Yet Another Update! :)

Starting to feel accomplished as one whole side of upper kitchen cupboards are done!  (Well, technically I have to put the a few things back in one of them, but they are all clean.)

Yesterday I did the Lazy Susan and the cupboard over my fridge.  I wanted to do the cupboard over the oven but I ran out of time.  (We have Wednesday night church and I had to get dinner and then go.)  This morning did it right away, but I still plan to do something else on the list if  I get to it before going to the grocery store.  Since the Lazy Susan was a job on its own, I'm technically ahead of myself, but I'm okay with that.  Looking around I can find a lot more things to do than the 40 I planned to do, so if I get them done before my deadline, I have plenty more to keep me busy.  (Plus the things I did first will likely be dirty and/or disorganized.  It never ends, does it? ;)

Happy Cleaning, Organizing, Giving, and Tossing!!!  

Another Update!

Just a quick update.  Did my spice cupboard yesterday. Whoo hoo! It's a regular cupboard with three shelves.  I don't even use that many spices!  So, I condensed my spices and cleared the top shelf.  I finally have a home for the many extra bowls and baking dishes I never had a place for.  (I have a small kitchen.)

Then I went a little crazy.  Yep, I cleaned out another area!  Okay, another easy one, my cereal cabinet. I am now over halfway done with my kitchen cupboards.  This whole one area a day thing is working for me. Messy folks like me just can't handle the thought of cleaning a whole house or even a whole room.  It's just overwhelming.  So breaking it down to one small task works! I feel like I've accomplished exactly what I set out to do.  Goodbye feeling like I'm drowning.  :) 

Today I plan to clean the cupboards over the oven and fridge.  Then I am going to go a little wild again and clean the Lazy Susan.  My youngest, Baber, is clearing off all the cans as I type.  It gets so dirty considering I just keep cans on it.  Could be that my kids broke off the door. Whenever I clean it, which has been maybe three or four times, I reorganize like foods together.  It makes it so much easier to use.  I'm actually looking forward to it.  I actually do well organizing small areas.  That doesn't overwhelm me.  It's large areas that freak me out.  What about you?  Are you better at the big picture or the details?  

Happy Cleaning and Organizing!

40 Day Challenge Update #1

Okay, so I've done three days now. Can't say I've done anything earth-shattering. Wednesday I did what was probably the easiest job on my list, the bread drawer. That being said, there was some mold in there. Truth be told, there was a lot. Yuck! I then did what was probably the second easiest job on the list, my medicine chest.  It was fairly easy because it hadn't been that long since I'd done it. (That right there is a miracle.) Then I did my silverware and utensil draws. I did actually throw some stuff out! There were the beaters from my old mixer, and a dented up potato masher. I also pitched a few other odds and ends. The drawers themselves were crummy. How do those crumbs get in there? I still need to reline them with some contact paper. They are not looking too spiffy anymore.

Okay, so not the most inspiring update. However, had I not made the list, chances are nothing would have gotten done. Oh!  I almost forgot, SANE MAN actually totally reorganized my two main dish cupboards. He is really great at that sort of thing. This is by no means the norm around here. He is not usually one to pitch in with housework. However, he had to install a new dishwasher (less than a month after we got a new washer) and we were trying to get all the dishes that had piled up cleaned and put away. In his frustration to find a place for things he started reorganizing. Who was I to stop him (even at 2:00 a..m.)?

So, how are YOU doing? Several people have told me they are with me. If so, please leave a comment here and let me know!

Happy Cleaning!

40 Days of Cleaning, Sorting, Organizing, and Dumping

Recently another blogging friend, Jennifer, sent me an idea.  It was a cleaning challenge.  The idea was basically to clean out 40 areas of your house, getting rid of a bag of junk from each area.  (In my case this could actually be bags.) Sounded like a winning idea to me!

So I put together a list of 40 areas of my house that really need attention.  That's pretty much the whole house.  LOL  My plan is to take one area each day (or maybe two if I'm feeling extra ambitious) and tackle it, then blog about it.  If I get really brave, I'll take pics!  I'm taking Sundays and holidays off, and I have a week of vacation coming up, but other than that, I am committing to at least one area a day in no particular order.

Now, I'm a joiner. I do my best work in groups, and if there's a little competition within the group, I do even better.  So, I already have Jennifer on board, but I'd like to ask all of you to join me too. You don't have to follow my plan exactly.  Just come up with something to do in forty days.  Jennifer even mentioned doing home improvement projects. (I do have some pictures that need to be hung.) It can be anything really, as long as it related to creating order in your home. My projected completion date is August 27.  Are you up to the challenge? The plan is to put up a Linky so if you blog about your projects you can link to it. Until then, go ahead and let me know what you're doing in the comments.

And, just to keep myself accountable, here are my forty areas:

Areas that are done are highlighted!

1. Boys' room under beds/floor
2. Top of boys' dresser
3. Boys' dresser drawers
4. Bin of misc. in boys' room
5. Bin of toys in boys' room
6. Hall closet/hall/shelves
7. Kitchen junk drawer
8.Cupboard under junk drawer
9. Cupboard above junk drawer
10.Spice Cabinet
11.Cabinet over microwave/Clean microwave
12.Cabinet over fridge
13. Utensil and silverware drawers
14. Bread drawer
15. Plastic storage container drawer
16. Corner Cabinet over Sink
17. Corner Cabinet over Lazy Susan
18. Dish cabinets (Done by my honey!)
19. Cereal Cabinet
20. Lazy Susan
21. Bedroom Closet
22. Night Stand
23. Dresser top
24. Dresser Drawers 1 and 2
25. Dresser Drawers 3 and 4
26. Dresser Drawer 5
27. Dresser Drawers 6 and 7
28. Under bed
29. Living Room/Dining room (Hang pictures!)
30. Bookshelf one
31. Bookshelf  two
32. Medicine cabinet
33. Baskets in bathroom
34. Stairs and landing area (basement)
35. Table in basement
36. Under table in basement
37. CD cabinet
38. Laundry shelves
39. Laundry table
40. Laundry area

So there it is!  My challenge to myself is to finish cleaning out all of these areas by August 27.  Any and all encouragement is welcome!

Happy Cleaning!!!

Check Out this Kroger Promotion and Maybe Even Get a Gift Card!

I recently got this info, and thought I'd share with you.  Keep reading to find out how you could get a $25 Kroger gift card!

First a little commercial break.  ;)

Attention Kroger shoppers! Grab a cart (or two!) and head to your local Kroger Co. Family of Stores for the Kroger Buy 5 - Save $5 Event! From October 14th through October 24th purchase 5 participating General Mills products, and receive a coupon for $5 off your next shopping order* (coupon printed at checkout)!

• Look for some of your favorite participating General Mills products like Cheerios, Lucky Charms, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Pillsbury Toaster Strudel, Betty Crocker Cake and Brownie Mixes, Hamburger Helper, Totino’s Party Pizza, Yoplait** and many more!

 

• Promotion varies in different locations so please be sure to check your local Kroger Co. Family of Stores*** for specific deals and offers which include: Kroger, Ralphs, King Scoopers, City Market, Dillons, Smith’s, Fry’s, QFC, Baker’s, Owen’s, Jay C Food Stores, Hilander, Gerbes, Fred Meyer, Pay Less Supermarkets and Scott’s Food & Pharmacy

Here are some links you might be interested in:

• Kroger Website: http://bit.ly/Kroger5
• Kroger Facebook: http://bit.ly/Kroger5FB
• Kroger Twitter: http://bit.ly/Kroger5TW
• General Mills Website: http://bit.ly/Kroger5GM

* Products must be purchased during one shopping visit. To view a list of participating products see your store for details. The $5 coupon offer off your next shopping trip offer expires 1 week from the print date, with the coupon prints ending October 24th. Any offers printed on October 24th will expire on October 31st.

**Yoplait items vary by state

***Excludes Food 4 Less

So, now I bet you wanna know how you might be the lucky one to get a $25 gift card!  Read on...

 Giveaway rules: Please read them CAREFULLY as I don't seem to be explaining them well enough. LOL 

Leave a comment. Tell me what you'd like to buy at Kroger to get one entry.

 

Want more entries? Here are four more ways you can enter, for a total of five ways to enter! :)

 

Follow me on facebook, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (If you already follow, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

Follow me on Twitter, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (If you already follow, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

Follow me with Google Friend Connect or Linky Followers, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (If you already follow, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

Subscribe to my blog via Feedburner, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (See sidebar. If you already subscribe, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

You must be 13 years old or older to enter and not live in The Crazy House. :) You must, however, live in the U.S.A. Please leave your e-mail address or some other way I can contact you if you win, or I'll have to draw another winner. MAKE SURE YOU LEAVE A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH ADDITIONAL ENTRY for up to five entries per person. More than one person may enter per household if they are at least 13 years old. That's about it. :)

The contest will close at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, October 21, 2012. The winner will be chosen on Monday, October 22, 2012 or sometime soon after.  (Soon being a relative term.  LOL)

“Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Yet another disclosure:  The gift card, information, and additional sample have been provided by Kroger and General Mills through MyBlogSpark.”

Happy Shopping!!!
 

Million Minute Challenge

Hey everyone,

This is just a quick post to let you know about a fun way to spend more quality time with your family.  It's called the Million Minute Family Challenge.   The idea is the brainstorm of the folks at a game company called Patch Products.  The company creates and sells games that you might be familiar with, such as Farkle and Buzz Word. 

To get involved just head on over to the website and sign up.  Then, every time your family or group plays a game, log on your total minutes played.  Create a personal goal for minutes played, while helping reach the goal of one million minutes played for all participants involved.  The challenge runs from September to the end of the year.

I should note that while I'm sure a big part of this site is to help promote games from Patch, you are never obligated to buy anything and you can log in minutes from any game you play.  (Well, I don't think video games count.)   The idea is to just get people to have some good old-fashioned fun. 

Anyway, I thought I'd let you know so you could play too!  I hope you'll check it out!

Happy game playing!!!

Review and Giveaway!!! TONITE on The Gameshow Network: The American Bible Challenge!!!

Arrrrrrgh!!!  I rarely watch TV, and I don't have cable.  However, I sure wish I did today!!!  I would love to be able to watch "The American Bible Challenge" with my family.  I was, however, able to watch just a very brief sneak peak of the show.  (My internet is lame.  We are obviosly knda low tech around here.) 

What I did see was quite impressive.  The show looks great!  It looks like any other modern game show.  If you read the info below, you'll see the show is put together by some real professionals who've help create many other popluar shows.  So exciting!  Check out the info and then keep reading to find out how you can win an American Bible Challenge T-shirt and a bible!  How cool is that?

About The American Bible Challenge

Comedian and author, Jeff Foxworthy hosts this studio-based game in which contestants compete based on their knowledge of the Bible. Utilizing current as well as historical references, questions will be drawn from the rich, dense narrative found in the world's best-selling book. The contestants will share their compelling back-stories and each team will be playing for a charitable organization. The American Bible Challenge is produced by RelativityREAL for GSN, with RelativityREAL’s Tom Forman (“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”) and Embassy Row’s Michael Davies ("The Newlywed Game," "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire") serving as Executive Producers on the project. Nick Stuart and Maura Dunbar of Odyssey Networks are Consulting Producers.

 

About Host: Jeff Foxworthy

Comedian Jeff Foxworthy is the largest selling comedy-recording artist in history, a multiple Grammy® Award nominee and the best-selling author of 11 books. Widely known for his redneck jokes, his act goes beyond that to explore the humor in everyday family interactions and human nature.

 

For More Info:

 

Website: http://gsntv.com/shows/the-american-bible-challenge/

Trailer: http://gsntv.com/shows/the-american-bible-challenge/videos/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theamericanbiblechallenge

Twitter: #TheAmericanBibleChallenge and @GSN

 

Now, on to the contest!!!  :)

 

Would you like to win  an American Bible Challenge T-Shirt AND a Zondervan Quest Bible?

Giveaway rules: Please read them CAREFULLY as I don't seem to be explaining them well enough. LOL

Leave a comment here on this post.   Let me know if you watched, or will watch the show. 

 

Want more entries? Here are four more ways you can enter, for a total of five ways to enter! :)

Follow me on facebook, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (If you already follow, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

Follow me on Twitter, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (If you already follow, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

Follow me with Google Friend Connect or Linky Followers, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (If you already follow, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

Subscribe to my blog via Feedburner, and leave AN ADDITIONAL comment HERE ON THIS POST. (See sidebar. If you already subscribe, just leave an additional comment HERE ON THIS POST to let me know.)

 

You must be 13 years old or older to enter and not live in The Crazy House. :) Please leave your e-mail address or some other way I can contact you if you win, or I'll have to draw another winner. MAKE SURE YOU LEAVE A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH ADDITIONAL ENTRY for up to five entries per person. More than one person may enter per household if they are at least 13 years old. That's about it. :)

 

The contest will close at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, September 9, 2012. The winner will be chosen on Monday, September 10, 2012 or sometime soon after.

  

 

"Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services

mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I

only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255:

"Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

The Making of a Man

Sunday we had a big birthday party for Dode Man.  It was his 13th birthday!  (I now have FIVE teens, yikes!)  Anyway, the 13th is special in our family.  That is when our boys are expected to start becoming men!  (And our girls women, of course.)

We rented a hall and invited our extended family and and anyone special in our Dode's life.   He had his best friend Luke and his family, his neighborhood buddy and his mom and sister, a few kids from church, and three from our co-op.  We also invited the children's pastor, the youth pastor, and the pastor who baptised him.  A couple of the older men from church he likes to talk to even came.  Of course there were aunts, uncles, and cousins.  Unfortunately three our of four of his grandparents weren't feeling well and couldn't make it, but they were there in spirit.  We even had food which we never have at parties!  LOL  (It's all I can do to get the cake frosted most of the time.)  We had mostaccolli, sloppy joes, Sane Man's favorite subs, pasta salad, potato salad, cheese and crackers and a veggie tray.  Oh, and cake! 

After we ate, my husband spoke for a few minutes about what he expected from Dode Man now that he was a young man.  He presented him with a compass engraved with the scripture Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.  I think that was where he was supposed to present him with his first adult Bible, but he forgot!  (He got it later that evening at home!)  Anyway, the compass is to remind him of the path he should take in life. 

Then his Uncle John, who is also a pastor, came up and spoke for a few minutes and encouraged Dode in his walk with God.  He was followed by the children's pastor, the youth pastor, his brothers First Born and Renaissance man, and and one of the older men.  Then Sane Man called me up and we prayed for him.  Then we sang and had cake!

I thought I would share this because I think it's so important to encourage our young men to be men!  It seems like no one even expects kids these days to man up until they are in their late 20s, if then.  Dode couldn't wait to start reading his Bible this morning, and he's been on his best behavior for the last two days.  Will it last?  I doubt it.  I'm sure he'll slack off a little, but now he knows what we expect of him, and we know he is capable. 

Is there anything you do when your child starts to grow up?  I'd love to hear about it!

Happy parenting!

A Reflection on 21 Years of Parenting

My oldest son, First Born, just turned 21. Wow. I can't believe it's been that long! So today I am being nostalgic, looking back on his life, and thinking about all the little successes and failures along the way. I have been far from the perfect parent. I mean, just the fact that the poor kid lived with me through seven more pregnancies should earn him a medal!

We've never been great with schedules, and we've often stayed up way too late and slept in way too late.  (Babies with mixed up days and nights didn't help.)  Once I had more than a few kids, I often let them get their own breakfasts and lunches, though I did stay pretty consistent with dinner.   We were sick all the time, and often school had to take a back burner to wiping noses (and other body parts.) Most days the house was a wreck.   I did my fair share of crying, yelling, and seriously contemplating running off to a distant land never to be seen again.

Honestly, looking back I can't figure out now First Born came out to be such a great kid!  I do know that no matter what, I always let him know how much I loved him.  I think homeschooling helped, as he didn't have the negative peer influence many kids get in school.  We worked him hard, and that helped him be responsible.  (Though he's still learning in that area!)  Most importantly, we led him to Jesus.

The reason I share this with you is because some of you might be contemplating running off to a distant land too!  Or maybe you've just been crying and/or yelling a little more than usual today. Maybe you were up all night with a baby, or cleaning up puke, or wiping butts or noses, or your house is a mess.  Maybe it's noon and your kids are just getting up and getting a bowl of cold cereal. Maybe you feel like an epic failure and are sure you have failed as a mother.   Maybe all of the above. But don't give up hope!  Keep on keepin' on, and keep your eyes on Jesus.  There is hope.  I mean, you do fail as a mom.  We all do.  It's in the Bible. But so is the Hope that keeps us going.  Don't give up.  Soon your oldest will be 21 and you'll look back and realize it was all worth it, just like I do.

Happy Birthday, son!  I love you!!!

Happy parenting!

New Review!!! Raising Real Men!

Raising Real Men:  Surviving, Teaching, and Appreciating Boys

by Hal and Melanie Young

Retail Price: $15

I came across this book one day, I don't even remember how, but I just HAD to have a copy.  So I asked for a review copy and was fortunate to receive one.  (Initially they told me it was only for "big time" bloggers.  Well, I hardly qualify for that, but I also told them I have SIX boys, so they gave in!  LOL)

Anyway, the Young family is a lot like a certain other family I know with six boys, and two girls.  Namely mine!  (Actually I see myself as the mother of 14 because, in my mind, boys count double!  LOL  Well, mine do anyway.)  If you have even one boy, you know they can be a handful.  Sure, there are some quiet, studious, thoughtful boys, but they tend to be the exception, don't they? 

To be fair, two of mine are also fairly quiet, but they still like to do wild stuff like ollie off the porch.  This basically means you run out the front door, jump onto a skateboard, ride off the porch, land back on the board on the sidewalk, and keep on going.  (Before you freak out and call Social Services, this is my 18 year old doing this.  And, no, I did NOT know about it until I saw the picture!)

Well, anyway, raising boys is kinda LIKE doing an ollie off the porch.  You gotta start off running, take a leap, and then keep on going even after you've safely landed, only to do it all over again.  That's what it feels like anyway.  Some days I don't land on the board, some days I'm afraid to take that leap, and some days I can't even get up and running!  But somehow I still manage to keep on going.

This is one of those books I could have written myself.  I agree with just about everything in it.  The Youngs are very balanced people.  They don't seem to take one extreme side of any issue.  Take gun play, for example.  They don't outlaw it in their homes, yet they have made very specific rules about how the boys are to play.  Rules like "no shooting other people" teach them not only gun safety, but also the spiritual lesson about "avoiding the appearance of evil."

The Youngs also discuss many other areas of "controversy," such as homeschooling, courtship, and discipline.  But no matter what the topic, they keep in mind that boys are simply men who haven't grown up.  (I know a few of those in their 40s!)  There is a tendency in our culture to make boys into sort of a boy/girl hybrid.  They are told to sit all "nicey, nicey," and are drugged when they don't.  (Yes, some kids really do have ADHD, but many who don't, I truly believe, are drugged just to make life easier for their parents and teachers.  And to say the thought of drugging my own boys has not crossed my mind, would be a lie!)

The book is laid out so that the first half attempts to explain male behavior.  I say attempts only because, while they do an excellent job explaining all about boys and their ways, us women folk will never quite understand them completely.  I imagine there are times when Melanie is still left scratching her head at some of the things her boys do.  (And dare I say at some of the things Hal does?  LOL)  Okay, to be fair, I'm sure Hal and the boys sometimes scratch their heads at some of the things Melanie and the girls do! :)

The second half of the book basically gives instruction on how to raise these wild, untamed creatures of the male species.  From what they share about their older boys, they have done a fantastic job!  (Would YOU send your 17 year old off to China as a tour guide?  You'd have to be pretty confident in the young man's maturity level, would you not?)

I don't want to tell you too much and give the whole book away, but I do want to tell you about one piece of advice that I have taken to heart.  Let the YOUNGEST child who is able do the job.  The absolute biggest mistake we've made is to rely on our two oldest boys to do most of the work.  Once they were trained it was hard to let the third and fourth take over as it meant re-training.  Who wants to do that?  Well, YOU do if you have more than one or two, or you will find that the others tend to get lazy and even resentful when you DO ask them to do something.  That's how it is around here anyway.  So I have been really on the younger kids to pull their weight around here.  When a job is to be done I now consider the youngest first.  Absolutely great advice.

I really enjoyed the book.  The family reminds me so much of my own, except somehow they seem to have pulled it off so much better than we do!  If you have a boy, I would highly recommend this book.  I could write so much more, but right now I have to go ollie off the porch! 

****************************************************
Check out the Raising Real Men Facebook page here.

Find out how to get your own copy here.

Check out the Table of Contents. Sample Chapter: Racing to Win

ISBN: 978-0-9841443-0-3
256 pages. 6×9 trade paperback.