Computer Desk- done!

My goal for the month is to NOT have another huge pile grow. The before is actually not too bad, Barlow had just done a huge clean up of the desk over Christmas Break. So compared to that, this "before" picture is nothin'.

Mine Too!

Ok, I was totally going to post pictures, but as I looked at them I realized there wasn't THAT much different. But I took everything out, swept, got rid of some boxes, rearranged stuff... and all I got was a tiny bit more floor room. It looks better, and so worth the points, but not picture worthy.

Mine Too!

I decided to just do it today. It is hard for me to do projects like this before my house is all the way clean but as I watched everyone else get the points for it I knew I HAD to get it done. I did clean my kitchen first but the rest of the house had to wait. I think I should keep track of how much money we waste by buying stuff that we already have and just cant find! Oh and I am SO jealous of all of your large pantries!

Pantry Done- Charlotte

This was pretty NASTY!! But now it is done. I moved the cleaning supplies to the linen closet (just don't ask for pictures of that) and added my unopened boxes out of my cupboards. I filled one kitchen garbage sack with trash and a huge pile of old boxes to recycle (the boys can do fold them down for me after school). Do you like the 20 points + 30 if it is done, or would you like a different split (like 30/20 or 25/25?)

Struggling

Argh! I feel like I did ok last week, but I feel like I am drowning this week! I am not sure what the deal is. I spent ALL day Monday cleaning then by last night my house was a mess and I have to spend ALL day today cleaning again. I would REALLY like to be able to do a project on Wednesdays but the last few weeks or even months I feel like I just spend it cleaning again. Now if I start the week of on Monday with a clean house do you think it is to much to ask that it still be clean on Wednesday morning? Any ideas on how to help? I have added a couple of goals for this week that might help. I am going to try to get up a little earlier. I normally get up around 6:50-7:00 and usually when I set a goal it is to get up around 6:00, but I figure maybe I should work my way into it so I am trying 6:40 for a week or so. I am also going to try to have a clean kitchen EVERY night before bed, no matter how late it is. I am pretty sure if the kitchen is clean it will help the entire house. I know this is kind of a rambling post, but I know putting it out there might help me over come some of these very instilled habits that I have. PLEASE give me any suggestions that you think of, thanks!

Hey, check out the points

Do you need a little motivation to pick up the pace? Look at the points board. Yeah, that's right. 18 points so far. IT'S TUESDAY. Today I folded and put away laundry; cleaned the bathrooms; swept, swiffered, and mopped the kitchen and bathrooms; vacuumed; and straightened our room, all before lunch. Then I worked on something Barlow's birthday while eating chocolate a la Charlotte until I felt like I was throw up. Great day!

Recipe Closet

This one was easy, it only took about 10 minutes, but the difference is amazing.

Bedroom Pictures

Here are the much anticipated before and after shots of our bedroom. I'm so glad to be able to see the floor again! Let's hope it doesn't get that bad again... Although, that's what I said when we cleaned it over Christmas break, too. It's still not as clean as I'd like it, but when you have that much stuff crammed into a small space, you do what you can.

Tuesday's Tip

This is a really simple tip. I know we all get Family Fun magazine and probably the Friend or some other magazines. Well, when I was teaching I would always look through and think, "Wow, that looks fun. I should do that sometime" and then I would close the magazine and forget. Well, I decided to make a binder to keep all those ideas in. When I see an idea in a magazine or on the internet, I rip the pages out (or print them) and 3 hole punch them. I put them in a binder and keep that with my arts and crafts. Then when I am looking for an idea, I can just pull that binder out and it has everything right there. Someday, I'll get tabs and be even more organized (Craft projects, cooking projects, Holiday themes, Science Experiements, etc).

Bedroom Closet - DONE!

I finally finished my bedroom closet. It took forever. If you want to see what it looked like before, look here. This is how it looks now! I finally moved out all of my regular clothes and moved in all of the circus tents maternity clothes. That was the most time consuming part, but needed to be done! I left my closet door open all night so I could look at it's cleanliness!

Pantry Excitement!

I am very happy to say that I totally vamped my pantry (and it was really bad before I did) two weeks ago and on Saturday, I re-straightened it. So, bonus points for me!!! This is without ANY prep or straightening, I just opened the doors! See Abe standing there? He was so excited because I never open the pantry when he's around because his lightening hands get into too many things!

Weekly Challenge- Beginning 2/2

Ok, the weekly challenge this week is...

your pantry!

I figured I'd kill 2 birds with one stone, since that is already one of my monthly goals. :-) Is that cheating?? But Brenda mentioned last night she also needed to tackle the beast, so I figured I'm not alone on this one. For some it might be nothing more than a little rearranging, but for me this is going to be like an all day task. Good luck!

Charlotte's Monday

I am pumped for this week! Today is a busy day for me. I have to clean up the weekend mess, make Peter's B-Day cake, & take the kids to piano. Peter is picking up the cow we bought and choosing the cuts of meat we want. If I can get it all done, I can work on the other things for the week. The playroom will take a few hours, as will putting together the shelf reliance. So wish me luck!!

5 Minute Challenges beginning 2/2

1. Wash off kitchen table legs (thanks for the idea Andrea)
2. Wipe down window sills
3. Change burned out lightbulbs
4. Disinfect outside of garbage cans
5. Clean tops of baseboards

That was not as easy as it looked. Also, 5 minutes for me is different from 5 minutes for others- I have 10 lightswitches in my kitchen alone.

Need to Smile about Housework?

See Dave Barry's take on it: http://www.miamiherald.com/living/columnists/dave-barry/story/861087.html