Workin' In A Coal Mine, Goin' On Down Down....

 Working In A Coal Mine, Woops About To Slip Down!

Remember that song by the Judds?

I have spent all morning working in this house and there is still so much to do!  Just sweeping, mopping, and getting me and the kids ready for the day takes all morning!  It isn't that I mind the work, it's that I run out of energy half way through.  Guess I'll take some of those sublingual b-12 drops my MIL gave me-- those things rock!

I had planned on heading to the gym, but at this point just the thought of pumping iron leaves me exhausted!  There's still laundry to hang outside and fold, my carpets REALLY need to be vacuumed and I need to get the pizza dough started in the bread machine.  How does a busy mom fit going to a gym into her day?  Maybe I just need to be more organized?

bwahahahaha!!!

Up To My Earlobes...

in laundry. Washing, Drying, Folding, Sorting, Storing... this takes a lot of time! Seems like there are about a million teeny, tiny baby pieces! I got out all of the winter stuff when it appeared to be cooling down, but now it's in the 90's again :( Not time to put away the tanks and shorts quite yet! Come on Autumn, it's October already!!!

So thankful I don't have to do it like this poor lady!

Closet Monsters...

Last night, after hours of grueling labor, I came to the realization that Elon has too many clothes! Eleven, yes, 11 vests, 7 pairs of khakis, 10 pairs of black and blue dress pants-- this calls for some serious clothes reduction! I packed up 1 garbage bag full of giveaways, 1 box of smallish clothes, and 1 box of biggish clothes {aka clothes that are either a little too small or a little too big}. I also organized his drawers and toys and changed the sheets in his crib. It looks so much neater in there now! Hmmm, what to do with all those stuffed animals!

Readying The Home...

Spring Cleaning by Mark Keathley

Our foster care paperwork is in and we are awaiting the final licensure! I'm nervously excited right now, and trying to ready the house for when we do get the "go ahead." Closets to organize, rooms to declutter, and space to be made~~ gotta go, there's so much to be done!

Busy Bees...

I'm back and busy doing what I'm always doing whenever I get back from a big trip-- cleaning!

There's quite a bit of catch up on housework to be done and on top of that I think I'm beginning the nesting phase. I just can't quit organizing!

That, along with a leaking dishwasher and no hot water in the kitchen sink, is keeping me busy!

A Wal-Mart grocery run later and some family time with Nathan will complete my Saturday.

Well, I guess I'll get busy trying to find a cheap and easy way to store Elon's toys-- since the rolling file cabinet idea was a bust...

Catalysts...

Keep It Moving...

My brother is flying in from NC to see me tomorrow so I am busy with preparations: getting the house squeeky clean, preparing a weekly menu and buying the necessary items, changing bed linens, even doing some yard work. I guess this wasn't the best time to begin organizing 4 closets, cleaning out the garage, changing out our summer clothing for winter, and determing what maternity clothes I'll be needing in the upcoming months...

I am one of those people who's all or nothing. Either it's the whole house is spotless, or it looks like a train wreck! I always start these enormous projects and run out of energy half way through... luckily, I have the impetus of Matt coming to keep me moving!

Isn't this just the quaintest little domestic collage!

Desperate Housewife?

Ever wonder who has the harder job, the housewife or the working man? Watch this hilarious episode of I Love Lucy to find out.

-- part one

-- part two

-- part three

So, what do you think, is the grass really greener on the other side?

There's No Place Like Home...

I'm home! I had a wonderful trip to NC but I am glad to be in my own house again! Everyone went crazy over Elon, I barely had to change a diaper or feed him the whole trip! A nice break. Elon was so well behaved at my parents' houses and on the plane. I was very proud. Thank you Lord for making our trip so easy! Now if only I can get Elon used to the 3 hour time change! Hopefully pictures of our trip will follow soon...

I'm sure everyone knows what I'm talkin' about when I say, now it's time to clean up the aftermath! Laundry, bathrooms, mopping... Nathan does a really good job keeping things neat but it seems like it takes a woman to get down to the nitty-gritty stuff!

Take This Test--

63

As a 1930s wife, I am
Superior

Take the test!

I got major points deducted for the dope smoking and red nails question. How'd you fare?

Working Together

Since I am now working 30 hours a week, Nathan is going to be doing more around the house in the way of chores. I get a little stressed when I have to do all the housework, bills, shopping, etc.-- so he's going to relieve me of some of the burden. Towards that end, I compiled a weekly and daily list of things that need to be done and gave them to Nathan to look at. He is going to initial by the things that he would like to be responsible for. Hopefully, this will help me be a bit more organized with the housekeeping as well. Here is the list of daily duties:

Daily Cleaning
Kitchen
Empty Dishwasher
Dishes
Dinner
Sweep
Counters
Dishwasher
Hall Bath
Floor
Sink
Laundry
Master Bath
Floor
Sink
Laundry
Master Bedroom
Bed
Clothes
Hot Spot
Laundry
Elon's
Crib
Clothes
Changing Table
Hot Spot
Laundry
Living Room
Hot Spot AM
Hot Spot PM
Wipe Table
TV Cabinet
Foyer
Hot Spots
Laundry
Wash
Dry
Outside
Flowers
Plants
Rug

To see the weekly duties, or to print off my actual CHART, click here:
Daily Cleaning
Weekly Cleaning

Organizing the Baking Goods

With the help of these...

I turned this...

into these!

Hope on a See-Saw

Hopes up-- found a beautiful victorian home in my price range!

Hopes down-- found out it needs over $20,000 worth of electrical work :(

Hopes up-- found a really nice house about 1 ml. from where I live and it's in my price range!

Hopes ... -- I don't know, I'll find out tomorrow!

Random Happenings...

As you can see, my progress on the closets is coming along very slowly. Can you believe I just now finally got my summer clothes all boxed up and put away!

In other news, it has taken me 3 days and countless hours to print 10 invitations. Talk about computer illiterate. I messed up on more than I got right!

I was greeted by this lovely sight when I arose this morning:

beautiful to look at, but terrible to drive in. Thankfully, I was prepared. I got groceries yesterday so I don't have to go out until 3:00 to pick up Tyler from school. This snow made some wonderful snow cream. Elon and Bella ate it up! Well, I'd better go get some work done while Elon's still napping. Goodness knows I can't get a thing done while he's awake!

Binge and Purge...

Not a very graceful title, I know.

Yesterday was an extremely busy day for me. As I gazed around my home, I realized that things had gotten out of control. Christmas boxes everywhere, a gift closet gone a muck and the contents of Elon's closet strung out all over his bedroom floor. It was enough to overwhelm any girl, especially one just getting over a virus and tending to a teething toddler! Honestly, as the reality of what my house looked like hit me, I couldn't BREATHE! I had to call my sister just to help me get my mind off of the house so I could take a deep breath. Obviously, something had to be done.

First, I began by finishing the Christmas decorating (how's that for a #1 priority!) Then, I placed all the ornament wrappings and papers back into the cardboard boxes from whence they came. Next, I slid all the boxes against the wall to get them out of the way until Nathan could get home and put them in the garage. I then looked around the living room and kitchen and began putting away everything that was out of place.

The Binge--
As the overwhelmed feeling began to subside, I realized that all of my stuff was making me crazy! I live in a house that is around 1300 square feet. Definitely not large, but should be sufficient for the possessions of a 3 member family. The problem isn't the size of my house, it's the size of my stuff! Last year, I was so happy that I got rid of some stuff at my yardsale. Then this summer, I went to so many yardsales I accumulated more junk than I had to begin with! I know that I need to get rid of some things but I just can't seem to let go :( I keep thinking, "someday I'll get a bigger house, one with a guest bedroom, and then I'll need all this stuff"... can I get an amen?

The Purge--
This week, I will be sifting through all of the storage in our home-- organizing, purging(hopefully), and cleaning out. If you have the energy, join me. It's nice to have company when you are mourning lost junk ;0)

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety Jig..

Sorry for disappearing like that. I've been in NC and haven't had any real access to the net. Now that I'm back, I feel like I just can't keep up! I have been sorting, stacking, and packing all day long trying to get the house in a semi-decent state before Nathan comes home tonight. It didn't help things that the day after we came back my sil got married.

Our schedule went something like this:

Friday- arrive home at 10:00pm, unload the car, go to bed

Saturday- begin getting ready for wedding, 12:00 pictures, 2:00 wedding, 5:00 reception at the Marriott, 8:30 home, begin unpacking luggage and cleaning up house, bedtime

Sunday- awake early for church, drop Nathan and Elon off at home, clean out car, pick up sil and new husband from Marriott, lunch with them, drop them off two hours away, drive two hours back, spend a little time with Nathan and Elon, bedtime

Monday- rise and shine early to get Bella (whom I babysit), sort through the mountains of laundry, wash fold, wash fold, put away the big boy clothes my sister gave to Elon, sort through Elon's toybox and throw away junk, pack up Elon's tiny baby clothes, lunch, clean up, blog.

WHEW! I am worn out! But I think I am finally beginning to see a little progress...

***Just a side note, I just popped over to the Sparrows Nest and noticed that she also began today's blog with the above title. Well, so much for my ingenuity but really, great minds do think alike!

While The Cat's Away... The Mice Will Play

Nathan took my camera to a paintballing tournament so I have been unable to take pictures of all that I have been doing around here.

A couple of things that have kept me busy:

1. Yardsaling-- of course.

2. Justifying the dresser that I purchased at a yard sale on Friday by beginning the slow process of stripping, sanding, and painting it and another one that I had hidden in the closet. (Bonus-- they are a coordinating pair!)

3. Going from brown-black to blonde!-- sorta.

4. Trying to figure out how to set a mouse trap and how not to find a dead mouse in it. Would you believe I actually had to watch a video on how to set a trap! Ummm remember... I'm a blonde now--hehe! (Sorry all my fair-haired friends ;p Speaking of dumb blondes, blogger keeps saying I misspelled the word, I guess you can spell blonde two ways.)

5. Dealing with a little 1 yr. old who just got his top molars and is now getting his bottom... many sleepless nights.

And all of this without the help and support of Nathan. I called him last night and told him to forget about taking anymore trips for a long, long time. It didn't go over too well and I was in no mood to debate about it. Honestly, I don't think he realizes how hard it is to deal with a teething child... and a mouse! Why doesn't he get that!????? (Can you tell I'm frustrated?)

On a brighter note, today is my sabbath and I am going to try to get Elon to fall asleep for more than a 45 minute stretch so that I can take a nap. Hope you all have a wonderful day and find sweet rest in the Lord.

Bookworms

Books before...



and books after...



All my favorites.. Louisa May Alcott, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Grace Livingston Hill, Dr. James Dobson...

I just love to have my books about me, both for my own enjoyment as well as my guests. There's just something so exciting about visiting someone with a great library!

The Closet Monster

I think that someone or something keeps getting into my closet at night when I am fast asleep... because every morning, when I wake up and walk into my closet, I am greeted with clothes and shoes strewn all over the floor! I have got to find that closet monster and make him pay!!!

After ONLY 2 days of backbreaking labor...

Finally, shoes in order...

shirts in order...

outfits paired up to make finding something to wear a snap...

winter clothes boxed and stored and 2.5 garbage bags full of giveaways.

I finally found that closet monster and sent him packin'... now if I can just keep him from coming back ;p

Housekeeping Chart

Today I am designing a chart to help me keep up with my housecleaning. For some reason, schedules don't work well for me. I'd rather have a checklist I can mark off each week to ensure that my weekly chores are getting done. I have found that if I mark the list with the date that I accomplished the task, it keeps me from doing any one task too often and not doing another task often enough.. (like cleaning the shower stall, yuck) ;p

Hopefully this handy dandy chart will keep me in line! I'll let you know!