It's been a year since I've posted, and for that I apologize. I'm going to blame it on a combination of having three kids, finishing my BA, attempting to keep the house decent (I totally failed on that account), and starting my own business.
Yup, my life wasn't busy enough so I've become an Independent Consultant with Scentsy... and I'm so glad that I did. Between being a stay-at-home-mama and working on school online, I had almost zero contact with grown-ups. The first time I told my husband to not forget his coat because "you're going to get cold" I realized that I needed some ME time. Did I mention that I'm glad that I did joined? I now have a reason to get out, something to concentrate on that isn't making a mess in some way shape or form, AND I'm making a little bit of money. Actually, the money isn't bad at all, and I have one rule about my pay: I'm not allowed to spend it on anybody but myself! I now have to take a few hours a week to do something that is for myself, and I'm a better mom because of it.
I have a challenge for all the mamas out there: take a few minutes for yourself. Schedule in (at least) one hour of kid-free/husband-free/cleaning-free time a week. Put it on the calendar and treat it as if it were an appointment for the kids (you wouldn't cancel a pediatrician appointment because you were too busy, right?). If you decide to go shopping, don't buy anything for the kids or your husband. If you go out for coffee with your girlfriends, don't talk about your kids. If you go to the movies, go see that chick-flick that your husband would complain about being dragged to.
You'll thank yourself.
(By the way, if you want to, feel free to check out my Scentsy website at http://leenakhw.scentsy.us.)
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Saturday, March 5, 2011
The Clutter Challange - Day 4
Today was a wash, as far as my war against clutter goes. I was getting some computer work done when I noticed that the kids had been eerily quiet. You know the feeling that you get right before something VERY BAD happens? I had that feeling then. Before I could investigate I heard shrieks of laughter.
As a mommy, I knew whatever it was, it would be bad. Very bad.
When I went to my son's room, I discovered that it was worse than I thought. My lovely, adorable, amazingly good, 23 month old daughter had taken an entire bag of cat food... and dumped it on my son's bedroom floor. She was happily eating said cat food.
So, long story short, the time I was going to spend on the kitchen counter/breadbox/junk magnet was spent sweeping, vacuuming, and hand picking tiny round pellets of cat food up. I'm still finding cat food. I will be finding cat food for the foreseeable future. It's entirely possible that the people who buy our house from us, years down the road, will be finding cat food.
As a mommy, I knew whatever it was, it would be bad. Very bad.
When I went to my son's room, I discovered that it was worse than I thought. My lovely, adorable, amazingly good, 23 month old daughter had taken an entire bag of cat food... and dumped it on my son's bedroom floor. She was happily eating said cat food.
So, long story short, the time I was going to spend on the kitchen counter/breadbox/junk magnet was spent sweeping, vacuuming, and hand picking tiny round pellets of cat food up. I'm still finding cat food. I will be finding cat food for the foreseeable future. It's entirely possible that the people who buy our house from us, years down the road, will be finding cat food.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
The Clutter Challange - Day 3
I've survived two days of the clutter challenge, and I haven't burst into flames. Hell hasn't frozen over yet, either (I've been checking the weather forecast, just to make sure). While I'm still not brave enough to tackle my front closet - which may take a torch and a backhoe - I'm ready to start on a major eyesore in the kitchen: the top of the refrigerator.
Like so many things, I don't actually "see" things that are in front of me every day. It's easy to see the coffee stains in someone else's kitchen sink, but I just don't notice the pile precariously perched on top of my nice stainless steel fridge.
That changes today. Look out, expired spices and dusty baskets... I'm coming, I have Pledge, and I'm not afraid to use it!
Before:
After:
SUCCESS!
I'm still itchy from all the dust bunnies that I vanquished, but that's just the most vengeful of them getting their last revenge. Yet again, I threw out quite a bit of outdated medication (an entire bag's worth). I have no idea why I've had trouble getting rid of half used boxes of cold medicine, but it was almost cathartic to hear the rattle of bottles and crinkle of boxes as I tossed them away. Just to be safe I threw it in with some used coffee grounds as per Walgreens instructions. It gave me an excuse to drink more coffee. Too bad one isn't supposed to throw out medication with limes - after all this cleaning I could use a good Cuba Libre.
I feel like a new me is being formed - and a new house that I'll be able to invite people in to see is emerging. (But I'm still scared of my front closet)
And now tall people can be in my kitchen without getting dust in their noses.
Like so many things, I don't actually "see" things that are in front of me every day. It's easy to see the coffee stains in someone else's kitchen sink, but I just don't notice the pile precariously perched on top of my nice stainless steel fridge.
That changes today. Look out, expired spices and dusty baskets... I'm coming, I have Pledge, and I'm not afraid to use it!
Before:
After:
SUCCESS!
I'm still itchy from all the dust bunnies that I vanquished, but that's just the most vengeful of them getting their last revenge. Yet again, I threw out quite a bit of outdated medication (an entire bag's worth). I have no idea why I've had trouble getting rid of half used boxes of cold medicine, but it was almost cathartic to hear the rattle of bottles and crinkle of boxes as I tossed them away. Just to be safe I threw it in with some used coffee grounds as per Walgreens instructions. It gave me an excuse to drink more coffee. Too bad one isn't supposed to throw out medication with limes - after all this cleaning I could use a good Cuba Libre.
I feel like a new me is being formed - and a new house that I'll be able to invite people in to see is emerging. (But I'm still scared of my front closet)
And now tall people can be in my kitchen without getting dust in their noses.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
The Clutter Challange - Day 2
This might be harder than I thought. While I was successful with the front bookshelf, when I woke up today I had no idea where to go next. There's just so darn much stuff in here! I need a battle plan!
Here's my plan so far: I will work on a project in a different room each day. That way I feel like the whole house is getting attention instead of having one room all nice and pretty and the rest of the place looking like strange combination of a bulimic toy store and the day after mardi gras.
Day 2:
Here's my itinerary for today: My bathroom cabinets, 2 loads of laundry (the load of cloth diapers I currently have in the washer don't count) both washed AND folded AND put away, and 20 minutes of picking up the day's detritus when the kids go to bed. I'll have to throw out some of my hair product collection... but I'm sure my husband will appreciate my sacrifice. He had better...
Here are my oh-so-embarrassing bathroom cabinets. It's a good thing that we don't have people over for parties, because they might open a cabinet and be mauled by hydrocortizone cream that's past it's expiration date. I'll have to throw out some of my hair product collection too... but I'm sure my husband will appreciate my sacrifice. He had better...
Before:
My cabinets look so much better! While I probably didn't get rid of as many hair products and various lotions/body sprays as my husband would have liked (he brags that he only needs four things to get ready - body wash, shaving cream, a razor, and deodorant), I'm a girl and can't get by without my arsenal of beauty products.
However, I did throw out a disturbing amount of old medication, some of which had expired in 2007. Pretty <insert explective here> bad.
All in all - Day 2 was a success!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
A Call to Arms (Or Elbow grease)
21 Day Cleaning Challenge
I'm a good mother, really. I'm creative, loving, and can cook up a mean étouffée. What I am NOT is a good housekeeper. I'll admit it... I'm a clutterer. For some reason, if I think I can find a use for it later, I want to keep it. Nevermind that "later" may never come, I have a hard time throwing stuff away. Add the clutter to a small house, three kids (four if you count my husband), and me preferring to play with the kids over emptying the dishwasher and you get....
A Royal Mess.
I blame it on my mother and grandmother. My mother lives in a nest of papers and things she hasn't gotten around to putting away, and my grandmother used to wash and reuse Ziplock bags and Cool Whip containers. She grew up during the Depression, so she learned not to waste anything. I'm not sure what my mother's excuse is. All I know is that I think there may be a "I've got to save _____ because I might need it" gene. Scientists should search for it and develop gene therapy. Until then, I'm going to have to find a different way to deal with my mess.
I blame it on my mother and grandmother. My mother lives in a nest of papers and things she hasn't gotten around to putting away, and my grandmother used to wash and reuse Ziplock bags and Cool Whip containers. She grew up during the Depression, so she learned not to waste anything. I'm not sure what my mother's excuse is. All I know is that I think there may be a "I've got to save _____ because I might need it" gene. Scientists should search for it and develop gene therapy. Until then, I'm going to have to find a different way to deal with my mess.
So I'm putting up a call to arms. I am going to battle my clutter. I will vanquish the dust bunnies. My junk closet will quake in fear of my cleansing powers! Here's my battle plan:
- I swear to pick up for 20 minutes every night. I will set an egg timer so I can't cheat and stop after a measly 15 minutes. Going over 20 minutes is okay.
- I will tackle a project every day. (That junk closet, my linen closet, and (shudder) my laundry room are prime examples of my enemies)
Feel free, my cyber friends, to join me in the challenge. We can wage war together, and maybe win a few battles against the junk. At best we'll have a house to be proud of. At worst we'll be able to have the in-laws stop by without feeling shame.
Day One:
The bookshelf by my front door is my first project. It has become a catch-all for stuff that comes in the house, and this eyesore is in my sights...
Before:
After:
Day one, Mission One: Complete!
It took me 2 1/2 hours - remember, I have 3 little ones that need to be wrangled. If I don't watch them closely World War III just might break out; at the very least the cat would be scarred for life. So it took me longer than it might have if I were childless, but it did get done.
It's amazing how looking at a photo gives me perspective. Now that I actually see a picture of my finished project I realize that my coat rack is an eyesore. I would put my coats in the front closet, but that closet is also known as our "junk closet" and there simply isn't room for four more coats (sad, isn't it?). The junk closet will have to be a project for another day.
After all that work I think it's time for a cup of coffee. Or maybe a cocktail.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
The Wonders of Vinegar
Vinegar is good for more than just salad dressing! There was a time (not very long ago) when a bottle of vinegar would sit in my cupboard for months without being touched, but one day I ran out of Pine Sol and I was desperate.
My kitchen floor was filthy. It was filthy on a level on par with a fast food restaurant's. There was Spaghetti-Os and Cheerios creating a textured patina by the highchair. My husband had spilled milk and not cleaned it up (I only noticed it when I spilled some of my coffee and bent to wipe it up. It had been disguised by my white and black checkerboard flooring. In other words, it was gross.
I did what I always do when I have a question, I googled it. I vaguely remembered my grandma talking about how vinegar was the best thing for cleaning, so I typed in "cleaning with vinegar" and got more than three million results. Yup, that's a three with six zeros and three commas!
I decided to give it a whirl (remember - the floor was almost hazmat). I filled the sink with hot hot hot water, a bunch of vinegar (I eyeballed it), and a good squeeze of dish detergent and broke out my good ol' trusty mop. Here's the shocker - my floor got CLEANER than with my Pine Sol, with less scrubbing! Halleluja, I was a convert!
Once I found out how fantastic vinegar is for floors, I started to branch out. Here's a list of my top uses for vinegar:
My kitchen floor was filthy. It was filthy on a level on par with a fast food restaurant's. There was Spaghetti-Os and Cheerios creating a textured patina by the highchair. My husband had spilled milk and not cleaned it up (I only noticed it when I spilled some of my coffee and bent to wipe it up. It had been disguised by my white and black checkerboard flooring. In other words, it was gross.
I did what I always do when I have a question, I googled it. I vaguely remembered my grandma talking about how vinegar was the best thing for cleaning, so I typed in "cleaning with vinegar" and got more than three million results. Yup, that's a three with six zeros and three commas!
I decided to give it a whirl (remember - the floor was almost hazmat). I filled the sink with hot hot hot water, a bunch of vinegar (I eyeballed it), and a good squeeze of dish detergent and broke out my good ol' trusty mop. Here's the shocker - my floor got CLEANER than with my Pine Sol, with less scrubbing! Halleluja, I was a convert!
Once I found out how fantastic vinegar is for floors, I started to branch out. Here's a list of my top uses for vinegar:
- A laundry additive. It works like fabric softener. (And no, my clothes don't smell like salad dressing)
- Keeps cut flowers fresh (2T vinegar and 3T sugar per quart of water)
- Cleaning carpet (hot water and vinegar solution)
- Cleaning pet accidents
- Remove deposits from hard water in coffee pots, vases, fish tanks, etc
- Soothes bee stings
- Stops heartburn (I use apple cider vinegar for this one)
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
I'm not Martha Stewart
First off, let me state that I am not the Martha Stewart type. Anyone who came into my house would know this immediately. I'm pretty sure that Martha would frown on the Toys R Us inspired land mines that make walking in my house an adventure in physics (or at least an exercise in finding creative ways to not swear in front of children). Neither am I a June Cleaver. I do not have a cup of coffee and fresh orange juice ready for my husband to sip as he gazes at the newspaper before going to work while I clean an already pristine kitchen while wearing pearls. In fact, if I were primped and perfect before noon my husband would probably ask me where I was going.
I am a housewife, though. I have three kids and we live in the suburbs with a slightly psychotic cat. I didn't set out in life to become a housewife. If I'd been asked what I thought of housewives when I was in my crazy pre-baby days I'd probably have laughed as I made bad jokes about minivans and soccer moms. Now I drive a minivan and my 5 year old is absolutely insane about learning to play hockey. So I suppose I'll be a hockey mom one of these days.
Even though I may not be a Martha or June, I have found myself going back to the skills that my grandmother taught me as a little girl. She always said "One day you'll have your own house, so you'll need to know this." As a modern girl growing up in the 80's I thought that learning how to sew and knit and bake bread and clean anything with vinegar was at pretty useless and archaic. Being a good girl who loved her grandma I didn't say that, though. Now, with Grandma gone and three little ones in a small house with an even smaller budget I find myself thanking her every day. In this, I find myself having a domestic renaissance - I'm relearning the old arts of running a household on a budget, of raising children who have an actual childhood, and finding satisfaction in what I'm creating instead of what I'm earning.
I am a housewife, though. I have three kids and we live in the suburbs with a slightly psychotic cat. I didn't set out in life to become a housewife. If I'd been asked what I thought of housewives when I was in my crazy pre-baby days I'd probably have laughed as I made bad jokes about minivans and soccer moms. Now I drive a minivan and my 5 year old is absolutely insane about learning to play hockey. So I suppose I'll be a hockey mom one of these days.
Even though I may not be a Martha or June, I have found myself going back to the skills that my grandmother taught me as a little girl. She always said "One day you'll have your own house, so you'll need to know this." As a modern girl growing up in the 80's I thought that learning how to sew and knit and bake bread and clean anything with vinegar was at pretty useless and archaic. Being a good girl who loved her grandma I didn't say that, though. Now, with Grandma gone and three little ones in a small house with an even smaller budget I find myself thanking her every day. In this, I find myself having a domestic renaissance - I'm relearning the old arts of running a household on a budget, of raising children who have an actual childhood, and finding satisfaction in what I'm creating instead of what I'm earning.
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