Light the Night Walk

On Saturday night we participated in the Light the Night walk for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society.  Darryl and I both raised $100.00 with the help of some great friends and family.  I wanted to share a few pictures from our night!

We bundled up and loaded everyone into the Stroller. 

It was very chilly!  Nate snuggled under one of his blankets Grandma made

Josh got a free ride on Dad's shoulders.  He enjoyed being able to run around and not having to ride in the stroller for awhile

Part way through the walk.  The balloons had lights in them and Josh loved them!

Getting hear the end of the walk.  The boys stayed awake the whole time and enjoyed watching everything

Josh eating some dinner in between playing with the balloons!

Nate just looking around

We really enjoyed our time as a family and look forward to doing this again in the future.  We finished up the night by getting Taco's from our favorite place . .The Adobe :-)

Craft Overload

Would you ever think that you could have a craft overload?  I didn't!!  But . .I did!  I loved looking at all of the crafty blogs and came up with idea, after idea, after idea . .after idea . .. . .after . .well, you get the idea!  My brain was scrambled with ideas that I wanted to make.  I took a breather for a few days and found that there was one blog that I LOVED.  Oopsey Daisey (http://oopsey-daisy.blogspot.com/) is fantastic! 

The more of her crafty ideas I looked at, the more I wanted to make.  I think one of the reasons I like so much of her stuff is that it is user friendly.  They aren't expensive or overly complicated for the most part and the items that are, look like something I would like to challenge myself with.  She also does some great teaching things too and, since her son is just a little younger than Josh, I can use them all! 

To help get my new found hobby under control, I had to get organized.  I created a folder on my laptop and within that folder, I created folders for everything from the various holidays to my "Misc, but still great projects" folder.  I than started back with her first post and have slowly gone through each of them (I'm almost done) and have saved the ideas into each of the appropriate folders.  (Boy am I glad she only started this blog in January!).  She also gives her favorite things every Wednesday so I've gotten ideas from other sites too but I always connect them back to her site.  The first folder I'll be working on is some things for Josh and Nate for Christmas.  Plus, I have a project I'm working on now that will be done in another day or two and I can't wait to post it along with a link back to her original tutorial.   I'm also recruiting my family to help me with another one of her crafts - just waiting for all of their pictures :-)

Once I finish going through her blog, I plan on weeding out some of the other crafty links I have that I was so excited about but now sit idle.  I want to search for the best to have on my blog so if you are looking for a craft idea, you know you can click on one of their buttons and find some awesome things!  And, I even have a few craft ideas of my very own I'm working on too that I'll share soon :-)

So make sure and check out Oopsey Daisy and if you leave a comment, let her know that I sent you (she knows me by name!)

Enjoy :-)

Week 1 - Making Your Home a Haven

A week or so ago I posted about an upcoming challenge from here - Courtney at Women Living Well.  Today begins week one and the first challenge is to light a candle in your home and pray for peace in your home each time you see that candle. 

This week, Courtney challenges us to be a Proverbs 14:1 woman "The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down".   Courtney gives two separate examples of homes and asks the question - which one is yours?  Is it the discontented, rushed, unhappy home or is it the contented, relaxed, fun, prayful home?  She has encouraged me this week to slow down.  I don't have to get everything done on my to do list but rather spend time making my home a haven - a place of rest.  This was also the topic of my devotions this morning - finding time to rest, just as Jesus did in his travels.  

Yes, I have lit my candle this morning - it is sitting on top of my entertainment center in my living room where I can see it from almost everywhere in my home.  I'm going to use the candle as a reminder to:

1)  Read to my kids, play with my kids, and do all of the little learning activities I plan each week

2) Listen to my husband more, encourage him after a long day and pray for him each time I see that candle flickering.

3) Continue to make my home decluttered, cozy, a restful place to be. 

4) Take time for myself - if I am worn out and discouraged, how can I encourage the rest of my family?  Taking time for my daily quiet time, doing something I enjoy each day and just making my family happy :-)

So, after all of that - are you ready to make your home a haven?  Light your candle and ask yourself, what will it remind you of this week?  Feel free to share with me in the comments section and also, head over to Women Living Well and read Courtney's inspiring thoughts.

I love the ocean .. water in general . .. it is one of the most peaceful places for me to be - sitting on the beach.  I want to make my home feel that peaceful today.  Ironically, blue is not one of my favorite colors but as I think about my main living area in my home, I wonder, maybe I should aspire to make it remind me of this . . . just something to think about.

Routines - Making your day run smoothly Part 2

As promised, I wanted to give you my AR and my daily routines today.  (I know, you are thrilled, aren't you?)

My Afternoon Routine (AR) usually begins with lunch and finishes up after the kids go down for their naps.

1. Make lunch
2. Put kids down for naps
3. Clean up kitchen
4. Fill my water bottle
5. Empty/run dishwasher - if needed
6. Pick up toys (I find that if I do this now, when they get up from naps, they don't just add new toys on top of the ones already out)
7. Prepare any needed food items for dinner (this is a good time to cup up veggies, marinate meat, etc)
8. Empty the Humidifier/fill dehumidifiers (all depends on the season!)
9. Feed/water Strat (Our garage cat)


Finally, my Daily Routines.  My daily routines are so far different than FlyLady's it isn't funny but what is the same is the concept.  I think many people that look at FlyLady, read her routines and think they can't do what she does.  Of course you can't, you aren't her!  But you'll discover soon enough that you actually have things you do each day of the week. 

Monday
1. Laundry - Towels (FlyLady believes in "a load a day keeps Mt. Washmore away" - I recently took this to heart instead of doing all laundry on one day and am SOOO glad I did!  I wash a specific "type" each day)
2. Whole House Wrong Room Rescue (I don't know about you - by my house needs a rescue on Monday morning after the weekend.  I take time to go into each room and put everything away, take stuff to the right wrong and put it away.  This normally only takes about 15-20 minutes IF that)
3. Clean the inside Cat Litter
4. Cut out coupons
Tuesday
1. Laundry - Darryl and My Clothes
2. Weekly Home Blessing Hour (This is the hour you take to do some basic cleaning - this is not deep cleaning)
     Mine Includes: Dusting, Swiffering floors, Mopping Floors, Vacuuming Floors, Washing the window Josh always touches, washing the patio window, washing the outside of the fridge, Cleaning the bathroom.
3. File Coupons

Wednesday
1. Laundry - Sheets
2. Change sheets on all the beds
3. Empty the trash (Our trash day is on Thursday so I make sure all trash cans throughout the whole house are emptied and in the bin by Wednesday evening)
4. Plan menu for following week
5. Run Errands

Thursday
1. Clean out my purse
2. Balance Checkbook
3. Pay bills
4. Update budget
5. Clean out refrigerator
6. Write Grocery list
7. Laundry - Josh and Nate's clothes

Friday
1. Laundry - Darryl and My clothes
2. Run Swiffer and Vacuum
3. Do Baking (I'm still working on this - I tend to bake on Saturday's since I go to the store on Friday's but I'm working towards keeping my Saturday and Sunday free to do things I want to do)
4. Grocery Store
5. Clean both cat litter boxes


So that's my basic plan.  To see FlyLady's detailed Basic Weekly Plan and her weekly checklist click  here.  Even now as I was looking at her checklist, it made me realize that I need to make one of those to ensure I get stuff done each week.  It's an on going process, that's for sure!

And to answer the question - no, I don't always get everything done no matter how hard I try.  Usually if I don't get something done on one day, I'll move it to the next day on my to do list.  But, I'll save my to do list and detailed cleaning lists for a different post. 

I hope you take time to figure out your routines so that you can get the things done that you want to get done each day :-)  



Routines - Making your day run smoothly

It's been awhile since I posted about my FlyLady habit so I thought it was time.  The last big thing I wrote about was the importance of decluttering.  Hopefully, you have decluttered at least some things!  I'm happy to report that I am almost done.  I have one area left to do in the basement and it will be done.  Than I just need to hang a closet bar/shelf in my laundry room and move a desk downstairs (yikes!) and I'll be able to focus on other things than the basement for the first time in forever. 

I was going to try and upload my lists or take pictures of them but instead, I'm just going to type them out for you . . yes, I'm being lazy and conserving on paper because I'm almost out!

There are 4 routines that get me through my week.  My Morning Routine (MR), Afternoon Routine (AR), Before Bed Routine (BBR) and my Daily Routine.

If you follow the Flylady site, which you can get to by clicking here, you will learn that the first routine to put into place is your BBR.  Mine is not a true "before bed routine" it is more of an evening routine.  I created it when I was till working full time and when I quick working, I liked it enough to keep it and not change it.  So here's mine:
1) Pick up Hotspots (a hotspot is that place where stuff just seems to "grow" - mine are the dining room table, one kitchen counter, the dishwasher, and the top of the entertainment center [where I hide things from my kids])
2) Pick up toys (I try to do a toy pick-up before Darryl gets home so that he has a pathway to walk through but this, honestly, doesn't always happen)
3) Make water (WHAT?? LOL  I have a water distiller to use to "make" drinking water because our well water is kinda nasty.  This way, I don't have to buy jugs of water at the store every week!)
4) Prepare things for the following day - set the coffee pot, make D's lunch, etc.
5) Feed and water Misty and China
6) Make Dinner
7) Clean up after dinner
8) Clean up kitchen
9) Check calendar for following day
10) Write to-do list for following day.

Mine list is probably completely different than yours would be and is different from FlyLady.  She is very big on laying out your clothes the night before.  I don't have this on my list because I've always had it part of Laundry.  When I fold laundry I fold shorts/pants and shirts together and stack them (or hang them) in the order I'm going to wear them.  I look at my calendar to figure out when I'm staying home and can dress down and when we have plans so I can dress up a little more.  To check out FlyLady's BBR, click here.  I was just re-reading hers and am amazed at how much mine has evolved from that ;-)  My biggest piece of advice for any of these routines is look at what you already do in the evening and make it part of our routine, than, ask yourself what would make your morning easier, and add those few things. 

And now for my MR:

Isn't that Pretty? I might like mornings if I woke up to that every day!

1) Get Showered, Dressed and ready for the day
2) Swish and Swipe (This is a BIG FlyLady thing I've mentioned in posts before - swish the Toilet(s) with cheap soap and your toilet brush and spray the counter(s) and mirror(s) with Windex to "swipe"  It really, truly will keep your bathroom cleaner - I do this just before leaving the bathroom after my shower.  Everything is still damp from the heat from the shower)
3) Make my bed
4) Eat Breakfast
5) Brush Teeth
6) Run/Empty Dishwasher (Just depends on whether it is full and needs to be run or was run the night before and needs to be empties)
7) Clean up the kitchen (It is amazing that even though I clean up the kitchen after dinner, it still needs to be cleaned up in the morning!)
8) Get the kids up, dressed, and fed
9) Plan for dinner - what needs to come out of the freezer, marinade, or go in the crock pot
10) Make water
11) Check Calendar
12) Do Devotions

Again, figure out what you already do in the morning (or wish you were doing) and make your list.  Start writing down the things you do every morning and you may discover you already have a routine!  FlyLady is HUGE on getting dressed to your shoes. . . well I'm a rebel.  One, I hate shoes.  Hate Them.  So I do not wear shoes at home; I keep a pair of slip-ons by the door to put on when I need to run outside and I do put shoes on if I'm doing something like moving furniture or canning (learned that one the hard way) but otherwise, no doing! Two, I grew up in a house where you took your shoes off at the door and I still live by that rule 90% of the time.  Just can't break that habit!  To check out FlyLady's morning routine click here.

Now, I know, when I started this post I said I was going to also do my AR and my daily routine but I think this is enough for today :-)  I'll post those last two things tomorrow (I bet you can't wait LOL) 

One last thought, as I'm writing this on Saturday - Yes, I still do my routines on the weekend.  Often they get altered or shortened, especially on Sunday, but I still do as much as I can so I don't wake up Monday morning feeling overwhelmed

Ever feel like this on a Monday Morning? LOL

Show Us Your Life Fridays - Dining Room

It's that time again, Kelly's Korner is hosting a weekly "Show Us your Life" series and right now it is showing where we live.  You can check out her blog plus the many (and I mean many!) other bloggers who have linked up to show their dining rooms here

So here is my dining room :-)  I hope you enjoy it!

This is the view into my dining room from the living room towards the kitchen.  The dining room is the room that you have to go through to access any and all rooms in my house so it is our central location for all things.  Amazingly, the only extra thing on the table is a truck ;-)  I love my picture wall on the far wall.  I think family pictures make a room so warm and inviting.  The table was my parents - when they purchased a new one, we took this one.  It works for us for now but someday, I hope to get one of my own :-)  And the curtains, which inspired my eggplant walls, are my sister-in-laws.  She had her dining room in the same color and had extra curtains!  I love the color on my walls - it makes me happy!

How could I not post this part of my dining room? LOL  He sees the camera and wants a picture :-)

From the other end, standing by the kitchen, looking towards the living room

And from the opposite corner - my "music room" - we had to squeeze my piano in here after moving my desk to the living room. (Plus two cute little boys!)

This is one of my favorite things - my husband and I went to Frankenmuth and walked through a glass shop - I fell in love with this because it reminded me of our two cats we had at the time.  Several months later, he called and ordered it for me as gift.  I was completely shocked when I opened it :-)

I like this little corner - the table belonged to my husband's family, plus lots of family pictures and just lots of pretty things :-)

I hope you enjoyed your little tour :-)  You can participate too - just click on the link to Kelly's blog and "Lin up!"

Worship Wednesdays - Empty Me

The song I picked for Worship Wednesday is "Empty Me" by Chris Sligh.  If you are an American Idol watcher, you may remember Chris Sligh from a few seasons ago.  No, he didn't win, but like most of the "unwinners", he went on to some success of his own.  In his case, the Christian music side of the world.  I first heard this song several years ago when it first came out and liked it.  Than I figured out - or heard- the story behind it.  He talks about being in the spotlight and how easy it is to stray but than proclaims:

Empty me

Of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition
And the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me
So i can be
Filled with you

And, really, shouldn't that be the pray that each of us proclaims - that we be emptied of our selfishness?  To be Filled with Christ?

I hope you enjoy song # 1 on my player this week!