31 Days to Clean~ Day 8

Day 8 ~ Cleaning my desk

A month or two ago, I found a desk on a our county "for sale" page on facebook. I made an offer, the guy accepted and I picked it up! :) I really like it. It is a cabinet type desk that you can close the doors and it takes up less space than the old desk did.

BEFORE:

BEFORE:

It looks so messy from a distance, but I think it was actually pretty organized! ;) Just a few too many things floating on the surface! :P

AFTER:

And then tonight Dan and I tackled our bedroom and got the final stack in front of the bookshelf and an odds and ends box of mine sorted and put away! (He will take care of the top of the bookshelf later)

Our bedroom floor is empty!! :) And we are both happy!! :)

Man, today was a long day. The little tedious sorting is harder than stuff like clothes....my muscles in my back, neck and arms are SO tight.....a massage would feel heavenly right about now! :)

Took 3 Ibuprofen with a large glass of water and called it quits for the day!!

I am going to take a break from my 31 Days again tomorrow. We are Host family on Sunday and tomorrow is the only day I have left to prepare food and finish the rest of the weekly cleaning. 

Saturday we have stuff going on ALL. DAY. LONG!! :) Goat Day, Anniversary Drop-In and something special for the kids in the late afternoon/evening! :)

I'll be back Monday!! :)

31 Days to Clean ~Day 7

Day 7 Challenge-Clean up stacks of stuff in master bedroom.

Ok, so today's challenge is probably the most embarrassing one for me to post publicly!! *blushing face*

But this is exactly why I am doing this challenge, because I am sick of these stacks and messiness!!

 I have always heard that your bedroom (after you are married) should be a "haven" and most definitely not a room full of clutter. 

BUT, (in my defense) this is the only place to stash stuff out of the way when company is coming....good enough excuse?? Even though the bedroom is a mess, at least the rest of my house can look clean, right?? :P *sigh*

Yes, I've been doing a lot of sighing!! :P

So, here goes.....

Stack #1....on my side of the bed. And trust me, this used to be a lot worse!! :O

AFTER:

small confession: there are a few things stacked back there again that I am going to list on Ebay......BUT, if they don't sell, they are going to the yard sale boxes!!

This stack is mostly boxes of books that were given to Dan for the prison. He has to go through them all, because some are not appropriate for a male prison and some are magazines that just need to be pitched, but a few of the boxes are full of brand new books. Thankfully, Dan just finished up a class and has a little more than a week break, so he will have time to take care of this! :) For now, they got moved out of our room.

Oh, and any ideas where to store my laundry baskets? My laundry is a closet and there is not room for the whole stack on top of the washer or dryer. Still contemplating that one!

AFTER:

This stack was once on my bed {another day when I was trying to clean up} and it came bedtime and what to do except put it on the floor till later! :P

(no after pic)

The bookshelf......

Most of this requires my man's attention! :) I did clean off the shelves and organize the books a bit, but Dan wants to go through the books and get rid of some, so that will happen another day/evening!

AFTER: {the little bit I did}

 All those trouble spots.....I picked the stuff up off the floor and put it on my bed to sort through it, so this was what my bed looked like......

And this is what it looked like right before I sat down at my computer to post this blog. So I will need to finish it tomorrow. Tomorrow's challenge is organizing my desk, which is a fairly small job since I recently downsized my desk and it hasn't really got cluttered! :) I hope by tomorrow night to give you a full view of a clean room!! :) The good feeling about this is knowing that everything is finding a permanent home, either elsewhere in my house or going to someone else's or to the garbage!! :) YAY!!

Thanks for tagging along another day....and thanks to those of you who left me encouraging words either here or on Xanga or facebook!! :) 

31 Days to Clean~ Day 6

Today's challenge was to clean the entry way and the front door.

You can't see it real well, but the floor was pretty dirty, the door was getting brown near the door knob and there were a few small webs in the corner! :P

I debated taking the bench away. It is rarely used for it's intended purpose {a place to sit to take off shoes} for numerous reasons....it is often piled with "stuff" AND flip flops and sandals don't require sitting down to take them off!

It is still there while I ponder it's necessity! :) 

A different angle....

BEFORE:

AFTER:

The next two pictures are really hard to see any difference. I wiped down both doors and the frames and trim, and cleaned the windows on the storm door.

In the meantime our porch dried off a bit :) Then we got more rain! :) I am so thankful for this rain!! But I must say after a few days of dreary cloudy weather, I am ready to see the sun again! I think it will show its face tomorrow!! :)

In other news, today was the final Manners Co-op I helped to teach at the library. *happy sigh* And again, I forgot my camera!! :(

Today we learned about table manners. Both our kids were chosen to role play bad and good manners at the table. They (esp. Danny) enjoyed doing the bad manners. It's not often they are encouraged to burp, gargle their water, slurp their food and reach across others to get what they want!! :P But I was proud of them when they demonstrated good manners. 

Denise Williams did a great job teaching! I was happy for her to be the mouth, while I was the hands and feet! ;) More of my comfort zone!! :)

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I found another cool project online that I would like to try out. I need to get creative so it doesn't cost me $$, but I think I can do it.....stay tuned for more! :)

Oh, and thank you to all those who have commented and encouraged me to stick at this!! I thought about it today....would I be as motivated if I wasn't being accountable to the world my friends?? :) I SHOULD be!!

Happy October 11th evening to you!! :)

15 ways to Clutter your House

 Last night on facebook, a friend was talking about a TV show called "Hoarders". I typed it into google search and found you can watch free episodes online....so I watched one....then 2! Oh my!! I am so thankful my house doesn't look even remotely like those houses!! The people really have a mental illness!! 

 Then another friend recommended a link.....how to clutter your house. 15 ways to fill your house with junk!

 I was shocked how many of these things I do!! :O

1.Always bring home the freebies – the booklets at grocery stores, the soaps at the hotel, the pens at the bank.  (GUILTY!!)

2.Take something your relative is going to get rid of even though you don’t need it.

3.Keep a file in your cabinet labeled “miscellaneous” or “interesting” (GUILTY)

4.Buy holiday stuff after the holiday.  Store it all year. (GUILTY)

5.Put it in a box.  Put the box in the basement or garage. (GUILTY)

6.Keep every last magazine you get.  Make big stacks with them.  One day, it’ll be an awesome side table. (GUILTY)

7.Buy food in bulk because it’s cheaper, even though it’ll take you six months to use up.

8.Never clean out your closet.

9.Shop for more containers when your space feels crowded or the containers you already have are full. (GUILTY)

10.Walk into a store where you know you don’t need anything.

11.Keep heirlooms that you don’t really like just because they belonged to someone you knew.

12.Keep everything you might need in a year or two. (GUILTY)

13.Don’t donate something that you bought but never used. You paid good money for that thing! (GUILTY)

14.Keep two of everything.  It’s always good to have a second can opener in case the first one breaks when you’re opening a can of tuna. (SOMETIMES GUILTY)

15.Keep everything.  Keep a box of really short strings.  Label it “Strings too short to use.”


http://www.makingthishome.com/2011/03/07/how-to-clutter-your-home/

So maybe I do have some hoarding tendencies!?? YIKES!! I think I will go find some things to pitch out....like maybe my magazine rack full of old magazines I never look at!! *sigh*

31 Days to Clean ~ Day 5

Today's Challenge~ Organize clothes dresser in bedroom

Dan made this piece of furniture for me....it started out being an armoire. It was supposed to have drawers in the bottom and doors, but since he was too busy to finish it up, we just turned it into a storage unit for our clothes! It is VERY heavy and will most likely stay in this house when we move out!!

BEFORE: (notice the full hamper on the left)

IN THE PROCESS:

AFTER: (notice the empty hamper on the left)

Yes, that was part of my day, too!! :)

After I cleared off the top, you could see the dust that collected around everything. 

Ahhh! That's better!! :)

 I threw out some old clothes that had been worn about as much as possible without them actually falling off!

This pair of PJ pants didn't have much fabric holding the elastic in place anymore. :P And with each wash, it seemed to get worse!! Threw out another pair with a big hole in that I could about fall through! ;) And some night shirts that were more loose threads than fabric! *sigh* 

HELP!!

 I am open for suggestions....I had all our perfume and stuff on a mirrored perfume tray. I'd kind of like to do something different. Here's my space....what do you recommend? Should I leave it as it is? I'd really love to hear from you!! :) Pretty, please??

Tomorrow's challenge was to clean up the stacks of STUFF on the floor in my bedroom, but since that is a big job and since I have to help teach a Manner's Co-op class at the library after lunch, I am going to swap the next two day's challenges. So tomorrow will be cleaning up the entry way!

The A-Z's of Me

A. Age: 34

B. Bed size: Queen ~ anything smaller for 2 people just isn't comfortable! IMO

C. Chore that you hate: Cleaning clutter off my kitchen counters

D. Dogs: None for now~ I really want another black lab.....maybe I need to pray for one! :)

E. Essential start to your day: Put on my glasses.  Spend time with my Father! 

F. Favorite Color: On me-blue; in my house-brown; outside-the changing leaves!! :)

G. Gold or Silver? If I wore jewelry, I think my eyes would be drawn to silver more than gold....

H. Height: 5' 8"

I. Instruments you play: Well, I like to clink around on the piano, but other than that...just my voice!

J. Job title: Which one?? ;)

K. Kids: blessed with 2- a son and a daughter

L. Live: in a small 3 bedroom house in the southern part of the US of A......but someday I'm gonna live in a MANSION!! :)

M. Mother's name: Verna Arlene

N. Nicknames: Tweela

O. Overnight hospital stays: Only for good things....the birth of my 2 children! 

P. Pet peeves: People who pull out in front of you on the road and then putz along like they have all day! Whining!

Q. Quote you love: It matters not if the world has heard or approves or understands... the only applause we're meant to seek is that of nail-scarred hands. -b.j.hoff
 
R. Right or left handed: Right

S. Siblings: 8!! :)

T. Time you wake up: 5:30 ish

U. Underwear? Yes, please!! (That was extremely odd!)

V. Vegetable you hate: Not sure that I hate ANY vegetable.....there are a few I've never tried that sound disgusting, but I can't say I hate them if I never tried them. Oh, are green olives vegetables? They would qualify for this question!

W. What makes you run late? My procrastination!!

X. X-rays you've had: Teeth, abdominal, chest.

Y. Yummy food that you make: Homemade Pizza

Z. Zoo animal: Monkeys!! :) They are too much like humans!!


So what did you learn about me that you didn't know before or that you found interesting? :) Leave a comment!

Last week on the Women Living Well website, her "Making your Home a Haven" challenge was to “light a candle and every time you see the glimmer of it pray for peace in your home“.

The lighting the candle part was easy since someone (me or one of the kids, usually Danny) will light a candle sometime during the morning.

Remembering to pray for a peaceful atmosphere was a little harder to remember as I went about the busyness of the day.

This week the challenge is to continue the previous weeks challenge, but adding to that will be the challenge "Play soft music everyday in your home. Then, focus on using peaceful words and maintaining peaceful relationships."

Isaiah 26:3~ You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

I really have a desire to make this work! I think compared to some houses, ours is pretty peaceful. But I don't want to "compare" to others....I want us to measure up to God's standard and I know a huge chunk of that is the parents responsibility....my responsibility since I am the one my children are around ALL. DAY. LONG!

Peace is a fruit of the spirit....which we studied about in school last week! :)

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I was going to write more, but my sweet daughter came to my room, bored. So we sat and talked (yes, we discussed how to promote a spirit of peace in our house) :) and sang some songs together. She is a real joy to me....

Then she said, "Mom, it is really time for you and me to have a mother-daughter day out....past time"!! :) I agree, dear daughter, I agree!! So I asked her what she would choose to do, if it was up to her. She said, go shopping, get our nails done and eat at Olive Garden! :) Sounds like fun!

Guess now I need to just ask God to help us make that happen! :)

Praying your week is blessed....walk with God!!

II Thessalonians 3:16 ~ Now may the Lord of peace himself give you his peace at all times and in every situation. The Lord be with you all.