Cleaning Schedules & To-Do Lists

I feel as though I have been a bit negative lately, or perhaps just a bit whiny. So, I’m gonna switch up things a little bit and discuss my extreme, and selective, particularity. I really like lists, and schedules, and anything that allows me to cross something off. Yeah, there are days when I don’t get to my lists; but, when I get back on track, it’s there just waiting for me and reminding me of all the things I still need to do/cook/plan/mail/buy/budget/etc. These days (I am referring to the days of being in my 30s with three kids in school), I cannot rely on my memory for anything. I make more lists now than I ever have. And, well, I love it. I can certainly get by without lists; but, boy, things sure are easier with them.

 One particular topic that I recently discussed with a few moms was a “cleaning schedule.”

I want to preface this with killing any preconceived notions that I have a tip-top-tidy home. I don’t. For instance, I didn’t vacuum the stairs yesterday, because it seemed like too much work. I didn’t clean that glob of toothpaste out of the sink after brushing my teeth. I just gave the console table a quick blow, when I walked by and saw that it was dusty. And, I am avoiding the kids’ bathroom like the plague; it’s going on weeks (shudder).

But, I believe it is all much less overwhelming when I have lists. I can split my chores up, and not wait until someone’s coming over and spend the whole day cleaning! Or, put things off and then regret it later, when it becomes a mounding issue (like the kids’ bathroom! I am waiting Heath out.). If I create a list that allows me to chip away at stuff daily, then it is so incredibly manageable. Plus, it is written down; so, if the family wants to help out in any way, they can see what you were planning to do for the day. :)

With all that being said, I thought I would share information about my cleaning schedule. I had one in the house we lived in before. I even had one when I was working, it was just a bit different than the one I use staying home. Here is the “old one.”

 

I used that schedule every day and loved it. Then, we moved into the house we are renovating. Renovation and “cleaning schedule” do not go together. So, I temporary lost my cleaning path… That was, until my recent conversation brought me back to the right track! And, I hate to say it; but, I’m excited about my new and improved cleaning schedule!

It’s a sad, sad day when that is your excitement.

My new schedule is incredibly detailed with not only cleaning tasks, but with daily, weekly, and monthly to-dos. I thought it would serve me best that way. Plus, with spending over a year in this house, I have gotten a really great idea of what chores I need to do and what I share with Heath (which isn’t much, actually – that’s not a cut to Heath, just an odd flex for me). 

 

 While I share my schedule with you, you must understand, yours will not look the same. No two cleaning schedules, and/or to-do lists, will look the same (not likely, anyway). Thus, I have decided to help you create your own! I have broken it down into steps, as to not overwhelm you.

1)      Make a list of chores that you do.

You may decide to make just a cleaning schedule, like my old one, or a "to-do" schedule like my newer one. Nevertheless, the list needs to be very comprehensive for the particular focus. Anything that you complete within a month’s time needs to be on this list. I used Pinterest to remind me of some of the mundane cleaning tasks I might be forgetting. But, since I wanna help you out directly, I have compiled a list of tasks and to-dos for you! Not all tasks will apply to you, or to me for that matter. It is just to help you compile your own list.

•  Do the Dishes
• Wipe Down Kitchen Counters
• Pick up
• Wipe out the fridge
• Make Beds
• Collect, Sort, Wash, Fold, & Put Away Laundry
  (You can break it up, into multiple days, if you want. For instance, I collect, sort, wash, and fold in one day; I put it away the next day.)
• Vacuum
• Sweep
• Mop
• Dust (this could be split into multiple days by rooms)
• Clean sinks, vanities, and showers
• Clean toilets
• Clean mirrors
• Clean windows
• Complete Correspondence (e.g. pay bills, send birthday cards, etc.)
• Budget or Update Budget
• Mow the lawn
• Pull weeds
• Weed eat
• Trim bushes or trees
• Work in the garden
• Water flowers outside
• Water indoor plants
• Clean windows from the outside
• Clear expired food or leftovers from the fridge
• Plan &/or Prep Supper
• Pick up your kids’ rooms and/or toyroom
  OR, a personal favorite, make your kids clean their own rooms and/or toy room
• Set out kids’ clothes for the next day
  OR, set out the kids’ clothes for the whole week
• Wash the bathroom rugs
• Clean the dishwasher
• Clean the Clothing Washer
• Clean out the dryer tube
• Clean the microwave
• Clean the oven
• Clean your shower and sink drains
• Take out the trash
• Make a grocery list or meal plan
• Go grocery shopping
• Declutter certain rooms
• Go through your kids’ clothes to check for items that are too small or ruined
• Clean out your car
• Detail your car
• Wash your car
• Vacuum out your car
• Update your calendar/planner
• Go through mail
• Go through kids’ backpacks
• Sweep out the garage
• Go through or file important papers
• Disinfect door knobs and light switches
• Clean out light fixtures
• Clean ceiling fans
• Wipe down heavy traffic-area walls and doors (grimy hands!)
• Wash your bedding
• Wipe down walls, or collect spider webs in the corner of rooms (it happens!)
• Feed and Water the Pets
• Empty the Litter Box
• Clean your pet’s bed
• Clean your pet’s kennel
• Put your pet’s bowls through the dishwasher
• Set aside time to work on your side gig (mine is for my classes I teach online)
• Sweep off the porch
• Dust off items on the porch
• Hose down outdoor toys/furniture/etc.
• Back up your phone
• Go through the junk drawer
• Vacuum under the couch cushions
• Vacuum your mattress
• Move furniture and vacuum
• Go through your magazine pile and purge
• Dust the inside of your china hutch
• Clean the refrigerator water tray
• Clean the tiny parts on the coffee pot
• Wash winter jackets, gloves, and hats
• Prep Breakfast for the week
• Prep lunches for the week
• Prep dinners for the week
• Make baby food
• Clean/organize drawers
• Clean/organize closets

 And, I’m sure there are hundreds more. But, that is all that I could come up with. Hope it helped you come up with a good list that applies to you, your family, and your home. The good news is, if something else comes up, you can just add it on!

Some items that you may spy on my list that could require explanation include: changing out holiday décor, washing blankets, switching out hand towels, replenish TP supplies, clean “sort boxes,” and go through “sort papers.” Let’s take it one at a time.

• Changing out holiday décor is something that I have always wanted to do and try to do regularly. So, about once a month, I switch mine out for the new, approaching season. 
• Washing blankets is included because we are a blanket family! We have special “living room blankets” that we use nightly. The kids all have an extra blankey on their beds, and there are several just around the house. I try to wash them regularly, to keep them from getting funky.
• I sometimes lose track of how long the hand towels have been hanging in the bathroom...so, I put it on my weekly schedule to switch them out. It’s kinda gross not to, right?
• Replenishing TP supplies means that I will go to our “garage pantry” and get extra toilet paper rolls to put in the designated baskets in each bathroom. If I don’t have this written down, I end up in the bathroom with nothing but Vapor Lotion Kleenexes. Have you been there? Not pleasant.
• And, the last two are cleaning my “sort boxes” and “sort papers.”
  In my craft closet, and in my desk area, I have spots that are my “throw zones.” I don’t always want to take the time to file a specific paper or put the twine back in the bag/box I have it in. So, I have a throw area. I allow myself to fill up that spot/box/tote, and usually about once a month, I go through it and file or organize it. While I LOVE organization, I am also realistic. We don’t always have the time or energy to put things away exactly where they go, especially when you are in a hurry. So, I would recommend that you also have a “throw zone.” BUT, make sure you come back at least once a month to organize it, or more often depending on what is being put there.
  
  Also, at my desk, I have two areas, a “to-do” and a “throw zone.” Once I’ve completed something, I put it into the “throw zone.” I never put anything in that zone that I will want access to in the short term. So, don’t just throw your bills or other action items into that spot!

 Let’s move on to the next step of our cleaning schedule creation.

2)      Next to each item on your list, write down how often you do it.

This may change over time. You may see the need to do something more often, or less often. But, again, you can adjust your schedule as time goes on. Some examples of this step are below:

Feed and Water the dogs – every day

Dishes – every day, but Saturday

Dust – once a week

Mop – every two weeks

Wash your car – once a month

Do this with each task before moving forward. If you look at my schedule very closely, please don’t judge me for barely ever washing our bedding. I hate making beds!

3)      Either draw out, or create in MS Word, a calendar.

As you can see with mine, I just did a table with seven columns (days of the week) and five rows (four weeks in a month, with a day header). You may decide, depending on the schedule you want, to only include Monday through Friday. Or, to lump Saturday and Sunday together, to allow for some flexibility. Or, if you really like your Wednesday mornings, you could omit Wednesdays! You can create whatever schedule works best for you. Just make sure you include the header to clarify what day, and four weeks total.

 

The reason that you don’t want numbers on there is to be able to reuse the schedule over and over again, not just following along with the calendar. You certainly post specific dates, if you want. But, you will have to edit your schedule every month, and I just thought that was too much work – for me.

Now that you have your list of tasks, your frequency of completion, and a blank calendar…

4)      …Start making your schedule!

Do this by putting all of your daily activities in first, then your weekly, then bi-weekly, and so on. You will likely have to move things around a bit, to make sure you aren’t overloading certain days. For example, I mow in the summer time. It is a time-consuming chore; so, on that day, I try not to do too much other stuff. Or, on the day I go to get groceries, I don’t want to also mop the floors! You get the idea.

You may also just have personal preferences. If you are a go-getter on Mondays, load that day up! If you hate Mondays, give yourself a slow start. You will soon figure out what works best for you. Mine probably changed thirty times!

Here is my first draft...written by hand and then typed and changed some more!

I also included little boxes in my table (in the upper, right-hand corner of each day), to allow for me to write the date. It keeps me from getting lost on my sheet. But, this is not required. As long as you are crossing things off, you should know where you are at in the month.

5)      Finalize and print your new “cleaning schedule.”

Once you feel like all of your days are balanced, you may print your schedule out (or re-write it). You could keep an electronic file to check-off each day too; it is entirely up to you. I prefer having something I can scratch off with a nice, cheap BIC pen. I find it very satisfying. Haha.

If you decide to print it, you now have two options:

1. Laminate it. 
2. Print a new schedule each month.

At first, and in the other house, I laminated the sheet. In the other house, I actually covered it entirely in clear tape, and stuck it to the back of the cleaning closet door. This time, I used my laminator (nerd-alert!). 

I tried to use an ultra-fine point, dry erase marker to write the days and to check things off. It wouldn’t write on it…ugh. So, I had to use a regular fine point, dry erase marker, and well…it was fairly sloppy.

Plus, I decided to leave the sheet in the front of my planner, on my desk, rather than hanging it up. I was afraid the marker would smear. So, I decided just to print one each month instead, and not laminate it. (I started this list yesterday.)

It’s so pretty and neat. 

But, Heath’s is laminated and he will probably use his like that – if he uses it at all. You see, I took the liberty of making Heath one too. He sure is lucky to have me…hehe. I’m going to hang his up.

6)      Now, use the schedule!

Once you have it completed, printed, maybe laminated or taped, and you have decided where to put it, you can use it! Each day, you can cross off your tasks. And, whatever you don’t get done, you can work on the next day. So, if things come up, don’t fret. You will know what you didn’t get done and fit it in when you have time. And, if you get really far behind, it’s like taking medication. 

“Take the dose as soon as you realize that you missed it. If it is close to the time of your next dose, wait and take it at that time.” 

What I'm getting at is - if you dust once a week and miss it four days in a row, well, you might as well put the two together and split the difference. Or, just wait until the next time it is on your schedule. What I don’t want to happen, is that you get so far behind that you are carrying over several tasks each day. Give yourself some slack. Some things, like washing bedding, will just wait. Grossly…but, it will wait!

OR, if you get really far behind one month, because it happens, ask for help. It is easier, because you know exactly what needs to be done to relieve you. :)

I hope that this helped you a bit! I truly believe it helps me from getting too overwhelmed with things; even though, my schedule is kinda overwhelming in of itself. I just chose to be very inclusive. This is a process that you may consider completing for or with your spouse too, or for your kids (with their involvement). It may help them with simplifying their schedule as well!

And, on a final note, I must disclose that we do not make our beds every day, even if it is on the schedule. I thought maybe writing it down would motivate me….uh-huh….

Toy Boxes

I have been nesting again. I really have the mental energy to do a lot to our house every evening; but, my physical energy only allows for one project a night. I am having a much rougher go this time around...

Anyway, we have two "boxes" or "bins," whatever you want to call them, in our living room.

Note: the black things on the wall next to them, are the latches for the big, baby gate that we used to have to block the stairs. It will be back out soon enough... :[

The bins used to hold photo albums, craft stuff, blankets, etc. They were catch-alls. Then, when Lucy came, I cleaned them out and they currently hold all of her living room toys.

The toys that you see in the picture? They are from Lucy's room. Of course the toys in the bins weren't enough, she had to bring more out!

I was recently cleaning up the living room and going through the toy bins. I've been slowly taking the things that are too small for baby mouths and putting them in Lucy's room. I decided to separate the toys into the bins by "baby-friendly" and "toddler-toys." Then, I decided that each of our girls would get their own toy bin, once Olive's toys started to take over the living room too. Wouldn't labels be nice? :)

I started by making two 7 x 5 in. name tags, one for Lucy and one for Olive.

Seriously, how sick of "olives" will Olive be? :)

I printed them on card-stock and for anti-destruction purposes laminated them. I love my laminater! :) Lucy loved it too. :)

I wasn't sure how to adhere them to the lids of the bins. I didn't want something that would be permanent necessarily or leave a gross residue. So, for the meantime we pined them on there. I think I can staple them...I'm not sure.This part is to be determined, and I lean heavily on my intelligent husband for a fix...

 

Lucy was so proud and told me who's bin was who's, over and over again. :)

It was a small change; but, I love it. 

I know that once they hit a certain age that it won't matter who's bin is who's anymore. But, this way they can each decide what toys they want in the living room and what toys they want in their bedrooms. Each of them only get what fits in the bin! Also, when it comes to clean-up time, they know where it goes....hopefully. :)

What do you think?

Weeks 25, 26, 27 Update

"Who is this person emailing me from I Love Lucy Jean?"

I know; I know. I have been completely MIA. It is probably the worst ever - a 21 day hiatus! Well, first, my boss resigned and left; so, it has been really stressed at work. Second, Heath's grandfather passed away, very unexpectedly. It really threw all of us back...Therefore, it hasn't been the typical month at all. Hopefully things will get back to routine fairly soon.

I owe you three photos of my week updates. However, I only have two.

Scrolling between those photos makes me think two things; either I grew A LOT in just a week, or I should never wear yellow. I am thinking it is the yellow... :{

I also thought I would share this photo of me and my Granny. :) You can see Olive in the photo too. haha.

How far along?
Well, I am almost 28 weeks (27 weeks and 6 days). So, it has been a long while since I've updated you. I have 85 days left, or just 12 weeks and 1 day! Yippee! :) However, I don't know how much bigger I can get!

This big, you say?

Oh yeah. Looking at this picture doesn't make me feel quite as bad about my current state. Whew!


Baby is the size of a...
Well, we went from the length of an ear of corn, to rutabaga (whatever that is), to the length of an English hothouse cucumber, to now a head of cauliflower. In normal terms, she is 14.4 inches long and anywhere between 2 to 3 lbs! :)


Symptoms:
I am super nesting. I don't know how I am managing to find the energy with my busy, stressful days at work; but, I am somehow managing. This results in my feet and back hurting though. I know that I need to take it easy. Yesterday my feet were so swollen! I wore heels to work and then basically was on my feet until I laid in bed for the night...stupid idea.

I am super constipated too. I think I may have told you that I would stop talking about this, and if I did, sorry. I am going to continue. It is a part of pregnancy, for me that is, unfortunately. My doctor thinks that is why I look so big (besides the fact that I just get big, apparently, and my short torso). She literally thinks I am full of poop. haha. It's a nice sentiment. So, every other day of Miralax is supposed to work things out. She also suggested a suppository. Umm...no thanks. I will try the Miralax.

Finally, on another disturbing note, I have fine hairs all over my baby bump. That never happened with Lucy. The doctor said it was hormones and the good news is that they will likely fall out after Olive arrives. Thank goodness. Hairy and sexy do NOT go together in my book...especially on my stomach. Ga-row-ss.

Anything New?
Besides the hair on my belly?...hmmm. I am officially out of all of my pants. That is shocking right? Well, I have been wearing my pants unbuttoned, with a belly band for this long. Now, Olive has dropped and I can't do it. :( I had to go to all of the ugly, maternity pants. I need to get more (since all of my maternity clothes were for winter!). So, if you see me and I look not put together at all, that is why. Besides, pregnant women should never look "put-together." Those who do, completely defy logic and physics.

We got out all of Lucy's old clothes the other day. I went through them and put them all away. I still need to hang a lot up. I loved looking through them, especially with Lucy standing next to me. She kept 'oohing' and 'ahhing' over all of the cute, little outfits. I told her that they used to be hers and she just didn't quite understand. She kept holding them up and saying, "Baby Olive's?" It is really sweet. The nursery is finally coming back together and Heath's ironing board has exited. We are getting there...

New with Heath?
He is really, basically the same. I keep waiting for him to react to stuff the same as me, but it doesn't really work. Olive was hiccuping the other night and I yelled to him, "Heath - Olive has the hiccups."  He just replied, "Oh, yeah?" I waited like five minutes and then finally asked him, "Did you want to feel? She will probably be done here soon."

I guess pregnancy really is an "old hat" for me and it just isn't as exciting for him this time around. :( Besides Lucy is such a daddy's girl (I mean it! It is bad!), that I don't think he can imagine having two little girls crawling all over him on the floor.

The other night, during one of my nesting fits, he mentioned that he was the "primary bottle maker" when Lucy was little. It peeved me pretty good. I think he knew it; but, it seemed unintentional. I remember clearly getting up on my nights with Lucy and making my own bottles. I was really sad that he gave me such little credit when Lucy was an tiny baby. I really thought I took on 50%, if not more back then. Back then, Lucy wasn't a daddy's girl yet. Either way, I thought it was a pretty sad thing to tell a pregnant woman. :(

New with Lucy?
She got to feel Olive kick. She loves it! :) It makes my heart want to burst too. She gets up into our bed, tries to pull my shirt up and puts her hand on my tummy. She will talk to Olive and always uses an even higher pitched voice. It is so adorable; I could just cry. When Olive kicks, she always gasps and tells me all about it. I just know that she will be a GREAT big sister.

She has come to terms with the nursery too. She calls it Olive's room and calls the crib, Olive's crib. I don't foresee any issues with that part. Attention and binkies? That is a-whole-nother story.

Anything else?
Well, we have a 3D/4D ultrasound schedule for July. I can't wait. Olive better still be a girl, or we will have to do a lot more work! haha. 

Talk to you soon. Hopefully sooner than 21 days!

23 Week Update

I have decided that I did myself a major disservice by not including a picture last week. I think it makes this week a bit more shocking. :{ Prepare....here it comes.

I kept telling Heath that I would forget how big I was until I would see my reflection in the door or something. I am HUGE! The yellow probably doesn't help the case much either. As Heath's grandma told me this last weekend, I "have a long way to go!"


How far along?
I look and feel like I should be a LOT farther along. Even Olive's movement seems so advanced to me. It makes me wonder if she won't be here a little earlier. But, technically, I am 23 weeks and 5 days.

I sure do like watching that bar move across the screen! It just needs to move faster!

Baby is the size of...
a large mango. She is approximately a foot long and a little over a pound.

Symptoms:
Alright, I will just come out and say it - my digestive system is all sorts of jacked up. I'll leave it at that. Pregnancy, no gallbladder, and a cheese craving equals all around awfulness. :(

My hips hurt the other night, but then it rained. I think it is just something that comes with the weather. I certainly hope so! :) My hips hurt with Lucy during the winter; so, I'm staying optimistic that I will get out of the constant hip pain. Maybe... :)

Not really a symptom; but, this belly is getting more difficult to work around.

Yes - those are my feet down there.

Anything New?

I am big. I know that I've already covered this. But, it seems like this last week my face rounded out completely and well, the weight caught up with me. I know that it is my eating habits. I am just eating. I don't watch what I eat, eat any more or any less. I just let myself have whatever I want. Fault? Ehh...that is in the eye of the beholder. At my last appointment I had only gained 9 lbs so far. Not too shabby! :) I am supposed to be between 9 and 13 lbs. I just think that adding 9 lbs to the 12 that I was already carrying around after Lucy ended up badly...oh well. Here's hoping I don't see 200. That is my only weight goal. That, and to not have everyone make shocking comments about how big I am... :{. It's already happening!!

Oh, and I don't have a negative blood type after all! :)  I called to ask more questions and especially about why I never had to get a RhoGAM shot with Lucy and I do now. I stumped the nurse. She was so confused, as was I. She rechecked my file and I have a positive blood type! That is why. My doctor said that when she brought it up to me, that she must have just looked at my file wrong and looked at antibodies or something. I wondered too; so, I busted out my blood card and there it was - positive. I need to pay more attention to what I put in my wallet...the good news is that if I would have gotten it, it wouldn't have hurt me or anything.

New with Heath?
He is being very sensitive to the fact that I tend to be a little more tired with this pregnancy. He is also really understanding about me not lugging Lucy around or picking her up and down all the time. I was doing it at the zoo and he stopped me, "You are going to wear yourself out quickly, doing that."

It's sweet. :) He even let me take a nap Friday night after work. I was worn out. I am glad that he is so understanding and considerate. He did make me laugh though. He told me that he and Lucy were outside playing in the driveway. A sports car, with blaring music drove by. It was a teenage girl and guy, laughing. He said he thought of "Friday nights" back then. Now, he was watching his two-year-old drive circles in the driveway, while his pregnant wife was inside napping. haha. He laughed and said it is just crazy how quickly life changes.

I promise, Heath; we will have Friday nights again - someday! :) And, as far as you letting me rest and taking care of Lucy, thank you. Seriously - thank you! I appreciate you and love you so much!

New with Lucy?
She is somehow becoming more and more dramatic. I think it is due to her daddy's spoiling. :) That is alright with me, as long as he also deals with the "I want my way" tantrums. She really isn't too bad, considering she is only two. She is still a baby, really!

But, she is getting better at the big girl potty! :) I made a new chart. It's cute. I will have to share it with you all sometime. She has two stickers on it! As I mentioned before, when we are home in the evening, we just strip her down naked. That way, she tells us when she has to go. If we do big girl undies, she pees them. She has to be naked. haha. So, it makes for some funny times.

Here she is playing in the living room, patting her daddy's shoulder, while they watch television. haha.

Anything else?
Not really. I think about everything that needs to be done before Olive gets here and it really isn't too much. But, we really need to get started! We need to buy new newborn pacifiers, new bottle nipples, a crib mattress, ideally a new video monitor, newborn diapers and wipes, and more that I can't think of right now. I just need to make a list again. Then, I need to go through Lucy's clothes and pull all of the newborn stuff and see what is the wrong season.

Right now Olive's nursery has become Heath's ironing station. That will have to change. We constantly battle the stupid ironing board! It needs to stay up; Heath uses it almost every day. I just don't know where to put it. :( Organization on the brain. :) Speaking of which, I need to make room in the cabinets for bottles again...ugh! I will be completely organized someday. It will make all of our lives easier. haha. :)

Have a great week! Zoo pictures to come! :)

Laundry Room Renovation

I kind of throw around the term "renovation" wildly. Sorry about that. This renovation included no walls or new counter tops, etc.; but, it was a makeover. So, I'll file it under "renovations."

When we moved into our home, we had an old, hand-me-down washer and dryer. We held our breath every time we turned them on. We just knew they would quit one day. But, we just couldn't bring ourselves to spend the money on new ones, especially when these still worked! We even had an experience where the washer sensor didn't turn the water off and we flooded our laundry room. Fun times. However, we still waited over a  year to make the change.

 

As you see, the laundry room in our house had to be a last minute thought. It is in a half-bath down stairs and it is a teeny, tiny little room. It doesn't allow much for folding or organizing.  Plus, isn't that border gorgeous? For the 1990s maybe...

So, finally, I let my hubby research and pick out some front loading units. I wanted the huge red ones; but, they weren't too practical for the space we have.

We wanted to save as much space as possible, so we took out the cabinets above the washer and dryer. And, yes, I say "we," because I helped! :)

The room already looked bigger!

Then, Heath spent a morning taking down that awful border. It was wider than usual and shrunk the room even more. Ahhh...more white space!

Then, Heath and my Uncle Matt moved out the old ones.

The walls obviously needed some new paint. We used the same paint color as in the adjoining room.

The change, already, was awesome!

Pinterest had inspired me though. So, we looked for ways to create a sorting area...or something.

We had an old, cheap dresser/armoir thing in the garage that we hadn't yet thrown out.

I took the drawers out of the bottom. And, well, I can't remember what we ended up doing with them.

I want to say we took them apart and kept the particle board - for who knows what?

We bought sorting crates and put four of them inside the dresser. Now, we can sort laundry and then put the crates inside to hide them. That way, laundry doesn't sit out in piles.

This was our end product.

I ended up putting the basket below on top and hiding the Tide and Febreeze. The cabinet allowed for us to put a few cleaning products and puppy treats on a smaller, top shelf inside. It's much bigger than it looks!  I still search for cute, wicker baskets to put below. They have to be very specific dimensions; so, the search continues...

What do you think? Better? You wouldn't believe how much cleaner the room looks. :)

Oh and I did say we a lot; but, I'll be honest. Heath does the laundry in our house. I don't know how or why that came to be. It could be that I'm a lazy slug. Or, he likes "playing" with the new washer and dryer (that I don't even know how to use). Or, he started it one day and it just kind of became a "thing." One way or another, he does it and I am so thankful. :) He is such a wonderful hubby and daddy! We love him for so many reasons; but, laundry is pretty high up there on the list. ;)

Big Girl Room

Another renovation is coming soon to the Lucy Jean house! :) We are in the process of changing our spare bedroom into Lucy's big girl room! I have been slowly collecting things for months now, getting way too excited about organizing and decorating - not to mention all of the ideas I've pinned on Pinterest.com.

Although I don't have any before pictures right now, I will have some soon. I do have some of my completely accurate and to-scale diagrams though! :)

Pretty bland room, right? Well, this is what I hope to do with it:

 

The closet is pretty big and the tall dresser offers five 1.5' x 2' drawers. As of now, that is plenty of room for Lucy's clothes. The book case will be a storage area for additional toys and other girly items. :) And, I am not sure sure about the rug yet, hence the question mark. The room is carpeted; but the carpet is beige and we might need a pop of color!

Speaking of colors, what is the color scheme? Here it is:

These aren't the exact shades; but, they are as close as I can pull up on the computer right now. :{ The main thing I wanted was for them to be darker and not pastel.

The plan is to have two walls white, one wall teal, and one wall dark purple. The pink and green will be accent colors. :) You would be amazed at how popular these colors really are. I am finding stuff all over!

I plan on buying the same bookcase again, that we have in the playroom, from Target.

I will then fill it with a few, cute bins.

Since I am really getting excited, we have already started to purchase things too. Here are just a few of them: 

I got these cute hooks at Kohl's for only $11 each. They will be prefect for Lucy's coats!

 And, we got this lamp at Target for $16. Lucy picked out the pink one. I let her choose between pink, purple and turquoise. I have a girly-girl after all! :)

I've also had my eye on some bedding at Target.com. I originally wanted to get Lucy Tangled bedding; but, it just didn't tie into the colors. I was afraid that it wouldn't look cohesive enough. So, I am thinking about getting this toddler bedding, even though it has some pastel pink on it...

There are still a few other things we need. So, if anyone spots some cute items out there let me know!

• a ceiling fan (white)
• 7 new drawer pulls/handles (one screw hole)
• accent pillows
• an area rug
• picture frames and other decor
• white shelves (for keepsakes - up and out of the way)
• and more that I can't remember right now...

What do you think so far?

Toilet Paper

I know it has been a long while - sorry!

I have been super busy and, to be honest, completely out of sync. The house is a mess, my workout schedule is off, I'm feeling tired lately, we have been running around every night, work is crazy, my to-do list is out of control, and my DVR events are all piling up! :( Debbie Downer...and, more to come on my bummer mood in future posts.
Hopefully the long weekend will snap me out of it! I hope to get the house cleaned and get organized (literally and in my mind!).

I don't have any running updates today. I tried to upload them to YouTube; it was being slow and I finally said "to heck with it." Hopefully I will get some more time...and patience...to do it later.

Have a good week. Hopefully you'll be hearing more from me soon!

Shout out to my cousin - he played awesome the other night in his first varsity football game. We were proud. Now, keep it up and I'm sure you will get some Ws! :)

Organized House, Organized Mind

I don't know about you; but, I like organization. I've mentioned that before; particularly at work I am very organized.

Since Lucy came along our house has been absolutely less than organized. I have become accustomed to just throwing things in a cabinet or closet and just closing the door. It's hidden from visitors right? I'm totally using the "clean your room" method that we all used as child. Just throw it all in the closet!

Alright - it isn't that bad. However, it does stress me out. I literally can't relax knowing that I have projects that I should be doing - like organizing my bathroom cabinets or the spice cabinet.

I have always said that if my area is unorganized that my mind is unorganized too. Knowing everything has a place and it is in it's home makes me happy!

"A place for everything and everything in it's place."

I preach it; but, I get tired of not living it. When I talk about not having enough hours in my day, this is one of those things that bother me. I never feel like I have the time or energy. So, one night, I sucked it up. I finally just asked Heath, "Can you watch Lucy while I do something real quick?"

"Real quick" turned into about an hour.

I decided to clean up our bathroom cabinets.

This is the spare bathroom mirror-cabinet. Notice how the left side was once a medicine/first aid area? Who knew that we had so much stuff? Would you believe that we barely ever open this for any other reason than to get Lucy's toothbrush?

This is our master bathroom cabinet. Notice again, the top, middle shelf. More medicine! I never took this much until I had Lucy. Now, I have all types of old prescriptions around.

Here is our 'spice cabinet'. You can also see that we have medicine in there! Pepto and off-brand tums are barely peeking over my pepper.

And this cabinet was not being used to it's full potential, in the spare bathroom. So, I decided the medicine needed to be put all into one place - here!

I started cleaning one at a time and categorizing. This is what I came up with (click on the pictures to make them bigger):

It looks like a lot, right? It is! I probably need to go through again and double-check expiration dates. (The red tin is holding medicines that are in a tube, like Orajel and my Eczema hand-cream.)

I have decided that we have too many cosmetics. These are just extras that we leave in the spare for guest use. That's just crazy. I, again, added a little red dish to hold dental floss and Lucy's little Orajel Toothpaste.

It doesn't seem like a big change in the Master. For the most part that is because I didn't touch Heath's stuff on the left side. But, already I have felt like it is easier to find things.

I did notice one thing though; I think I have a deodorant issue...

I have another one in my travel bag! Wow! Note to self: don't buy any more deodorant until at least 2012! I'm becoming a hoarder/extreme couponer.

I even made some changes to the spice cabinet. My greatest accomplishment was deciding to use my recipe card holder for packets, like below (sorry it's so blurry):

1) Yes, we buy Our Family taco seasoning.
2) Yes, I did have some recipe cards in here; but, I had a lot more that were too big and didn't fit. I decided to take the small ones out and put them with the larger cards. Win/Win.

What do you think? It is amazing how better it made me feel. Just a little organization helps me keep my sanity. Plus, I was putting the medicine all in one place; so we can lock that cabinet for Lucy-proofing.

Sorry to get off track a little on the blog; but, I felt compelled to show off my hard work! :)

Have a great, organized day! :)