To-Do-List

I was at Bunko the other night at sweet Ashley's house.  We were in the kitchen and right next to her sink was taped a To Do List.  Brooke and I had to take a picture of it with our phones because we have been having the hardest time getting our kids to clean the kitchen....all the way till it's done.  Done to Mom's standards of course.  It's the little things that make me happy.

So of course I had to come home and make my own Kitchen Clean-Up To Do List for my girls.  They do very well with lists.  Make them a list and they are happy to follow it.  I taped it up this morning and I have fingers crossed that my kitchen will now be forever sparkling.

The best part?  Her 13 year old daughter typed up this list and hung it in the kitchen herself.  All on her own!  Ashley, you've got a keeper there!  Give her a treat for me and tell her GREAT JOB SISTER!

100 Things Re-cap

Remember THIS post about getting rid on 100 things from Crystal B? Well last week I spent a few days cleaning out the girls rooms and organizing the bookcases.  Purging like crazy.  Actually Miss Abby de-junked her room and closet all by herself.  Scary thought since I didn't know what she was purging and she's 8 years old.

SIX black garbage bags later and a pile of odds and ends that were too big or bulky to go into a bag and I told the hubs to go load it in the car.  Our office was a mess!  As he was loading, the girls said, "Hey! Let's have a garage sale!"  Ummmmm no.  I was NOT up for a garage sale.  I've been sick and have had hives and the thought of sitting outside in the heat for hours was not appealing one bit.  The hubs came through and told the girls he would help but they had to do most of the work.  Saturday morning came bright, early and hot but they were excited and ready for the challenge.

Three hours later the girls had sold most of the stuff and made.......are you ready?

$128!

Split two ways=

$64

I'd say that is pretty good for two kids and a bunch of junk!

(Sadly, I didn't get one picture!)

100 Things

Now that I'm feeling better I have cabin fever.  Do you get like that?  After you have been sick - in bed- all you want to do is get up and get back to normal?  That's me.  I need normal....right now.

So this morning I was catching up on some blogs (haven't done that in a while) and saw that Crystal B is doing a 100 things challenge.  Get rid of 100 things that is.  I love it.  I'm always trying to clean this house out.  I do best when it's a little at a time.  This is perfect.  In fact I wont even count the four bags of junk sitting in my office ready to go to Good Will.  I'm going to start in the girls bathroom.  It's a scary mess under their sink.  Scary I tell ya.  How many lotions and headbands do two girls need?  I'll do a post update.  To be honest, I think the cupboards under my sink need to be cleaned out too.  I think after that I will do the laundry room.  It has to have the door closed at all times because that is where all the junk goes that doesn't have a home.

So are you up for the challenge? Go Read Crystal, she's funny.  I like her and wish she was my neighbor.  I know we would be good friends.

Things Around Here

I have been trying to keep up with stuff around here and thought I would post a few pictures so I can remember what I've done and hopefully keep things organized.  It's always a work in progress. 

      

I set out everything we use daily on the table for easy access.  I got the idea HERE.  Monica got me the darling tray for my birthday one year and it's found a new home right here on the table.  I love it!

(vitamins, candle, chick-fil-a mints, salt & pepper, napkins, Abby's notebook and pencil)

     

I love this little mug holder I got at IKEA.  

Not only does it free up precious space in my cupboard 

but it's pretty and functional.  Love that!

    

This is who joined us for dinner and I love it. 

It makes me so happy that my baby isn't too "old" to play pretend and be the Mommy to her baby. 

  

This is my new dish soap dispenser I got at Mesa Thrift for $.50 cents.  I keep my sponge, scrubber and hand soap in the white pot but the dish soap didn't fit.  now it doesn't have to.  It's pretty right where it is♥

Question:

What are some of your favorite organizational tips?

Would love to hear them!

House Week - Pantry's

Who doesn't love a well organized pantry.

We all want one yet never can seem to get it the way we want it.

My house has a nice sized pantry that is uncommon in homes today.

It is one of the reasons why we bought this house.

(that and the flooring and huge pool)

Now who has a pantry like this?

Come on! It would be dreamy wouldn't it?

I guess if you were Monk or Jeff Lewis your pantry would look this good.

Not us Mom's who have a house full of kids - which I wouldn't trade for anything!

This pantry is just too darn cute!

I could see myself having this pantry in my old house.

It would have been perfect tucked into one of my nooks.

This new house doesn't have any wall space.

That's what you get with an "open floor plan".

Ahhh - a dream! Love the shelving for the white stoneware and the blackboard painted door. My friend Christi did that to her laundry room door and it is SO CUTE!!!!

OK - now on to my little pantry project.

Saturday Tom got the project bug and decided the pantry was in major need of a redo. Who am I to argue with that? We decided that one more shelf going all the way around the top would help add the extra space we so desperately needed. So off to Home Depot he went while I started de-junking the scary dark hole.
What a difference! I'm sad I did not take before shots. I didn't think it would be such a dramatic change. I find myself going into the pantry just to look around. It puts a huge smile on my face now every time I walk by. No more closing the door when someone comes over to hide that space!
One of my favorite things that I use for most everything are these P.E.T. containers. They are a lightweight plastic containers that comes in different sizes and can be sealed with oxygen absorbers to keep food fresh. Even if you open and use something out of the containers when you seal the lid the oxygen absorber sucks the air back out and reseals the jar. Pretty nifty. I have used these containers for 10 years and LOVE them!!!
I did organize the pantry into sections:
Canned goods, baking supplies, spices, cookbooks, small appliances (like the rice cooker, jar opener, panni maker, waffle maker etc) and everyday staples like cereal, snacks and breads. I still need to organize my P.E.T. containers into groups. My kitchen cupboard space is limited and the extra cupboard space I have is filled with my Grandmothers and Mothers china so the pantry has to house a lot of stuff!
Do you need help organizing your pantry? I found a wonderful blog that has some easy steps to get you started. An Organized Pantry from The Home Executive
You will have to let me know what the status is of your pantry. Clean and organized? Scary and a big black hole? Non-existent? I can't wait to hear!
What are some of your favorite things in your pantry? (and I'm not talking the chocolate you have hidden from the children - wink)
(scroll down - I finally posted some Halloween Pictures)

Organizing

I'm playing Catch-Up and may be for a few more posts. So hang in there while I breeze through the summer pictures I never posted about. I was on an organizing kick this particular week. Even though these pictures may not be the best I want to remember how I was organized I was. Even if it doesn't last.

My towel closet. I only use white towels. That way I can bleach them, wash them all at once, no playing favorites, plus I just love anything soft fluffy and white! That basket on the floor holds all my table cloths and runners. The beach towels up top are my nemesis. I hate big multi colored beach towels. I I can't wash the blues with the oranges or yellows so if the kids pick one blue and one orange what am I supposed to do? I wish I had big white beach towels. That would be heaven. This drawer is the junk drawer. I tried to organize it and it's much better. I think I need a different type of holder thing. The one I have just isn't working.
Pantry. Getting a little crowded with those white buckets. Maybe I can move some of them into the towel closet. I also need another shelf along the top. There's room and it would be put to good use.
Yes those are all hand made quilts by my Mother and Grandmothers. When I my Mom died I took a few. I did not take them all. All the family members including her sisters and my cousins took some too. This is just a small percentage. I even have a couple more in another closet. I'm thinking......space bags. Have you seen those things? I could get 2-3 big quilts into one space bag and it would shrink down to nothing! Do you think it would be good for 100 year old quilts?
I know this is not an exciting picture but........I had this extra dresser and it's a cute and nice dresser. I didn't want to get rid of said dresser. So I thought hey, it fits perfectly in the closet in the space made for coats. Since we live where it's mostly over 80 degrees and don't wear coats much I immediately made the closet it's new home. Now it holds all my sheets and pillowcases. (and more blankets on top) I said we didn't wear coats, obviously we use a lot of blankets??

(july 08)