thoughts on being nice to yourself

So yesterday I was doing the lazy walk around Target (note to my sister Anne: I cannot boycott any longer. I needed a plastic bin and bananas and kid socks all in one place. Where else can one go?? Please forgive me.)

I strapped babydear in. Gave little man strict instructions (no yelling for toys, no screaming and crying, be nice to your sister. If you do all these things I will buy you corn-syrup-laden fruit snacks) and we were off.

As we wandered up and down the aisles I came across the makeup section.

A note re me and makeup – rarely ever does this happen, perhaps some mascara to brighten the eyes and some foundation to cover up circles under said eyes.

kick back. enjoy your babies. be nice to yourself.
you deserve it!

Anyway. So I was like. Hmmm…I need new foundation. I am gonna buy some, darnit. So I looked and found this tinted “face brightening” lotion stuff, complete with SPF 15 (as I am increasingly concerned about the lines appearing around my eyes, daily SPF is a good thing. Seriously, it’s like a hit my 30s and BOOM lines around the eyes. Where did they come from? And then my forehead too? WHAAAA??? The squint line between my eyes is the one that bothers me the most. Why? Because it isn’t symmetrical. It goes up and off to one side, only one side. Why does it do this? I like symmetry. Please, if you know me IRL (In Real Life, as the kids say) please don’t look at me cockeyed the next time you see me. Maybe I need that stuff that Jennifer Garner sells. What is it? That lotion with like caffeine in it or something? Retinol? No, that isn’t right. Anyway. I need that stuff. But for now, SPF is a start.)

Anyway. Enough on wrinkles.

(I just googled it - of course I did - the stuff is called Neutrogena Anti-Oxidant Age Reverse Day Lotion. I NEED IT. MUST HAVE IT. Maybe it’s because I like her hair in the commercials though?)

Enough. Back to Target.

I also walked past this book I have on reserve at the library – silly teenage fiction – and was like, I am gonna buy this book too, dangit!

My point is – can you tell I am tired? My second cup of coffee is sitting in the microwave, I should go rescue it before I write anymore – as I was saying before I interrupted myself, my point is that we need to do these kinds of little things to be nice to ourselves once in awhile.

My dear husband, last night, put the children to bed on his own so I could go sit with a friend and have a glass of wine at a little café down the street. I went early and brought my new book. YAY. To be out at 9pm without children? I mean, amazing. Bliss.

I have done that sort of thing before of course, since becoming a mother I mean, but never with such ease, clear conscience and lack of trepidation for my husband.

I am totally doing that again. SOON.

This kind of freedom to allow yourself to enjoy life is essential in quality mommying, and a quality mommying experience (for you, and your kidlings!)

Be nice to yourself. Treat yourself like you would a sister or good friend who is a mom. Think of yourself in the third person.

“Poor Sara. She has a headache. Babydear is teething – darn molars. Both kiddies have colds. She is getting this cold. What can we do for her? I know! LET’S BUY HER A NEW BOOK AND SOME NICE NEW MAKEUP!! YAY!! YAY US! That will make her SO happy!!”

Just don’t talk like this out loud. Not in public anyway.

So. Go make yourself a cup of tea. Get online. Order yourself some flowers to be delivered. (Can you imagine the audacity?)

And now, Sara needs a snack. Come on, let’s go get her something yummy.



Next up: Making cloth diapers. Or something like this.

Anti-recipe 8: Kick ass potato soup

Now, I know what you are thinking. Potato soup is so freaking boring. But really this is really good potato soup. More “watery mashed potatoes” than soup really. It is versatile as to necessary ingredients, reheats well and I imagine leftovers could even be frozen (although there never are any at my house.) You could also very easily spoon feed it to a baby, as its more mash potato than soup, and its easy for little people to eat (again, not as messy as regular soup). (This quite jives with my feed baby food from your table kind of philosophy, but more on that in another post.)

(Yes, I just used the word "jives".)

So, hopefully its nice and fall-ish where you are. If not, crank up the AC and lets make some soup!

First step. Scrub up potatoes, say maybe 4 or 6 or something like that. Or fewer. Whatever.

Cube up potatoes, cutting out bad spots. 1 inch cubes work fine. That is right, don’t peel. I don’t believe in peeling potatoes.

Put potatoes in big pot. Add water, to just covering potatoes (maybe 1 inch over)

Boil potatoes. Throw in some salt and some diced onion.

Potatoes are done when peels start flaking off and they easily mush with a fork prick.

When potatoes are done mash with a potato masher (don’t drain, obviously.) Add some seasoning. I usually just do fresh parsley, chopped and maybe a little garlic salt. Salt and pepper to taste. I have in the past done rosemary. Whatever floats your boat.

Keeping potatoes on simmer, add some milk, not too much. Remember we are going for just a little thinner than mashed potatoes. Or add more if you want it thinner (but then you wouldn’t really be making MY potato soup but…it would still be potato soup). Oh, you can add cream instead of milk. Yum. Or sour cream.

Stir it up.

Add some cheese. I usually go for cheddar. I have done plain old American cheese (in desperation – it works) and Brie (when I lived in Oxford and always had fun yummy cheese on hand).

Stir it up.

Serve with more cheese grated on top. Also, crumbled bacon. And a nice crispy baguette on the side. With lots of butter.

Yum. I am hungry.

So, the beauty of this dish is its flexibility. You can add chopped up ham. You can cook the onions in the bacon grease first. You can add all kinds of cheese. One could imagine a smoked gouda being really tasty.

Anyway. That is my potato soup.

Happy fall!

woolies - how to make wool pants/diaper covers

babydear in woolies

I love woolies. I am addicted to making them. I would put my four year old in them if he would wear them. Wool is perfect for babies, cozy on winter days but allows baby’s skin to breathe as they wick moisture away from baby. They also work even on warmer days because they breathe so well. You can make straight up covers or pants. Lanolize and pair with a fitted diaper and you are good to go. They are also great for potty training, with a pair of cotton training pants underneath.

So, how to make these beauties?

First off. You need starting material. I like to go to thrift stores. I have a favorite thrift store (click here for you locals) and I LOVE it. Fabric. Pots. Kids clothes. Random pictures. And always, great wool sweaters.

ok, you cant see the woolies she is wearing in this picture but
isnt she dang cute??

I went there this Monday (half off sale!) and found this cute sweater to show these steps to you. Ok. It was kind of crazy of me. It was totally packed. The kids were nuts. Actually babydear was nuts. Little man was an angel, carrying things for me and chasing after sister. Other shoppers alternated between “oh how cute” and “oh how annoying” as I chased her under the clothes racks and etc. (YOU know what I am talking about right??) Finally some store clerk took pity on me and found us a cart to use (they are scarce on sale days). She gave me the old “Honey, you need this more than anyone in the store” kind of pity. I gratefully accepted.

Or if you are not the thrift store type you can always dig around the closet for that sweater that your mom gave your dear husband and he never, ever wears.

You are looking for a nice soft wool sweater at a thrift store – 100% wool ONLY or maybe a wool/silk blend – maybe cashmere, angora, etc. Its best to get the kind of sweater with a waist band on the bottom edge. That waist band is great for making the waist of your bands, without having to mess with elastic.

So, the basic steps.

Cut sleeves off sweater. Cut waist band off of bottom. Snip edges of sleeves to form crotch of pants. Sew crotch seam. (Double stitch) sew on waist band to create waist, gathering a little. You can also just fold over and use elastic.

See pictures of this below.

Wool is also great to work with because it is very forgiving. And each new sweater you work with presents a new set of challenges.

See pictures of that below too.

To lanolize simply squeeze some Lanisoh breast cream into hot water, massage cream into woolies, let air dry. You can wash your woolies (by hand, although mine go through the wash all the time) then drip dry and re-lanolize every now and then.

I have also made wool overalls which I am dying to get babydear in this fall. SO DAMN CUTE. (I am actually fearful she will potty train before then…heck, I am gonna dress her in the woolies anyway.)

Any questions?

little eddie bauer lambswool sweater.
pre-wash it, on cold. mine still shrunk too much which
presented a whole new set of challenges...

cut off sleeves

measure on your kid and cut along the seams,
this forms the crotch of the pants.
my sweater shrank too much (these are going
to be leggings) so i will need to do some
improvising to "make it work"

i had to cut off more than just the bottom
ribbing because i will need more fabric to
cover the big diaper butt.
is this making sense?

so you see how the leggings will fit together?

now, right sides facing, sew the pieces together to form the
crotch seam...(is there a more polite term for this?)
if it doesnt make sense just look at a pair of pants

see how this seam works?

now, trim up your bottom (now top) piece to form the waist area.
sew this together, RIGHT SIDES FACING to create the waist band

arrange waist band to legs, just remember RIGHT SIDE TOGETHER
if you get confused...i hope this is understandable...
arrange seams, i like to center my seams to the back
sew around the waist, attaching legs to waist band.

and here, are your woolies. geez these are ugly. that seam across the
butt makes them look so weird! sorry...now to try them on babydear...

as i feared, the rise of the back of the pants
isnt enough...doesnt cover the big diaper butt..
here is where one must improvise.
hopefully yours turn out better!

i riped out the seams, took it apart, and cut out a little piece from my
left over waist band to create a "rise" allowance...

the "rise allowance" sew on the back

the waist band sewn back on. the "rise allowance" gives a little
more room for the diaper butt

see how it creates a nice little butt for the pants?
i like them better now...

really CUTE. especially under dresses...
not my best work but...

these are my best pair ever...
made out of a cashmere turtleneck sweater.
GENIOUS. i used the turtleneck part to create
a great waist that can fold down or up...
unfolded up, underneath a shirt, it is great to keep crawling
babies warm in winter...
i used the sleeves of this sweater to make the
kick ass overalls, basically woolies but with a bib and straps attached

anyway...hope this all makes sense. happy sewing! and watch out, its addictive. i have like 20 pairs at this point for the kids...

oh, those days

So today we were driving around (trying to get babydear to nap!) and dada and I entered into that most dangerous discussion - “What would we be doing right now if we didn’t have kids?”

you gotta hang on to the nice moments on the rough days
out for a walk with the fam

Now. This sounds Truly Awful.

I know that.

But it’s a blustery sort of day. Perfect for sitting in a coffee shop with a book. Oh, or the paper! I can’t remember the last time I read the paper. We even GET the Sunday paper, which nobody does anymore and I still never read it. It goes into the recycling still bundled up nearly every week.

But yes, sitting in a coffee shop with a latte reading on the latest world events. Maybe catching a movie and then a late dinner out.

Good lord. I miss those kinds of days.

You have to know the kind of day we had been having however.

Babydear has decided to act two this week. “No! MY! MY DO! MY TURN! MY CAR! NOOOO. Etc etc.”

Which is just lovely.

Also, not wanting to nap. Hence the car ride.

Little man was complaining of a belly ache. Tired. Crabby. He and I actually got in a little shouting match today before dinner. I know shouting at your child is Truly Truly Awful. However. Big however. He literally grabbed the bag of animal crackers I told him he couldn’t have (5 minutes before dinner) and ran down the hallway with it screaming hysterically after I told him no. I think I shouted after him something like “ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME??? COME BACK HERE WITH THAT!”

Then mama and dada got in a “conversation,” as little man says, about how shouting at ones children is Truly TRULY Awful.

Did I mention dada is in the ER right now for a suspected broken foot? No, he didn’t do it playing volleyball. He STUBBED HIS TOE chasing children at the park today. (I know I know poor dada however my immediate thought is “A CAST??? NOOOOOOOOOO!!!”)

Yes. Yes indeedy. It has been a swell day.

So, thoughts of lazy Labor Day weekends aren’t too too evil of us, right?

Oh, the clothes I would have. Oh, the purses. Maybe a little loft downtown? All sleek and modern looking. Oh, the movies and the dinners and the vacations! Oh, the vacations. Italy? Maybe France? Or somewhere exotic like Tahiti. OOOH. And I maybe would still look decent in a bikini? OH, maybe I would have an actual career?? (My chosen field of international-and-etc doesn’t quite mix with babies-and-etc.) OOOOOH. Maybe we would actually be living and working abroad like we always said we would do??!!

But, then, as we drove around sipping our lattes, little miss conked out in the back and little man chomping on his fruit leather dada says “Yea, but we’d be sitting in our nice loft downtown sad that we didn’t have kids. And you would work too much.”

Which is all true.

So, after getting babies to sleep, I sit and type with my glass of wine by my side waiting for an update from dada (please just a sprain! Pleasepleasepleaseplease!)

And despite it all (because of it all?) life is pretty good. You know?

….especially when they are asleep, after a day like today…..and when I have a glass of wine to end it with…..


Next up: I actually purchased a great little sweater to make a pair of woolies, as promised, however what with the crazy non-napping baby and the broken-foot-dada not too much sewing time was available this weekend. Hopefully this week.

on toys and other domestic goodness

So far Operation G.S.O. is going well.

I have had all kinds of domesticity going on lately. Canning? Check. Sorting kids clothes? Check. Drying herbs? Check. Basil/olive oil cubes? Check.

(re that last one. Take fresh basil. Blend with olive oil and a little water. Stick in ice cube tray. Freeze. Store in ziplock bag. Pop one out for soups, pasta sauces, etc. as needed. YUM)

To kick off this effort I have rearranged the furniture in my living room (thanks Cari for the inspiration and help!) Now my whole house feels fresh and pretty.

My God. Such a June thing huh? To get excited about rearranging the furniture?

I get it from my mother. Grumpy about the something? Rearrange the furniture. Cabin fever? Rearrange the furniture. Need a new couch but don’t have the cash? Rearrange the furniture.

And yet, seriously I am in LOVE with my living room.

Mainly this is because I also sorted toys in the process and now all the pretty toys are back in the living room area, all bright and neat.

Yes, I color-coordinated the toys in the living room.

What of it?

Are you laughing at me Stacy? I know you are. (My older sister folks, who thinks I am slightly ridiculous in this regard. Ok. I am slightly ridiculous. Whatever.)

If I have to sit and look at these toys in the morning drinking my coffee I want them to look nice. You know?

I have all kinds of toys in my house but I am drawn to the Waldorf-type toys (see my etsy buttons on the left) and we do try to limit flashy light-plastic-noisemaking type toys. But, the reality is that kids get bigger and want things like say, the Ironman action figure or the plastic tub FULL of Rescue Heroes in my downstairs family room (complete with plastic towering “Rescue Center” with lights and sirens. Lovely.) And as the kids get big and enforce these opinions somehow your alternative preference of felted gnome family and wooden gnome hut (complete with moss roof) is not as exciting.

One can however rotate and choose to display things in a way that encourages creative play. For example: in my downstairs family room we had a bin full of toys including a set of plastic farm animals, tractors, and a little barn. The kids never played with it UNTIL last week when I pulled it out, set it up on the shelf and now they get it down all the time to play farm.

So, those are my thoughts on toys.

Now, back to my living room.

Re storage for toys.

I wanted those cool square shelves from Ikea. Instead I took two old wooden wine boxes and attached a long white board to the top with screws. (Oh my goodness, little man was so freaking excited when I brought the drill up. He made me call dada to make sure it was okay with him to use his tool. Wow mom. WOW.) The result was a low shelf, perfect for displaying pretty toys.

So, this is what I have out right now.

babydear hanging out in the sunshine

Top shelf:
Large red box with dress up clothes (little man is SO into this right now)
Small red box with nice wooden train set
Brightly painted wooden stacking toy
Brightly colored tin spinning top (okay, they hardly ever play with this but…it is pretty and goes with the color scheme. Stop laughing Stacy.)
Nested stacking cubes (with vintage pictures, lettering and numbers on them)
One rubber triceratops
Red basket with odds and ends including hand puppets, small balls (for ROLLING ONLY), a handful of Matchbox cars, etc

Bottom shelf:
Wooden crate of musical instruments
Plastic front loader truck (ugly but they love it)
Barrel of Duplos (our number one used toy, and I really do love them. Big enough for babydear to stack into a “ROCK-et,” encourages creative play, and all that good stuff)
Plastic bus (yes, with flashy lights. It also plays “the wheels on the bus go round” ACK. However it has an on/off switch and I sometimes sneak it to off and they don’t notice the difference)

Plastic camper van with tiny Elmo and Cookie Monster figures (the kids LOVE this toy)

Wooden ball-drop toy
Wooden clacker push-toy

Around the room we have child-sized rocking chairs for each, kid books on the lowest shelf of the adult bookcase, and a rocking crib full of babies.

We also have playsilks for each kid from this company. Playsilks are great. They can be capes (little man’s favorite) or parachutes or scarves or baby doll blankets.

We have old couches and chairs. Stained (for those of you coming to me from facebook you may remember the “x-marks-the-spot” marker incident of a few months ago) I don’t plan on getting new ones until the kids are…well, not for awhile.

I also have taken to weekly fresh bouquets of flowers. Bright dahlias and sunflowers. Each bunch costs all of $5 at the local farmers market and well, a bunch of flowers really brightens a room, doesn’t it? And yes, they kind of do match the toys too.

Like I said I have limited knick-knacks out. I think I might rotate them soon though. Maybe even some pictures. I also have no rugs on the floors right now. One, its easier to sweep and two, babydear will be pottytraining soon and it is MUCH easier to wipe up accidents from the wood floor than scrubbing it off a rug.

I think I love how homey and nice my little house feels because, well, it is so very little. We downsized drastically a year ago in an attempt to reign in debt (love you Sallie Mae!) so making my little house efficient and organized is ESSENTIAL, especially once winter sets in.

So. That is it. And really, it’s a pleasant, comfortable room. I just put on the water. Want to come over for a mug of hot chocolate?

follow babydear pushing her cart to show you how small it is in here...

apologies for the crap picture. yes, i take all of our photos and those for this blog
on my blackberry phone. rather pathetic huh?

yes that is our eating area, behind the rocking chair.
a coat rack and shoe shelves along the wall add storage space

an ikea island adds storage.
otherwise we have all of one square foot of counter space.
not joking. i would show you the sink but it is

full of dirty dishes. :)

Next up: Woolies, I am delaying this post because I want to include pictures so I need to go and find a great girly-colored sweater to make a pair for babydear. Hopefully this weekend. Then after that more diapering how-to’s. Happy fall all!

Anti-recipe 7 - Continued adventures in canning...

So I am canning again.

Crazy huh? I am just asking for torture. And a messy kitchen. But I can’t help myself. Mainly because I found out I did my last sauce wrong (added zucchini and then didn’t add lemon juice) and I hate, HATE being bad at things. So I went to the farmers market yesterday and grabbed up as many bags as would fit in babydear’s stroller and here I am.

So this time I did things a little differently.

I cubed up several pounds of tomatoes and put them in small ziplock bags in the freezer. No peeling and hot water and etc this time. I will use these to dump into the crockpot for chili and stews etc. in the dead of winter, remembering a better time when my frozen-wasteland-of-a-state was beautiful and green.

Then I took the rest of the tomatoes and washed, cubed, and pureed in the blender. I chucked it all in the big sauce pot and let it cook, adding a bit of chopped fresh basil and salt.

I am now boiling my jars.

This time I WILL add the lemon juice.

Apparently it is Very Bad and Very Irresponsible to have done otherwise. Although, I read in a nifty blog my father sent me about end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it survival that one can boil tomatoes that were canned by water bath prior to use as a preventative just-in-case measure to ensure no ickies are in your tomatoes.

Now it may be Very Irresponsible of me to suggest this. Obviously if you suspect botulism, don’t boil, just THROW IT AWAY. Botulism presents as bulging jars, cracked seals, etc. Read here for more signs. I have never in my life seen a jar that was thus contaminated. And my mother canned (via water bath mostly) for my entire childhood.

I have high hopes for this sauce.

Oops. Just went to put sauce in jars. It only filled 1 and ½ quart size jars. So, I got some pint size jars (stolen from my mother over the years) and am now boiling them. I will USE THE RINGS AND LIDS FROM THE NEW JARS, NOT THE OLD ONES. This is also Very Important whilst canning. Not to reuse lids. EVER.

The sauce is now cooling on the counter. It looks tasty. Like real sauce. Go me.

As far as the other zucchini-tainted-non-lemon-juiced batch?

My husband insists he will eat it.

My mom tells me just use it up first.

I might just opt for a jar of Preggo though.


In other canning news:

The pickles shared by my old friend Mary Beth from the Duggar family website turned out great. I mean, I haven’t eaten them yet but they sure look like pickles!

They were super easy to do. Slice up cucumbers into spears. Add three cloves of garlic per jar. Throw in some dill seed. Mix up a concoction of vinegar and water and boil it. Place jars in oven at 250 (yes filled with pickles) until really really hot. Take out of oven. Put in vinegar mixture to fill jar up to rim. Boil rings and lids. Put lids and rings on jars. Let sit on the counter until they seal (POP!). Look here for official directions.


Next up: Canning applesauce. So fricking easy….(fingers crossed)

on September and getting organized

little man at age one.

September always feels like a new year to me. Perhaps it’s because dada and I spent the first 8 years of our marriage pursuing degrees (college for me, college for him, masters for me, law school for him). Something about the feel of the air. The occasional steamy day mixed with crisp mornings (ooh, gloriously so this morning!) The golden tint to trees. The sky that seems bigger and bluer.

To me this is a more appropriate time of the year for resolutions. In January one is completely worn down from winter and holidays. Who has energy to start working out in the dead of winter?? Not me. But fall. Fall is lovely. It is fresh.

We don’t yet participate in the back to school routine (opting to delay little man start of pre-school until next year, a long story perhaps worthy of another post). But yet I feel this urge of the new year.

So instead I am planning on making this Getting Shit Organized Month.

Let’s call it GSO month to prevent my plastering obscenities throughout this post.

This involves a whole realm of things. Personal goals. Weekly goals. Family goals. Organizing the household. Etc.

I am the type to love lists and organizing and sorting and etc. Even if my method is somewhat haphazard. (I go into the bedroom, start sorting socks, get up to get the rest of the laundry, get absorbed in cleaning off the countertop in the laundry room, take the tools lying on the countertop to the tool bench, notice the toy storage box in the corner, and drag into out and into the family room to put more toys into storage, then two hours later I find myself in the bedroom staring at the pile of socks that need to be sorted…)

As part of GSO month I have honestly been thinking of doing the whole day of the week thing like Monday is Baking Day, Tuesday is Playdate Day, Wednesday is Craft Day etc.

Is that so corny of me?

I have also been thinking of personal New Year-esque resolutions. Writing. Yoga. Baking. Etc.

There are also goals for our little family. Date night. More than once every 6 months, for example.

And thrown in there is my idea of doing some kind of pre-school-ish activtity for little man.

As an aside, my mom, when I told her this, started chortling into her elbow. She is a super-mom who homeschooled all of us. I always said I wouldn't do the same. But she apparently believes I am on the slippery slope to homeschooling my children by suggesting this….eh, maybe she is right. Especially if I could buy 20 acres outside the city, put up a yurt, and start a dairy goat farm. Then I would have a bazillion babies – or as many as could fit into the yurt, to work the farm of course – and homeschool every single socially awkward one of them with a smile.

While wearing homemade moccasins – ooo, the kind that lace up to your knee! I kinda like those.

With my hair in dreads – I am nearly there anyway.

And a handknit sweater – with wool from my own watchdog llama.

And, of course, an apron - maybe one made out of organic hemp. HA.

You are welcome to visit should this come to fruition.

And all of that above, that vision of my alternative self makes me think of who I am becoming.

Am I on the road to being that Sara? As opposed to suit-wearing Sara who mingled with politicians in foreign countries? (If you can believe it, yes, that was me pre-babycakes - very, very different from the above goat farming mama image)

Huge digression. Sorry.

Although, thinking about self and direction and fruition of dreams is a good thing. Especially at the beginning of a new year, which is what September is to me.

In any case.

I am thinking of this sort of thing for weekly routine:

Monday –

Morning, clean up from weekend. Laundry, diapers, etc.
Afternoon, Baking projects.

Tuesday –

Morning Playdate (at the park, the mall, friends house, etc)
Afternoon, writing

Wednesday –

Craft day, mama does crafty things, kids do crafty things

Thursday –

Morning, library or something like that
Afternoon, writing

Friday –

Morning, fun errands (where we spend time at the park or getting a hot chocolate, etc)
Afternoon, cleaning for weekend (A clean house really helps the weekend go more smoothly, if you are neurotic like me and can only relax in a clean environment. Ok. I am pathetic. I know.)

Daily things:

30 minutes of reading/letters/numbers with little man.
Sweeping/basic picking up/laundry (obviously)

Now, I have to say. I have always thought that this kind of a daily schedule was, well, lame. I like to think I am more flexible in my life than this. But, the fact is, I crave routine. It is nice to wake up and think “This” is what is happening today. A working life is like this (Monday staff meetings, Wednesday client presentations, etc.) so home life can be too. And I think having these things ordered (with the baking and the crafting and etc) will help me actually do them.

Well, that is the plan at least.

But then, besides ordering home life I need to get my act together too. So I am thinking this sort of thing.

Personal goals:

• Do a real live yoga class every week, with real live adults.
• Running (by MYSELF) after dada comes home at least once a week (running with children in a double stroller, which I do, is so aggravating. DON’T HIT. Here is your juice. Here is a snack. I said DON’T hit. Etc. etc.)
• Get out of the house by myself every week. (yes, this would be a major accomplishment.)
• Write 1,000 words a day on writing projects.
• Post here daily (or is that overkill? Would you all read that much of my ramblings?)
• Etc.

And then there is the To Do List.

I have many to do lists throughout my house for many areas of life. I love To Do Lists. But for the purposes of this discussion I will only inflict the one currently on the fridge upon you dear readers.

Things To Do Around The House. (dada LOVES this one.)

Things like:

• Organize toys (taking some un-played with toys into storage, pulling others out, etc)
• Organize kids clothes (small summer clothes out, fall clothes in, assess wardrobe needs, etc.)
• Organize adult clothes
• Get little man to go to sleep by himself at night (OMG. we have started doing this and it is WORKING!! AND, an added bonus is that it makes him stay in his OWN BED ALL NIGHT. Amazing.)
• Go through each room of the house and simplify (I plan on doing this the easy way, taking piles of crap and moving it all to the basement where I will deal with them at some point in the winter when I need a project to keep me sane.)
• Rotate pictures, decorations around house (I have a TON of knick knacks in storage, lets face it, preschoolers and toddlers do not mix with a knick-knacked-up house)
• And etc.

So. GSO month. What do you think? READY. SET. GO!


Next up: Am thinking woolie-how-to post needs to happen, especially if the lovely cooler weather continues.