Another snow day today. I love to spend time with the kids, but there is a limit to how much fun stuff (according to the kids) I can find for them to do.
While the kids played a board game together, I sorted through the paper stack on my desk. I found that the majority of the papers on my desk were ones that I hadn't filed, yet. It's such a good feeling to have even that little bit cleared off.
It doesn't take that long to file a bunch of papers into the right files. The stack of filing I had to do was done in probably two minutes. I guess I don't always have a good idea of how long it takes to do things.
We are experiencing very cold temperatures in our little corner of Iowa. I thought this was very appropriate for today. Hope you enjoy it!
COLD IS A RELATIVE THING . . . . . . . BRRRRR!!
65 above zero:
Floridians turn on the heat.
People in Iowa plant gardens.
60 above zero:
Texans shiver uncontrollably.
People in Iowa sunbathe.
50 above zero:
Italian & English cars won't start.
People in Iowa drive with the windows down.
40 above zero:
North Carolinians don coats, thermal underwear, gloves, wool hats.
People in Iowa throw on a flannel shirt.
35 above zero:
New York landlords finally turn up the heat.
People in Iowa have the last cookout before it gets cold.
20 above Zero:
People in Miami all die.
Iowans close the windows.
Zero:
Californians fly away to Mexico.
People in Iowa get out their winter coats.
10 below zero:
Hollywood disintegrates.
The Girl Scouts in Iowa are selling cookies door to door.
20 below zero:
Washington DC runs out of hot air.
People in Iowa let the dogs sleep indoors.
30 below zero:
Santa Claus abandons the North Pole.
Iowans get upset because they can't start the Snow-mobile.
40 below zero:
ALL atomic motion stops.
People in Iowa start saying...'Cold enough fer ya?'
50 below zero:
Hell freezes over.
Iowa public schools will open 2 hours late.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Motivation Takes a Snow Day
The kids didn't have school today. So, I decided it was time to pamper my family by making some banana bread. The recipe makes two loaves and we practically devoured a whole loaf in just one sitting! Plus, supper is cooking away in the crock pot. Life is good.
I've been trying to get motivated to take care of more clutter in the house. I made a resolution to clear out the clutter this year so I feel it's important that I do a little something every day in order to meet that goal. However, I don't want to push myself to the point that I feel guilty about not working on it or try to avoid it entirely.
Trouble sticking with the project? Try one of the following:
*Break a huge project into smaller pieces
*Take frequent breaks
*Work on a different part of the project
So, do these things help you stick with a big project? Have you found something that works better for you? Please share your thoughts.
I've been trying to get motivated to take care of more clutter in the house. I made a resolution to clear out the clutter this year so I feel it's important that I do a little something every day in order to meet that goal. However, I don't want to push myself to the point that I feel guilty about not working on it or try to avoid it entirely.
Trouble sticking with the project? Try one of the following:
*Break a huge project into smaller pieces
*Take frequent breaks
*Work on a different part of the project
So, do these things help you stick with a big project? Have you found something that works better for you? Please share your thoughts.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Snow Day
They let out school at noon because of the weather. It has been snowing here. It's really light stuff so it will probably start blowing around and drifting if hasn't started to already. I'm hoping that my parents will still be able to get here for the weekend. They are supposed to be here for the baby's baptism on Sunday.
I went to the grocery store to be sure that I have enough milk, food, and diapers in the house. We aren't going to be going anywhere and it will be nice spending some time playing games with the kids.
What kinds of things do you do on snow days? I'd love to hear your comments.
I went to the grocery store to be sure that I have enough milk, food, and diapers in the house. We aren't going to be going anywhere and it will be nice spending some time playing games with the kids.
What kinds of things do you do on snow days? I'd love to hear your comments.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Clutter vs Company -- Which Would You Prefer To Have Visit Your Home?
Whoosh! That was quite the first day of my clutter journey!
I wish I could have posted the after pictures earlier in the day than I did, but all in all it turned out all right.
The next item is to get the house ready for visitors. Our sweet baby boy is going to be baptized on Sunday (January 10). So, I want the house to be just as tidy as it was (or better if I could!) for our family Christmas party.
I will start by the back door which opens into the kitchen and then move to the dining room/living room and the bathroom. I'm just going to concentrate first on clearing off the surfaces in those rooms since that should help give the illusion of a tidy home. Sneaky, huh!
Here are the before pictures of the surface clutter in those rooms.
It doesn't look too bad, does it? Having the kids pick up after themselves seems to work pretty well. Also, doing some picking up as part of my morning routine helps.
AFTER PICS
Well, I goofed. I didn't start in the kitchen like I said I was going to, but was in the living room/dining room first. Oh well, not a big deal. Anyway, it was really deceiving to me how much time I needed to spend on sorting the stuff on the kitchen table when the other areas cleaned up so quickly.
One thing I couldn't believe that we let build up like that was the 82 cans of Coke Zero! They are waiting in the garage for when I go to the grocery store. The suitcase still had some clothes left in it from our New Year's trip to my folks. The clean ones are back in the drawers and the dirty ones went into the laundry room.
All I needed to do in the living room was to recycle some paper and put the books away. The empty bottle in the bathroom got tossed into the recycling bin. I didn't take any after shots of the living room or bathroom because it was easy to see the finished result there. The set of dishes on the counter in the kitchen are the holiday ones. They were used during Christmas and were waiting for me to put them in their storage container in the basement.
So, I'm not completely finished with this since I still need to clean up/put away the stuff around the kitchen table. But that's okay because I could see some progress.
Now, I'd love to hear from you. Is your house company-ready at all times or do you struggle with getting (or keeping!) it that way?
I wish I could have posted the after pictures earlier in the day than I did, but all in all it turned out all right.
The next item is to get the house ready for visitors. Our sweet baby boy is going to be baptized on Sunday (January 10). So, I want the house to be just as tidy as it was (or better if I could!) for our family Christmas party.
I will start by the back door which opens into the kitchen and then move to the dining room/living room and the bathroom. I'm just going to concentrate first on clearing off the surfaces in those rooms since that should help give the illusion of a tidy home. Sneaky, huh!
Here are the before pictures of the surface clutter in those rooms.
It doesn't look too bad, does it? Having the kids pick up after themselves seems to work pretty well. Also, doing some picking up as part of my morning routine helps.
AFTER PICS
Well, I goofed. I didn't start in the kitchen like I said I was going to, but was in the living room/dining room first. Oh well, not a big deal. Anyway, it was really deceiving to me how much time I needed to spend on sorting the stuff on the kitchen table when the other areas cleaned up so quickly.
One thing I couldn't believe that we let build up like that was the 82 cans of Coke Zero! They are waiting in the garage for when I go to the grocery store. The suitcase still had some clothes left in it from our New Year's trip to my folks. The clean ones are back in the drawers and the dirty ones went into the laundry room.
All I needed to do in the living room was to recycle some paper and put the books away. The empty bottle in the bathroom got tossed into the recycling bin. I didn't take any after shots of the living room or bathroom because it was easy to see the finished result there. The set of dishes on the counter in the kitchen are the holiday ones. They were used during Christmas and were waiting for me to put them in their storage container in the basement.
So, I'm not completely finished with this since I still need to clean up/put away the stuff around the kitchen table. But that's okay because I could see some progress.
Now, I'd love to hear from you. Is your house company-ready at all times or do you struggle with getting (or keeping!) it that way?
Monday, January 4, 2010
Un-decorating The House
My clutter journey has begun! Today's project is un-decorating the house with boughs of holly. Fa,La,la,la,la,la,la,la,la!
I was raring to get going on this, but kids sure have a way of throwing a monkey wrench in the plans. My five-year old boy is sick today: he has a cough and a fever, but says nothing else is bothering him. I can tell it in his eyes that he doesn’t feel well.
Because this project is being done in whatever spare time I have for it, I needed to make sure I did my usual morning chores so the family or the rest of the housework doesn't suffer. I also made sure that my sick boy wasn't needing anything and the baby was happy (meaning that I fed, changed, & loved on him).
Here are the pictures of the Christmas decorations. It really should be easy to take everything down because I kept things very simple.
I only have to put away the wreath, the garland on the door, and the Christmas tree. Once I get the stuff back in the storage containers, I'll take them to the place in the basement where they are stored.
I will update this post later today with the after pictures.
AFTER
My method for un-decorating the house in previous years was taking the decorations from wherever they were displayed and then piling it all in one place to put away later. Not a very good method – a pain in the behind, actually. It took me a lot of time and caused a lot of frustration when I was ready to put it away.
However, this year I was smart about it. As I took the garland off the door, I wound it around a piece of cardboard and put it in the storage container along with the tree skirt and the tree topper. The decorations went into their storage container as they came off the tree. I carefully took off the tree lights and put them away, as well.
I decided, during one of my previous attempts at de-cluttering, that I would limit my Christmas decorations to three containers. These storage containers hold all the Christmas decorations I use.
The tree itself (it's an artificial one) comes apart quickly and stores fairly well (all except the stand & base) in the two big storage totes I bought for it last year. The wreath hangs from a nail on the basement wall when its not on display.
You can see the spot where the tree stood is pretty bare right now, except for the baby's bassinet. The kids' computer desk was moved from this spot to make room for the Christmas tree. I'm not sure if I should put it back there because the kids' computer isn't working.
In reviewing my day, I am pleased that I managed to get all this done. If all my days' project are this much work on top of my usual day to day stuff then I may have to break them down even further to avoid being overwhelmed.
I was raring to get going on this, but kids sure have a way of throwing a monkey wrench in the plans. My five-year old boy is sick today: he has a cough and a fever, but says nothing else is bothering him. I can tell it in his eyes that he doesn’t feel well.
Because this project is being done in whatever spare time I have for it, I needed to make sure I did my usual morning chores so the family or the rest of the housework doesn't suffer. I also made sure that my sick boy wasn't needing anything and the baby was happy (meaning that I fed, changed, & loved on him).
Here are the pictures of the Christmas decorations. It really should be easy to take everything down because I kept things very simple.
I only have to put away the wreath, the garland on the door, and the Christmas tree. Once I get the stuff back in the storage containers, I'll take them to the place in the basement where they are stored.
I will update this post later today with the after pictures.
AFTER
My method for un-decorating the house in previous years was taking the decorations from wherever they were displayed and then piling it all in one place to put away later. Not a very good method – a pain in the behind, actually. It took me a lot of time and caused a lot of frustration when I was ready to put it away.
However, this year I was smart about it. As I took the garland off the door, I wound it around a piece of cardboard and put it in the storage container along with the tree skirt and the tree topper. The decorations went into their storage container as they came off the tree. I carefully took off the tree lights and put them away, as well.
I decided, during one of my previous attempts at de-cluttering, that I would limit my Christmas decorations to three containers. These storage containers hold all the Christmas decorations I use.
The tree itself (it's an artificial one) comes apart quickly and stores fairly well (all except the stand & base) in the two big storage totes I bought for it last year. The wreath hangs from a nail on the basement wall when its not on display.
You can see the spot where the tree stood is pretty bare right now, except for the baby's bassinet. The kids' computer desk was moved from this spot to make room for the Christmas tree. I'm not sure if I should put it back there because the kids' computer isn't working.
In reviewing my day, I am pleased that I managed to get all this done. If all my days' project are this much work on top of my usual day to day stuff then I may have to break them down even further to avoid being overwhelmed.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Menu Plan Monday
Today seems to be the day for beginnings: my clutter journey and my first time posting my menu plan online…or anywhere else for that matter.
Menu Plan Monday at OrgJunkie.com has taught me that just looking into the fridge or freezer (mere minutes before you want to eat) hoping for inspiration to hit is NOT the best way to plan meals.
This week my husband and I have two Christmas parties to attend so the kids will be eating with my parents. The kids have some Christmas money to spend so Wednesday’s meal will have to be a quick/easy one so we can get out to the stores before they close.
Here is what my family and I will be having for our suppers this week. Any supper leftovers typically become the next day’s lunch.
Monday: Potato bar -- baked potatoes with toppings (shredded cheese, bacon pieces, chopped ham, sautéed onions, mushrooms, etc.)
Tuesday: Homemade beef & vegetable soup
Wednesday: Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwiches
Thursday: Beef roast with potatoes & carrots (in the crock-pot)
Friday: attend Christmas party (my parents will feed the kids)
Saturday: attend Christmas party (my parents will feed the kids)
Sunday: Tacos
Gearing Up For Clutter Removal
Well, it took forever!
But I now have a master list of the areas in my home that need to be decluttered. Obviously it would have been easier (and faster!) to list the areas that were tidy!
Next to each area on the list, I made a note of what things should be stored there. I also made sure to list what I was going to do with the piles of stuff leaving that area. Yeah, overkill, I know. But I don't want lose a great organizational idea!
With the priority of keeping the house looking company-ready, I marked (on my list) the areas or piles of stuff that should be tackled first.
The first project of this journey is taking down and putting away the Christmas tree and decorations. I will make sure I complete my morning routine and see that the baby is satisfied before I work on the tree.
Can you believe it? My clutter journey starts tomorrow!
I would like to know what you think: Do you have a good spot to store your Christmas decorations? Are they overflowing their containers? Is it time to let go of some decorations?
But I now have a master list of the areas in my home that need to be decluttered. Obviously it would have been easier (and faster!) to list the areas that were tidy!
Next to each area on the list, I made a note of what things should be stored there. I also made sure to list what I was going to do with the piles of stuff leaving that area. Yeah, overkill, I know. But I don't want lose a great organizational idea!
With the priority of keeping the house looking company-ready, I marked (on my list) the areas or piles of stuff that should be tackled first.
The first project of this journey is taking down and putting away the Christmas tree and decorations. I will make sure I complete my morning routine and see that the baby is satisfied before I work on the tree.
Can you believe it? My clutter journey starts tomorrow!
I would like to know what you think: Do you have a good spot to store your Christmas decorations? Are they overflowing their containers? Is it time to let go of some decorations?
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