Why is it after a big bout of sickness one feels like cleaning, decluttering and organizing? Whatever the reason that’s what we’ve been doing. I made a big huge list of all the home improvements needs and ideas I could think of to try and make our home run a little better. We’ve been slashing our way through the list doing the easiest ones first. Little changes can make a big difference!
Example #1: We have three bathrooms. One is the master bath, the other two for the kids, although one of those is really tiny. Days where we all need to get ready to go somewhere, especially Sundays where we have to be out of the house by 8:15 are stressful and chaotic. There simply aren’t enough mirrors and sinks for all the girls to get themselves ready. While we can’t remedy the sink situation (just yet) we could create a bigger “beauty” station. The solution we came up with was to rearrange the baby’s room, moving the dresser to the wall, buying a huge mirror to hang above it and having baskets with all the hair accessories on top of the dresser. Four girls can line up in front of it at the same time.
Sunday was the test run. Everyone was ready for church by 7:45! I couldn’t believe how wonderful it was not to hear knocking on the bathroom doors answered by “Hurry! I need to have my turn!” or “You’re taking too long!” Our morning was actually peaceful and stress free. Just what a Sunday morning should be.
Example #2: We also decided to try something different with our laundry this week. Every bedroom now has two baskets for dirty clothes – one for colored clothes, one for whites. Every room has been assigned a day of the week for them to wash their clothes. There is still someone in charge of laundry for the week but they only have to do all the tablecloths, napkins, and dishtowels as well as keep the laundry room neat and tidy. They also help the littler ones on their day to do their laundry. I think, this week, the laundry room has been the cleanest that it has ever been. There weren’t multiple baskets piled high with dirty laundry or baskets of clean clothes waiting to be folded. We were actually caught up every single day. For our family of ten, that was a small miracle.
Planned for this week:
- Sewing new curtains and pillow covers for the living room. We need splashes of bright color in there!
- Reorganize every single cupboard in the kitchen. That will probably take two long working days.
- We are also going to try something new with our dishes. I am tired of all the dirty cups taking up counter space. On the days we remember to put masking tape on each cup to label whose is whose the counters stay clean but most days we can’t find the masking tape! I am taking a cue from Alison (again) and will be etching names on clear glass mugs. All of our dishes will also be put away in storage (with semi-easy access for when company comes) except for one plate, bowl , and etched cup per person. Everyone will be charge of making sure their stuff makes it too the dishwasher to be cleaned before the next meal. If not, they have to wash it by hand themselves. Hopefully this will cut down on the pile of dirty dishes we always seem to have.
I guess I could have scheduled this to be the homemaking post for Tuesday. Oh well.
On an entirely different superficial vein I was nominated for the Best LDS Female Solo Blogger of 2010. Voting is going on right now and ends around March 14th. If you feel so inclined you can vote for up to three of the nominees which are listed randomly with each page load (hint: mine will say Montserrat at Chocolate on my Cranium) Although I don’t take much stock is stuff like this it is nice be recognized every once in a while. ;D Thanks Mrs. O for the nomination!
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I can’t believe how much we are alike, always refining and working to organize our homes and families. What was once my biggest weakness is now my biggest strength. My friend Marla and her sister Wendy were given a similar set-up as their Christmas present one year. All the girl friends loved it–no little brothers bugging us, while we beautified.
I just voted for ya!
I love to reorginize! What a fun mirror for your girls. I really like mirrors in bedrooms, seems like such a good bathroom saver. 🙂
I will go vote right now.
I love the new mirror and the cup idea is the best.
I was reading through Momymita’s archives after you liked to her. The etched glasses caught my eye as well and I already ran the idea past my husband–it’s a great one. And it’s a great way to teach some personal responsibility to my little ones as well.
I like your ideas. I a tend to start with the hardest ones to get them out of the way and then if they don’t get done, nothing does. I am going to reverse my list today!
I was a very ornery mother. Only three kids who wouldn’t load their own dishes so I would take them and put them under the covers of their unmade beds, after the food had dried. Had some very strong wills going there. Oh yeah, and my daughter was so stubborn she got to eat out of her dirty, dried dishes.
I am happy/sad to say I am finding that what goes around, comes around. She has some of the most stubborn boys I have EVER seen. They are even trying to dig in their heels for me now. . . not going to happen.
Good luck with all of your projects!
P.S. I had that masking tape problem when I was the ward librarian. I finally chained a roll to a drawer, made a bunch of the tape on drinking straws for handing out . . . and when the scissors got to be a problem, chained a good pair of those as well. A long time later when I went in and needed some scissors and there were none the librarian told me that some weirdo had chained the stuff , blah, blah, blah. Well here we were with no scissors, because they had been unchained. I just smiled and told them I was the weirdo that did that and this was why. Never did find a pair of scissors that day! So now I am trying to find a good place to chain a roll of tape for when I have kiddies running in and out of the kitchen.
I like the etching the names but I stick to sippy cups, even for the oldest who are 6 yrs old, don’t want spills . . tired Nanny here.
I LOVE the glass etching idea! Ever since we switched from a variety of colored plastic cups to identical glass glasses, we have the same problem – a mountain of glasses on the counter because no one can remember which one was theirs! I can hardly wait!
I love your blog because of the “realness” of it! You are always uplifting in a very real and meaty way. Some Mormon Mama blogs I can’t stand to read because they seem superficial and fake. Yours is one I enjoy greatly. You make me feel like I can do this motherhood thing! 🙂
I am teaching Pres. Uchtdorf’s talk next month in RS and may use some of your ideas in my lesson! Thanks!
Love the post! We have a small coat-type rack just under the kitchen window, right next to the sink. We each have our own different colored tupperware cup to drink from, and keep it on the little rack. My friend (mother of nine) in Idaho put in two drinking fountains in their home. One upstairs and one down. She said they were only around $300.00. I know that is a lot of $, but, if you are doing a remodel, or building, as they did, you might consider such a luxury!!
I’ve got a case of the post sick clean outs and projects too! I’ve also re-evalutated my “day in the life” and have made some major changes there too.
Love your ideas here- and please post the etched cups because I have yet to finish that project.
And congrats on the nomination – I just voted!
I was more than happy to vote for you! Good Luck!
I love pre-sorted laundry. That’s how I’ve always done it since I got married and started running my own house, one for whites one for colors. SO much better than what I grew up with, massive piles in the laundry room to be sorted yick!
Great ideas! I only have a family of 3 and our laundry piles up…
I am a wee bit type A and try to streamline chores and the like all the time. Last summer, I organized the kitchen drawers and cabinets – then labeled them. Our friends think it’s hilarious that you can open any drawer in the kitchen and a little label will let you know if it’s for measuring cups or wooden spoons and ladels. It’s made putting away dishes so much easier for the kids and any house guests who help out!
Great ideas here, Cocoa! I think I’m going to try the laundry idea. (That’s one area I have never gotten a handle on!)
We are also just getting over being sick for all of February. (blech!) And I have started doing the same thing. Dust and clutter are flying! Now, if only I can keep up the momentum!
Great post! 🙂
I love your laundry idea! We are color coded at our house… each child has a color. That might work with the dishes/cup situation. Every one also has a water bottle or 2 or 3… We have milk or juice with breakfast and then water the rest of the day. They use the same H2O bottle for a couple of days.
I love the beauty station. What a great idea. And good luck on the contest. You are definitely a great blogger!!!