DIY Oven Cleaner

My oven was...gross.

I forgot this last winter to run the self cleaning option (because in Phoenix there is no way I am running THAT cycle in the summer.)  Let's be honest it's not my favorite.  Basically it creates an environment so hot that hopefully it all turns to ash and you wipe what's left out.  Not a big deal unless your oven is REALLY bad.  Then you run the risk of setting the fire alarm off as smoke billows from your oven and the fire department shows up because they are pretty sure they deciphered the SOS in the plumes.  Oy. That's where I was.  Gosh, sometimes smoke would start coming just with the preheat of the oven at 400.  No bueno, amigos, no bueno.

I have been highly motivated as of late to get our house clean and myself on a schedule.  Especially since we will be starting school in...oh, look at that...17 days!  The girls like to help so we are working on those aspects.  They are seeing the effects of "many hands make for light work" and merry hearts make for merry work, too.  Although today, I'll admit, I was not so merry.  I know that I set the tone and I reaped what I sowed today.  More on that later.  Back to being motivated...

Yesterday, after most of the rest of the house had been worked on earlier in the week I tackled a couple of problem areas in my kitchen.  I was faced with the oven once again.  I finally said, "That's it.  It just needs to be done."  So, I went to my friend's blog where I saw her recipe for a DIY oven cleaner.  It was a little different than another one I had and I wanted to try it. (Note: the Melaleuca a. is tea tree oil)

It was pretty amazing!  You could barely see through my oven door and now you can TOTALLY see through it.  The door took some extra elbow grease but totally worth it.  But the inside pretty much just wiped out.

I will say, make sure that you oven is just warm.  Not hot.  Mine was too hot and I think it messed with the paste a little.  If you have an electronic temp that shows up on your oven maybe let it get to 100 or 120 and then turn it off.  The lowest mine would go was 170 and I didn't let it cool enough.  Which in turn made for a crazy mess to clean up this morning but still worth it in my opinion.  Next time I know.

It was hard to get to the top of my oven because the broiler elements and the angle.  But I think for what's left the self cleaning will do nicely.

Here are my before and after photos -

Before (top) and After (bottom)

After (top) and Before (bottom)

Organized Home Week # 3: Pantry

I have been working on maintaining and thinking through the first two weeks of this challenge.  We are spending a few weeks in the kitchen which is a great thing!  The first week was counter tops.  That is hard right now with bottles and this and that on the counters.  So, my goal is to get it under control first and make it suitable for what it is doing right now.  In about a year I can reevaluate that again.  My cabinets and drawers for the second week are another thing.  I am trying to figure out what needs to take a hike and what really needs to stay.  I am on a purging binge right now so I should probably take advantage of that because I am such a just in case kind of person.

However, this week we focused on the pantry or food storage areas in our homes.  YES!  Mine was desperately needing a good makeover.  Stock-up overloads and just not thinking about putting thing away made for one big MESS.  One of those pantries where things just randomly fall when you move something.  Yes.  It was that bad.  I went through everything and put it where it belong and grouped things.  Tossed out spices galore.  Found a few food items that we will not eat before expiration dates and hopefully a couple of families I know will be able to make use of them.

Here's where I get vulnerable.  Before (UGH!) and after pictures of the pantry.

Shelf 1: I have to heel some pans and cutting boards here.  Not my favorite but it works.  The very top of the stacker needs some more love as that is where my cake decorating and cookie cutters are.  I have some containers that I will use up there and will hopefully have room for another box of cutters that I have up there.  That would be great!  Creating more room in other spaces and getting everything together!

Shelf 2:  The spice shelf.  Kill me.  Seriously, I think that I had some spices that were well over 10 maybe 15 years old.  Yes, really.  They are gone now.  There are some that still may be a little too old but we will roll with it.  Gone is the full bottle of Lemon Pepper that I have been toting around all these years.  You know, just in case.  I am going to look into acquiring some air tight containers and start buying spices in bulk unless I use it often enough to buy a jar, etc.  Over time the containers will all look the same and there will be less waste.  I may even remove the spice stacker that I have in here that causes a stadium effect here.  I think about a Lazy Susan but wonder if I will lose space?

Shelf 3:  This is where I keep most of my baking items and a coupe of random things.  I invested in some Tupperware awhile back and here it is.  I had some wasted shelf space and opted to make the most of it by putting some extra items that are completely sealed in the back of the containers (two bags of powdered sugar, and bisquick) and that helped some.  I can see it back there, too.  No worries of it being forgotten.  When I took the pictures I forgot two things on top of the containers that go on the spice shelf... oh well.

Shelf 4:  Drinks, grains, and canned items.  Not much here.  I took the bags of open rice, beans, and lentils and put them in an air tight container and the closed ones are out.  I need to move a bag of pasta back up to the top shelf but that's not a big deal.

Shelf 5:  Storage stuff, dry goods, baby food, and some miscellany.  Pretty simple and I finally can see it all!

Shelf 6 (the floor):  What a horrid mess, right?  Now it is clean and somewhat organized.  The bummer side is realizing we only have one bottle of Powdrell's BBQ sauce left.  Oh well.  We don't go through it too fast. We have time to restock.

Well, there it is!  My pantry is also where I keep my family calendar, some Scripture to encourage, and I think this is also where I will figure out a way to display my pantry inventory.

Inventory.  I had hoped to get to that today but a nap took precedence for sure.  So, maybe tomorrow.  I have the rest of the week to get that completed.

Do you have pantry tips or suggestions?

Cloth Diapers & The Front Loader

I have a on off relationship with cloth diapers.  I'm okay with that.  When I first started to use cloth diapers I loved them.  I am pretty sure I drove my friends batty with diaper chat.  I found other cloth diaper companions in church and with "old" friends across the miles.  We were the few...the odd.

I was on again off again with them.  Morning sickness pushed me over the edge with Miss A and this one that I didn't want to deal with any sort of diapers really.  We are at a point that I am loving them again.  Not to the point where I can barely contain myself when new ones come out or I am always trying to figure out a way to justify some new diaper purchase.  I am pretty happy with what we have and I was "gifted" some cloth diapers for the newest addition in newborn sizes so we'll see how it goes when she arrives and once again I have two in cloth.

I think my biggest struggle has been fine tuning our wash routine.  Cloth diapers wash up beautifully in a traditional top loader.  It can be more of a trick in a front load washer, which is what we have.  I had our routine down pretty well in our old house where the water was soft.  Now we are in a place where the water is fairly hard which doesn't always let the soap do what it needs to be doing.  And while front loaders save on water I need more water in with my diapers.  What's a mama to do?

Awhile back I had bookmarked a page on the Knickernappies website that had several videos of different women and their wash routines.  I guess there really is a video for just about everything on YouTube!  I watched them all and finally came up with something that I think will work for our family.  Maybe this will help you?

FYI:  We wash about every third day, small load or big load.  That will probably change to every other day when #3 arrives.  I have mentioned this before but generally, when I am doing cloth my regular laundry routine gets better, too.  I am still working on that this go round.  HA!

1. I toss in all of our diapers and wet bag.  I set the washer for a regular wash on cool.  I then set my kitchen timer for about six or seven minutes.  This lets the diapers get nice and wet and tossed around a bit. NO DETERGENT.
2. I turn off the cycle and the water drains without a spin cycle.  This will trick your machine into thinking that it has a bigger load and will add more water when you start the next step.
3. I add 2 TBS of Rockin' Green laundry Detergent to the soap container.  Select Heavy Duty cycle (never Sanitize as the machine increases the temp of the water which may be too hot for PUL), Hot water, add the extra rinse/skincare rinse, and press start.  I set my kitchen time for about another six or seven minutes.
4. When I know that the washer is done filling I grab a pitcher from cupboard and get the water as hot as I can from my kitchen sink.  I fill the pitcher and pour this into my washer manually through the soap dispenser.  Depending on the size of the load I will do this 2 to 4 times.  You want enough water in there that they swish around but not too much where they are just hanging out in the water.  If you are trying this for the first time I recommend to pitchers of water, wait 5 to 7 minutes, and then look in your wash bin and evaluate from there.
5. After the cycle is finished I usually pull out my wet bag (as it can hold water sometimes) and hang it up to dry. (Sometimes, not always I repeat steps 1 and 2 here)  I then set my washer for another regular hot wash, NO DETERGENT, extra rinse to make sure all was rinsed well.
6. Hang everything out to dry in the hot Phoenix sun.  The sun's UV rays help to kill odor causing bacteria, will help to remove any stains or discoloring, it's cheap, and even the thicker diapers dry uber fast.  Even in the winter here I try to do this as often as possible.  Other wise inserts and prefolds (and sometimes fitteds) go in the dryer, AIO's and pockets are hung up in the girls bathroom.

There you have it.  So far so good.  It seems to be holding the ever popular microfiber stink at bay.  With each wash it gets better.

Do you have a specialized routine for your cloth diapers and a front loader?  Tips?  Tricks?

Potty Training - Day 1

It's a big week around here.  Miss L is learning to use the big girl potty!

If you didn't know there are about as many methods and philosophies on how to potty train your child as there are on parenting.  Oh my.  Thankfully, awhile back a friend of mine inquired of her Facebook friends about potty training methods.  I just watched the conversation unfold.  There was one particular method that caught my attention.  The Official 3 Day Potty Training by Lora Jensen. I read through the website and waited until we were a little more ready to take the plunge.  Then on Mother's Day this year she offered a discount on her e-book and I bought it.  It was almost half off! It was a really refreshing take on things.  Plus, I am a such a method girl that she just broke it down in "here's what you do next" type of terms.  Jensen also offers personal support once you have purchased the book for trouble shooting.  It's intense but we are hoping to be done so we can make it to church on Sunday.  But there is grace if it takes a fourth day.

So, we had one accident so far and thankfully it was on the tile.  HA!  My dad is here to help with Miss A so I can pay full attention to Miss L.  Which means I probably need to be done with this post, too.  Lunch needs to be made and liquids to be consumed!  We'll see how the next couple of days go.

Has anyone else used this method?  Or do you have a favorite method?

Foaming Soap Recipe

I like foaming soap.  I am not sure why but I do.  We use a popular name brand foaming soap when washing baby bottles or a quick scrubbing of a needed pan.  THAT gets a little expensive.  So, I searched for recipes from people who are more adventurous than I am in trying to DIY household goods.

I originally found a recipe at iDreamofClean and tried that out.  She says to use about 1/8 of a cup of regular dish soap and the rest of the foaming soap container with water.

I tired this combo and felt like it was still a little too watered-down for my taste.  So, I increased the mount of soap and it was a little better but still not exactly what I was wanting as far as a dish soap goes.  I may try increasing the soap again or I will go back to using the regular name brand recipe for bottles and the homemade stuff quick dishes, etc.  Maybe I have just become a soap snob in that respect.

However, this combo, I believe, is PERFECT for hand soap.  I read another article somewhere about using Dr. Bronner's soap for this very purpose.  Well, wouldn't you know we have a bottle of that stuff sitting around waiting to be used.  So, that will be my money saver for the week (month, and maybe the year!)  I am sure that I will need to work out the ratio a bit for that but I did read that a 4:1 ratio is good (water to soap).

I know that you can buy refillable dispensers but I really like how Method has designed their soap bottles in that a) they don't tip over very easily and b) they have the best design as far as getting all the soap out of the bottle (and that goes for their "regular" hand soap as well.)  So, I think that I will be heading to the store soon to buy some foaming soap and when they run out then out will come the Dr. Bronner's.  Yippee!

Other options to try are doing this with your little ones bath soap if they have a thing for using a lot of soap.  It will make it go a little farther if they like to play with the soap.  Miss L is one of these people so I will be trying this out with her at some point.

One thing to remember though, don't use soaps that are "creamy" as they do not infuse well with air to make the foam and will clog your dispenser.  I didn't do this but I have read about a LOT of people that have.

Have you made your own foaming soap?

Spices

Confession time.

I have some OLD spice in my spice rack.  I think I have a hard time with "wasting" them and throwing them away.

Sigh.

The reality is the fact that they are old is a waste and does nothing to help me in seasoning my food with tasteless herbs.  Ultimately, my "no waste" mantra is a waste.  A waste of time and energy to make my food taste good!

I need to go through my stash and toss what I know is waaaaayyyy old -- as in I brought this into our marriage almost five years ago and I am pretty sure I had it for quite some time before that!

I found Still Tasty as a helpful resource.  It addresses all sorts of issues on shelf life including how to and how long to keep spices among other things.

I have a spice rack like the one that is pictured above.  I think that I am going to get rid of it.  While I like that I have a few spices near my stove the heat compromises the integrity of the spices and it takes up room that I could use other wise.  While I love the family that gave it to us for our wedding I found that it's not something that really fits how I want the flow of things anymore.  I think that's okay and sentiment should not hold me in bondage!  HA HA HA!!

I read that the light can compromise spices, too.  So, I like that they will all live in my pantry.  I will need to restock some basic spices.  I have looked around to see what different places suggest as a "basic" spice to have in any spice rack.  I have my own thoughts based on what we use the most.

What are your basic spice rack must haves???

Looking Back: May

Why does the beginning of May seem like forever ago?  Wow.  At the beginning of May I had hoped to add some additional goals to the making of the bed, Scripture reading, etc.  I am glad I didn't commit to it because I would be feeling the pressure of not achieving those things right now.  I think I had enough foresight into what was coming my way to maybe hold off.  I did, however, commit to the Homemaker's Challenge from Joyful Mothering in correspondence with the book 31 Days to Clean.  About half way through the month that went right out the window.  I am okay with that and will probably resume this at some point as I thought that the heart challenges were good for me.  The task challenges we good and I have heard through the rumor mill that there are a new set of task challenges.  As I return to that I will probably blog more about it here.

As mentioned in a previous post I have a hard time recovering from trips.  We had a whim of a trip mid-May to San Diego.  Then about a week or so later we were on our way to Colorado deep in the San Juan Mountains.  We will be heading to Denver soon to celebrate with family a major milestone (will share about that later) and I think that will be all for travelling for a time.  I hope to recover before then but we will see.

Unfortunately, as of late, my bed making and Scripture reading have been...well...lacking.  I need to adjust back to a normal schedule and muster up motivation.  It's a challenge but I need to get there.  I guess, in a sense, those are my goals for this month.

Week 1: Purpose & Motivation

Let me just say...

              ...this has been a GREAT week!

I have way more motivation this week to do tasks that I would normally look at as overwhelming and daunting.  Which would then in turn lead to me just not doing them.  Even while chasing a toddler and a very fast-moving 8-month old things got done.  However, some things that I have been caught up on have been a bit lacking because part of our house is busy with renovation.  Laundry has me a little behind because water was off for a time.  I could easily catch up but I just haven't.  Hopefully, that will be remedied today and tomorrow.   But there is more to this challenge than tasks -- a change of heart is at the root of it all.

We were challenged to write our mission statement.  You can find my post on this here.  That was a process for me and I may still tweak it some.  But for now, I like it.  My husband even commented on it and that was helpful for me to know that he agrees with and approves of this vision.

The idea of giving life to my home is a bit of a challenge for me.  Well, at least when it comes to decorating our home.  There are places that are desperate for some sort or decorative love.  I just need to move forward with the plans and visions I have for those spaces.  Goals for that aspect of things are:

1. Finish decorative touches in Miss L and Miss A's rooms.
2. Collect supplies for Family photo wall.
3. Find and acquire decorative piece for above the fire place.
4. Word art for master bath, kitchen, laundry room

That should be enough for now.  While these are my goals for this area they are not my top priority...

...Nice segue, right?

Priorities (I'll probably fine tune these a bit and repost - these are my rough notes)

1. God - I have been getting up before Husband and children to get ready for the day and spend time in the Word.  However, I am realizing that I may need to get up even EARLIER! (UGH!)  But I think it will be worth it in the end.  I find myself rushing to read and praying as I walk out of our room to greet our children and start the day.  So, I need to adjust in this area.
2. Husband  - I am called to be a wife before I am a mother.  Sometimes that's a hard thing to wrap our minds around.  My husband is so sweet and easy going.  He has been encouraging as I learn to manage our household.  He's quick to tell me to not beat myself up about things and to keep moving forward.  He didn't really want to answer the question from Day 3 so as not too add more pressure.  But his request was simple and I really want to work to make it happen so that he feels less "chaos" when he comes home.
3. Children - I have been called to be a mom.  I would like to remove "overwhelming" from my vocabulary.  I want to teach them in loving ways that also communicate grace and realistic expectations.  I desire to be better at planning fun things for them to do and interacting more with other children/families.  Our plan is to home educate our children and that seems daunting to me.  However, I think that it is the best for our family.  This will require a great amount of discipline on my part in figuring out what each day looks like.
4. Home - I want a clean home.  I will not expect perfection.  I want to eventually declutter my home.  However, this house if full 24 hours a day.  It's not empty while people are at work, school, daycare, etc.  It will look lived in -- this is where I work.  Three meals a day for four people come out of my kitchen.  Toys are played with here.  It's okay if it looks that way.  I want it to be a place that all are welcome and feel like they are welcomed.  I want to take pride in what the Lord has provided for us.
5. Personal - There are a few things that I would like to try to learn -- making soap and sewing.  This is not the top of my list but they are somewhat exciting to me.

So, there you have it.  I think that I will close with a picture of my fridge.  It makes me happy each time I open it.  This was probably my favorite task this week even though I REALLY did not want to do it.  So very worth it.  I couldn't bring myself to take a photo before because it was blech!  Props to those who are far more transparent than I!  HA HA!

Day 1: Purpose

Today begins the Homemaker Challenge with the ebook, 31 Days to Clean.  I am glad that my task today was "merely" to create a mission statement.  I know some other folks have already jumped on to the next day's task.  I may or may not do that as there are some other things that I would like to get accomplished today.  Mondays can be a little crazy as we have grandparents over in the morning to take care of Miss A while I take Miss L to speech therapy (today was AWESOME!)  On top of that, today began our shower remodel so we have an assortment of people in and out of the house.  Thankfully, they were done well before nap time and will resume tomorrow.  Minor adjustments but still more activity around here than we are used to for sure.

So, a mission statement.  I have never been good at writing them as I always think that all the ones that other people write are far superior and much more eloquent.  I read some of the statements written by others in the challenge and found a few that I liked.  However, Joyful Mothering recommended reading Inspired to Action's Mission Statements for Moms e-book.  I skimmed it enough to have some tracks to run on and I finally settled on the following mission statement:


My family needs a sanctuary in which to find peace, strength, encouragement and love.  By the grace of God I hope towards this by doing my best to model loving, godly behavior, be diligent in our work in and outside the home, and to speak words that strengthen the souls of my husband and children so that we might be continually united as a family that endeavors to create a life-giving, loving and Christ-centered home.

I think that this was a good exercise in that I have a clear and concise vision of the end goal.  This is vision that I can put in front of myself for many years and not just a short season until "such and such" is accomplished.  For me, it is also convicting as I reflect on how much damage my tongue can do and has done.  (ouch!)

Somehow I am supposed to make it all pretty and such.  I may do that later but I will print it up and post it on the inside of my pantry door where I keep other Scripture, encouragement, my calendar, and meal plan..  I'll see it... often.

I look forward to reading more statements.  If you stop in and have a post about yours, please leave a link in the comments!

Challenge: 31 Days to Change

...my heart
                ....my mind
                               ....my motivation.

This challenge and this ebook came along just in time.  It was like it was meant to be.  I can do all the FlyLady stuff or read all the books by the local Queen of Clean but in the end if my heart, motivation, and reasoning do not line up for what my Lord has deemed for me as a wife, mother, daughter, friend... woman... then it is all in vain.  My ultimate desire is that my husband, my children... and then myself.... would feel comfortable in our home.  Safe.  Relaxed.  I want them to see that from me as well.  I don't want frantic and task to be my default mode.

While I have already skimmed over most of the month there are heart things that I will find VERY challenging.  I am not sure that the "tasks" will help get my WHOLE house clean it will help in some trouble spots.  Some of the tasks don't apply.  (For example, I don't have a window in my kitchen to clean)  But I will supplement other things that I am doing and try to keep up with what has been working so far.  There have been some recent developments that will challenge me further in a good way but those things will be revealed later in the month as we encounter different challenges and tasks throughout the month.

If you would like to join in on the challenge you can click on the photo in this post and it will take you to a series of posts that will let you know what to do.  I appreciate that we will be taking the weekends off for this challenge (Which also means it doesn't start until Monday, May 2nd).  It will take us a little beyond May 31st but that is just fine.  You can also buy the ebook as a download or for the kindle for $4.99 -- totally worth it even if you don't do the challenge.  It will be an interesting journey to take with other women (one of which is a long-time friend!)

Let the cleaning (of heart, mind, and house) begin!!

Laundry Room

Last week part of FlyLady's challenges were to clean up the laundry room.  We have this partial shelf that was driving me bananas.  Stuff was on there that didn't really belong in a laundry room.  Well, all that stuff has a new home or was tossed.  Everything is looking lovely in there and I know where it all is and what I have.  Novel idea, right?

I wiped the shelf down and wiped my freezer down as well as the washer and dryer.  It made me happy to see them shine.  Because of our hard water here I noticed some deposits on my washer "window" and need to look into how to get that gunk off.

I want to add some fun decorations in there.  There is a definition of laundry piece that I like but I am having a hard time locating the one that I want without having to spend a lot of money.  I saw a DIY project for it but I was SO not interested in all that it entailed.  I am also looking around at some fun vintage laundry signs.

Suggestions?

Looking Back

Weeks two and three of my "Good Habits" journey has been pretty successful.  I have more motivation as little things are accomplished along the way.  My husband has seen a difference and that means a lot.

As with the best of intentions it seems like something always gets in the way.  At the beginning of week three we were ALL sick.  Husband's ick only lasted for about a day.  The girls have been on and off all week and seem to be on the up and up.  Miss A has a funky nose but that's about it.  I am a bit better but am still in the thick of it... go figure.  But again, we press on.  We rest more than usual but that's okay.  I still get the itch to do this or that.  I push through.

Shock of all shocks... I enjoy making the bed every morning.  It makes me feel like I am hitting the ground running and it influences my thoughts on the rest of the day.

I have been getting a shower almost every day - about six out of seven.  Depends on what is going on, etc.

I am reading my bible almost every day - some more than others.  I just finished reading Amos in the OT and will move on to Obadiah.  I am reading Hebrews in the NT (heavy stuff for the morning!) and then I usually flip back to the Psalms to finish it all up.  I may find an actual plan to follow and maybe a study to work through to help focus what I am reading.  This has helped my patience with the girls.  Although, one day I found myself snapping at Miss L right off one morning and had to apologize to her and get myself straight.

Laundry is great with a a load or two each day depending on what day it is and what I am washing.  Husband commented to me after telling him that I would be doing "whites" the next day, "Well, I am not running low on those right now."  I told him, "I hope you don't, that's the point."  It would seem like I would let things get too low.  It's nice that every thing is clean when we need it.  I even have it all put away.  Little people clothes are still my greatest challenge in putting clothes away.

Dishes.  It's like a game.  I set a timer and crank it out.  I don't always beat the timer but it's fun to try sometimes.  I like that I am not overwhelmed by dishes at night or in the morning.  Just. Get. It. Done.  YAY!

I am thinking about what to add for next month.  I have a couple of ideas but need to think on it more.  You might think I was nesting with all the organizing I have been doing of different areas.  I was never like this when I was pregnant.  Ever.

Perspective

When I put Miss A down for the night yesterday evening I braced myself for a long night of little lungs coughing.  I braced myself for 26 inches of baby softness not being able to find comfort or rest.  I waited.

She coughed.  But she was able to rest as.  I was able to rest.  Three of the four people in this family are sick.  I pray Husband stays well.

At 3:00 this morning I heard happy babbles coming across the monitor.  It's 3:00 AM.  Please go back to sleep.  I would generally just leave her and she would eventually go back to sleep.  However, because she has been sick I go to make sure that all is well.  I manage my way to her room in the dark.  She sees me through the crib and smiles.  I pick her up only to discover that she is wet!  She has somehow managed to pee out the back of her diaper which isn't all that wet to begin with.

I had been questioning whether I should have purchased the extra pair of pajamas for the next size up.  Last night made it worth the purchase even if they are a little big.  I clean her up.  I clean up the bed sufficiently until I can get the rest in the wash in the morning (the mattress pad, etc).

Sleep returns.

Upon further observation this morning the wee one may have thrown up during the night.  But she slept.  How weird is that?  Not a sound to be made until 3:00 AM.

As I laid there this morning trying to go back to sleep I was glad that Miss A was granted rest for most of the night.  I was thankful for a wet baby and a mess once rather than not being able to give her little frame rest from the coughing and stuffy nose.

Then I thought, laughingly,

I am thankful for one less bed to change on Friday.  It's already done.

Empty Those Pockets

I have never been the best at remembering to empty pockets before throwing pants in the wash.  I rarely carry things in my pockets.  I think it must be a girl thing.  Therefore, it must be a man thing to carry a variety of things in their pockets.  A few of Husband's thumb drives and other interesting things have made it through my wash in the last four and a half years.  Miraculously, none have been damaged or they were not that important.

We are now entering a new stage of laundry fun.  Miss L has discovered that her pocket hold things.  I was hoping to delay the discovery as long as possible.  The day has come.

Miss L loves to go in the bathroom and ask for one square of toilet paper.  It's a pretty cute exchange, if you ask me.  She will pretend to wash the window with it or will imitate "wiping."  When she is done with it she wads it up and sticks it in her pocket.  However, if her particular outfit for the day does not have pockets she pretends her pants are pockets and stuffs it down her pants.  It's funny to later change her diaper to find this wad in her pants...or sometimes she actually sticks it down her diaper which always makes me laugh.

Yes, I must remember to check pockets lest rocks roll around in my washer with bits of toilet paper.

Dryer Balls

These are another item that I really wanted to love and have come to not love so much.  I know many people swear by these not-so-little balls of fuzz but I am not one of them.

I won't say the company that I purchased them from because I really like the company and think that they make some quality products.  There's nothing wrong with the dryer balls -- I just don't like them.

When I first got my dryer balls I was pretty excited and used them all the time.  They are supposed to cut down on the static electricity in the clothes and decrease the drying time.  I noticed some difference in time with Husband's pants but that was about it.  We have a gas dryer and I think they are a little more efficient than electric in general.  Maybe that was it?

It also doesn't help that it sounds like my dryer is dying as these balls toss around in the laundry.  I have four balls and I can't imagine what it would sound like with the recommended eight!  Thankfully, we can close the door to the laundry room.  I don't think that the balls cause the dryer any damage...it was...just...annoying.  I am sure that I would have adjusted to it eventually.  Oh well.

Fear not.  They have not gone to waste!  Little fingers used to steal them out of the dryer before our units were stacked.  Now, the girls just enjoy tossing them around, cuddling with them, and doing whatever it is that little girls do with pink and white wool balls.

Aprons

Aprons.

I want to love them.

But I don't.

Okay, before you get in a fuss it's the aprons that go up and around my neck that I have a hard time with.  I have noticed the slightest pressure at the base of my neck gives me a headache or just makes me uncomfortable.

It's unfortunate, really, that some cute "around-the-neck" aprons have made their way to Goodwill.

I just haven't found a cute little "waist" apron that I really love.  Although, I found some cute photos of some that may be fun to try to make some day.  For now I will have to purchase one.  Not just any apron... one to which I am really drawn.
 
I know that some say their aprons have "superpowers" -- ohhhh, I want that!

Do you have an apron that you love?  Do you just cook in your apron or do you clean the house with it on, too?

Making Beds

Unlike most kids I know today or even when I was growing up I was not required to make my bed.  Was it an only child thing?  Maybe.  I'm not sure.  My dad made his bed every morning (most likely a product of being in the military) and so did my aunt that lived with us most of my growing up years.  But me?  Not so much.  I had a water bed most of my growing up years and the only requirement was that it would remain covered so the heat would not readily escape.

I am not sure that I REALLY knew how to make a bed until I took a job as a maid room attendant in a popular national park after my sophomore year in college.  That's when I learned about hospital corners, became a little fanatical about how a bed should be made, among other things that came with that job.  You would think that I would be in the habit of making my bed after that summer.

No.

Not so much.

I once read that your bed take up about 1/3 of your room.  If you just make your bed you have already cleaned 1/3 of your room and that can really make a a huge difference.  Well, it's true.  The calm that it brings to our room is totally palpable.  It becomes more sanctuary rather than stress-inducing.

I am trying to work on the same habits with Miss L each day.  It is quite difficult to make her bed at this point in time because there are rails on her bed (which we are toying with taking off) to keep her from falling.  So, we make due with what we can do in folding the cover neatly at the end of the bed and arranging her menagerie of stuffed animals at the head of the bed.  She's pretty funny because she wants to be all over the bed when I am changing sheets and she wants to pull the covers off when I am folding them at the bottom.  Oh well.  We will press on.  At this point repetition makes practice and practice eventually will make perfect.

At least I will be able to teach her proper hospital corners.  Folding a fitted sheet?  Well, that's another story.

New Habits

I have heard that it takes 30 days to develop a new habit.  I am hoping that is true.  Here are a few things that I am working on this month (but I have been working on them for about a week now).

Taking a shower every day.
Making my bed
Reading my Bible (OT & NT)
A load of laundry each day
Dishes

Well, it may sound like nothing really to you but let me explain some of them.  As a new mommy I found it hard to find time to take a shower.  And if I did have some time then I totally wanted to do something else.  Now, I just get up before Husband and the girls and get ready. Makes for a more lovely Mama.

From the shower to the rest it all starts to fall into place.  I get dressed and make the bed which is where I read my bible.  I generally follow husband out of the room or just shortly after.  I try to take the load of laundry with me when I leave the room.  I have been able to keep Mt. Washmore at bay this week which has been a blessing to all.

Dishes have always been one of my least favorite things to do along with unloading the dishwasher and dusting.  ha!  I have a knack to just "let them go until morning" and it just becomes an overall pain.  However, I have been working on how I view these duties.  I want them to be a blessing to my family.  The other night I was tempted to just let them go because I was just plain ol' tired.  I looked around.  There really weren't that many.  What got me motivated was that I wanted Husband's coffee cup to be clean and ready to go for the morning.  I looked at the clock... it took me EIGHT minutes to get it all done.  Easy peasy.  I just need to remember the right view.  To the glory of God in all things and blessing my family through the little things.

First week had been great... we'll see how I am doing at the end of April.

The Right Tools

My dad has always said that you have to have the right tool for the job.

It's true.  Otherwise it just makes the job a whole lot harder than it needs to be which leads to greater frustration.  I am learning that as I go through my house and evaluate how I normally clean things.

On Tuesday, I noticed my floors.  We have a TON of tile.  Only the family room and bedrooms have carpet.  The rest is all tile.  I have noticed that after our floors would be "mopped" socks and feet would still turn an undesirable color.  Blech!  I would wipe something up off the floor and more than a trace of dirt would come up with the towel.  Double blech!

We purchased a steam mop in the hopes that it would make cleaning the tile a little more effective (and fun).  I didn't buy any replacement pads other than what came with the mop.  That was my first mistake.  I asked our house cleaner (Yes, the dirty secret is out.  My husband has blessed me with this service ever since I was sick while expecting Miss A.  However, we are trying to wean ourselves off her services and so here I am.  I don't want to be ashamed of a gift from my husband.) to use this rather than her mop and so she did.  However, she only uses the one pad throughout the whole house.  I figured this was the culprit for the not so clean floors.

Rather than disgust you with my experiment and results lets just say that four more replacement pads are on their way and I need to figure something else out in the mean time.  ha ha ha!!

I also realized we are in a new stage of life where the floors need to be cleaned more than once a week.  I am thinking that I will do floors Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  I did them today relatively fast, much to my surprise!  I think 45 minutes or less to vacuum (YAY!  Miss L is no longer freaking out about the vacuum - she just leaves the room) and mop.  That's if everything is off the floor, too.  

In the end, I also think it helps to have tools that you like to use and are fun... like a steam mop, a BlendTec, KitchenAid mixer, pretty pots & pans, etc.

What are some of your favorite tools to use around the house?

Wash, Fold, Repeat

I have said it before and I will say it again,

Laundry, like sanctification, is a continual process.

It's true.  Especially if you have little people around.  Their laundry seems like the most difficult to me.  Not that their's is all that hard to clean it just seems like there is just SO much of it no matter how small the load.  It probably doesn't help that I let it pile up because they both have SO many clothes they could go awhile without washing.  It's a vicious cycle that I am trying to break!

Before we moved the chore of laundry was the easiest for me to keep up.  It also helped that I loved my new washer and dryer (I still do.)  However, since we moved and especially since Miss A arrived on the scene laundry has been hit and miss.  It's sad really.  This week has been the beginning of new habits and getting laundry back on track has been one of those things.  Granted we are only on Tuesday but it looks good so far.  We will see how I am doing come Friday.  HA!

There are times that I end up doing laundry all day.  Not really my cup of tea.  Although, if that is the place that I have worked myself into then I need to suck it up and press on to get the job done.  FlyLady has recommended that if you do a load a day you will keep Mount Washmore away.  I tried it before and it worked really well for me.  For us, it can be more than one load a day but it beats five, six, seven... or more all in one day.

Here is what our schedule looks like:

Monday - Shirts, Diapers*
Tuesday - Whites
Wednesday - Gentle, Diapers
Thursday - Kids
Friday - Sheets, Towels, Diapers
Saturday - Pants, Any Catch Up Laundry


* These are the days we wash diapers when using cloth.  It may or may not require more washings depending on how old baby is and how many diapers we have in our stash for that particular stage, etc.  But this is usually what it looks like.  Is it weird that I was WAY better at keeping up with laundry when the cloth diapers were in play?

The whole routine may look different for each person.  Shirts are usually sorted in lights and darks.  However, these mostly comprise of Husband's work shirts and generally can fit into one load.  There will come a time when I sort by color the girl's clothes but right now they go in together and only sorted by if the belong to Miss L or Miss A.  Sometimes it gets mixed but that's not a big deal at this point in time.  Obviously Friday is a big day but I would rather have the extra family time on Saturday.

What does your laundry routine look like?