Thought I would let you know how I've been spending my time recently when I am not mothering, wifeing and cleaning.
I've been DANCING!
I can't stop. I would call for my friends to come make me stop, except they are all just as hooked!
It all started with a little game called Zumba. I took a class at the Y for about a year and loved every second. I would almost pass out on the drive home every time, but it kept me coming back for more. It is a fantastic work out and it is super fun! So when I found out that I could buy it as a game, I knew it was meant to be. I have played it almost every day several times a day for 2 weeks. It has gotten so bad that Asher actually told me to stop dancin'!
Girls nights...what do we do? Have a dance off! Last weekend, I went to my sweet friend Katie's house and we Zumba'd and Dance Centraled our way to exhaustion. Luckily we have yummy snacks to give us the energy to survive. A few days later, I hosted a spontaneous girls night with my friends Amanda and Brenda. You might have heard of a guy named Michael Jackson, he is a pretty good dancer and has a couple hits. Well, she brought her Wii game over and you can add it to my obsessed column. It is so much fun!
The dancing doesn't stop there because this weekend was JAM PACKED full of fun! Like I am not even sure if this blog is going to make a bit of sense because I am in a haze of exhaustion, so please excuse my ramblings. Any who...Friday night Hubby and I got all dolled up and went to a fancy party for our dear friends who celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. Delicious food, catered Sheridans custard (omw...every party should have this) live band (music was killller!) and the sweetest of all, a renewal ceremony. After shedding a few tears due to the sweetness level...the band kicked off with what?.... oh nothing, just a little MJ! I wanted to break out my dance video moves so badly, but alas, they were video taping and who really wants evidence? And just as I was dancing in the Sheridans line with my seriously hilarious friend Karli, what did my ears hear except the first notes of Hubby and I's song-Anytime by Brian McKnight! So I gave him the look and within seconds we are dancing away like we are back in high school. MJ, JT, Brian McKnight it was like the band was in my head. It was beyond fun and my feet showed the level of fun. Jessica Simpson shoes are not made for hours of dancing. Or maybe that is just what happens when you spend your everyday in yoga pants and flip flops. Either way, the pain was totally worth it.
My boys had stayed the night with my Bro-in-law and when I picked them up the next morning, we all made plans for a super duper fun family day. Extreme sledding and a Kinect party that night. I say extreme because anything with our family can not be normal. No, we have to build ramps and jumps and we come up with crazy sled formations to find the highest speeds possible. I have videos to prove all of this, but unfortunately blogger apparently doesn't care to load ANY of my videos anymore. Annoying. Imagine with me if you will, how my poor feet feel. I have been dancing daily for weeks and then attend the best party ever where I dance until the stage broke (actually happened), followed up by hours of extreme sledding and all the walking up the crazy steep hills and then add in about 4 hours of Kinect sports and ZUMBA! I just wanted to find a pedi chair to soak my poor feet in and never move again. Speaking of Zumba again, my sweet nephews J, T, L are a bundle of fun. They will try anything, even Zumba. I spent the rest of the night having a dance off with different family members, but most of the time I wasn't dancing so much as doubled over in laughter because they are just too cute. I wish I had a video of that.
Sunday, I took a much needed dance break. After church we headed over to our friends the Weeses for a Super-Super bowl party! My stomach is sore today from all of the laughing and I am always happy to be sore from that. I can't give all of our fun away, but I will say that hair extensions were involved and someone may or may not have looked exactly like Billy Ray Cyrus from Achey Breaky heart days. True Story.
My feet feel bruised, my guts hurt from a weekend of fun and I am going to need a large mixing bowl full of coffee to survive this day, but it was totally worth it.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Quotes
Boys quotes from the last few days...
Izzy:
While doing devotions and reading the story of Moses and the parting of the Red Sea, I asked Izzy how did he think God was going to get the people across the sea? He gave me a "duh" look and said, "Well he needs to talk to the guy that made the big boat! That's how they are gonna get across!"
"I love my teacher so much and I bet her driveway is so full of snow and you know I am a super good shoveler so I think I am going to tell her I am going to need her address so I can come by her house and shovel her driveway. *later after school* Well, I told her and she said that is great...but she didn't know her address!"
Papa was making a quick lunch for himself and pulled the pan off of the stove, brought it to the table and steam was everywhere. Izzy said, "Papa! What are you doing? That pot is still stove'in!"
Asher:
While watching his morning show, I was cleaning and he said, "MAMA! You too NOISEY! Ashey hearin' dis!"
"Mama, you nuggle Ashey." (snuggle. :)
"My Bobo so Happy!" (After Izzy got a free snack at Sams Club.)
"Mama, Ashey tell secret." ...leans into my ear and whispers... "Secret, secret, secret."
Just a few from this week that made me smile! Hope it gave you one too.
Izzy:
While doing devotions and reading the story of Moses and the parting of the Red Sea, I asked Izzy how did he think God was going to get the people across the sea? He gave me a "duh" look and said, "Well he needs to talk to the guy that made the big boat! That's how they are gonna get across!"
"I love my teacher so much and I bet her driveway is so full of snow and you know I am a super good shoveler so I think I am going to tell her I am going to need her address so I can come by her house and shovel her driveway. *later after school* Well, I told her and she said that is great...but she didn't know her address!"
Papa was making a quick lunch for himself and pulled the pan off of the stove, brought it to the table and steam was everywhere. Izzy said, "Papa! What are you doing? That pot is still stove'in!"
Asher:
While watching his morning show, I was cleaning and he said, "MAMA! You too NOISEY! Ashey hearin' dis!"
"Mama, you nuggle Ashey." (snuggle. :)
"My Bobo so Happy!" (After Izzy got a free snack at Sams Club.)
"Mama, Ashey tell secret." ...leans into my ear and whispers... "Secret, secret, secret."
Just a few from this week that made me smile! Hope it gave you one too.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Performance Review
When I used to work at a large financial firm, I received quarterly performance reviews. I would sit through a long meeting while following along as they read my "points" good and bad. I would sign off and vow to improve in my areas of lack. (eyeroll)
Tonight, Israel and I did our normal routine, except tonight after devotions I felt urged to stick around and just let him talk for a while. I listened as he shared about his day, his friends at school, school rumors, injuries dating way back to summer (sidenote: what is it with boys? they remember every single injury), our relationships with God, forgiveness, my day and our plans in the next week.
Finally after all of that I asked, "Israel, what kind of Mommy do you think I am? What things do I need to work harder on and what things do you love that I do?
"Well, you are a really good Mom, but you could be a (fingers pinched close together) little better. Like you could try to make more good food. Like good quesadillas and tonight you made good hot cocoa, but I like mine a little hotter and you could've put a little more marshmallows in it."
Me- "Hmmm. I can work on that for sure. What else and you can tell me anything."
"You are always hurrying. Hurry Hurry Hurry Hurry Hurry. We gotta go and we gotta do this fast and I am over it! I think you need to work on not hurrying all the time. Slow down and play."
Me- "Wow, that is totally valid. I promise I will work harder on that."
"But don't worry, because I think you are good. You always do lots of stuff for me that makes my heart feel good like surprise parties and surprises in my lunch. You play fun things with us and you put that snow in the bath tub, I really liked that."
He gave everyone reviews; Grandma, Papa, Asher, Daddy and it was so interesting to get his take on their relationship.
For Papa, he said, "He is a good Papa, he is perfect he doesn't need to work on ANYTHING!"
But for Grandma he said, "She needs to get my drinks faster...sometimes she says she will get one and then she forgets."
"He thought Daddy is a good Daddy and he just needed to work on being patient and he gave him lots of credit for things he thought Daddy did for him but really I did. :) I let him think it anyway. He had lots of good things to say about Daddy like that he is a really hard worker and that he loves to play with Daddy. He thinks that Daddy is really good about making time for him even though he has lots of homework and even said, "that makes me feel really good that he stops to play with me every single night."
Ashers review was a little more critical....of course. He said, "Asher needs to work on not being a baby he needs to grow up a little. He needs to not throw his dirty socks on me when I am playing PSP and make me lose-ed my game! So rude. He needs to not make a mess in my room and then not clean it up. But, really he is the best brother. He is so nice and tonight we played in my room and he leaned over and kissed me 4 times and I thought that was really nice. He is my best friend, but he still needs to work harder. He has a lot of bettering to do."
Tonight, Izzy and I talked for 90 minutes before bed. It was truly one of the most interesting conversations I have had in a long time. This conversation really hit home with me tonight because everything he mentioned is really right on. I am organized and schedule and NEVER EVER late. While trying to teach my boys the importance of a work ethic and time management, obviously, being relaxed and enjoying the ride to whatever we are doing isn't always on my mind. It is my intention, but my personality sometimes cloudies it. After hearing my performance review today, I will not just sign off and dismiss it like I used to at my old job. We promised each other that we would work harder for each other and do better work.
I am hoping very soon to get a perfect performance review like Papa did, hopefully someday!
Ask your kids for a performace review, you might be surprised at their response. :)
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
1/2
I realized today that my kids are officially half-way to their birthdays, which means they are now 2 1/2 and 5 1/2. Oh my. 3 and 6 are just around the corner and that makes me feel so sad. Doesn't 5 and 2 sound SO much smaller than 6 and 3? I have already started my party planning and jotting down my ideas. Thought now was a good time while I am thinking about it to write a 1/2 journal of what they are into right now.
Izzy- 5 1/2:
Sleep: Pillow pet dolphin "Dolphie", "Roary" the lion and "Shelby" the turtle all have to be in your bed for you to be able to sleep. You still listen to music every night and I have to leave the door cracked. You go to bed at 7 and wake up between 6-7 each day.
Eating: You are starting to expand your palette and most times will at least try something once. Like most kids your age, you love chicken nuggets, anything with dip, cheese, yogurt and fruit. You like pasta with olive oil and parm no sauce for you. You still don't like hamburgers. If I let you, I think you could eat an entire pizza by yourself. Oh...the teenage years!
School: You are in Kindergarten and LOVE school. Your favorite classes are Computer lab and gym. You may or may not have "forgotten" that I pack your lunch every day and "accidentally" sometimes buy a hot lunch on credit. You think it is super cool to eat a hot lunch...soon enough you will be thankful your Mommy packs a nice lunch for you. : )
Activities: The long days of school have made it almost impossible to be in extracurricular activities, but we are going to try Karate in the next month and you are super excited. You love soccer and baseball and all things outside.
New things: You are learning to read and you are so proud of yourself. You have become a HUGE helper around the house. You love to do anything that helps a family member out and you are a very hard worker when it comes to weekly chores. Recently, you learned how to rinse dishes and load the dishwasher, put away your folded laundry, wash counters and table after meals. Your weekly chore is emptying trash from all rooms in the house and you do a great job!
Favorite thing: Right now, it has to be video games. You are brilliant when it comes to anything computer based and so video games flows right with that. You have just about everything there is: Gameboy, DS, PSP, Wii and Daddy lets you play his Xbox 360 with him now too. PSP is your personal fave especially with your new game Eye Pet.
Growth: We measured you the other day and you are currently 51 inches tall and about 55 lbs. You wear a size 8 or Medium in big kids and within the month you will be in a size 3 shoe. You grow like a weed!
No matter how big you get, you are the sweetest and kindest boy I have ever met. You are always encouraging and loving and I couldn't ask for a better big brother to Asher. 5 1/2 years old, you are kind, obedient, funny, sensitive, smart and super helpful.
Asher- 2 1/2:
Sleep: You LOVE to sleep and Mommy loves you for it! You go to bed promptly at 7 (if not before) each night and sleep until 8:30-9. You like to wake slowly and if we try to get you up before you are ready you point to the door and say "No." It normally takes you about 30 minutes before you are ready. You sleep with music and only allow "Doogie" the dog to sleep with you. You like all lights off and the door shut completely. You still love your binky at night.
Eat: You USED to love everything and ate almost any vegetable as long as it was pureed. Now, you have 2 food groups, fruit and yogurt. You don't like any kind of meat or potatoes. Every morning you eat the exact same thing, 2 waffles and a piece of turkey sausage with a milk. It is the first thing you ask for and until you see the waffles go into the toaster, you can't focus on anything else.
School: Well, you're not in school yet, but when Izzy is you love to learn. You practice flashcards and play your learning computers every day. You know all of your letters, can count to 13 and know all of your shapes. You love puzzles, games and LOVE to play I Spy. You really love when I read to you and would go through the whole bookshelf in one sitting, if I had the voice for it. :)
Activities: You love to play trains and soccer. You are very coordinated for your age and can keep up with the big boys in anything. We are definitely signing you up for Fall soccer because you practice everyday and already have a victory dance.
New thing: Has to be conversation. It took you a long time to talk even though you understood everything, but we officially have entire conversations and I can understand almost everything you say. Last week, I was out for the night and Daddy put you to bed. The next morning when I woke you up the first thing you told me was "Ashie naughty. Daddy put Ashie pime tout (time out) No. No. No! No hitting Bobo Ashie. No Hit." *shaking his head no* :) It is so fun to finally know what you have been thinking all of this time!
Favorite thing: Cozy coupe, still. You love that thing and now you are so super fast! I do make you wear a helmet sometimes because you like to drive it with your eyes closed and see what you bump into. Extreme cozy couping!
Growth: Not exactly sure how tall, but I know you are the size of most 3 1/2 year olds. You weigh about 34 lbs. You wear size 3T and size 8-9 shoes.
At 2 1/2 years old, you make me laugh non-stop. My little owl, is blossoming into a slightly (very slightly) more social little guy and you love to make people laugh. You are obedient and very very loving. You are constantly saying "I hode (hold) you Mama?" You like being the baby and you adore your big brother. You are smart, loving, ornery, affectionate, quiet and funny.
I wish I could stop time and keep them at these ages forever. Can't imagine how much they will change in these next few months.
Izzy- 5 1/2:
Sleep: Pillow pet dolphin "Dolphie", "Roary" the lion and "Shelby" the turtle all have to be in your bed for you to be able to sleep. You still listen to music every night and I have to leave the door cracked. You go to bed at 7 and wake up between 6-7 each day.
Eating: You are starting to expand your palette and most times will at least try something once. Like most kids your age, you love chicken nuggets, anything with dip, cheese, yogurt and fruit. You like pasta with olive oil and parm no sauce for you. You still don't like hamburgers. If I let you, I think you could eat an entire pizza by yourself. Oh...the teenage years!
School: You are in Kindergarten and LOVE school. Your favorite classes are Computer lab and gym. You may or may not have "forgotten" that I pack your lunch every day and "accidentally" sometimes buy a hot lunch on credit. You think it is super cool to eat a hot lunch...soon enough you will be thankful your Mommy packs a nice lunch for you. : )
Activities: The long days of school have made it almost impossible to be in extracurricular activities, but we are going to try Karate in the next month and you are super excited. You love soccer and baseball and all things outside.
New things: You are learning to read and you are so proud of yourself. You have become a HUGE helper around the house. You love to do anything that helps a family member out and you are a very hard worker when it comes to weekly chores. Recently, you learned how to rinse dishes and load the dishwasher, put away your folded laundry, wash counters and table after meals. Your weekly chore is emptying trash from all rooms in the house and you do a great job!
Favorite thing: Right now, it has to be video games. You are brilliant when it comes to anything computer based and so video games flows right with that. You have just about everything there is: Gameboy, DS, PSP, Wii and Daddy lets you play his Xbox 360 with him now too. PSP is your personal fave especially with your new game Eye Pet.
Growth: We measured you the other day and you are currently 51 inches tall and about 55 lbs. You wear a size 8 or Medium in big kids and within the month you will be in a size 3 shoe. You grow like a weed!
No matter how big you get, you are the sweetest and kindest boy I have ever met. You are always encouraging and loving and I couldn't ask for a better big brother to Asher. 5 1/2 years old, you are kind, obedient, funny, sensitive, smart and super helpful.
Asher- 2 1/2:
Sleep: You LOVE to sleep and Mommy loves you for it! You go to bed promptly at 7 (if not before) each night and sleep until 8:30-9. You like to wake slowly and if we try to get you up before you are ready you point to the door and say "No." It normally takes you about 30 minutes before you are ready. You sleep with music and only allow "Doogie" the dog to sleep with you. You like all lights off and the door shut completely. You still love your binky at night.
Eat: You USED to love everything and ate almost any vegetable as long as it was pureed. Now, you have 2 food groups, fruit and yogurt. You don't like any kind of meat or potatoes. Every morning you eat the exact same thing, 2 waffles and a piece of turkey sausage with a milk. It is the first thing you ask for and until you see the waffles go into the toaster, you can't focus on anything else.
School: Well, you're not in school yet, but when Izzy is you love to learn. You practice flashcards and play your learning computers every day. You know all of your letters, can count to 13 and know all of your shapes. You love puzzles, games and LOVE to play I Spy. You really love when I read to you and would go through the whole bookshelf in one sitting, if I had the voice for it. :)
Activities: You love to play trains and soccer. You are very coordinated for your age and can keep up with the big boys in anything. We are definitely signing you up for Fall soccer because you practice everyday and already have a victory dance.
New thing: Has to be conversation. It took you a long time to talk even though you understood everything, but we officially have entire conversations and I can understand almost everything you say. Last week, I was out for the night and Daddy put you to bed. The next morning when I woke you up the first thing you told me was "Ashie naughty. Daddy put Ashie pime tout (time out) No. No. No! No hitting Bobo Ashie. No Hit." *shaking his head no* :) It is so fun to finally know what you have been thinking all of this time!
Favorite thing: Cozy coupe, still. You love that thing and now you are so super fast! I do make you wear a helmet sometimes because you like to drive it with your eyes closed and see what you bump into. Extreme cozy couping!
Growth: Not exactly sure how tall, but I know you are the size of most 3 1/2 year olds. You weigh about 34 lbs. You wear size 3T and size 8-9 shoes.
At 2 1/2 years old, you make me laugh non-stop. My little owl, is blossoming into a slightly (very slightly) more social little guy and you love to make people laugh. You are obedient and very very loving. You are constantly saying "I hode (hold) you Mama?" You like being the baby and you adore your big brother. You are smart, loving, ornery, affectionate, quiet and funny.
I wish I could stop time and keep them at these ages forever. Can't imagine how much they will change in these next few months.
Snow Day #3/ Snow Inside
Snow Day #3 and I am still coming up with ways to entertain! Today the temperatures were frigid, -20 windchill was just a little too cold for us to do much of anything. I searched all night online for activity ideas for the kids and I thought this would be perfect for today. Bring the snow to you! I took a storage tub outside and filled it twice with snow and then dumped it in the boys bathtub. It filled it to the top and the boys played for over 2 hours with it. I found some toys like Izzy's tech deck snowboard and a guy and he built mounds and ramps and played X games! Asher loved to bury his toys and then dig them up with a crocodile claw. Gloves were all that this activity required and there was no mess!
We even built a snowman!
The looks on my boys faces were priceless and Izzy even said, "Mom, this is the best idea you ever had. I don't think I will ever go outside in the snow again and get cold and runny noses! I'll just play inside!" Sounds good to me!
We even built a snowman! 
The looks on my boys faces were priceless and Izzy even said, "Mom, this is the best idea you ever had. I don't think I will ever go outside in the snow again and get cold and runny noses! I'll just play inside!" Sounds good to me!
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Snow Day #2/ Business Edition
I had an idea of playing office after dinner tonight. Israel took my idea and said, "I want to do that, but I want to make a real business. So here are the pictures of his Grand Opening. He is a natural!
He came up with the name and logo on his own.
He got himself dressed up like a business professional.
Israel's Badge
This is the shop he set up in his bedroom. He had customers waiting for him to open up, but he wanted everything to be just right.
He even had business cards made.
Every serious professional needs a briefcase.
Papa was his first customer and he was an easy sell.
He was making money left and right! Customers were coming in like crazy and he was selling out of inventory quickly!
Daddy heard about the new shop and decided to check it out for himself. He found the perfect snowboard and was hoping he could get a student discount. They were negotiating the deal for a while. They finally settled on a deal for a piece of dubble bubble gum for the snowboard. Being a good businessman, he is writing Daddy a receipt.
Business is Booming!
Papa came in for another item and handed him a $100 bill, Izzy almost fainted. Then when Papa tried to take it back, the bill almost didn't make it. :) He didn't get to keep the 100, but he did make a good amount of money for his first day in his new business! I had to tell Izzy to close up shop for the night and get ready for bed. He said, "Oh good, because owning your own business is exhausting and all of this hard work made me sweaty! BUT I'M RIIIIIICCCCHHHH!"
He came up with the name and logo on his own.
He got himself dressed up like a business professional.
Israel's Badge
This is the shop he set up in his bedroom. He had customers waiting for him to open up, but he wanted everything to be just right.
He even had business cards made.
Every serious professional needs a briefcase.
Papa was his first customer and he was an easy sell.
He was making money left and right! Customers were coming in like crazy and he was selling out of inventory quickly!
Daddy heard about the new shop and decided to check it out for himself. He found the perfect snowboard and was hoping he could get a student discount. They were negotiating the deal for a while. They finally settled on a deal for a piece of dubble bubble gum for the snowboard. Being a good businessman, he is writing Daddy a receipt.
Business is Booming!
Papa came in for another item and handed him a $100 bill, Izzy almost fainted. Then when Papa tried to take it back, the bill almost didn't make it. :) He didn't get to keep the 100, but he did make a good amount of money for his first day in his new business! I had to tell Izzy to close up shop for the night and get ready for bed. He said, "Oh good, because owning your own business is exhausting and all of this hard work made me sweaty! BUT I'M RIIIIIICCCCHHHH!"Snow Day #2
We've been hit by a snowstorm and it is time to get creative people. I have two boys who want to play in the snow again and so I have to distract them with my super way more fun than a snowball fight ideas. I am only one person and dressing the 3 of us yesterday was exhausting.Then I had to haul everyone around on the sleds and they chased me all over the yard and then there was the picking up Asher out of the snow because he was so bundled up he couldn't move. Finally, when it was time to come inside, I realized there wasn't anyone to meet us with a mug of hot cocoa and yummy snacks because that person is me. After I get everyone undressed and redressed and under warm blankets, I had to cook lunch and by that time, I was WIPED. So that is why, I have to get creative today. God only gave me enough energy for one outside snow day a year. Hope you enjoyed it boys!
Snow Day #2 is officially Army day. After the boys morning bath, I dressed them in pj's and let them find all of their army gear. They dressed themselves up and helped me build a fort.
I wrote out missions for them to complete.
I hid a flag for them to find and capture.
I made them a soldiers lunch that they ate in their fort.
Today has been nothing but fun and giggles and it is so cute to hear them using their imagination. Lots of whispering and secrets are being shared in that fort. And thanks to Dora, Asher knows just how to follow a map and pick a path!
Asher was so busy waving the flag and saying "Hooray!" that he didn't notice his fellow soldier was wounded and needed help! Never leave a man behind!
Just when they were busy sharing military secrets, I ambushed their fort and shot them with as many Nerf bullets as I could find! I captured their flag and won the battle!
Having an army party this summer really paid off on this snow day. We had so much fun!
I packed a yummy snack bag for Izzy and we are spending some quality time together watching a movie while Asher naps. They were having so much fun playing army that I got all of my chores done this morning and besides dinner, I have the rest of the night to play! I have another fun idea for tonight....stay tuned!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
My "Junk Drawer"
It's about to get REAL.
Everyone knows I love to organize. It clears my mind and gives me a feeling of accomplishment all while making my husband a very happy guy. It's a win/win. There is one area that has eluded me for the past two years. It is the equivalent of my junk drawer. You know the drawer everyone has, you never know exactly what it contains, but if you are missing something it is the first place you look. My master closet is like a big junk drawer, yes it is true, as ashamed as I am to admit it.
The core issue is that it isn't just my master closet, it is like a multi-purpose room. Living with my parents, we only have our bedrooms and our closets as storage. Remember in that post on downsizing where I listed the stuff we did keep? Well, if it isn't the boys stuff, guess where I have to fit it...that's right in my room. My room is the catch all room. It is our living room, office, and if you ask the kids-their playroom (ugh). Imagine how difficult it is to keep this space our sanctuary, when I have to store everything we own in this space. It is not about flow, or decorative appeal but, merely function. This has left me feeling overwhelmed and honestly, my room/closet has always been the last on the priority list.
Blame it on the new year, but enough is enough. My boys rooms are spotless and organized. I love being in their rooms. I am ready to enjoy my space and tonight was the night to do it.
Only because I know you will love me in spite of what I am about to show you....
THE BEFORE:
Are you ready?........ 
*hangs head in shame*
Hubby's side
- Dry cleaning bag
- Tub of misc. items that used to be in a linen closet
- Enough toilet paper for me to be on the Extreme Couponing show on TLC.
Shelving on my side.
What? You don't have random camping items next to your perfume? Your sweater dress doesn't fall off of the hanger so much that you decide to just throw it in frustration? You don't keep your extra checks next to your jewelry box? You guys are so weird. First things first, I had to empty out the entire closet.
Everyone knows I love to organize. It clears my mind and gives me a feeling of accomplishment all while making my husband a very happy guy. It's a win/win. There is one area that has eluded me for the past two years. It is the equivalent of my junk drawer. You know the drawer everyone has, you never know exactly what it contains, but if you are missing something it is the first place you look. My master closet is like a big junk drawer, yes it is true, as ashamed as I am to admit it.
The core issue is that it isn't just my master closet, it is like a multi-purpose room. Living with my parents, we only have our bedrooms and our closets as storage. Remember in that post on downsizing where I listed the stuff we did keep? Well, if it isn't the boys stuff, guess where I have to fit it...that's right in my room. My room is the catch all room. It is our living room, office, and if you ask the kids-their playroom (ugh). Imagine how difficult it is to keep this space our sanctuary, when I have to store everything we own in this space. It is not about flow, or decorative appeal but, merely function. This has left me feeling overwhelmed and honestly, my room/closet has always been the last on the priority list.
Blame it on the new year, but enough is enough. My boys rooms are spotless and organized. I love being in their rooms. I am ready to enjoy my space and tonight was the night to do it.
Only because I know you will love me in spite of what I am about to show you....
THE BEFORE:
Are you ready?........ 
*hangs head in shame*
Hubby's side
- Dry cleaning bag- Tub of misc. items that used to be in a linen closet
- Enough toilet paper for me to be on the Extreme Couponing show on TLC.
Shelving on my side.
It is amazing the things you find while crazily organizing while the Hubby is away. Take this for instance: 
Butterfly Hubby caught for me during the Coldplay concert we went to, as his birthday present!
Butterfly Hubby caught for me during the Coldplay concert we went to, as his birthday present!Or this: 
The sweetest love letter written in song lyrics telling me he was surprising me with John Mayer tickets for Christmas!
The sweetest love letter written in song lyrics telling me he was surprising me with John Mayer tickets for Christmas!Part of organizing is putting like items together. I started with my jewelry box and quickly realized someone has a slight problem... 
More in the safe... all but one, purchased by his beautiful wife. :) And then there is the really BIG problem....... 
Except, that isn't all. I counted 28. TWENTY-EIGHT pairs of shoes. I had to give him the top shelf which is long, as you can see by these pictures, plus the two racks under his side, but still that wasn't enough so I had to then create a third row by simply stacking them on top of other shoes. Someone needs to read my downsizing post.... (I'm looking at you Hubby) 
Then I cleaned up the cleaning shelf. 
And started putting things back where they belong. 
And of course I broke out my label maker, "Mabel." :)
And the shelves are now organized with purpose and they know their names.
I have to just add this, because every single time I go into my closet to get something as soon as I see this white coat, I smile and think of our future. :)
I wish I could get a full view of the closet in one shot, but that is pretty much impossible. You saw how our closet is divided in half and out of my half, I filled a large garage size trash bag of clothes and shoes to donate. After coming home and seeing my work, it has inspired Hubby to do the same. He has also requested I come up with a better way to hang his scrubs. He was very impressed and super happy to see that I had used Mabel. My plan is to finish up tomorrow by going through the rest of my drawers, cleaning out a bookshelf in our room and then dropping off all of our items at the donation centers.
Hubby did ask, "How long do you think it will stay this way?" I gave him a stern look and said, "Forever. Because I LABELED."
So, show me your "Junk Drawer", I dare ya!
Happy Organizing!
M.
More in the safe... all but one, purchased by his beautiful wife. :) And then there is the really BIG problem....... 
Except, that isn't all. I counted 28. TWENTY-EIGHT pairs of shoes. I had to give him the top shelf which is long, as you can see by these pictures, plus the two racks under his side, but still that wasn't enough so I had to then create a third row by simply stacking them on top of other shoes. Someone needs to read my downsizing post.... (I'm looking at you Hubby) 
Then I cleaned up the cleaning shelf. 
And started putting things back where they belong. 
And of course I broke out my label maker, "Mabel." :)
And the shelves are now organized with purpose and they know their names.
I have to just add this, because every single time I go into my closet to get something as soon as I see this white coat, I smile and think of our future. :) I wish I could get a full view of the closet in one shot, but that is pretty much impossible. You saw how our closet is divided in half and out of my half, I filled a large garage size trash bag of clothes and shoes to donate. After coming home and seeing my work, it has inspired Hubby to do the same. He has also requested I come up with a better way to hang his scrubs. He was very impressed and super happy to see that I had used Mabel. My plan is to finish up tomorrow by going through the rest of my drawers, cleaning out a bookshelf in our room and then dropping off all of our items at the donation centers.
Hubby did ask, "How long do you think it will stay this way?" I gave him a stern look and said, "Forever. Because I LABELED."
So, show me your "Junk Drawer", I dare ya!
Happy Organizing!
M.
Quite the imagination!
My little Lovey has quite the imagination! He is two years old and while he has a lot of similarities to his big brother there are a few slight differences, one being his ability to create and imagine. I didn't expect this trait at such an early age, especially since he has only really been talking for a couple of months now.
A couple of weeks ago, Hubby and I took the boys out for a fun day of lunch and shopping. The whole day Asher was super quiet and kept making these whiny noises and sniffling. I ignore it, because he is two... Hubby was like, "Asher knock it off with the whining already!" But, Asher kept it up every store we went he would sit in the cart and quietly sniff and then whine. Finally, when we were getting into the car, I looked back and said, "Asher." he ignored. After a few calls, nothing. Then it hit me, "Asher are you a puppy?" He smiled a huge smile and said, "Ashey puppy!" For the rest of the day he would only acknowledge us if we talked to him like a puppy dog. Instead of asking if he wanted a snack, we had to call it a "treat". He never broke character for the day. The following day, it was if it never happened and he was back to Asher.
Today I was working in my room while Asher was downstairs finishing his breakfast. He came up to see me, but rushed in and on his tip toes. He said, "Mama! Mama! Help! Help! Crocs bite me! Crocs bite me!" So I pulled him up onto my bed and said, "What are you talking about?" He went through it all again and finally I understood. He was pretending that my bedroom floor was water filled with crocs and if he stepped too long on the floor they would bite his toes. This little scene also means that for the entirety of today, I have to pick him up and carry him in and out of my room because he is really scared of them. I know that he has made this up, but you would never know it. He is so into his character that he started shaking when I asked him to walk and then he checked under my bed! :)
I love this kid. He is always so happy and so much fun. Israel was the easiest kid imaginable and sweet as sugar. Asher is easy in a different way, you could give him a piece of paper and he can make a game out of it or pretend it is something it isn't. He loves pretend play and he loves books, which makes me think as he grows his imagination will just run wild as he listens to stories. Who knows what this kid has in his little mind, but every single day is super fun!
A couple of weeks ago, Hubby and I took the boys out for a fun day of lunch and shopping. The whole day Asher was super quiet and kept making these whiny noises and sniffling. I ignore it, because he is two... Hubby was like, "Asher knock it off with the whining already!" But, Asher kept it up every store we went he would sit in the cart and quietly sniff and then whine. Finally, when we were getting into the car, I looked back and said, "Asher." he ignored. After a few calls, nothing. Then it hit me, "Asher are you a puppy?" He smiled a huge smile and said, "Ashey puppy!" For the rest of the day he would only acknowledge us if we talked to him like a puppy dog. Instead of asking if he wanted a snack, we had to call it a "treat". He never broke character for the day. The following day, it was if it never happened and he was back to Asher.
Today I was working in my room while Asher was downstairs finishing his breakfast. He came up to see me, but rushed in and on his tip toes. He said, "Mama! Mama! Help! Help! Crocs bite me! Crocs bite me!" So I pulled him up onto my bed and said, "What are you talking about?" He went through it all again and finally I understood. He was pretending that my bedroom floor was water filled with crocs and if he stepped too long on the floor they would bite his toes. This little scene also means that for the entirety of today, I have to pick him up and carry him in and out of my room because he is really scared of them. I know that he has made this up, but you would never know it. He is so into his character that he started shaking when I asked him to walk and then he checked under my bed! :)
I love this kid. He is always so happy and so much fun. Israel was the easiest kid imaginable and sweet as sugar. Asher is easy in a different way, you could give him a piece of paper and he can make a game out of it or pretend it is something it isn't. He loves pretend play and he loves books, which makes me think as he grows his imagination will just run wild as he listens to stories. Who knows what this kid has in his little mind, but every single day is super fun!
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Downsizing Tips!
I was talking with a friend recently, who is looking to get organized and not just in the way where you line everything up perfectly and buy a few containers, but really organized and downsizing to necessary items. I am the perfect person to discuss this topic with, as I have downsized from a good sized house, to an apartment, and then another one and then add two more moves on top of that. With each move, I realized more and more what I actually needed and what I was just keeping out of guilt. Once you have moved 5 times in 2 years you become very unattached to items, you keep what you need and everything else seems like a hassle. So, I was thinking if one friend needed some tips, maybe someone else would too.
When it was time to move out of my house, I had a 6 month old baby and my house was stuffed with stuff. I was extremely overwhelmed with the idea of downsizing to less than half of the space, with a new baby who had tons of stuff. I would lie awake at night trying to picture what I was going to do, but I just couldn't get a handle on it.
Tip #1. I mapped out my new space.
I drew out my new apartment, even drawing out each closet layout (bars, shelves). I labeled each room according to their purpose and then I started by drawing in each rooms necessary items, ie: In Izzy's room, I drew a crib, changing table, and so on. It took several attempts to plot out their correct locations, but I could then visualize each space and quickly realized how much room that left for each rooms less necessary items like toys. I used the closet picture to layout how I would organize clothes and large toys/baby items I wouldn't want shown on a daily basis and that left me with all of the things that I deemed "unnecessary".
Tip #2 Get rid of the guilt!
It is amazing how much a person holds onto, based strictly on what the other people in their lives deem important. I had BOXES of decorations, hand-me-down family items (not sentimental), wedding gifts that after years had remained unopened or unused. I kept all of these things based on guilt. I didn't use any of it, but what if those gifters had ever come to my house? What if they asked to see it and I had given it away? Eeek! So for years, I lived in my house with boxes of unused items just waiting to for the rare chance that my Aunt from out of state might visit and ask where her crystal wedding figurine is. Yep, that never happened. As the days passed and the pressure mounted to move, it finally hit me. I am not keeping these things because I love the gift. I am keeping them because I love the person who gave it to me. Giving these things away does not diminish my love for anyone, and if that extremely rare visit ever did happen, they love me enough to understand my situation. Guilt gone and so were tons of boxes. :)
Tip #3. Toys! Toys! Toys!
Israel has this book called "Too Many Toys." It is one of his favorites and I think that every parent can attest that that book is so true to life. It is about a boy who has so many toys that they overflow the entire house and his parents are so sick of stepping on Legos and cars that they make him pack up a box of toys to give away to kids who don't have anything. By the end of the story, he does as he is asked, but when his Mom goes to pick up the box he has turned it into a spaceship and tells her it is his favorite toy and she can't get rid of it! We have all been there, but isn't true that we feel this need to give our kids everything we can and most times it just sits unused. I know when Izzy was small I would buy a "must have" baby toy because I just knew it would make him so happy and he would play with it once and be done, but I kept it because I spent good money on the item and maybe "someday" he will like it. Well, I am here to tell you, I did not just get rid of one box, I got rid of many boxes of toys and my son is still here, happy and doesn't know any better. I made a list (I know, but get used to it, it is the only way to get through this process without crying) of all of his favorite items; toys, books, stuffed animals. The list was much, much smaller than I anticipated. First to go were stuffed animals. I kept one for my memory sake and then decided on a number and picked that many of his favorites, the rest were given away. All little collectible toys (happy meal, Chuck E. Cheese prizes) were automatically trashed. All books in good condition were kept, reading is important! All of the toys that didn't meet expectations were given to new homes. Bottom line: Getting rid of your kids stuff ranks up as one of the most difficult areas to purge especially because if your kids are small, you haven't had the items for long. My rule for my kids is now, if it doesn't fit in their bedroom in an organized way, we don't buy it.
Tip #3. The Kitchen
This is a tough area to downsize, most items are really expensive and you can always use them. Downsizing your kitchen, truly depends on your living situation. When we moved from our house to our first apartment, oddly enough the apartment had more cabinet space. I didn't get rid of much except for duplicate items or those appliances that were never used. The more I moved, the more I needed to get rid of and ultimately, after moving in with my parents, my only kitchen item I own is my Kitchen Aid mixer. Most people won't have to downsize to this degree, but I am unwilling to pay storage fees for dishes and Tupperware! All of these things are replaceable and weren't worth the hassle or cost to keep. Also, a fun thing to look forward to a brand new kitchen when Med school life is over!
Tip #4. Storage
This is a big one. My parents learned the hard way after thinking they would only need a storage unit for a short amount of time, they just boxed items up quickly and stored away. Unfortunately, their house didn't sell as quickly as planned and those items were in for an extended amount of time. When the house sold and they began to unpack their items, they realized quickly that they lived without those things for so long they didn't need them like they originally had thought. All those months, paying a hefty storage fee for items that they ended up giving away or had replaced with newer versions. If I had kept my living room furniture, it would have been in storage for 2 years at this point. It could be another 3 years before we move out, in my situation, by the time I would need that furniture again, my taste would probably change and I would want new items anyway. Lets not even speak of what that cost would have done to my monthly budget either. For me, storage should only be very temporary and only for items you can't part with.
Tip #5. Memory items
How do you downsize and get rid of things when they were given by people who are no longer with us? Difficult. I know because my first son, even though he had a very short life, had many items I bought just for him. I had a nursery ready to bring him home to and a tub full of items from his day of life. It is extremely difficult to let go of things that hold meaning or a memory to someone you loved. At some point in the grieving process, you become more ready to move things and when that happened for me, I used the same rules as I did with everything else. What are the most important items to you? What holds the most memory? I decided to keep 1 tub of my favorite items for Judah. That tub holds his first outfit, his first blanket, a memory box given by the hospital and a couple of small items from his nursery I bought just for him. There are lots of other items, but I had to determine a boundary. For me, 1 storage tub contained my most favorite items, they are all organized and I can at any point go to one place and find those precious things. It is difficult to let go of the other things, but there is freedom in not clinging to everything as well. My tip is when it is the right time, create your own limit and choose your favorite things create an organized space for those items and make it available so you can go visit with those items when you feel like it.
Tip #6. Be realistic
Save yourself some trouble and frustration. If you are moving from a 4 bedroom house (like we did) to a 2 bedroom apartment (like we did) you will have to get rid of 50% of your stuff. We now only have 3 bedrooms and no living space so we have probably downsized to a total of 80% of our original. I know you are wondering...what did we keep? Well I will tell you!
Master bedroom set and lamps.
Baby furniture and bookshelf.
Israels bed
kids table and chairs (fit in izzy's room)
Kitchen Aid Mixer
Baby clothes and items (kept in attic for future babies)
Bikes and ride-on toys
Musical instruments
Washer/Dryer
Clothes and winter coats.
That is right, we got rid of all of our furniture, appliances, tools, mowers, grill etc. If it doesn't fit into our bedrooms, we didn't keep it. Luckily, our house has a large basement, and the previous owners left ride on toys and some larger things like a kid tool station for our boys. My parents have given the under stair area for toy storage/play area for the boys and all of their bikes and ride on toys hang up.
Tip #7 Stay Downsized
Everyone knows as time goes on, you obtain more and more stuff. Holidays and birthdays and before you know it the small stuff you decided to keep is now overwhelming the small area you are living in. Before each holiday and birthday, I purge broken, old and unused items. Make room for the new then reorganize each space based on the new things.
If you try to keep more in an area than that space really allows, you are just going to find yourself overwhelmed and stressed. This major rule applies to any area, keep what you love. Not what you used to love, or what you might love in the future!
Even after moving into our own home again, I still plan on keeping these rules intact. I used to dread going into my storage space at my house, with those boxes sitting there in judgement. Now, everything I have, I love. I can purge almost anything without feeling bad about it, because I know how wonderful it is to live with less. I can stay organized and that makes me very happy.
Purge those judgemental "guilty" items, pick out your favorite things in each area, and bless others with the rest. You will be so glad you did!
Here is to a very happy, healthy and organized 2011! Cheers!
When it was time to move out of my house, I had a 6 month old baby and my house was stuffed with stuff. I was extremely overwhelmed with the idea of downsizing to less than half of the space, with a new baby who had tons of stuff. I would lie awake at night trying to picture what I was going to do, but I just couldn't get a handle on it.
Tip #1. I mapped out my new space.
I drew out my new apartment, even drawing out each closet layout (bars, shelves). I labeled each room according to their purpose and then I started by drawing in each rooms necessary items, ie: In Izzy's room, I drew a crib, changing table, and so on. It took several attempts to plot out their correct locations, but I could then visualize each space and quickly realized how much room that left for each rooms less necessary items like toys. I used the closet picture to layout how I would organize clothes and large toys/baby items I wouldn't want shown on a daily basis and that left me with all of the things that I deemed "unnecessary".
Tip #2 Get rid of the guilt!
It is amazing how much a person holds onto, based strictly on what the other people in their lives deem important. I had BOXES of decorations, hand-me-down family items (not sentimental), wedding gifts that after years had remained unopened or unused. I kept all of these things based on guilt. I didn't use any of it, but what if those gifters had ever come to my house? What if they asked to see it and I had given it away? Eeek! So for years, I lived in my house with boxes of unused items just waiting to for the rare chance that my Aunt from out of state might visit and ask where her crystal wedding figurine is. Yep, that never happened. As the days passed and the pressure mounted to move, it finally hit me. I am not keeping these things because I love the gift. I am keeping them because I love the person who gave it to me. Giving these things away does not diminish my love for anyone, and if that extremely rare visit ever did happen, they love me enough to understand my situation. Guilt gone and so were tons of boxes. :)
Tip #3. Toys! Toys! Toys!
Israel has this book called "Too Many Toys." It is one of his favorites and I think that every parent can attest that that book is so true to life. It is about a boy who has so many toys that they overflow the entire house and his parents are so sick of stepping on Legos and cars that they make him pack up a box of toys to give away to kids who don't have anything. By the end of the story, he does as he is asked, but when his Mom goes to pick up the box he has turned it into a spaceship and tells her it is his favorite toy and she can't get rid of it! We have all been there, but isn't true that we feel this need to give our kids everything we can and most times it just sits unused. I know when Izzy was small I would buy a "must have" baby toy because I just knew it would make him so happy and he would play with it once and be done, but I kept it because I spent good money on the item and maybe "someday" he will like it. Well, I am here to tell you, I did not just get rid of one box, I got rid of many boxes of toys and my son is still here, happy and doesn't know any better. I made a list (I know, but get used to it, it is the only way to get through this process without crying) of all of his favorite items; toys, books, stuffed animals. The list was much, much smaller than I anticipated. First to go were stuffed animals. I kept one for my memory sake and then decided on a number and picked that many of his favorites, the rest were given away. All little collectible toys (happy meal, Chuck E. Cheese prizes) were automatically trashed. All books in good condition were kept, reading is important! All of the toys that didn't meet expectations were given to new homes. Bottom line: Getting rid of your kids stuff ranks up as one of the most difficult areas to purge especially because if your kids are small, you haven't had the items for long. My rule for my kids is now, if it doesn't fit in their bedroom in an organized way, we don't buy it.
Tip #3. The Kitchen
This is a tough area to downsize, most items are really expensive and you can always use them. Downsizing your kitchen, truly depends on your living situation. When we moved from our house to our first apartment, oddly enough the apartment had more cabinet space. I didn't get rid of much except for duplicate items or those appliances that were never used. The more I moved, the more I needed to get rid of and ultimately, after moving in with my parents, my only kitchen item I own is my Kitchen Aid mixer. Most people won't have to downsize to this degree, but I am unwilling to pay storage fees for dishes and Tupperware! All of these things are replaceable and weren't worth the hassle or cost to keep. Also, a fun thing to look forward to a brand new kitchen when Med school life is over!
Tip #4. Storage
This is a big one. My parents learned the hard way after thinking they would only need a storage unit for a short amount of time, they just boxed items up quickly and stored away. Unfortunately, their house didn't sell as quickly as planned and those items were in for an extended amount of time. When the house sold and they began to unpack their items, they realized quickly that they lived without those things for so long they didn't need them like they originally had thought. All those months, paying a hefty storage fee for items that they ended up giving away or had replaced with newer versions. If I had kept my living room furniture, it would have been in storage for 2 years at this point. It could be another 3 years before we move out, in my situation, by the time I would need that furniture again, my taste would probably change and I would want new items anyway. Lets not even speak of what that cost would have done to my monthly budget either. For me, storage should only be very temporary and only for items you can't part with.
Tip #5. Memory items
How do you downsize and get rid of things when they were given by people who are no longer with us? Difficult. I know because my first son, even though he had a very short life, had many items I bought just for him. I had a nursery ready to bring him home to and a tub full of items from his day of life. It is extremely difficult to let go of things that hold meaning or a memory to someone you loved. At some point in the grieving process, you become more ready to move things and when that happened for me, I used the same rules as I did with everything else. What are the most important items to you? What holds the most memory? I decided to keep 1 tub of my favorite items for Judah. That tub holds his first outfit, his first blanket, a memory box given by the hospital and a couple of small items from his nursery I bought just for him. There are lots of other items, but I had to determine a boundary. For me, 1 storage tub contained my most favorite items, they are all organized and I can at any point go to one place and find those precious things. It is difficult to let go of the other things, but there is freedom in not clinging to everything as well. My tip is when it is the right time, create your own limit and choose your favorite things create an organized space for those items and make it available so you can go visit with those items when you feel like it.
Tip #6. Be realistic
Save yourself some trouble and frustration. If you are moving from a 4 bedroom house (like we did) to a 2 bedroom apartment (like we did) you will have to get rid of 50% of your stuff. We now only have 3 bedrooms and no living space so we have probably downsized to a total of 80% of our original. I know you are wondering...what did we keep? Well I will tell you!
Master bedroom set and lamps.
Baby furniture and bookshelf.
Israels bed
kids table and chairs (fit in izzy's room)
Kitchen Aid Mixer
Baby clothes and items (kept in attic for future babies)
Bikes and ride-on toys
Musical instruments
Washer/Dryer
Clothes and winter coats.
That is right, we got rid of all of our furniture, appliances, tools, mowers, grill etc. If it doesn't fit into our bedrooms, we didn't keep it. Luckily, our house has a large basement, and the previous owners left ride on toys and some larger things like a kid tool station for our boys. My parents have given the under stair area for toy storage/play area for the boys and all of their bikes and ride on toys hang up.
Tip #7 Stay Downsized
Everyone knows as time goes on, you obtain more and more stuff. Holidays and birthdays and before you know it the small stuff you decided to keep is now overwhelming the small area you are living in. Before each holiday and birthday, I purge broken, old and unused items. Make room for the new then reorganize each space based on the new things.
If you try to keep more in an area than that space really allows, you are just going to find yourself overwhelmed and stressed. This major rule applies to any area, keep what you love. Not what you used to love, or what you might love in the future!
Even after moving into our own home again, I still plan on keeping these rules intact. I used to dread going into my storage space at my house, with those boxes sitting there in judgement. Now, everything I have, I love. I can purge almost anything without feeling bad about it, because I know how wonderful it is to live with less. I can stay organized and that makes me very happy.
Purge those judgemental "guilty" items, pick out your favorite things in each area, and bless others with the rest. You will be so glad you did!
Here is to a very happy, healthy and organized 2011! Cheers!
It's a New Year!
2010 was filled to the brim with memories, some good and some were terribly tragic. 2010 is the year my baby Israel started Kindergarten. It is also the year that my sweet Asher started talking. We had a great family vacation, lots of fun little trips and family events, tons of time with our friends and lots of great night snuggled at home. 2010, is also the year we lost a family friend to cancer and even though a couple of months have passed, it doesn't seem real. My boys seemed to grow the most this year, and it has been a little tough on my heart. Izzy is full blown kid at this point and it seems that Asher is racing to catch up with him.
I made a slide show of the highlights of 2010, but it is having difficulty loading to my blog. :( Going to keep trying, and hopefully it will be up today.
I hope everyone had a great holiday season with their loved ones!
I made a slide show of the highlights of 2010, but it is having difficulty loading to my blog. :( Going to keep trying, and hopefully it will be up today.
I hope everyone had a great holiday season with their loved ones!
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