Category Archives: house keeping

Clean = Better Play

I have learned… that less is MORE – in so many areas… and one of those areas happens to be TOYS. This week we got a HUGE box (as tall as Caleb) – and filled it with TONS of toys. The boys did not hesitate & I was honestly surprised how many they were willing to part with.

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After things were organized I was so happy to see how much better they played. There were able to find what they really wanted… and lay on a bed without something in the way.

It is worth taking the time to do…

So if you haven’t… get a box.

Because Christmas is coming… and its better to do it now than later ;-)


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Wash Wash Wash

This is what I do.

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All day long :) – well multiple times a day.
& thats ok. Sometimes I don’t mind. Other times a little.
I would much rather wash dishes than wash clothes :)
Putting away dishes is much easier than putting away clothes. Right? :D

$8.00 vs. $40 + for Pantry organizer

Our new house is beautiful!

We love it.

However, the kitchen lacks storage… so much so that all my spices and smaller baking items had to be stored in a big container, on top of the fridge. While this worked, it was a head ache to dig through and find the exact spice I needed.

So I began looking for a pantry door organizer to help me with this problem.

I never realized how expensive they were tho…

For those wire kind you see often, they cost around $45!

I just could not justify that money right now.

Instead, I used an idea I saw at my friend Shannon’s house one time. She used it to store mostly snacks…. I however have every bit of my spaces, salts, sprinkles, grilling packs, pesto packs, etc… all in this…

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It is perfect! Well, maybe not perfect ;-) but it suited my needs just right.

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And for a little over $8 at walmart, I cant complain. It even came with the hooks to hang it with.

It has made it very easy to find what I need too, since the pockets are clear.

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Thanks Shannon for the great inspiration!

Messy Sink

Just so you know, this is a familiar scene in our home.


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A messy sink.

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It all manages to get cleaned some how or another :) – in this particular instance, my dish washer was FULL of clean dishes… so I had to wash the rest by hand. I didn’t want to have to run the dish washer a 3rd time in one day. Crazy huh?! I tell you, with 3 little ones, you wash and clean A LOT of cups, plates and more. Especially when you are busy cooking 3 meals a day and baking in between. Not all weeks are like this of course ;-) – but they do come.

No complaints…

I love good smelling soap btw – makes washing dishes easier for some reason. Meyers is one of my favorites! Worth the extra money for the smell it gives :)

Dirty Bathroom

While in the bathroom with my two older boys, I asked them to wash their hands. Caleb had just killed a fly (with his bare hands) and Taite, well, he always needs a good hand washing :) – while in there, Caleb proceeded to tell me with a very disrespectful and ungrateful tone…

“I wish we had a different bathroom.”

I asked him “Why?”

He said “Because ours isn’t clean enough.”

Mind you, the bathroom was not bad, it had been a week since I had cleaned it, but that is because we were out of town… and well, life happens. The flesh in me wanted so badly to lash out at Caleb. His tone was so ugly towards me when he said it… that all I could think of was “You ungrateful child” and I wanted to put him in his place right there, with a sharp sentence and harsh look.

imgThe Lord must of been working in me that very moment though… and instead of lashing out, I said “you know what Caleb… follow me” – I then proceeded to take him to our bedroom, where the computer is – and googled “Dirty Bathroom” – I asked him to shut his eyes, in fear of what images may come up with the word “dirty” in the search phrase… While him and his brother sat there with their eyes shut, I brought up a few various photos of messy toilets and bathtubs…. and then simply asked Caleb “Do you think our bathroom is dirty now?”

He looked at me and shook his head.

I then went even deeper into our conversation and began to talk to him about those who do not have homes… those who have to use the bathroom in a nearby gas station or behind a dumpster. I then googled “homeless children” and showed him and Taite countless photos of children without a home.

A photo of a child holding a blanket over his head for protection … and told them “that is his roof“… he has no home.

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I talked to them about how some children don’t have beds…
No toys…
No food…
No TV…
No clean clothes….
and so on.

I stressed how blessed we are… and how we should be so very thankful the Lord has provided us with a home and a working bathroom.

Our conversation went from dirty bathrooms…
to home less, to then the amount of work it takes for me to keep a house clean.

FxCam_1308320645869I listed so many things I can’t even remember… I think often times children don’t realize the amount of work their mother does. I know I didn’t as a kid! I spat off so many task I even began to think “wow, how do I keep up” HAHA… its a lot!

Caleb and Taite listened very well… and were pretty much speechless… Caleb had tears welling up in his eyes, I could tell this was hitting him. I then took it to the last step, and told Caleb I wanted him to see how much work it takes to clean a bathroom… and I directed him on how to clean the bath tub and shower, the toilet and counter top/sink area. The entire time he never once complained… and did it with a very humbled attitude…

Afterwards he said “I need to tell Daddy about this.”

So… despite it taking effort to go through all of this with my kids… and the process of showing Caleb to properly clean the bathroom, was tedious and took twice as long as It would had I done it myself… I think the experience and things talked about were something they both needed to really hear.

It also helped me realize that I need to enforce chores more.

Our kids do minimal chores.

Make Beds.
Put Clothes away.
Put dishes up
Clean up toys in their room, the living room and Owens room.
Take out Trash (smaller bags)
Tidy up the School room
Feed the Cat

but that is really about it…

They could do far more!

I would love to find a good chore chart. Anyone have one?

*updated: I made a cute chore chart for the boys. Thanks Kellie for the inspiration :) – These are pdf file so I can open them in photoshop and change the chores from week to week with a click of a button. The “clip art” can also be changed if the boys want that switched up as well.

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Also Valerie linked to a good list of chores for kids around age 6… I may tweak this chart a wee bit as the days pass, to see how it works – but for now I think its cute. We will use simple CHECK MARKS or sticks to put in place of it being done.*