Goodbye Bandwagon

I've been derailed from my cleaning routines lately and it shows.  Horribly!  What happened?  I'm not entirely sure.  Rough nights with the baby, busy days with the kids, some canning projects.  I get tired and busy and cleaning is the first thing to fall off my radar.

But last night I caught back up on the dishes and cleared off my kitchen counters somewhat.  Maybe the bandwagon is getting ready to come back around again.  It needs to!  My baby is creeping around on the floor now and I need to get it cleaned up.  I need to declutter the places the stuff on the floor is supposed to go.  I need to teach my older kids to keep the floor clean.

I've started the new school year with my 2 and 4-year-olds.  My son isn't very into it yet, so I don't push much.  I think the routine and structure will be good for us all and I think he'll grow into it and start engaging in more of it as we go along.

So, my goals?
Try to start digging myself out of the cleaning hole I've fallen into yet again.
Keep up on my dishes

The Difference A Year Makes

We celebrate the 4th of July with my family every year.  We always have a wonderful time, but last year was very bittersweet for me.  I told my mom that I was pregnant but that I was expecting to miscarry. 

I'd gotten a couple positives on home pregnancy tests the week before, but had started lightly spotting the evening of the first one.  I'd never had any spotting with either of my other pregnancies and as the spotting continues I braced myself for the worst.  By the 4th of July I wasn't sure what to think; the spotting was still coming and going but I knew I hadn't miscarried yet.  We stopped at the store on the way to my mom's house and I bought another package of pregnancy tests so I could see if they could give me any hope or closure.  At my mom's house I got a clear, dark positive; I also had my heaviest spotting/bleeding up to that point.  I was stuck on a rollercoaster until I got a phone call from my doctor the next week: my HCG levels were rising and my bleeding finally stopped.

This year I celebrated the 4th of July with my three-month-old baby girl.  God is so good!  My oldest loved the fireworks this year; my little boy was so tired he didn't even care.  I'm looking forward to the years to come with these blessings!

The State of My Home #6

Camp is over and I'm still recovering.  My home reflects my fatigue and desire to just sit and rest and take a break for a few days, and it's not good.  I'm caught up on washing and folding laundry, but there are piles of it everywhere.  While I just finished tonight's dishes, clutter is creeping back onto my kitchen countertops and piano.  This week I'll need to focus on getting back into a more normal routine and start making steps forward again.

I do have a big project to tackle this week.  I'm going to be making a dress for my niece for her birthday.  The party is on Saturday, so there's not much time to lose.

Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Get the laundry put away
• Finish my niece's dress

The State of My Home #5

How is my home this week?  Wet.  We've got water in the basement, but not from the storms that dropped over 4 inches of rain on us this week.  No, one of the water pipes leading to the kitchen sink decided it wanted to be a sprinkler.  Too bad it took us a couple days to figure out the water wasn't from the rain...  The leak is repaired, the carpet is pulled back to dry, and maybe we won't have too replace too much of the wall and ceiling.

The past couple of days certainly derailed my routine and focus from cleaning, at least for the part of the time I've been home.  I made three trips to camp this week, which was crazy.  I did manage to get two days of school done with my oldest child which made her very happy.

So the goals?
Previous Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Keep up with the laundry
• De-clutter the kitchen counters
• Get the kids' clothing stored properly

I'm pretty much caught up with folding and putting away, but there may be a load in the dryer... maybe, I don't honestly know.  I'm probably a couple loads at least behind on washing.

Dishes are in good shape.  I have a couple dishes to wash from dinner, but I have to finish nursing the baby before I can finish them.

Most of the clothes are stored, but not all, and I didn't touch the cabinets.

Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Keep up with the laundry
• De-clutter the kitchen counters
• Get the kids' clothing stored properly

Since I'll be trying to get ready for camp which is 8 days away, I'm going to just focus on these same four items.

The State of My Home #4

Previous Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Keep up with the laundry
• Keep the top of the piano clear
• Clean the floor around the piano
• De-clutter the kitchen counters
• Get the kids' clothing stored properly

This has been a pretty rough week.  We've had many days with outings that have broken up our normal routine and it has really impacted my cleaning routine.  My husband and I celebrated our anniversary this week, my oldest had her monthly science and music classes and we went to clean the kitchen of the camp I'll be cooking for in a couple of weeks. 

I'm still in good shape on dishes, thanks to some help from my husband.  The top of the piano is in great shape, so I think I'm going to start adopting a "no knickknacks" rule throughout the house.  I did clean around the piano and while a few things have migrated back to that area, it's still much better than it was.

Can we just pretend the rest of the goals didn't exist?  No?  Well, I'm probably three loads behind on folding laundry and I've got another load folded but not put away.  I didn't touch the kitchen counters at all.  My husband got some of the clothing stored, but we still have more to do.

I know the next four weeks will be rough as well, so wish me luck.

Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Keep up with the laundry
• De-clutter the kitchen counters
• Get the kids' clothing stored properly

We're having a new refrigerator delivered Tuesday, so that will provide some motivation to get the kitchen and living room to a presentable state.  But, I'll be making at least three more trips to camp in the next week and spending time making shopping lists and adjusting the menus for the number of people I'll be feeding this year.  I'm getting worn out just thinking about it...

School's IN For Summer

My oldest daughter and I finished Hands On Homeschooling's 3-year-old curriculum last week.  We crashed and burned last year with the 2-year-old curriculum because I expected too much from a not-very-verbal newly 2-year-old and I was skipping the activities I thought would be too much trouble.  But it's the hands-on activities that my daughter loves:  the paint, cooking, etc.  So, I committed to doing as many of the hands-on activities as possible this year and we had a great year.  I do best with everything laid out for me and my daughter and I both thrive with the bit of routine it brings to our lives.  I'm so glad I gave the curriculum another chance.

She likes it so much that she wouldn't take me up on my suggestion to take a break from "school" for a week or two.  So, we're jumping right into our summer program.

I didn't want to buy anything for the summer and knew I had plenty of resources I wasn't using much, so I decided to put together my own plan for the summer.  I used the weekly grid from the Hands On Homeschooling, selected a weekly Bible story and a book selection from Before Five in a Row.  We're using some of the discussion topics from B4FIAR along with some coordinating printable materials from Homeschool Creations and Homeschool Share.  I also added in some of the activity suggestions provided for the preschool package by My Father's World.  Finally, my husband expressed a desire for our daughter to learn the ten commandments this summer, so we're doing that in place of memory verses.  I'm pretty confident that my daughter is going to really enjoy the activities and we'll have a great summer.

The State of My Home #3

Previous Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Get caught up on the laundry and make sure it gets put away
• Get the top of the top of the piano cleared off so my middle child can stop climbing up the piano to investigate what's up there
• Find the parts I lost from the baby's extra car seat, get it put back together and get it installed in my husband's car. 

It's been a good week!  I need to fold and put away the laundry I've washed today, but other than that I've kept up with the goals this week.  I cleared everything except a lamp off the piano.  I used to have some decorative items on it, but I think it's too easy for me to overlook clutter when I have to distinguish it from things that are supposed to be there.  This way, if there's anything there I know it's out of place.  If it works on the piano the next couple of weeks, I'll try to adopt a clear surfaces rule throughout my home.

I need to de-clutter in my kitchen, but I'm really encouraged by how much better it's been the last few weeks.  My living room is a disaster, compounded by purchasing used clothes for the kids that need to be sorted and put away until they're needed.

Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Keep up with the laundry
• Keep the top of the piano clear
• Clean the floor around the piano
• De-clutter the kitchen counters
• Get the kids' clothing stored properly

Making progress

I'm in good shape on laundry again, finally.  Everything clean is put away (or on the floor in the kids' rooms since they think it's fun to pull things out of their drawers and scatter them on the floor, or on my dresser as I struggle to find things to wear that work on my recently-post-baby body and that I can nurse in).  The hard part is going to be keeping it clear.

I also got the top of the piano cleared of except for the lamp that is on it.  Hopefully the lack of things to get into will reduce my son's interest rather than making for a good place to sit.

It's really encouraging to see some obvious progress this week!

The State of My Home #2

Today is Mother's Day and I'm enjoying it with the smallest little one I've ever had on a Mother's Day.  As the start of a brand new week, I'm going to take this opportunity to reassess the state of my home and come up with a plan for this week.

Previous Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Get laundry folded and put away in a timely manner
• Get the dress for my baby's baptism finished and put away everything that's currently in my kitchen for the project
• Get the top of the top of the piano cleared off so my middle child can stop climbing up the piano to investigate what's up there

How did I do?  Umm... well... Honestly, not well.  My baby was baptized yesterday and I did get the dress finished (after midnight Friday night/Saturday morning) and I got the sewing machine and supplies put away this afternoon.  I managed to keep up with the dishes with the help of my husband.  What about the rest of the list?  The other goals pretty much fell by the wayside.

Current Status of My Home
I just finished clearing off the kitchen table, taking all the things I used to make my daughter's dress downstairs to my sewing room (which is too messy to actually sew in) and swept the floor.  The dishes are caught up.  So, other than the clutter on the cabinets and credenza, it's in decent shape.

The bathrooms still need to be cleaned, although I did clean the sink in the hall bathroom before washing a wool diaper cover Friday.  I just straightened them up, so they're presentable if not truly clean.

Laundry?  I moved a couple overfull laundry baskets out of the kitchen to the living room to sleep.  And they mostly have sheets (from my oldest wetting her bed) and diapers.  I'm probably 5 loads behind on clothes to wash and 4-5 loads behind on laundry to put away.

The living room floor is covered with toys.  I haven't seen the top of my dresser in ages.  I've got lots of opportunities for improvement!

Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Get caught up on the laundry and make sure it gets put away
• Get the top of the top of the piano cleared off so my middle child can stop climbing up the piano to investigate what's up there
• Find the parts I lost from the baby's extra car seat, get it put back together and get it installed in my husband's car. (I took the cover off to wash it and put the parts that attach it somewhere for safe keeping; I just don't remember where that somewhere is.)

This still doesn't seem like it should be much, but realistically I know that getting back on track with laundry is going to take some work. 

On a good note though, my older two children just got up from naps and wanted a snack and my daughter was pleasantly surprised to find the table cleared off and to be able to pick any seat she wanted to sit in.

Why Start With Cleaning?

The title of this blog reflects my desire to focus on raising my children, so why am I jumping in and talking about my cleaning struggles and the state of my home? 

Well, we live here in our home.  We spend the vast majority of our time here.  This is where my children are and will continue doing most of their learning- not just academic, but live lessons as well.

More basic than that, I'm simply a better mother when my home is orderly.  I don't always realize it before things get really bad, but the disorder is stressful to me.  It puts me on edge and I get short-tempered.

So, I will make a goal of getting my home in order for the good of my whole family.

The State of My Home #1

I figure that if I make an honest assessment of my home on a regular basis I'll be able to keep track of and celebrate changes and improvements as well as identify areas where I'm starting to slip.  For now I'll be reviewing the state of my home on a weekly basis and make goals I can work on in short intervals.  Hopefully later I'll be able to spread them out more.

And so begins my first assessment.

My Home
I'm the master of piles; they are everywhere in my home.  I take after my dad in this way, but they have to go.  I need to learn to pick up after myself and teach my kids to do the same.  I'd like to be able to stop scolding the kids for getting into things that shouldn't be out for them to get into in the first place.  Mastering the clutter and finding everything a home is going to take time.  Getting out of the habit of making piles of things to put away later and getting into the habit of keeping things put away will take time.  Having the clutter makes it difficult to clean, that's just all there is to it.  There's not much point in listing the rooms in my home separately because this applies to them all.

My kitchen is in better shape right now than it has been historically because I'm making a consistent effort to keep up with the dishes every day.  There is still plenty of clutter.  I'm not sure when the floor was last washed.

The upstairs bathrooms haven't been cleaned since two days before my baby was born.  That was six and a half weeks ago.  The downstairs bathroom hasn't been cleaned since who knows when.

I've been doing pretty well with laundry lately, and have been making an effort to get it folded and put away before the kids decide to make piles out of the clean clothes to play in.  Since I'm washing cloth diapers for two kids every two days and my oldest daughter's sheets nearly daily, I'm doing lots of loads of laundry.  Getting the laundry put away has been one of my big struggles for a long time.

The kids rooms are a mess.

Goals

• Keep up with the dishes
• Get laundry folded and put away in a timely manner
• Get the dress for my baby's baptism finished and put away everything that's currently in my kitchen for the project
• Get the top of the top of the piano cleared off so my middle child can stop climbing up the piano to investigate what's up there

I know it's not much, but it's a start and it may take me most of the week just to finish the dress.  The first two will go a long way to keep the main areas of my home manageable so I can start working on the clutter.  When I let them slip there's no hope for anything else.

The Question I'm Pondering

I recently purchased a bundle of ebooks including 31 Days to Clean by Sarah Mae.  I haven't made it past the first day because I'm struggling with the question it's asking me to answer, "Why do I want a clean home?"  Why do I?  I don't know.  Maybe that's why my previous attempts to master my mess have failed; I haven't identified a reason I think is good enough to motivate me to keep it clean.

My first thought when I read the question is that I want a house that's clean enough to share with family and friends, but with further thought I found a problem.  My family should deserve a clean home, not just visitors.  My husband and children shouldn't have to live in a cluttered home just because no one has visited the past few days.

Another possible but faulty answer, that has been the source of much guilt over the years, is that my mom kept her home clean and so should I.  I am not my mom, but I beat myself up over some of these differences.

I do know that I want my children to grow up in an orderly house.  I want them to learn how to keep their own things tidy.  I want this to be better for them.

I feel like there is more to the answer that I have yet to identify, so for now I will continue to ponder.  In the meantime, I'm working through the steps in 28 Days to Hope for Your Home by Dana White in order to start getting some of the routines in place that I badly need.

Taking Stock

I'm a stay-at-home mom to three tremendous blessings.  My oldest is three and a half years old and my youngest is six weeks old.  Life can be pretty crazy.

I think I always wanted to be a mother and to be home with my children.  I naively thought it would be my happily ever after.  Ha!  Over three years in, with nearly two of those being home full-time, I feel like I'm muddling my way through it.  I'm not the mom I want to be.  I'm impatient and short-tempered far too often. I can't seem to keep a clean house for the life of me.  I want better for me.  I want better for my husband.  I want better for my kids.

So why this blog?  I'm hoping that it will give me a place to share things, to process them, to maybe eventually find some accountability, and most of all to find some encouragement in what I am accomplishing, because far too often the good things seem dwarfed by all there is that needs doing.