Declutter With Me: Main Bathroom and Laundry Room

 

How did everyone do in their kitchens last week? I did not get mine totally decluttered. I'd say I probably did about 75%. I'll save the rest for next month. In the meantime, following Flylady, we are moving on to the main bathroom and laundry room this week. This falls under the "Main Bathroom and One Other Room" zone. That one other room can be any room in your house that doesn't really fall into any of the other zones. I was excited to see on the Flylady site that she picked the laundry room this month. I was going to tackle that this week, even if she had picked a different room. My laundry room needs some TLC. Badly.

Decluttering the main bathroom? Here, that's going to be easy! There's only one cabinet under the sink. That's it. Cleaning the main bathroom? Well, that will be the scary part. You see, in our home, the main bathroom is the one all 3 of my boys use as their bathroom. I do have them take turns giving it a quick wipe-down every morning. But still. It's a place I rarely venture into myself! So, yeah. This will be interesting.

My laundry room is going to be the tough one to declutter. It always seems to be the catch-all in our home. Half of it houses all things laundry. The other half is basically used by my husband as his "workbench" area. So, that houses all things tools, chemicals, car stuff, fishing stuff, camping stuff, you get the picture!

I'm going to be treating the laundry half of the laundry room as a separate room. I will declutter it and then clean it. For hubby's half, it will be a little different. I do not declutter or organize his stuff. However, there are things in his area that are not his that belong in other areas of the house. So, I will take care of those things and then clean his area as best as I can. 

Hubby is not exactly a person who has a lot of free time, and when he does have some, I get that he doesn't want to spend it doing work! So, I will do my best in that room, and I know he will get to his area when he gets to it. I've learned over the years that it will be a lot sooner if I don't nag or harp on him about it. It's one of those battles I choose not to fight, and I've taught myself to look past the clutter and give grace. Because at the end of the day, people are more important than things. How much more so my relationship with my own husband?

So that's it! Let's get to tackling our main bathrooms and laundry rooms! If you don't have a laundry room, perhaps you have a laundry area that needs some attention. Don't even have a laundry area? Focus on that bathroom. If you finish early, find another area in your home that could really use some TLC. Happy decluttering, and have a great week!

Digging Into the Word: Proverbs 1:10-19

 

Today, we will continue our study in the book of Proverbs. If this is your first time reading about my Proverbs study, I suggest you start with the first post. I will list previous Proverbs posts at the end of this one. What I do is just take a section of the scripture, share it, and then share some of the thoughts I wrote in my journal after copying that scripture. I highly encourage you to do the same for yourself. It's a great way to study God's Word. Let's dig into scripture!

My son, if sinners entice you,

Do not consent.

If they say, "Come with us,

Let us lie in wait to shed blood;

Let us lurk secretly for the innocent without cause;

Let us swallow them alive like sheol,

And whole, like those who go down to the Pit;

We shall find all kinds of precious possessions,

We shall fill our houses with spoil;

Cast in your lot among us,

Let us all have one purse"--

My son, do not walk in the way with them,

Keep your foot from their path;

For their feet run to evil,

And they make haste to shed blood.

Surely, in vain the net is spread

In the sight of any bird;

But they lie in wait for their own blood,

They lurk secretly for their own lives.

So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain;

It takes away the life of its owners.

~Proverbs 1:10-19

First of all, I agree with the commentary in my Bible that this is about avoiding temptation by 1) not succumbing to peer pressure, and 2) refusing even the association that can lead to sin. Do not consent, do not even go with them. "Spoil" is promised by murder and robbery. In life, good things will be promised to us in order to entice us to sin, but we must not give in. As such, we need to avoid putting ourselves into situations or with people that we know will be tempting us to sin.

In the second part, the sinners set traps in vain because they think they are setting them to ensnare others. But, they eventually get caught themselves. Everyone who is greedy for gain, it will eventually catch up to them.

Thank you again for joining me while I dig into the book of Proverbs! If you want to see the previous posts I wrote on this, here they are.
Proverbs 1:1-7
Proverbs 1:8-9

MamaWit's Weekend Links: THM Edition

 

Happy Saturday, everyone! As you may (or not!) have noticed, I decided to slow down my posting a bit. I wanted the launch of this blog to be aggressive, but being a stay-at-home homeschooling mama, it wasn't very realistic to keep up with a post or more per day. I plan on coming up with a weekly posting schedule for myself.

In the meantime, I wanted to share some links that I have found helpful from fellow bloggers. Today, I'm sharing some links that I hope will be helpful to you in your Trim Healthy Mama journey!

First, if you're just getting started on THM, check out my post with resources that will help you get started.

THM Tips, Helps, and Menu Plans

Breakfast Menu for 15 Days of Trim Healthy Mama by Mrs. Criddle's Kitchen
Healthy THM Freezer Meals by The Well Planned Kitchen
THM Crockpot Cooking Menu Session by Mixing with Michelle
Trim Healthy Mama Testimony by Northern Nester
54 Trim Healthy Mama Snacks (Kid Approved) by Northern Nester
The Ultimate List of Kid-Approved THM Snacks by Grace-Filled Homemaking
Trim Healthy Mama Aldi Menu Plan and Shopping List by Grace-Filled Homemaking
Eating Out with a Trim Healthy Mama by A Home with Purpose
Trim Happy Hubbie from the Coers Family
Tips for THMing His Lunch by Mrs. Criddle's Kitchen
7 Ways to Get Your Family On Board with Trim Healthy Mama by Grace-Filled Homemaking

That's it for today! I have lots more share, but I plan on making Saturday a day to share links to what I'm finding helpful. Enjoy, and have a great weekend!

Routines: My Evening Routine

 

In trying to re-establish a sense of normal around here, I decided to revamp my routines. Because I'm pretty familiar with the Flylady routines, I am able to do this quickly. Yesterday evening, I decided to write out and begin an evening routine. As I've mentioned before, I love lists! I also love the old-fashioned method of putting pen to paper. So, that's exactly what I did.

According to the Flylady website, the evening routine is the most important routine of the day. I couldn't agree more! When I consistently complete my evening routine, the next morning just goes so much smoother. Not much puts a halt on a smooth morning routine faster than having to stop and do something that should have been done the night before!

So, what is my evening routine? Glad you asked! Let's jump right in. We start our evening routine right after dinner.

Kitchen Duty

This isn't something I usually do myself, but I do make sure it gets done. Since I cook the meals, hubby has made a rule that I don't clean up. Our 3 boys take care of dishes and dinner clean-up. This includes putting food away, dishes, wiping up counters/stovetop/table, sweeping the floor, and changing the garbage if necessary.

Pick up the house

Once Kitchen Duty is done and has passed my inspection, everyone will go around and pick up the house. Nothing deep here. Just patrolling the main living areas and putting things away that have been left out.

Showers

After the house is taken care of, any of the kiddos that hasn't taken a shower yet that day will take one in the evening. They will also brush their teeth at this time.

Lay out clothes for tomorrow

Meanwhile, I will go decide on tomorrow's outfit and lay it all out on my dresser. I don't always remember to do this, but when I do, I swear it saves me time in the morning!

Get breakfast items ready

This could mean a make-ahead breakfast. Or it could be as simple as noting what I'm planning on and making sure there's bacon thawing in the fridge. I will also set the table for breakfast if we plan on eating there, but we usually don't.

Get coffee ready

This is possibly the most important item in my evening routine!

Take bedtime supplements

I have no bedtime medications, but I do have a couple of supplements that just work best if I take them at the end of the day.

Daily Light

If we didn't read our devotional for dinner, we will read it now.

Bedtime prayers

And finally, we say prayers together as a family and the younger kiddos head off to dreamland. The oldest can go to bed pretty much whenever he wants, but he's good about being mindful to get a decent amount of sleep for his busy days.

So, this is the routine that I think will work for our household at the moment. Will it be perfect? Probably not! Will it all always get done? I highly doubt it! But, just having it in place and forming the habit is a huge improvement to the chaos that would normally ensue in the morning. It has definitely changed over the years, and that's okay! It kind of has to with the many different stages of life. You have to find what works for you. 

I hope I've inspired you to make an evening routine. Start small if you're new to the concept! Just like baby-stepping to your goals, start with one or two things until you've got them down, then add another. And, I encourage you to go visit Flylady's Before-Bed Routine page if you would like more inspiration and help setting up your routine.

Thank you so much for stopping by and reading. I hope you visit again soon!

How I'm Studying the Bible This Year

 

In studying the Bible this year, I'm actually continuing where I left off last year. I've had a couple of blog posts about my Proverbs study. That's more of an aside to my main Bible study. I started this chronological reading plan from Bible Gateway last year. It's supposed to take you through the Bible in one year. Well, this is most likely going to take me about two years! I'm currently in Isaiah. Being real here, some of that is because I'm not always as consistent in daily Bible reading as I should be. Part of it is also because I'm taking the time to go a little more in depth with studying the Bible this time around, and trying to retain what I read.

The first thing I'm doing this year to try and get on the consistent track is plan on studying the Bible! It gets written in my planner every week day. That way, if things get really hectic, I have that reminder written right there.

Second, when I'm ready to study, I bring my Bible, chronological list, and notebook to the computer. I pray for understanding as I open up God's Word. Then I hop on Youtube and find a NKJV reading of the chapters I'm on. I've found that listening while reading along in my Bible really helps me retain better. I read through the section I have listed for that day, reading the study notes as needed as I go. I also write anything I really want to remember into my notebook.

Next, I go over to the Grace to You website, to see if there are any sermons that discuss what I read that day. If not, I look over any notes I've taken and neatly copy any verses I've highlighted. I set those aside to look at later and memorize. Then, I cross that day's reading off of my list. If there is a sermon and I have the time right then, I will listen to or watch it. I also take notes during the sermon if there's something that really stands out. If I don't have time at that very moment, I'll write it on my to-do list as something to watch later.

Lastly, I will spend some time just being quiet. Thanking God for the wonderful resource He gave us in His Word. Absorbing what I just read and learned. Praying for things that He brings to my heart. Sometimes, I will doodle in my notebook as I reflect.

That's it in a nutshell. I am not a Bible Study expert. I am nowhere near perfect in doing this every single day. Nor do I think my way is the right way for everyone. I'm just trying to baby-step my way to being a little bit better than I was before at showing God just how very thankful I am for all He's done.

What about you? I'm just sharing how I personally go about my Bible study. But, I would love to hear your techniques for studying the Bible! What resources or books do you use? Are there any sermon sites you love? Let me know in the comments!

Declutter With Me: The Kitchen

 

Last week, my intention was to spend some time decluttering our dining room/school room. Because of a nasty cold that travelled through our entire family, I got next to nothing done in there. And that's okay! I'm following the Flylady method of decluttering this year, and I know that I will be back to that area next month. Now that my family is on the mend, this week I will be moving on to one of my favorite areas to declutter! The kitchen.

I don't know about you, but after the holidays, my kitchen can really use a good purging and cleaning. Cabinets, refrigerator, freezers. I plan on being ruthless. In a recent post about my grocery budget, I expressed my desires to have less food waste. Before I can start tracking that, however, I need to do a little preliminary purging. I'm sure there are things hiding in my fridge that have outstayed their welcome. Countertops will be another area to tackle. I like my counters to have almost nothing on them. With the holidays and recent illness, they've gotten a little crowded.

Needless to say, I'm pretty excited about this week's decluttering zone! I would love for you to join me in decluttering our kitchens this week. If you're having trouble knowing where to start, visit the Flylady website. She has specific missions for the kitchen this week.

I would also love to hear from you in the comments! If you decluttered last week, let me know your progress. Or, let me know if you're planning on joining me this week in the kitchen.

Thanks for reading, and have a great week!

Routines: My Morning Routine

 

It's been about a week since we reestablished our Evening Routine here in our home. It hasn't always gone perfectly, but for the most part, we wake up with a picked-up house and ready to tackle our day. So naturally, I felt like it's time to put our Morning Routine back in place.

Again, I got out pen and paper, and thought about what I'd like my family and home to regularly accomplish in the mornings. Here, I will share with you what I came up with.

Wake up and get dressed to shoes

This is another one of those things I learned and incorporated from Flylady. Many stay-at-home and homeschooling Moms don't put getting dressed high on their priority list of first things to do in the morning. Please don't get me wrong! I am not knocking this! I am most definitely not a stranger to grabbing a jacket and throwing my hair into a messy bun while running to the door because someone is knocking and I am still in my "lounge" clothes. Or grumbling about fixing myself up because I have to go somewhere out of the house that day. Ahem. 

On the other hand, when I take the time to get dressed (with laying out my clothes the night before, it really doesn't take long), and yes put my shoes or boots on right away, I just feel ready. I don't get grumbly if I have to leave the house. Also, I'm more likely to do those small jobs right away that require me to step out quickly. Take out the garbage. Run a box for the thrift store out to my trunk. Those things pile up quickly around here if I want to stay in my jammies. I mean, who wants the neighbors to see them in their jammies and mom hair?

Make bed

This is like the bedroom equivalent of shining your sink. If you know Flylady at all, you know exactly what I mean. I have the kiddos do this as well.

Swish & swipe bathroom

This is nothing major. It takes 5 minutes tops. With a cleaning wipe, I wipe off the sink and faucet. Another wipe or 2 I use on the toilet. If needed, I swish out the toilet with the brush. If needed, I take another minute to pick things up and put them away. Again, the kids do the same in their bathroom.

Start a load of laundry

Even though the kids do their own laundry, there's almost always enough for me to do a load a day.

Coffee & quiet time

I despise eating anything so soon after I wake up. But, I make myself a cup of THM-style coffee! Then, I take it to my desk and start my morning Bible study. Jesus and coffee. This is the most important part of my day!

Breakfast, meds, supplements

By the time my quiet time is done, the kids are up. At that time, we eat breakfast, during which I take my medication and supplements for the morning.

Dishwasher unloaded and reloaded

After breakfast, I have one of the kids unload last night's dishes. Then, they load up whatever dirty dishes are in the sink and leave it until it's full enough to run. We continue to load it after every meal. That way, the sink is not overflowing by dinner time.

Pick up house

Next, we do a quick pick up of the main areas of the house. Now if you remember, this was done in our Evening Routine the night before. But, morning chaos, anyone?

Start school

Finally, after everything else is done, we sit down and start our homeschool. Meanwhile, during the boys' independent work, I set a 15-minute timer and work on decluttering the zone for that week.

* * *

So, there you have it! First, we established our Evening Routine. Because of that, we are set up to start the next day off on the right foot. Now, we have our Morning Routine, that serves as a launch pad for the rest of the day! If you want additional help setting up a Morning Routine, see Flylady's Routine page.

Thank you for joining me today! And, I hope I inspired you to set up some routines of your own!

Digging Into the Word: Proverbs 1:8-9

 

Today, I'm continuing to share my thoughts through the book of Proverbs. Last week, I started with a short intro, which is found in Proverbs 1:1-7. This week, I will be moving on to Proverbs 1:8-9. Please keep in mind, I am not a Pastor or Bible teacher. I will share the passage, then share the thoughts that I wrote down in my Bible journal about that passage. Now, I encourage you to do this, as well, on your own. It's a really good way to dig in to God's Word and really hear what He's saying!

My son, hear the instruction of your father,

And do not forsake the law of your mother;

For they will be a graceful ornament on your head,

And chains about your neck.

~Proverbs 1:8-9

First of all, in verse 8, I think this goes back to the commandment to honor your father and your mother, then things will go well with you (Exodus 20:12). So, just as a gentle and quiet spirit in a wife is precious in the sight of the Lord (1 Peter 3:4), so then, is a child who heeds the instructions and laws of their parents. 

Secondly, I notice verse 9 talks about an ornament and chains. Adornment of ornaments and chains would be a visible sign to others that one is highly favored or comes from a good family. Likewise, so a willing and obedient spirit of a child toward their parents is visible to others as a very good thing. 

Lastly, I can't help but notice that willing obedience and honor toward your parents will be a graceful ornament! Hence, a life filled with grace, as learning to love, honor, and obey your parents can ultimately help you act the same way toward God.

Thank you for joining me as I share my thoughts on Proverbs. More to come soon, as I continue to work through this amazing book of the Bible!

Past Posts on Proverbs:

Proverbs 1:1-7

Book Review: Daily Light on the Daily Path

 

Daily Light on the Daily Path is a wonderful book that I purchased around August of last year. This daily devotional does not talk about the Word of God, but rather just presents the Word of God to you.

Each day is one page long. The first half is a reading for the morning, the second half is a reading for the evening. Each reading has a theme, and scriptures are given that are within that theme. That's it!

At the beginning of each month, there is a section that talks about that month's theme. There are also creative ways to help make sure your children are paying attention during your family devotion time.

We did use this book after I bought it, but we were not as consistent as I would have liked to be. Now that a new year has begun and we can start from the beginning, I am making this a part of our daily routine. I keep the book near hubby's spot at the table. That way, we make sure not to forget to read. We read the morning reading before breakfast, and the evening reading either at dinner or before bedtime prayers.

Daily Light on the Daily Path was originally compiled by the Samuel Bagster family. This KJV version, that includes "Creative Ways to Read God's Word to Your Children" is by Colin and Nancy Campbell. Nancy is the founder of the Above Rubies ministry, which I have enjoyed following for years. She is also the mother of the authors of Trim Healthy Mama, Serene Allison and Pearl Barrett.

If you are looking for a solid, biblical devotional for your family this year, I highly recommend this one. If you're not a fan of the KJV, you can also buy the original version of the book which uses the NKJV.

Thank you so much for reading! If you would like to receive notifications when I post, please hit the follow button in the sidebar to subscribe. I'm praying you all have a wonderful and blessed weekend!

Grocery Budget: A Different Perspective

 

One of our goals this year is to get our finances back on the fast track. For the most part, my husband handles the finances in our home. And we're both okay with that! It stresses me out too much, but he actually enjoys it. I do almost all the shopping in our home, so I'm in charge of the grocery budget.

I hate to say it, but I wasn't exactly great with the grocery budget last year. I'd make two weeks worth of menu plans and the grocery list. Then, off to the bank for the budgeted cash before shopping. I tried to make sure to allow some wiggle room, in case we needed anything else before next pay day. More times than not, I would eventually spend that left over cash. Then, before pay day, I'd ask Hubby to stop at the store on his way home for a quick thing or two I "needed." So, yep, I realize I've been slacking.

A Different Perspective

A couple of weeks ago, I read a book called The American Frugal Housewife. This book was written in 1832 by Lydia Maria Francis Child. A lot of the book I skimmed through. Much of it consists of recipes that are hard to understand because of ingredients and methods that no longer exist. But, one of the things I read that really stood out was when she was talking about home economy. I'm paraphrasing, but Ms. Child said if you have 1 dollar to spend per day, spend no more than 75 cents.

Hmm. I obviously know what I have to spend every 2 weeks. And it's not difficult to work out the math to see what the monthly grocery budget is. But each day? Maybe I'm the odd one out, but I've never broken down the grocery budget into daily terms. When I took my bi-weekly budget and broke it down into 14 days, I was amazed. I looked at what three-quarters of that every day would look like, as Ms. Child suggests. It seemed more than enough! Granted, with my grocery money, I fit in everything. Food, paper products, toiletries, cleaning products, supplements, and cat and dog food. But still, I'm not always going to spend the full allotted daily amount on food alone. I can even say most days I wouldn't.

My New Plans

I found with my old way of doing things, we were wasting quite a bit of food. Fresh produce bought for 2 weeks worth of meals would go bad before we used it all. Forgotten leftovers were often moved to the back of the fridge, only to be tossed later as well. I wanted to find a way to reduce all that waste. Because we live very close to all the stores I frequent, I decided to do a trial-run of a 3-day plan. I will expand it to a week once I am confident that this will work for us.

1. Make menu plans for 3 days
2. Write shopping list
3. Take 3 days allotment of cash shopping
4. Try to only spend 3/4 of cash

I had my first go at this yesterday, and it worked out so well! I'm excited to see if I can keep it up. I actually spent under the 3/4 of the cash for everything I needed for 3 days! So, I will be able to put away the other 1/4 of the money and save the rest for those just-in-case moments. Plus, I'm hoping shopping more often will encourage a lot less waste!

Obviously, if you live far enough away from where you shop that gas is an issue, the 3-day plan is not going to be very economical. So make sure you work out a schedule that is not going to cost you more than you save. But, if you've never figured out how much you have for a daily grocery budget, still take a look! It may seem like such a small thing. But sometimes, just that slight change in perspective can make a huge difference in how you think about something!