Tuesday, June 21, 2011

One Little Corner - Kitchen Edition

Ok, I cheated. I started cleaning the fridge off before I took the picture. I remembered and put some stuff back and then took the picture. LOL It was so much worse than this. Color pages, pictures, magnets, OH MY!

Here, I have my weekly planner and our menu side by side. I got the printables from Organized Home. I also have the baby's alphabet letters she likes to play with down low for her. The bowls on top of the fridge were moved to another location and now I have a box of spices up there. The other basket is my husbands grill stuff.

I worked through my kitchen one corner at a time and it was so nice.

I'm still playing catch up from this weekend but I should have more photos for you this week.


Monday, June 20, 2011

Do what is necessary





"Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible." - Saint Francis

This will be my quote as I go throughout the week. I have much to get done to get my house back to rights from all the partying this week. I have plenty of pictures to share of this past weekend and some of the changes I made around here. I should be back to posting pretty regularly now that our weekend is over.
I hope you all had a wonderful Father's Day weekend.

Monday, June 13, 2011





I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty and joy to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble.
~Helen Keller


I am super busy getting the house together for Lily's party this week. I have some photos to share of the kitchen, which is not quite done. I had to revamp my schedule some, but it looks like I will still be done by Friday. Especially since my amazing husband agreed to take all of the kids with him tomorrow when he takes the big kids to piano. I will be rolling up my sleeves for sure during that time.


If I'm sporadic around here this week, please, know it's only temporary. :)



Wednesday, June 08, 2011

Getting My House In Order

In a few short days this Princess will be 1. Wasn't it just yesterday I was blogging her birth story? Heck, wasn't it just yesterday I was blogging about being pregnant?? I can't believe how the time has flown. She's into everything these days, taking wobbly steps, drooling around her four baby teeth, singing, laughing, playing. I just taught her to say, "Uh-Oh" it's to stinkin' cute.

Do you LOVE these cheeks?? So kissable!

I took the plunge and scheduled her party for June 18th (her actual birthday) at my house. That means the next few days will be a whirlwind of finishing projects, deep cleaning, and rearranging stuff. I have a lot of stuff to get done and I work better with a firm deadline.




For the next three days I will be in the kitchen. I am decluttering as I go and rearranging everything along with a deep clean. I have three free standing shelves in there and a pantry. I need to get rid of the free standing shelves, except maybe one. It's a huge project and I only gave myself three days. If it's not done by Saturday, it's ok. I will just keep working til it's done. The other projects are not as big so if I end up with four or five days of kitchen work I will still have plenty of time.



If I finish the kitchen by Saturday I will move onto the dining room. I am moving our eating area into the kitchen, if it works out, and the dining room will be for toys and crafts. I have to move a china cabinet, bookshelf, and linen storage dresser somewhere else.

I have some ideas of where I will move them, but I'm still working it out.

I am giving myself Saturday and Monday for the dining room. Or the next two days after the kitchen is done.






The two or three days after that will be the School room. Some stuff to move out of there and a deep cleaning. One to two days for the hallways (decluttering and moving bookcases) and general cleaning of bathrooms and other rooms. It's ambitious but there are four capable cleaning people and three children who can help.

Princess Lily gets to sit and watch all the preparations for her big day. :)

I'm excited about progress I have already made and know that in the end we will all be so much happier when our house is in order! Plus, it should give me lots of blog fodder! :)







Tuesday, June 07, 2011

In the Kitchen - Helpers

One of my go to items in the kitchen is this seasoning blend. It has green and red peppers, onions, and parsley. It's great for eggs and omlets. I've used it for chicken dishes and meatloaves before as well. I used it for chicken burritos the other day. It's very versatile and let's face it at around a dollar or less a bag it's cheaper than peppers.
I'm a huge fan of frozen vegetables. If I can get it fresh I will, but frozen works for me. I'm not going to buy and prep fresh broccoli for this family. We love the frozen stuff. I buy corn fresh when it's on sale, but certain frozen corns are just as good. I don't buy carrots frozen. I can't find any frozen carrots as good making it fresh. For the most part I also buy all of my squash fresh, though I have found that Publix has good frozen squash in a pinch.
I'm starting to buy frozen fruit. With summer here it's been nice to have the fresh fruit, but I also found it's nice to have some in the freezer for smoothies and now to add to my yogurt. Yep, I'm back to making yogurt and I can't figure out why I ever stopped! It's so good.
Do you have any foods that make your meal prep a little easier?

This post is part of Homemaking Link Up day at Raising Homemakers.

Monday, June 06, 2011

A spot of earth






"What we need most, are benevolent wives, mothers, and sisters in the dwellings of our over-burdened laborers. We need women for whom the roof about them and the four walls which unclose their dear ones are the only world they care to know. We need women who set their hearts on making their homes pleasant, sunny, and fragrant for the husband. He who works from dawn till dusk for the little home and wife and babes, looks forward to the warm welcome that awaits him when the long day is over; of the bright smile and the loving words that will be sure to greet him when he crosses the threshold of his own little Eden; of the cheerful fire in winter and the humble meal made so delicious by the love that prepares it and the sweet words that season it. This rest, security, and peace will encourage the overflowing heart of the husband and father and brother to think and to say that there is no spot of earth so dear and so blessed as the little sanctuary built up and adorned and made full of song by the true woman's heart."
~ Daughters of Destiny, compiled and edited by Noelle Wheeler


I'm looking forward to a wonderful week of making my home a spot of earth dear and blessed for my family.
Dh is at a class all week for a security guard license so we will have a nice routine week moving busily from one task to the next.
I hope to finish my bedroom (just a few little touches) and begin work on the kitchen this week.
What are you hoping to start and/or finish this week?




Friday, June 03, 2011

One Little Corner - School Room Edition

Today I will show you a bit of our school corner. It's only one part of the school area. One corner.
Here is the before picture. I was trying to put portfolios together and organize some of our new school stuff. It was pretty bad. However, it only took about 30m to put it to rights again.

Here you can see the tables all cleaned off. While I was at it I also decluttered the mantle. I had some of Lily's baby dolls up there and now they are safely tucked away in her corner of our bedroom.




I righted the bookshelf. The basket by the fireplace holds blankets and throws. The kids enjoy wrapping up in them while reading or watching a movie. Yes, even in the summer. I sit in the rocking chair while we do our group work. The kids have bean bags and big pillows they sit on.



I love a cleared floor and a clean bookshelf. Now when I look at this corner, I smile. I have been more productive since polishing my corner. Portfolios are almost all ready for tomorrow's check, lessons are assigned, checked, and handed back in mere minutes now, and I am not always searching for a book.

I'm having so much fun making my house a home, one corner at a time.

What corner of your home can you make pretty today?







Thursday, June 02, 2011

10 Disciplines for Home Management



10 Disciplines for Home Management


1.You shall be dedicated to managing your home.

Titus 2:5


2. You shall be a woman of prayer.

Prayer changes our housework, because prayer changes the heart of a homemaker.


3. You shall be aware of the basics.

The basics of food, clothing, cleanliness, and safety are parts of your responsibility to your family.


4. You shall follow a schedule.

When yours days, weeks, months, and years run on a rhythm, your work at home gets done. Everything might not get done, but more gets done when you schedule it than when you don't.


5. You shall be organized.

Whatever the method of organization, and there are many, it always aids in the smooth running of a household.


6. You shall be there.

Exactly how do our good housekeeping chores get done? They get done when we the homemakers and housekeeper are there - when we are at home.


7.You shall be the best.

"Okay, I have to keep the house clean. I need to create order.I've got to see to three meals a day. So why not be the best? Why not excel? Why not exceedingly bless my family and others?"


8. You shall be reading.

Even if you learned nothing about homemaking when you were growing up, all you have to do is read and learn now.


9. You shall be frugal.

Thrift and wise management of money are Biblical virtues that bless our family.


10. You shall be creative.


From Elizabeth George's book Life Management for Busy Women


I have been thinking about these things since I read them yesterday. I have started in the last few weeks really applying most of them. It has created such a huge difference in our home. School is getting done, cleaning is coming along, I do feel that I am getting a handle on this organizing thing. It's amazing how applying just few simple principles can change everything.

I feel great about being a homemaker again. What joy!

What is one thing from the above disciplines that you need to work on? What will you start doing today?

Wednesday, June 01, 2011

One Little Corner - Bedroom Edition

Who knew getting a picture post up would be so hard? I finally got these pictures taken this morning. It's mostly Lily's corner in my bedroom, with my corner thrown in and a special project from Jonathan (5).
This is part of Lily's corner in our room. I just came up with the idea of putting up the cards we got when she was born as decorations. It's only been about a year. Yeah, I'm so on top of things. LOL This does go to show, though, with just a little imagination you can create something really cute for little to no money.
Of course her 1st birthday is coming up so we will have some new cute cards to add to the collection.
Here is Lily's bed and her toys and dirty clothes basket. All of my babies have slept in pack n plays until they moved to their own room. The "L" on the left was made by my friend Christina and has a lot of hair bows, also made by Christina. She can't wear them yet, poor little bald baby. The "L" on the right was painted for her at a pottery place by her daddy a few months before she was born. I have some ideas for the wall over her bed, but I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet.
This is my corner. I sit here and nurse Lily, I read my Bible, I read my book by Elizabeth George, I talk to my hubby. It's a nice corner. Behind the chair are some diapers in bigger sizes and a box of extra baby toiletries.
Jonathan made my bed this morning. He said I did not know how to make it so he better do it for me. :) Guess what? I did not go back and remake it. It makes me smile every time I walk into my room. He loves to make my bed.

What one little corner can you make beautiful today?

I linked this post at Raising Homemakers for Link Up day. If you have never visited their site it's full of wonderful tips and ideas for raising up our little girls.