Spring Clean 2008

Post your schedule and your progress and enter to win a purse, an apron, and a Pledge duster, Crock Pot recipes from Gooseberry Patch, a homemade dish cloth and some Satin Hands.

Here's my schedule. I direly need the motivation since I just want to lay in bed for a whole week and veg.

Spring Clean 2008
My part of the garage and van (not allowed to mess in dh's part) - March 17
Master Bedroom - March 18
Master Bathroom and closet - March 19
Kitchen - March 20
Den and Dining Room - March 21
Hall, foyer and stairwell - March 22
Kids' Bathroom - March 24
Tay's Room - March 25
Girls Room - March 26
Attic (this is a disaster!) - March 27, 28, 29, 31

Now that I am back...

We had a really rough time for the last month and I just couldn't bring myself to blog. I find that just about every single problem in my life has resulted from my own sin, and this was no exception. However, I am back and ready to move on. I am hopefully changing in such a way that my life will continue to go smoother from here on out.

I am hoping that through God's blessings, I can quit working in May altogether except my painting, bows, and crochet items I sell. Right now my only "jobs" are working in the church nursery one morning and two evenings a week, cleaning my mom's office once a week, and working nursery for a mom's group two mornings a month. I do all of this with my kids so I still consider myself a "sahm". I am also still subbing at preschool on the condition that my dds can stay in the room with me (regardless of what age I am put with). I do keep my nephew (and soon will be keeping #2 as well), but I don't count that as a job even though they pay me because I would do it for free and I give that money straight to dh (it goes in an emergency fund in case Harper breaks or damages something).

My plan involves my bills to be paid off in 3 months so I can concentrate totally on being a "keeper at home". I have been sorely tempted though. The director of the MDO quit and I would be hired to have her job (a HUGE boon in income) if I applied. I almost did and three hours before the interview I withdrew my application. I know I am capable and would do a fantastic job- all the parents want me to do it, but I can't do it without cost to my precious children and right now they need me 100%. This job would be very close to full time (it is 30 hours a week), but I think it would consume so much more from me. It is hard to walk away from an opportunity that I know I would excel at and which would pay my bills off in one month, so I am having angst. I know that just because I would do a fantastic job, doesn't mean that the job would do fantastic things for me. So I am trying very hard to let it go.

Anyhow, here are two finished objects. One is a scarf I made for my sister in law. It is unusual colors but I just liked them together. I finished it back in January but just never got around to posting it.

The other is a birthday banner ordered from a member of the multiples club for her niece. I finished this in January also.

Schooling, health, and homemaking

We completed the second lesson in 100 Easy Lessons to Teach your Child to Read. If I had realized it was this simplistic, I would have started it a long time ago. I thought you had to know all of your alphabet letters and sounds before you could start it. Really it teaches them as you go along. The girls are excited to be doing "homeschool" again. I had laid off when they were in Ms. Aimee's class, but now that they are having different teachers, I am less confident about what they are learning. I would still like to homeschool next year, but I am at least assured that if dh persists in his desire for them to go to public school that they will be ready for such a long time away from me. They have handled being in another person's class for more than an hour without melting down, which had never previously happened.

I am having real body issues that I can't identify. I am tired and irritable. I know I am sick with an upper respiratory thing and haven't been able to slow down the pace at all. Dh takes every day off as a "fun family day". He isn't one to lie around and rest. His workdays aren't as hectic as mine though, so at the end of the week, he is ready to go out and have some fun. I am worn out from caring for other people's children as well as my own, so I am usually ready for a break. I think the time change messed me up also. I am trying to go to bed early because I am still waking up at 5am (formerly 6am), but it doesn't work out that well. Last night I fell asleep while dh was shredding documents in our bedroom at 9pm. How tired do you have to be to sleep through that? Hopefully I can work out whatever is wrong with me and fix it.

I am going to join Candy's perfect palace project: http://myblessedhome.blogspot.com/2007/11/introducing-perfect-palace-project.html

Too often I get caught up in just maintaining that the improvements never seem to get done.

Homemaking Survey

http://biblegirl1999.blogspot.com/2007/09/homemaking-survey.html

Aprons – Y/N? If Y, what does your favorite look like?
Yes, I only have one that dh made for his grandfather (who has since passed away). He gave it to me one night when I was cooking and now I wear it every night.

Baking – Favorite thing to bake:
Pumpkin bread

Clothesline – Y/N?
No. I would like to but they are banned by the subdivision bylaws. One of the reasons I really didn't want to live in a subdivision. We didn't think our house was until after we had closed (we are on the outskirts of one).

Donuts – Have you ever made them Y/N?
No

Every day – One homemaking thing you do every day?
Dishes/laundry/trash (I know that is three, but those are my must-do's even if I am sick or exhausted)

Garbage Disposal – Y/N?
No, I asked for one for mother's day, but dh said it was too expensive

Handbook – What is your favorite homemaking resource?
Websites and blogs

Ironing – Love it or hate it? Or hate it but love the results?
Hate it but do it when necessary

Junk drawer – Y/N? Where is it?
Yes, nightstand drawer

Love – What is your favorite part of homemaking?
Folding laundry

Mop – Y/N?
Yes, weekly (needs it more often though)

Oven – Do you use the window or open the oven to check?
Both.

Pizza – What do you put on yours?
I like pineapple and veggies, but the rest of the clan likes meat lovers style so that is what we normally do

Recipe card box – Y/N? What does it look like?
Recipe book, but not very organized, mostly just houses torn magazine pages

Style of house – What style is your house?
2 floor house with garage, no basement; on the outskirts of a subdivision

Under the kitchen sink – Organized or toxic wasteland?
Relatively organized

Vacuum – How many times per week?
Ds vacuums and sweeps once a week, and I mop once a week

Wash – How many loads of laundry do you do per week?
7 including sheets and towels

X’s – Do you keep a daily list of things to do that you cross off?
No

Zzz’s – What is your last homemaking task for the day before going to bed?
Finish loading and start dishwasher OR unload

Today's skirt, a black eye, and prayer thoughts...

My beautiful girls today in their thrift store jumpers. I love love love the thrift store. I am planning a trip there Friday (I have to head that way to deposit my paycheck and go by the teacher store for some laminating I need done). I love to find jumpers for the girls, books for any of us, and skirts for me.



Don't they have the sweetest faces? I love it when they hug.

If you click this pic you can see her black eye. Taba ran into the counter yesterday and immediately it turned purple. It is fainter today though.
Today's outfit. Skirt and sweater from the Jaclyn Smith collection at Kmart, I think. I bought it 8-9 years ago and haven't been able to wear it for a long time since. Dh liked it today. I taught preschool and now just have to clean and cook.

I got a present today. Okay, it was from myself, but it is still exciting. I had to order some things from Amazon for dh and ds, so I ordered myself this book: Sew What Skirts! I have to resist the urge to go buy some fabric to start sewing them now.

When it is too dark to read or crochet, I pray when I am bored. Recently I started praying the alphabet, meaning I pray for someone whose name starts with A, then B, etc. I am stuck. I need a Q and a U. If anyone is out there with a name starting with those two letters, feel free to leave your name and prayer requests in the comments section. Any other letters also, because I do start over when I get to the end. I only have one Y and one X, and just two Z's. I shared this today with the Y I pray for and she told me she is having health problems, so I feel like it can really help people I wouldn't ordinarily think to pray for.

I also wanted to share some of my tricks for motivating myself to do housework. I am by nature a lazy person. I have to play games with myself. My favorite game is "do 5 things in each room". I do exactly 5 things in each room, going from room to room, then I start over until the whole house is done. It always ends up with my room and the girls rooms taking the longest to finish. I don't know why it helps with the monotony, but it does. I also have in my head that my primary jobs are trash, dishes, and laundry, so I check those at least 5 times a day- moving those along so they don't pile up. Trash used to be ds's chore, but I need the trash taken out when it is ready to go out and can't wait on him to get home from school.



Now I must get off the computer and get to work on my "5 things in each room". I suspect I will end up in the girls room for awhile, since I have been cleaning out the attic and their room has become a repository for all overflow.

Pink Dyson!

What I wouldn't give to get a pink Dyson! Go register to win one, or better yet just buy one and increase my chances of winning! Though if I win I would probably have to give it to my mom since she is the BC survivor, not me. I better save up for one before they sell out.
http://www.5minutesformom.com/2334/dyson-pink/#comment-400780

Today's dress and yesterday's follies

From yesterday...

When you procrastinate in your duties (putting away clothes dh has lost too much weight to wear),...

the dog will take a nap on your neglected chore to remind you.
The girls making a game out of stuffed animals and empty shoe boxes ($8!! mary janes from Target - 1 black and 1brown for each girl):

From today:

My dress today is 10 years old! This is the first time I have been able to fit in it in at least 6 years. I'm wearing the same old brown flats (I am a creature of habit). Today I taught preschool and am just cleaning the house the rest of the day.
The girls looking oh so cute in their denim jumpers:

Dh wants the girls to go to public school next year. I don't know if I can handle it. I homeschooled my son until 7th grade and of course I made mistakes. I don't think I would make the same mistakes this time. I am just not ready for them to go off into the world without me there to supervise. In preschool I am right across the hall and my class does recess with their class, so I am able to see what they are doing at all times. I really have to pray about this. I don't know that I could change dh's mind, but I am torn about trying.

New addition to the family

We got a new puppy. She is a Yorkiepoo (a Yorkshire terrier/poodle mix). Hubby gave me half the money from his Christmas bonus which finally came through. He offered me that or a Zune (ipod like device which plays movies, videos, music, pictures, etc.). Being non-technological and desperately wanting a new baby to mother, I chose the puppy. Her name is Muffin. I was contemplating all sorts of names including Pupcake (which is what the girls call cupcakes), Muffin, and some other human sounding names, but while I was making up my mind, the kids decided she was Muffin. She is a huge pooper. I am the pooper cleaner upper since she is "my dog". Funny how she is only my dog when she goes potty or needs something that costs money.

I have finally completed some crochet. I made two sets of "shoelace keepers" for the girls to wear on their new tennis shoes to school. The pink ones are for Tabby and the purple ones are for Tristie (I only photographed one of each set). Their shoes kept coming untied and I felt bad for Ms. Aimee having to retie them.

I also made a bow holder based on something I saw on ebay. It wasn't hard, but I couldn't figure out how she got hers all the way around the hanger. Two people that saw it while I was working on it wanted one. I will for sure make one for Tiffany (for her dd Zoe), who works with me in the nursery, because she is a friend. I don't know about selling them though. It was very time consuming. I have already started on Tiffany's and then I will make one more for the girls (twins have a lot of bows!!).

Gotta go pick up the girls (I am off today and have been working on organizing the playroom- more on that later!).

New blog

I cannot remember my password in xanga and since we changed email accounts, I am locked out. So here I am, some place new...

I hadn't blogged in a while because I had emergency surgery and we moved from the apartment to our new house. The house has needed so much work, it has stifled my creative energies. I haven't finished one crochet piece or sewing piece since the move. I have made some bows and paintings, but only for sale under immense pressure of deadlines.

I read about this in today's paper. http://thomaswhite.wordpress.com/2007/06/29/southwesterns-degree-in-homemaking-discussed-on-crosstalk/

I am excited to see homemaking skills being taught on the college level. I am a self taught cook, but I was lucky to have done work study in the costume shop of the theatre department my first two years of college. I learned so much even though we didn't follow patterns for the most part. We even made clothes for ourselves under Ms. Patti's direction when there wasn't a production to prepare for.

I also read on Anna's blog (of Lullabies and Lace Crochet) that there is a knit-a-long for Anne of Green Gables. I don't know how to knit, but that might be worth learning. I haven't read the books since college (slightly less than 20 years ago), so I am due for a reread. The girls and I have been reading Rebecca of Sunnybrooke Farm (the Great Illustrated Classics edition) and when we are done we need a new book to read together. They might be up for it. I love to read with them, especially when it is a book I actually enjoy. The link: http://anneknits.blogspot.com/

I am going to pick up the books today or tomorrow, and I'll start checking Crochetville for a CAL. If not, I may have to learn to knit. I keep meaning to, but I always have other projects that seem more pressing.

I saw these skirts today. http://madewithlovebyhannah.com/skirts1.html Aren't they beautiful? I especially love the schwarzwalder, the distlefink, the winter woods, and the tea towel. If only I had tons of extra money to toss around... I wish I could make something like that, but I don't think I could find fabric anything like that locally.

The girls' choir, Taylor's youth activities, and a women's Bible study on the Power of the Praying Wife starts tomorrow. I have to work nursery, but if no babies show up for the BS, I get to go. I started reading it today. I pray about hubby all the time (thanking God for him) and ask for him to have a good day or for his health to improve (new diabetic), but I need more direction on how to really pray for him.

The girls had their first Upward Soccer game today. They did great! They had a few meltdowns from being knocked down, but mostly I was impressed at their efforts. I had worried that they wouldn't have the skills that the other kids had (since every child I meet goes to soccer class regularly at Soccer Blast), but they seemed to be on the same level. I think this will be a positive activity for them.

I never did sports. I liked dance. I do want the girls to learn dance, because I think it teaches you grace, but I read that girls that do team sports are more likely to resist pressure to drink, smoke, use drugs and have premarital sex. That was enough to sell me on a team sport. Soccer seems the best choice for them. When soccer is over, I do want to try a dance class. I have been thinking about Irish dance because of our heritage, and also because it is supposed to be a very modest form of dance (moving only the legs, not the upper body). They aren't old enough for piano (not having broad enough hand width), but eventually they will take that along with Taylor. He has never been much into sports, but we decided he will try out for track this winter. We ran every night for most of the summer, but we have slacked off during the heat wave. We desperately need to get back into the routine. Maybe it will help me get past this plateau with my weight.

I recently lost almost 25 pounds, but I have hit a plateau. I cut back my exercising due to the heat and so much going on. I have such self-control issues when it comes to food. I know I could do better with that. I thought buying a scale would help, but I actually think it hinders me. I get depressed when I don't lose a pound every day when I have worked hard, so I slack off. I would like to lose 20 more pounds before I buy/make any new clothes. My clothes are loose now, but not falling off. I hate wasting money on clothes that fit if I am going to lose more weight soon. I would ideally like to lose 50 pounds more. I would be thrilled to lose just 40 pounds more (that was my lowest weight in the last 10 years). My doctor says my asthma and reflux should become asymptomatic if I lose enough weight.

Well, I hope to not forget the password to this blog and maybe I'll have some new FO to show off soon! The girls and I are sewing them snack sacks that I found here: http://www.sewnews.com/resources/library/0807lunch/ Of course, they picked princess fabric and they want dresses to match their sacks, so maybe I will have those done by next week. Time to dust off the old sewing machine...