Survived!

We've been in the new house for almost a YEAR!  I can hardly believe it.  When we moved in with our three little people, one a brand new baby...I was positively overwhelmed.  We moved about 700 miles in a very short time and quickly began the process of gutting-everything.  I can't wait to get my little blogging issue with photo storage resolved because I'm ready to start posting some before/after pics.  There's still so much "finishing" to do.  But I'm happy to report that we have floors in every room and two finished bathrooms and that, my friends,  is a GOOD thing.  :) 

I love to organize.  We've It has been a struggle to organize much of anything (beyond the necessities) for several reasons. 

1. Baby's first year (I like to think of the first year as "survival mode" which leaves little to no time for big organizational projects)
2. Determining designated spaces for things -  trying to find the best function and flow so that I can organize accordingly

Links for some of my favorite organizational "tools":

Weekly Chore Chart  I print one for each child to use on a weekly basis, and 5 for me-one for each week of the month.  I do this  because each week looks a little bit different.  Some chores like laundry and bathrooms remain the same, but chores like dusting the fans and cleaning the glass doors only happen once or twice a month.  I assign tasks to the weekly chore chart based on my master household management checklist.  Here's what mine looks like or you can download one just like the one below-or create your own.

Household Management/Checklist  I assign tasks to the weekly chore chart based on these "master" checklists. 

A Usual Day  This is a great starting point for time management.  Start by printing a copy for each day of the week and fill it in as you go.  This is a great way to see how you spend your day.  Maybe you'll discover that you have more idle time than you realized or maybe you need to look for ways to create margin.  Or, maybe it'll be an encouragement to you as you see all that you actually accomplish in a day!  :)

And here is my favorite most favoritest (not a word, but I'm making a point here!) set of downloads.  Simple Mom rocks.  Here, you can download a master weekly checklist, a preschoolers weekly chore chart, grocery list by category, a daily docket (to do), and many more cool organizational tools.

Happy Baby and House Projects

When Camille wakes from a nap, I almost always duck into the bathroom to catch a glimpse of her beautiful smile.  I sorta captured it, but with a big giant camera in the hand that usually snugs her in close.  ;)  My heart literally jumps when I see that smile spread!  There might be sugar hidden in those dimples, they are so kissable.  

And on a different note, can you BE-LIEVE this pink guest bathroom??  Please guests, come visit us in spite of our pink bathroom!  Ha!  Hannah Reece felt it was a selling point, especially before Dan peeled off the faded Noah's Ark border.  

House update:
FLOORS!!!  My feet and legs no longer ache when I fall into bed at night.  Husband, with his mad skills and his amazing parents Rog and Nancy have been hard at work around here!  Have I mentioned how I hit the jackpot in the in-law department?

father and son hard at work

PAINT!!  Every area with floors started out with a new coat of paint. I'm amazed at what a few coats of paint can do for a space.  I'll share pics and colors one day soon.



so grateful that Dan's buddy, Tim, came over to help prime the walls

 WHAT'S NEXT?  Bathrooms.  In a big way.  I'm talking leaky potties and broken sinks. 

Renovating is a lot. of. work.   Dan has a clear vision and he is a focused, hard worker.   I am constantly amazed at him!  Poor guy has had to listen to my whinin' on more than one occassion...I am not very patient enough and struggle to see a process like this through.  I get so overwhelmed and have to fight the urge to have it all done and ready for me to fluff our little nest.  Progress is good and I am thankful for this roof over our heads.