the chart here.

I went into the kitchen today and looked in my drawers.
Drawer #1: Small cooking utensils.

This isn't a bad drawer, because it's one of my main ones and I can't stand fighting to find the things I need.

I removed 2 basting brushing... I left 2, one silicone one for basting/brushing oil on pans and one natural one for cleaning my grain grinder. I moved a serving spatula down a drawer.

Next Challenge!

2010-01-01T08:24:00.000-08:00

Master Bedroom!
I am embarrassed with this... but maybe if I post it I will be more inclined to make a big change. Talking with Brian, he was in favor of the bedroom being the next challenge, so I didn't even post a poll on it.
It's embarrassing because about a month ago I posted pictures of the bedroom being so nice and clean. I guess that's what I get. I tend to just toss stuff in there when I don't have a place to put it.
So it will be good to work on this.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 34

2010-01-01T05:19:00.000-08:00

I've been thinking about the next challenge now... since I only have 6 days left! I can't believe the desk has stayed nice this whole time!!

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 33

2009-12-31T05:14:00.000-08:00

Naomi had been playing with Brian's lunch box again... and I hadn't noticed before I took the picture. Oh well. :-) The top part looks good.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 32

2009-12-30T05:52:00.000-08:00

Look how clear the picture is! :-) Brian got a beautiful new camera- I'm thrilled!

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 31

2009-12-29T05:26:00.000-08:00

This will probably be the last post with crummy pictures. That's right!! Brian is out buying a new camera right now! I CAN'T WAIT!!!

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 30

2009-12-28T05:24:00.000-08:00

Well, for the first time in the desk challenge, I have gone to bed without tidying it up. I will say it's not horrible and compared to what the desk regularly looked like before the challenge... I just won't go there.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 29

2009-12-27T05:22:00.000-08:00

We got some money for Christmas... so I think we're going to go shopping for a new camera! I am so excited! This one has at least been better than my video camera, but I will be very glad to get one with more precise settings instead of just a point and shoot.

Putting Away 6

2009-12-26T10:28:00.001-08:00

I cleaned up the bedroom and then decided I wanted to sew... Then I brought up all my boxes. Silly me. I got them all out and then sewed 2 simple things and didn't touch it. So I got annoyed with myself, packed all the boxes up and kept out 2 projects to work on- one needs 2 more seams and then some hand stitching, the other is just 2 pieces of fabric right now. Brian took the sewing boxes back downstairs for me. He's such a tolerant man. :-)

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 28

2009-12-26T10:20:00.000-08:00

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I didn't take a break from my challenge- but I did take a break from posting it. It's been good for me to do this through the holidays though, to prove to myself that even in the busiest time of year, I can keep something clean. :-)

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 27

2009-12-24T05:04:00.000-08:00

Well, there is no school right now, so at least I don't have to worry about school papers that end up on the desk. :-) I see I forgot to put away the dictionary that Naomi drug out though. Oh well- it was on the floor. :-)

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 26

2009-12-23T05:00:00.000-08:00

YAY for a clean desk. (Ignore the paper and lid on the floor!) I have to say this has just been really nice. It was such an eye sore before! I do find alot of stuff piles on it throughout the day though still. Stuff piles everywhere throughout the day. I need to change that. I know Flylady does "Put out a Hot Spot" or something like that, where you take 5 minutes a couple times a day to just attack a "hot spot". What do you guys do? Do you have a routine, do you out of habit just put it where it belongs?

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 25

2009-12-22T08:49:00.000-08:00

The house managed to stay in one piece as I worked on gift boxes for Brian's bosses.
Alot of kids were out of town, (including ours) so Brian didn't have a boyscout meeting and was able to stay home and wrangle the kids while I finished working on the cinnamon rolls and Zucchini Bread. After the little ones went to bed we did all the dishes and sat down for a movie and packaged the boxes. The table is kind of messy, with wax paper, some candy, etc. I need to work on that now- but at least the desk, sink and living room looked pretty good!

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 24

2009-12-21T05:22:00.000-08:00

So, yes the desk stayed clean because we were gone all day long! :-)

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 23

2009-12-20T19:18:00.001-08:00

Forgot to post this morning, but I have a good excuse! We drove the boys 400 miles away so they could spend 2 weeks with their grandparents. But I did manage to clean it up before going to bed the night before. :-)

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 22

2009-12-19T05:45:00.000-08:00

With there being snow here the living room looks bad... snow gear always laying around drying for the next trip out. We don't have a coat closet, though I do have a drying rack in the kitchen, so now and then snow pants are hung there. Since we don't have a coat rack or closet, Brian's coat finds it's way to the computer chair and each night I have had to put it in our room. Whenever we finish the house we'll have to put in something for coats/boots.

Getting Rid of... 32

2009-12-18T10:06:00.000-08:00

Instead of going back into the bedroom, I thought I would clean the top of the piano today. It's been bugging me and we're having company tonight. I need to clean up my sewing table too. I worked on a few things and then started cleaning. Maybe I should just pack it up and put it away again...

I was able to throw a nice stack of papers away off this piano. But most things just needed to be put away. I dusted everything when I was done, so it looks pretty again.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 21

2009-12-18T06:36:00.001-08:00

In effort to keep the desk clean, I have kept up on the checkbook and paid bills promptly. It's been nice to sit at without a mess of stuff to do glaring me in the face.

Getting Rid of... 27

2009-12-17T13:11:00.000-08:00

I was inspired to keep going-- so I attacked it again! I went all the way this time. I stuck Brian's scouting papers in his bedside table. Guess I'll have to ask him to sort that pretty soon, it's getting pretty full.

That crock is our "candy bucket". We don't eat alot of candy. I don't allow alot of candy. So then the boys get a "candy day" once a month. They'll watch a movie and get to eat as much of their candy as they want while the movie is playing. Once the movie is over I pick out any thing that is good if I want to and then throw the rest in the trash and they start over. Sadly, it fills up fast! They get candy from all over. I can't believe how much candy people just give to kids randomly!

I cheated in one area... that box. I put it in the pile of other boxes in the corner of the bedroom. It's one of those misc. boxes that has little bits of everything in it and I don't know where to put any of it!

Getting Rid of 20

2009-12-17T13:03:00.000-08:00

Decided to attack the top of the dresser today. It's a catch all... and kind of a scary one at that!! I just got rid of 20 this time. Didn't want to overwhelm myself with saying I was going to clean it all off or anything.
Notice Brian's candy jar is getting empty? We had a Christmas Party and I needed one more gift. So I dumped as much as a could into a gift bag. :-)

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 20

2009-12-17T05:31:00.000-08:00

Half way through the challenge and going strong!! Woo hoo!

So, in all of this have any of you been inspired to do any "challenges"? If so, what are you planning or working on right now?

Getting Rid of... 6

2009-12-16T09:49:00.000-08:00

I wrapped the Christmas Presents! I should have done it the first of December, eh? Oh well- it's done and it's still a week before Christmas. I didn't get Naomi's done, she was there with them, so I just wrapped the others that we had there. I picked up a bunch of kitchen sets when I was in Portland OR, at IKEA this last summer, so I have her Christmas, then birthday, then Christmas, then birthday again. :-) They are really nice and like the ones that we use in the kitchen- ceramic dishes, stainless steel pots, etc.
I should probably go downstairs and clean out the drawer to that dresser. It's just sitting there with stuff in it. I had to bring the dresser up for Titus' clothes/changing table.

Creatively Rearranging

2009-12-16T09:15:00.000-08:00

This is just what I don't want. Yeah, and I did it. I want to get rid of things, not hide them somewhere else. But I decided it would help me in the long run. I put away/threw away about 6 things. The rest I stacked in the corner of the bedroom. Most of it is paper stuff and books, etc. I need to go through the boxes. I tend to get annoyed with the desk, so then stuff all the papers into a box and set them in the bedroom. So I have 3 boxes to go through. Now when I go to go through my 20 things, I can just focus on the one area. Might be a little more discouraging, won't see as much of a difference in the small piles, but now have more of a clean floor. Don't know what's better.

Getting Rid of 20

2009-12-16T09:10:00.000-08:00

In the master bedroom. I just got rid of 20 here. It's kind of an overwhelming area to me. We have some Christmas presents here... maybe I should take them out and wrap them, since it is December. I've had them since June. I watch all year for deals and snatch up Christmas presents when I can.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 19

2009-12-16T05:40:00.000-08:00

Almost half way done with the challenge! I forced myself to stay up and do the dishes tonight. The livingroom didn't look the best though when I went to bed. We went Christmas tree hunting and there are hats, gloves, scarves, boots and snow pants piled in the livingroom. I need to bag them up and take them to the basement. I did get the ornament box put by the basement door though, instead of leaving it out in the livingroom.

Getting Rid of... 11

2009-12-15T15:01:00.000-08:00

This is Brian's side of the bed. I just put away/threw away things that I knew I could and I left his things there. I'm not going to go through his papers. Some of them are Money Magazines, some are Boy Scout papers... I'm just not going to mess with it.

Getting rid of... 26

2009-12-15T14:57:00.000-08:00

So, this time I went in and planned to get rid of 20... but I had alot of little things there beside my bed. I had a couple pairs of earrings, some of Naomi's hair bands, nails from when I took down pictures to paint, etc. 20 would have gone by way too fast. So I did either 1 big or 1 "unit" of small things. I was enjoying seeing it cleaned so I just kept going and counting until it was done. 26 things/units. Some things got thrown away, some just got put in their proper areas again.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 18

2009-12-15T05:28:00.000-08:00

I think the rest of the house has suffered today... but the desk looks great!! It seems to collect alot more dust since it's not covered with papers... lol I was using the swiffer (type) dusting clothes because the work so great at collecting dust, but it bothers me that I throw them away. It seems like a waste of money and a waste of space in the landfill. I'm not really an environmentalist, but I think we do need to be responsible and God gave us this place to take care of. What do you use for dusting?

Quiet Time

2009-12-14T14:51:00.000-08:00

Each afternoon after lunch Naomi has a quiet time. We've done it since she was really little. When she started skipping her first nap she would be really grumpy and just plain have a bad attitude. So I started the "quiet time". She did great and played quietly and came out so much happier! So we have a box of toys and she has her quiet time on our bed because Titus naps in their room. She plays in there really nice and it's sweet to hear her talking and singing.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 17

2009-12-14T05:36:00.000-08:00

It was a busy day, I'm surprised we got as much done as we did on the house! And the desk still looks nice. I've been putting the bills into the basket above the desk. I think I need to plan a day each week or each month to file things that get put in there so it doesn't overflow. I have my planner for next year there too. I plan on leaving it out on the desk next year so I can see my schedule each day. Since having Naomi and Titus I haven't been as on top of things as I used to be. I remembered so much of what needed to be done. The "pregnancy brain" totally ruined me and I haven't quite got it all back yet. I'm hoping after Titus is weaned I'll have more of my brain... but one would think it would come back after the pregnancy was over... maybe I'm just doomed to be ditzy. lol

Getting Rid of... 16

2009-12-13T07:58:00.000-08:00

We pulled out some of the Christmas decor, not the tree stuff yet, but all the other things that we have around the house. I really like nativity sets, I have 2 and would like 1 or 2 more. There is one at Costco that is absolutely beautiful, it's quite large. I just figure, if I'm going to have Christmas decorations, they should remind us what what Christmas is all about! It's so humbling to think of our great Savior, mighty, glorious, amazing... down here on earth, born in a place where animals are normally born, as a helpless baby, pooping and peeing all over himself, just to show us how much He loves us.
Wow!

So, here's a box of decorations that I have just kept, oh, because people have given them to me. I had thought they had put alot of thought into it, but was visiting another friend and she had a very similar decoration... from the same person. I realized then, that it was just a general gift, the giver must have found a bargain and stocked up for "all those people she had to give gifts to". I didn't look at those decorations so fondly afterwards.

RIght before pulling out the decorations my friend Suzanne had sent me this article: Friends Don't Give Friends Clutter for Christmas. How fitting!
So... I stuck them all in the give away box, asked the boys to look at them and make sure they were ok with giving them away. (Something about Christmas memories and decorations... I don't know!)
So, they were just fine with getting rid of those- out they go!!

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 16

2009-12-13T05:51:00.000-08:00

Tissue box out... Poor Titus is so sick. The desk seems to be the most central location, so I left it there.
See Naomi's chair sitting beside the desk? I put it up in her room for a while. I'll take it down later and she'll enjoy it again. We'll keep it until Titus is done with it and then pass it on to someone else to enjoy. It's one of those big things that I've been happy about having, Naomi has gotten alot of use out of it.
As you can see I put up some Christmas decorations. Looks a bit better than an empty shelf. I do have regular decorations, I'll pull them out when I put Christmas stuff away.

Getting Rid of 20

2009-12-12T08:19:00.000-08:00

When Brian and I got married I was following Flylady. She is great and I love her advice. She is spot on with everything. Talking about how the reason our houses aren't clean because we are such perfectionists. That's right, perfectionists! We know if we go in there it won't be perfect. We have maybe 5 minutes and that's not going to accomplish what we want, so we just give up before beginning and don't bother doing anything.

I don't know how I got out of the habits I had with her system. We moved, I got pregnant, I stopped. I shouldn't have.

Anyway, one of the things she has you do is get rid of 27 things each day and work on one area at a time. So I decided I would do something like that. Today I picked a corner of our bedroom and I got rid of 20 things. It actually made a big difference, didn't it?!
I didn't throw them all away, some I put where it belongs, some I put in the give away box and some I did just throw in the trash.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 15

2009-12-12T05:24:00.000-08:00

I think this challenge has been really easy. I'm still having to work at the kitchen/livingroom. Perhaps that challenge was too hard! I have been keeping up on it, but it takes alot more focus then this one! Brian was playing Civilization III here, he used to game all the time, but realized how much time he was wasting when he could have been doing something productive. He likes to make chain maille and is making a shirt. He made me a beautiful sterling silver bracelet for my birthday. I need to get some pictures of it... that will have to wait until I can use/buy a better camera.
Anyway, so this is one of the rare occasions where Brian was on the computer and I went to bed.

2010 in 2010

2009-12-11T07:16:00.000-08:00

In 2008 I did this for the first time. You can read about it here.
Sadly, I didn't keep track of all the stuff when I cleaned out the basement, or I would have had the 2009 in 2009 chart filled out. I know I got rid of that much stuff.
Stephen loves numbers and so he will count stuff as he sees me taking it out the door and he'll mark it down. But the boys were visiting family for a couple weeks when I was working on the basement, or he would have done it for me. I was just in too much of a 'get it done' mode, I forgot about counting/charting.

The other day, Brian came home from work with this:

That's right. I guess he likes the way the house is looking and wants to get rid of more stuff!!! :-)
Here is the chart if you would like to download and use it for yourself.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 14

2009-12-11T05:48:00.000-08:00

I removed a few books/magazines that didn't need to be on the computer tower. The desk does tend to collect different papers and misc. items throughout the day, but at least hasn't been hard to clean off and most of the time I have a place to put them. I'm going to try to pay the bills as the come in. I had bought that basket on the shelf to keep bills in until I pay them, but I think it would be better if I just pay them as they come in and do the checkbook at the same time. Though, thinking of the checkbook... I've been doing it for so long, Brian doesn't even know what our budget is right now. I think we should change that, so maybe he can do it on Saturdays. Maybe I'm morbid (ok, I think of this as practical!) but if I died right now, I think he would be lost as to what bills get paid when, etc. So, I'm just saying, if something happens, I don't want him to feel completely lost looking at the checkbook.

When I Cleaned Out the Basement

2009-12-10T07:50:00.001-08:00

Back in August our toilet overflowed and it leaked down into the basement. On top of this:

Actually, it was worse that this picture. But the water only went on one quarter of this mess and thankfully it was mostly clothes and blankets that I was able to wash, only a few things needed to be thrown away. So I was forced into cleaning the basement. I had been wanting to get rid of a bunch of stuff for a long time, we are planning to remodel that (you know, after the kitchen is done) and I didn't want to have to "store" all of that junk. So some friends came over that are excellent at purging and gave me a hand. It's so great to have someone there that is not attached to your stuff and they can say things like this:

Them: "Really, you need to keep this broken tea cup you never use?"
Me: "Yes, but my mom gave it to me."
Them: "Hasn't your mom given you other things you like/use?"
Me: "ok- get rid of it."

Kristy and Laura- they are the engines behind this. :-) Kristy happened to be having a church garage sale where the profits were going to a Ukraine medical mission trip that our church does every year. So I gave her a ton of stuff. I kept a few boxes, sewing and scrapbooking supplies, winter coats/clothes to grow into, Christmas stuff and a couple trunks/cedar chest that I can't part with. I was able to fit all that underneath the stairs. It's about an 8' x 5' area. And the pile of stuff doesn't even go to the ceiling- I can see over the top of it!
I was able to get rid of so much stuff and I didn't count it- which is too bad, because I would have filled my 2009 in 2009 chart. *sigh*.

Here's some pictures of the carpet that was down there.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 13

2009-12-10T05:01:00.000-08:00

I am so stickin' pleased with how the desk is looking! I guess I could get to that pile on top of the computer there underneath the desk. That's where I keep the phone book. The desk drawer is full of pens, pencils, cords for cameras, stamps and envelopes. I'll just get rid of the other books and only keep 1 phone book. Sometimes it's helpful... like when the electricity is off and we need to look something up... hm. There have been times in the last couple months I've needed the phone book, though most of the time I do look it up online. What do you guys do?

Wordless Wednesday

2009-12-09T06:38:00.001-08:00

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 12

2009-12-09T06:08:00.000-08:00

Some friends at church said I could use their camera... it's going out too and they have bought a new one, but hopefully it will last until I get a new camera myself. I'm really glad we won't have to borrow a camera for Christmas tree hunting and wasn't sure I was going to be able to get a new one before Christmas... didn't figure I would be able to borrow a camera Christmas day. So this is good. :-)
I worked on the shelf above the desk today. Still need to find where to put some things. I think I might be doomed to keeping them there though. I have matches for the wood stove, I like to leave them kind of close to the stove and up high

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 11

2009-12-08T06:09:00.000-08:00

So I finally got to the cords. Thanks for idea about paper towel/toilet paper rolls, Gretchen. But we 7 cords and I didn't think that would look any better (and that's only the ones I couldn't shove behind the computer). So I pulled them together and put twist-ties around them. It looks better, the only thing I think that would be better is if I built a wooden "step" to hid them all. But there are a bunch of LED lights so we turn it all off at night and if I built something to cover it, we wouldn't be able to get to the switch. I guess it will just be this way until we get a computer hutch.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 10

2009-12-07T06:08:00.000-08:00

Brian was on the computer today when I said "I need to take my picture." So he put some things away that were laying there and stepped aside. :-)
I've been around people who constantly make fun of your efforts, and it's not easy trying to do something when they are always telling you you can't do it, you won't stick with it or it's a dumb idea.
I am SO GLAD my husband isn't like that. What a blessing it is to have someone appreciate what you are doing, encourage you to continue and even help you accomplish it.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 9

2009-12-06T06:01:00.000-08:00

Doing pretty well so far, I am really liking a clean desk. I think I need to buy one of those computer hutches, but not sure that 2 computers would fit. I am planning to move the MAC into the kitchen though, when the wiring is hooked up. I have a spot for it already. I use my cooking blog as my recipe book, so when I want to make something I normally just go to the computer. It will be nice to have it in the kitchen. Then I will be able to get a computer hutch. I wonder though... will it ever stay closed?

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 8

2009-12-05T06:00:00.000-08:00

So, I forgot about the desk. I was too busy doing the dishes!! I got the living room cleaned and the dishes washed, turned out the light and noticed the desk. It was 10:30 PM, I really need to get to bed at 10 PM, so I decided not to clean it off. Part of it, I've had to take my pictures in the morning because the video camera doesn't have a flash and it comes out too dark taken at night. Some friends said they have an old camera I can borrow, so hopefully I'll get that soon.

I really need to work on the shelf above the desk. I think I'll put some Christmas stuff up on it. I think my Christmas stuff could be gone through. I got rid of some things earlier this year when I was cleaning out the basement, but I we have way too much. And my favorite decorations are the ones we make together as a family and toss at the end of the season.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 7

2009-12-04T06:46:00.000-08:00

A couple papers got left out... oops. :-) But it's a week. I think this is the longest ever the desk top has stayed so clean. It's quite a feat, really it is!

I've gotten inspired to get rid of more things, cleaning out, trying to clear off tops of things in the livingroom- top of the entertainment center, top of a shelf, top of a side table. I like it empty. My mom says it reminds her too much of a motel room and she finds it cold and uninviting. But for me, IT'S CLEAN!! It shouts clean and looks absolutely beautiful. I feel calm and organized/in control when there are clean clear spaces.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 6

2009-12-03T06:40:00.000-08:00

I deflated the exercise ball! I stuck it in the bedroom. I'm not sure where to store it, I don't want to get rid of it. I want to be able to loan it to a women who wants to use it during childbirth. I can store it with my other childbirth supplies/midwifery/doula stuff. Now to figure out what to do with all the cords under the desk...

Out go the VHS

2009-12-02T11:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I mentioned I was thinking of getting rid of our VCR and VHS. I talked with Brian about it and he was fine with it. We decided that as time goes on we would like to buy a few of the movies in DVD (or whatever looks like it will stick around in a few years) but overall, we don't need 60 movies. We watch maybe 5 a year...

The boys are on board with minimilizing (which doesn't seem to be a word, to my computer)/simplifying. They weren't really wanting to get rid of them, but after I said "Dad said it was fine", they didn't argue. Stephen decided to count them and mark them on my "2009 in 2009" chart. I know I'm way over after the basement and I haven't bothered counting up things I'm getting rid of. I did "2008 in 2008". I can't believe that even after getting rid of over 4000 things we still have a TON OF STUFF!

They did decide to get rid of their huge K'nex collection. Which I am so thankful. They like a clean room, it's just hard to keep it that way, so we just need to get rid of more stuff. I hope I am able to get rid of enough and enjoy what we do keep that the kids won't be cursed with the "you have to keep it, it belonged to your grandmother" mentality. If we don't need it/use it/love it- by all means let's bless someone else with it!!

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 5

2009-12-02T06:48:00.000-08:00

It's that time of the month again, I went to bed with a migraine. I didn't clean the desk off so much, but I did do the dishes. It really bothered me to think of waking up to all the dishes (after Thanksgiving, Turkey broth, soup, etc- big pots and bowls from getting all that done).

I think something needs to be done with the cords under the desk. And I don't use the ball much anymore. I bought it to use when I was pregnant with Titus, I guess that's been almost a year now, so yeah, I could probably deflate it.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-12-01T19:18:00.000-08:00

For more visit Wordless Wednesday.

VCR, VHS?

2009-12-01T09:39:00.000-08:00

This last week the kids tried to watch a few movies. We have a bunch of Disney movies on VHS and our VCR broke but we inherited Brian's grandmother's... so, yeah, it's super old. But it worked. Well, last week it kept ejecting the movies every 20 minutes.
Most of our kid movies are on VHS, so that's the downside. But we don't watch movies often. Our library has a ton to check out, so if we need some extras for something we could always take a trip to the library.
Naomi won't know the difference- the boys will be sad to loose a few movies, but realistically, how often do we watch them?

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 4

2009-12-01T06:45:00.000-08:00

I worked to keep it tidy today. This week when I have some spare time I'll try to minimize what we have on the desk/shelf.

Coconut Coupon

2009-11-30T07:38:00.000-08:00

Yesterday on my cooking blog I did a post on coconut oil. Today I got a email notice saying that they have a $10. off coupon for "Cyber Monday" (I didn't even know there was a "Cyber Monday"!!)

Anyway, head on over to Tropical Traditions and you will find their coupon code on the left side of their home page.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 3

2009-11-30T06:11:00.000-08:00

We have a nice digital video camera. So Brian set it up for me so I could at least take pictures with it. Not the best in quality, but better than yesterday, eh?

I cleared the desk off, but as you can see, it kind of migrated up onto the shelf.

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 2

2009-11-29T06:07:00.000-08:00

Well, I did clean the desk a bit- but you can't tell. I want to cry, my wonderful little camera has died. Don't you hear the mournful music playing in the background?

So, I tried to take a picture. You can kind of see one computer... right? Think this will work??

40 Day Challenge: Desk, Day 1

2009-11-28T05:59:00.000-08:00

Well, here we go again! The beginning of another 40 days!!
The desk has always been my catch all, yet it looks so pretty when it's cleaned off. I had big plans to keep it spotless and simple when we first got it.
It would probably look nicer if we only had 1 computer on it, but we have the MAC, which is our photo editing computer and then we have the PC, which is the gaming computer. We have 3 computers in the living room. I don't really like to look at them all the time, but we use them all the time and it is better accountability if they are out and everyone sees what is being done on it. Kids are constantly bombarded with temptation to view/read things that are inappropriate, I have no desire to have my kids struggle at home too. So we leave the computers out in our living space.

40 Day Challenge: DAY 40!!!

2009-11-26T07:14:00.000-08:00

DAY 40!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

40 Day Challenge: Day 39

2009-11-25T07:26:00.001-08:00

Almost done! One more day! I have alot of cleaning/organizing to do today, Thanksgiving is going to be at our house now. We were going up to my parents (1 1/2 hours away) and hunt all weekend. But now my dad is here in town and in the hospital, they aren't sure yet what the problem is, they think it's either a viral or bacterial infection in his large intestine. My mom is bringing the 5 kids (that live at home still) down and they will stay until my dad is out of the hospital. So we will have Thanksgiving here. We went shopping last night for a few extra groceries. I need to bake a few pies today and figure out a plan for dinner tonight, breakfast, lunch and Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow.

Yesterday since my mom was around, she left my dad to nap and we went out to lunch. It was really nice, it happens maybe once a year. But then 1/2 way done with our meal and Stephen called. Naomi had an accident and pooped her pants. 10 minutes later he called again. The toilet overflowed, Titus kept trying to crawl into the bathroom. *Sigh*
It wasn't too bad when I got home, I had told them to shut the bathroom door and I would take care of it. There was water in the basement again, thankfully we had already torn stuff out, so it didn't hurt anything. Just a few too many flush-able wipes down the toilet. But it's all good now.

What's that saying about the "best laid plans"?

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-25T07:23:00.000-08:00

For more visit Wordless Wednesday.

The Next 40 Day Challenge!

2009-11-24T15:19:00.000-08:00

In 2 days I will start the next 40 day challenge! I put up a poll and got the most votes (including my husband) went to the desk. So the desk it is!!

40 day Challenge: Day 38

2009-11-24T07:22:00.000-08:00

I am quite pleased. :-) I'm glad I went for 40 days instead of 30. I can't believe it's almost done. It seems like it went fast, though at the same time in the beginning 40 days had seemed like such a long time!!

Not all the dishes put away, but all were washed. I really enjoy waking to clean dishes and an empty sink.

Don't forget to vote!!

2009-11-23T19:36:00.000-08:00

Only 14 hours left to vote for which area should be my next challenge. Looks like the Desk is ahead so far!

40 Day Challenge: Day 37

2009-11-23T06:55:00.001-08:00

You know, this is quite an accomplishment to have the house look like this on a Sunday night. Sundays were always my hardest days and now they aren't throwing me for such a loop. Now Mondays don't seem so overwhelming, because I'm not starting out the week with a mess!

De-cluttering and Creating a Minimalist Home

2009-11-22T13:33:00.000-08:00

I thought I would give you some of my inspiration websites for getting to where I want to be.

zenhabits: A Guide to Creating a Minimalist Home

Mothering.com (Forum- people who understand) Depressed over messy, cluttered, ugly house!! Help?

livingonadime.com: When a Queen Rides by

Flylady.net Beginner Baby Steps (This stuff does work!!)

The Clean Team: The Clutter Control Rules

myhouseandgarden.com Create a relaxing clutter free home

This book was great- I would read a chapter and go attack a room. I don't know why I still have so much stuff when I have already gotten rid of so much!! One day...

40 Day Challenge: Day 36

2009-11-22T13:26:00.001-08:00

A good day! I had help. :-D It makes a big difference when the boys wash/dry even 1 load of dishes.

Our friends Sean and Laura were here when I took the picture- so, yes, I cut off both the guys' heads.

Laura is a great one for me to have around. She always pushes me to get rid of more stuff. I do want to simplify/have a minimalist house. I work better at putting stuff away if there is not as much stuff.

40 Day Challenge: Day 35

2009-11-21T08:05:00.000-08:00

It was a busy day- seems like there was just one thing after another then we came home late from a bible study and I didn't take pictures- so this is the next morning, what I woke up to.

40 Day Challenge: Day 34

2009-11-20T09:03:00.001-08:00

I had a meeting in the evening and Brian had a Bible study so the boys were told to fold the laundry and do the dishes- it was one load of laundry and just dinner dishes, not much. But, they forgot. So when we got home later this is what we found. And I didn't do anything about it, I just went to bed. Oh well, it still won't take long to do it in the morning.
BTW- Brian posed for this shot. He hasn't been reading this blog and checked it out yesterday, so then he "assumed the pose" because he is like that in most of the pictures. LOL

40 Day Challenge: Day 33

2009-11-19T06:27:00.000-08:00

Well, after a month I do feel like I have more control over these areas. I'm not sure it's habit yet, but it's certainly alot better!!