Thankful for God's Gifts

Today I'm so thankful for God's abundant gifts. And even more thankful that he is able to use these gifts, despite my imperfections, to glorify his name. I enjoy so much being able to sing and play with the worship team and use something that I love to do to glorify my God.

Catching up on Thanks

So yesterday my husband and I took the  two girls to the outlet stores and did some pregame shopping. He needed new shoes and some jeans. I didn't need anything but of course bought a few things. The girls needed a few things K needed a jacket as it is getting cold around here. It was great to spend the day together as a family. Then we came home to friends coming over for a pot luck and we had a blast.

That's why I didn't get to posting my thanks for yesterday. But I gotta say I was so thankful that I tried on pants that FIT in a size I haven't bought for a few years (like since before I became a mommy).

I'm also thankful for your Life group (the friends we had over for dinner). I'm thankful they are there for us and share their lives with us.

Thanks for Heat

I'm thankful that my husband finally changed the thermostat in my car so now we will get hot air in the winter instead of slightly warmer then freezing air.

I'm also thankful that I didn't need hot air in my car today cause it was roll the windows down a bit weather in mid November in the Northeast. Yeah!

So much to be thankful for

Today there is just so much for me to be thankful for. The first is that I dropped 2 lbs this week! I have 13 more to go to be where I want to be before our cruise in February.

I'm so thankful that the leafs on the back yard trees dropped before the snow fell (and stuck) this year. That I am not pregnant and can help rake them and that they are now all in bags (or the compost pile).

I'm thankful that my friends heart problem was found before they were any major problems and that she is healthy enough for bypass sugary (scheduled for Wednesday). I'm thankful that God is the great physician and I have faith that he will provide the best Drs and medical team for her just as he allowed this problem to be found sooner rather then latter. Prayers for her would still be appreciated.

Thanks for day 18

I'm so thankful that today is Friday and the next 3 days my husband is home with the family. I may have mentioned that before but I'm just so thankful for it.

I am also thankful that my house is clean, vacuumed, moped, scrubbed, picked up. Laundry washed, dried and folded. It is so nice to go into the weekend without having to worry about cleaning and just worrying about having fun.

We are going to the Christmas (ok they call it holiday) Parade tomorrow night and the girls will love it. It is looking like awesome weather and I'm thankful for that too.

Getting Through

I'm so thankful to have gotten through this week. I know that Friday is still hanging out there waiting to come but the business and craziness, that made this week more then a normal week, is now over. I'm also thankful that after tomorrow my husband will be spending 8 of the next 9 days home with the family. I'm so looking forward to this break for us. So thankful for time off.

Thankfulness day 16

Today I'm thankful for some time to do yoga this morning. It is sure to make the rest of today go smoothly. I am also thankful for the loaf of bread sitting on my oven cooling. This is one of the most rewarding things I'm learning to do, I love the fact that I can make fresh bread with healthy ingredients for my kids (and husband) to eat without it costing us an arm and a leg. It also doesn't have any preservatives or other added junk in it. Plus it tastes great.

Thankful day 15

It is hard to believe that we are already half way through November. My days just go by too fast and I feel like I never savor the moments I'm in. It isn't that I have too much to do in my days it is that I enjoy my days so much that the expression in a blink of an eye is all too true.

Today I am thankful for my MOPs group, a chance to get out and have some time to just be a mom without taking care of the kids. I'm thankful for S's preschool and the loving teacher she has, it has helped her grow in so many ways and I'm so glad she is having fun with it. I'm also thankful for a new pie recipe.

Thank You Gina for your new "Skinny Pumpkin Pie"

Thanks with and hour to spare

Well it isn't too late to be thankful for today (I have a whole hour left of today right). Well I'm thankful for my husbands servant heart. He is out right now serving in his roll as an Elder of our church. He also serves this family better I could hope for. Yesterday he received ample razing for eating breakfast at church. I thought this was silly he was eating then because he had packed lunch for the girls and feed them both breakfast gotten me my meds and let me work out and didn't have time to eat his own breakfast. I am lucky and I know it there is no need for you to remind me. Sorry ladies he is taken.

Two Days of Thanks

Well I forgot to post yesterday about what I'm thankful for so today you will get a two-fer.

Yesterday I was so thankful for a date with my husband while grandparents watched the girls (I think it was a win win). We did some shopping and got a quick bite to eat and it was so relaxing and enjoyable to be out without the kids. To not have to buckle and unbuckle into car seats, to not have to unload and load the stroller, run to the bathroom at every store and explain that we aren't buying anything for them today. Don't get me wrong I love my kids but I need some time away with just my husband too and I'm so thankful that I got that.

Today and I'm thankful for my friends both near and in Texas (you know for example). I'm thankful they are there to chat with, and help when needed. I am thankful for friends old (as in for a long time not age) and new and I'm thankful for those that are coming . Thank you for being in my life.

Veteran's Day Thanks



The American Flag over the Arizona Memorial in Hawaii

It is easy to come up with what I'm thankful for today. It is Veteran's day and therefor I'm thankful to the past and current service men and women for their service to our country. I can't say we always agree in the fight they are in but their dedication to serve and protect (whoever) I appreciate. To those who serve overseas and here at home, I thank you for your sacrifice, wither it is time away from your family, disability or the ultimate sacrifice of your life, Thank You!

Ten Thanks on Day Ten

1. My Husband
2. My Healthy Kiddos
3. My mom, dad and sister
4. Having all my grandparents alive (and my husbands too) and overall well
5. A warm house
6. A craft room that I don't have to share (except when we have company)
7. The no knead 5 minute a day bread recipe
8. That S Loves her preschool
9. For warm clothes
10. For sunny days (ok I like to rainy ones too)

Thankful for Health

It has been a long two weeks of treatments and tests but we finally found an antibiotic that is curring the infection S had. She has 4 more days on her meds then she is clear. I'm so thankful for the Dr.s and the modern medicine we have available to us in this country. Praise the Lord for healing our baby (ok she's 4 1/2) and getting us through this.

New Friend Thanks

Tonight we had some new friends over for dinner. I am especially thankful for the new people that have come into our lives after our best friends moved out of state this summer. I am thankful for new opportunities that God is presenting us with.

Thanks for accomplishments

I'm glad that I decided to do this blog cause it is really making me see the little things that I'm truly thankful for and helps to clear my mind of the clouds that can easily cover them.

Today I'm thankful for my loaf of bread that I made successfully in only about 10 minutes of my time (plus the rising and baking but I did other things then so it doesn't count). I'm also thankful for getting some projects checked off my list of to dos. I'm thankful that some company is coming this week that is getting me to check these things off my list.

Sunday's Thanks

It's Sunday so like every other Sunday the family was off to church this morning and it was my day to help in Kids Church. It is so much fun for me to help cause I get to be in class with S and see her learn to love Jesus and today they started to learn about Gratitude. For a 4 year old Gratitude just means being thankful. How appropriate right?

So I'm thankful today for the love of my God and savior Jesus for it is only through him that there is anything to be thankful for. It is in Him that every cloud has a silver lining. Even those dark black ones on a gloomy day cause he can turn the black clouds into rainbows.

I rejoice and give thanks every day for my God's love for me and the salvation I have through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. I hope this is something you are also thankful for because it is Gods desire and biggest hope for you that you come to know him and receive his love into your heart.

Thank you God for your love.

Just a few Thanks...

Here are a few things that we are thankful for today....

1. Crayola makes washable art supplies my two girls love to use. I guess I should be really thankful about this cause if it weren't the case I would probably only have one of those girls right now (after the huge mess S made in my bathroom on my clean towels.)

2. A new recipe for homemade bread with no kneading and only 10 minute prep time.

3. S is thankful for her new stuffed toys Rudolf and Clarice

4. I think K is thankful for getting eat real food now (not just pureed mush)

5. B is thankful for a good night sleep last night.

6. I'm also thankful for new fabrics and projects.

Simple Thanks

 I'm thankful for sweet times with my children. K is just 11 months old today (I say just but it seems like we just had her a few months ago), and I just scolded her for putting the remote control in her mouth. She did the ol' poochy lip and then crawled over to me and climbed up in my lap. She snuggled and put her head on my chest for a few minutes. Those were a precious few minutes. My baby is growing up too fast.

I'm so thankful for the times I have with them.

S heard cry and came out of her room to see what was wrong. I told her what happened and that I was snuggling my baby. To that she said "Oh your snuggling the village baby?" You have to understand that she plays Beauty and The Beast all the time. She lives in the castle (her room), and we down here live in the village. She sometimes lets us be castle dwellers too and K is Tea Pot (or Mrs. Potts), I'm usually Chip and my husband is always Beast (even when he isn't here). I just love the imagination and that she includes us all.

I'm so thankful for my children.
I'm so thankful that I get to stay at home with them and enjoy this once in a lifetime opportunity.

November 3rd and I'm thankful

It may just seem trite but today I am so thankful that my husbands meeting tonight has been canceled. He has been working 70-80 hour weeks for about the last 2 months. He has been doing 1 or 2 over nights each week where he works all day and then all night and then the next day. He also works most nights till 2 or 4 am on an average of 3 nights a week. So he is so tired but he doesn't complain he comes home and plays with the kids gives them baths, puts one to bed and then spends time with me (if I let him).

So I'm thankful that his meeting tonight is canceled but really I am thankful that my husband works so hard and that he has a job that provides for our family. We don't love that he has all these deadlines that are keeping him up late but we love the job security and like everything this too shall pass.

We are looking forward to Thanksgiving week when most of his work will have died out (not that he wont have work to do) and he will be taking most of that week off! Thanks to some comp. time he has been acruing these last few weeks.

We also know that in this economy a job of any kind is a blessing and he has a great job!

(Can I put a p.s.? Ok, I'm also thankful that it is "Towel Thursday" and we will have fluffy clean towels in just a few hours).

Our Blessings Nov. 2

Today is November 2nd and I am counting my blessings. I am so thankful for all that God has been generous enough to bless us with. We has a warm house in the winter and a cool house in the summer, we have food in our fridge and got to eat out once last month. God has blessed us with 2 healthy, loving, joyful and spirited little girls, and a marriage with love overflowing. He blessed my husband with a job that allows him to support our family so I can stay home with our 2 girls and me with talents to bring in enough income that I support my own hobbies and some other things.

I haven't even begun to scratch the surface of the blessings we have in our life, so I guess it is a good things that we have 22 more days till Thanksgiving. Ok just a few more today....

Our friends, family, church, cars, hot water, electricity, TOO many toys, warm blankets, medicine, health insurance

It is clear when I can start counting toys as a blessing and cars that I am so blessed. There are many people in this world that are simply not as blessed.

A friend of mine posted this today, she is also doing a November Thanksgiving each day type of idea, and I believe this counts for MOST if not all the people I know.

So take a little time today to be Thankful.

Thankful...

Well I saw this idea to journal each day of November with what you are thankful for. I tried to do a 30 Day Greatness challenge and only made it to about day 18 (or 19 I don't remember). But it wasn't that I stopped noticing what was great about each day. I actually just got so busy living in the moment and all the great things of my life that I didn't have time or energy to blog.

But I like this idea of a Thankful journal and what is more a 21st Century journal then a blog.  So I'll journal here. I also may end up making a thankful turkey to have on our Thanksgiving table with each feather of the tail being something me or my family are thankful for. If I do that you will find the directions so you can make it on my other blog (www.allcozyblog.blogspot.com).

So it is November 1st and today I am thankful that my husband hid the leftover Halloween candy so I wont be tempted to eat it all today.

What's Great Day 19

Started a new baby blanket of scraps of other baby blankets I have made over the years. Nope this is no sort of an annoucement just something to do while I set (that isn't snacking).

What is Great Day 18

Well today K did good in the church nursery. She has had a few rough weeks transitioning to the nursery (from spending most of the time with Mommy and Daddy in church), but this week she only cried some. That is great news to a worried mommy who doesn't want her baby to be sad and feels so guilty leaving her in there when she is sad.

I also have Crock pot Chicken Taco Chile cooking for dinner tonight. We haven't had this before but it is basically chili with kidney beans, black beans, tomatoes, corn and chicken with taco seasoning. I got the recipe from this blog I LOVE called Skinny Taste. Here is a link to her recipe for Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili

What's Great Day 17

Heavenly Apple Bake. Think part Apple Pie, part Apple Cobbler, part Apple Crisp. I may dish out the recipe at some point but for now I'm about to snuggle into some comfy pants and a hoodie and watch a movie with my husband while eating our Heavenly Apple Bake and drinking some wine.

What's Great Day 16

What was great today, I cleaned my shower. Y'all think I'm crazy that's a great thing? Well having a clean shower is a great thing and it is somewhat a good workout too.

I also finished an order of heat wraps for a friend who custom ordered a matched set for her mother for Christmas.

What's Great Day 15 (half way there)

Well I may not have a vegetable garden but that doesn't mean I don't have a beautiful harvest. My rose bush is over loaded with beautiful pink roses. So now I have nice beautiful pink roses on my kitchen table.

Another great exciting thing about today is that I got my vanilla beans in the mail. Yippy can't wait to start using them.

What's Great Day 14

It has been a rainy cool but still damp (as in humid) day here in the north east. What's great today is I finished my book (probably one of my favorite Nicholas Sparks books Safe Haven). I also got a good work out in the morning and I'm just about to go put diner in the oven for when B gets home. That Chicken Rollantini with spinach and parmigiana that I made over the weekend along with sweet potatoes.

What's Great Day 13

Well waking up this morning after being so sick yesterday (1 1/2 boxes of tissues in one day), I was happy to find my nose nearly cleared and actually feeling a lot better. So it was off and running for the day. I had to get both girls out the house and off to Shelby's preschool for the morning. This morning we had her first field trip to go apple picking. It was lots of fun. We saw lots of animals; Highland Cattle, Pygmy Goats, Ducks, Heifers, Chickens, Roosters, Turkeys, and a Pot belly pig. Then we hiked up a "mountain" and had a cider donut and some apple cider. After that we picked a big bag of apples.

So I guess I had two greatnesses today. The field trip and the fact that I got to go without a gross of tissues in tow.

What's Great Day 12

Well today is a challenge. I know the day is young still but so far it hasn't been a great day. But that is kind of the whole point of my 30 day Greatness Challenge after all. I started this because I was in a funk, down in the dumps and the glass was always half empty. I know that is not the right outlook to have but it is the one I had. So I decided to focus my attention on what was great about each day. There is always something great about the day after all "This is the day the Lord has made." If the Lord is great then today is great. So why is it a challenge today well I'm sick, how sick... well I went through more than a box of tissues yesterday (not by myself of course S used one). I only slept a few broken hours due to the constant need to use even more tissues, and now I'm tired and still sick.  But all that aside there is good and even greatness in today. So what are those greatnesses.

1. S (my 4 year old) is the sweetest thing she brought me my box of tissues that I left on the table after snack without me even asking her to. She also threw away my banana peel and will bring me cough drops. She keeps saying Mommy I'm sorry you are sick, I hope you feel better for the apple picking tomorrow (her 1st preschool field trip). How does it get better then that.

2. I'm sick so I'm not working out and I'm just sitting around with the laptop on my lap and playing on Pintrest. Have you not heard of this it is great! Addicting? Maybe a little. Educational? Ehh. Fun? Definitely. Creative? For sure. What this is a virtual pin board. You know your "favorites" or "bookmarked" sight list is taking up the whole screen well here you can access your favorites from anywhere and share with others and see what others are sharing. I've gotten craft ideas, organization ideas, food ideas, decorating ideas, kid project ideas and the list goes on. So check it out it's fun. Here's the link Pintrest.

I hope you are finding the Greatness in your day.

What's Great Day 11

My Fantasy football team is still undefeated (unless my player tomorrow night looses 20 points).

But in more serious and worthy news the new song we sang at church today is great and I love it. Check out Hillsong God is Able. I just love it and I'm sort of bummed I don't sing next week cause I would love to sing it again and they will do it again next week. But it was still great to sing it today.

What is Great Day 10 (1/3 of the way through)

Today I got to start out my day with some yoga (always a nice way to start the day). Not just your typical yoga either, Jillian Michaels Yoga Meltdown (level 2). Then after a trip to the grocery store we made Chicken Rollatini with Spinach alla parmigiana (for the recipe I used you can click here). I stopped right after breading and put them on a cookie sheet and put them in the freezer then when they are all frozen I will put them in a bag and have them ready to sauce, cheese and bake at a moments notice. I also made a double batch so there was only the mess twice.

I also made homemade granola, and zucchini bread.

Then to top the whole day off we got to Skype with our friends who moved away a month ago (was it just that short a time). Miss them a lot and it was nice to see them again.

So now to get the girls in bed it's been a busy day. Obviously there were lots of Greatnesses today.

What is Great... Day 9

I just got Google + today. I already love it but wish more people were on it. So if you are fed up with Facebook and their new less friendly privacy settings then make the switch.

What is Great... Day 8

Well today was a fun day. Hot and humid and cloudy and rainy and gray but good. Today was S's special day at preschool. For those who don't know she is in a co-op preschool so once every 4 weeks or so I go into help the teacher. I take the kids to the bathroom and set up snack, help with the craft play and read with the kids. Whomever mom (or dad) is the helper for the day has a special day. They get to help set up the snack, hold the hand sanitizer for the kids to use before snack and put the calender day up on the board. I love the co-op because 1. it is cheaper then most preschools, and 2. I really know what is going on in the classroom.

I also finished making a Christmas present today. Yup Christmas all ready, but when you make a lot of your gifts it is beneficial to start early like in September. I couldn't tell S who the gift was for cause I'm pretty sure she would tell her Grammie (oops) Well I guess it is good S can't read yet and I didn't mention what I made.

So those were my greatnesses today.

What is Great... Day 7

Just 3 words...

Homemade Fried Chicken!

What is Great... Day 6

Well not too much to say today but K did cut her first tooth last night (at about 9 1/2 months she is ahead of S by about 4 months). Now she is sleeping like a baby and so it S after a busy day at school, they had a luau to say goodbye to summer. On Tuesday we go apple picking with her class.

So what is great about today. Well MOPs (Mothers of Preschoolers) started today. I have missed it so much this summer. I know I talked way too much (you don't believe that though it's true) I guess I miss that adult conversation.

That's all for today, short sweet and to the point.

PS. I just found another greatness of today, I just did spell check and the only thing it turned up was MOPs so Woo Hoo!

What is Great... Day 5

Wow I'm already on day 5 of my Greatness Search.  I have a list of things that are great about today and I'll get to those but first I wanted to share that S will be having thumb surgery again in a few months. We did find that out for sure today. I sort of stopped blogging at the end of June and even left one blog hanging (Organization 101 I did write it but haven't quite finished with it and I'll post it at some point). Shortly after that we noticed a lump on S's thumb when checking out a splinter. So we took her to the Dr. and he noticed that she couldn't straighten her thumb all the way. So off to a specialist we went. Turned out that her thumb was a congenital (or pediatric) Trigger Thumb. She was most likely born that way and over time the triggering had gotten so bad that her tendon couldn't go through the tendon sheath anymore and it locked her thumb. So in a matter of a week we went from diagnosis to my little baby (ok yes she is 4 but I'm her mom and she will always be my baby) having surgery under general anaesthesia.

Well all came out fine with her surgery and a week or so latter she was showing offer fixed thumb to a near total stranger and said "Look my other thumb triggers too." I was so surprised and was like "What?" she never told me that. But it is true so when we went back to the Dr for her post op check up he looked at that new trigger thumb. Yup another one. So we have given it another 6-8 weeks and it is still triggering all the time. So he said we could set up the surgery now or wait for a bit. We are going to wait a bit since S just started preschool last week.

So that being said it didn't take away from my day since I knew the answer the Dr gave me was what I expected all along but it was just something to share.

Now what is great about today....
- The SUN! it is shining and warm and great.
- Dark Chocolate covered Almonds.
- Yoga to start my day with.
- K slept through night again for like the 4th night in a row.
- My fantasy football team (The Skeeters) is at 161 points and I have 1 more person to play tonight (my opponent has 96 points and one player left to play. I wont way who my opponent is so that He can keep some dignity in blogging world).

What is Great... Day 3 & 4

Well I didn't post yesterday on day 3 but that isn't because there was nothing great. I did think about what was great and was just taking so much time to soak up what was great that I didn't have time to post.

But yesterday I got to spend the whole morning with my husband and girls as we looked for vanilla beans locally (we found them but weren't willing to spend that kind of money on them so we will be buying on Ebay), and then shopping at Joann Fabrics. I got lots of new fabric. Then my new pattern for an apron came in the mail and I spent the whole evening making my new apron. I think I will be making another for myself, cause I have more then one color combination I loved. This is the pink/brown one (it is reversable).

We also got a surprise visit from my in-laws for a few hours and the girls were so happy to see them especially S.

Today has started off great. Church was powerful, and then K and I dozed in the car while B and S went into the grocery store for some essentials. Now we are watching football and cleaning the kitchen in preparation for bread making this afternoon.

In summery...

Saturdays Greatness 1. Family Time  2. Shopping  3. New Apron

Sundays Greatness 1. Church  2. Football  3. Bread Making  4. I've lost another 1lb (Woo Hoo Go Me).

What is Great... Day 2 (Applesauce)

Well today what is great... well this morning my house was absolutely freezing. Before you think I'm complaining let me explain. I love fall it is my favorite time of the year, I love having to wear a hoodie and jeans and being cozy under a blanket. Well I also refuse to turn the heat on this early in the year and my husband has strict rules about turning on the heat. The first rule is if it is cold bake something the second if it is still cold bake more if it is still cold wear slippers if it is still cold turn on the heat. So what did I do? I baked!

What to make? Well I bought a bag of "utility" apples last weekend and we have been eating some and baking with some (Apple crisp, and Apple spice bread) so today was Applesauce.

So my greatness for today is I made 4+ quarts of applesauce. I had some issues with the canning process so we will be eating a lot for the next few days (though I am gonna try to re can some of it this evening).

But before you go if you care here is the How To on my applesauce (no canning info cause well like I said I had some issues).

Get lots of apples (utility apples are cheaper because they have imperfections but like who cares in applesauce)

Fit a large pot with a steaming rack, and add water up to the bottom of the rack.

Wash the apples (kids do this really well).

Cut apples if you are using a food mill you don't need to peel or core the apples but you will if you use a food processor. (I cored mine anyways).

Put the apples in the pot of simmering water. Turn heat up to steam the apples for 20-40 minutes (I did mine longer and basically had applesauce when they were done cooking. But it made milling easy.

Ladle/spoon into the mill when done (don't let it cool more then 5-10 minutes)

Using a food mill or food processor puree they apples. If you use the food mill you can select your level of chunkiness (I like supper smooth).

If milling you will have to discard what is left.

What you have left is super yummy apples sauce.

Hope you enjoy! I know we are.

What is Great... Day 1

Ok it has been a long time since I bloged. Things have been busy, the girls are growing so fast and I have been having fun with them. K now 9 months just started to crawl and blabber all the time. I even think she is saying Mama (but I will admit it may just be wishful thinking). She claps and expects you to say "Yeah" and clap back to her. She is interested in being everywhere she isn't supposed to be and play with anything she isn't supposed to.

S (four) just started preschool 2 mornings a week. She is on her second day (and there right now) and is having fun. It was funny when she came home on Tuesday she said that she "made a fuss" after snack time. She said that she wanted to play after snack time but the teacher wanted her to "read" She was upset because she "doesn't know how to read." But she said that the teacher told her she could just look at the pictures. Well obviously she can't read it is the 1st day of 4 year old preschool none (or few) of the kids can read but that wasn't the point. She did have fun and was happy to go back today.

So what am I doing now on my blog? Well I decided that I really wanted to do something that would make me feel better. Something that would help me think every day about what is going good, what is going well, why I'm happy. Lately there has been lots of bad news, lots of sad days, lots of loss. But there are always good things happening and today while I was putting away dishes (I hate doing that), and thinking ugh I have this headache, I'm tired, I'm a sad etc... I also had the thought. Wow my jeans fit really good thanks to the fact that I've been working on dropping some weight for the last few months. Then I thought I need to start looking at the great things going on every day. Obviously I could put "God Loves Me" everyday as the good thing going on or "God is Good" but I'm gonna go with those are a given. But hopefully for the next 30 days (wow the challenge). I'll find and post something that is Great!

Today's Greatness is.... My jeans fit great and may even be getting a little too big.

Have a greatness day!

Cleaning 101



Photo by Scott Chan

Welcome to Part 3 of my series on Household Organization. This lesson is on Cleaning. So grab the sponge and vacuum and read out loud to them the plan. If you have your magic wand you can then say bibiti-bobiti-boo and they will be all ready to do the plan for you. However, if you are like me and have no magic wand then it will be time to get off the couch, floor or off the chair and do the cleaning yourself.

Before I start this session I want to say that a few things I may say in here are controversial and I know that. Other things may not work for you or your family, and your house may require more or less cleaning then mine does. I am also by no means a perfect follower of my routine, I'll admit it have been 9 months since I washed the rugs and comforter for our bed (you will see that is 3 months "over-due). But I try and think I do a pretty good job. The biggest thing I can say for my plans and the reason I feel they work is that I NEVER feel overwhelmed and like I don't know where to start. I think that may be the greatest joy I get out my plan is that I can stay on top of things.

First here are my conditions...
- I will let my kids watch half hour of TV so that I can get some of these things checked off my list.
- I believe a clean house is a healthy house, so therefor the TV that gets watched is also beneficial for my kids as they have a clean house to play in.
- No shoes in the house! Even my 4 year old know this and fallows the rule that she can't leave the entry carpet with her shoes on.
- If you help make the mess you help clean the mess. That means if you get toys out you have to pick them up so I can vacuum, if you spill milk you help clean it up (obviously this is not possible for some age groups but as soon as it is possible make it happen). I also don't know any husbands that CAN'T help clean the mess if they make the mess and husbands should be helping.

What I tackle...
Daily
-Laundry (see Laundry 101 for more in depth), dishes
Weekly...
-Vacuuming, sinks, toilets, general pick up of all common areas
Semi-weekly...
-Mopping and dusting
Monthly...
-Shower and tub, shower curtain and rug
Semi-annually...
-Comforter from our bed, washable rugs in the house, windows, radiators, baseboards

Plans! I believe my success in this area is because of my commitment to making lists and plans and sticking to them. I have worked off of two different basic types of plans to accomplish and clean house and will give both of them to you here. I have found that there are different times in my life when one plan works better then another. When I had my 1st baby 4 years ago I needed to utilize Plan 1, but as she got older Plan 2 worked better, and it still seems to work well even as baby 2 is young. I am always willing to adapt my plan but believe that sticking to my plan is what helps me keep up.

These plans are just an outline of what I would do, obviously the days can be moved around or what not but it is a good look at a weekly plan.
So Plan 1: The little by little approach.
Monday- Sinks
Tuesday- Toilets
Wednesday- Vacuum
Thursday- Mopping (or dusting depending on the week as I rotate these)
Friday- Monthly chore or a nother little task you have been meaning to get to (sort the mail or clean off the table)
Saturday- Vacuuming, Family time
Sunday- Gods time (yup we try not to do too much on Sundays and devote that time to Church and relaxing)

During the fall and spring Friday would be the day to add that extra semi-annual task (baseboards, windows of one room, etc...) until they are done.

Plan 2: Marathon Day
Monday- Vacuuming (cause I like to get this in 2 times a week when the kids are so little and play on the floor so much)
Tuesday-
Wednesday-
Thursday- Monthly Task or semi-yearly task
Friday- Morning: Vacuum, Afternoon: Sink, toilet, dusting/mopping (depending on week)

You may notice that with Plan 2 it is a significant chunk of work on Friday, but that is because I have found it is a nice "break" for S (our oldest) to get to watch a movie on Fridays or watch a little extra TV (I told you some of this was controversial), or just play by herself while the littlest one is napping and I just take an hour-hour and a half and get all the cleaning done. I also love it when the house is cleaned every Friday because it makes my weekend when my husband is around all day a much more relaxing and enjoyable time when we don't have to worry about dirty floors or bathrooms.

I also like about Plan 2 that there are days that are "free" days, maybe you work part time outside the house, or like us have play dates or engagements that take up your time a few days a week. This allows you to get out of the house and not get behind on cleaning.

Some other thoughts on the subject of cleaning...
I know some people have the vacuum one room a day or tackle one room a day concept when it comes to cleaning and I think if it works for you great. I found that especially when it comes to vacuuming it didn't make since (in my house) to vacuum only the bed rooms if the common areas didn't get vacuumed because I would just track the dirt from there into the newly cleaned bed room and vice-verse. So I always vacuum the whole house, for me that not very big it took me 20 minutes this morning and that was with using 2 different vacuum (can't wait for my central vac to be functional again).

Dishes- Don't let them pile up till the end of the day, when you use a dish give it a quick rinse and put it in the dishwasher (if you have one). If you don't have a dish washer (like we didn't in our apartment) try to get to the dishes once in the middle of the day for breakfast and lunch dishes and then once after dinner but before you go to bed each night have a clean kitchen. When you wake in the morning the kitchen in typically one of the first rooms you go to (to start your coffee or breakfast) so start your day off right with a clean room to work in. When making dinner try to at least rinse dishes after you use them so loading the dishwasher is easier and you don't get dried on food sitting for a while. I could go on and on but I better just go on...

Flat surfaces! They can collect everything from dust, to mail, toys, books, pens, coupons, receipts etc... My suggestion here is get your house organized, things should have a place to go (need help in this area check back soon for Organization 102 with tips and ideas in this area) and at least once a week, but ideally each day, clean off those surfaces and put things where they go.

Final thoughts....
My biggest tip is get in a routine and stick with it. I know you will have weeks you are sick, out of town, have company, or in some other way fall out of your routine, and that is fine. But just like with dieting, working out or anything else if you "fall off the horse" just get back on. Tomorrow is another day and next week is a new week. And remember this plan isn't an all or nothing plan. If you can add one of these things you don't normally do you will have a cleaner house. If you can do one of these things more often then you normally do you will have a cleaner house. And I could always have a cleaner house.

Laundry 101

Welcome to Part 2 of my series on Household Organization. Today's lesson tackling the never ending stream of laundry.

I actually think this is one of the easiest things to tackle. But that maybe because of 2 reasons, 1. we have a washer and dryer at home, 2. I love to do laundry. Yup call me weird or whatever but I actually like to do it. I in fact even like to go to the laundry mat (though not enough to go all the time).

What we have to tackle. Well in a house with a 4 year old and 6 month old, a husband, and myself to do laundry for on a weekly basis I do just about 1 load a day. Sometimes more. I have found that if I go a day without doing laundry I tend to "pay for it" in the coming days. So I plan for a load a day.

The sorting...
We pre-sort and pre-treat with a stain remover (if needed) as the clothes get put in the hamper. I have not found a big need to sort the kids clothes so I have.... 1 Baby clothes, 1 Kids clothes, 1 Light and 1 Dark. That is how they are sorted now...

What I do each week...
1 load of Baby clothes, including sheet/pad off of crib, blankets, towel and whatever else I find of hers lying around (I scan the whole house).
1 load of Kids clothes (our 4 year old), also including sheet/pad off toddler mattress, blankets towel etc... really the same system as above.
1-2 loads of our Darks, not usually on the same day this is just the load that fills up fastest of our stuff.
1 load of our Lights
1 load of our Sheets and Towels.

Some other tips...
If the above load is too big for washer then I do what fits and then do another small load that same day so that all the things get done on the same day. This most commonly happens with the girls loads since they also contain towels, sheets and blankets, but it is rare.
If guests come I try to do the load of sheets and towels the night they leave so they don't get lost in my regular schedule.
If catastrophe strikes (baby spits up on everything....) then I just have to do more laundry.
I also always fold the load the same day I do it so that it isn't lingering over into the next day. This is however part of how I am wired I love to fold laundry more then wash it (I even fold our socks and underwear).

Last notes...
I also wash the shower curtain and bathmat at least once a month (or when it needs it), and do the comforter off our bed 2 times a year (that is a laundry mat trip).

Please tune in next time for Cleaning 101.

Organization 101

I have had people ask me before and they have started asking again, "You have time to Mop?" or "How do you keep your house so clean?" Well the answer to those questions are Yes and Planning. But I don't feel these answers are enough. I don't want you to think that I have some secret that I'm not sharing so I'm going to give you over these next few blog posts my overall house organization and cleaning routine, schedule and plan. It will cover daily, weekly and monthly chore lists, laundry schedules, and other vital organization/planning topics.

So if you don't like the idea of having a clean, organized house, or a plan for tackling that weekly To Do List then you may want to skip these next few posts. But if you have dreamed of having your house running like a well-oiled machine then read on.

Having said that, I would like to say that this plan is not an all-inclusive or magic wand fix for everything or everyone. I live in a specific world where I have learned to tame the day to day monsters and come out ahead. We have a fairly small house, a strict no shoe policy,  no pets, my kids are allowed to watch some TV while I do a chore, AND a team working to stay on track.

A Team!? You say... No I don't hire in help I recruit those who contribute. My husband said when I told him I thought it was time to write a blog on cleaning and organization, "Make sure you tell them to get their husbands to help." I'll go you one further, while your husband should be helping your kids (depending on their age) should be helping too. I had a 6 month old who obviously does nothing to help but does very little to contribute to the mess. I also have a 4 year old whose job it is to clean up her toys 2 times a day once before Quiet Time, and once before bed time. She also has to put her dirty clothes in her laundry basket each night (or whenever clothes get dirty and taken off), she has to put her shoes in the closet when we come home, and put her dishes in the sink when she is done eating. My husband helps with cooking and taking care of dishes, he is responsible for taking out the trash, putting files in the file cabinet, and keeping his stuff clear of the common areas "flat surfaces." So as you can see that still leaves a lot for me to do but with some planning and spacing it out it doesn't become daunting.

I'm very excited to continue sharing with you how we manage our house and keep it running smoothly. I hope you can take one or two of the ideas presented here and apply them to your life, and I hope that will help you to relax and enjoy your space and family time more.

Laundry 101 Coming Soon....

Only for a Mom

So the shower needed to be cleaned and that's how my chance to get in the shower started. I started cleaning the shower to be interrupted by a child who had to come in and use the potty. Got the shower cleaned and was taking my shower that was cut short by a baby waking up early from a nap she just went down for.

But my hair got washed and I got to use some soap so I guess that is a good shower... but only for a mom.

Crackin' Up

The joys of being around my little girls all day.

Today K (6 months) was playing on her play mat and what squeaking up a storm, it storm became obvious to me what she was doing. She was trying to get her sister S (4) to look at her. As soon as S would look at her K would start laughing. Then S would look away and the squeaking continued till S looked at her again.

I was watching this interplay take place and talking to K I said "You sure are cracking yourself up, aren't you.?" Well S doesn't know what "Cracking up" is so she asked. I told her it was laughing and being silly. So she started laughing and then K was watching her and laughing. S turned to me and said Mommy I want you to Crack up too. So I started laughing then she said "All Daddy's Girls are Cracking up." By then I was really cracking up.

Hope you have something making you crack up today.

It's What You Gotta Do

Again it has been a while since I posted. I had this great plan to make Mondays "Marriage Mondays" and all my Monday posts would be on marriage. Well for the last 2 weeks I have been unavailable on Mondays to write a post. I do have a list of topics I'll cover at some point but not today.

The reason I was unavailable to Blog this Monday was due to a family need.

This Saturday my sisters dog went missing from a camp in the woods. He was missing for around 24 hours. During that time my sister was so sad and worried about him and I had to go be with her. So I packed up both my girls and had everything loaded in the car when we got word that the dog had been found. But I figured since I had already gone through the process of packing and loading the car, we might as well go anyway (it is about a 3 hour drive to where my family is). So I took the girls and we went. That was Sunday. Monday was my sisters Birthday so we got to celebrate with her and that was a blessing. She also got to see her 2 nieces and it had been a while .

Another blessing I got was to see my grandparents (and likewise they got to see their great-granddaughters). One of my Grandfathers went in for a hip replacement on Tuesday so we got to spend some time with him before his operation. My mom took the day "off" on Tuesday to go be with my Grandmother while she waited at the hospital for his surgery to be done.

So what is the point of my family "dramas" over the last week? The point is sometimes you just do what you gotta do for family. While I was sitting around worrying about my sister I asked my husband what I should do and he said "Let's go." Well he ended up staying since we both though it wouldn't make much difference to my sister either way. My mom took a day off, knowing she wouldn't get paid wand would have to make the work up on her evenings and weekends, to be with her family cause It's What You Gotta Do.

Remember that you family is important and when it comes to your family some times doing what you have to do isn't the easiest thing, the cheapest thing, the most enjoyable thing or the thing you would do, but it is what you should do. So a trip to visit my family ended up being a great few days for me and the girls and B got some extra work around the house done. I guess that is what they call a Win-Win.

The End of the World

Well according to Harold Camping, this will be my last blog. I don't know, and that's all I can say. I will never know when my last blog will come. It may come because I loose interest, it may come because I have nothing left to say or it may come because I get to go home. Either way I don't know when it will be.

But if you have watched TV this week or listened to the radio you have probably heard that the world (according to Camping) is going to end tomorrow.

It makes me a little angry to hear Camping's claim especially since this is not the first time he has claimed this (he made at least one more claim in 1994 that the world was going to end then) and we are still here. No one knows when the end will come. I would guess probably not tomorrow, or I at least wouldn't bet on tomorrow based on Camping's calculations. I think with all the people who have spent their life studying the Bible that if there was enough evidence in the Bible that May 21, 2011 was the end of the world then more than just Camping would be saying it. However, claims like this I feel bring discredit to the followers of Jesus and that is something I don't want to do. Christian's and non-Christian's have analyzed what is in the Bible looking for answers to these questions and if there was a "date" in there I figure it probably would have been "found" by now. In fact the Bible says:
      
"However, no one know the day or the hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows." (Matthew 24:36)

Those are Jesus' own words so if Jesus is saying no one knows I'm going to believe Him. But Jesus also said that "Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left. So be prepared, because you don't know what day your Lord is coming." (Matthew 24:40-42)

Well I don't want anyone that I know to be the person left. So be prepared, and if I can help you prepare let me know. I would love to show you how you can "be prepared" and best be like a boy scout ALWAYS prepared because "...the Son of Man will come when least expected" (Matthew 24:44).

As a follower of Jesus, I know that when the end of the world comes this blog will be un-manned.

Open Wide

It has been a long time, I apologize for that. We lost internet connection for about 4 days and then I found other ways to fill my days then sitting at the computer. It has rained a lot for the last few days but this afternoon the clouds parted and there was blue sky and sunshine. I took advantage of that to plant some flowers that were bought last weekend when my parents were visiting. I happened to like being off line in some ways but sure missed it in a few others.

So today was a big mile stone in our daughter S' life. She had her first visit to the dentist and did so amazingly well. I had been dreading this trip for a while and when I went for my appointment yesterday I knew I had to set up hers they had a cancelation for this morning so we took it. I thought I would be too soon for her but when I told her she was going she got all excited and was so proud. She even ran into the building, and I had to remind her to walk inside, she was so excited. She sat through exam and let them do everything they needed to. Her teeth looked great and NO cavities. Now she is on to the every 6 months for the rest of her life schedule I guess.

It was a big step for her and I was so proud. Then of course came time to check out and the bill. Without insurance $125.00 to scrape of a very little bit of plack, polish her teeth floss and have the dentist look at them. I guess when the open enrolment comes up again we will be putting her on our dental plan.

Her favorite part of the whole day was meeting, Mr. Thirsty (the little spit sucker), Mr. Windy (the water/air squirter), and Mr. Spiny (the polisher). I'm such a proud mommy right now.

Mother's Day?

Well you maybe thinking Mother's Day? Aren't you a little late for that. Well... Yes Mother's Day was a few days ago. However, I took Sunday off from blogging to spend with my family and well today is a special day too. Today is my mother's birthday and it frequently falls on Mother's Day so I figured I would celebrate Mother's Day in cyberspace today.

Mommy and S

This is my 3rd official Mother's Day but 4 years ago I was pregnant with our 1st daughter (S for short). I remember being so sad that I was only pregnant so close to Mother's Day and not actually a mom yet. I have come to realize that I was a mom then. People wished me a happy Mother's Day that year and I didn't get it. I didn't realize that my life had already changed, I was already a Mother.

Now I get it! From the moment that the pregnancy test says Positive you are a mom. There is a life coming into your world and no matter what the outcome that life will effect your life. For some people the outcome is joyful, for some it is totally scary, for others it may even end in heartbreak. I have been lucky to have 2 joyful outcomes (what some wouldn't do to have that blessing).

My first joy came on June 3rd 2007 when our 1st daughter S was born. She weighed 6lbs 2oz and was 19.5" She was a little peanut and everything during the pregnancy and deliver went smoothly. Our second blessing was our daughter K born December 4th 2010 at 5lbs 7oz and 19." She was our little miracle, after a rather scary entrance into the world.

Mommy and K

Her deliver was complicated at the end by what we latter learned was a very short umbilical chord. Her heart rate was dropping dangerously low and the Dr and nurses were worried to say the least. But the Dr looked me right in the eye and said "we are going to get this baby out NOW! Push!" I foolishly said "but I'm not having a contraction" (you are normally supposed to push with contractions). The Dr said "I know push anyway" Well 4 pushes and less then 5 minutes latter she was out and crying. I didn't get to hold her right away as there was a team of Drs and nurses that had been summonsed to the room to check her out. An hour latter I got to hold her and she was perfect. It was scary but God held her and delivered her to my arms safely. I look at her and see the miracle she is and thank God for her everyday.

I am so blessed to be the mom of two beautiful girls. I never thought I would have a girl let alone two and I couldn't ask for more.


Happy Birthday to my mom without whom these two precious girls wouldn't be here, and Happy Mother's day to all the moms who read this.

Love Tank?... What's That?



Photo By: Salvatore Vuono

Well in my last post I, in passing, used the term "Love Tank." It sort of dawned on me after the fact that while "Love Tank" is a common expression used in our home it might not be a term you are familiar with. First I must give credit where it is due... "Love Tank" is not a term we made up ourselves. We read it in a book by Dr. Gary Chapman called "The Five Love Languages"here is a link to his website for more information.

We read this book about 4-5 years ago and it has changed our marriage. There have 2 events in our short (6.5 years) marriage that have changed it forever and this was the second (I'll comment on the other one at some point but not today). One struggle we had for a long time in our dating and early marriage relationship was not knowing how to keep each other happy. I will be honest and say it was mostly me. B (that's what I'll call my husband) is pretty good about keeping up at least a front of being happy but me on the other hand had no problems letting him know when I wasn't happy.

Up until we read this book he didn't really know how to help keep me "balanced" for lack of a better word. He has described the change as "before I just learned how to weather the storms, now I know how to keep the storms at bay." He literally used to just rid out the "storms," as he calls them, and wait till I was in a better mood. Now he know the warning signs (I guess when gray clouds start to roll in), and can be proactive in clearing the forecast.

See Dr. Chapman's book describes 5 "love languages," Words of Affirmation, Physical Touch, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts and  Acts of Service, and says that everyone has a primary and usually a secondary love language. It is how you are shown love. For me my primary love language is Quality Time, hence why just walking around a town wide garage sale talking and being with my husband and family filled my love tank. My secondary is physical touch. B's Primary is Physical Touch and Words of Affirmation are his secondary.

One other big idea from Dr. Chapman's book is the concept that you show love, usually, in the same ways as you receive it. Well in our case that wasn't true. B thought he was showing me he loved me by doing the dishes, taking out the trash, helping fold the laundry, making me breakfast in bed (everyday when I was working), warming up my car for me, making my lunch. You might be thinking and you didn't think he loved you? Well I thought the same thing too. I though "what is wrong with me that I can't see how much this guy must love me. But still I had and empty love tank.

B shows love by Acts of Service (even though it isn't even a primary or secondary love language for him). Since we have learned each others love languages B knows that it's important to sit next to me and watch a movie or spend a day driving around to look at houses we like and comment on what we would like our next house to look like. That quality time fills my love tank. He still makes me breakfast, does dishes and takes out the trash but he knows that wont keep the storms at bay.

We also realized that since we both share Physical touch (and physical touch doesn't always mean intimate touch) as a love language (B's primary, my secondary) that his love tank was staying much fuller than mine naturally. I still have to make a very conscious effort to work on keeping his love tank full.

So I challenge you... Do you know your love language? Do you know your spouses? What about your Kids (Yup they have a love tank too)? If you don't Dr. Chapmans website has test to help determine them. You may be surprised at how big an impact this can make on really any of your relationships. Just like a cars gas tank you can't run on the fumes for long without having major engine problems, so fill those love tanks and keep 'em over flowing!

Stuff Shoping

It was a full day here. We walked probably 3 miles round trip through the quaint streets of Altamont, NY at their town wide garage sale (complete with BBQ).

I don't know why but apparently no one had 6-9 month girl clothes, though I did find lots of clothes for our older daughter. I love having clothes I can send her outside to play in and really not care what she comes back in looking like.

We also found a few little toys for the older one as well. Our baby doesn't know what she is missing so we didn't get her any new toys, just a cute pair of shoes with little daises on them.

After all that there was a trip to Home Depot to buy some lawn care stuff. Over the past few years our lawn has been getting worse it is over run with dandelions, crabgrass, wild violet, and clover. Not to even mention the moles that are feasting on the copious amounts of grubs. It is going to take a while but hopefully it will start to look better soon.

I love days like these, spending quality time with the family really fills my love tank. My husband probably could have though of all kinds of things he would rather have done on a nice sunny Saturday but instead he pushed the stroller all around looking at garage sales with me. So now my love tank is nice a full, and I think he knows that a full love tank usually benefits him more than checking off projects on his to do list.

A little conversation

The conversation went like this:
  "I love you" (me to our 5 month old)
  "Ahh waaav oooo" (our 5 month old)
  "Oh yeah, you love me"
  "Eaaaa"

Okay I know she didn't really say it but it really sounded like it. She is such a cute little talker, these are the moments you never want to forget when you are mom.

There are times I know that I miss out on these little moments and I kick myself for that. It is something I strive to better about myself as a mom. I have the overwhelming honor, privilege and ability to be a stay at home mom and I would hate myself if I thought I didn't take full advantage of it.

It is hard to believe just 4 short years ago I was teaching and was worried about "giving up" my career to be a stay at home mom. Now I can't imagine trading anything for it. I know a mom who recently had to go back to work (her choice) after he baby was born and she seemed happy about it (though of course she was going to miss her baby girl) but it made me so sad to think about leaving my kids all day with someone else.

I hope you aren't reading this thinking. She hates moms who go back to work, or she thinks they are doing something wrong by leaving her kids with a responsible adult (family member, daycare etc...), that is not what I am saying. I was raised by 2 working parents and don't think I turned out all that bad. It is your choice and I believe it is a choice you and your spouse need to make and both agree on. I firmly believe you are a better mom if you are happily working then if you are miserably "stuck" at home with the kids all day. I don't even know what to say about the moms who want to be home but for financial reasons can't. I can say when I started to stay home the salary I was leaving would have just barely began to cover child care so it was easy to say well no reason to make the money if the only reason we need it is to sign the check and hand it over to the daycare.

It did mean sacrifices, we lived the first year in our house with no Internet, home phone, cable/satellite TV, and with the only items in our home that we purchased ourselves being our bed and couches. We didn't live a glamorous life but we lived a happy one. And still do.

Now thanks to some answers to prayer and good budgeting on our part we have Internet. Yup that's what changed. We have a little more in the bank and a chance to get to send our older daughter to pre-school for 2 mornings a week this fall. Still no cable/satellite TV, no new furniture, no home phone. But happiness is in abundance around here, and I couldn't ask for more.

Ice all over... but mom called it jelly

Well I was going to wait till tomorrow to tackle my first real blog post. But maybe it is the fact that the dryer is still drying my pjs (you'll know why soon), or the fact that my husband is off at an Elder Board meeting, but I have my laptop on and really just want to start (I trust I can find something to say tomorrow if I want). 

So here’s what happened. All 4 hampers in the house are full as of last night. So this morning I know that laundry is on the agenda (or gender if you ask my almost 4 year old) for today. Also on the agenda is a trip to the library for story time. I was so proud of myself I got the 1^st load of laundry in the wash before we left the house so it would be ready to move when we returned home. Well it was but I also had a hungry 5 month old to feed but figured let her fuss a little more and I’ll move this so that I can keep the laundry moving all day.

However, I was totally stumped when I opened up the washer and picked up the 1^st item of clothing and it was cover in this funny gel like substance. It took a few seconds (though really not long) to figure out that a diaper had gone through the wash. I have to say I’m surprised that it didn’t happen sooner (I made it almost 4 years). But that was in fact what happened though it was a pull up that my 4 year old accidently put in the hamper not the trash.

I had no idea what to do, but luckily I still had a crying baby upstairs to tend to so I sat down to feed her and opened up my laptop and googled “Diaper in the Washing Machine” Then to my rescue came a blog from someone with some experience in this area.

I then spent an hour shaking (outside) each piece of clothing from the top and bottom, then turning them inside out and shanking from the top and bottom and turning them back right side out. While in the meantime was running a rinse cycle in the washer before wiping out any gel that was left. Then I got to rewash the load and then dry it. Well everything turned out fine. But would you believe my back and arms are soar from all the shaking?

Well here how to list on dealing with the cleanup (took me about 1 ½ hours to do)

1.      Don’t scream… You’ll wake the baby (I stole that from the blog I read).

      2.      DON’T dry your clothes.

3.      Wear protective eye wear those little gel beads will fly EVERYWHERE.

4.      Shake clothes off outside.

5.      Shake items from the top than bottom, turn inside out and repeat, and turn them back right side out and give a final shake.

6.      Shake out your hair before you go back inside and brush off our clothes.

7.      Wipe out the washer after a rinse all the gel will be at the bottom and pretty messy.

8.      Wash and dry the load of clothes again.

9.      Change your clothes there are drying or already dry pieces of the diaper everywhere on your clothes too.

So this experience today is what made me start my blog. I can’t help but share these experiences and I’m glad that I am now able to laugh about this (that didn’t take long). I guess it isn't hard to laugh at when you hear this, "Daddy I got ice all over my clothes when a pull up went in the washer, but mom called it jelly... yeah that's what she said." From the mouth of my 4 year old I kid you not.

Welcome

For a long time now (well at least a year) I have thought about starting a blog. I guess if it comes right down to why start a blog it is because I love to share my life with people. Those of you who know me well probably know I love to talk, and I love to share stories of my life. Well that’s what I will do here.

The title of my blog is My Life of Loves. Why? Well that is simple. I don’t have a particular topic that I will center my blog around; it will really be a little bit of everything in my life that I love. So one post might be on marriage and my wonderful husband, others on my kids or the other areas of my life that I love like sewing, baking, scrapbooking and doing laundry (yup I have some things to say about laundry).  

So the title, My Life of Loves, basically says that this blog will be about things in my life that I love. This is a little scary to think about starting but here I go anyway.

Cheers to having some fun!