Lessons from washing dishes

Washing dishes is one chore I never really enjoyed. But since our dishwasher went out it's surprisingly become a task that I look forward to. There is something totally satisfying about taking a sink full of dirty dishes and with a little time and elbow grease transforming them into something pretty and clean. Instant gratification.

And I'm gaining an appreciation for the millions of women for whom a dishwasher was never an option. My Grandma and Grandpa Howe never had a dishwasher. I remember going over to their house for Sunday dinner and helping them to wash dishes. It was a bonding experience. One person would wash, another person would rinse, and everyone else would help dry and put the dishes away. It was a task that needed to be done and the family worked together to do it.

Hopefully my girls will learn to appreciate the beauty of that experience. As we work together we can accomplish good things. At first a sink full of dishes can look daunting. But a sink full of dishes is something that can always be overcome one dish at a time. It's a relentless task, but we can learn that there are simple pleasures in even disageeable tasks. The rainbows in the bubbles, the feel of the warm water on cold hands, and the pile of neatly stacked clean dishes are all things to delight in.

Someday we'll get a new dishwasher. But for now I'm thankful for the lessons I've learned by washing dishes.

Dinner-time Drama

(Summer pouting because she didn't like what I made for dinner.)

I'm not a picky eater. I never have been. Growing up I pretty much ate whatever my Mom made. Sometimes I didn't love it, but I ate it. So, I'm totally confused by my picky kids. Every night one or more of my children throws a fit about what we're having. McKenna doesn't like pizza, spaghetti, stroganoff, minestrone soup, enchiladas, or meatloaf. Lydia doesn't like Hawaiian Haystacks, lasagna, tacos, white bean chile, cheese-stuffed jumbo shells, or baked chicken. Emily doesn't like Cheesy Broccoli soup, garden burgers, lemon spaghetti, chinese chicken and veggies, or BBQ chicken pizza. Summer doesn't like maccaroni and cheese, sandwiches, pasta cheese casserole, pasta primavera or pulled chicken sandwiches.

The only things they agree on are salmon, meatballs, or pancakes.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

Today

David had to work today, so the girls and I were left to entertain ourselves.

Summer & Emily built a fort in the kitchen. McKenna & Lydia set up camp on the front porch. (Notice the space heaters and portable DVD player.)

The girls consumed about 10 bags of popcorn and each had a couple mugs of hot cocoa.

I spent a long time washing dishes. Our dishwasher broke so we're doing it the old-fashioned way.

I also spent some good time playing peek-a-boo with this cutie.

And after spending way too long preparing for primary tomorrow, I treated myself to some knitting time.

It's been a good day.

Cookie Monster

This baby figured out where the cookie jar is.

And she already knows to twist them open and eat the cream first. Definitely a mark of genius.

Caught

A couple days ago I let Summer take some pictures with my camera. When I went to upload the photos yesterday I found this picture of Emily. Climbing on the banister is a big NO-NO in our house. And she was caught. Kind of likes those dumb criminal stories. :) I showed her the picture and asked her what she thought her consequence for disobeying should be. She decided to be grounded from the computer.

But it makes me wonder what else I'm missing. Maybe I should let Summer use my camera more often!

Tip & Treat

Once a month in Primary we give our teachers a "Tip & Treat." They work so hard they deserve a regular little thank you. This month I printed out the Age Characteristics of Children from "Teaching, No Greater Call" for the tip and got them a bag of chips for the treat. Easy. And hopefully gives the teachers some useful information and a morale boost.

Hormones are the devil

Usually I'm a pretty functional, happy, productive person. But about once a month I lose it. It usually starts with feelings of "I can't", which then leads to some time curled up in fetal position. (Leaving my kids unattended.) When I get it together to get up and resume my parental responsibilities, I emerge from my room to find my house in a mess-- which then leads to major flip-out....then guilt...... more 'I can'ts'.... and more fetal position.

Please tell me I'm not alone.

Sock it to them

Inspired by THIS blog, I decided to curl my girls' hair using socks. It's awesome! Just roll the hair up in the socks and let them sleep on them. (Kind of like old-fashioned rag curls.)

In the morning they wake up with a head full of beautiful curls.

Fast enough to do their hair and still make the 7am bus on time! Genius.

Snow Day

We only had about 1 1/2 inch of snow. But it was enough for our kids to think that the world had been turned into a winter wonderland.

As far as I'm concerned, one inch about once a year is plenty. It's fun for a couple of days. But I live in Georgia for a reason. :)

House of Order: Meal Planning

Our family likes to eat-- like three times a day!! (or more) :) And since I'm the one primarily responsible for providing the meals it can become a relentless task. Here are a few things I've done to simplify the process:

1. I've put together a customized cookbook with all of the meals we like to eat. (I have a separate notebook for recipes I've copied from blogs or magazines.) Once we've tried a recipe and determined that it's a keeper it can go into Our Favorites cookbook. Each week I sit down with the cookbook and pick out five or six meals that sound good.

2. I use a cheap spiral notebook for our meal lists and grocery lists. On the left page I write the meals I have planned for the week. On the right page I write out our grocery list (using the our customized cookbook as a reference for what ingredients we need for each recipe.) I keep the spiral notebook in a cupboard in the kitchen so I can refer back to it when I'm deciding what to make for dinner. (I don't assign days to the meals because I like to have some flexibility in determining what we want to eat each night.)

3. My grocery list is divided up into categories: Produce, Grain, Canned/Prepared, Meat, Dairy, Frozen, Misc. Most grocery stores have their isles separated into the same categories so it makes it easy to find and check off the things that you need. If there is something I can't find or decide to skip on the list, I just circle it and then transfer it to the next week's list. And at home it's always handy to add something to the list when I notice we're running low.

(My kids have also learned that when they go grocery shopping with me, if it's not on the list we do not buy it. If there is something they want they can request it be added to the list before we go in to the store.)

House of Order: Use what you have

Someday I would love to have my closets organized with pretty baskets and nice containers. (Something like this....)

But I have had too many other things I'd rather spend my money on right now. So, I'm making do with what I have. But do you know what? It works!

All like items are grouped together using small boxes or plastic bins (whatever I had on hand), and it functions well. I never have to hunt for something and when my kids ask "where is the.....?" I can tell them exactly where to find it.

And the girls hair bows are all organized using what I had availabel as well.

Sorted by color, tossed in zip-loc bags, and then thrown in a drawer. Easy peasy.

How do you use what you already have to make your home run smoother?

House of Order: Weekly Schedule

Since January is traditionally the month of fresh starts and clean beginnings, I thought I would share some of the tips and tricks I use to keep my house in order. And I invite you to do the same!!! Please share the little things that make your life a little easier. (Leave a comment so we can be sure to check out your awesome ideas!!)

One of the things I've figured out after 11 years of being a homemaker is that I need a weekly routine. My routine offers some flexibility, but it also defines specific times for me to get most of the things done that are important to me. It works for me. And while I have a long way to go to be completely organized, this routine at least keeps me on track.

Monday: laundry; tidy entire house (make beds, put "stuff" away); clean bathrooms and kitchen (One week I deep clean the bathroom and do a quick clean in the kitchen and then the next week I deep clean the kitchen and do a quick clean in the bathroom); vacuum.

Tuesday: grocery shop; pay bills

Wednesday: project day! It's nice to have a "fun" day in the middle of the week when I get to do whatever I want.

Thursday: laundry; tidy entire house; new for 2010--organize something! (a drawer, closet, cabinet, etc.)

Friday: get ready for primary; do whatever else needs to be done; date night!

Saturday: yard work (I've really neglected this one ever since I got pregnat with Chloe. I'm going to try to do better in 2010.)

Sunday: church; day of "rest"

I try to get most of my work done while Summer is at school and Chloe naps (From 9:30am-12:30pm). Then I have the afternoons to get dinner ready, help my kids with their homework, and to go to whatever activities they have scheduled.