Organized Home Project of the Week

I'm still plugging away at the kitchen but have yet to take any before or after photos. This week I tackled the Rockstar's bookshelf. It was stuffed full of fabulous books but 80% of them were thin page books which he can't play with right now (think paper cuts, ripped pages and permanent drool damage). I removed all of the 'off limits' books and stacked them on a high shelf in his closet. Thanks to the removal of so many books the Rockstar's stuffies now have a home (at least temporarily - I need to find a good stuffed animal storage solution).

Slowly but surely things are coming together. The kitchen counter needs to be dealt with this week so I'm off to hunt for some organization solutions.

A Slow and Painful Death by Clutter

Slightly over dramatic? Maybe BUT now that I'm home full-time with the Rockstar and we are into a routine I am beginning to feel like the clutter in our home is slowly suffocating me. I'm not an overly neat person and neither is Mike, this means we don't argue about the mess which is wonderful but we both contribute to it which isn't wonderful at all. Our home is clean (usually) but rarely looks tidy. It's hard to keep a home tidy when you have STUFF everywhere.

I've wasted a ridiculous amount of time recently looking for things because they don't have a place of their own. Previously I don't think this bothered me as much because I had time to waste: since the Rockstar arrived every moment feels full (in a good way) so wasting time looking for things frustrates me to no end. I spent 20 minutes wandering around the house with the Rockstar on my hip last week hunting for his nail clippers; this was after spending a good 15 minutes the day before doing the same thing. We could have been playing but instead we were on fruitless mission. I knew I had put them down somewhere a couple days before in a spot that I thought made sense at the time but for the life of me I couldn't remember where that spot was. Of course once I gave up in frustration I walked over to the sink to fill the kettle and TA DA there they were sitting on the windowsill because - well obviously - the windowsill is a sensible place to store a tiny pair of nail clippers. Silly, silly.

I am promising myself that I am going to make a serious attempt to declutter the house AND organize things so that I feel less stressed when I move around our space. Obviously I want this not only for myself but for the Rockstar and Mike as well.

This is where Megan's Organised Home Challenge of 2011 comes into play. I'm hoping that by joining the challenge I'll be more motivated to stick with my mission. The timing really couldn't be any better. Coincidentally last week I listed a handful of items on Kijiji (most of them have sold already) and I organized a few kitchen cupboards last week that were driving me mental. No longer do the spices look like a game of Jenga, nor are you risking a concussion by reaching for a mug. The Rockstar and I stopped mid-job to run to Walmart where we purchased a few expandable shelves which made a world of difference. By no means is the kitchen finished but I have made a good dent in sorting it out and when I open the three newly organized cupboards I can't help but smile. Funny how the very little things in life (like an organized cupboard) can make you feel good, isn't it? Is that ridiculous?

I have to figure out how I want to deal with the remainder of the kitchen before I work any further in there. I have been going over possible arrangements in my head but haven't found a plan that I'm in love with just yet. I'm setting the goal of completing the kitchen by the end of February. Fingers crossed!

Today after I read about Megan's challenge I cleaned out the linen cupboard: rolled up towels, tucked sheet sets into matching pillowcases (thank you Martha Stewart for that idea), tossed a bunch of useless bits in the garbage and a threw a pile of random things in the giveaway box. I should have taken a before and after photo: less than 30 minutes of work and the closet looks completely revamped.

I intend to post about my organizing/decluttering so that I can look back and remind myself of what I've accomplished and I may share some photos of the completed projects. Sorry there's no pictures today (I know you are deeply saddened by this - note the sarcasm) but I didn't have the time or the energy to take photos of the linen cupboard.

Wow this is a really wordy post; hopefully you don't feel like you're dying a slow and painful death by Jaime's jabbering. I feel like I should end with something that doesn't involve me blabbering on and on so here's a random photo of my Rockstar which shows off his stunning little eyeballs quite nicely. Unbelievably cute and definitely clutter free.

Shedding

My declutter rampage continues! My used-to-be-obscenely-cluttered office is now part office and part work-out room! It took almost the entire day yesterday to get things organized but it was definitely worth the time and effort. My muscle aka Mike helped me drag out the big bits that were taking up space to make room for the exercise bike that has been hibernating in the garage for the last 3 months. Now I have no excuse to not exercise, I can actually listen to lectures or complete my readings while pedaling furiously on Hilda (the bike).

And that's just what I did today. Read a chapter for Moral Issues while riding my good friend Hilda. My butt muscles are going to be screaming tomorrow. Yes it's true ladies and gentlemen, pigs flew today! That's twice in one week if we count the week from Sunday to Sunday. Two cheers for me! Three cheers will be granted once this becomes a true habit.

Here's the breakdown aka boring bits for my records only- not for entertainment purposes by any means:

Hilda: 30 minutes, 10km, 850 cal.
Crunches: 100 (various)
Weights: pathetic.

It's a start anyways...

Dizzy days

My bean is not working quite right today. I'm dizzy no I'm not pregnant thank you very much and I'm feeling completely wiped out. I've been exhausted all weekend; I actually cancelled plans with friends last night and went to bed at 9pm! How old am I?!

I have a doctors appointment on Thursday and I expect to hear the same thing I have heard every time I've gone in with a woe during the last three years: "You need to rest and find time for yourself; you're too busy". It's likely she'll add in: "find time to exercise" as well. She'll also offer to write me a note for stress leave if I so desire but I'll refuse because really, things aren't that bad and I'll save drastic measures like that for a time when I really feel like I need it. Thankfully I'll have completed my first pilates class by the time I see the Doc so I can tell her honestly that I'm making an effort to get my non-active ass in gear.

I am super pleased with myself this afternoon. Considering the state of my sleepy bod I've managed to get stuff done. I finally filled out the teachers college application form. Thank god. That sucker needed to be done asap, the deadline is November 30th but it can take a few weeks for transcripts to get from one school to the next. I've paid the silly fees ($200 to apply to ONE university - this included the cost of 2 $8.00 transcripts - how ridiculous is that?) and hopefully managed to fill everything out correctly.

Now I move on to the horrific Experience Profile. This is where I have to write an extraordinary essay on the topic of "Those who can, teach" - ugh. I'm going to start my outline this afternoon, wish me luck.

I'm more nervous about this whole process than I expected to be. I'll be thrilled when the application process is over with, then I'll just have to wait and see if I get an interview.

Speaking of school stuff, I filled out my intent to graduate form today too. That sure makes that light at the end of the tunnel seem brighter. I can't believe that I'm nearly done my degree, the thought of having my diploma handed to me makes me giddy. Three years of a hellofa lotta hard work will finally pay off. Yay for me!

The other mission accomplished today is that I finally managed to start to declutter - better late than never. Now that we have our fabulously wonderful cleaning lady coming in regularly I don't have to spend time mopping floors so decluttering is on the agenda. I love my grandma dearly but I have no intention of turning into the clutter queen she is.

I did manage to get out yesterday with some of my most favorite women on the planet for our annual Ladies' Day. A breakfast filled with chatter and lots of laughs was followed up with shopping at a few craft sales. It was a great day as usual! Thanks girls!

What's Your Point?

Well here it is: entry numero uno on my pretty pink blog. I've been thinking about starting my own personal blog more and more lately and last night was the night that I took the plunge and went for it.

Why wait? I wasn't sure what to write, I was speechless. Those who know me will snort and giggle over that one. It is only on very rare occasions that I am at a loss for words. If you hear me say (or write) "to make a long story short" you may as well grab a glass of wine and park your butt in a comfy seat because you're gonna be listening for quite some time. I think my problem is that I have been lurking around blogs for nearly a year now and have found a load that I really really like and another load that I really really don't. I want to create a blog that I LOVE and I think that I've placed ridiculously high expectations on myself thinking that I need to come up with the perfect category of blog and a perfect looking blog. Since I couldn't decide what either of those were I put off starting one altogether.

So here I am. I was leaning towards starting a food blog since I love eating and figure it would help me improve my culinary skills while motivating me to come up with new recipes but I think I might have a hard time posting regularly on a food blog and those that I've seen have very little chatter in them. I love to chatter. I think that this blog is going to be a mish mash of things: random thoughts, photographs, updates on my life of craziness, a place to keep track of and share favorite sites/restaurants/stores/stuff, a venting chamber, photo gallery and who knows what else. Maybe part food blog? It's my blog and I can make it whatever I want right?

Why start a blog at all? I have a crazy busy schedule due to being in university full-time while working full-time, I am always on the go. I'm hoping that this blog is going to motivate me to take time to clear the clutter. I want to organize my life a little better and keeping track of my insanity somewhere might be the key, at the very least it is a step in the right direction. Being able to track what I'm doing on a regular basis might be the kick in the butt I need to get things done. No doubt I am very busy and don't have a tonne of spare time but in the spare time I do have I want to accomplish more.

So there. Told you I talk a lot.