Those places that bother you...

You know those places or spots in your home that bother you?   The ones that get on your nerves? You open a drawer and it looks like the drawer threw up.  You look in a closet and there are all kinds of things all jumbled up, hanging down or on the floor.  The disarray happened gradually over time and you kind of ignore it, until one day you can't take it any more!

In doing my Fall cleaning I realized there are several of these spots in my house.  This week I am working in the living room and front porch, but I noticed that every time I opened this drawer in the kitchen, I got irritated.  So I decided to take care of it.  Only took a few minutes, which I did while I was cooking supper.

Before

After

 

That really looks better and now I actually enjoy opening the drawer.  I love the drawer liner.  I threw away some things such as a rusty whisk, an old basting brush that looked like it might be harboring some kind of bacteria, and some other things that I would classify as junk.  I moved some things to other places.

Here's another thing that had been bothering me.  This is our dish soap dispenser that I made using a small canning jar.  The metal ring and lid had started rusting and looked dirty.

Before.... yuck.

After!

Its so much more enjoyable to pump out that soap now. 

In the background you'll see a pumpkin and a pumpkin scented candle.  I'm loving the anticipation of Fall.

So at my house Fall cleaning is continuing and pretty soon some Fall decorating and I'm going to work on some more of those small irritating spots that bother me.

Fall Cleaning

This summer has been like none I've ever experienced.  When I think of summer time, its supposed to be more restful, maybe a vacation, a respite from the day to day things.  This one, the summer of 2016, has been crazy busy!  I can honestly say that part of the month of May, and all of the months of June, July and August have been extremely busy.  By this I mean, that in addition to working my job, Monday through Friday, every single weekend had something going on.  As you may or may not know, I am an introvert and I crave and must have my time at home to refuel and be ready for what ever I must do.  I took a couple of days off work in July and pretty much did nothing but lay on the couch trying to recuperate.

The Land of Cotton

But, in any event, Summer is coming to a close and I'm happy to say that the temperature this morning is below 70 degrees!!! I am so ready for that.

Black Eyed Susans

I have been trying to do some deep cleaning to get our home back in order.  Each week I am picking a room, or area and concentrating my efforts there.  Last week I worked in the main bathroom and am pleased with how it is sparkling clean.  I did things that I haven't had time for in a while, such as dusting the light fixtures and much more.  This week, I am working on the master bedroom.  Saturday morning I even washed the windows in there! 

I plan to leave the pallet flag out until Labor Day.

Some of my best motivation has been coming from watching You Tube Videos by ladies who really know how to get organized and clean their homes.  I will never have a home as clean as them!  There are also some great blogs that motivate me as well.  I just have to be careful to not spend my cleaning time on the computer!  I sometimes take my laptop to the area I am working in and listen to the videos while I work. 

If you can use some motivation for getting organized and in the house cleaning department, check out these links:

How Jenn Does It (You Tube)

At Home With Nikki (You Tube)

Time With Thea (Blog)

I made a detailed list of the things I want to get done in each area.  These lists are in plastic sheet protectors, so I can just check my list and do a job or two before work in the morning and/or after work.  I hope that after I get through each area, the next time around will be faster and easier.  I plan to do maintenance so that the house will stay organized and clean.

Fall cleaning helps me to have less stress when the holidays come around too.

Do you do Fall or Spring cleaning?

A Peek Into My Totebag

This is the tote bag I carry to work every day.  Some days it stays in the car.  When I'm at home it sits beside my main purse.  I tend to always pay bills and balance our checkbook online, during my lunch break.  Monday during lunch is when I do what I call my bookkeeping.  I do hubby's paycheck deposit, pay any bills, and balance the checkbook.

 I like the way having these file folders in the tote bag works.  They fit in here perfectly.  When a new bill comes I just drop it into the file that says "Bills-Pay-Mail".  I would also put in here any other mail that needs to go out.

One file has my address list, various cards such as "Get Well", "Sympathy", or "Thank You".  Also there are stamps, and return address labels.  The file that is labeled "To Do" contains things that remind me to do certain things.  For instance it currently contains mail we received for a recall on our vehicle.  So, I need to go online and see what we need to do.  Sometimes I end up with things in here that need to be filed for use later on in doing taxes.  So there is a file for that.    This system is working very well for me.

 I also bought this Prayer Journal that I am using for prayers and spiritual things, but also for to do lists, prayer lists, etc.  It was a gift to myself!

I thought it was a good idea to combine my day to day list making with prayer and Bible study.  In the mornings I can check to see what's on my to do list, and also look up a Bible verse and journal a little about it. 

Here is one page of prayer journaling I did based on  James 1:17-19.

I am also keeping a prayer list which I haven't shown for privacy reasons.  On this list I am writing the prayer needs of our family, as well as any prayer requests I receive.  For instance if someone on Facebook asks for prayer, I try to write it on the prayer list.  Otherwise, even though I might say a quick prayer for that person, I often forget all about it.  I put the date beside the prayer and if the need for the prayer ends, I can check it off.  I also add things like people who have lost loved ones, or are facing difficult situations.  This time of year lots of people are facing new seasons in life.

I guess my tote bag with files is another version of what some call a household binder.

I am putting together a zone cleaning list which will go in the "to do" file.  Other ideas for that file are menu plans, a master grocery list and more.  As Christmas times approaches, I'll probably start a file for things associated with that.

Also in my bag I keep an umbrella, a bottle of contact lens solution, and whatever I might need to remember for that day.  This would be things like a library book that needs to be turned in.  Today there is also a special kind of light bulb that I need to stop by Lowes and get.

I hope these ideas will inspire you to get organized.  Have a great day!

Happy Fourth of July!

I have been wanting to make a pallet flag for a long time.  My hubby got me some pallets and I got to work.

The stars were tedious work but I like how they turned out. 

A storm came the day after I got this set up and blew the pallet flag over on my flowers!  Aaackkk! 

Pickles!

Excuse me while I try to learn to blog from my phone! Last week I made 17 quarts of pickles. Busy times!

And then there were six!

Grandchild number 6:  Skye, 8 pounds 7 ounces

I love that she is using the Sunbonnet Sue Quilt and burp cloths I made.

Without going into the details, I wanted to share that prayers were answered for this child.  When she was 2 days old, she experienced some problems and in the middle of the night was air lifted to UNC Hospitals at Chapel Hill, NC.  You can imagine the anxiety this caused with her parents and family.  But, Praise the Lord, she was only there for about 12 hours.  The problem was diagnosed and she was sent home and is as healthy as she can be!

Low Carb Cheese Biscuits

I've really been trying to eat low carb when ever possible, so when I saw this low carb baking mix on Amazon, I thought I'd give it a try.   As a side note, I have always been a big carb eater and even though I've cut down on them a lot, I'm still eating too many! I'm looking to the future for my health, since diabetes runs in my family.  Also, I know that carbs play a big part in weight gain for me.

A box of this baking mix isn't cheap, at about $14.00 a box, but I figure if I'm only going to make something using it a couple of times a week, the box would last a while.

The first thing I made was these cheese biscuits.  To be honest, I didn't have very high expectations!  But, I was pleasantly surprised.  They were pretty good!  You do need to keep an open mind and realize up front that they are not going to taste exactly like the ones from Red Lobster!  But sometimes different can be good.

Browned to perfection:

A bowl of  healthy homemade vegetable soup rounded out this delicious meal.

I also recently made chicken pot pie using this mix.  Again, it was pretty good, but you have to remember its going to be different than the full carb version.  I will definitely be keeping a box of this mix on hand to make an occasional recipe.  The next recipe that I want to try is the pizza crust!

If you want to try this you can click HERE to order a box on Amazon. 

Handmade Baby Gifts

Like most people, sometimes when I am working on something, no matter how hard I try, nothing seems to go right.  That's the way it was when I was making these burp cloths and crocheted hats for the new baby girl of a coworker of mine.

I measured and eyeballed it and everything, but after these burp cloths were washed, the name isn't straight.  But I figured its for spitting up on, so it won't matter.   The pink and white hat turned out a little small looking to me. 

I had planned to have the gift done by the time the baby was born, but she decided to come 2 1/2 weeks early!  So, then I wanted to hurry up and get the gift ready. 

So today the gift goes to work with me and out of my house and off my mind!

Cauliflower Souffle and Sun Bonnet Sue

Here's a very rich and delicious low carb food! Its a kind of like the Loaded Cauliflower Casserole found HERE, but I didn't have any bacon or sausage so I just used a bag of frozen cauliflower, 1/2 a cream cheese block, some grated cheese and a little butter.   This is great for a Trim Healthy Mama side dish.

This week I've been working on finishing this Sun Bonnet Sue Quilt.  In this picture I am sewing on the binding.

What have you been up to lately?

Have a great Thursday!

Trim Healthy Mama Thursday - Hamburger or Hotdog in a Bowl

Here's an easy way to eat hotdogs or hamburgers that would cut out the carbs from the bread.  Just put your hamburger or hotdog in a bowl and add all the fixins that you  love on top.  Then eat it with a fork.

I rarely eat hotdogs, but every once in a while I really crave one.  The one up above has lots of my favorite toppings:  Mayo, mustard, chili, cheese, slaw, and onions.

This also works well for hamburgers and would be better for you.  Especially if the ground beef used is lean.  You could add tomato, lettuce, cheese, or what ever you love on a burger.
 

If you are interested in the Trim Healthy Mama lifestyle,  HERE is a link to the original Trim Healthy Mama book and the two new books are HERE and HERE. 

My Dream Weekend and a Sewing Machine Story

I hope all of you got through the big blizzard ok!  In my neck of the woods, we live on what is often the snow/ice/rain line. This time around we got ice.  Thankfully we didn't lose power, but, I'm seriously going to get my grandmother's treadle machine in working order in case I need to sew when the power is out!

Last week my sweet hubby loaded up my mother's old Singer and my old Singer machines and took them to the local sew and vac store to have them serviced.  I have had Mama's machine since her death in 2012, but it was not in working condition.

I love this machine!!!!!

You may ask why I titled this post "My Dream Weekend".  Its because I love to be snowed in and one of my happiest times is to be home for three days, doing what ever I want.  This of course includes lots of sewing!

I looked up this machine on line to try to date it and it is either from 1971 or 1973.  This one was originally in a home economics classroom.  I posted a picture of it on a facebook group I'm a member of, and several people said they had the same machine and that it has a classroom history.

It also has the reputation of being a "work horse".  I'm going to try free motion quilting on it.  That is if I an figure out how to drop the feed dogs, if that is even possible!

This is a partial log cabin quilt block I made using the leaders and enders system.  This will be part of a twin size boy's quilt for one of my grandsons.  I went through all my scraps to pull these kinds of fabrics for it.  Red, White and Blue, with a few boy type novelty fabrics mixed in.

I made much progress on the Sun Bonnett Sue quilt.  This picture shows the blocks laid out, before they were stitched together.

I love snow days.  Where I live, I can usually count on having at least one a year!