organizing my home

You know, I always thought of myself as an organized person. I plan events months in advance, I make lists constantly, I love to set things up in Excel. Yet, I feel now more than ever that my life is a mess. Why is it a mess? Because my house is a mess! I can't seem to get into the right rythm to get anything done. Now, having a baby has definitely complicated my ability to clean and organize whenever I want. Now, I definitely have more interuptions than known to man.

I finally came up with a solution, albeit a very old fashioned solution. I made a home binder. It isn't completely finished yet. I have it broken up into days of the week and then Home Projects, Menus, and the ever loved "other" category. For each day of the week I have the "everyday tasks" written out on a page. Things like dishes, sweeping the house, general cleanup, Bible study and prayer. Then on the subsequent pages I have blank paper to make another list of "to-do's" for the day.

I rarely ever get everything accomplished. But, at least I feel like I have a plan for everyday now. And I do seem to be getting a lot more done than I had been before. I guess the fact that it is all in one place, and I tick off each task as I've completed it, it seems to work well. Now, the old fashioned part. Apparently this was a very common thing back in the "old" days. And there were actual tasks associated with each day of the week. Here they are:

Monday: Washday
Tuesday: Ironing
Wednesday: Sewing
Thursday: Marketing
Friday: Cleaning
Saturday: Baking
Sunday: Meeting and Rest

Now, I am going to break it down for you, I don't iron a blessed thing. If it needs to be ironed, I don't wear it. I did iron some stuff for Matt once, but he just went back and re-ironed it, so I figured I wouldn't waste my time in the future :-) If I could actually do these tasks on their designated days, it might actually work out. Do any of you out there use a home binder? How is it organized? Or what do you do to keep your home in order? I really am interested in any ideas out there :-)

the House

I have been trying to make little lists here and there about the stuff that we still need to do to finish the house. However, I don't think they are accurate. They sugar coat the amount of work that still needs to be done. Part of my reason for starting this blog was to help me stay accountable. And how can I stay accountable if I am lying to myself about what needs to be done? Not just with the house, but my attitude, my relationship with God, my relationship with food, ick. There is a lot that needs to be done...so cheers to my first list!

Downstairs:

Bedroom:
-quarter round around flooring
-patch around ceiling decoration (still little holes around the outside)
-put up crown moulding
-get a door, and hang it
-finish converting TV armoires to clothing armoires (why the heck don't they have old fashioned armoires for clothes anymore? Instead it seems they are all for TV's!)
-get fabric to make curtains for windows (ask mom how to make curtains)
-paint one more coat on the door trim, so the yucky blue color doesn't still show through
-put baseboard heater covers on

Bathroom:
-paint all trim and baseboards
-sand and paint weird gray door
-get another pole for a real shower curtain (not just the plastic one that keeps the water in the shower)
-build shelves so that we can get rid of the tall white bookcase (this is much later down the road)
-repair flooring that the delivery men ripped up when putting the washer and dryer in the bathroom

Entryway:
-paint trim and baseboards
-patch hole by door
-get a new door without a window in it, or paint the one we have and make a curtain for the window
-replace the locks on the doors (including upstairs entry and front door)
-build box for radiator so my little niece and nephew don't burn themselves
-build box for pipes that run heat to upstairs
-build pantry/coat closet

Kitchen:
-finish prep work for trim and wainscoting
-prime and paint said trim and wainscoting
-put up top trim pieces of window/2 doorways
-put baseboard heater covers on

Living Room:
-paint walls
-prime and paint trim and baseboards
-lay new flooring (currently only sub floor)
-put up crown moulding
-put baseboard heater covers on
-make curtains for windows
-get living room furniture
-get a wood stove (this is also way down the line, but something I would really like, oil is too expensive!)

Dining Room:
-finish prep work on ceiling
-finish priming ceiling
-paint ceiling
-prime and paint walls
-prime and paint built in bookcase/trim/baseboards
-lay new flooring (again only sub floor)
-put baseboard heater covers on
-make curtains
-get new door/hang new door for basement entry
-knock hole through dining room wall so that we can connect the upstairs and downstairs (house was a duplex...sort of)

OK, well I was going to write about the upstairs too, but as this post turned into a very very long list, I think little separation could be a good thing...for my sanity. Until next time then!

Lists

I love lists. I think that I make a list at least once a day, whether or not I stick to them. They help me to set my priorities, to figure out what needs to be done, to know if I have forgotten anything. Lists help me process, and that is why I love them. I can't figure out what type of writing will end up here. I think my blog title is more then forgiving for my soon to be constant ramblings on life, love, being green, eating locally, and living for God. I hope that these lists will help me with my journey, and if not, at least it will help with my stress level :-)