Meal Organization/Planning

I am currently working on a new organizational project.... how it will end I'm not sure. =)

Here is the scenario I deal with quite frequently at my house:

I sit down to think of some things to have for dinner for the week. I ask my husband’s opinion on the matter. No one really cares. I write down a couple ideas. I am forced to go to the computer (usually to my Pinterest boards) to print off said recipes. Then I quickly try to figure out what additional items I need from those lists and then go off to the grocery store.

What is the problem you ask? I have a list. I’ve picked meals. Well… for one thing, I don’t usually plan ENOUGH meals – figuring I can just fill in the blanks with stuff we already have in the house or freezer. This would be a fine idea if I had enough staples lying around to do so. Hence, why we have pancakes or waffles for dinner at least once a week. Next problem is that I HATE it that we have a good selection of favorites, but I constantly have to search the web for their location and then print off another copy. Then that copy sits around in the kitchen until I finally chuck it in the recycle.

SO, I’ve decided to go through all our most commonly made meals and start myself a little folder – or recipe book. I don’t really want to transcribe all my recipes onto little cards, but I thought a nice folder of our favorites would really make my life so much easier. AND as I make new meals that we enjoy, I can just add a new page to the folder!

It sounds so simplistic – I mean, seriously what has been stopping me from doing this already? – but such is the way of life, I guess.

The second part of this plan is to make up a monthly meal plan. This would not be set in stone – our lives are way to busy to stick to something rigid – but instead of sitting down each week wondering to myself what we should have for dinner that week, I will have some ideas right in front of me. Things that are not a repeat of the week before!

Sounds great in theory right? Now to enact the plan…. =)

Currently...

1. I just finished the second book in the Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth. I can't believe I have to wait A YEAR to find out what happens. Seriously... this is why I usually wait until the whole series is out before I start reading it.

2. I have a lot left to unpack from our move, but I've squirreled most of it away into the back bonus room so that Malachi is the one who has to look at it most of the time. =)

3. I have been spending WAY too much time on Pinterest lately.

4. I am planning a Jane Austen bunco party at my house next month - and getting super excited about all the fun prizes and food and decoration I'm going to have.

5. Our new house has a fireplace with a mantle! I've been super excited to decorate it. Here's the beginning of my Fall mantle:

Oil lamp from Grandma's | Harvest jar candle | Picture of Malachi | 3 votives covered with burlap | Pumpkin 

pillar candle w/ acorn & leaf ring from World Market | Two old frames from Grandma's | Malachi's baby 

pumpkin from the Cider Mill | Hurricane holder from Partylite | Leaf garland from Dollar Tree 

I have a burlap project to finish it off.... but I've either misplaced or used up all my burlap...

6. I'm trying to get through the BBC's version of Jane Austen's Persuasion. Usually I don't like to watch a movie before I read the book, but Austen novels are the exception. I've decided the novels are so involved that it actually helps me keep it all straight to watch a movie first. So... the next book on my list is Persuasion, which will fulfill one of my Fall reading goals and 2012 goals. =)

7. Last night I baked my first pumpkin recipe of the season - Banana Pumpkin Muffins. The recipe said it made 12 muffins, so I doubled it. We got almost 3 dozen muffins... hmm...

8. My friend Lisa came over a couple days ago and helped me cut Malachi's hair with our clippers. I usually spend about $18 every couple months to take him to the local children's salon. He has a crazy cowlick in the back and it always grows out weird. I'm thinking I can do this... and save myself some money and cut the cowlick back whenever it needs it, rather than when I have the money. Apparently I need to get some thinning shears though....

6 weeks to go!

Mmm... well, considering my title, I should probably have a pregnancy picture today, but I really don't feel like posting one. =) Sooo... we are going to have cute Malachi pictures instead!

This is a super cute sweater that my mom knit for Malachi recently.

It has a hood, which he loves, and a front sweatshirt-type pocket.

Here he is modeling it... isn't he cute? =)

I have six weeks to go before the new baby is due. I'm alternately excited to not be pregnant anymore and terrified that I'm not ready for the baby to be here. I've really been uninspired to do anything for the new baby this time around. Part of that is probably because I thought we'd be moving from this house with in a month or so of having him and so I didn't plan a nursery, get out clothes or really anything. But, circumstances have changed that will allow us to stay here through the end of the year.... so now... all of a sudden I feel like I should be doing something for this baby! That somehow he's gotten the raw end of the deal because I went all out for Malachi and have literally done nothing for this baby - I haven't even knit him a new hat!


So today, I started sorting through Malachi's baby clothes to see what I have and washing it. Malachi had terrible colic and spit-up non-stop for the first 6 months, so, as I feared, all his clothes have turned a hideous yellow around the necks and down the front in the three years they've been sitting in storage. I managed to get most of it out with bleach today though, so I was happy. I also took the cover off the bouncer and washed it along with some blankets people have given us and a play mat. I felt very productive today.


I've also planned out a corner of our bedroom to set up for the new baby. We still won't be here long-term enough for me to really set up a nursery, but I want to get some wall art and set up a changing station for the baby. I have some plans to make wall art, but if all else fails, I'm loving these cute little forest creatures ...

Source: etsy.com via Elsie on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com

Sooo... we'll see what happens with that. =)


I think I was a little over-productive today though because I am very sore.... my hips are protesting and I think I'm going to go watch a movie on Netflix and knit on a washcloth that I'm giving as a baby shower gift this weekend!

End of Day Wrap Up

Well, this was a good first day to my October Challenge, I think. I didn't get quite as much done as I'd hoped, but it wasn't because I was lazy! =)

First I got up and worked on my Weekly Home Blessing Hour (changing sheets, emptying trash, vacumming floors, etc). Didn't get all 7 things done, but most of them. Then it was blogging and giveaway posting time. haha

Then I went and helped my friend Leah in her 5th grade classroom for about an hour. She has a few students who don't go to band or something and they are learning to knit instead! Leah needed an extra set of hands to help the kids as they are learning. I was worn out by the end of the hour and there were only a handful of them! I don't know how she has almost 30 kids all day. =)

Lastly, I came home, made us a very yummy dinner (because, as part of my challenge, I'm trying to have my menus planned for the week!) and relaxed with my family. My sink is clean, dishes are waiting to be run before I go to bed and my living room is picked up. Yay!

I always ask myself why I don't live like this all the time... it's really not so hard and it makes everyone feel so much better when the house is clean. Ah, well...

October Challenge Prep

Tomorrow starts my October Challenge to myself. I tried to give myself a tiny head start by getting my laundry all put away off the chair downstairs and my sink cleaned off all dirty dishes tonight.

Then I got kind of inspired to organize some of the random mail that needed to be brought upstairs to organize off the dining room table and got rid of a box of clothes someone gave to us for the Little Guy that I decided I didn't want.

Yay! I'm  feeling good about this. =)

Tomorrow's Zone for FlyLady is the Living Room. Good place for me to start.

Remember if you'd like to join me on a challenge of your own for the month of October, leave a comment on the original post!

October: My Challenge

Since working the crazy work schedule that I have for the past two months two things have resulted:
1. my house is a disaster from having no energy to clean on my days off
2. I'm feeling like I've put on a few pounds due to eating crap while working nights and once again.. having no energy to excerise.

So, I've decided I need to make myself a little challenge for the month of October. At the end of the month, we are leaving for about a week to go to Texas to celebrate my husbands grandparents 60th wedding anniversary/family reunion. First, I will be having someone staying at my house for that week with my dogs and would like to NOT be embarressed. AND for obvious reasons, I'd like to look my best - I mean - I only see these people every few years or so.

My challege - starting Monday:

1. Do my FlyLady cleaning every week (yes, I know I've said I would do this before... but I am determined this time!) If you havn't checked out the FlyLady's cleaning program and you need a little motivation cleaning your house - you should!

2. Do some form of exercise at least 5 days a week. I just purchased two work-out videos that I actually enjoy doing (I know! Crazy, huh?) They are both from the 10-Minute Solution series and I can do two segments and feel like I've gotten a decent work-out in 20 minutes.

That's it. No dieting, since I don't really believe in diets and no resolutions for doing this long-term. I'm just kind of hoping that by challenging myself for a month, I'll stick to it AND maybe make it into a habit in the meantime. =)

I am going to post a short post at the end of each day to say what I got done or didn't get done that day, so that I can feel like I'm being accountable. Wish me luck!

Want to join me? I'd love some company, so if you'd like to challenge yourself to something this month, I'd love to hear about it.

Maid Service?

So, I think it may be a bad sign when you friend/babysitter comes to your house and when you come home all your clothes are folded and your sink is clean and the dishwasher has been run. I have an awesome friend and (secretly) love it when she comes over because I know I'm going to come home to a cleaner house. But, I think it's (my bad cleaning habits) are getting a little out-of-control.

I'm not sure what the deal is, but since I've had the Little Guy my house-cleaning has really gone down the tubes. I'm not sure if it has something to do with how I feel that I need to do it all a certain way and am too much of a perfectionist about it (so, don't do it at all) or if I'm just lazy, but I avoid cleaning things.

Tonight my mom was at my house babysitting the Little Guy and called to ask me when the last time I cleaned my downstairs bathroom was? I barely ever use that bathroom, so I don't really go in it that much. Cleaned it? Ha! Don't remember. Of course, other people use that bathroom all the time, even though I don't. It's the only one downstairs. Sad.

I have been especially bad since I've been working this crazy schedule at work with my two night shifts every week. I just don't have the energy to clean after that stint and then by the time I've recovered, it's back to work again. I don't what you to think my house is totally gross - I don't think the average person coming in would know... I mean... I did just shampoo my carpets.

So... here's the plan. I've talked about the FlyLady cleaning program before (I used to faithfully do it and I had a nice clean house!). The FlyLady believes in small steps that helps you not get overwhelmed. You do a few routines and you work in a "Zone" for one week. Whatever area is your "Zone" is where you do your deep cleaning for the week.... but you only do it in 15 minute spurts (It's amazing what you can get accomplished in 15 minutes of focused cleaning!). She also has a weekly "Home Blessing Hour". One hour of doing 7 tasks, such as changing your sheets, taking out the garbage in every room, polish mirrors and doors, dust, etc - for only ten minutes each.

Back to the plan - The month of September I'm going to faithfully follow her program. I have everything I need - my areas broken down into zones, my detailed cleaning lists set up, etc - I just need to DO IT.

This coming week - September 6-10 the Zone will be The Kitchen. My kitchen and dining room are kind of one room, so I'm going to do that area. I'm actually a little excited about the prospect. I'm going to report in here on Friday to keep myself accountable and see how well I did. I'm determined to get my house back into shape.

Wish me luck!

(if you'd like to check out the FlyLady - check out her website here! Start with the BabySteps!)

This and That

I can't seem to settle down to anything today. Got up early and took the Little Guy for a haircut at the children's hair salon in town. I have to say... it's worth the $16 bucks to have someone else cut the squirmy kid's hair. I'm sure it would look VERY interesting if I tried it. I was always one of those little girls with the interesting bangs... the kind where you KNOW their mommy cut them. =)

Then we came home and I tackled the stack of dishes in the sink... there were so many that they wouldn't all fit in the dishwasher (ahh... FlyLady... how I've failed in my "shining my sink"...). Then I read my Alice's Adventures in Wonderland for a few minutes and now I'm dinking around online! I have a whole list of thing I could or should be doing, but just can't settle down to any of it.

I'm thinking that when the Little Guy wakes up we might take a walk... here in the Pacific NW it's been horribly wet and soggy for days and days and it looks like the sun has FINALLY decided to arrive, so I better take advantage of it.

Yesterday, I was actually doing something productive and sewing on some new soft baby blocks when the Little Guy whacked the machine with one of his blocks and from then on the thread just jammed up when I tried to sew. SOOO.. frustrating! I tried and tried to get it fixed and could not. Finally I had to have my mom come over and apparently it just needed the needle changed or something. Obviously I'm not a sewing machine whiz... I basically know how to wind my bobbin, thread the machine and change my stich and that's about it. I've never even used the button holer, although that is on my list of things to learn this summer.

I also got a cute new book from the library called One-Yard Wonders that I'm pretty excited about working through some the patterns. I'm a small project sort of girl.

Sooo.... I'm not sure what we're going to do with the rest of our day... do you ever have days like that? So much to do, but you don't feel like doing any of it. I think it's probably because I have to work tomorrow and I'm kinda bummed about it.

Organized Clutter

Our house is clean enough to be healthy,
and dirty enough to be happy. ~Author Unknown

Do you ever wish that you were one of those OCD women who cleaned all the time and had a perfect house? Okay... well, me neither, but I wish I was better at keeping up on those everyday tasks like laundry and dishes instead of procrastinating until they are an overwhelming pile. I wouldn't say my house is a disaster... usually if someone stopped by I might be apologetic, but I wouldn't absolutely die of mortification... I mean... I do have a 14 month old people!

But, I do know I could do better and procrastinate less and that it would probably make my life a lot easier and more enjoyable because don't you love your house when it's clean!?

Well, I do have a solution of sorts. I have done it in the past, but have since fallen off the bandwagon. =) My favorite cleaning lady is The Fly Lady. She has these wonderful daily routines like "Swish and Swipe" "Shine Your Sink" and monthly Zones. Like I said, it's wonderful when you follow it because everything stays pretty clean. You only work in 15 minute (setting a timer) blocks of time, so you don't get overwhelmed. You start with her babysteps and wherever you are.

Anyway... check it out - I'm sticking her button to the sidebar. I'm thinking of getting back on the bandwagon... but maybe next week. =)