Preparations Are Under Way! Getting ready for the Holidays.

My previous attempts at creating memorable holidays have been haphazard at best. I get all sorts of wonderful ideas, but the 3 little monkeys I tend daily don't give me much time or energy by the end of the day so I would flip through magazines and peruse web pages and make lists of the things I wanted to make and do, but little would actually get done. A couple of years ago I joined the "Thrifty Under 50 Challenge" and I did manage to get a number of crafts made despite being pregnant and working full-time, but I left much more unfinished than finished and the timing of the challenge left me stressed and sleep deprived right through the holidays which was NOT a great plan. Last year - well, not sure what happened last year - it is a blur. Not much got done at all. I feel like I was lucky the tree made it up.

I am determined that this year will be different. I actually started to think about Christmas just before Labor Day and started my list of handmade gifts. I was online looking for ideas when I found this site to help me get my house clean and organized for the upcoming holidays. (the main site gets your whole house clean and organized, but for now I am mostly sticking to the holiday site) So far it has been working pretty well. The plan is to deep clean the house and organize yourself for the holidays starting now, so when the time comes you can stress less and enjoy the holidays more. I may not follow the plan exactly - most days I run out of time before everything gets accomplished - but it keeps me working toward a goal on a daily basis. I have printed out and started a binder and it also follows a book which has more detailed cleaning and organizing instructions, but I have yet to get out and purchase the book (though I plan too!). The site does a great job of just moving me from room to room and focusing on getting some of the crazy tasks, like making a holiday card list on the computer now, getting our Christmas budget set now and starting my handmade gifts. Hopefully it will help us all enjoy the holidays a little more! If only I can stick with it and don't get distracted... Ooh - look, a new craft blog...

Preparations Are Under Way! Getting ready for the Holidays.

My previous attempts at creating memorable holidays have been haphazard at best. I get all sorts of wonderful ideas, but the 3 little monkeys I tend daily don't give me much time or energy by the end of the day so I would flip through magazines and peruse web pages and make lists of the things I wanted to make and do, but little would actually get done. A couple of years ago I joined the "Thrifty Under 50 Challenge" and I did manage to get a number of crafts made despite being pregnant and working full-time, but I left much more unfinished than finished and the timing of the challenge left me stressed and sleep deprived right through the holidays which was NOT a great plan. Last year - well, not sure what happened last year - it is a blur. Not much got done at all. I feel like I was lucky the tree made it up.

I am determined that this year will be different. I actually started to think about Christmas just before Labor Day and started my list of handmade gifts. I was online looking for ideas when I found this site to help me get my house clean and organized for the upcoming holidays. (the main site gets your whole house clean and organized, but for now I am mostly sticking to the holiday site) So far it has been working pretty well. The plan is to deep clean the house and organize yourself for the holidays starting now, so when the time comes you can stress less and enjoy the holidays more. I may not follow the plan exactly - most days I run out of time before everything gets accomplished - but it keeps me working toward a goal on a daily basis. I have printed out and started a binder and it also follows a book which has more detailed cleaning and organizing instructions, but I have yet to get out and purchase the book (though I plan too!). The site does a great job of just moving me from room to room and focusing on getting some of the crazy tasks, like making a holiday card list on the computer now, getting our Christmas budget set now and starting my handmade gifts. Hopefully it will help us all enjoy the holidays a little more! If only I can stick with it and don't get distracted... Ooh - look, a new craft blog...

The Internet is an Evil Time Sucker!

It is evil, evil, evil, I say! I have plans to do this or that, but end up reading 10 articles on creating handmade whatnots - which I am determined to make myself - but then I don't have the time or energy to get working on my own whatnots. How does that happen? One minute I am putting my munchkins down for a nap. Finally all is quiet. I'll just check Facebook and glance at the blogs I follow. So I get on "for just a minute" and that minute grows exponentially. Before I know it the munchkins are awake and demanding food and entertainment and I have accomplished nada yet again, except that I have added to my ever growing list of "stuff I want to do" also known as "the black hole of ideas" since ideas go in, but nothing ever seems to come out. I have decided it is high time I curbed my crafty internet surfing. I spend way too much time looking through the plethora of darling hand crafted things posted online (how the heck do some of these people accomplish all of this? It is beyond me.) and not much time making my own darling handcrafted things. That and I need to make a consistent effort to clean the house, do laundry, feed my family and write this blog. So here it goes. I am going to limit my daily internet surfing to 30 minutes total and that will be AFTER I have worked on some of my own projects. I will list my project plans here and then check them off and post about them as I do them (hopefully) but definitely as I finish each one. Since I have big plans for Christmas and my house, this is a necessity! Please people help me! Cheer me on! Anything!

The Internet is an Evil Time Sucker!

It is evil, evil, evil, I say! I have plans to do this or that, but end up reading 10 articles on creating handmade whatnots - which I am determined to make myself - but then I don't have the time or energy to get working on my own whatnots. How does that happen? One minute I am putting my munchkins down for a nap. Finally all is quiet. I'll just check Facebook and glance at the blogs I follow. So I get on "for just a minute" and that minute grows exponentially. Before I know it the munchkins are awake and demanding food and entertainment and I have accomplished nada yet again, except that I have added to my ever growing list of "stuff I want to do" also known as "the black hole of ideas" since ideas go in, but nothing ever seems to come out. I have decided it is high time I curbed my crafty internet surfing. I spend way too much time looking through the plethora of darling hand crafted things posted online (how the heck do some of these people accomplish all of this? It is beyond me.) and not much time making my own darling handcrafted things. That and I need to make a consistent effort to clean the house, do laundry, feed my family and write this blog. So here it goes. I am going to limit my daily internet surfing to 30 minutes total and that will be AFTER I have worked on some of my own projects. I will list my project plans here and then check them off and post about them as I do them (hopefully) but definitely as I finish each one. Since I have big plans for Christmas and my house, this is a necessity! Please people help me! Cheer me on! Anything!

So, about that decluttering idea...

I'm having a bear of a time decluttering my life. I have kids - and knitting - and sewing - and well, life in general. I apparently also have a form of decluttering ADD. I just cannot seem to focus and get it done. In the spirit of full disclosure, I have ADD with a lot of projects. That is why I have multiple unfinished knitting, sewing and general projects cluttering my life sending me into a constant spiral of decluttering desire.
I have managed to get through a few things, but I have only managed to actually remove a little of it from the house. I still have multiple bags/boxes that I need to get rid of. I am in debate over selling stuff versus giving it away. Some things the decision is easy to make,clothes are all give away, little knick knacks - give away- but other stuff I'm sure we could sell. Of course, that would mean spending the time and energy listing it, taking calls and negotiating with people and I'm not sure if it worth the time and effort. We're not talking about anything of real value, just a few bucks here and there. Maybe I'll pick something and see how it goes.
Hopefully next week will be more productive than this week was.

So, about that decluttering idea...

I'm having a bear of a time decluttering my life. I have kids - and knitting - and sewing - and well, life in general. I apparently also have a form of decluttering ADD. I just cannot seem to focus and get it done. In the spirit of full disclosure, I have ADD with a lot of projects. That is why I have multiple unfinished knitting, sewing and general projects cluttering my life sending me into a constant spiral of decluttering desire.
I have managed to get through a few things, but I have only managed to actually remove a little of it from the house. I still have multiple bags/boxes that I need to get rid of. I am in debate over selling stuff versus giving it away. Some things the decision is easy to make,clothes are all give away, little knick knacks - give away- but other stuff I'm sure we could sell. Of course, that would mean spending the time and energy listing it, taking calls and negotiating with people and I'm not sure if it worth the time and effort. We're not talking about anything of real value, just a few bucks here and there. Maybe I'll pick something and see how it goes.
Hopefully next week will be more productive than this week was.

How's It Going, You Ask?

Well, very slowly. It is really difficult to significantly declutter a household! So far I have numerous baby items and bags of clothes all ready to get out of the house, but I need to go further. I really want to get down to "Just what we really need and a few other things we really love." It is such a lovely idea, but not so easy to execute. I have so much stuff and I worry that, maybe I'll need that, or I planned to revamp that soon (really I will!). It's easy to say if you find you need it later then just get a new one, but we are pinching every penny in our household so that can be scary. I just keep getting stuck.
My other problem - clearing stuff out just seems to make a huge mess. I know the whole 3 box concept and such, but it just seems to multiply the mess when I start on drawers or closets.
I am determined not to quit though. I think a scheduled twice a week drop off visit would help. I've been debating using Craigslist or freecycle to get rid of some stuff. I think I'll try that next week.
One thing I have resolved to do is actually complete some of the projects I have planned. Right now I am knitting and upcycling a men's shirt into a girl's tunic or dress and a boy's tee into a dress as well. We'll see how it goes!