DIY {Card Catalog Upcycle}

At the end of August, I was out walking in our neighborhood with LadyBug and came across this gem sitting at the end of a drive-way, waiting for the trash service to come by. I hustled back to the house and asked The Boss to heft it home. I had a PLAN!

That afternoon, I posted a picture on my F@ceb00k wall and started a guessing game with my friends to see who might be able to "see" what it could become like I was seeing it in my head.  I guess I drove a couple friends crazy - I even got some private messages IMPLORING me to spill the beans to them! What fun my friends are!!!

The Boss had some sanding and glue-ing to do, as the laminate on the top and back were a little water-damaged. But in short order, he finished that step and turned it over to Baby BlueEyes to remove all the hardware and clean out the drawers. Like how he saved the tedious part for the kid?! Ha!!!

We had some dark primer in the basement. There was some skepticism about whether it was still good because we are pretty sure it was from painting our kitchen beadboard, back in 2010. It went on smoothly enough so I think we're good. All those little drawers standing up with their new primer remind me of little soldiers for some reason.

After The Boss did a TON of reading about creating a faux vintage look, he started by painting a base coat of the milk-chocolatey brown that we used in our dining room back in 2009.  Are you sensing the theme here? Yup. Upcycling on the cheap, using what we have on hand as much as possible. That's the goal!

The next coat was a thinned-out glaze of black with plenty of brush-strokes left to create a washed, worn kind of finish. This part is always hard for The Boss. He's such a perfectionist and the uneven, randomness of this look really stresses him out. NOT enough to hand the paintbrush over to me, but enough to make him doubt himself and second-guess my vision (that he already, admittedly, struggles to see the way I see it). 

I am, oddly, NOT a perfectionist in these kinds of projects. I have a general ballpark in which I want the look to fall but if it's close, it's okay with me. I like the lack of symmetry and the quirks of hand-finished work. It is definitely NOT how I operate in most other areas of my life. Which might add to his stress, now that I think about it. 

Once a couple coats of a polyurethane were applied to seal and protect it from the wear and tear of all our big and little Gang members, it was ready for some after-market add-ons. The Boss spent almost an hour at L0we's the other day, texting pics of various leg styles and lengths to me. We settled on these and he spent his day off (from his part-time job at T@rg3t) finishing the legs to match the cabinet. Pretty impressive work, if you ask me!

He brought it in to the house and added the legs while Mei Mei looked on. Her first response when she saw it standing up was, "Oooooh, WOW!" My thoughts exactly, sweet girl! Look at how perfectly those legs blend in color, shape and size! And being the detail-nerd that I am, I'm also excited about how closely the knobs of the table match the turn-work on the legs. I know, NO ONE would notice that. But I do. And I love it!

What's even more perfect than the spot-on match is that the legs and the hardware to attach them are THE ONLY expenses we incurred to finish this project. I love me some cheap upcycling!!!!

The Boss and Mei Mei sat down and put all the brass hardware back into each drawer. And re-tacked each card-plate in the original holes. Well, to be more accurate, Mei Mei cheered daddy on and sang songs from Frozen while Daddy worked the hardware. Heh. 

The excitement was growing - I started cleaning the spot I planned to put it. Oh, man. There was a lot of dust back there... I think someone needs a re-definition of the chore card labelled "Dust Downstairs." Harumph...

Finally, it is DONE and in its new home. I could NOT possibly love it more. Really. It's so much better than I pictured it. It's absolutely my new favorite piece in the whole house.

Hi Ho! Hi Ho! Off to Work We Go!

We are always re-vamping the chore chart here; you know, for seasons of the school year, activity levels of the various Gang members, and so on... I tend to be pretty loosey goosey about it in the summer, giving lots of grace and margin in consideration of our irregular schedules... And this year, I'm frankly quite late with the fall edition. But with all that we've had going on, just managing the "status quo" has been (more than) enough for us to keep a grip on. I have been working on this edition since we got home from Colorado and I think (after I blew $5 laminating the faulty edition! Grrr....) that I've got it now.

Here's the basics of how we do it ‘round here:

• Each kid has a column. Each time a job is completed in that column, it gets flipped over to the blank side. I laminate the job cards for wear and tear.
• We don't allow jobs to be done on Sundays.
• During the school year, the kids have from Monday morning through till lunch time on Saturday to complete their jobs.
• In this fall's edition, they each have 5 jobs that should take no more than 20 minutes each to do. That gives them a chance for TWO days "off" during the week.
• I think I finally have a system down that allows for the revamping to be done quickly and easily: with this edition, I gave each job a "group number" so that when the rotations move to the next kid, they move together in a group.
• We rotate jobs (by the numbered group) on Sunday afternoons or Monday mornings. Each grouping will just move one kid to the right.
• If a kid fails to complete all the jobs in their column for the week, they keep those jobs until they are done and then the job rejoins its grouping on the next rotation.
• If that kid is a repeat offender, I give another consequence till the jobs are all completed. Usually, loss of technology/electronics for 24 hours does it. 
• The "Dishes" jobs are daily, and remain static, based on the kids's school day schedule

The is part of the actual job chart that I print and cut.

The chores are all organized now into three groups (see those little numbers at the bottom?) for the older three kids who are still home. Li’l Empress’s column won't change (her jobs are marked by the "A"). But she's on the chart now and I will add tasks as I see her maturity grow. For example, she's afraid of the hand vac, so that is still a "big kid job." But when Baby BlueEyes was 5, he was easily able to handle vacuuming the stairs and landing.

The finished product goes onto a regular bulletin board that the hubby divided into four columns. It's been fancier than this but I stopped spending tons of money and time on the aesthetics when I realized how often we realistically had to re-vamp. The cards on the board are the rough draft of this fall’s edition. The chart here will be laminated and cut up to be placed on the board this weekend.

Okay. So, you might be asking how on earth you can modify this for your younger household of kiddoes? Well, it’s really easy if you are willing to take some time to think it through. First, make a list of the jobs that you know each of your kids are capable of learning or accomplishing with moderate guidance and repetition. Even the little ones can participate, if only to get the feeling that they are part of the process. Simplify it for everyone by focusing on what you NEED to have done or have help with.

Then, make a chart with paper cards (don't laminate yet, till you have your system down pat) and have a simple rotation between the kids of jobs that all of them can do or can help with. Maybe make some of them "team effort jobs" to enhance morale and confidence. If you have varying ages, know that some of the jobs might not rotate at all (as in Li’l Empress’s column). Be careful not to overload the columns with the number of tasks and make sure that each task can be accomplished in a reasonable (per individual child’s abilities) amount of time. Again, simplify your chart (especially if it’s brand new to your family routine!) to the most important jobs that you know the kids are capable of and can do fairly well with minimal (read: normal, age appropriate) prodding or re-teaching.

Also keep in mind that at the younger ages, it's not about the QUALITY of the job when it's done. It's about teaching them HOW to contribute, HOW to work together, and HOW to share the load of being in a family. You will likely have to re-do the jobs (out of their observation) and re-teach the jobs many times till they "get it." And that’s okay.  It’s a learning process for everyone. In fact, even at my kids' ages, we often make them check in to tell us they've completed a job, to avoid slap-dash quality work through the accountability. And sometimes, I’ve been known to do “surprise inspections!) Because NOW? It IS about quality. OH! And illness prevention :)

I often have to chant to myself throughout the week: "It's about the process." Even though we’ve been at this Chore Chart process since we moved to our current home. To me, the Chore Chart is a tiny real life word picture to describe all of parenting: "It’s a process. It’s a process. It’s a process.” But it's one that is totally worth it in view of equipping your kids to care for themselves AND for those that the Lord gives them to care for. For example, I LOVE how confident I feel knowing that my kids can take care of the house and of themselves and each other when The Boss and I head off to China in the spring. But it took a while to get us all there and I had to be willing to dig into the process!

Shoot me some questions and feedback – I love hearing what works for you guys. And your input helps me think through the contingencies and exceptions I need to anticipate.

In Between

In between the moments of greatness and inspiration that the 2012 London Olympics have already provided for our Gang's viewing pleasure, we've had a couple other moments worth noting.

Friday night, for the Opening Ceremonies, we feasted on a plethora of international delights. There was Italian sausage and German franks on the grill. In between bites of old-fashioned American baked beans and Italian pasta salad, there was plenty of good laughs and shared memories over about the Beijing Opening Ceremonies and Li'l Empress' 1st birthday celebration. It was all followed by ice cream (the origin of which many nations claim!) and red, white and blue rocket pops as we watched London strut her stuff.  

Apparently all the excitement proved too much for Li'l Empress. Somewhere in between Team China's appearance and the Maldives' stroll through the Parade of Nations she crashed on my lap.

Sigh. I love it when she falls asleep on me like that.

I know it won't last much longer.

After all, she is almost five. Sigh.

On Saturday, I took the day to help a friend tackle some purging of possessions and re-organizing of rooms and spaces in her home. She's been working the "one room at a time" process on her own for a few weeks and I really enjoyed helping her see her rooms with a slightly different perspective. In between the purging and the re-purposing, she fed me and plied me with iced tea and great conversation. THEN, she blessed me with a trunk full of donations for our on-line yard saling efforts.

There's about 6 garbage bags full of stuff under there!

So all the new stuff coming in inspired me to pare down my current inventory and freshen up my sale album. I went from this, in the living room, 

and, this, in the garage

to just this, in the garage in between breakfast, lunch,

and a few Olympic profiles and errands to W@lmart.

Meanwhile, the youngest members of the Gang are oooh'ing and aaaah'ing over the Men's synchronized diving competition. Which I am watching in between loading pictures and formulating sentences.

If multi-tasking was an Olympic event, I'd get at least a bronze for Monday's labors alone!

On a Happier Note!

This week, there's been lots to celebrate here at The Gang's house.

As opposed to the "just get me through the day" of last week.

So celebrate we did.

Daddy's first day of the new job warranted a big rib dinner.

Li'l Empress has settled nicely after several intentionally quiet

and slow-paced days and a focus on routine.

Shaggy's car is back on the road after many longs weeks of DIY repairs and some SERIOUSLY AMAZING time, generosity, and dirty, greasy, sweaty hours of help
from multiple folks who know their way around axels, struts, brake lines, and so on.

Momma started a new "household management" weapon tool.

Hat tip to a fellow adoptive mommy blogger!

 And Baby BlueEyes got the honor of being first to pick a job to redeem his "stuff.

SERIOUSLY... THAT's the first thing he picked. That smirk says it all, doesn't it?!
It's a darned good thing he's so cute.

So we had cake, ice cream, and night time swimming to commemorate it all.

Wordless Wednesday {Something About A Man}

There's something about a man

who knows his way around a carpet steamer.....

I'm just sayin'....

For more Wordless Wednesday fun,

head over to 5 Minutes for Mom.

My Mission

Whew. I am finally recovering from the insanity of the last ten days.  Here at The Gang's house, we've had some of the craziest happenings we've ever experienced in just this one 10- day time period.

Shaggy had his first car accident. He's fine. But the car isn't. So Momma is back on taxi duty. For his job, for Dr. D's football lifting schedule, and for all the other stuff that The Boss can't help with when he's at his part-time job.

The Boss has had several interviews and is working lots of hours at his part-time, fill-in-the-blanks job. He's also managed to finish his part of Baby BlueEyes' room and knock some random little jobs off his "Honey Do" list. Today, he's starting Li'l Empress's new room. We are getting SUCH a kick out of how cheaply we are able to transform these rooms.  Really, it's a sickness, I think.

Baby BlueEyes' room is all but done. A few pictures to hang and voila! I also have to find a bulletin board and a couple lampshades. A big reveal post should be coming soon. If it stops raining and I can get out to my local B!g L@ts on the way to Shaggy's night shift, that is....

Li'l Empress has successfully and even cheerfully navigated the change from her tiny, cozy little room to the bigger room she will eventually share with Brynna. She experienced a couple bumps but a smooth transition over all. Even after we moved BBE over into his new room and she re-adjusted to sleeping in a room alone again.

The Boss chaperoned a trip with BBE to historic sites around Philly with the whole 4th grade. He did it with the older kids too and I'm so, so grateful that they had a safe, fun time. When I asked BBE what the best part of the day was, he replied, "Seeing the Rocky statue." Ugh. That SOOOO would not be my answer!!!!

We had a big "Happy 13th" birthday party here for LadyBug. I took it easy on myself with the crazy schedule I've been keeping and just ordered pizza. You'd have thought THAT was her gift, she was so happy to consume pizza with her cousins!

LadyBug had not one but THREE major concerts in less than a week. (Really, what is UP with that?! THREE IN FIVE DAYS!) The final one was a competition with the organization called Music in the Park and was outstanding! Both sets of grandparents got to hear her ensemble perform, which was such a treat for all of us.

The best part of the competition is that the day included a trip to Dorney Park. It was the actual day of her 13th birthday and I chaperoned the trip. It was fun hanging out with her and her two friends. Such sweet kids. At the end of the day, there was an awards assembly and her ensemble won both categories that they were entered into, resulting in some pretty neat trophies.

My on-line yard sale is still running, but it has slowed down a bit so I've been creating some sales and incentives and trying to get creative with moving all that stuff out of my garage and into someone else's home.

Today, I've set aside the day to reclaim the counter-tops from the flowing piles of paperwork. So far, I've accomplished the following, all before I ate my late breakfast:

• updated my freezer inventory
• planned about 1/2 of the meals we need for the remainder of the school year
• made a rough grocery list
• updated all my sale sites on FB and on craigslist
• cleaned off the front of the fridge

Man, I hate the cluttered mess that my fridge and my counters become when things are busy here - scraps of notes and reminders all over the place. It makes ME feel scattered and phrenetic.

I call it reclaiming my territory. This time around, it really felt like the land was taken over by crazy alien invaders and I had to go in with a conqueror's mentality. Slaying the dragon of chaos. Vanquishing the enemy of order and peace. Restoring order to the kingdom.

Yup, today it's all about recovery. That's my mission and considering the condition of things around here, I have no choice BUT to accept it!

Can I Call a Re-Do?

Well, this week hasn't been AT ALL what I'd hoped it would be.... Knocked off my game by a nasty head cold, I've spent most of the week huddling up with a blanket, a box of tissues, and an editing project. Mugs upon mugs of tea have been consumed. Vicks has been rubbed. Sudafed has been my BFF. And while I've immensely enjoyed digging in to wrap up this particular editing project, I'm frustrated  that I've not been able to summon the energy to complete my new year's kick-off "mission."

I had this week off from child-care duties, kind of a bonus week of Christmas break. My lofty plans were to tackle some of the paperwork for the home-study prep for Mei Mei's adoption. And to dig in and tackle some of the little pockets of disorganization that exist here in The Gang's house. I figured, with Li'l Empress off to pre-school three mornings and nothing else on my calendar, the time frames would be just perfect. You know, a shot in the arm of cleaning and sorting without slaving away at it all five days of the new year. I had several drawer and a couple cabinets on my hit list, along with my dresser and closet lined up that I thought would fit the bill. Especially since they are locales that I can't really get to with extra little ones underfoot during the day.

So, I'm going to have to figure out another plan of attack for those areas.  I must be feeling better - I'm beginning to view those little pockets as terrorist cells lurking in the landscape of my home. That's always a good sign. And the paperwork?! Well, it's been warned. I'm coming for it, too.

I'm calling a re-do.

I hereby declare January 9th the new New Year.

Booyah!

"Stuff"-Mart

Most of you who know me well know that I have an extreme love for, bordering on obsession with, organizing my home and keeping it free of "stuff."  I like to purge our possessions frequently.

I like it even more if I can talk about the purging of said possessions

in front of my sister, who really hates the word "purge."  Heh.

Anyhoo, most of you also know that we are hustling to raise funds for our ongoing adoption process. I have purposed to really contribute creatively toward those fundraising efforts. And the Lord has graciously provided. That little Adoption Jar is filling regularly! I am working a part-time job babysitting for a friend's two little ones. I have done some editing and some proof-reading for a couple folks. I have participated in consumer survey projects, with both big and little pay-offs attached. We have re-adjusted our budget with an eye toward tighter belts and cash-only spending. I have sold countless articles of furniture and clothing on cr@igslist and an online yard sale community I joined recently. And I have scoured sidewalks in local neighborhoods and sold stuff that other folks just put out for the trash pick up. I can't believe the stuff folks put out for trash pick up.

Oh, man, I found a coffee table that was so gorgeous,

it was super tempting to keep it for our family room!

But the Lord blessed us with a sale of $45 pure profit

over that one and I'm so glad He led me to it. 

Which brings me to the point of today's post. Because bringing home our mei-mei is going to be a HUGE focus of these early months of 2012. And I think some of you might be able to help. Especially my fairly local peeps.

I know that typically after the holidays, many folks get the bug to clean out their attics, garages, closets, toy boxes and more. And I know that most of the stuff that gets pulled out ends up in a big bag or box for the local Goodwill or Salvation Army, etc. I wonder if you might rethink that choice this purging season, on behalf of the Gang's adoption jar?  I wonder if you might consider "donating" that same stuff that you pulled out of your home so that I can sell it and further contribute to the efforts to fill up that little Adoption Jar o' mine?

I'm more than happy to work out delivery and/or pick-up. I'll do my best to make it as convenient as possible for anyone who is generous enough to give up their "stuff" for the efforts. I only ask that it be stuff that is "sale-worthy" to maximize the opportunities to add to the jar. Otherwise, my living room will start to look like the Stuff-Mart frequented by Madame Blueberry and her very veggie and fruity friends... which would seriously defeat the purpose, eh?

If you aren't local, then I ask again for your long-distance prayers. This adventure is a big one (which many of you know first, second, and third hand...) and we can use all the support we get as we keep stepping forward in faith. In the coming days, I hope to summarize for you all exactly where we are in the paper-chase, so that you might pray for us more specifically!

I thank you in advance for your considerations. You, my faithful readers, are some of the very best benefits of this journey we are following again! We feel so humbled and grateful for those of you who have become friends and family along the way.

Wordless Wednesday{silver lining}

38 clothing storage bins just like these....

Brought up out of the 8" of water from Hurricane Irene's fury.

Purged and reduced by 13 bins....

And four over-stuffed garbage bags

It's been a busy, busy week for This Gang.
HUGE kudos to Baby BlueEyes, LadyBug,
Dr. D, and Shaggy for all their hard work
on this and other cleaning and restoration projects
from the storm.

I couldn't have gotten it all done without you!

For more Wordless Wednesday fun,

head over to 5 Minutes for Moms.

And tell me your storm clean- up story....

I'm looking forward to hearing how you all fared.

Sunday Snapshot

We have survived Hurricane Irene. We're really wet. Well, I mean, our basement is really wet. And The Boss, Shaggy, and Dr. D spent most of last night really wet. But we made it through. If I am pressed to find the silver lining, I can say that by the time every thing dries out and all the damage is cleaned up and done, we will have a really clean basement about a month ahead of schedule.  Today's Sunday Snapshot is of the heroes of Hurricane Irene, here at The Gang's house.

Pre-storm, or when the rain was the only evidence that an epic weather event was on its way, we enjoyed a long, quiet afternoon full of movies, home-made cookies, big batches of popcorn flowing freely, more movies, and jammy time just hanging out together. But all that changed at about 11:30 p.m. When our main sump pump failed and the battery-back-up wore itself out right on its heels. Thank the Lord that we had our pool cover pump and that Shaggy found our neighbor's sump pump in their basement when he went poking around their shed and garage looking for their pool cover pump. (They are out of town. The Boss and the boys are charged with caring for their property whenever they travel. Flashlight in hand, he went traipsing over in the wind and rain at 12:30 a.m. or so to try and come up with something to stem the tide of rushing waters!)

Dr. D, checking news reports and chatting 

with friends on F@cebook during the rain-only

portion of the storm.

Shaggy, catching up with a friend between movies

on Saturday.

But during the storm?

These guys proved their mettle beyond our belief.

Bucket Brigade for more than an hour.

Jerry-rigging a supplemental sump pump with The Boss.

Carting furniture and more than 25 big storage

bins full of clothes for The Gang up to the family room.

Running in and out of the side yard to move drainage pipes.

Keeping an eye on the neighbors' property through it all.

Both of them up till at least 4 a.m.

working alongside The Boss without much of a break.

We are blessed.

 And this guy?

This really tired, really run-down and worn-out warrior?

He ran the whole project for more than three straight hours

of rushing water - rushing INTO the basement

faster than he could get it out, that is.

Wet clothes, head cold, sleep deprivation, frustration,

disgust, stress, and more. He didn't quit until it was obvious

the pump was winning over the cold, dark, nasty water.

I am blessed.

Wrapping It All Up!

Oh, it's been a week! Lists have been whittled down. Hair has been cut. Closets have been cleaned. Rooms have been re-arranged. Toy boxes have been purged. More lists have been written. Freezers have been stocked. Menus have been planned.

Baby BlueEyes' room BEFORE.

Well, sorta "before." More like, MID!

Baby BlueEyes' room AFTER.

Big toy shelf emptied and removed.

Toys out of sight and out of reach for little hands!

Yesterday, Dr. D finished his first official senior high football training camp. Right now, he's sleeping off the high. I've never seen him so excited. Or so tired! They ended the intensive two weeks with a big picnic, catered by O*tb@ck Steak House.... Not a bad way to end the week, eh?

I'm wrapping my brain around what my new schedule will look like in the coming days. Taking care of someone else's kids, almost full-time, is a huge responsibility and I'm sure that Li'l Empress will think it's a big party at first. But I'm aware that it will be a BIIIIIG adjustment for her, particularly when the older kids are back to school and it's just her hanging out with the new little friends during the day. So I'm praying for her, for my new little buddies, and for Li'l Empress's teachers. I've put off the start of her school year till the big kids go back to school - hoping that one change per week instead of two or three will be easier on us all.

And now? Now, we turn to storm prepared-ness as Hurricane Irene is bearing down quickly and fiercely on the East Coast. The Boss is heading out as I type to bring Shaggy to one of his many yard-work jobs and to pick up propane, water, and an extra battery for the sump pump.  Baby BlueEyes is not a huge fan of weather events, as they tend to stir up a lot of fear in his little heart. So we're putting him on Storm Preparedness duty with Daddy - hoping that he learns that many of our fears can be allayed when we wisely prepare and "do our part" and then faithfully trust the Lord to cover and protect the rest.

Not a bad way to handle all of this stuff, eh?

Gearing Up for Change

It's the last Monday of summer break for this Gang.  There are a host of big changes coming our way, and this Momma has been awake since about 4:30 a.m. trying to wrap my brain around all of it. You know, all the things that have to happen between now and the first day of school (Sept. 6, after Labor Day) in order to facilitate those changes.

My To-Do list is ramming around inside my head, almost impossible to pin down and wrangle into a manageable, linear list of bullet points. My head is pounding, and it's NOT from lack of caffeine! It feels like tangled Slinkys in there. Rusty, tightly wound, tangled Slinkys.  It's really not pretty. Especially at 4:30 a.m.

So you must all bear with me while I process...

Yes, I'm processing it here. My blog, my rules :)

Here we go!

I've accepted the opportunity to care for two children of some friends of ours, as an attempt to supplement and  expedite the savings process for our adoption. (I start next Monday, hence the "last Monday of summer break for this Gang" line...)  For the downstairs of the house, that means this week has to be all about sorting toys, child-proofing, consolidating the play area to one part of the house, and cleaning out a space for kiddie arts and crafts.

Heh. Written down in a paragraph like that,

it doesn't really seem like all that much work.

But it's almost crippling me right now,

and I feel so completely overwhelmed by where to start. Ugh.

I've been struggling to find time to sit for a while and plow through my friend's novel that I'm editing, because of all the taxi-duty that I've been pulling for Shaggy, Dr. D, and Ladybug's various activities. This week, I'm down-sizing all the taxi-runs and trying to dig into this work of art and give it the attention it deserves. And guys? This novel is beautiful. Rich, layered, and captivating. The characters have really drawn me in - I miss it when I can't get to it for a few days. When she gets it published, I will be sure to let you all know to look for it!

I also have to figure out what to do with all these beautiful pieces of collectibles that folks have given toward our adoption cause. I have some things out for bids already, but Cr@igslist-ing them majority of them will net very little, I'm learning. I'm unfortunately hearing the same thing about Repl@cements.com and now I don't really know where to turn. I have no eB@y "seller cred" and don't really want to get "taken" there either. But they are filling the dining room and I have to get them out of here soon. I can't take the clutter much longer.

I have a bunch of other things already on Cr@igslist that aren't moving and I'm getting impatient about those. They are of some value so I just can't bring myself to donate them if they can add to our little Adoption Jar instead. Especially given that there are likely a bunch of other things in the attic that I can choose to list if and when The Boss and I get in there and start cleaning.

I have no idea of what is in the freezer, so I am guessing that my freezer inventory is way out of date. I also have no stash of supplies for snacks, school lunches, or quick meals. I haven't "stock up" shopped in a while, and I'm thinking that might be where I have to start. Well, there and defrosting the freezer so that I can see everything I purchase. It's so bad in there, it might take a couple days to thaw and clean it all out... Then, I'll have to really dig in and plan meals for the month of September to help me through the learning curve of "working" four days a week.

I must also wrap my brain around the idea of our new schedule. Li'l Empress will be doing three mornings a week at her little pre-school, with an arrival time between 8:25 and 8:45 a.m. Baby BlueEyes is heading off to our wonderful little elementary school at 8:05 every morning. LadyBug will be starting a brand new adventure in the middle school, leaving here around 7:20 each day. And Shaggy and Dr. D head off to the local public high school, we think at 6:50 or 7 a.m. daily.

Speaking school, have you seen the prices of school supplies this summer?! OMIGOSH, I was in T@rget the other day (I despise that store, on almost every.single.level. Really, I do.) and the mothers were scary. Grabbing. Snatching, Shoving carts. Snarling at their kids. I had to leave. With my incomplete list of two of the kids' needs. But I just couldn't stand the tension and the chaos. I mean, really. A three-inch binder is a three-inch binder. Is it really worth the horrible example to your kids to get the TEAL one instead of the royal blue one?! Really, the stuff I heard and saw scarred me for the entire day.

Finally, (well, really, not finally, cuz there is so much more going on here that is weighing heavily but is not blog-able) I am contemplating the arrival of my two new little friends at 8:30 for four mornings a week. Things like figuring out when I'll need to get up and get showered. When I'm going to exercise. Or blog. Etc. Etc. Etc.

I was planning to join The Boss's gym and working out the mornings that Li'l Empress was in school, which would allow me to head out, bed head and all, and then come home to shower at my own leisure before picking her back up from school. But the need to earn some money and accommodate this alternative schedule trumps that plan. And now, just writing it all out here, I feel even more stressed than I did at 4:30 a.m.......

{Mumbling and shuffling away as I pull on my hair}

Oy..... Coffee. I need coffee. Just get me some coffee!

Sunday Snapshot

LadyBug is really a chip off the old Momma block.  For weeks now, she's been begging me to help her move her room around, to change things up a little. No real reason, except that a girl likes some renovating once in a while. And it's even more fun when it's free and not driven by necessity. Like another project that The Boss took on this weekend. {Cough Cough} Ahem. But that's another post entirely. . . 

Disassembling the room turned into some purging and organizing.

I LOVE it when that happens! I mean, I don't love that this child

seems to need that kind of help more often than other of my children.

But I do love filling up a garbage bag and moving it OUTTA HERE!

 We bought this used dresser when we first moved here

from neighbors who were retiring and down-sizing.

Over the course of its life, it's been teal, red, and mint green.

The mirror was free, from the master bath of our previous home.

It used to be gold. There's nothing like the power of pure white

paint to revitalize and re-purpose old furniture!

Moving the room around also prompted a heavy duty cleaning

of all the corners and radiators. The first Spring cleaning of the season.

The Boss found the nightstand on one of his morning runs.

It was 80's off-white with gold trim.

We really love white paint around here!

I found that mirror in a neighbor's trash pile this evening.

Once The Boss is finished the "big project" that keeps getting

bigger each time he heads in to work on it, he'll take it out

to the side yard and spray paint the frame and feet.

White, of course.

Here's a close up of my trash-treasure:

The carpets and walls are all dusted and clean and every surface is gleaming. Purses are sorted, toys are purged, and junk drawers are emptied. LadyBug is thrilled beyond words (literally, she couldn't speak when I brought the mirror in) with her "new" room re-do and I am thrilled to have taken out a garbage bag full of junk. I LOVE changing a room around. She really IS her momma's girl!

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Where Have I Been?!

Omigoodnessgracioussakesalive!  Have you SEEN how long it's been since I last posted a blog entry? It's been 11 days. EEEE.LEV.EHN. I think that is quite possibly the longest I've ever gone without a post. I have no idea where the time all went.  In the days since we last spoke (Yes, I know we don't really speak here, but I like to feel like I'm chatting with you all when I'm writing. That okay with you? Good. Moving on...)

In the days since we last spoke, I've attempted a beginning of the year cleaning/purging/organizing that got seriously derailed by, well, life. The cd cabinet did get purged (not nearly enough but it's a start), closets got cleaned and then, well, life happened. I canNOT believe just how much grocery shopping and meal planning I had to do in that first week of the month, just to get us caught back up and on track from the holiday routines! Does anyone else have that problem with their meal planning?  We only had a couple "out of the ordinary" meals and special treats, but somehow I was so off-track with some of that stuff that I was starting almost from scratch.  So I've been cooking. ALOT. We had our first snow day - nothing like a snow day to completely throw a Momma's routine out the window, huh?  Our local church family also began our annual 21-day season of prayer and fasting . . . obviously not a ton of stuff to "DO" with that, but my focus has been different this last week, for sure.

And as of Thursday morning, Shaggy and Dr. D are now 8 wisdom teeth lighter between the two of them. Once they are back on their feet, I think I might be able to resume some of the plans I had for those annoying little drawers and cubbies that I've been ignoring far too long.  So. All that to say that I've been pretty pre-occupied and great blog post ideas would pop into my head when I'd finally fall into bed exhausted at 11 p.m. But we all know once a tired Momma is warm and snug in her bed, it doesn't even matter how great that blog post sounds inside her head. The ZZZZZZ's are calling louder. Oh, the call of the ZZZZ's. The call has been strong these last two weeks, I tell ya.

On a happy note, I'm thrilled to report that the pathology report finally came back on my moles that were removed before Christmas and everything came back clear. I wasn't entirely aware of just how nervous I was about the results until I got that call. The happy tears were a relief to cry.  And, my mother-in-law came through a lumpectomy with great success recently, after several delays due to a nagging infection in her lungs. Finally, one of my favorite guys in the whole world (you met him and his family here) came through a rather unsettling medical crisis with flying colors and God showed Himself strong and faithful even in the face of military procedure and logic.

With all that has gone on here in The Gang's house since that first week of January, I am honestly startled and not just a little dismayed to look at my calendar and note that we are ONLY half way through the LONG.EST. month of the year.  I'll be quite content if we don't have any more snow, or snow days for that matter. But if we do, the fridge and the pantries are finally all re-stocked. The meals are planned. And since The Gang is fasting all sweets, treats, and sugary-snacks together, I don't have to bake at all this month. Which should leave me with plenty of time to get back into the groove of hanging with you all, blogging to my heart's content again.  And aren't you all so glad for that?!

Making My Heart Race!

You might have heard about a new little network debuting this weekend . . . you know the one. Formed recently by that famous lady that folks talk about all the time? You know, around the water cooler, over coffee with friends, in the grocery store with strangers? The one who is responsible for most conversations that start like this,   "So, did you see Oprah this week?"

You might remember that I've had my own love-dislike relationship with her over the recent years of this blog. (Here's a post about a show I loved. And here's one about a show I disliked.) No matter how you feel about the amazing Miss O, I'm pretty sure you've had at least one conversation recently about her or about one of her shows. We all have, whether or not we can overcome our pop-culture snobbery enough to actually admit it.  (Ouch, was that my toe I just stepped on?!)

Here at The Gang's headquarters, I can't stop talking about one of the new shows that premiered over the weekend on her new network. In fact, when I watched the first episode in full, I was so excited and motivated, I could hardly fall asleep when it was over. Which, as a night person already, is really not a great thing at 10 p.m. Especially when your sick, morning-person hubby is staggering up the stairs for bed and the bed isn't even made yet.

(Earlier that morning, I was highly motivated to clean my room because The Boss has been sick. I "NEEDED" to strip the sheets. RIGHT. THEN... And wash all the towels. And everything else he might have touched. Or breathed upon. Or near. Yes, I am The Gang's Momma and I am a germ-a-phobe.)

So, anyhoo.  (I never really say that. But it sounded so, so, Australian. Didn't it? Did it? I'm going with a big fat "yes.") So. I've been anxiously awaiting this new show for weeks now. As soon as I heard that my hero of home-organization was coming back to regular television programming, I was over the moon with joy. You may remember him from this little gem of a show:

But this new show? Is giving me palpitations. And I've only seen the sneak peek previews and one full episode. My little heart is going crazy with skipped beats and "a ha!" moments. I've already purged a couple jewelry boxes, Li'l Empress's closet and dresser, my desk organizer, my make-up stash, a huge pile of paperwork, and a couple random drawers. Next up is our huge collection of cd's, dvd's, and vhs tapes.

(And by the by, if you have any leads other than cr@igslist

for a great way to unload those kinds of items and fill our little Adoption Jar

with some extra change, I'm taking suggestions!)  

I even got the kids in on the action by making them sort and purge their arts and crafts bin. Whew! We filled three kitchen garbage bags of that sort of stuff just from Sunday night till their bedtime on Monday night. In fact, after seeing the sneak peeks of my favorite new show between football games on Sunday, I even ordered my whole Monday schedule around how to best and most efficiently run my errands, do the holiday returns/exchanges, and purge through some more paperwork in order to be able to sit (guilt-free!) with a big mug o' chai and absorb all of Peter's wisdom undistracted by my workload.

Yes. Yes, I am talking about Peter Walsh and his awesome new show.  If you haven't caught it yet, you really must find it. Then, DVR it. Prepare a mug o' hot drink of choice for yourself and take it all in. Seriously. There's something for everyone. Even The Boss sat and watched it with me, commenting and agreeing with points along the way. (Whether he actually implements any of the tips and tools for his own stash of "STUFF" remains to be seen. Although I will give him props. Over the weekend, he did clean out his closet and got rid of a couple t's and some old socks. Santa brought him new socks this year.)

I was oooh'ing and aaaah'ing over his sage insight (Peter's, not The Boss's!) and strategizing in my head what I would be able to do with what I was taking in. Oh, and the beautifully organized, focused, intentional living space was making me positively teary by the show's end. What a lovely room. What a gift to give that family. What a delightful jump-start for their new perspectives. Sigh. I've already set the DVR to record each and every episode. I canNOT miss even one. And look at that, I'm being super-time efficient by dvr'ing them too - no commercials detracting from the mission of my viewing pleasure and only a portion of an hour taken up in my day. I'm so proud of myself!

I've decided to ride that wave and keep feeding the thrill that I feel every time I throw something out. I'm gonna ride the crest of accomplishment that soars inside when I clean a shelf or  re-organize a cupboard after a good purging.  I'm hanging on to the high I get whenever I down-size a drawer. (Wow, that was some kickin' alliteration, there! Look what an un-distracted 48 minutes with Peter Walsh has done for me!)

(Well, really, I've loved his work for years

but this show has catapulted

him to celebrity crush-dom.

I wonder if he knows

how auspicious that is?)

Breathe. Breathe. Count to Ten. And Breathe.

This morning, I sat in a stupor in front of my computer, waiting for the coffee to brew. The kids were all over the house, at varying stages in their morning routines. Li'l E asked if she could go upstairs with Baby BlueEyes and I said, "No, he needs to finish getting ready for school." The house fell silent as the Gang all worked towards getting ready. The silence should have been my first clue.  I falsely assumed that Li'l E didn't hear me say, "No...." because of her stuffy nose and head cold. I assumed that she was upstairs, judging by the numbers of footsteps I could hear back and forth in the hall above my head. I sat unconscious in front of the computer for a few moments longer. 

When I got up to escort the kids to the door for our morning prayers and hugs and kisses, I found this on the kitchen floor.

Covering about 6 floor tiles in the walkway of the kitchen. Seems someone was practicing her penmanship. "H" must be the letter of the day. Which explains the silence. That's what I get for assuming.

It's a good thing I have a nice new Mr. Clean Magic Eraser in the pantry.

It's a good thing I have been working on delaying and containing my reactions lately.Again. Always. Ugh.

Breathe. Breathe. Count to Ten. And Breathe.