My Kids put their own laundry away today

Hahahah.....yay! So..my seven year old put her laundry away in the drawers and hung up her clothes WITHOUT COMPLAINING or making me ask her to do it 400 times!
My almost 4 yr. old happily hung her shirts, and put her jammies, socks and undies away. I have it all on film to prove it!
My 2 year old..well..at least he put his dirthy clothes in the hamper when I asked him to.
(Don't think about the bag of cheez-its he spilled on the floor because after all he did help vacuum it up- that took for- ev-er)
Anyways, your kids will NEVER be independent and take care of themselves unless you first show them how and then reinforce, reinforce, gentle reminder, reinforce!!
Find something they are into and tell them that they only get to do that thing by finishing their job. Have a backbone about it, but don't be a dictator!
Even though it takes waaaay longer to get the job done, in the long run they will feel proud they can do it themselves, and you won't have to do that job anymore.
This was my proud moment for the day!

New Years Resolutions

Well, I usually am sentimental about a year passing and spend some time reflecting as I write in my journal. I think everyone should keep a journal- it is so nice to get your thoughts out- it is like I am my own therapist sometimes. Too bad I most often write in it when I am mad or frustrated. lol! Anyways- it didn't happen on New Years Day so I am writing goals before January ends.

GOALS:
1. To set up a daily schedule that I can use as a general outline to keep me on task and from wasting time. I will get more done!
2. To blog more often
 O.K goals are supposed to be measurable and specific so let's just say I would like to blog weekly.
3. To get more sleep.
 Again, that was pretty vague..o.k so I will get to bed by 11:30pm nightly. Trust me- this is a major goal for this night owl.
4. To lose 10 pounds. I guess the weight doesn't matter so much as if I fit into my clothes better.
 So I guess you can't really have a specific goal without a plan for achieving it. So here goes: I will exercise by either doing a video (p90x, just dance wii, etc.) or by walking/jogging twice a week.
So that goal seems weak. Whelp, why have a goal that is completely unobtainable? If I said everyday and skipped a day I would feel like a loser. If I exercise only one day I will be like "man, I did half of my goal this week!"

What are your goals for this year? Do they fit with your priorities??

My Solar System Room

So, I had set up my little boy Dee Dee's room like a little solar system. I had found a Saturn wall mural for $2.28 at the thrift store. I bought some inflatable planets and hung them from the ceiling- they stunk to high heaven but I loved it! Later that night I went to check on the boy before retiring and decided I hated it. It looked too class-roomy- like an overzealous science teacher's class. Plus to a 2 yr. old it probably looked scary with all those wierd things hanging down. I had Neal cut the strings and threw the stink-balls down the stairway. I do like the big Saturn mural- I will have to warm it up with some friendly characters driving dumptrucks around or something. So far, so good! 
Have you ever loved something and then a couple of hours later just wrecked it and declared "It is NO good!"?

Time Management take that!

So...I have learned recently that having a clean, open, and fun home is easier with a few time management tricks!
#1 WRITE A LIST  oh my goodness, have you ever thought "what did I do today?" with a list you can look at it, do it, and cross it out! Yay!
#2 Make sure on your to do list, you separate it into categories..people to call, errands to run, things to buy..it helps tremendously!

This past week I have gotten rid of alot of junk cluttering up my precious square footage. I was productive...I am sure it was due to using my time wisely :)

SUCTION CUP ORGANIZERS "SUCK"! lol

So I have bought many organizing items over the years for my bathroom-- some of them being the suction cup type that go on your bathroom wall.

 #1 you must have a clean wall. CHECK.

 #2 You must have a very clean wall- use rubbing alcohol on it and let it dry. CHECK.

#3 Be proud of your new organizer neatly displaying your shampoos and body scrubs. CHECK.

#4 Wake up from a deep slumber to your heart racing as you wonder what just made that loud crashing noise. Was it a burglar? Did a shelf fall on my baby? Did he die from the weight? (my mind tends to go to the extreme sometimes)

 NO, it was just your suction organizer that "sucks" ) - get it hardy har har! Seriously none of them work- don't waste your money- they all fall down unless you just want to hold a razor- anything heavier and BOOM!
Tip: I use one single suction cup to hold my bath poufs- they dry off nicely and don't sit in a wet pool somewhere :)

A tour of my beautiful kids bathroom!

I have finally decided I will just blog when I can without neglecting the kids. I LOVE LOVE my kids bathroom. 99% of the time it is the cleanest spot in my home- why? because it is well organized and has no clutter. Everything that is in there has a use. It is so nice, I painted the ocean life myself! (gives self a pat on the back)

LAUNDRY, why all this laundry!!

O.K how come we only have 5 bodies living in the house and we have enough clothes to clothe a small army?? Seriously, I think I have got to pare down or I'll go insane from doing all this laundry. Not only is it washing current clothes we wear, but I am going through all the kids old bins of baby clothes and am going to give them to my younger brother, whose wife is due in March. But I can't just give her a big pile of clothes..no I have to wash and put like outfits together, with matching socks etc. so she can easily see that this goes with that. I have to sort by size and by girl/boy clothes. Is this crazy?? Why do I care so much? Again, I think of all the times my kids wore these clothes and all the memories of them growing out of them and into the next cute outfit. I am treating them as if they were the sweet bums that once pooped on them. The truth is, my sister-in-law will probably go through them and toss the ones she doesn't like.

So anyways, my goal is to get rid of the clothes I know my kids have grown out of by the end of September, and also..get this...to have 2 pairs of pajamas per kid MAX. I think I just went through the girls 2T bin and was astounded by around 27 pairs. I mean I love a good pair of jammies, but that is ridiculous. I partly blame Grandma who used to show up for a visit with 20 outfits in hand NO exaggeration. I keep telling her to put some money in a fund for the kids- but she thinks this is more fun. (adding to my laundry woes?)

I have thought about limiting each kid to 10 outfits plus 1 coat and 1 light jacket (depending on the season) Is this reasonable, or too strict? Right now their drawers are crammed full of clothes- a shirt drawer with 30 some odd pieces, drawers dedicated to pants, shorts, and socks and undies just full to the brim. I am not sure I can do it..10 oufits seems like so little, but when you think about all the time their outfits stay on my bench at the foot of my bed waiting to be put away- they probably grace the kids a whole 10 times before they are outgrown. GROWL. I am going to put pictures up when I get a chance- I think you will be horrified!