Just 5 Minutes

"Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein." 

- H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

So I'm still loving the Change Your Life Challenge book. I've been doing my homework. Step 9 beginning on Page 73 talks about when you're feeling overwhelmed by the chaos to just time yourself for 5 minutes and do something to help lessen the mess. From page 79:

"Using a timer is ideal. After you finish reading these instructions wait for the next minute to be displayed on your clock or set your timer to five minutes. Then immediately begin your chosen action. If you want immediate, quick results, you will not find a quicker tool that can be applied to any area of life.
"Please do not just read these words adn vow to "Do-it-later." We know how that path unfolds and it isn't one that will take you where you want ot go. In five minutes, STOP! Then come back

I'm loving that idea of just taking a baby step, just 5 minutes, to work. And you know what, after that 5 minutes, you're already feeling better and have a bit of energy and so the 5 minutes often turns into more. Sweet. Gonna go take 5 minutes to work on laundry. :)

The Change Your Life Challenge Begins

I've been busy this past week striving to establish life changing habits. In my quest to master my little dominion, I went searching for some cheap self help tips via the local thrift store's book section. I've got dinner and keeping a family financial record figured out, but I'm still greatly lacking in getting this household clean and running like a fine tuned machine. So I was at the DI just picking up any book that looked like it might have a gem of insight to impart, and I found two that hit the spot - this title sounded like just the kinda book I was looking for:  The Change Your Life Challenge by Brook Noel. I liked filling out my snapshot and getting my personalized prescription of where I needed to begin to manage things right now in my life. She recommends filling out the snapshot once a month once we start to get a handle on things, as for now I think I'll be busy with this snapshot for a few months. I also am loving the Catch All Notebook (aka CAN), because I am very guilty of writing reminders and notes to self on any old scrap anywhere and then not being able to find it. So it's been fun. You can get the book used on Amazon for like 1cent plus $3.99 shipping, so $4 bucks for a book isn't bad, right? Let's do it, or you can just check in here and I'll try to keep you posted on how the application of it's tips are going in our neck of the woods.

One Wall Down

These three frames were an impulse buy from Walmart last week, and the vision I had in mind when I bought them was materialized today... Presenting a wall in the side room that is now documenting history:

Each collection of photos is of our several months in that country - first Brazil from 2007:

Then Costa Rica from 2010:

And finally Chile in 2010-11

I really like it and I think it will make me smile each time I walk by, except that I need to center the Costa Rica flag better. I'll do it someday. And from this project I learned that it's pretty hard to capture several months of experiences and memories in just 12 photos. I'll update these photos tonight when I don't have the sunlight reflection from outside.

Keepers

I recently bought the cookbook Keepers and I really like it. I like the layout of the book - simple to read, easy to find the recipe I want, organized nicely. And I also really like that the recipes are pretty simple and that I already have most of the ingredients called for. So I just need to add one or two things on top of what I usually get at the grocery store, and we've got all the goods to try out a new meal and see if it's a keeper for us.

The Cheddar Quiche was a big hit on Sunday, then no one cared for the Chicken and sweet potatoes meal from last night, so it's hit and miss, but fun to try new things and see what they like now and what we'll revisit in a few years to see if their tastes have evolved. :)

Dinner Planning

I think I've got a system that is going to work for our family for dinner planning! Hooray! (Only taken me 13 years...) This might be a way that works while we've got a large busy family with all the kids at home. This is kinda following the Food Nanny's System by having the recipes and shopping list together on one paper, only this way I have more flexibility and am not committed to a theme night (I had a hard time committing myself ~ don't want to make something Mexican if we might not in the mood for Mexican that night, also sometimes if I wanted to make something I couldn't figure out which theme it would best fall under.) Here's how this system works:

I've got a clipboard in the kitchen in a convenient spot for me to see and reference when I'm in there. 

My spot is the little cupboard wall between the microwave and spice cupboard. (Also makes it so it's not visible when people walk in the kitchen, which is nice for keeping it looking uncluttered.)

On the clipboard is my dinner planning paper. I plan out the meals for 2 weeks and what ingredients I need to buy. There's room on the list for dinners and desserts, then I look through the pantry and what's I've got on hand and write out the ingredients I need to buy on the paper, so I've got my shopping list all ready. To keep things simple, I try to just do grocery shopping on one day (Thursday works nice for me), and I usually just go to Walmart and Costco. I look through whatever recipe books and then choose the dinner and dessert recipes to make. I write the meal and then reference it with book and page number so I can find it when it's time to make dinner. For example "Lime & Honey Salmon, Ray #253" for a recipe in a Rachel Ray's cookbook on page 253.  I also have my own recipe book for recipes from online or from magazines that I print up and organize -

Those are referenced by tab and page #.

I keep a sheet for next week on the clipboard too, so if there's a meal I know they kids want next time I can write it in, and I write down anything else we need from the store on there.

One month into it and it's working so far! We've had a sit down dinner ready everynight. :)

Chores During the School Year

During the school year, my kids have 4 jobs each day:

• Make your Bed
• Bedroom clean
• Clothes in closet or drawer neat and organized
• 2 After School chores

After they leave for school in the morning, I take my little clipboard with each kid and category marked and I check off who did their morning jobs. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place on the chores get a surprise on Monday night following the work week.

As for the 4th job there of 2 after school chores, I have a list of 12 chores that I just put on the fridge and when they come home and they each have to pick 2.

That's a change from the 6 chores I have them do each day during the summer. The kids aren't home as much during the day, so they don't make as big of a mess and I don't feel like they need to do 6 household chores each day. :)

Happy Birthday Banner

I started making this with our June birthdays, but just barely finished it today before our September birthdays start next week. I think it turned out pretty cute, but I'm going to change the "i" to a vertically lined background. I just made it out of paper and cardstock again, using the same font as I did with the season pennant banners. :)