Toy Shelf - Organizing Round-Up

This month, I was inspired by the Monthly Organizing Round-Up at Organizing Junkie. For the month of May, it was all about a surface or shelf.

I decided to tackle the shelving for all the kid's toys and books. I have tried to organize this area several time in the last year, but have never quite been successful. The biggest problem is that there is TOO MUCH STUFF!

Before trying to organize everything, I really needed to PURGE. I took everything out, sorted it all into keep and clear out piles, then put the keepers back in an organized way. I cleared out one box of books and puzzles, and a garbage-size bag of toys and stuffed animals.

The before and after pictures tell the whole story.

Before the big purge...

After the purge, organization and redistribution ...

Now every item has a home and there is room to spare on the book shelves and in the toy bins. Thanks to Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie for inspiring me to keep working at getting my home in order.

Less Is Best

Create in Me a Clean Heart - Week 21
~ This weekly devotional can be found on Facebook; the group is called "A Clean Heart." ~

"Better is a dry morsel with quietness, than a house full of feasting with strife."

Proverbs 17:1

This week's devotional was a perfect reminder of the benefits of all the purging I have been doing for the last several weeks - less is best. There is a freedom and peace in not having so much clutter and stuff to maintain.

I originally meditated on this devotion last Sunday, but have prayed this prayer several times this week - as I sorted through the clothes I had saved from the kids, as I got rid of all the maternity clothes I had "just in case", as I purged the book cases of books I meant to read but never have.

Yesterday we sold all the stuff we had purged in a yard sale. There was no sense of loss, just a feeling of peace and joy as everything we sold our extra "baggage" to people who will hopefully enjoying using it. God has been so faithful!

We still have a long way to go before we have purged every area of our home, but I am encouraged and know that God will answer every time I cry out for help.

Lord,
I have saved too many things over the years and, as a result, I have too much clutter. I have attached to much value and meaning to ‘things’ and have a hard time letting go. Release me from these feelings that prevent me from getting my home in order. Guide me so that I know what to keep and what to clear out. Teach me to trust you for all that I need, so that I can get rid of the things that I haven’t used, looked at, taken out, or needed in years. Give me peace as I purge our home of all this stuff. Thank you for your blessings and for your provision in all our needs.
In Jesus Name,
Amen.

Yard Sale Day!

Today was our YARD SALE!

This was the culmination of all our weeks of preparation. Around 7am this morning, we began carrying out the piles of stuff that were ready for the sale. The crowds started around 8:30am and continued strong until about 1pm.

While I was running the sale, my hubby was playing the kids. He came out around 10:30am to catch some pictures. Below are some shots the sale in progress. By this point, we had already sold a significant amount of stuff.

This is an overview of our portion of the yard sale.

This is a closer shot of some miscellaneous tables.
It looks like a mess, but it was fairly well organized.

The weather was wonderful ... not to hot, not to cold, and NO RAIN!

I took everyone's advise and kept prices low to make things to really move. There were a few times that I probably should have charged a little more, but my biggest goal was to get rid of all this stuff.

And the final numbers? We sold about 70% of the stuff and we made $362.50 in our yard sale! Now I am exhausted ...

Blitz-It Friday

I had great plans for blitzing yesterday, but never made the time for it. I have been focusing on purging so much that I have been neglecting the cleaning. Our apartment is in desperate need of some serious cleaning. But that is not for today. Maybe next week, after this yard sale is over.

I attempted to use the blitz for sorting and clearing out. It was great for the first few minutes, but quickly became too involved and emotional. The timer just added stress instead of motivation, so I had to stop it. I guess there are some things that I just can't blitz.

This morning, I had 20 minutes to blitz some simple cleaning and pick up. Here is what I was able to accomplish:

• Loaded the dishwasher


• Washed the pots & pans


• Wiped the stove top & counters


• Picked up all the toys in the dining and living room


• Folded and put away a load of the kid's laundry


• Emptied the diaper pail


• Partially cleared off the kitchen table and top of the book case

It was a brief cleaning session; next week I need to do some serious cleaning.

Check out more great blitzing at Organized Everyday.

T-minus 2 days

Today was a productive day. And I have pictures of the linen closet, both before and after.

~ STORAGE UNIT ~

My hubby and I headed down to the storage unit today to sort those four boxes I discovered yesterday. We reduced the four boxes of stuff down to two boxes; the other two boxes are ready for the yard sale.

~ LINEN CLOSET ~

This afternoon I finally tackled the linen closet. I now have a much better idea of all the toiletries and cleaning supplies that I have, need to use up, and make sure not to purchase more for the next two months.

Here is the linen closet before I started.

I cleared out two boxes of items for the yard sale, and threw out one bag of garbage. Then I took a little extra time to organize everything.

Here is a picture of the closet after my efforts.

~ BOOKSHELF ~

While I was clearing the linen closet, my husband purged the bookshelf in our bedroom. After clearing out a large stack of books, he packed up the remaining books for storage. Now the bookshelf is empty and ready to be sold in the yard sale.


Only one day left to purging items for the yard sale. I have a few areas on my list still left to sort, but I don't expect to have much time. Most of the day will be spent gathering the large items like the bookshelves, desk, etc. that will be sold in the yard sale.

T-minus 3 days

There are only three days left? We have really only cleared out about half the stuff we need to eliminate. But it will still be a good size sale. We will just need to recruit some friends to join us in our second yard sale in July to make sure it is big enough to attract the necessary attention.

~ STORAGE UNIT ~

I hit our storage unit again today, but only had about 20 minutes to spend sorting and purging. I did manage to sort our wire shelving unit and add a large box of potting and gardening stuff to the yard sale pile.

I also located six boxes of random stuff that will need to be sorted. I brought one of the boxes up to our apartment and purged half of the contents. Maybe I'll get to the other five boxes tomorrow.

~ CD RACK ~

My hubby and I started to sort through all the CD's we have, and the new collection of music that they kids have accumulated. So far, our clear-out pile is small, but we have only gone through about half the CD's. Everything we are keeping has to go into a box now because we are selling the rack in the sale on Saturday!


With only two days left, I am aware that there is not enough time to finish the areas that I had hoped to complete, but I am pleased with the amount we have accomplished and feel ready for this sale to be here.

T-minus 5 days

My hubby graduated from Seminary this weekend and is now officially on summer break before starting his PhD work in the fall. He had tons of work to do, both in his business and preparing to start his dissertation, but has volunteered to spend some serious time getting ready for the yard sale.

~ KID'S CLOSET ~

Today we hit the kid's closet ... again. The good news is that we finally finished our first pass of their closet. The bad news is that there is still so much stuff ... but the rest will have to wait until the next pass when we are actually packing.

We pulled out all the stuff we needed to sort through and put the kids down for their afternoon nap. Then we started purging.

My hubby tackled all the games. This box is full of games that we haven't played in a while, and can find easily when we return from Scotland in three years (but I might have to keep Boggle).


I started sorting through all the kid's stuff that was in the closet - puzzles, toys, books, art supplies and more. Of the two full storage containers, I cleared out an entire container. The remaining container is not full and most of it will be cleared out at the end of the summer when we move.

Here is the container of stuff that we are putting in the yard sale.

~ KID'S BEDROOM ~

In the kid's room, we have a metal trunk that is always full of stuff. It was my intention to clear out the trunk and put it in the yard sale. However, once the trunk was empty and sitting pretty in our living room, I decided that we didn't have to get rid of it.

This old army trunk has served us well through the years. I picked it up at a yard sale for $5 back in my college days. I've painted it several times -- right now its a well-worn navy blue. It has been used as a bench, as a coffee table, and for random storage. I took a good look at this sturdy, old trunk and realize I still really like it.

But we did clear out all the stuff that has been stored in it for the last several years.

~ PLAY AREA ~

When we finished the games and the trunk, there was still a sleepy silence from the bedroom and I decided to hit the play area again. This is my third pass of this area and I still only cleared out one bag full of toys. There are so many books and toys that we are not going to store for the next few years, but the kids need to keep busy for the next few months before the move.

Below is the final picture of all that we cleared out today.

We are quickly running out of time, but we have great progress. I have a list with a few more key areas to hit.

In the mean time, I better start thinking about how to set up this yard sale and how to price everything; and remember all those crazy details of yard sales like having change on hand.

Do you have any tips you learned about successful yard sales? Anything you did right (or wrong) or would do differently next time? Or maybe something you really liked (or disliked) about yard sales you have visited? Please share your wisdom and insight.

Menu Plan Monday

Last week was a perfect example of why I have learned to love meal planning. We didn't make everything on our plan, and we substituted in some different meals when we were really in the mood for something else, but the plan saved us tonight.

I was tired and grouchy (after struggling all day with bad headache) and the only reason we had anything to eat tonight was because I looked at the plan and knew I could quickly and easily make one of the dinners we skipped earlier in the week. Horrah for meal plans!

Now, without further ado...

Menu for this week:

• Monday -- Turkey Burgers
  


• Tuesday -- Tuna Noodle Casserole


• Wednesday -- Baked Potato Bar


• Thursday -- Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry


• Friday -- Quesadillas


• Saturday -- Pasta Primavera


• Sunday -- Turkey Tacos

Check out more menu plan's at Organizing Junkie.

Happy Monday!

Joy Through Trials

Create in Me a Clean Heart - Week 20
~ This weekly devotional can be found on Facebook; the group is called "A Clean Heart." ~

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance."

James 1:2-3

Rejoice! Consider it pure JOY! Be joyful in your trials, in all things, especially in the bad things! Do I have to confess that this is a big struggle for me? I do not exude joy in my trials, small as they are. Instead, I complain and make a big deal about it all.

I remember an incredible Christian woman I worked with at my first real job when I was 16. She was a truly joyful person, all the time. I know that her husband was having serious medical complications and there were some hard things going on with her kids, but she was still always joyful. It caught everyone’s attention! She had amazing opportunities to minister to others because of her attitude. It attracted people, and they were curious and asked questions. That is the kind of person I want to be.

Rejoice in the Lord always! I will say it again, REJOICE!

Lord,
Thank you for the trials that I go through that help me learn perseverance. Please give me strength during the times that drag on so that I may learn to be joyful in all things. Remind me that you are using these times as a chance for me to grow into a more patient person. Show me the times I am not being patient or perseverance in love; when I am not walking in your joy (which is my strength). Help me to wait on you for the answers to my struggles. Only through your strength and help I will persevere joyfully.
In Jesus Name,
Amen.

Blitz-It Friday

I had great plans for blitzing yesterday, but I spent most of the day with a migraine and got very little done. This seems to be a pattern lately. This time, at least I know what triggered the migraine ... I didn't keep myself hydrated.

In spite of the down day yesterday, I found 30 minutes for blitzing this afternoon.

Here is what I was able to accomplish:

• Unloaded & reloaded the dishwasher


• Washed the pots & pans


• Scrubbed the stove top & counters


• Swept the kitchen, dining room and hallway


• Picked up all the misc stuff around the dining and living room


• Sorted the mail


• Cleared off the kitchen table (mostly)


• Cleaned the bathroom toilet and sink (the rest will have to wait)

It was a brief cleaning session, but now the house feels a little more organized, even if it still needs some deep cleaning.

I'd love to hear about your blitzing or cleaning. What do you do for spring cleaning?

Check out more great blitzing at Organized Everyday.

T-minus 9 days

Can it really be only nine days away? I feel like there is too much left to be done. Especially after two days of not really accomplishing anything in the way of purging.

~ KID'S CLOSET ~

This morning I spent another hour in the kids closet. I didn't count exactly what I cleared out, but below is a picture of the pile from this morning. I know, just what everyone wants to see ... piles of garbage bags.


In addition to the clothes and miscellaneous items in the closet, I also started on the toys that are in their bedroom. My son is at preschool this morning, so it was a safe time to start sorting.

Would you believe that I am not even half way through that closet? I have done the top shelf on one side and the floor on the other. There are still stacks of boxes and random items that need to be sorted. Only nine days to go!

Baby Books

There was no work toward the yard sale today, but I did work on something else! Baby Books!

When we had our son, we were given a baby book that is mostly fill in the blanks and add some pictures. I loved it so much that we got the same book (girl version) when our daughter was born last year. But I have not done as well with her book (something seems to happen with the second child).

Well ... I won a gift certificate to Shutterfly and they offered 25 free prints for mother's day. I decided this was the perfect opportunity to order some prints for my daughter's baby book (and a few more of my son as well). Those pictures arrived today and I was so excited to get started.

Tonight, after the kids were asleep, I pulled out the baby books and added all the pictures! Now both baby books are almost complete.

It didn't help us for the yard sale at all, but it feels really good to know that I caught up on this one project before the books go into storage for the next three years!

T-minus 12 days

We had a busy day today and I played instead of getting anything done. The kids and I had a great time on the playground and in the sandbox, and I ran several errands during nap time.

My one yard sale contribution ... I cleared out the six drawer, cabinet-on-wheels that I was using for craft supplies. This little drawer system is going in the yard sale. That was my accomplishment for the day.

Tomorrow is a new day with new opportunities to purge!

Menu Plan Monday

My hubby requested this week that we take a break from red meat for the summer. That really surprised me - he is a big red meat fan - but I guess he is feeling it would be healthier. I'm happy to oblige - beef is really expensive these days.

The biggest challenge will be barbecuing without hamburger. We're going back to ground turkey, instead. Years ago, we used ground turkey regularly ... until my hubby got food poisoning from it (no, it wasn't my cooking). He wouldn't eat it for years, but he is willing to try it again.

My hubby graduates this weekend with his Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary. Whew! This has been three good, but challenging, years in the making. On Sunday, we are going out for dinner to celebrate.

Menu for this week:

• Monday -- Nachos
  

• Tuesday -- Turkey Burgers
  

• Wednesday -- Chicken Alfredo
  

• Thursday -- Chicken Piccata
  

• Friday -- Quesadillas
  

• Saturday -- Baked Potato Bar


• Sunday -- Celebration Dinner out with hubby
  

Check out more menu plan's at Organizing Junkie.

Happy Monday!

T-minus 13 days

Only 13 days until the yard sale? (a small gasp of panic is heard escaping my mouth ...)

I wasn't planning on doing much for the yard sale today, but I was feeling antsy during the kid's nap time and decided to do a little work.

~ KITCHEN ~

I did a first pass of the kitchen. I filled one box of random things - the cookie press I've never used, the ice cream sundae cups we only used twice in the last year, and a few other odds and ends. Not as much as I was hoping to clear out, but a nice start. It will definitely need another purge session before the yard sale.

The kitchen always requires so many boxes to pack up. With every move, I am shocked at how many boxes are marked "kitchen." We need to do some hard purging here. The good news is that I found several items that we're ready to clear out, but will wait until July so we can continue to use them until we move.

Take the toaster, for example. We're ready to get rid of our toaster, but still want to have toast for the next few months. The toaster works okay, though one side of the toast always ends up darker than the other. We were laughing when we realized that we are still using the toaster that I bought for my apartment in college over 10 years ago. Who would have thought a cheap Target toaster would last so long?

So, here's to the start of another great week of purging!

Let Him Lead Your Heart

Create in Me a Clean Heart - Week 19
~ This weekly devotional can be found on Facebook; the group is called "A Clean Heart." ~

"A man’s heart plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps."

Proverbs 16:9

These last few weeks my head has been spinning with all the planning required for our probable move to Scotland this fall. But our plans are really not set yet, and the options and possibilities keep changing.

I have found myself getting my heart set on certain options, instead of seeking God's will and waiting on him to direct my steps. Then, I feel impatient or frustrated when things change.

I become like a child, wanting my own way; sometimes I even throw my own temper tantrums. But, as my loving Father, God gently reminds me to calm down and allow him to direct my steps (hopefully I listen to the still, small voice, and don't end up needing further correction). Even as I direct my children to keep them safe and to help them learn and grow, God faithfully directs my steps.

Lord,
I admit that too often I want my own way; I make my own plans; and I have stubbornly done my own thing, without seeking your will. Soften my heart to listen to you and wait for you to direct my steps. Lead me in the way I should go. Give me your wisdom and stir me to obey you, knowing that your way is the best way, the only way.

Thank you for loving me, as you child, and disciplining me when I stray. Teach me and help me to grow into the person you want me to be.
In Jesus Name,
Amen.

T-minus 14 days

Is any day ever as productive as I envision it? Probably not. I guess there is comfort in the fact that I will never run out of things to do. I just never feel completely satisfied with what I accomplished (or really, what I didn't accomplish).

That being said, it was a fairly productive day and I was able to tackle some tough areas. Still no pictures, though. I could share a shot of the pile of bags, but there are not any good before and after pictures because I'm only clearing out a small area at a time.

~ KID'S CLOSET ~

This morning, I spent about a hour working on my kids closet. They have the largest closet in the house, so it is used for general storage and collects junk very quickly.

I was a little emotional this morning. I decided to tackle the baby clothes that I had saved from both of my children. I started strong, but ended poorly; and decided that I needed to finish another day. Now keep in mind that I have already sorted through these boxes several times. The clothes that are left are the ones that have the most emotion tied to them, the ones I couldn't part with the last few times I tried. Does any one else have this problem? Why do I let clothes have an emotional pull on me?

Even with the emotional difficulties, I managed to cleare out one (12-gallon-size garbage) bag of blankets and other infant stuff, and box of random items, including the bath tub, picture frames, etc. I also cleared out two bags of clothes, even though I still kept a few too much and need to take another pass when I'm feeling stronger.

~ LINENS ~

The evening, after the kids were down for the night, I went into my bedroom to clear out a few more things. We have a cedar chest that is stuffed with sheets and miscellaneous linens. That purge resulted in two bags of items for the garage sale.

Then I sat down to tackle all the sheet music and hymnals that I have collected over the years. I haven't played the piano for church in over ten years, but I still have all the old music and books. I only kept four books (two of them were old hymnals that belonged to my hubby's grandparents) and condensed the sheet music to one binder. This wasn't really a priority for the garage sale, but still needed to be done before the move.

~~~~~

There are less than two weeks left until the yard sale. My hubby is starting to think I am crazy. I am also realizing that there is a lot of stuff that we need to use this summer before our move, so it will not be going in this yard sale. We are definitely going to have enough stuff for a second sale in July, right before we leave.

Just think how organized I'll be when we no long have any stuff! Happy purging!

Blitz-It Friday

I had great plans for blitzing yesterday, but I spent most of the day with a migraine and got very little done.

However, I did spend 30 minutes blitzing my kitchen this morning (it is amazing how quickly our kitchen gets messy, especially when I'm out of commission for a day).

Here is what I got done in my 30 minutes:

• Unloaded the dishwasher


• Reloaded the dishwasher


• Cleaned up the lunch mess


• Washed the pots & pans


• Scrubbed the stove top


• Wiped down the counters

I meant to sweep the floor as well, but the kids were going full speed by this point. It will have to wait until tonight when everyone is down for bed.

Check out more great blitzing at Organized Everyday.

~~~~~

We are at T-minus 15 days to the big yard sale.

Here are a few things I did today:

• Wrote a list of all the big items that are being sold so I don't forget anything on the big day.


• Evaluated anything that needs to be done to items being sold, like washing seat covers, etc.


• Prioritized areas of the house to hit next (some areas will have more for the yard sale, and some will have more to just rid of).

I'm hoping to get a little more done after the kids go down, but we'll have to see how much energy I have by this evening.

Yard Sale in T-minus 17 days

My family is moving to Scotland this fall (see another family update for more details). We are very excited! But I am now consumed with the incredible amount of work that needs to be done before we go.

At the end of the summer, everything we own will be moved from the East Coast to the West Coast and placed in paid storage. This means it will actually cost money for each item we keep ... that is big motivation to PURGE.

I am starting a new series of posts tonight to document the intense purge of our belongings as we approach the Community Yard Sale at the end of May - the "T minus" series, a countdown to the yard sale.


BOOK SHELVES
On Monday, I tackled two of our eight book shelves. This inspired my hubby to attack three more book shelves. We listed a bunch of books on Paper Back Swap and Amazon.com.

STORAGE UNIT
Tuesday my husband and I did a first round of sorting in our storage unit in the basement of our apartment complex. We pulled out everything that we know we are selling in the sale - infant car seats, strollers, baby swing, space heater, etc. There are still several boxes that we will need to sort through, but it was a good start.

MASTER BEDROOM
Our big tackle today was the master bedroom, specifically our closet. We started by clearing out clothes; then we moved on the more difficult job of sorting through all the boxes of stuff stacked in the closet. We finished about half the closet before the kids got up from their nap. I couldn't have worked much longer anyway. Intense purging is very inspiring, but also emotionally exhausting.

This was harder on me than I thought it would be, especially getting rid of all my maternity clothes. We don't know if we are going to have any more children, but either way, these are no longer worth keeping. I also cleared out all sorts of crafts, material, party supplies, gift bags, cards, etc. Even after paring down significantly before moving here, I was amazed at how much I still had but barely used in the last three years.

We are donating three large bags of clothing to a local charity. And we also cleared out four large boxes of stuff to sell at the garage sale.

--
We are off to a great start. Did I mention how wonderful it is to have my DH around to help with all this? I know he has tons of reading to get done this summer in preparation for starting his dissertation this fall, but it has been so nice to have him around (even without all the work he does).

Check back tomorrow to see what we tackle next!

Another family update...

For those of you who have been following, I have posted another family update over at DarrenAndChristy.com. Scotland, here we come!

Order In Your Heart

Create in Me a Clean Heart - Week 18

Be sure that everything is done properly and in order."

I Corinthians 14:40

Can these words be used to describe my home? my life? my heart? Recently it feels like I can hardly keep my head above water, let alone do things "properly" and "in order".

This chaos isn't just about my home, but it is about my life and the way I am choosing to live.

I was convicted this week about the state of my heart, and how I have let the chaos around me invade my time in with the Lord, leaving me dry and thirsty. This needs to be addressed first, before the other issues can be properly addressed.

Lord,
I am struggling with my lack of organization. So many thing are suffering because of it. But the one that has suffered the most is my heart. I pray that you would bring me back to the place I need to be so that my whole being my be properly ordered. I know that when this happens, other things will begin to fall into place. Create in me a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit in me.
In Jesus Name,
Amen.

Menu Plan Monday

I feel like I need to kick my meal planning up a notch, but I'm not sure how to take the next step, or what that step should be. Any suggestions? How do you use meal planning to make your life simpler? Do you have prep days, or baking days?

It also feels like I have hit a wall with the kids. My son has always been a picky eater. It is getting better, but we are having weight issues with both the kids again (they just don't eat enough to maintain their growth curve).

I think our biggest problem is snacking ... I can't get them to snack without completely ruining their meals. Any ideas? What do you do for kid's snacks? What kind of eating schedule do your kids have?

Without further ado, here is our menu for the week. A lot of it is carry over from last week.

Menu for this week:

• Monday -- going out for dinner with my hubby (no kids) =)
  

• Tuesday -- Pasta Primavera
  

• Wednesday -- Chinese Chicken & Cabbage

• Thursday -- Chicken Curry
  

• Friday -- Taco Bar
  

• Saturday -- Baked Potato Bar


• Sunday -- Leftovers

Check out more menu plan's at Organizing Junkie.

Happy Monday!

Blitz-It Friday

Organized Everyday is hosting a new carnival called Blitz-it Friday. If you have no idea what a blitz is, check out the original one hour blitz and staying focused.

This was a crazy week for us, and I didn't get the blitz's done that I had planned. Maybe next week I'll be a little more productive.

But I did get a short blitz in today. The kids were sitting down for an afternoon snack. My hubby and I took one look at the disaster in the house and knew something needed to be done and fast. Together, we spent 15 minutes hitting all the clutter that had accumulated this week. It is really fun to blitz with my hubby.

We picked up all the toys,books and puzzles in the living room, dining room, bed room, play area and hall way - I'm convinced the kids were determined to pull out everything they owned and distribute it to every room in the house.

We also had an unusual amount of clothing to put away. My son is recently excited about his "dressing" skills and had pulled out coats, pajamas and who knows what other clothing items to show us how he could put them on by himself.

Then, while I cleared the kitchen table and counters, my hubby hit some piles of random stuff that had accumulated by the front door.

It was short and sweet, but very satisfying! I'm looking forward to blitzing some major spring cleaning next week! I'll let you know how it goes.

Check out more Blitz's at Organized Everyday

'Establish' your house

Create in Me a Clean Heart - Week 17 - "'W.U.K.' In The House"

"By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches."

Proverbs 24:3-4

The devotional this week was a strong reminder that only God can truly establish a home, only He can provide the wisdom I need each day to love my husband, to raise my kids, and to run my house.

While pondering my need, I was reminded of a few encouraging truths. First, God gives wisdom freely to those to ask (James 1:5).

Second, God desires us to have complete understanding so that we may know Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:2-3). More than wisdom and knowledge, I need to seek Christ himself. Everything else is nothing in comparison (Philippians 3:8).

Lord,
Thank you for this home you have blessed me with. I need to have your wisdom, understanding and knowledge foundational in my home. I look to you for these precious riches, and wait on you to provide them in your way. May my mind, eyes and heart remain open as you teach me. Bless me with increasing wisdom, understanding and knowledge, so my home may be overflowing with your goodness and love.
In Jesus Name,
Amen.

Menu Plan Monday

This was our meal planning did not go well. For one thing, I planned too much around grilling and the weather did not cooperate. I also had too many "non-regular" recipes that my family was not very excited about, and that I didn't have a system" for making.

I didn't really focus much with the kids the last two weeks. I feel like I have lost my motivation to work that hard with them at every meal. I'm going to back off on that for a little while.


Menu for this week:

• Monday -- Broiled Salmon, veggies
  

• Tuesday -- Pasta Primavera
  

• Wednesday -- Chinese Chicken & Cabbage

• Thursday -- Chicken Curry
  

• Friday -- Taco Bar
  

• Saturday -- Baked Potato Bar


• Sunday -- Leftovers

Check out more menu plan's at Organizing Junkie.

Happy Monday!

Blitz-It Friday

Organized Everyday is hosting a new carnival called Blitz-it Friday. If you have no idea what a blitz is, check out the original one hour blitz and staying focused.

Although my kitchen, living room and dining room could use a blitz every week, today I decided I really needed to tackle another area of the house ... my bedroom.

Here are a few before pictures.

Where do you start, when the piles are so high? In order to keep from getting discouraged, I had to start with the easiest stuff and the piles that would make the most visual difference. Here is how I tackled this space.

1. Clothes (both clean and dirty) - the easiest thing to put away


2. Bag and Shoes - these, too, already have a home so they are easy to put away


3. Storage Bins - I had three bins that just needed to be put back in the closet


4. Empty Boxes - why are these in here anyway?


5. Books - most of these just needed to return to the bookshelf
   


6. Random Boxes - these are boxes and containers that had been used to quickly pick up other parts of the house before company came over... then they just sat in my room making a mess.
   


7. Surfaces - I cleared off the top of the desk, the dresser, the headboard and the night stands. This was time consuming because there are so many little things - jewelry, hair clips, paper clips, safety pins, etc.


8. Put Away Piles - I had created several piles of stuff that went to other rooms that had to be put away - kid's room, garage sale stuff, etc. The timer went off right before I started this and it took me 10 minutes to get it all distributed.

It is still not perfect, but it is so much better. In the end, it took me 70 minutes to get the bedroom to this point.

Check out the after pictures.

Yes, I know we need to hang some pictures on the walls, but we are moving soon, so it will probably never happen.

What have you blitzed this week? Check out more Blitz's at Organized Everyday