where do I get started?????????

week 2 and 3 with pics of the organizing challenge sorry having issues

2012-01-28T11:30:00.001-08:00

I have still been working on the weekly challenges at http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/ but realized I have missed posting pics for week 2 , week 3 while I was getting ready to post for week 4.

This weeks was to do the fridge and freezer. For me the fridge was easy because I had already purchased baskets to hold things so it was just to take everything out and wipe it down. I re-organized the condiments on the door though. I still need to label my baskets which I will do later today.

No pics of the freezer sorry.
The freezer still not happy with it but still using bins to try and organize. Any other ideas for a chest freezer????????

So I digress to last weeks challenge which was to clean all food cupboards and pantry. I happily loved this challenge and took to throwing out old things and moving some things around. I havent went to dollearama yet but I will buy a basket for my bake goods to be together. In my food pantry I have had baskets set up for awhile now and had to just re-organize them.

The week before was all the cupboards except food ones. So I got to work taking everything out of the cupboards one cupboard at a time. I threw away a whole garbage bag of stuff and donated another whole garbage bag to value village. I loved that as I cleaned and organized it seem to get easier and I had no problem throwing away things. I found new homes for some things too!!
I tried to leave space in each cupboard which I am happy to say was accomplished!!!
I love how it all feels better to open a cupboard and be able to see everything to know where everything goes!!!!!!!!!!!
I am loving these challenges so much I can see how it is affecting for the positive other aspects of my life!!!!! When I organize, purge and clean I feel energized!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Love this so much!!!!!!

A follow up to the first challenge I have kept my kitchen counter cleaned. It really is all about taking 5-10 minutes each night and cleaning it up and putting things where they belong like the dishes in the dishwasher . Love that this has formed into a habit for me !!!!!!!!!!!

Week 1 - organizing challenge cont

2012-01-04T12:59:00.001-08:00

Happy to report my counter looks the same as the afters in the other post still. I have been maintaining it well.
I had one more part of my countertop that I did not finish the first day. The challenge does last all week so I knew I had time. I wanted to do a really good job before posting it. I finished it yesterday and wanted to share it with you .
I again took everything off the countertop and wiped it all down. I decided to change systems though for handling this area. I had a shelf unit which started out great one shelf for my husband, one for my daughter, one for me and one for coupons. Okay so like I said it started out as a good idea and was good for a bit but just wasnt working for me any more and I knew I had to find a different system. I wasnt really using this spot anymore and neither was my daughter so we didnt need that spot anymore. Hubbie loved it but he piled and piled his stuff higher and higher. I finally found a box with a lid to contain all of his stuff and to give him a limit of only whatever fit in the box. I am concerned he might pile on top but we will deal with that when it happens for now it is great!!!!!!!!!!!
The other part that was not working well for me was the coupons and since I really do want to start couponing more I needed a better system other than putting them on a shelf and digging for them. Most times when I did dig through they had expired and were then thrown out. I am going to be buying a binder to organize them for now I have them in one white envelope. I will buy this binder and plastic sleeves tomorrow. Still not sure how to organize them by category, date but I am sure I will figure it out. If you have any ideas or links to coupon binders please feel free to share .

After :

Week 1 of the challenge-Kitchen - sink , countertops, table

2012-01-02T17:05:00.001-08:00

Today is week 1 of the challenge at http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/ which is to clean and organize your countertops, sink and table.
First off I have decided to be totally honest in this process and to show you the true befores and afters of these challenges. So here are the befores for today :

So the first thing I did was take everything off the counter and wipe it down. I only put back the things that I knew I wanted there and put everything else where it belonged too. I also needed to find a home for the new lagostina pots and pans I received as a christmas gift instead of displaying them on the counter. They found their new home in the drawer of the stove. I am not sure I am happy with them there but will address that in another part of the challenge. When we are doing the cupboards I want to change many of mine around and purge a lot of stuff to make a new home for them. But for now they will stay in that drawer.
Here are the afters:

I didnt have to do anything except put one newspaper into recycling . It is always clear thankfully!!!!!!!!!!

What amazed me most about this challenge was that it took me a very short time to make my kitchen have that ahhhhh.. feeling!!!!!!!! It really was about just taking the time tto put stuff away, empty the dishwasher and reload it , take out the garbage, do up a couple of dishes by hand and wipe down the counters and the sink with my norwex cloth.
So day 1 done and now to maintain this !!!!!!!!!

Starting 2012 bringing in fresh energy

2011-12-31T13:52:00.000-08:00

Wow what a difference 24 hours can make. I was looking around on pinterest( a little addicted) and found an organizing challenge. I have done some of these before and love the support you get from others that helps you to stay motivated to continue.
I quickly found the challenge on face book too at https://www.facebook.com/HomeStorageSolutions101 and joined right away. I then posted it to my face book because I have some face book friends who I have done other challenges with but was amazed when a lot of my face book friends wanted to join too !!!!!!!! So together we can conquer this challenge!!!!!!!!
Then I was chatting with a few friends and got the idea to resurrect this old blog of mine and use it for the organizing challenge where we can say what we have accomplished and cheer one another on.
Please dont be afraid to join this challenge look at the name of this blog wheredoigetstarted that was back when I started organizing my house . I have come a long way but realize it is once again time to start over and tweak some systems already in place and hopefully find more creative ways too. So please feel free to share away!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shesconnected Toshiba Brand Ambassador Mission

2011-12-19T14:44:00.000-08:00

I was thrilled to be selected as a Toshiba Brand Ambassador by Shesconnected.
I chose to learn more about the Toshiba Tablet so my daughter and I headed off
to the nearest Best Buy.

We easily were able to find it and I was so impressed with all the things you could do
with just this product. This tablet was perfect for all the things I love doing already
with my computer but love that I could do all those things and be portable!!!!
You can easily browse the web, tweet, Facebook, watch movies, play games, listen to music and so much more!!

These are the features that I fell in love with :
- two cameras a front facing ( 2 MPs ) and a rear camera ( 5 MPs) .
- nice size screen 10.1" wide (easy to read )
- wifi access including flash( great for playing games)
- read e-books
- customizable slip resistant back available in 6 different colors
- many ports options available USB, mini- USB, HDMI, and SD too
- replaceable battery

The last feature I know I would use over and over again was to be able to use the HDMI port and
share my movies and photos on my television.

After learning about the tablet I was left wondering what it could not do !!! This would be
a great gift for a techie or a wanna be techie. Easy to use for everyone!!!!!!! I know this is on
my Christmas list!! Better hurry fast at the Best Buy we went to there was only one left.

If you want to know more about Toshiba Products check out their website at toshiba canada .
You can follow them on twitter @toshibacanada or Facebook ToshibaCanada

*I received a Toshiba Camileo in exchange for my participation in this campaign. The opinions
on this blog are my own.

beautifying what I already have

2010-11-15T15:46:00.000-08:00

So today I bought my third set of white dishes for the cupboard. I was so proud of myself and my daughter and I unpacked them and put them in the cupboard and boxed up the old ones. I will keep them just incase in the basement. I am sure when we get to the basement crawl space to organize it they will be tossed but for now they will go there.

I also finally found a purple bath mat to complete my bathroom set . I found the beautiful shower curtain with purple butterflies on it this summer but there were no rugs with the set. I have had a really hard time finding a purple one too !!!!!! So all I need to complete my bathroom is a wall paper boarder or tile or something at the top not sure which one yet.
I am currently making a list of what needs to be done in the home. Oh and at the top dont be surprised to see clothes. This is one of my biggest downfalls is laundry. I don't mind washing the clothes or putting them in the dryer but it is the part after that I slack off on. Folding them and putting them away! I have a huge pile in the laundry room some already folded in laundry baskets that need to be put away and some that need to be folded. I also have a whole basket of mix matched socks we just come and take from as needed . At some point these need to find their matching pair and be put away. But they go on the list and will be dealt with another day.
So what do you hate to do ???????????

Starting Again

2010-11-14T09:28:00.000-08:00

I am going to try and start up this blog again and that way have some accountability
to keep going. I am a lot better off than I was in the organizing department when I
first started this but still have a few big projects to work on. I also have to set up some
time of weekly schedule to keep up I have already accomplished.
So come with me on this journey!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Update another week more clothes!!!!!!!

2010-07-12T17:19:00.001-07:00

Sorry for not posting last week I came down with the flu /cold/allergies/sinus problems . I was out and did nothing at all other than sleep, read and watch tv for a few days.
I am feeling so much better now though so I continue on. Today I cleaned up the kitchen. I wiped down all the counters and cleaned them off . I also wiped down the stove. I swept the kitchen floor too. I then went in the livingroom and just picked up a few things that needed putting away. My wonderful daughter cleaned her stuff off the coffee table so it is back and all shiny !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I will do my 15 mins or more of folding clothes that are already clean while watching the bachelorette. I will probably put them away tomorrow .

Tues and Wed together

2010-07-07T06:37:00.000-07:00

So continued on yesterday with the goal of 15 minutes for clothing!!!!!
I went through my spare bedroom looking for a birthday gift for my daughter and ended up organizing all the clothing into neat piles. A big give away pile and then easier piles for me to go through !!!!
I also did a load of laundry that didnt get folded because it was still drying when I went to bed. I will fold it today !!!!!
I will fold this pile and put it away and then start going through some clothing in the spare bedroom. I think I will wait till next week to go through mount laundry pile and get it all folded and put away!!!!!!

Today I am celebrating my daughter's 12th birthday. Time flies so fast and I really truly have no idea where 12 years has gone by !!!!!!!!! I am so proud of her because each day she becomes so much more caring, loving , patient, informed, and responsible and giving! She is growing into a beautiful young woman !!!!!!!!!!

starting the summer challenge

2010-07-05T10:25:00.001-07:00

So today will be day one of the challenge I have set out for myself for this summer "clothing ". I will spend at least 15 mins a day trying to get the clothing in my house under control. I have the laundry to get caught up on . I have the clothing that is already laundered to be folded and put away. I have clothing that many nice people have given to me to go through .
Set the timer and off we go .......................

Oh and I have kept my small couch and coffee table clean too !!!!!!!!!!!
I also today will vacuum up from the party we had this weekend!!!!!!!!

Okay better go so I can get started!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

what are your goals for the summer?????????????

breakthrough !!!!???????????

2010-07-04T17:24:00.001-07:00

At one point during the day hubbie noticed that my daughter had left some stuff
on the coffee table and he said after we come back you have to find a home for this stuff. It almost blew me away!!!!!!!!
Then he asks me if I am going to vacuum the downstairs ????? I asked him why cant he ??? He says you do a much better job! I am not sure if I believe him.
So hubbie has figured out how to boss others around but lets see if he learns how to pick up and keep things clean himself.
I didnt vacuum I am wiped from the party but tomorrow I will!!!!!!!!!!!

Party Day !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-07-03T11:51:00.000-07:00

Okay still running around getting ready for the party. I have cleaned and cleaned and cleaned some more . I am very tired but all ready for the party. I am so going to try and keep the house this clean this summer.

I finished cleaning the downstairs and then helped outside too. I ran the vacuum really quickly over the livingroom.

Now off to the pool. Who knows I might even go swimming ????????????!!!!!!!!!!

invade a radio station

2010-07-02T21:30:00.000-07:00

Today we got a personal tour around one of our community radio stations 91.5 the beat and 107.5 dave fm. It was so much fun and they also went live and we all said Hi on air. Angel really enjoyed it !!!!!!!!!!! At the top is a pic of us at the studios.OKay it wont work for some reason so I will post some on Sunday or Monday.

Update on clothing my hubbie was sweet and folded laundry that I did two days ago. My daughter and I put it all away. It felt really good !!!!

I had decided thanks to a slob comes clean blog to make one goal at a time. The first one I did was to make sure my coffee table was cleaned off every night. Happy to report have kept that one up . Now the second is to keep the small love seat clean and not pile things on it !!!!!!!!

I cleaned up the house for my daughter's birthday/pool/ sleepover / party which is tomorrow. I have such that aaaaaaaaaa feeling looking at the house all clean. Nothing to really do tomorrow but wait for them to arrive.

Have a great weekend and if you are from the States have a Happy Fourth of July!!!!!!!

2010-07-01T18:46:00.000-07:00

It has been way too long since I have blogged and I want to try and jump back in
and see how it goes.

I am an educational assistant and I am off for the summer so I set goals for myself to accomplish during this time. Last year was the big purge really every nook and cranny of my house was cleaned, decluttered with daily tasks . That felt really good to get rid of a lot of stuff and most areas are pretty neat still to this day.

The one area that didnt stay that way was my daughter's bedroom which is one of my goals to totally go through and help her purge a lot of stuff. She really just needs to get rid of a lot of stuff because she is growing up and most of the stuff is just shoved in the closet never to be looked at . We need to make her room a more grown up space for a tween. She will be turning 12 in July!!!!!!!!!

The big area I want to work on this year though is "clothing". I want to purge a lot and go through every area of the house that has any bit of clothing and either find it a home or give it away. I need to get my laundry under control too !!!!!!!!!!!
What are your goals for the summer ?????????????

Feb. Organizing challenge

2010-02-01T16:08:00.000-08:00

Laura has set up an organizing challenge for the month of Feb. I find I get the winter blues in Feb. so I thought this might help me to get through one of the hardest months for me.
I was trying to decide did I want to clean one small space or a whole room and then which one pops into my head. I decided to go around my house and take pics of the messy / unorganized spaces I would love to work on this month. Not sure how much I will get done but we will see.
Once I took those pictures I worked on two areas in one big area to start. There was a lot of clutter on my small couch so I took maybe 10 minutes to put the things where they belonged and now it is empty.
The other spot was an end table that was piled high with clutter and junk and who knows what. This area took a bit longer it looks a lot better and is organized now too.
Wow that all feels good to have accomplished something today.
Thanks Laura for the challenge.
If you want to check out what everyone else is organizing or want to join the challenge feel free to go to Laura's website.http://orgjunkie.com/2010/01/welcome-to-the-28-day-organizing-challenge.html

update for this week

2010-01-08T14:17:00.000-08:00

The goal I wanted to work on was eating breakfast with a great protein source.
Monday started out great almond butter and natural jam on wholewheat toast.
Then Tues I woke up with a migraine headache and didnt really want food or anything!
Wed., Thurs, Fri well suffice to say it just didnt happen.
I was just talking to my daughter about goals and setting them to try and achieve them. I think some goals take time and for me this might be one of them. I have a really hard time eating first thing when I wake up!!!!!!
I will keep trying but as I told her at least I ate breakfast for one more morning then I did the week prior. I will keep trying .
THanks Becca for the great ideas on how to add protein I will check them out!!!!!!!!
Sticking with this goal this week so hopefully I can do better!!!!!!!!!!

first goal I am setting for 2010

2010-01-03T16:40:00.000-08:00

I went for some testing with the doctor and they said I am low on Vitamin b and iron. After I did some research I was not surprised at all to find this out. I am not a big meat eater and I am lactose intolerant too.

I am going to try and add more protein to my diet by eating breakfast with a protein source. So I have picked out a few to start with . Tomorrow will be my first day of eating a breakfast. The two I am starting with are eggs or an almond butter and jam on whole wheat toast. I also am going to be eating almonds for a protein source as a snack each day.

If you have any good ideas for breakfast that have a protein source please let me know. Also if you know any good protein sources I might be able to try again please email me or leave a comment.

Lets see how that goes tomorrow!!!!!!!!!! I will let you know!!!!!!!!!!!

happy new year!!!!!!!!!

2010-01-01T12:51:00.000-08:00

First off I want to wish all my friends and family a happy new year!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A couple of years ago I decided that I will not ever make resolutions
again . For me it is so easy to just break those resolutions and
to get easily frustrated very early on . So for me I just continue with what
I am doing that is working for me and my family to have a happy life. I am always working towards something but it changes from time to time.

This year I am just going to continue on with what is working for me in my life.
There are a few things I want to change and over the year but not all at once just one at a time. I will be posting about them when I decide to concentrate on each goal.

An example is in Sept this past year I decided that we needed to spend more time
as a family. The memories that my daughter will remember are the times spent together
not the things we buy!!!!!!! So I concentrated on that and I love the new family time we have found to spend together.

Last night we passed up two parties that we were invited to spend time as a family. We went to a family swim together and then came home and had chinese food. My 11 year old daughter asked to stay up till midnight so I thought we would try it . She managed to stay awake and probably could have stayed up even later than that but she went to bed a little after midnight.

We rang in midnight the perfect way with her sitting between my husband and I.
We counted down midnight together and then we kissed her at midnight and then kissed each other . It was perfect!!!!!!!!!! It felt so right and I want to have more experiences like that !!!!!!!!!!

So come back to the blog to read what I am working on next.

Take some time to hug your child!!!!!!!!!

how we tricked our daughter on christmas

2009-12-29T17:46:00.001-08:00

This was so priceless!!!!! What we did was had some gifts wrapped upstairs for her and her stocking too. I had a certain order for her to get her gifts and told hubbie so he wouldnt ruin it. Okay so it worked last she got a gold wrapped gift from us. The a card to go along that had a lot of sentimental sayings in it for her. It also said have fun with all your gold wrapped gifts you deserve it with the way the last year was for you . (It was a rough one!!!!!!!!!! Has been much better since we changed schools) So she reads it and doesnt say anything at all. I say , which was already set up , James where did you put the rest of the gold gifts????? I then say did you forget them downstairs. He says yes and we go down and she sees them but still has no idea what so ever is in them. I say one minute let me set up the video on my camera . I guess I dont do it fast enough because hubbie says go ahead Angel and open it ! What no way I am not ready. Oh well I miss that opportunity for video and I start taking pictures. She opens the first one and says it is a wii. She started crying and was so emotional for receiving it and keeps saying I got a wii!!! She opens the wii fit plus too and is still crying and emotional. By this time I cant see and I am crying too! Wow what an emotional christmas morning!!!!!!!!
I will add another post once I get the pictures uploaded from the camera.
She has been playing on it every day since she got it I would strongly reccommend the wii and wii fit plus!!!!!!!!!!!!!

what works for me(secret exercise)

2009-12-29T17:25:00.001-08:00

I cant believe it has been so long since I have wrote in my blog!!!!!!!!! Wow life has been busy but not that busy. I do want to change this and be more active blogger this coming year.

So what works for me is that my daughter was not getting much exercise so for christmas she got a wii and wii fit plus. Wow she has not stopped she has been running , jumping , skiing and boxing. I know some of you are thinking that it might not be real exercise but the way I look at it is she is exercising and moving more than she did yesterday.
So that is what works for me to get my child to do more exercise. She wants the dance mat next love the exercise ones!!!!!!!!! They are fun she says and I say yes they look like fun so she continues on.
Shhh... let it be our secret!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Health maybe under control

2009-10-06T16:42:00.000-07:00

Remember when I posted back oh around January stating one of my goals was to get to see the gynocologist and the family doctor and get some tests done. Well the first was easy done and everything was fine. Well the second has taken me till yesterday to get around to. No I didnt procrastinate like I do with everything else in life.
Let me start last July I received something
in the mail telling me my doctor was retiring as of July 29 and guess what date it was July 28.
I had put off making a doctors appointment no excuse really why but thought and was all set to make one for August and get all the tests done to see if there was anything off in my body.
Well after receiving that letter it was a journey to find a family doctor. Here in Canada that is not an easy feat to accomplish. I got really lucky and found one and went to visit him for the first time on Sept.22 . I asked him to run some tests for me since I am always cold and was not really feeling my usually self. So I asked him to check iron levels, thyroid, liver and adrenal glands. I forgot about Vitamin d but wished I would have asked. Oh well something for next time.
Well I got the results low iron and low b 12( glad he ran this test I didnt ask for). I got the supplements tonight and will begin taking them . I will let you know how they work for me.
B12 is usually low if you dont eat enough proteins. Hmmm... protein sources meat ( dont really like , dairy sources( lactose intolerant) and eggs( oh I like these)
My nutritionist friend also told me to take 15 almonds each morning and that would help too.
I will slowly be changing my diet with her help over the next couple of months. I am doing it slowly not all at once.
So hope everyone is happy and healthy.
Oh I guess I now have a reason why my house isnt spotless and I like to sleep a lot .

works for me Wednesday- social networking

2009-09-15T11:41:00.000-07:00

Hi I dont do this very often. Okay I havent done it once since I started my blog.
I would love you to all take a minute and vote for my daughter to win a contest.
Here is the link www.myredcarpetexperience.com/fairviewpark/
You need to go to the 7-11 category and then second row Angel wearing the grey hat.
I am trying to use social media networking to see how it all works to connect and support
one another in our desires.
Thanks so much

Operation Organization

2009-09-14T11:26:00.000-07:00

One more week left !!!!!!!!!! My weekends have been really busy and fun so I have not had time to post my goal for the weekend till Sunday or Monday but I do get around to it. Better late than never.

Here is my report I am still working on deleting all my inbox msgs. I have not been very good at keeping my inbox clean either which upsets me. I need to be more vigilant on doing this. I get so much mail every day and I am also in the process of organizing another womans show on Oct.3,2009 which makes for a lot of mail too!!!!!!!!!!
So this week I will be more vigilant and go through every email every day.

My cleaning schedule from last week worked but needs some tweaking which I already figured out. I missed a few things so they need to be added. So again I will work on this too.

The command center worked awesome when my daughter brought home notes I put them in the blue hanging folder. On the weekend I went through them and filled out what I needed to and then filed the rest on my holding shelf so I know where they are if I need to refer back to them. Which I might one is a field trip and a list of P.D. Days and list of teachers and their extension numbers.
I am thinking of buying a book and plastic pouches to store this in for future reference. I think the file folders might get to be a bit much.

Another busy week and I start my other school on Wed so then I will be working full time.

2009-09-07T18:16:00.001-07:00

We had a great long weekend the last before I go back to work and Angel goes back to school. I was so glad to see that summer weather has finally arrived for the last couple of days before school begins.
So last week I stated that I would clean off the computer desk. I did that and I couldnt believe how much things were piled up. I took everything off and then only put back what I really wanted to be on there. I wiped everything down too to get rid of all of the dust. I found a home for other things and then got my hubbie and daughter to find a home for their belongings too. It looks so much better right now and my family is not sitting here and sneezing!!!!!!!

My daughter cleaned out her launch pad center where her knapsack and any lunch bag go. I am so proud she takes on organizing challenges too!!!!! She even started going through things in her bedroom and was able to find a pile of books she doesnt want anymore. Maybe I am wearing off on her a bit!!!!!!!

So for this weeks challenge I set for myself is to set a cleaning schedule up that will work with going back to work and all the extra running around I will have . I also will get to try out the command center to see if it works.

The other challenge which might take two weeks is to go through all my inbox and clean it all out.

I learned this from another blogger which has worked for me so far. First step I did was make a folder that was labeled Sept 09 and put all my email into it so my inbox was empty. I now deal with this daily to keep it cleaned out. I have gone through the Sept 09 and have it down to about 1/2 of its size. I am sure it will take time because when you start with almost 4,000 msgs to weed through but it feels good to be purging and getting things under control.

no more ironing !!!!!!!!

2009-09-02T04:13:00.000-07:00

Okay lets get honest for a minute who am I kidding I rarely ironed. When it was a special occasion or something but that is about all. I tried to keep the wrinkles out of my clothing by catching them as soon as the dryer stopped and hanging them up. Yes that worked for a bit till I got a big lazy and they would sit or hubbie would take them out.
So I mentioned to a very good friend that I needed to buy a clothing steamer so I can be wrinkle free.
Well she was out shopping and she found a little hand held steamer very small and portable for only 12.00 so she picked up one for both of us. I decided to pull it out and try it yesterday and it worked so well . It took maybe 1-2 minutes a shirt!!!!!!!! No more wrinkles in this house!!!!!!!!
After today we are wrinkle free!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I steamed 10 shirts for my daughter and will be doing more today!!!!!!!!!!
If you dont own one and you hate ironing seriously for the cost of the investment it pays for itself!!!

Oops I forgot to post for the challenge

2009-09-01T15:53:00.001-07:00

This weeks goal is pretty simple really with starting back to work tomorrow.

I have just set the goal as get the computer desk all cleaned and dusted. My daughter and hubbie keep sneezing when they are on the computer so I am guessing maybe a build up of dust!!!!!!!!! I have mentioned it to both of them but neither has taken the duster and dusted maybe they like to sneeze to clean out their sinuses!!!!!!
Number 2 goal was learn how to use my new clothing steamer- did that today and I will write a separate post about that.

Command Central

2009-08-26T18:42:00.000-07:00

The theme for this month the command center. I did this last year and love it so much easier to find important papers. I am going to change it a bit this year use either a small binder or file folders havent really decided yet. I gave the top shelf to my hubbie , next to me and next to my daughter. We also have the bottom shelf for activity books and coupons.

My daughter's monthly school calendar goes on the fridge so we can see it everyday before school.

update on the challenge

2009-08-22T10:31:00.000-07:00

OOps I almost forgot to blog about last week and this week in the organization challenge. We are 1/2 way through wow!!!! Last week I organized and deleted a ton of blogs now I can go through all of them everyday .

I also did back to school shopping for my daughter and we are now ready for school. Her clothes are all organized whew what a job!!!!!!!

I decided I was going to not do the linen closet this past week either but move it to this coming week. It is the last official week I have of summer before I go back to work.
So the goal I have set for this week is to

1) clean and organize the linen closet
2)clean and organize the coat closet.

So the other update for all who have followed me all summer for the clean and clear it I am doing really well as I hope you are too. I have only the linen closet and the coat closet left. I have been working really hard on maintaining all areas that have been cleaned throughout the process. I am happy to say they are really easy now to keep up with and dont get that out of control that it takes forever to fix now it is at most a 10 minute tidy of the area.
My dresser is still clean too so that is good . I am working every day to hang up things or put them back . They say it takes 21 days to build a new habit .
Thanks to everyone that has stuck with me this summer . I will post about the two closets this week so stay tuned!!!!!!!!!!

This week is another bedroom

2009-08-17T18:01:00.000-07:00

I looked at the calendar and realized I only have two weeks left till I go back to work!!
So although I was going to do my daughter's room later there really is not a whole lot
of time so this is the job this week. I want to go through all her clothes and get all her
laundry caught up and put back in her drawers. I will be doing that I did with the masterbedroom
except she doesnt have a pile of clothing like her mom did.
So really just doing some organizing and cleaning for her. She will help me and will have a say
to what she likes with her clothes and what needs to go. There is really no reason to keep something if she is never going to wear it. Although with that said we found out last year after doing this that we only had good clothing for her to take camping with her so we learned our lesson to keep some play clothes that might not be your favourite to take camping.
We did some back to school shopping today too. We bought two pairs of skinny jeans and two cute jumper type dresses too . I have been looking forever for some dresses for her but they are hard to find. So today one will do for the first day of school and she will still have the other for another time. Now we just need a pair of shoes probably ballerina flats. She is not a running shoe girl at all.
So it is all about clothing for this week!!!!!!!!! That way we will both be ready when school begins again for us !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Next week will be the linen closet and the main closet and then for us we will be done !!!!!!!!!!!
Hope you are still all working with me to do small pieces to get a big result!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I already feel the peace, calm in my house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

conquer your clutter challenge

2009-08-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

Okay I felt like I had not completed what I said I would do for the challenge
so I just took the time to go through the rest of the blogs that were left and
did the keep or go thing. It feels really good to be less than 1/2 less which are
the ones I truly learn things from or are emotionally attached to.
So cross number 1 off my list !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

conquer your clutter challenge

2009-08-14T19:12:00.000-07:00

So to report last week I got rid of 12 garbage bags for donation out of the spare bedroom.
I also deleted about 1/2 the blogs I had. I am still in the process because I find it hard that people dont blog too much over the summer . So many are not even very active but through out the year they are busy and I liked them enough to keep them. So I have the keepers and I have a few more I will give another week go back through and then if not delete. But at least I did a good purge this week.

Okay so for week 3 my goals are
1) to keep cleaning up my blogs and then only have the keepers by next Friday.
2) laundry- I have a lot to fold and put away !!!!!!!!!!!
3) clean the linen closet

I love the challenge so we can all support one another. I won a gc too this week !!!!!!! Thanks so much !!!!!!!!

This weeks goal!!!!!!!!!

2009-08-11T13:50:00.000-07:00

I havent stopped not yet. I finished up the master bedroom and now have moved to the spare bedroom. It is not really set up as a bedroom but a dumping ground really. So I didnt use the same steps I did for the master bedroom. For you what you need to do is go on to another bedroom and scroll back to complete the same steps for the master bedroom.
In our spare bedroom all I am doing is purging and purging for now. We donated 12 garbage bags full of stuff .
We found we still have the crib from our daughter so we will be donating this to a womans shelter very soon!!!!!!!!!!!
It feels really good but I must admit about 1/2 way through I couldnt see the head way I had made and if not for my hubbie would have given up!!!!! It is easy to get frustrated. If he was not around I would have taken a whole week to do what we did in one afternoon. We still have things on the fringes of the room but it is stuff I want to sell. I am going to be selling my daughter's toybox and bratz and barbie dolls. I kept it really simple I could have sold the 12 garbage bags but just easier to get it gone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I will admit there is one thing that is sentimental to me that I am having a really really hard time parting with and that is books inparticular childrens books. I used to work in daycare and have accumulated oh many many many books. I decided it was all too much to go through the books too so they are all stored away in the closet and I will do that one day.
WEll off to have a treat of mini- choc. cupcakes!!!!!!!! I think I deserve a reward for this.

conquer your clutter challenge

2009-08-07T20:42:00.000-07:00

Last week I joined a challenge I found on another blog called Coming Clean. She set up a challenge for us to pick one challenge each week to accomplish. I love having the support and encouragement of others to accomplish our goals. So week one the pics above show some of the work I did on the master bedroom. I started by cleaning off the dresser that was the goal I picked for her challenge for week 1. Accomplished!!!!!!!!!!

Week 2
1) I have two goals I am starting to clean up the sparebedroom and really what I want to accomplish is to go through the room and fill bags I want to donate. I know this will leave me with what I want to keep so I then can work on finding homes for them.

2) The other thing I actually cheated and started yesterday was cleaning out and purging the amount of blogs I read. So the first step I did was make a folder called keepers. As I read them daily as they are updated I can decide if I want to keep reading the blogs or not. I use sage and love it to organize my blogs but on the other hand really easy to save them to so I have done this too much. So this will be ongoing all week and if the blogs dont make the cut and arent in the keepers folder at the end of the week they are being deleted. I have already moved some that I read and really look forward to reading to this folder. I also kept any blogs that if I only have a few minutes I go to those first. So by the end of the week I want to only have the ones that I enjoy, teach me something, or that I can not live without.

Sometimes life or sunshine get in the way

2009-08-06T18:33:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

I must admit I havent really been working too much on my bedroom. I sure hope you all have been working on it. It does not look like I will get back to work on it till Sat. We have actually had a few days of sunshine. Weird no rain!!!!!!!!!! So I have taken advantage of this and not really done too much around the house. We went swimming , okay if you know me not me, my daughter and her friend and I sunned on my anti-gravity chair!!!!!!!!!! Today we went to a reptile show at the library. I was very brave and volunteered not having any idea other that a reptile was involved some how. They picked out 4 adults and we went up and then told us to hold out our hands and not to look back or peek. He took it out and the children cheered and some oh mys and oh ahhh.. Then he placed it our hands it as an albino burmese python. Here is a pic that looks just like it but is not the one from today. I didnt have my camera with me . :(
Okay if you dont know I am scared I mean scared of snakes. I like to test myself though and try to get over my fears. This was huge for me and I was worried I would get the head but thankfully I got the middle. This snake was huge it weighted over one hundred pounds and was not full grown. It was kinda cool to touch and rub it while he gave his talk to the children. Then it was the end and he said all the children could come up and pet the snake. Oh my that is where it got a little scary once they all started touching the snake it started moving and felt really weird.

Okay so back to the challenge really all I can say is keep cleaning the master bedroom. I hope to get all caught up on the master bedroom on Sat. Then move on to another room our spare bedroom yikes that might take awhile !!!!!!!!! Wait till you see the before pic you will understand.
Happy cleaning. Keep cleaning and de-cluttering.

works for me Wednesday - tips to make a school day easier

2009-08-04T20:08:00.000-07:00

I have few tips and tricks I used last year that made the school day easier.

1) I have a wicker basket with a lid that holds my daughter's backpack.
Nice and neat and stays all together. It is big enough to hold a few things
of my daughter's like a gym bag to hold her gym clothing for school too.

2) I have set up a communication area too. So when my daughter has notes
I have to sign I have a folder she puts them in so we then know where they
are and are easily returned to her calendar to take back to school.

3) the last one has saved us so much extra time is what we pack for lunch
for her to take every day. Somedays it is hot stuff or a sandwich, next w
pack a cereal bar and lastly we pack two containers the same every day
one for fruit and one for veggies. No having to think about what you want
or need to pack. We alternate different veggies and different fruits but
I then know she is getting some good nutritious food into her at lunch.

Hope these tips make your day a bit easier!!!!!!!!!!!!!

continuing in the master bedroom

2009-08-04T10:56:00.000-07:00

If you live in Canada I sure hope you had a great long weekend. I sure did. I got kinda
lazy the only thing I did was clean off all the clothes off my dresser. Pics to come.
So today I move on wash all of your bedding!!!!!!!!!!!! Fresh sheets to sleep on ahhhhhhhhh!!!
I also am trying the mattress spray by norwex. I did my daughter's a couple of weeks ago and she
doesnt get up sneezing or coughing and it hasnt affected her asthma either. I was a little worried about that but no side effects.
The other thing to do today is clean off your night tables if you have them. Take everything off put everything you dont need in the garbage and then find homes for other stuff. Wipe clean and then put back only the necessities.
Well sorta in a cleaning mood so going to go and take advantage of that check back tomorrow!!!!
It just might be the dreaded closet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Queen for the night

2009-08-03T14:03:00.000-07:00

Okay so this weekend took a little break and went to have some
fun with a great friend in Toronto. Here are some fun pics of me.
Funny usually I hate having my pic taken but put a crown on me
and wow look out !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

joined a challenge to help keep me motivated

2009-07-31T20:07:00.000-07:00

I have been cleaning and cleaning and organizing and purging. I found this challenge and decided to join so I can have others to work with too and keep motivated.

So they want us to post our goal for this week and mine is the master bedroom. I will post pics as I go along.

We move on to another room!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-07-30T19:48:00.000-07:00

Well your bathroom , living room and kitchen must be all nice
and organized. Yes they might not be spotless but that was not the
idea. We just did deep cleaning as we went along and organized.
So today we go on to the Master Bedroom.
I did a load of laundry and that is all that really got done today because
it was a beautiful summer sunny day here so I went out with my daughter
to a market and had lunch together too. We really havent had too many nice
sunny days here lots and lots of rain so we took advantage of it. Also we went
to an opera production tonight too very interesting!!!!!!!
So for today and tomorrow we will work on our clothing. For me that means
I need to hang a lot up , do laundry , organize and purge.
I am a little embarrassed to say that I cant see the top of my dresser for
clothes. I have a really really bad habit of piling my clothing.
I need to really work on breaking that habit!!!!!!!!!!!! I tried once this spring
but then one day it was busy put a dress up there and then jeans and then..
well I am sure you get the picture. I have to keep everything off the top
if I want it to stay clean.

inexpensive skin care

2009-07-28T20:02:00.000-07:00

Todays work for me Wednesday is about inexpensive skin care.
By using these two specific products you dont need to use
mositurizers, cleansers, exfolicants or any acne cream.
What is you ask ???????????? It is norwex face clothes and
tea tree oil. If you have any breakouts at all dab on some tea
tree oil and you will notice it dries up the blemish and then it
quickly disappears. Try it you wont be sorry !!!!!!! Plus you
will save sooooo much money !!!!!!!! Oh and you wont need
to buy make up remover either.

last day in the kitchen

2009-07-28T09:29:00.000-07:00

Wow we are really doing great almost 3 rooms done. I sure hope you have
followed along and are noticing big changes in your house and the way you
feel.
So today is the last day we will spend in the kitchen time to really move
on . So today is go through your pots and pans and see if you can get rid
of some.
Also we are going to sweep and scrub our floor and wipe down the outside
of the cupboards.

For me I have one more spot to declutter which will then help me to
declutter another cupboard. If you have any areas you have missed
decluttering then take the time today to finish that up so we can move
on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Come back to tomorrow to see which room is next!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!??????????????

more decluttering

2009-07-27T09:56:00.001-07:00

So today we move on to our utensils. Take them all out and decide which ones
you will get rid of. As you do this sort them into like piles to actually see how many
you have of each thing. Toss what you truly dont use or need. Clean out drawer and then
place them back into a spot we will call home.
The second task which might take a little longer is to go through your food cupboards
and check for old food or food you could donate to the food bank. So here we go take
out all the food and sort into like piles. Clean the cupboard or pantry and then place
like items back into the spot you will call home.

Here are some to help you videos to help
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vDLEn7zVUA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvouB-X0GCs

For me I have to buy a basket for my baking goods. I am also trying to re-arrange a
few things and the utensil drawer cant be done till tomorrow till I have space. I am going
to have two utensil drawers one for the big stuff and one for the silverware. I have to clean
out another area tomorrow which will then give me room to move around a few things to
free up the other drawer I will be using for the big utensils. Then I will buy a basket or two
to store my tea towels and dish clothes too . So for me personally it will be a work in progress.

Organizing

2009-07-23T09:21:00.000-07:00

I am continually reading blogs and many many blogs. I came across this one today
that put it the best way on how to organize. Go and check it out
http://stuff2borganized.blogspot.com/2009/07/want-to-get-organized-here-are-steps.html

decluttering !!!!!!!!!!!

2009-07-22T23:27:00.000-07:00

Today we declutter our glasses, cups , bowls and dishes.
So same thing take it all out and hopefully put only 1/2 or 3/4 back.
Wipe down the shelves and then put back less.
That is all for today tomorrow we go through our food cupboards to organize.

start decluttering

2009-07-21T14:41:00.000-07:00

Okay so today find a spot you want to start decluttering. We will be doing food and dishes soon.
Then remove all the stuff from that spot. Clean that spot and place back only what you love.
Today I picked the microwave cart and still having a hard time letting go. I took everything out of the cart and then wiped it all down . Then I looked at the stuff that was going back and in and thought I wont use some of this stuff I should get rid of them. I didnt I neatly put them back but I am going to get rid of the fondue pot that has never been used. The other thing that I thought I should get rid of is a blender now that I have the magic bullet. But what happens if the magic bullet breaks I need that blender is my thought. Now that I have looked back I will be getting rid of the blender because truthfully if the magic bullet breaks I will be going out to buy another right away.
So I have a bit of empty space to fill with other stuff.
I have to wait till I declutter one cupboard area where I am literally tossing everything already decided. It will give me room to move around things then.
Well go and purge and declutter. Come back tomorrow when we start with our purging our dishes.

continue on

2009-07-20T09:08:00.000-07:00

Today is the freezer you need to defrost the freezer and organize it.
Tomorrow we start decluttering. Okay lets start today go through all your glasses and cups and purge some. It will be easier to have less and most times we keep them for sentimental reasons not out of need. Go ahead take the big leap and try to get rid of some.

Stove and Microwave today

2009-07-16T10:51:00.000-07:00

First put your dish clothes into the laundry.
Second wipe down your stove top and front.
Third clean out the inside of your oven with whatever cleaner you see fit to use. Again do what works for you .
Next wipe down your microwave and then clean the inside.
All done for today.

I finally tried the trick to clean your microwave that has been posted on a bijillion blogs and it works. So here is the trick I am sure you already know but I will repeat it put a bowl of water with a little lemon juice into your microwave. Microwave it for 1 minute and then take a cloth and wipe it all clean. The steam has loosened all the dirt in the microwave. It works like a charm maybe one minute to wipe hard stuck on food off !!!! I will definitely try this again.

So now I am off to relax in the backyard by the pool for the afternoon. We finally have sunshine !!!!!!!!!
Enjoy your day !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is are my pics of my clean kitchen

2009-07-15T10:41:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of my kitchen all clean!!!!!!!!!!!!
Each shelf has a purpose. The top one is hubbie's shelf to store things which is most of the mail.
Then my shelf so I tuck things in there and sometimes mail too. The next shelf is my daughter's shelf and she puts phonenumbers, girlguide forms and whatever else she wants to put there. Last shelf is for coupons and program guides.
I think for my shelf and possible Angel's we might start using file folders too .

More Kitchen

2009-07-15T10:27:00.001-07:00

Lets continue working on our kitchens. So now that your fridge is all shiny clean lets work on a different area. Today will be counter tops. What you need to do is put away everything that does not belong on your counter tops. Then move all the stuff to one side of your counter and clean all of that area. Then move it all back or give it a new home.
Then clean another part of the counter top . Keep going till you get that ahhhhhhh.. feeling!!!
I have a mail sorter too which is overflowing that sits on my counter top so that will have to be purged and re-organized. I am trying to think of new ways to make it more organized.
While you are at it add your sink . So you need to put the dishes in the dishwasher or wash what is in your sink. Then it is time to shine your sink.
Here is a link to the steps to shine your sink up

http://www.flylady.net/pages/FLYingLessons_Shine.asp

I bet your kitchen is starting to look so shiny and clean tomorrow is stove and microwave.
I am sorry I post in the afternoon but that is usually when I can get on to the computer. Again I need to share with my family.

I have had a question if I do the task first or post ??Usually I post first and then go and do the task at hand.

Today we move on to the Kitchen

2009-07-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

How awesome you are all doing 2 rooms down!!!!!!!!!

Today we are going to clean the fridge inside and outside.
I have found two you tube videos for you to watch to give you
some ideas. I will post pics too of my fridge to show you . I use
baskets everywhere they are really what helps me to organize
and contain clutter. Sometimes it does not help but the one spot
that I have found it really helps is the fridge. I have been thinking of
getting some more too .
I have one for veggies we use to cut up for lunches and I have one for
fruit we use for lunches too. The last one holds all the smaller containers
of yogurt, pudding and the likes that get lost are too hard to get out for
lunch or a snack. I find foods in these baskets get eaten more than the
foods stored in the bottom drawers.
I take two minutes no more when the food comes in to get rid of the packages
and now they are just grab and go. I also use the green bags to keep my veggies
and fruits to last longer too.
So here are the videos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gI6c_WR3Fw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvIEoG_ET8o&feature=channel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRNOn57sdu0&feature=channel

The other tip I learned which I will pass on is to put a couple pieces of paper towel in bottom
of all the baskets or drawers. It is so easy if it spills just then to toss the paper towel and keeps
the drawers clean.
I have tried the green mats you can buy at dollerama and they are useless they dont make
produce last longer and if anything gets spilled on them they are sticky and a mess.
Paper towels are the way to go!!!!!!!!!
So go and clean and then pour yourself a nice summer drink and go out in the sunshine!!!!!!

finishing the livingroom

2009-07-13T10:32:00.000-07:00

So if you have been following along with the clean and clear it challenge you will have almost 2 rooms done. WEll after todays decluttering you will have two rooms done! How good does that feel??
So today we are decluttering once again. You are to declutter anything bookshelves, drawers, cabinets whatever you have left.
Probably wouldnt hurt again to vacuum the livingroom again too . I know mine needs it.
I have some clutter to put away from my small couch too which seems to be the dumping ground when you walk in the front door.

Here is a great article on decluttering you should read.

http://simplenest.net/10-questions-to-help-you-declutter/

So go and finish up what you have left!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

more in the livingroom

2009-07-11T13:38:00.000-07:00

Sorry for posting so late but you can either do it today or tomorrow.
We are cleaning our windows inside and out. The second thing to do
is go through and organize and purge and cds you have. I am feeling a bit
under the weather today so it will be short and sweet.
Come back Monday for more .

more on the livingroom

2009-07-10T09:45:00.001-07:00

This is a picture of what my coffee table has looked like in the past and will after I am done with it today .

Today we concentrate on the tables in your livingroom. I have two end tables
and a coffee table that is what I have to today.
So whatever tables you have concentrate on them.
1) clean everything off
2) declutter and find homes for things that dont belong on those tables
3) put stuff in the garbage that is garbage
4) put back the stuff you love
5) stand back and admire

day 2 on the livingroom!!!!!!!

2009-07-09T08:39:00.000-07:00

For today we are continuing to work on the livingroom. Two tasks today to complete.

First off did you dust the tv off yesterday ????? If you didnt then do it today so it is nice and clean and fingerprint free.
Okay so on to todays tasks :

1) We will declutter our dvds and movies of any sort. Try to go through and give them a home and organize them for what makes sense to you . Also try to purge a couple that you dont even know why you have them or havent watched them in so long why do you have them.

To declutter my way is to make piles after it is all taken out. I have the I keep pile and the maybe pile, get rid of and the garbage bag to put any that are broken .

2) Clean off whatever is housing your tv . For me it is a cabinet . So go and take everything out and clean it all and then only put back what you love . Again try to purge some things. It will make it easier next time to dust if there are less things to go around or take out!

A little side note I got all my norwex stuff yesterday so I will be trying them out over the next couple of days and I will let you know how I like my new products.

I will be using my new microfiber cleaning cloth and the polishing cloth too as I go around today !

So go and get busy and dont forget to have a bottle of water or some kind of liquid drink with you as you declutter. I have read it dehydrates you and takes a lot out of you to do this so you need to replenish yourself.

When you are done purging get rid of the stuff as soon as you can out of sight or better yet out of your house.

OKay now you are done reading go and get working !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dont forget to post your links showing us your work.

we go on !!!!!!!!!!

2009-07-08T08:22:00.000-07:00

First off I say do what works for you right. Well that is basically why
I didnt post anything on Monday or Tues. Monday I couldnt have gotten on
my com[puter to post anything till 12:30 am Tues technically. Have to share
the computer with hubbie and daughter and then had a few plans that took me
out of the house that day.
Tuesday I did what worked for me and that was celebrating my daughter's birthday
at Canada's Wonderland. We had such a great time and I was gone from 8am till
10 pm last night. Too tired to post any ideas last night.

Okay so now I am back on track ! We are starting the living room which will take more than a week but we will see once we get going.
First off we are going to dust everything !! Next we are going to vacuum up all the dust and vacuum our rugs.
That is all for today.
Easy really I will use my dust cloth and possibly my micro cloth and go and dust all pictures, tv, shelves, cabinets. Dont move anything yet though on the bookshelves that is a whole other day. Just dust around them.
I have a huge ceiling fan too that I am sure needs dusting.

So go and get started!!!!!!!!!!!

The end is in sight!!

2009-07-04T09:17:00.000-07:00

Two more things to do in the bathroom then room 1 is done.
Wash the floor and if you want or didnt do spring cleaning wipe down the walls.

Now you are all done stand back and admire your work this week.

Take Sunday off or get caught up.

Monday we start a new room and suggestions????

Here is a question I get asked quite often why are you taking so long to do the bathroom I usually do this cleaning all together at once???????

Yes I do too but we are taking baby steps really just to get going. From here on out you will go back to regularly cleaning the bathroom all at once.
The big thing for me is once a year I find time to declutter.
We are trying to develop habits of cleaning and organizing and not overwhelming anyone. It takes 21 days to develop a habit.

Go out in the sunshine with your family !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Come back on Monday though!!!!!!!!!!!

More pics for you to see

2009-07-03T18:34:00.000-07:00

Sorry I dont have befores for these hubbie had the camera in the car when
I was really in the mood to declutter.
Here are the afters of my shelf and medicine cabinet.

Before and After Pics

2009-07-03T18:23:00.000-07:00

The weird thing is I always miscalculate how much time it will take to declutter and organize.
Today it took me the same amount of time to declutter all three areas seen above as it did to
clean out the bathtub yesterday. Sometimes we put off something because we think it will take
too long but then once we dig in it doesnt take that long.
So here are the befores and afters of my pics. I got rid of a garbage bag of junk.
I want to buy a basket the size that I have the bath stuff in maybe two might fit and
change out my hair stuff and then have a home for the curling irons too which for now are on a shelf in the linen closet because we dont use them.
Tomorrow is the last day for the bathroom.

On We Go!!!!!!! Decluttering Day!!!!!!!!!!

2009-07-03T11:10:00.000-07:00

Today we are decluttering. I am so excited for this part of the challenge because my main goal this summer is to declutter every single room!!!!!!!

So the spaces I have to declutter in my bathroom are under the sink ((really really needs it), the medicine cabinet( just a bit of rearranging), and the shelves above the toilet. You may have drawers too so today is the day for them too. My are all organized I did it last year and kept them this way. (see pic above)

I am not sure what you have but declutter everything and everywhere in the bathroom area.
If you havent used it in a year toss it !!!!!!!!

1) take everything out from under the sink (move)
2) place into piles or groups ( sort)
3)then toss all the stuff you dont need, dont use or wonder why it is even there
4) then wipe clean which I will do with my microfiber cloth and water
5) place back in organized. I use baskets which I purchased last year when I did this.
So figure out what works for you to place everything back in again.
6) move on to medicine cabinet and repeat
7) then lastly shelves take everything off
8) dust
9) decide what goes back on
10) Stand back and admire your work you are almost finished the bathroom!!!!!!!!!
11) Treat yourself!!!!!!!! Great work!!!!!!!!!!!

I will post before and afters here on this site so check back and feel free to share yours too or links to your blogs in the comment section.

Here are so link ups for your look at .

http://ezinearticles.com/?Declutter-Your-Bathroom-in-8-Easy-Steps&id=2211440

http://organizedhome.com/master-bathroom-declutter

Challenge continues

2009-07-02T08:41:00.000-07:00

Okay so on we go ! Hope everyone enjoyed their break yesterday. So today we have two things to do . One is cleaning our bathtub and second is washing all your towels.
Again you do it your way but this is how I will do it.

1) Spray the tub with water and wall.
2) I will then use my microfibre cloth to wipe down the tub, walls and shelves.
3) Rinse again .
4) Put all towels in the wash.
5) Put out all fresh towels.

Now we are almost done the bathroom just a few more things to do. Tomorrow is declutter day so be prepared!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For me I am looking forward to this part!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Take a break today - for the holiday

2009-07-01T11:25:00.000-07:00

Okay because today is Canada Day we are going to rest today. Just make sure that you are ready for tomorrow!!!!! We can take a rest because we will finish the bathroom in a week because it is so small.
Just make sure your sink is still clean and if not give it a wipe . Make sure nothing has ended up on the counter that shouldnt be there or remove it !!!!!!!!!

Happy Canada Day to everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Day 2 of the challenge

2009-06-30T08:50:00.000-07:00

A lot of people are commenting that how easy is this . That is the general idea
start small and work to bigger things. Also it is very important to be able to do
something small to see a difference to motivate you to continue. When I go into
my bathroom I get that ahhhhhhhhh... feeling looking at the counter.

So on we go today to more parts two to be precise. Lets clean the mirror and the toilet today.
I will post again how I will do it and then you can do it your way.

1) Put whatever cleaner in your toilet .
2) Clean the mirror. For me I will soak it and then use the microfiber cloth to wipe it clean. Then use my polishing cloth to shine it.
3)Go back to the toilet and wipe down the whole toilet.
4)Clean the inside of the toilet.
5) You are all done for today! Grab yourself a drink and sit back and relax!!!!!!!!!

extra tidbit for today

2009-06-29T10:06:00.001-07:00

I do this every month with all my sinks to deodorize them and unclog anything that might be stuck in the drain.
One of the most well known natural drain cleaners is a baking soda and vinegar combination. First, pour a half cup of baking soda into the sink drain. Then follow up with a half cup of white vinegar. T place the drain back over after adding vinegar and baking soda for a few minutes . Combining baking soda and vinegar is powerful enough that it can dissolve through hair, grease, and small clumps of food that may be blocking the drain. After pouring the vinegar, give an extra boost by pouring a few cups of boiling water to flush out any of the debris that was loosened after waiting the few minutes. If the drain is being particularly stubborn, it will also help to heat up the vinegar before adding it to the drain.

Clean and Clear Challenge begins!!!!!!!!!

2009-06-29T08:02:00.000-07:00

I thought we would start off with the smallest room first , the bathroom.
So we may finish this room quicker than one week.

First thing is get out that caddy that you prepared last week. If you haven't done this
yet then stop and go back read the post on getting the caddy ready. If you have then
here is your challenge for today.

1.Take everything off your counter top and clean it . Wipe down the sink and the faucets.
If there is stuff that does not belong on your counter top then find it a home. Put back all
the things that belong on your counter top. Only you can decide what should be there.
Stand back and admire your sparkling sink and counter top. Get that ahhhhhhhh... feeling
to keep you going and coming back her tomorrow to find out what is next!!!!!!!!!!!

For me now using the norwex microfiber cleaning cloth it is so easy I take my spray
bottle of just water and spray everywhere getting everything wet. Then take the cloth
and wipe it all down . Easy!

Remember baby steps and we will be able to have our whole house sparkling.
This is one area that really does stay clean for me so basically when I see something on the counter I pick it up and put it away. So go and clean and stop reading !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Stay tuned tomorrow more cleaning with those2girls!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-06-24T18:46:00.000-07:00

From the above pictures you can see what I have in my cleaning caddy. Again this is
just an idea if you want to make one but put in what works for you .

microfiber cleaning cloths
squirt water bottle- only water in the bottle for cleaning
baking soda
toothbrush
dusting mitten microfiber
cleaning caddy
microfiber polishing clothes

No chemical cleaning products at all . I clean with water and cloths.
I will be getting a mop system from Norwex too soon which I will blog about when I get it.
Right now we use swiffer dusting mop and a regular mop . We also have a broom too.

Cleaning with friends!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-06-23T18:57:00.000-07:00

This week the thing to do is prepare for the Clean and Clutter Challenge that is starting in one week.
So today I went through my cleaning caddy to make sure I had everything I need . For me it might
be different I have went green and will be using no chemicals when cleaning anymore.
I know yours might be different so I have included a couple of links to cleaning caddies so you
can get yours ready. There is no wrong way or wrong things to have in the caddy , whatever works
for you. They say if you have it altogether it will be easier for us to be prepared to clean and do the challenge.

http://www.bhg.com/homekeeping/cleaning-and-care/cleaning-advice/stocking-a-cleaning-caddy/

http://www.ehow.com/how_2196397_outfit-cleaning-caddy.html

http://www.marthastewart.com/article/kitchen-cleaning-caddy

So however you decide to do it this week just make sure you have everything you will need to
get started next week. Tomorrow I will show you my cleaning caddy.

a two fold for this one

2009-06-16T14:18:00.000-07:00

I am doing a two fold post one for works for me Wednesday and one for talk about it Tuesday.

The thing I want to share with all of you is that I am preparing for the cleaning challenge coming
in two weeks time. Are you ready ????????????? I am preparing right now getting it all together as they say. I will be making lists to break cleaning tasks down and of course getting some new cleaning products. Well that is where the works for me Wednesday and Talk about it Tuesday posts come in . This past weekend I went to a Norwex party and I was blown away.

I have been wanting to get rid of all of my cleaning products and go natural. Okay so how much more natural can you be with a cleaning cloth and water. So for 15.99 for a cleaning cloth no more cleaning products for me!!!!!!!!!!!!
So get ready everyone and if you too want to get rid of those nasty cleaning products check out norwex products. Once I receive more products from norwex I will blog about them too.
I can hardly wait for the window polisher one too.
More faceclothes wont hurt either considering my daughter has told me not to touch them they work so well for her!!!!!!!!!!!
Well that is all for today so watch coming soon The Clean and Clear Challenge.

something new and exciting to announce

2009-06-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

Last summer I did a wonderful challenge that really helped me to get rid of clutter and clean up my place. Okay as I have posted many posts that I have a hard time maintaining what I do. I am great at cleaning , organizing and decluttering but the only problem is that I cant maintain it. I am not sure why because once I have completed a whole room I get the ahhhhhhhhhhhh... kind of feeling that makes me happy, content, and satisfied but it doesnt carry me to do other cleaning or to try really really hard at maintaining that space. So I came up with an idea on how to clean my house.
I wanted to share it with my friends and my friend Lisa said what a great idea lets do it through our other blog too http://those2girls.blogspot.com/ .
Basically I find the bloggers try to do it way too fast and I cant keep up so if I can do this everyone else will be able too. Basically we will pick one room a week and do the whole room in small increments. So at the end of the week that room will be totally done. It will be small sections that will be doable while still living. I know myself I can not clean my whole house in the span of a week which many bloggers do. They are whirl winds but that for me is not my speed I need to take it a bit slower.
So if you want to join on and it sounds like fun pass it along to friends the more the merrier. I think having others joining really motivates me to keep going right Marcia and Marcia and Tina you know who you are!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A big thanks to these ladies!!!!!!!!!!!
I will post pics you can then post in the comment section links to your posts too so we can cheer each other on.
Sound good?????????????????????????????????

Holiday and cleaning

2009-05-18T12:55:00.000-07:00

Today in Canada we are celebrating Victoria Day. We get to have a day off to celebrate .
Yesterday one of our good friends had a bbq party complete with fireworks to celebrate.
Awesome food, long lost friends, great times and wonderful fireworks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So today with having the day off thought that it would be a good day to do some deep cleaning
of the living room. So I cleaned everywhere in the living room every nook and cranny. Wow it gleams and I love it. All I have to do now is to keep it that way. It might be harder said than done but I am sure going to try hard. That is where I falter is keeping up with what I do. I am really really good at the deep cleaning , organizing and purging too but then it is to maintain what I have done. I am not the best at that but will try and try again till I accomplish this.
My goal is to deep clean , organize and purge every room so that all I have to do is maintain each room every day . I know there are some blogs I read about them doing room a day. I know that would tire me out too much and some rooms will take more than a day to do so I am trying to be realistic.
I didnt take a pic of todays cleaning but have one that from the past that looks like it does now that I will post .
I also made a list today of what I want to accomplish in every room by the end of the summer. I think that gives me lots of time to complete my list.

what works for me

2009-05-13T04:19:00.000-07:00

Antibac Baby Body Pack

Personal Care

What works for me is the face clothes we have bought from Norwex.
My daughter used to have really acne prone skin, thanks to hormones.
We had tried countless products to find they dont work. We started using
the faceclothes and no product and she has only a few break out spots left.
You read that right no products just water and the cloth. Like a miracle really.
I love that we arent putting any product on her face that contains nasty chemicals
but it is purely 100% natural. So if you want to save money and just use water and a
cloth this is the way to go. Plus they are guaranteed for 2 years .
If you live in the tri-city area here is the wonderful norwex salesperson I use. Her name
is Sherri. But if not she can ship to you . If you do order please mention my name . Thank you
http://www.cleaningqueen.net/ She is very knowledgable and friendly and so helpful.

Tuesday and sick

2009-05-12T15:37:00.001-07:00

Okay today I was really feeling under the weather. I went to the doctor
and I have bronchitis. I have the good drugs so I should feel better by
morning they say. I didnt do much today but kept up anyway with doing
a little something. I washed towels, my laundry and my daughter's bedding.
I was really hoping to do more but just didnt have the energy.
I loved my blue snuggie blanket . I was wrapped up in it all day !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Monday

2009-05-11T18:14:00.000-07:00

So like I said in a past blog post that I would do something every
day . Today the task that really needed to be completed was to
put away 2 loads of folded laundry . I went to put away my daughter's
laundry and the drawers were a huge mess. So I took the time to refold
all of the clothes in the drawer so they would be neat and easy to find. I also
purged what I thought was too small for her too !!!!
I love awhile ago I showed my daughter of a post that someone posted
where they folded and rolled their clothes to fit them all in but to be able
to see them easily. Here is a past picture but really that is very similiar to
what it looks like today too.
Happy Monday!!!!!!!!!!
I think I am getting bronchitis off to the doctors tomorrow to check.

Happy Mothers Day to all my fellow mom bloggers!!!!!!

2009-05-10T13:06:00.000-07:00

Happy Mothers day to all moms out there!
I was so spoiled I love it!!!!!!!!!!!! For me this is the most important day to celebrate . I have known or all I have wanted since I was 6 was to be a mommy to a little girl. My dreams came true and I have a beautiful daughter named Angel. We have had a lot of problems when we have tried to have another. I am so thankful god gave me what I had asked for all my life.

My discovery

2009-05-06T17:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was reading some posts on blogs about organizing and decluttering and why it does or does not work for people. I realized again that for me it is truly very very important to have a schedule and follow it for my cleaning. If I dont I find I come home from work go on the computer and then look around and say where should I start????????? But then it is time to make supper and I dont start. So I am going to give me the rest of the week but starting Monday there will be a schedule and I will follow it pretty closely. Hopefully it will bring about order to this house instead of chaos.
I need to start writing things down again. I feel such a huge accomplishment when I stroke things off my list plus all the things are not in my head. This way I can empty out my head and get everything to paper. This way I wont miss anything!!!!!!!!!! Like I went to the mall this week bought a couple of cute tops but forgot to buy myself deodorant. Thankful my daughter uses it too! But if it had been written down I would have looked and purchased it.
So back to the old ways and hopefully I will get back to the ordered life or somewhat.

wow two days

2009-05-02T11:40:00.000-07:00

Cover via Amazon

Well today I decided I needed a me day , a relaxing day where I did nothing. I had a few things on my agenda but decided to scrap all of those and have a PJ day and stay in . I have played on the computer, talked on the phone, and read some new magazines that my hubbie bought for me.
I will read some more of my James Ray - Harmonic Wealth
I might even read some of Anthea Turner's book - How to be a Perfect
Housewife. My goal is to go back through both of these books and
get ideas how to add to my life and how to change my life and my home for the better.
I will watch some pvred shows too tonight with hubbie .
Just a day to do nothing once in awhile you just need that

Yikes!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-05-01T19:40:00.000-07:00

Wow it has been almost a whole month since I blogged. I have been so busy there was a wedding and then for 3 weeks I have been posting for internal jobs, interviewing, dealing with a sticky situation and lastly have been sick for 2 weeks. First with the flu and then a cold that seems to be clearing up now. So back to normal at my house.
I am working on getting the house back to normal again too though. So I started today by cleaning part of the livingroom and then tomorrow I will finish it. My hubbie cleaned most of the kitchen last night so all I have left to do there is to clean up the message center. I have also decided to contain the mess and get it back to the pic below I want to add file folders to contain papers and keep them organized . Maybe like a different colour for each subject like school, job , coupons, etc. I will be working on this one more this week. I also have to get my daughter's laundry under control again. I have it all washed just needs to be folded and put away.
Lastly I want to get my room back to how I had it 3 weeks ago. No excuse but it has been busy and once you put a piece of clothing on the dresser then more comes and it is so easy just to add to it.
A few things to accomplish this week.
I will report back on how I did.
So back to normal. I will try my best to blog a little more often too.

Second Me Fest Done and Successful

2009-04-05T14:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the second Me Fest event we held. Very successful and many happy vendors who want to return when we do it again in Sept.
Here are some pics for you to enjoy.

I am the one in the blue. The first shot is one of our fantastic vendors Michelle who owns a party planning business. The second one is an annual one taken of both myself and Lisa taking a bite out of her cupcakes!!!!!!!!!!!!!
More to come stay tuned !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Super Excited!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-03-28T07:44:00.000-07:00

Only one week till Me Fest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Bev at www.1-2-3GetOrganized.blogspot.com had a contest and guess what I won !!!!!!!!! This is
my second time winning a blog contest. I am so excited though because it is truly something I really wanted to win. The first one I won was organizing too . Hey maybe there is a message to me in what I win?????????!!!!!!!!!! I want to start working on menu planning and look what I won planning dinners and hassle free dinners. I know this will help me and motivate me to plan more meals. I want to make a book of ideas for dinner . I planned on working on it this summer but now that I have these wonderful resources it will be sooner than that.
Thanks so much Bev for giving me the boost I needed.
Check out her site and her blog too such great ideas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now maybe I will go out and buy a lottery ticket too !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My daughter appears to be almost human again after the flu bugs too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

few things I learned this week

2009-03-27T11:16:00.000-07:00

It has been a really fun week in my house ( NOT) my daughter caught two stomach flu bugs this week . So lots of laundry, scrubbing floors, disinfecting, cleaning the bathroom, and nursing care.
She is on the mend though so I am thankful. Still not eating solids and doctor recommended that she stay on a bland diet for at least 2 more days. So we are staying in and resting this weekend !!
So what did I learn my pharmacist is a wealth of knowledge so I am thankful to have him. First he said to really watch for dehydration signs and 5 days is too long ! I kept trying to get her to drink water downed juice and crackers , applesauce but she couldnt keep anything down!!!!!!!!
So here is whatelse I learned that for me was eye opening and I wanted to share it. First off any signs of vomitting and diarrhea should always be treated like it could be food poisoning. Which means no meds of any sort at all ride it out for 24 hours. If it is food poisioning you dont want to keep it in you want to get it out and get on the mend. After 24 hours you can take meds and it probably was not food poisioning but the flu. The other thing was when you are first vomitting or diarrhea you have a stomach cramps /pains if they get worse especially within the first 24 hours see a doctor immediately to get looked at.
I did a few things wrong but I tried I wont explain it all here but this was for me a big learning experience!!!!!! I sure hope those tips are helpful !!!!!!!!!!!!

Too long!!!!!!!!!

2009-03-13T13:11:00.000-07:00

Wow I cant believe how long it has been for me to post . I need to remember to make time to blog too !!!!!!!
I am so thrilled I had to write a post for it. For two weeks now I have been cleaning without any chemicals and the place looks awesome . I feel so much better too knowing I am not putting harmless chemicals into the air for my daughter to breathe. I have only been using water and my microcleaning clothes. I need to buy some more of those clothes so I have one for each room. I want to add to my cleaning some essential scents to water. I am going to try grapefruit or orange and maybe a pine one for hubbie. He loves the smell of pinesol so if I add some to the water it will still smell like it.
I have also been using a microfiber duster which is working amazing too !!!!!!!!!!!!!
I wish I could switch laundry soap but hubbie has an allergy and we can only use one kind Tide.
Slowly making the transition. The real nice thing is that I have found microfiber products at our dollar store and I found the microfiber dust mitt at Home Hardware for only $5.00. I know a cleaning company that sells them for $50.00 yes you didnt read that wrong. What a savings I have made!!!!!!!!!!!
Try water and microfiber products and let me know what you think ????? Or tell me about your favourite cleaning product to use.
I am on March Break this week so some major cleaning might be done if I have time between activities with my daughter. Feeling a bit under the weather but hoping to bounce back !!!!!

One thing leads to another.....

2009-02-26T15:35:00.000-08:00

Well today I checked email and phone msgs as soon as I got home from work. We need to with the number of emails we are getting in daily asking about a spot for our up and coming Spring Me Fest Show on April 4.
Here is where one thing lead to another. I was talking to a friend on the phone and noticed my kitchen floor had become quite grey again ! It is suppose to be white!!!!!!! So I thought while I was talking to this friend I would take out my handy dandy trustworthy Mr. Clean Sponge and hand scrub my whole kitchen floor. So I did that and it looks so white again !!!!!!!!!!! But when I was putting back the Mr. Clean Sponge marked cleaning floors only just incase you were wondering. I found the baking soda I have been looking for 2 days. I quickly took it out and cleaned my kitchen sink drain with it. It has been acting up for a few days. Yes all done it worked ! Then I went to make supper and started making supper only to realize yikes the kitchen counters were piled high with dishes!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So I unloaded the little that was in the dishwasher and reloaded it up. The counter then was dirty so had to wipe that down too. Then I cooked supper . After cooking supper noticed the stove was dirty too so wiped all of that down.
Then I thought I would take a break and check emails make a blog post. But I really want to shine my sink and sweep up some crumbs I noticed after doing all of the cleaning.
Will it ever stop. I feel like the book If you give a mouse a cookie ? If you dont know the book one thing leads to another leads to another!!!!
I put off doing Thurs chore which is to do my daughter's laundry and will do that tomorrow. I think I have done almost enough.
Tonight I am working on Me Fest most of our tables are spoken for so have to up date the list to see how many tables we have left for inquiries. I also have to send out reminders of people who were thinking about a spot because like I said there really arent many left.
I am so excited to be doing Me Fest again and soon will go out shopping for a new outfit for me to wear!!!!!
Well that is my big up date for today!!!!!!!!!! If you stuck with me thanks !!!!!!!! ;)

lacking motivation

2009-02-16T12:50:00.000-08:00

Okay as I posted yesterday that today in Ontario, Canada it is family day. Which basically means everything is closed and everything that is open will be jammed pack with families!!!!!!
Well I thought I would do a bit of housework today. I have I ran a load of dishes through the dishwasher , wiped down my stove and swept the kitchen floor. I just cant get motivated to do anything else and I am feeling very guilty!!!!!!
I am about to fold a load of laundry while I watch a show on tv. Then hopefully will get enough motivation to put away all of my daughter's clothing too.
My body is telling me to rest and take it easy!!!!!!!!!! I am tending to listen to it too !!!!!!!!!!!!!
How do you get motivated to keep up with housework when you have the time or extra time?????????

what is new with me???????????!!!!!!!!!!

2009-02-15T21:20:00.000-08:00

Well I have started working again on Me Fest a pampering /lifestyle show for woman . It will be held again in Rec. Complex in Waterloo in the Hauser House from 9 to 4. We are busy accepting registration from our past vendors in Sept. first. If you are reading this and want to know more just ask or if you think you might like to be a vendor in the upcoming show again feel free to email me.
So first off my organizing skills have been used to set up an email account for "those2girls" and have organized folders too to have it all organized for both Lisa and myself. I think this system will work but I figure by Wed. when I post what works for me it will be tweaked if needed.
In our first day of posting to our past vendors with a price we are happy to have 26 vendors so far , almost 1/2 our spots filled!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I also volunteered today for our local womans show put on by our newspaper. I was able to get a free bang trim and an updo style. It looked really good and I will try to post some pics this week but I dont think I would ever be able to do it again. I also got reflexology done and a back massage all for free!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well now I am off to bed and I think tomorrow will be a PJ day for us . In Ontario, Canada we have a family day so a day off to spend with our family . It was made into a statuatory holiday last year. I will be hanging out with Angel . I almost forgot Angel got bangs cut too for free. Again pics to follow.
So everyone have a great Monday !!!!!!!!!!!

free books and free time

2009-02-11T13:10:00.000-08:00

My tip today for works for me Wednesday is how to get free books and free time. What I do when I am watching Oprah and reading any blogs that recommend great books is to go to my local library site and check for it first. If they have it I put it on hold and forget about it. Then I get a call a couple of days to a couple of weeks later telling me it is in and all I have to do is go and pick it up. All I do is go into the reserved shelf and pick it up. I have saved a lot of time looking through all the shelves where they usually arent there anyway. I have wasted so much time doing this!!!!!
Now they come to me!!!!!!!!!!
Then I read the book and if I really like it enough to add to my collection I can go out and buy it. I know of a lot of ppl who just rush out to the bookstore to buy them and then dont like them and have wasted their money. This way I know before I buy it !

Thank you

2009-02-06T20:26:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to write a quick blog note to thank all of you who have emailed me asking how I was doing. It is so touching to have so many blog friends who care so much. I am doing much better. It has been two days since I changed medications and I am feeling so much better!!!!! I did have a little bit of pressure on one side of my head last night . I am sure it will take a bit of time but already notice a huge difference.
Take care and have a great weekend

warning for everyone please pass this on

2009-02-04T18:20:00.000-08:00

I went to my gynocologist today and he told me this so I am passing it on to all of you.
I was prescribed Alesse birth control bill and the pharmacy a year ago offered me the
generic brand Aviane so I took it. I have been taking it for a year now and having a lot
of perimenopausal symptoms like hot flashes, sleep issues, irritability, low sex drive
and migraine headaches. The gynocologist told me today that he believes that all those are
side effects to Aviane and that I need to get back on Alesse and stay on it . He even gave me
a card that supplements the difference between the two costs to some plan . I used it tonight
when I got 3 packs and got one for free paid for only 2. Nice deal!!!!!!!!!
I have googled aviane side effects and there are many many forums where people are telling of the side effects they have had. Please if you know anyone on Aviane tell them to go to the brand name Alesse. There are some really serious side effects to this !!!!!!!!!!!!! My worst was the pressure in my head!!!!!!!!!!! My pharmacist said that I should be back to normal in about 2 weeks.
Please pass this on to anyone you know !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

surprise!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-02-03T09:47:00.000-08:00

This morning for me was a surprise my daughter wasnt feeling well and couldnt go to school.
I scrambled like crazy because for me I have to call in by 7 am but now it was 7:30. Yikes I called the one school I work at in the morning and told them what was going on . They were so sweet and they said not to worry at all stay home and take care of her. I called my afternoon school and left a message with them. So disaster averted ! I stayed at home with her.
The one thing though was before I started calling the schools I am suppose to call the principal to let her know I wouldnt be in at home. Okay so I go over to my filing cabinet which I am working on getting organized. I couldnt find anything. I had gone through the filing cabinet a couple of months ago and moved things around and got rid of a whole garbage bag of stuff I no longer needed. I meant to get back to it and finish it up. I had even purchased the filefolders to organize into.
So I quickly just pulled out most of the papers and now I have a heap on the floor so today I am going to finish my file cabinet organizing so I can find stuff a lot easier! Just incase I ever need to have the phonelists from my school again. I will post before and afters in a bit .
So that is what I am doing this Tuesday.

more on accountability

2009-01-31T11:17:00.000-08:00

Well I will tell the truth I really didnt keep up my end of the deal I posted. I thoroughly cleaned my bathroom and picked up a bit around the house yesterday but didnt do any laundry! I know how terrible of me. I have made up for it today though I have washed two loads now and will have dried two loads by the end. I plan on folding today, tonight and tomorrow if needed. I dont watch the super bowl so I will put in a movie and fold or watch some stuff on my pvr. Then I want to have it all put away by Sunday night or the lastest Monday when I come home from work. When I come home on Monday night from work the towels are all going in to be washed so I can start following through on my new laudry schedule!
The class I went to yesterday on autism was absolutely amazing I learned so much and met so many nice people. We have part two next p.d day in Feb. I can hardly wait. They said we might have another in April too so we have to contact our union rep and ask her if we can. I cant believe for us it was free and so useful!!!!!!!!!! I now have a list of new things I want to try with my child I work with.
Well off to rest and finish the laundry.
Oh a tip for you all I read on works for me Wednesday is to put your clothes in the dryer for 20 mins. and then when the timer goes off take out the wrinkly kind of clothes like dresses, blouses etc and put them onto hangers to dry . It said they would look crisp like you ironed them. Well I am happy to report to you all I tried it and it works so well. I have done it twice now blouses, little sweaters, dresses, and skirts and all of them looked crisp like I ironed them. I think I might even start hanging some pants and others to dry on their own too because I dont seem to mind too much taking them out and hanging them up but folding them after is another story!!!!!!!!!!
Do you have any laundry hints?????????????????

being accountable

2009-01-29T19:17:00.000-08:00

Okay so this is blog post on being accountable. I have really used blogging as a way of being accountable to myself and my blog friends to follow through on what I said I was going to do.
I need to be held accountable again to get back on track after being sick for the last few weeks.
So I am giving myself tomorrow and all weekend to get caught up on the laundry first priority.
Most of my house is not too bad some dishes need to be put in the dishwasher and it emptied first of course , the livingroom looks good a bit of easy pick up . My bathroom is good and nice and clean too. So overall it is the laundry that is out of control. I have been reading a lot of blog posts on how to make it work because it seems like a lot of people cant keep up with their laundry. I dont mind bringing it down or sorting it , washing it or even drying it. It is the end step the folding and putting away. I usually take time to fold most of it and then leave it to sit in a pile so when I find myself needing something I go to the pile. I really want to get this under control. I have decided that is the main goal to accomplish. So by Sunday evening I will have run two more loads through and folded 1 that is waiting for me and put away a load that is all folded. I will have the other two loads washed, dried, folded and put away too!!!!!!!!!
Then I will go to a schedule for laundry that has worked for me in the past. I wash all towels on Monday so I put them in when I get home and then dry them. I take them upstairs when tucking my daughter in bed and put them away or hang them. Then on Thurs I do my daughter's laundry. I again do the same thing wash when I get home and dry take it upstairs when she is going to bed and fold and put them away then. My hubbie does his own laundry when he needs it. I do mine not on a regular schedule but as needed basis too.
I am going to work on a house cleaning schedule too to start next week.
Monday is the day.
So tomorrow is a P. D. day and I am off to an autisim conference for the day. But when I get home I will be putting in one load of laundry and folding another. That will be a great start!!
If you have any laundry tips that work for you please let me know.
Another thing I might try is folding my daughter's laundry but have her put it away .
I mean look at the top pic she is the one who organized her drawer after me showing her a pic that someone else took. I think she did a great job and her drawers are still like that too !!!!!!!

touching blog I have been following all week

2009-01-24T10:50:00.000-08:00

So I found this blog by way of another blog dont remember which one though sorry brain fog.
I share it with you because it really has touched my heart
http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/
Pray for Harper and she is doing so much better!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If you are a mom you will find this as moving as I am!!!!!!!!!!

Pre-empted due to illness

2009-01-24T10:48:00.000-08:00

I havent forgot about all my fellow blogger friends but I have really been under the weather this week. I knew something was going on first a cold or so I thought and now not sure just a lot of pressure in my head which is making me feel very very ill. So just taking the time to relax and get better and I will be back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Finding time for ourself

2009-01-17T17:21:00.000-08:00

It is so easy when you become a mom to put yourself last. The baby or children come first so what they need gets done and you on the back burner. The other is do everything for your hubbie and not think about yourself. Lastly I think it is us just thinking there is not enough time in a day to take time for ourself.
I do take some time each day when my daughter goes to bed I have "me " time which I love and look forward to without guilt. I need that time to re-energize for the next day.
Today I took some time for myself to get pampered! Yes dont do that one very often but today with the winter blahs and all I decided I really needed it. I got a pedicure which was awesome and had my toes painted dark sparkly purple . Every time I look at them they make me smile so hopefully it will help me through this dark dreary cold winter!!!!!!!!!!
I also got my hair cut considerably shorter to again have something a bit different.
We need to remember to take time for ourself so if you havent done that inawhile then take some time today. Have a bubblebath, read without interruption, by yourself something small, or get a haircut or pedicure because you are worth it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

winter blahs

2009-01-15T15:22:00.000-08:00

Okay so today here it was -28 with the windchill this morning. Yikes just a bit cold. I was happy though to see the sun out !
So to shake the winter blahs which have set in a little early the one school I am at had " Bake Potato Day"! Just an aside before I begin the description of the smorgasbourg that was at school today , we have had snow since Oct enough is enough.
OKay so they suggest having Bake Potato Day which sounded really good to me and made me smile for the whole week. I thought yummy warm potato with many many toppings awesome!!!!!
Oh there was so much more than that not only did we have baked potatoes with toppings( bacon, cheese, butter, sourcream, chili and onions( not for me) we had so much more.
We had 3 different salads, deviled eggs( again not me) but looked good, 2 pies, squares, 2 types of pickles, olives, squares, and mini - donuts. Oh and yes good yummy vegetable tray too and dip.
Oh I could barely move I had to wobble out of the staff room.
So then I go to my afternoon school and they have home made cinnamon buns there and a few other sweet treats. I couldnt disappoint whoever made the cinnamon buns so I had part of one yummy.
Needless to say I have only had a very small supper like a snack size really and I wont need to have any snacks tonight.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I asked them what day is next ????????????? I am addicted!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What are others doing to beat the winter blahs?????????????????????????

what works for me

2009-01-14T04:36:00.001-08:00

What works for me when organizing was to have a home for things. The one thing that really bothered me a lot was when my daughter came in she would just put her knapsack in a corner and then snowpants and whatever else she was bringing in. It got to be such a mess I was continually cleaning it up. So what I did was went out and bought two baskets with lids.
One holds her knapsack and I dont see it the other just holds mitts and miscellaneous things . The corner is so neat and I love it ! One less spot to see clutter. So the moral of this story is mom
is happy and the clutter is contained. I will post a pic later today.

tackled the driveway

2009-01-13T18:27:00.000-08:00

Here in Ontario Canada we had snow none stop all day!!!!!!! When I got home the driveway
was a huge mess and hubbie was at work. I have used our little snowblower once before but
truthfully have no idea how it to do it or how it really works. So tonight after supper I put my
mind to it and I went out and started snowblowing the driveway. It is not the best I am sure but
as I have mentioned I really dont know what the best way to go about it is . I am sure my hubbie will be surprised when he gets home at midnight that the driveway is done. He always needs to clean it up a bit though I do what I can ! So today I tackled the driveway and my neighbour said it looks great you did a good job! Now to get warm!!!!!!!!!!!

book review and ad on to happiness

2009-01-12T14:45:00.000-08:00

Okay I have been reading Happiness Now as recommended on Oprah first off what I have got from the book is that we have to be happy on the inside "genuinely happy" and not rely on the external. I am still reading but skeptically . I do agree that you do have to be happy with what you have now and not what you could have in the future to make you happy. The thing is I think there are things you can do to make you happy too. For me it was leaving a very stressful job, getting new friends and doing things for myself to make me happy.
We can do a lot of simple things to make ourselves happy have that extra piece of choc. cake, read a book, take a bubblebath, take time for yourself , go shopping, spend time talking on the phone with your good friends etc.
So go and do something to make yourself happy.
I will post more about this book if it gets any better. At this point I think for me it is not resonating at all but I have an open mind and will continue reading for a bit more anyway.

where is happiness

2009-01-09T15:08:00.000-08:00

One of the things they discussed on Oprah which is soooo true for so many people including me, in the past though , is that they think they will be happy when they get x. It can be more friends, more money, different job etc. If you are always looking for happiness that way like it will come in the future it wont. What you need to do is be happy with what you have in your life and the way your life is now ... even if you want change.
Guilty in the past... when I was in that daycare job I keep saying I will be happy when I leave this job. Yes it was true I was so much happier when I did leave but if you are always trying to catch or do something to get happiness but it is always in the future it will always be in the future.
If you do get what you think will make you happy once you get it wont. You will need the next fix to find happiness. They called it destination addiction.
I have discovered that I need to be happy where I am . Right now I have 12.5 permanent hours for awhile I was thinking I would be happy if I had 25 permanent hours. Yes I still want to achieve this and will apply for postings to get this but I decided lets sit back and look at where I am right now.
I took a close look at the school great school . I looked at the people and they are wonderful too and I am starting to make some close friendships too. I love what I am doing. The children are so sweet. I would love to stay here but we will see what 2009 has to hold for me. I just know whatever it is that I dont need to change to be happy I am happy the way I am right now.

Happiness with friends

2009-01-08T15:02:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the delay this post but for 2 days I wasnt feeling very happy to write anything really. Tough days at my job but that has turned around. I work with an autistic child and she was having such a hard time when routines change so starting school again instead of sitting at home and doing whatever she wanted can be very tough. I was braced for it and ready. It turned around on Wed. and then I posted worked for me Wed so today is the continuation of the happiness post.
So on to friends where I was back years ago really the only friends I had I worked with. A few phone friends, yes the ones who you talk to on the phone but seldom see. I was really based on spending time with my daughter. I know that is not a bad thing but when that is the only thing and work not good.
Right before I made the change of jobs I saw an ad on a parenting website of a new womans group starting up. So that year I resolved to meet new people and get out on Sunday afternoons. I went to this group and didnt know one single sole. I made some connections with a few people. Then slowly I developed a strong bond with the wonderful woman who started the group. We both had children close to the same age so we could take out our children together or hang out together or just talk on the phone. That was the beginning of January 3 weeks later I quit my daycare job , lots of changes. I went to the group and did a lot of great activities and met a lot of new people . The big change for me was that I was doing something for myself . I told my hubbie that every Sunday afternoon was " me time". Over the time of this group people have come and gone but we are still accepting new members always and having so much fun. Last Sunday we went on a shopping trip!!!!! If you are in the Kitchener, Waterloo, Ontario area and want to know more feel free to email me.
With this group having gone on for 3 years we had met a lot of people through Sunday afternoon presentations. Lisa and I decided to put on a woman's lifestyle /pampering show. We put the word out there and many were interested. Everyone we mentioned it to was so interested and wanted to join. Suffice to say it was a HUGE success we had over 400 people attend out first show without out many glitches. We are in the midst of planning a spring show too because our vendors asked us if we would. Wow !!!!!!! I made a lot of friends this way too !!!!!!! Oh and we have to find a bigger venue to hold it at because we already have grown !
I am on facebook and have connected with past friends which is awesome. I started this blog and if you are reading this you know who you are but I have made some awesome friends through this avenue too.
Friends may come and friends may go but I feel the ones we have in our lives are here for a reason. They may not last forever and that is okay too I enjoy them while they are there.
I am much happier having great friends and doing stuff for myself too. I find that the ones that arent making me happy or that are emotional drainers for me anyway go by the wayside. So the people in my life are suppose to be there . So surround yourself with people that are making you happy because life is too short!! We can pick our friends!!!!!!!!
As an aside I am off to pick up book 1 reccommended by Oprah on happiness. I will post a little about it once I have read it.

less paper

2009-01-07T13:25:00.000-08:00

What works for me which I just found this week is the google calendar. I love this you can add events, details their times. I used to have a paper one but now all I do when I find something I want to attend or remember a date for I record it in the calendar. I can access it anywhere for me that is very useful because if I am at work and I find out about a meeting or something then I can record it then or access it to see what is going on for that date. I really love that it has the option of happens once, weekly, daily, monthly. It is so cool I am still playing around with it but I love that I am saving paper being green and it is free. Something small that you can do to decrease the paperwork we all have in our lives.
You can try this out at www.www.google.com/calendar

Happiness post

2009-01-04T06:04:00.000-08:00

I was watching a repeat of Oprah this week and it was talking about how do you achieve true happiness in your life. There were only 5 questions they told you to answer . Answer each one on a scale of 1-7 then you would receive your score. If you want to try this you can take the test at
http://www.oprah.com/survey/oprahshow/20070411_tows_happy
So I listened to the show and got a lot of great quotes I am adding to my quote book.
The one thing that jumped out at me was the stories the guests told which can be viewed at http://www.oprah.com/slideshow/oprahshow/oprahshow1_ss_20070411/
I added two more books to my list of must read Happiness Now and Shift Happens. I have both on hold at the library and should be picking them up this week.
Okay so now on to my story and the happiness pursuit. Four years ago I was working in a daycare and loved it well I did before the big changes happened . My wonderful loving supervisor retired so we had someone new then the assistant supervisor on maternity leave decided not to come back.
It was a great place to work and everything was running smoothly so we thought. Well the new management didnt think so and changed everything !!!!
There was a lot more going on which I wont bother complaining about because it is in my past and I have dealt with it suffice to say the stress on my life and family just got to a boiling point and wasnt worth it. I was becoming someone I didnt want to be so I took charge. I sat hubbie down and told him can I quit I am just not happy. He thought I was off my rocker at first but then when I explained my plan he was onboard. Thanks James so much for being there loving and supporting me through my change. Okay so I explained to him that I would quit a very well paying job with benefits to have nothing really or nothing that was guaranteed. So the game plan was to supply for various daycares I had supplied for in the past. It worked I was so busy. Then after about a month I got a call from our school board to see if I was still interested in supplying as an educational assistant for them. Yes of course! Something I never thought I could do or reach in this lifetime. It seemed to be beyond anyones reach in daycare to work for the schools or the University daycare. Well guess what happened next.... the university daycare called too
Wow I started working there two days a week and supplying for the schools 3 days a week off and on when needed. I was proud of myself for achieving these accomplishments in 2 months of quitting my stressful job.
I supplied at a school for 2 1/2 days and they offered me a part-time position in their school for the following Sept. Wow I was thrilled so I gladly accepted and worked part-time that year.
I filled in for a sick leave there for 12 weeks working full time too. I loved working there !!!
Then I applied for another position within the school board and got it for the following year
more hours . Started out at 22.5 during the interview and by the time I started was 27.5.
Wow I was really lucky. Then at the end of last year I was transferred to another school and 12.5 of my hours because permanent so I had made it I was in !!!!!!!!!!!!!! This year I work at two schools both 12.5. I was lucky and one of my resourse staff reccommended me to another school where I was able to pick up 12.5 too.
So the happiness thing for me these days is pretty out of the sky. I was glad that when my happiness was comprimised I was able to see it and move on. I had space to fill and the jobs that once I had thought they were out of my reach werent they were right there waiting for the right time. See the trust factor in action again !!!!!!!!!!!!
So if you have read this far kudos this is the story of happiness with work... stay tuned tomorrow for happiness with friends and the changes I have made there too !!!!!!!!
If I had taken that quiz back 4 years ago I would have been at the bottom but thanks to listening to my heart I took the chance and leap. It turned out awesome. I think we are always afraid of change but we shouldnt be just jump and trust.