It Coming........Spring!!!

I know I have said it before, but it feels more real each and every day. The last few days I have started waking up to birds chirping.Then last evening as I was making dinner, the birds were chirping again. I love that sounds. Not when they are the annoying, wont leave you alone chirping, but the excited the day is starting and it feels so good out here chirps.

I have to apologize a little for having such a gap in my posting. We have had a lot of things going on at home lately, and I was questioning if a blog was really something I wanted to take on. After a lot of thought and prayer I decided that it was. I have known for a while I have wanted to blog about everything I have running through my head from home-life to balancing work & home. This blog may help some, it may not. This is more my place to share my ideas and thoughts on life & motherhood/wifehood (is that even a title?) with anyone that is interested.

I have also posted that I LOVE spring cleaning. Everything just feels so new & clean and fresh. Hope on over to Renew Your Space for some amazing tips on spring cleaning. This is a site I visit regularly and they are amazing at offering ideas for keeping you home clean and tidy.

Some things she shared that we all should be doing for spring cleaningare:

• Find a couple of large boxes & label them: “Donate” and “Repair” – As you’re going through your house, toss things in right on the spot.
• Empty your closet of winter clothes and store them away for Fall – Anything that doesn’t fit properly or is in disrepair, toss into those boxes.
• Flip and disinfect your mattresses with Lysol spray to kill all of those winter germs.
• Launder your pillows every 3 months (read your tags), or if not recommended, spot clean with sudsy warm water & baking soda then air dry.
• Replace your old shower liners, or give them a good scrubbing with a solution of 10 parts water & 1 part chlorine bleach with a plastic-bristled brush.
• Consider renting a carpet cleaner to hit those ugly stains on the stairs and entryways - These are very reasonable to rent & you will be amazed by how new your carpet will look when it’s clean.
• Get your family into the habit of closing the toilet lids when flushing – Did you know when toilets are flushed, moisture and bacteria are released into the air? By closing the lid, you will reduce household mold and mildew from developing in the bathroom.
• Disinfect your dishwasher by using baking soda or white vinegar – Measure out one cup, and throw into the bottom of your dishwasher. Run a short cycle on hot and notice the difference in the smell.
• Run white vinegar through your coffee maker or French press – let it sit and steam for a while and the stains should lift right off. For stubborn stains, scrub gently with baking soda & pour a little vinegar over it – this will create an impressive bubbling foam.
• Clean up grout with a little Spray N’ Wash – It’s not a cure all, but great for a quick fix.
• Sprinkle baby powder on a mildewy floor overnight – Sweep it up and mop over the next day.
• Designate a Cleaning Closet – Consolidate all of those bottles and take back your space.
• Convert from using furniture polish and change over to a feather duster – You will save time, money & the environment.
• Use socks which have lost their mates to polish furniture or to wash the car.
• Buy a wax furniture crayon in a few popular colors to fill in any chipped paint or scuffs on wood.
• Rub out marks from your leather furniture with a pencil eraser.
• Test your smoke alarms & replace the batteries.
• Buy new filters for your air conditioner
• Check the glove compartment of your car to make sure your insurance & registration are up to date.
• To avoid stress, create a file specifically for next year’s taxes – Label it’2010 Taxes’ and throw any receipts or documents in there throughout the year.
• Defragment & back up your computers.
• Remember that summer is coming - Clean & repair your patio furniture / locate all summer sports and swimming equipment.

 I know there are some things on this list that I hadn't even thought about, or knew you could do!

Hope you are all enjoying this time getting ready for spring & then the most wonderful time....summer!!

How fast they grow......

Last night was a wake up call just how fast my 2 boys are growing. I can see it in lots of little things they do but last night they were trying to play together, but it just wasn't working out. Big B is VERY much into motocross and BMX. Little B has taken a HUGE interest in baseball and everything associated with it. Like I said in an earlier post, his FAVORITE movie right now The Sandlot. Well last night Big B was riding his "motocycle" (a pillow from our couch he rides around) and doing jumps and flip. Little B wanted to play baseball with his plastic bat and foam ball. It didn't go over so well with Little Man that his older brother didn't want to play baseball with him.

To me this was the first flashing sign that my kids are off and into their own different interests. They are not gonna stay little forever and will soon have totally separate interests, friends, lives, etc. They will always love and cherish each other, and I do with my siblings, but they are growing into their own little lives slowly but surely. Think I am gonna spend tonight snuggling them and cherishing the moment in the young lives.

March 1st is here

We are all so close to spring. Today is the 1st day of March and I have to admit I love this month. This is the month that I can actually say winter is coming to an end and spring is knocking on our doorsteps. I also love St. Patrick's Day as well. My kids love the holiday and talk about "Leprechaun Day" all year long. I will be sharing St. Patrick's Day ideas in the days to come. One of my favorite things on St. Patrick's Day is when the Leprechauns come to our house at night why we are sleeping and play tricks on us. Every year they have turned our milk green, left green streamers in the boy's room, and much more.

I also wanted to share a picture from last weekend. Usually we spend every night sitting at the table together eating dinner. Saturday night I thought it would be fun to have a "picnic" in our living room. We had hot dogs, pasta, salad and sushi. Yum Yum! It is such a fun and simple thing to do as a family.Get a big blanket that you don't care whether or not it gets food dropped on it. Grab your plates, put on a movie (our's was "The Sandlot". It's one of Little B's FAVORITE movies right now) and enjoy a fun and different way to eat dinner.

Here is a peak at my disaster of a bathroom closet. I actually accomplished a lot last night, and getting this mostly cleaned and organized was one of them. I will try and take a picture tomorrow to post. There still seems to be a LOT of stuff still in it, even though I swear I tossed a bag full of stuff as well, but not it looks more organized and that's all that matters.

What is an area that you need to get cleaned? I challenge you to tackle just 1 area this week. It could be anywhere from a junk drawer to the top of the fridge to a closet in your house. Good luck! By the end of this year we can all be organized!

It's coming!

I can feel it. SPRING is coming, and soon I hope. Our house is ready and waiting for spring & summer to get here. I also cant wait to get some spring cleaning done. Call me crazy but I LOVE to clean! I love spending all day vacuuming, dusting, washing windows (which I'm sorry to say I have NO desire to do in the winter), laundry and everything else. Now I know I could have been cleaning all winter too, but come on....nothing says "spring cleaning" like opening up your windows while you do some deep cleaning and letting the fresh air in. The sun streaming through the open windows!

Today I bought a few plastic containers so I can tackle one very daunting area of my house......my bathroom closet. Stay tuned for some before & after pictures. They will be scary...I promise!

I have told my husband all winter long I want to start in each room of the house. Take EVERYTHING out of it, repaint it, and put everything back in it in an organized fashion. If I had a whole week to myself (without my kids and work and all the other activities that come with it) I would take every single thing out of my house and put it in my garage, then working 1 room at a time repaint it, do any needed repairs (some rooms need new baseboards and such) and then put stuff back in that specific room. Then everything left in the garage that doesn't have a home, or doesn't fit in my neatly (will be once this is done) organized storage areas in matching totes (yes they need to be matching because I get annoyed with mismatched totes in my house...crazy again...I know) will be sold or donated. I can't say I am going to go to that extent with everything, but my goal this summer is to de-clutter, de-clutter and de-clutter some more. Completing this task should help my get rid of (sell and donate) a whole bunch of stuff, as well as give me space to organize and redecorate each space in my house.

Is anyone else itching for some spring cleaning or am I just weird?

Heaven is for Real

I just have to share with you all this touching book I am reading. Yes, it is a little religious, but I don't think it matters what religion you are......you will be touched by this book. There has been quite a few times I have been close to tears while I have been reading.

This book is actually pretty short, and an easy read. I would recommend this book many times over. I picked it up last night about the time I was getting ready to go to bed, and I haven't been able to put it down. In less than 24 hours I am almost done with it.

I hope you all get a chance to get this book and read it as well. If you do, let me know what you think.

I also signed up today to donate blood through the American Red Cross in March. If you are able to do this (not everyone is able due to some blood typing or medical reasons), and are willing, I encourage each and everyone to donate blood. Your blood can go to help save people in need. To me it seems like such a small and simple way to give to others. Not everyone is in a position to give financially, so why not give a part of yourself? Give blood! (For more information click HERE)

Sunday....beautiful Sunday

Today....snow! I just have to say I LOVE the snow. One of the many many reason I love Utah. Watching the snow fall and covering everything in a beautiful layer of white just make me happy. Though I do have to say I am SO ready for summer. I am BEYOND ready for camping, BBQ, riding our bikes, planting and getting fresh veggies out of my garden and suntans!

I love Sundays. To me Sunday are a day to spend time as a family, relax & rest up for the coming week. It is also a day to spend time at church and focus on our Heavenly Father. The church I go to every Sunday is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS or Mormon). For more information you can click here.

I hope you all were able to spend the day relaxing with your family and enjoying some quite time before the hectic schedules of the week start again tomorrow.

More happenings in our household

So this past week I was offered a position as PTA Secretary. I am quite happy and excited about it, and I am more than willing to help out in any way I can. I will say it was a pretty fast offer into the position, considering my oldest is currently a Kindergartner. I haven't even gotten a handle on everything with his school yet. That is ok though. It is a challenge I am more than willing to take on and do.

I get asked all the time......how do you keep so organized. Lists, Lists, Lists and Calendars, Calendars, Calendars!!! I am an avid "To Do" list maker. I even keep a  pad of paper & pen in my nightstand so if I have ideas of things I need to do/want to get done/don't want to remember, I can write them down. No matter what time of night.

Call me old fashioned but I still carry the paper Daytimer. I had a palm pilot (and I still have it) but it is so much easier for me to just write things down. I carry my Daytimer with me 24/7. Whenever something new comes up I always consult it to make sure I don't have conflicting schedules, as well as note new activities that come up as well. Then when I get home I transfer those items to what I think of as our "central scheduling location" .......... our kitchen! On the inside of our pantry door hangs our monthly calendar so I can write down all the future items (birthdays, anniversaries, reoccurring items, etc.). Hanging on the outside of the pantry door is our week-at-a-glance calendar. Every Sunday night I sit down and transfer things from our monthly calendar to our weekly calendar.

Doing this also helps my dear husband to see at a glance what is happening that week, as it saves him the step of looking at the other calendar just so it is easier to see while you are hanging out in the kitchen.

I would love to hear your ways to keep your schedule organized!