Out of My Groove

• Who can find a virtuous woman? her price is far above rubies
• She rises while it is yet night
• She looketh well to the ways of her household and eateth not the bread of idleness

Well, today was a so-so day of not being back into my groove.  

The first mistake I made was actually last night--I stayed up too late (remember those night-owl ways?) I meant to get up at 6:00 a.m. again, but I was tired, so I stayed in bed till 7:00, actually a little after, leaving me just enough time to get teeth brushed, face washed, and dressed in my gym clothes before it was time to pick up my gym partner and head to the gym.  

I did a decent enough work out, stopped to visit my mom and dad for a bit afterwards, just like yesterday, came home, changed into jeans and made the bed, put away the clean dishes in the dish drain, and put the few dirty ones to soak in hot soapy water.  

And after that my day seemed to just go awry!

For one thing, my husband had been home during the day the last couple of days.  He had some days off he needed to "use-or-lose" before the end of the year, so he's been doing some vehicle maintenance, scraping outside of the house getting ready for some paint, and having a repair guy come look at our heat-pump.  

Yes, even in Louisiana we occasionally have to have heat!  

And apparently our entire (really old) heating and cooling system needs to be replaced, inside and out, which will involve moving a closet wall six inches to make room for a slightly larger inside unit. Which means taking everything out of the closet it backs up to and having construction dust everywhere for a couple of days next week, right when I need to be on top of my game, cleaning, decorating, and cooking for the holidays. 

Yikes.

So, yes, I got a little distracted by that news, but to be honest, I don't really know what I did the rest of the day.  

I did write a letter I needed to do, vestiges of the position I used to hold at my church.  Had to re-load the printer software on my lap-top for some reason to get it to print, but got that done and even ran next door to get my signature notarized.

But beyond that, I don't think I did a thing constructive. 

So, not-so-much in my groove today.

But tomorrow is another day.  

This post is linked to:

5 Day Clean House Challenge at Money Saving Mom

Getting Back into My Groove

• Who can find a virtuous woman? her price is far above rubies
• She looketh well to the ways of her household...
• She rises while it is yet night
• She eateth not the bread of idleness

It's been a roller coaster of a ride for me the last few months--really the last year or more has been one change after another after another.  And one thing I've discovered about myself--even when it's change that I want, and possibly need--

I don't DO change well.  

About two years ago now, my husband changed from a job where he worked away from home (as in months at a time), to a local job where he got to come home every night.  The "normal" hours were four 10-hour days, so he was gone by 6:00 a.m. and home around 6:00 p.m., and was off every Friday, as well as weekends.  It was a really big change, but we (I!) adjusted.  Then this past summer he changed to a different job for a different company, and suddenly was working five 8 hour days, which made him home two hours earlier, but gone an extra day each week.  THEN they started a big project, and he was put on nights, 12-13 shifts, 6-7 days a week!  I was exhausted just thinking about it, much less doing it!

And to add insult to injury, my schedule changed, too, after I resigned from my position at my little church.  

Talk about putting a crimp on my routine!  I had worked up an easy, do-able morning routine, last year when I was doing the Clean in 30 challenge and had kept it up pretty well.  But suddenly, there was no point in making the bed because after I got up, my honey was coming in from work and heading to bed.  And I hated rattling dishes or even cleaning the bathroom (next door to the bedroom) because it was already hard for him to shift his sleep patterns around from nights to days.

Then I started going to the gym several days a week, pretty much first thing in the morning, so I would get dressed in my gym clothes, go exercise, then come home and veg out for while, because, you know, I'd already gone and exercised and all. I'd decide to check the news, maybe have some quiet time.  You know, stuff. Seemed like the next thing I knew, it was getting time for hubby to be home from work (now that he's switched back to his regular days, that is) and I'd done nothing.

So I'm trying to work out a different, slightly adjusted routine.

For one thing, I've realized that I have to work on my bedtime and wake-up time.  If I'm going to have time to do anything else at all, I need to do my quiet time before I go to the gym, if possible.  As I've shared before, I have major night-owl tendencies, and would stay in bed until at least 8:00 a.m. if I could, but right now in this season of my life, that just isn't working.

If I'm going to have time alone for Bible and prayer, go to the gym, keep up with my house, blog, and anything and everything else, I need to tweak my routine.

Which means get one again.

So, this is what my routine looked like today so far:

• Up at 6:00 a.m.-ish
• Brushed teeth, washed face, dressed in my gym clothes
• Made myself a glass of tea, then settled down with my Tehillim (book of Psalms) and read and had some prayer. 
• Picked up my mom, who is my week-day gym partner, a little before 8:00 a.m., made it to the gym, worked out. 
• Visited with my mom and dad afterward for a bit at their house.
• Once home--I changed immediately into "real" clothes--something I wasn't always doing before.
• Made the bed 
• Swished and swiped the bathroom
• Finished a load of clothes I'd left in the dryer the night before by turning the dryer back on, then hanging, folding, and putting away the clothes
• Started a new load in the washer
• Put away clean dishes in the dish drainer
• Put the few dirty dishes from last night and this morning to soak in hot-soapy water
• Dusted in the living room and dining room
• Got a fresh glass of tea (hydration is good for me!)
• Checked facebook, and started this blog post

What's next for my routine?  Change the clothes from washer to dryer, then later fold and put away laundry.  Wash the dishes in the sink. Plan dinner.

And that's probably it for me for today, housework-wise, till I cook dinner and clean the kitchen afterwards.

Edited to add: I also washed the bathroom rugs, and my honey vacuumed the accumulated hair and dust from the bathroom floor.  Made a run to the dollar store for a few things, and dropped off some bags at the ARC thrift store next door while I was at it.  Made chili beans for dinner--a vegetarian version and one with meat, to fit all of the tastes of my family, and my honey cleaned the kitchen afterwards, and made us some no bake chocolate oatmeal cookies, his specialty. He's a handy guy to have around, I have to admit!

So what kind of routine do you have these days?

This post is linked to:

Make Your Home Sing at Mom's the Word
5 Day Clean Your House Challenge at Money Saving Mom

A Virtuous Woman Finds Contentment in What She Has

• Who can find a virtuous woman? her price is far above rubies
• She looketh well to the ways of her household
• She eateth not the bread of idleness

Today is Day 26 of the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge, and since most everyone takes the weekend off, or of posting about it on the weekends, anyway, we could choose from surface cleaning bathrooms, bedrooms, or doing floors again.

Since we just did the floors earlier this week, and I'm pretty much keeping the bedroom and bathroom clean with my daily routine, I didn't do too much today except just that--my daily routine. 

So, no pictures of "before" and "after", but a few thoughts.

I've had such a good time doing this challenge; not only has it motivated me to get (and keep!) my house cleaned up, I've enjoyed clicking over to Crystal's posts on Money Saving Mom and seeing not just what she's accomplished, but the other ladies who are participating, as well.  

It's fun to see everyone's house from an "inside" perspective, to ask (or see someone else ask) questions like "How do you keep your counter tops cleaned off all the time?" and "Where do you keep your food?" as well as "What can I do to clean my oven safely?"  and "What do ya'll do about kids chores?"

It's been fun, and it's been refreshing, too, to see where other people struggle--or to glean ideas about organization from seeing how someone else does it.

It's also opened my eyes to some areas of mine that I've been overlooking--now that the surfaces are staying pretty well cleaned, I'm noticing the detailed, deeper cleaning that I've neglected for so long.  And then there's nothing like taking and editing pictures to make you say "Is that what those curtains really look like?  What was I thinking?"

It's also easy to see those who have a big, nice kitchen, or who have all of the storage space that you don't have, or all of the latest gadgets, or a home that's beautifully decorated when yours is sort of--not. 

I have to tell you ladies, I live in a older house, built in 1962.  (I say it's too old to be new, but not old enough to be interesting.) I have a small kitchen--the room is big, but the kitchen itself is small, if that makes sense, with very limited counter space.  I have a tiny little living room, and only one bathroom. We made some cosmetic changes when we moved in sixteen years ago, but not much as been touched since. 

I guess the point I'm trying to make is--I like my little home, but it's not my dream house.  There are a lot of things I'd change about it if I could, some of which may happen in the future, some, probably not. 

But I'm so much happier with it when it's clean, and not so cluttered, and organized.  I still have some areas to work on, that's for sure.  But I look around, and I see the overall orderliness that's spreading, slowly but surely, and I smile.

And I remember that it's paid for, and I smile again. 

And I look at those curtains, and I think--you're time is coming! 

"But godliness with contentment is great gain...and having food and raiment let us be therewith content." 

1 Timothy 6: 6 & 8

I have so much more than just food and clothing--I want to find that proper balance between being inspired to make improvements, while being content with what I have. 

Sounds like the quality of a Virtuous Woman to me.

Until next time...

This post is linked to:

Spirtual Sundays

Heart Reflected

Making Your Home Sing Monday at Moms the Word

Monday's Musings at What Joy is Mine

A Virtuous Woman Cooks and Cleans

• Who can find a virtuous woman?  her price is far above rubies
• She looketh well to the ways of her household
• She eateth not the bread of idleness

Today's task on the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge at Money Saving Mom was to surface or deep clean the kitchen and/or living room.

Since I've been doing the challenge, my house is staying so clean, I pretty much surface clean the kitchen, living room, bedroom, and bathroom every day.  I still have some hidden areas--closets, cabinets, etc, that need to be tackled, not to mention my biggie--the junk room spare bedroom. That's a project that's coming soon, but now is not the time in my schedule to tackle it yet. 

So today, I did my regular morning routine, (quick cleaning the bathroom, bedroom, living room, and kitchen) as well as washing and drying a load of clothes, doing some grocery shopping,and cooking a good dinner for my family. 

As this is posted, dinner is over, the kitchen is cleaned again, all but a bowl of leftovers that's cooling on the counter before I put it away--and, I had time to do a post on my food blog, Secrets of a Southern Kitchen, for roasted root vegetables.


Check it out if you have time!

Until next time...

A Virtuous Woman Plays Catch-Up--Clean in 30, Days 20-22

• Who can find a virtuous woman? her price is far above rubies
• She looketh well to the ways of her household
• She eateth not the bread of idleness

Today is Day 22 of the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge, but because most of us take the weekend off, we have three daily tasks to choose from--surface cleaning the living and kitchen, surface cleaning a bedroom, or surface cleaning a bathroom.  Monday is usually my "catch-up" day anyway, and since it really is getting easier and easier to clean and keep things clean, I decided to tackle all three tasks, surface cleaning all four rooms. 

Kitchen before

I put away the clean dishes from the drainboard, washed up the few I had in the sink and on the counter, put the fruit in the fruit bowl, wiped down the counters and the stove, and was done in about 10 minutes.  I came back later and put away the now clean-and-dry dishes.

Kitchen after

Bathroom before

I did my regular "swish & swipe"--wipe the sink and faucets, straighten everything on the vanity and wipe it down, wipe the outside of the toilet and swish the inside, pick up the dirty towels, and put out a fresh hand towel. This took all of five minutes, if that.

Bathroom after



Bed area before

The first thing I did in the bedroom was, of course, make the bed.  That takes care of most of the mess around the bed, including the extra pillows that get piled in the chairs at night.



Bed area after



Dresser area, before

This is not as bad as it looks, I usually keep a laundry basket for dirty clothes, and it got waylaid this week!  I picked up a couple of pairs of shoes and put them away, sorted laundry and started a load in the washer, and picked the rest up and put in the now-found basket. I had already dusted the furniture Saturday--new trick I've started doing is leaving a microfiber dust cloth in one of the drawers of my dressing table, then when I'm sitting there doing hair and make-up and notice dust, I have something handy to take care of it right then.  No more "I'll get a dust cloth and do this later", only to leave the room and never remember (until the next day when I'm doing hair & make-up.)

Dresser area, after.

The whole bedroom took maybe 6-8 minute, maybe 10 minutes tops. 

This is my living room, love seat area, before  

I put away one pair of shoes, dusted, put the remotes in a little basket I now have for that purpose, and did my best to "fluff" the pillows attached to the back of the love seat, and refolded a throw we have draped across one corner.   This love seat is about 10 years old, so it doesn't "fluff" much any more!

Love seat area, after

  (I used to have lots of little decorative items sitting around, and I changed them out periodically or seasonally, but lately I've been enjoying the "less-is-more" look!)

My main "hot spot" in the living room

  

There are always books here, plus a magazine or two, a planner, a Bible, and usually my prayer journal. This is not nearly as bad as it used to be--since I've been doing the 30-Day challenge, I tend to keep it picked up a little better these days. (The green and blue things on the front corner are re-usable sticky note tabs that I use to mark something I want to come back to when I'm reading or studying.)

What I've been doing here is going through the stack to make sure it only has things I'm still reading in it, purge what needs to go back on the book shelves, pick up and little bits & pieces and straighten the stack so that it looks a little neater.

No "before" for this shot, I straighten the pillows, refold the throws, and fluff a little.

I dusted as I went around the room, then finished with dusting the tv and tv stand, and I was done--in about 5-7 minutes.

The first day I did "surface clean the living room and kitchen, it took me a couple of hours just to do those two; today I did all four rooms in less than an hour, and that was with going back and forth putting things away. 

All of you ladies participating--are you noticing a big difference in over-all cleanliness and neatness?  I'm not sure if which system I'm going to use after this, but I definitely love having something concrete in place. 

What did you clean today?

Until next time...

Today's Agenda

• Who can find a virtuous woman...
• She looketh well (???) to the ways of her household

I knew I hadn't been posting much lately, but I didn't realize until just now that I've only made two posts this whole month--and it's the 25th already! Yikes!

So where have I been and what have I been doing?

Some of the time I've been wandering aimlessly through my days, doing just enough to get by, but not enough to feel any real sense of accomplishment. Do you ever have days like that? I remember seeing a greeting card one time that said "Mother said there'd be days like this...but she failed to tell me they could go on for weeks at a time!" That's exactly how I feel!!

Other days (and weeks!) I start off with a sense of purpose or a feeling of productivity, and I end up chasing distractions, kind of like a little girl chasing butterflies--fun to do for a while, but eventually you wonder why you haven't gotten farther along the path to your destination! I even told someone last week that I felt like a dog that had been chasing it's tail, or a chicken running around with it's head cut off--excuse the Southern down-home expressions--not a pretty visual, but true, nevertheless.

And so here I am. Again. Chasing butterflies and dog tails like a headless chicken. How's that for a turn of phrase?

I have lots of excuses, and I could list them, but don't we all have our own list already?

And so, I am making a new list. Not of excuses, just a list. Of what I hope to accomplish.

Today I will:

1. Work on a regular morning routine
2. Plan dinner
3. Wash and dry at least one load of clothes
4. Spend some time reading my Bible and praying for someone besides myself
5. Spend some time at the library working on blog posts
6. Stick to my diet
7. Smile at 10 people who randomly cross my path

What's on your agenda today?

Until next time...

Looking Well to the Ways of My Household

• She is like the merchants' ships, she bringeth her food from afar.



• She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens.



• She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.

I've been working on my daily routine--those little everyday things that need to get done, regardless of what else happens to my day. I've been having lots of those "IGAD" days--I've Got All Day--where I drift through the day with good intentions but nothing actually seems to get done for one reason or the other--till suddenly it's time to start supper and I jump and start cooking and cleaning and snatching and grabbing and the next thing I know, I'm feeling tired and out-of-sorts and like I'm worked down (ha!) and yet I really haven't accomplished much of anything, other than feeding my family.

I've been doing too much "eating the bread of idleness" and not enough "looking well to the ways of my household"!

So today I had a plan. I knew there were three main tasks that I needed to accomplish:

1. Get ready for the cleaning lady to come--I have a wonderful woman who cleans for us twice a month--she's a rare jewel, a perk that comes with the corporate apartment we live in when we're at home-away-from-home--but I have to make sure that she can actually clean the apartment and not have to deal with our personal things that are strewn around.


2. Get the oil changed in my truck--I'm on the road again later this week, and it needs to be done before I drive that far


3. Shop for groceries

That was me planning my work, and this is what I did to work my plan:

1. I set my alarm clock. I didn't need to rise "while it was yet night", but I knew I needed to get up and get at it before very late. I ended up getting up before the alarm-I think the simple of act of setting the clock made a mental checklight go off that I needed to get up and get going.


2. I got "groomed" and dressed in going-out-of-the-house clothes right away, even to make up. No sitting in jammies and housecoat half the day!


3. Made a couple of passes around the house just picking up and putting things away--socks and shoes left beside the couch, church clothes left draped instead of hung back up, jeans in a pile waiting for the washer, books and magazines left on top of the coffee table--each thing alone doesn't seem like much, but all of it together makes for a messy overall look, and definitely gets in the way of actual cleaning.


4. Emptied the dishwasher and dishdrainer and put clean dishes away, ready to start filling with today's dishes.


5. Did the outside-the-house errands, including getting the oil change, shopping for groceries (see some of my bargains below, thanks to my coupons), and making a couple of other stops.


6. Took my pictures for my blog, and put everything away immediately afterward


7. Washed and dried a load of clothes.


8. Was able to spend some time chatting with the wonderful lady who cleans for us, instead of running around picking up each room just ahead of her.


9. Spent some time online, but doing some productive things, not just surfing.


10. Had dinner with my family and a pleasant evening together just hanging out.

Nothing major, but I got three "main things" done, as well as a lot of those little ones that need to be taken care of regularly.

And to make it even sweeter, I found lots of free and frugal items today!

I did my main shopping at Walmart for this week--not always my store of choice, but they have some good roll backs going right now, as well as everyday low prices on a few items that I knew I had coupons for. This is what I found:

For free or almost free:

2 Frosted Mini Wheats, $2 each, less $1 Q (coupons) and B1G1 Q, making this $1 for 2 or $.50 each
2 Wheat Thins Artisan crackers, $2 each, less $1 Q and B1G1 Q, making this $1 for 2, or $.50 each
2 Kraft Dressing, $1.58 each, less 2 $1 Qs, making these $.58 each
2 Kraft Barbecue Sauce, $.98 each, less 2 $1 Qs, making these free
1 Country Bob's All Purpose Sauce, $2.19, less one Free Sauce Q, making this free
4 Mahatma Rice mixes, $.66 each, less 2 $.75/2 Qs making these $.29 each
1 Bounty Paper Towels, $1, less $1 Q, making this free
1 Kraft Deluxe Mac & Cheese, $1.50, less $1 Q, making this $.50
1 French's mustard, $1, less $.75 Q, making this $.25

Not free, but still frugal:

4 Crystal Light Tea, on sale for $2.98, less $1 Qs, making these $1.98 each--at this price, I can make a 2qt pitcher of Crystal Light tea for $.33
2 Crystal Light individual packets, $1.97, less $50/2, making these $1.74 each
1 Hefty Trash Bags,$3.98, less $2 Q, making this $1.98
1 White Cloud toilet paper, $2, less $.75 Q, making this $1.25, or $.31 a double roll

I did buy a few other things--peanut butter, chai latte and hot chocolate mix (an indulgence of sort for me, but still much cheaper than buying my chocolate chai lattes at the coffee shop) a package of manager's reduced chuck steak--my total OOP was $43.09, I saved $24.67 with coupons.

And so for today, I rose early (although not still night), brought my food from afar, gave meat to my household, ate not of the bread of idleness, and overall--looked well to the ways of my household!

Until next time...