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Archive for the ‘House/Home’ Category

Taming the Laundry Beast

29 Oct

Having 3 kids means I have more laundry than I ever thought possible.  It seems like we go through wardrobe changes on each of the kids once (and sometimes more) each day, which doubles the amount of clothes you’d expect to have, plus they all seem to think they need a new towel (or 2) each time they bathe, and let’s not even get started on what it looks like when there is a stomach virus making the rounds.  During season changes (like now) my loads are doubled as I wash the new clothes and hand me downs that people give us or that we pull out of storage so they’re nice and clean for my sensitive-skinned children.

Since my back injury, the laundry has piled up and though my husband is good about doing it when necessary, we’re way behind on things like sheets and towels and hanging up/putting away the clothes that are clean.  I’m desperate for a new plan.  I asked a few people and got some great ideas for a new method.

It started with buying some small laundry baskets, one for each of the children.  I was lucky to find some small round ones at KMart on clearance for less than $2 each.  I also got larger ones for my husband and myself.  Now when I sort, I line the baskets up on the couch (or floor, wherever I’m sorting) and sort each person’s clothes into their own basket.  My oldest son can put his away himself.  He then leaves his basket in the floor of his closet and puts hangers in it as he takes clothes out of the closet to wear.  This means when it’s time to sort again all I have to do is take the basket out of his closet.  The hangers are there for me to use while I sort, so no more going back and forth.

So far, so good.  I don’t mind putting up my clothes or the little kids’ clothes because I can organize their things the way I want them since I’m the one who picks out their clothes.  And with the putting away being taken off of my shoulders, it’s a lot quicker and easier now that I have a system of sorting!

I really don’t mind doing laundry, but it seems like the putting away always gets ahead of me.  This new plan will (hopefully) tame that beast just a little bit!

 
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Motivation Monday — Baby’s Room

26 Oct

Last week was filled with good news.  The biggest was news that Wells Fargo is approving us for a workout package under the Home Affordable Modification Program.  We have to make 3 payments at a significantly reduced rate than what we previously had and if we can do that we should be approved for a permanent modification.  We’ve been trying to get approved for this for a long time, so this was a huge unexpected blessing.  I suspected we were coming close to foreclosure and I was really struggling with that.  We love our house and didn’t want to have to move!

Because our living siutuation has been so precarious, I haven’t put much time or effort into things around the house lately.  I’ve been completely unmotivated to even bother.  Now that it does look like we’ll be staying here, we’re expecting company at Christmas and it’s time to get everything back in shape.

This week my focus is Violet’s room, which doubles as the guest room.  I need to put up outgrown clothes, finish some decorating now that she’s actually sleeping in there, and get it ready for our Christmas guests.  I’m thinking 30 minutes a day should get the job done…I can’t imagine it will take any longer than that!

 
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Posted in House/Home, Motivation Monday

 

Thrifty Thursday — Cleaning Supplies

15 Oct

Believe it or not, the most effective cleaners are the cheapest and safest for your family and the environment.  If you have vinegar, baking soda, olive oil, club soda, lemon juice, Borax, and rubbing alcohol you can clean almost anything.  There are all kinds of websites out there that tell you how to clean your home naturally with these products, so try googling to find some homemade cleaning products that will work for you.  It will save you a ton of money as well as keeping your family and our environment healthier!

 
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Posted in House/Home, Money/Finances, Thrifty Thursday

 

Motivation Monday — Kitchen (and blogging!)

05 Oct

Obviously things are still weird at my house.  I am so far behind on house work.  I’m still trying to get that caught up, plus after 3-4 weeks of no computer access I just don’t want to sit at the computer.  My “addiction” is broken for the most part and I’m enjoying less time in this chair and more time with my family.  I’m using the ancient laptop (which only affords me access to a few sites, and this isn’t one of them) when I do want to use the computer and for the most part my desktop has been neglected.  So that’s where I’ve been!

Anyway, this week’s MM is to work on your kitchen.  My in-laws bought us a 48″ wide pantry cabinet to put in our kitchen and store my couponing food stash.  It’s huge and holds SO much food.  So all of my kitchen cabinets need to be rearranged now that I have this big cabinet to use for storage.  My goal is to go through each cabinet, move things as necessary, pull stuff out to sell or give away, and get everything put in a convenient place.  When I was a kid, my mom used to do this every 12-18 months.  I’ve lived in this house for 2.5 years and have never done it, so it’s about time for me to do some reorganizing.

I’m also challenging myself to sit down here every day and write a little something.  We’ll see if I can make myself do it.  A month or so ago, I was bordering on internet addiction.  Now it’s something I have to force myself to do, and that’s a good thing.

 
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Posted in Blog Info, House/Home, Motivation Monday

 

Motivation Monday — Catch Up

21 Sep

After what amounted to 2 weeks in bed (more on that momentarily) with the back injury and now a kidney stone, my house is a major disaster area.  Dishes, laundry, dust bunnies and other filth haven’t been touched in way too long.  Obviously this needs to be rectified, quickly!  So that’s my lofty goal for the week.  What’s yours?

 
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Posted in House/Home, Motivation Monday

 
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