Simplify

This will be my third year with a ‘word.’    It sounds funny to say it like that, but there it is, my WORD. 

Sure, there are things I want to achieve this year — more like the standard resolutions — but the word thing has really worked for me over the past two years, so I’m going to stick with it. 

I always have a lot of things going on in this head of mine, so the beauty of a word is that it’s easy, small enough to remember yet broad enough to be applicable to many aspects of my life. 

This year, I want to simplify my schedule,

simplify my record keeping,

simplify my belongings,

simplify my menu,

simplify my work,

simplify my overall objectives in life. 

It’s a good word for me.

My husband and I are both feeling intensely optimistic about twentytwelve.    It’s going to be a great year.  If I simplify where I can, I will minimize some of the peripheral distractions in order to move forward more resolutely, 

with what really matters.

Happy New Year to all!

This post has been linked to The Lettered Cottage.    (This little word of mine.  I’m gonna let it shine.) 

Progress Update: 5 & 6/52

When we installed a new kitchen 3 years ago, I had one 13′ wall of drawers installed, because really, you can’t have enough drawers.  The idea of pulling all the contents out toward you (instead of stooping down to reach in and to the back) was just too appealing to pass up.  On top of regular drawers for cutlery, cooking utensils and tea towels, we have them for casserole dishes, mixing bowls, storage containers, little ‘dip’ dishes, plates and bowls, and all the kids cups.  This way, they can empty the dishwasher on their own and get their own dishes without having to climb up on the counter. 

It’s a wonderful system, but it has its flaws. 

Like I said, the kids empty the dishwasher, so their cup drawer usually ends up a mess.  On top of that, I usually save a few recyclable containers for crafts (mostly to hold paint), and this is usually the place they get tossed.  Making this my org project for the week was really more out of necessity than anything else.  That drawer was close to not closing!  It was nice to have a simple project after last week’s closet overhaul. 

Actually, I so enjoyed the result of the cup drawer, I also did my container drawer:  6/52.  Woot!  

I love this challenge because it can include tiny projects too… and really, aren’t our clutter problems just a culmination of a boatload of little ones?   Baby steps eventually cover a lot of territory. 

Here’s what I’ve tackled so far this year:

52.  Sitting room dresser drawers

51.  Foyer armoire

50.  Coffee cupboard

49.  David’s closet

48.  Kids’ Cup drawer

47.  Container drawer

46.  ???

If you want to jump into the challenge, head on over to the Org Junkie where Laura explains the details.

Progress Update: 4/52

Okay, next org project on the list?  A major purge/sort and let’s face it… RE-FOLD of David’s closet.   If I loved the man anymore, I’m quite certain I would burst.  But seriously, where in the world did he acquire such absurd  folding skills?  Actually, it’s not even folding.  It’s more like rolling.  Or something.   I don’t even know. 

Anyway, putting away his laundry was a major issue, as you can see.  Nary a spot for anything:

It’s a small ‘L’ shaped walk-in that will actually store a pretty impressive number of items.  At some point I hope to tear out the shelving and rods and reconfigure it so it makes better use of the space.  At that time I will also paint out that awful pink colour.   (Tip:  I always tell my clients to paint their closets white for that very reason.  It’s a nightmare to have to remove all the items from your closet when your tastes change.  White (or very neutral at least) is just…  practical!) 

Although I have plans to update the closet, this was just about purging, sorting and ‘neatening’ up.  To start, I hauled every single item out and piled it on the bed.  (And yes, although I painted my room this past summer, I still have a small section of wallpaper to peel… so I can paint.  I had hoped to finish it while David was a way last week, but ran out of time.  I’m always running out of time.  If I can finish it in February I’ll be happy.)

I vacuumed, wiped and started sorting.  In the end, I tossed a giant garbage bag of clothing that was rarely worn OR a major surplus item (t-shirts) OR in poor shape.  A few things were saved for ‘work clothes’, two shirts were cut into rags and the rest is being donated.  The items that made the cut were neatly folded or hung up.  In order to minimize opportunity for that little rolling-instead-of-folding issue I mentioned, I thought it would be a pretty good idea to hang all the t-shirts.  Less folding, fewer wrinkles.  Perfect!  I’ve done this with the kids’ shirts since they were about 2, so don’t know what took me so long to clue in to it as a solution for David.   It should be good! 

He came home that night, went into his closet to get changed and was so pleasantly surprised by what he found.  It felt so good to do that for him.  

Doesn’t it feel amazing to do special things for someone you love?  Seriously, I just can’t get enough of it. 

Thankfully, David can’t get enough of it either.  He reciprocated by making a remarkable (homemade save for the noodles) date night meal to celebrate the Chinese New Year.   Delicious orange beef, vegetable lo mein, wontons and wonton soup (which we devoured before the picture). 

But this post is about organizing… right? 

Yeah.

So far, 2011 has seen me organize 4/52 items. 

52.  Sitting room dresser drawers

51.  Foyer armoire

50.  Coffee cupboard

49.  David’s closet

48.  We’ll have to see…

Visit Laura (the Org Junkie) for more on the 52 weeks project.

Repreive

One day this week, the kids were all upstairs doing their morning thing.  They weren’t fighting.  There were no tears.  They were just diligently working away on their bedroom.  They even changed their sheets without being asked.   It was pretty sweet. 

I used the time to fold laundry, putter around on the main level, clean out the fireplace, take out the garbage and swab the poop deck.  Both of them. 

When they came downstairs 9:45 and realized they were 45 minutes late for school, I smiled and told them it was okay.  They could go ahead and do what they wanted.  It’s good to have a repreive from the routine now and then!  After a grin and a hug, Gabe grabbed a book and a seat in the sun on the upstairs landing.  Caleb went up to the playroom to create a Lego masterpiece.  Eden, being the eager preschooler that she is, got her school bin and binders and got to work.  

When Gabe was done his book, he took it upon himself to make a birthday card for a party he has coming up this weekend.  Then he came down and made a nice big fruit salad, all by himself, for the first time ever. 

Caleb came down after a bit, put away some lingering breakfast items and loaded the dishwasher, without being asked.  He made a cute little comment about how it feels so good in here when it’s tidy.  Then he proceeded to wonder in disbelief how we clean, it gets dirty again, we clean again…   Funny.

When Eden had clearly had enough of her worksheets, she and Caleb sat down to a game of chess.  Yes, he’s teaching her how to play.  Even though she’s only four, it’s going very, very well.  (They played for 2 hours the other day.  This is one of the ‘other day’ pictures.  She’s clearly losing but still looks pretty happy, thank goodness.)

It was a beautiful morning.  The kids didn’t require text books, pencils and sitting still to be learning things.   I didn’t say anything to any of them about what to do.  Aside from a bit of guidance on the best way to cut a pineapple, and reading the worksheet instructions for Eden, they learned all on their own.  They used their critical thinking skills to find things to do and figure out how to do them best.  Isn’t that how we live life as adults?   There is something so wonderful about not having to spell it out step by step. 

And to top it all off, the sun was shining.

Colour Coded Kids

Last year I decided to assign a colour to each of the kids.  Many a home educator does this, but it took me a while to clue in to the benefits.  No, it’s not difficult to read their names, but it is MUCH easier to have things colour coded; you know who owns the item at a glance from across the room, and fewer steps and less time for mom makes for a good system.  Period. 

Now, the kids each have a colour (our girl has two actually because many things often come in purple OR blue but not both).  We’ve been using the colours for binders, notebooks, cover pages, pencils, and any other thing we can think of.   But what I really wanted was to have colour coded cups. 

The cup situation in our house was pitiful.   There was a lot of that dreadful affliction known as “But-I-Don’t-Remember-Which-Cup-Is-Mine-Itis”, so it wasn’t unusual for me to have a dozen cups to wash each day.  I have three kids, people.  Only three. 

I searched high and low for small glasses that had bits of colour on them so I could colour code their cups as I had everything else.  After a year of looking at second hand stores, yard sales, dollar stores and yes, even ‘real’ stores, I couldn’t find such a thing.  Then I started to look for a special paint so I could add red, green and blue stripes to our existing dollar store glasses, but couldn’t bring myself to spend the small fortune for the multi-step tools to accomplish that feat … 3 times for 3 colours.  And who knows how long it would stay on anyway.  We tried rubber bands on them for a while, but it just became another step in another process… something we didn’t need. 

Then, one day before Christmas, the heavens opened up and the sun shone down on a small section of shelf at a local grocery store.  Small and sale-priced acrylicy-type cups in the colours I needed.  Yes, they were plastic, but they would do.  I was so tired of searching.

Now, we have 3 cups to wash each day.  Halla-Loo-Ya!   

I just read about this idea at one of my favourite homeschooling blogs.  It’s another cute approach to reducing your cup-washing if you’re not into colour coding. 

Living with Intention

Have you seen this yet?  Oh. my. GOODNESS.  It makes me smile and cry at the same time. 

On the smiley side, it makes me grateful to be homeschooling,

    to be choosing more time with my kids,

         to be looking at things a bit differently,

                 to be thankful for the many gifts in my life. 

On the tearful side, it makes me hungry.

    Hungry to do more by doing less,

          to slow down,

                  to seek the gratitude not just in the obvious gifts,

                             but also in mundane.  

To live intentionally, and savour

every

little

bit 

of this amazing gift of life,

                                                                       as fleeting as it is.  

The best gift is yet to come.

 

Beauty drips from Ann Voskamp’s lips.  You can hear more of what she has to say on her blog.

Progress Update: 52 Weeks of Organizing

Remember that little dresser in my sitting room?  It was filled with paper and odds and ends and it felt SO good to finally take care of it.  

Okay, so I said I’d report back last weekend – like a whole week ago.  Yeah, yeah.  I know.   I did do this way back on Monday.  Whatever.  It’s done so I don’t mind it being a tad late.  We have to be reasonable with our bits of progress. 

Here’s the before:

Just look at the top drawer!  It’s the catch-all.  I see a map, sunglasses, a mini flash light, makeup, hair clips, a tire gauge, pens, pencils, memory verse cards, business cards… a whole big bunch of randomness. 

But now it’s a thing of beauty. 

The top drawer continues to be a junk drawer.  It’s been cleaned out and sorted, but my thinking is that without a junk drawer, I’ll have junk counters and that’s way worse.  So, this will continue to be a catch-all of randomness.  I know they say that all things need a home, but hello…?  Where do you store your whistles?   Or the buttons that have been yanked off of your tufted ottoman?  Yes, I do really like having one go-to spot for all the little bits and pieces that we come across in the course of a day. 

The second and third drawers were all paper. 

There were colouring pages, origami paper and school work that didn’t make it into binders.  There were drawings and special notes to mom and dad.  I sorted through every one of them.  Only a few were kept for ‘archives’, a few others were photographed and the rest were recycled or put in the ‘scrap’ paper tray so we could use the other side. 

Now these drawers now serve to store some of our main craft supplies.  I previously had bins in the basement that I would pull up when needed, but having key materials on hand will make school prep and craft time way easier.  Some things are already in here (construction paper, glue gun, glue sticks, stickers, stencils) and as we pull more out of our basement bins it will be put back in here instead.  This will help us to pull out only what we use (sort of like that ‘turn the hanger’ trick for closets) and will keep the drawers to a reasonable amount of stuff.  The only thing I won’t keep here is paint, since that requires some preparation on my part before the kids break into it.   

On top of that cute little dresser, I also tore apart our front armoire.  Our home has no front closet, no storage closet, no linen closet, so I got this a couple years ago at a buy & sell place in town for about $200.  I do hope to paint it sometime as it just seems so dark at the end of the hallway.  I’m really digging the interior paint colour, though! 

It’s used for my outer gear and David’s, though you’d never know it from the way it looked before:

NOW look!  It’s thrilling to have bins at the bottom for our snowpants and heavy mitts.  Our big snow boots are down there too.  We have bins up top for hats, scarves and gloves and a little shelf space for our favourite gloves and a few other things we use every day. 

I also screwed two hooks on the left side for my purses.  One big catch-all purse and my running out the door across the shoulder little purse.  This is much better than the kitchen counter or in the puddle of melted snow by the back door!   Now I’m thinking a few key hooks on the inside of the door. 

I also did my coffee cupboard, thanks to Rachel Anne over at Home Sanctuary.  One of her small things this week was to tackle a shelf.  I did all four, plus one shelf in my pantry.  No before picture, but I’m digging the after: 

So far 2011 has seen me organize 3/52 items. 

1.  Sitting room dresser drawers

2.  Foyer armoire

3.  Coffee cupboard

Bit by bit, I’m getting there and it feels GREAT!

I’m a Piler, not a Filer

The desire to be more organized is a big item on my list of goals this year.  To be honest, that one’s on my list every year.  The good news is that each year I am a little more organized than the previous, so at least I’m headed in the right direction.   That’s what I’m telling myself anyway.  

Paper is a very big issue in this house.  On top of the regular family papers and papers the mailman brings, my husband is a Town Councillor (part time at least), plus we have papers from our various church initiatives and volunteer organizations.  I also have a business that requires a certain amount of paper.  (Receipts out the wazoo.  Ugh.  I hate receipts.  In a big way.)  However, I think the worst culprit of the paper situation here is the fact that we homeschool.  In addition to using paper every day… lots of it… the kids are almost always here at home to make things messier.  There’s not a lot of kid-free time here at Casa del Wacko, and we know what kind of a mess kids can make! 

Our lovely century home lacks storage, so that’s definitely a barrier and to make matters worse, I’m a piler, not a filer.  So what paper I do have ends up stacked in random piles rather than filed in the manner most people would consider requisite. 

Oh, I’ve tried all the ‘systems.’  I’ve bought colour coded files.  I bought a fancy label maker.  I bought the sticky-uppy tab things.  I’ve had filing cabinets, desk top hanging file systems, divided desktop file sorters, portable systems with handles that I can move as needed.  I’ve had years where I’ve prepared all the files the “right” way, with those fancy labels I mentioned, and have had them hang there, empty.  Indefinitely.  

For whatever reason, I can file my paid bills without a problem.  But all my other ‘active’ project files just suffer miserably.   I guess I don’t like pulling a file when I need it again…?  It’s not for lack of trying.  I just have a problem with it for some strange reason. 

In my season as a business professional, I had one of those vertical letter sorter type of thing that sat on my desk, empty, yet I had piles of paper on my credenza and on the floor all around me. 

The first step is admitting you have a problem. 

The second step is finding a solution.  So, rather than continuing to fail at my standard vertical files, I am embracing the piles.  I’ll be working with a pile system that works for me.  No point fighting it.  I know I’m good with letter trays.  They work for me, so I’m just gonna go with that for this year.   I so want THIS to be the year I get organized, and maybe my piles will help me get there.

Laura, over at Org Junkie has started a new challenge this year: 

It involves tackling one project a week, every week.  It’s what I wanted to do ANYWAY, but giving it a name and linking up with others adds accountability that I just didn’t have in past years, when I failed miserably at my “get organized” goal.  So this is it.  THIS is the year!!!!

For my first project, I have chosen this cute little antique dresser. 

It’s in our sitting room, the room where we do most of our school work.  Its drawers don’t get used anymore because they are crammed full of random bits of this and that.  The top drawer is a junk drawer.  It contains hair clips, makeup, old keys, some pens, loose change, probably lots of little things I’ve been looking for and unable to find.  The bottom two drawers are paper.  ALL paper.

This is the weekend I clean them out.  Just watch me. 

I’ll report back on Monday.  Me, and all my piles. 

Strength in numbers people.  Wanna join me ?  Swing on over to this post  at OrgJunkie to find out more.

A New Day!

It’s a new day alright!   It’s sunny and glorious and NEW.  (That’s the best part.)

My funk yesterday and resulting desire to put the mood to good use, produced 4 big boxes of books to take to the used book store.   I’d estimate about 300 books in all, about 297 of which are children’s books.  It’s a fantastic feeling!  

Today will be a busy one, as we continue through our Spring Cleaning this morning and I fill my afternoon with some projects for a few clients.  In a couple hours, I’ll have a visit from a friend, and one of his two newly adopted children from Haiti.   What a blessing!   (I hope she lets me give her a squeeze!)

Oh, and I want to leave you with a great post I read first thing this morning, by Sarah over at Clover Lane…  Teenagers These Days.   I love it! 

Have a great day everyone!   (I know I will!)

Note to self: Suck it Up, Buttercup!

Here I am trying to get motivated.

At 2:00 in the afternoon.

I was doing fine this morning but then a conversation with my husband over lunch just caused all my energy and excitement to be sucked rapidly from my being.

Yes, we’re still struggling with that family matter I mentioned a while back.   In most matters of my life, I feel like I can deal.  I really believe that my attitude in any situation greatly impacts the outcome. 

But this time, I’m just not feelin’ it.  This time, I feel chilled, and literally sick to my stomach.  I think that feeling is driven by the sense of the issue being out of my control.  And yes, I know EVERYTHING is technically out of my control, but sometimes that nasty feeling of helplessness takes over.  Sometimes despair starts to creep in.  I don’t like it, but sometimes I want to just wallow a bit and feel sad.  You know what I mean? 

Well, that’s where I am today.

Today, I’m feeling helpless and frustrated, wrapped up in a fleece blanket…

…for another two minutes.

That is when I’ve decided to suck it up.  I’m about to kick my own butt out of this chair and out of this state of poopy-ness.  I think I’m going to use my bad mood to wreak havoc on some stored clutter in anticipation of an upcoming yardsale.  Might as well work it to my advantage. 

Attic or basement?  Attic or basement?

Okay, attic it is! 

Sigh…  Here I go. 

This is me, sucking it up.