Into The Light - Organizer Extraordanaire

I LOVE to organize. I find beauty in organized things and comfort in knowing where to find something when it is needed.

So it is with consternation that I admit to you today that I HATE putting things away. I really want to just wiggle my nose and have things BE in their perfectly labeled places. I think this is partially why I have been feeling so overwhelmed by stuff. There is always something that has to be put away. Like all.the.time. Even for an organizing obsesser like me this can become a sheer battle of will. I want to win the battle. Also, I don't want to become completely crazy and get freaked out every time there is junk mail in my mail box or a stack of school papers that the kids have brought home.

The good news is that God is a god of order. Which means I am not left to my own devices, and I do not need to be crazy afraid of being overtaken by stuff. An example of this can be found in Numbers Chapter 2 where He lays out the entire plan of how the camping was to go down, who would be placed where and in what order. If the God of the universe took the time to help the Israelites get and stay organized, He will help me too.

And now...brought to you by the Old Testament book of Numbers AND Woman's Day July 2009 Issue....



I really liked this suggestion and will now share it with you, all my millions of readers...

"file it right. We really only need about 20% of the papers we file. Here's Lillard's method for weeding things out: Every time you retrieve a file, put it away in the front of your filing drawer. At the end of the year, the most frequently used files will end up in the front, and the ones you never look at will be in the back. Give those hidden ones a quick once-over and toss whatever is unnecessary."

Straight Up Hamper Scamper

Choose 5 picture frames and clean their glass. Inside AND out!

...and have lovely day.

Hamper Scamper

Your Mission:
Time to open up the leaf/leaves in your table and give the cracks a good clean out!!

Hamper Scamper

Make beds (each his own)
Check guest bathroom (12 year-old daughter)
Change bathroom hand towel (12 year-0ld daughter)
Change kitchen towel
Vacuum common areas
Filing(eww)
Set table for dinner (12 year-old son)
Make dinner
Clear table from dinner (12 year-old daughter)
Wipe table and chairs
Take out kitchen trash (12 year-old son)

Still up for grabs:
Vacuum van
Wash neon
Vacuum neon
Bathe dogs

Cow's It Going?

Visited the neighbors at dusk. It's so mooving to see God's creatures up close.





Today I spent the day shopping around with a new friend so today's tasks were slightly neglected. All told, well worth it. I received the new hard drive for the laptop and it freaked out too. Dell is sending out another one. Waiting so, so, so patiently.



We completed all of yesterday's tasks, with the exception of cleaning the sink and the mirrors in the master bathroom. No biggie - I'll get to it.

Clean guest bathroom (12 year-old daughter)
Make beds (each his own)
Wash and vacuum van (up for grabs)
Sweep floors (12 year-old daughter)
Update checkbook
Water front garden
Water mailbox
Wash and vacuum neon (up for grabs)
Sweep back patio (up for grabs)
Mow front & back yards (Dad)
Bathe dogs (Up for grabs)
Set table (Dad)
Make dinner
Clear table
Wipe table and chairs
Take out kitchen trash

Getting Back On Track

We completed all the tasks on our list yesterday! And then some! As I mentioned before, we spent the holiday weekend at our future homestead. Here is a picture of what my future looks like.....



Today's Tasks:

Make beds (each their own)

Check the guest bathroom (12 year-old son)

Clean the Master bathroom

Change kitchen towel

Laundry

Clean kitchen sink

Check house plants and water

Clean garbage disposal

Clean ionic breeze

Pick up dog poop(12 year-old daughter)

Mow dog yard(12 year-old son)

Bring up trash cans (12 year-old son)

Set table for dinner(12 year-old daughter)

Make dinner

Clear table from dinner(Dad)

Wipe table and chairs

Take out kitchen trash(12 year-old son)

The Fall Of Perfection

Well, okay ~ the fall of the illusion of perfection. Since my husband left for Iraq, my life had been in a spiral of controlled chaos. We have been blessed so abundantly in our lives, and with those blessings have come many responsibilities. As time passed with my husband gone, it became increasingly clear that it was too much for me to handle on my own.(sprained ankles and debilitating colds didn't help) Add to that my ministries and various opportunities to do something besides a paying job and things started to slip. I began forgetting appointments, tasks, names ~ even every day words. Praise the Lord my husband came home! Right? Well yes, of course. And with the blessing of him coming home safe and sound, came some certain realities. I am not perfect. And now, my husband knows. Along with the failings that he was aware of while he was gone (see my financial disaster post), he has now become aware that I did not care for our property in a way that he would have liked and he is now paying the consequences because he has six months of catch-up to do. This is not because I didn't care, or was complacent about what needed to be done. It was simply too much for me to do. Also with the blessing of him being home, came the challenge of re-integration. He is having some issues related to the war which are affecting me. Sleep has been such a challenge and I have become exhausted to the point of not even feeling enough energy to go to worship practice. And I have become rather jumpy and agitated at unexpected noises. Then there's the fact that my regular weekly Bible study adjourned for the summer and thus ended my regular attendance to my Bible.(fault mine) And then ~ just to make things fun ~ we dove right into a major reconstruction in our home (not sorry about that at all, just pointing out the chaos.)
SO ~ last night, I shoved some box out of my path and got into the car and went to worship practice. There was no one there. Why? I don't even know. That's how bad it has gotten in the world of S4J. So - anyone that may have had illusions about my perfection or 'being all together', should be pretty clear that they were incorrect. I'm certain that I owe apologies for missed appointments and responsibilities and perhaps at some point, I will become aware of what those are and make the appropriate sorries.
I have been waiting on God to tell me what would be my tasks in the coming season, and I believe He has made it abundantly clear to me at this point.

* My family and my home are a ministry that God has given me and after Him they must be given priority.
* My body is a temple and it must be cared for with the love and respect of the guest whom I have invited to live in it which is Jesus Christ.
* After these priorities have been seen to, I am to care for women whose husbands are deployed and to care for my friendship relationships.
*This one is just me :) I love photography and I have a God-given talent for taking lovely pictures. I want to be a photographer who gets paid. More to the point, I want to be a photographer worthy of getting paid. So I am going to try to take a picture every day to post. Maybe I will start a photoblog just for accountability. It is also my desire to improve on the talent that God has given me and so I would like to take a photography course. Perhaps when the kids go back to school.

In the interest of priority one - I have revamped my home maintenance schedule so that jobs that need to get done are more likely to get done because I know they need to get done. There are daily, weekly, monthly and other frequency-oriented tasks. I have broken them down into manageable segments and have delegated more of the work to capable members of the family ~ although the majority of the indoor work to maintain the home is mine because I am the full-time household manager which was agreed upon by myself and my husband at the beginning of our marriage. This will be a daily Hamper Scamper post. And I will let you know if I completed the tasks or not. You can work along with me, or just hold me accountable ~ or even just ignore the whole thing. After all, this blog is really about me for me (and also to help others keep up on me) and the beauty of visiting friends on blogs is that you can visit with the freedom to read or not read, do or not do, comment or not comment.

Oh ~ and btw ~ my laptop hard drive died and so I am still working from another computer. The new (refurbished) one came today and my husband has promised to help me install it. Hopefully I'll be up and running again soon.

I don't have the Hamper Scamper button on this computer so for now, you'll have to imagine it.

Today's Tasks:
Make beds(each their own)
Sweep common area floors (12 year-old daughter)
Check and adjust guest bathroom (12 year-old daughter)
Change bathroom hand towel (12 year-old daughter)
Vacuum common areas
Mop common areas
Set table for dinner
Clear table table from dinner (12 year-old son)
Wipe table and chairs
Wash dishes
Take out all trashes (12 year-old son)
Curb trash cans (12 year-old son)

AVADIJ-E4 - June 23

I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth.

Job 19:25

Go to the window you look out the most and clean it(the inside AND the outside)! You'll be surprised at how it changes your environment. If that inspires you - do all the windows in the room!

We Interrupt The Currently Scheduled Home Renovation For This Hamper Scamper Just In!

FOLKS! Did you KNOW that you should clean the grease filter above your stove ONCE A MONTH??!! Did you even KNOW there was a filter there AT ALL?? Well now you do. I have NEVER in my life even one time cleaned one of these nasties. We have lived in this house for three years. GROSS! And dangerous. I imagine that thing is somewhat like a duraflame log on steroids at this point. Maybe your Mother never told you this. Mine didn't. Maybe she doesn't know either. I only know this now because in the midst of renovating our kitchen, we had to replace the range hood and purchase a new microwave. They now manufacture Over The Range Microwaves that will clean and recirculate the air - or vent it outside the house - whichever you prefer. So, we took care of 2 purchases in 1. When my husband was installing said microwave, he read that the filter needs to be cleaned once a month and I was completely shocked. So I did a little net research and found this helpful info courtesy of Rangehoodsinc.

How often should I clean my filters?
The aluminum mesh grease filters should be washed in your dishwasher approximately every month depending on the amount of usage. Wash often if your cooking style generates greater grease like frying foods or wok cooking. The more grease you use, the more you need to clean the filter. You cannot clean the non-duct carbon filters; they must be replaced.
Baffle filters, which are used in professional style range hoods products, are designed to operate longer in high grease conditions without loss of performance. Generally, these need to be cleaned with soap and water whenever the surfaces become unsightly.

How often should the non-ducted range hood filters be replaced?
It depends on the frequency and type of cooking that is performed. Normally, every three (3) to six (6) months is recommended for replacing the charcoal filters. Some charcoal filters are designed with an indicator mechanism that will change color as a signal to replace the filter. Check each model for this availability as some models do not include this device.

Seriously people - this is a fire hazard. Get that thing down and clean it out!

GO!!

What A Difference Thirteen Days Makes

I am still sick but today I was able to run the vacuum before knocking out cold for three solid hours. I also cleaned my room AND did the dishes. Apparently my child labor needed a rest from their sweatshop duties and God allowed me to do a bit of it. Thank you to all of you who have been praying for me - don't stop!! I am going to leave with you another great song that I love (and wish I could play) - and also a Hamper Scamper assignment for those of you who are well enough to play...




Hamper Scamper: Pick a window with mini-blinds and wipe them, vacuum them, dust them - or throw them away! GO!!

The "Joys" Of Riding In Cars With Avid Readers

We now interrupt our regularly scheduled joyful time in the car to join this conversation already in progress.....

12 year old son : Apparently I am not allowed to ask a simple question.

15 year old daughter: Tell me the exact words where I said, "You cannot ask me a simple question"

12 year old son: Your tone of voice implied that you were not going to answer me and I simply want to satisfy my curiosity.

We will now return to our regularly scheduled programming. Have a nice day.

Did you know that by cleaning out the lint trap and the exhaust hose in your dryer you can reduce the risk of fire in your home and lower your energy bill? GO!!

A Love Worth Giving

This is the Inspiration section out of this week's section in our study of Ephesians (It is an excerpt taken from Max Lucado's A Love Worth Giving)



What would it be like to become flesh?



This question surfaced as I was golfing recently. Waiting my turn to putt, I squatted down to clean my ball and noticed a mountain of ants beside it. Must have been dozens of them, all over each other. A pyramid of motion at least half an inch tall.



I don't know what you think when you see ants on a green as you are waiting to putt. But here is what I thought: Why are you guys all bunched up? You have the whole green. Why, the entire golf course is yours to spread out in. Then it occurred to me. These ants are nervous. Who could blame them? They live under a constant meteor shower. Every few minutes a dimpled orb comes crashing into their world. Bam! Bam! Bam! Just when the bombing stops, the mallet-swinging giants arrive. If you survive their feet and sticks, they roll a meteor at you. A golf green is no place for an ant.



So, I tried to help them. Leaning down where they could hear me, I invited, "Come on, follow me. We'll find a nice spot in the rough. I know it well." Not one looked in my direction. "Hey, ants!" Still no reply. Then I realized, I don't speak their language. I don't speak Ant. Pretty fluent in the idiom of Uncle, but I don't speak Ant.



So what could I do to reach them? Only one thing. I needed to become an ant. Go from six feet two inches to teeny-weeny. From 200-plus pounds to tenths of an ounce. Swap my big world for their tiny one. Give up burgers and start eating grass. "No thanks," I said. Besides, it was my turn to putt.



Love Goes the distance...and Christ traveled from limitless eternity to be confined by time in order to become one of us. He didn't have to. He could have given up. At any step along the way he could have called it quits...He didn't, because He is love. And "love...endures all things" (1 Cor. 13:4-7 NKJV). He endured the distance.




If you're playing the game.....time to clean out your microwave oven. GO!

Wordless Wednesday

As iron sharpens iron,so a friend sharpens a friend.Proverbs 27:17

Click on the picture for the rules.
Mission: Wipe down your washing machine...GO!

Mission Possible

HisGirl and I are developing a game. In the interest of accountability, taking care of the things God has blessed us with, AND still getting to do the things we want to do (which is chat online and blog blog blog). When we are IM'ing, which we do daily; we will break out with random jobs to do. Sometimes in the form of - "It's a challenge.....GO!" sometimes in the form of, "I'm going to change the laundry" "I'M GOING TOO!"
We are rather enjoying this game. And our homes seem to be happy about it too. Today I said to myself, "Self - why keep this wonderment to yourself?" And myself said back, "Well Self, I can't imagine why we would! Let's tell the WORLD" (oh and I also told myself this: *Note to self* - ALWAYS check the kids' bathroom when someone says they are on their way over because it is also the GUEST bathroom. ICK)

So. You are being invited into the game. Just so you know, this is a game of SMALL missions. For example: CORRECT USE OF THE GAME: Clean one item in the bathroom. GO! INCORRECT USE OF THE GAME: Clean the WHOLE bathroom. NO GO!(You can choose once you are engaged in the mission to go the extra mile if the mood strikes you - but it is NOT a requirement.)
Today a mission I made for myself was to tighten the tank on the toilet in my bathroom. This was so simple, that I moved on to other things in the bathroom that needed tightened. And so the mission became a fun search for loose things in the bathroom. I used simple, common tools,(which are mine and not my husband's) and spent MAYBE 30 minutes in my bathroom. (Taking and editing the pictures took longer than the actual mission) There is now no wiggly or squeaky thing in that place. I am a girl! I did it!

Your Mission: Should you choose to accept it; Think of something anywhere in your house that needs tightened or squeaks. And go fix it!!
Report back to me when you have completed your mission. You can either - make your own post about it with pictures and let me know, or you can share on my comments.

BUT BEFORE YOU GO..... Look at how I completed the mission!!! These are the items that needed tightening or de-squeaking, and the tools I used to fix them.

This one I actually found the little nut on the floor when I was down there fixing something else. I didn't even know the thing had fallen out of the switchplate!! Geez!

And I see that HisGirl, without even knowing what I was doing, has secretly challenged me on today's post.

GO!