Zone Defense 4: Clothes and Textiles

This week I'm getting back on the Zone Defense train!  Woo woo!

I'm going to attempt to simplify laundry and linens.  This should be pretty easy for me.  We don't have any laundry equipment here, so no laundry room!  I do two loads a week at my MIL's and that's that.

I plan on reorganizing the linens in my closets.  We have sheets we don't use for bed sizes we don't own anymore.  I'm going to keep a full set for the air mattress, but the rest I can donate.  And I've got probably 20 baby sized towels and 20 more receiving blankets, so I'll go through those as well.

I've been planning on making a quilt out of the receiving blankets.  I originally wanted to make this I love you(r DNA) quilt, but I've just noticed that its crib sized and I'd like to make a twin.  We've got some nice crib sized blankets already and I want this to be something he'll be able to use for a long time.

So those are my laundry plans.  I'll go through the kids clothes again in September to see what we need to buy them for winter and repackage the baby clothes for storing.  Its all in old diaper boxes, which are not good to store for a long time.

The grownup clothes are set for now, aside from going through Murl's socks to hunt for holes and see if he needs a new pack.

I think I can handle that this week!

Baby Fever

I avoided thinking about the garden much today.

Wolf had a fever on Tuesday, but it went away.  We went to the park today and it returned, so he was cranky.  I had picked up more Tylenol on the way to the park, so we had it when we got home.  We also dropped Bendy Guy on the walk home and back tracked to find him.  We only had to go 2 blocks.  Its good exercise!

Bendy Guy

Wolf wouldn't have noticed, but I like Bendy Guy.

I've been really bad with my cleaning.  My goal tomorrow is to clean the bathroom.  I need to get my vinegar out of the car.  Then I'll go thru my cleaning list again for Zone Defense.  I did clean the car out!  Well, I threw the trash out, but I haven't brought anything in.  My trunk is full.

I've also decided to write more.  I'm not very good at this blogging thing, it ends up more like a diary.  So, maybe if I write more stuff for me then I can be better at this.  Who knows.

Birthday Woes.

Since Sunday is Mother's Day we were going to drop Kitty off on Saturday night, instead of Sunday morning, because it would be helpful for her mother.  Now, because her mother decided to change her mind about her birthday, we are going to just meet them on Sunday.  Our lawyer said that we shouldn't be doing them any favors, which I agree with.  She is going to raise some hell for us.

Murl talked to Kitty on the phone and asked what she was doing this afternoon and she said they were just going to the park.  Apparently those were her "plans" that interfered with us seeing her after school.  Total crap.

Went back to work today to pick up some stuff.  Didn't have to see the manager since he never works on Thursdays.  It was good to see people and I got some photos printed instead.  Once I finish all my cleaning, I am going to start on my scrapbooking and Wolf's baby book.  I'm super behind on both.

My MIL is taking us to a fair tomorrow afternoon, which will be fun.  I'll need to remember to bring the camera.  Before we go I need to finish cleaning the kitchen and bring laundry to my in-laws.  I think I can handle that.  All the kitchen needs is the fridge cleaned out, the nook cleaned and the floor mopped.

Here's your daily Wolf!

This squinty face is apparently his new thing.

Party Planning

Tomorrow is Kitty's 6th birthday.  We were planning on going up to see her, since she is at her mom's on weekdays.  Murl thinks that our lawyers have been talking, because they did not answer their phone at all yesterday and today she told him they have plans tomorrow and why did he assume he could take Kitty out after school?  He asked her about this weeks ago and she said it was fine.  So, we won't be seeing her until Friday night.  We'll make a cake and finalize plans and then party on Saturday!

My MIL reserved the pavilion at the park today and my FIL is making potato salad.  I need to pick up a few things tomorrow when I shop and we will be set.  Its supposed to rain, of course, so we'll be heading to their house if it does.  At least the kids can get outside to play if it dries up.

Mr. Crinkly Face

I cleaned up most of the kitchen today.  Cabinets were vacuumed and food was rearranged.  I somehow ended up with more room for food then I had before, without throwing anything out.  Tomorrow I'll clean out the fridge and clean off the top of the fridge.  Then its just the nook and the floor and that's it; the kitchen will be done!  Its very exciting.  Yes, it was already pretty clean to begin with, but getting a whole room clean is still exciting.

Fish Kisses!

I want to try to post new photos of Wolf every day, so here we go.  We hung out inside and cleaned all day, but that's ok, because playing on the floor is still fun.

What a ladykiller!

Nom Nom!

Kitchen Organization Checklist

Here are my answers to analyze my kitchen:

1. Do you have a meal plan for each day? Yes, I use Google Calendar to plan my meals.
2. Do you follow your meal plan? About 95% of the time.
3. If not, why not? Sometimes we have "surprise" dinners at my in-laws that no one tells me about beforehand.
4. Do you ever struggle with frozen foods not thawing in time for dinner? Sometimes.  Mostly chicken.
5. Can you find recipe ingredients when you need them? Only spices, because they are all crowded on a shelf.
6. How do you feel when you open the refrigerator? Why is that? Sometimes it seems really empty and I know I need to clean it again.
7. Do you have a method for storing leftovers? Yes, I put them in plastic containers and label them with the date and contents.  I need masking tape to do this better.  And I'd like to have all glass containers, but that won't happen.
8. If so, does it work well for you or do you have multiple science experiments going on at one time? It works well.  Sometimes I find old things, but I try to clean out the fridge once every couple of weeks.  The only time its a problem is when I make way too much and Murl doesn't bring lunch to work and I have to eat it for like 4 lunches in a row.
9. Do you have a daily kitchen cleaning routine? I wipe down the counters and sink and sweep every day and usually mope every 2 or 3 days.
10. Do you have a regular deep cleaning routine for the kitchen? Yes, but I need to do it more often.  So, I guess its not that regular.
11. Do you have adequate storage for the items you currently own? Yes.
12. Do you use all the kitchen items you own on a regular basis? Pretty much.  The blender I've been using more while making baby food, so that might stop.
13. Off the top of your head, are there gadgets and appliances that are just taking up space in your kitchen? I don't think so.
14. Does clutter pile up on your counters? How come? Sometimes I put things there so I can find a place to put them later.  I also have a mug I need to glue back together.
15. What is the one thing that stands between you and a clean, organized kitchen? The size :) which I can't control.  And my laziness.  I need to get back on my weekly routine.

From the park last week.

So, tomorrow I am going to start the actual food organizing.  The kitchen is pretty clean and I think I'm pretty organized, but going through a list will be helpful.  This way I can get everything in good spaces before I go food shopping on Thursday.  It'll make it easier to put away.

I moved the bench today and threw out the boxes.  Hopefully people will use it instead of taking their shoes off in other rooms.  There's so much stuff that needs to be cleaned and organized and I'm so behind.  I'm glad this is getting me motivated to do it, but I honestly don't do much during the day.

I've been staying up really late, which means being really tired in the morning.  For the past 2 days Wolf has wanted to get up earlier than we normally do.  Its like 8am, which really isn't that early, but it is when you are up until 2.  I feel terrible, though, because I make Wolf stay in bed with me and pretty much force him to fall back asleep, then we end up sleeping way later and nothing gets done.  I promised him that tomorrow we will get up when he wakes up, so I'm going to go to bed earlier tonight.  Probably at 11:30.

Rainy Weekend

We got some new furniture this weekend from Murl's parents.  A nice bench, which will go by the stairs for taking shoes on and off, and a cabinet that I'm going to use for my craft supplies.  So, right now they're just sitting in the middle of my living room.  I was going to move them today, but I didn't feel like making space.

This weekend was low.  It was an OK weekend, but its the first weekend where I'm not working.  I spent it worrying about money instead of enjoying my time with my family.  That was stupid of me.  The one thing that I did not worry about was getting Kitty to clean up after herself before she left, which is never done if I'm not home.

It also rained all weekend (and today and again tomorrow), so there was no going outside.  We had a thunderstorm, but it wasn't a very exciting one.  We stayed inside and mostly played board games.  The dollhouse was pulled out at one point, but I don't like playing with it with Kitty.  There is a wooden cat that stays in the house and farts on everyone, which is gross and something that I'm trying to get her to stop doing.  She will also tell me how to play and get upset if I don't follow her lead, but she's always been like that.

My tomato and jalapeno plants look really sad.  Some of the leaves started falling off.  We have a huge window that takes up most of the living room wall, but it faces south.  It is awesome in the winter and was great when I first planet the seeds, but now the sun is moving more north and it doesn't come through the window as well.  I need to decide when I'm going to put them outside.  I'm afraid they are too small and would be washed away or eaten.

I was going to doing my kitchen organization questions for Zone Defense, but its late.  I'll do that tomorrow and move the furniture.  I'll throw out some boxes and make space.  We still have the crib box, which is very flat and doesn't take up space, which is probably why we haven't thrown it out yet.  Its not in our way.  Plus, people are always saying they're going to take it and burn it, but no one has.  Its going in the dumpster!

So that was mostly my weekend.  I was very tired during it.  Wolfie and I wake up around 10 usually, but Kitty is used to getting up at 7 for school, so that's what happens when she's here.  Its not her fault, school starts early, but she wakes up Wolfie and then we're up.  And, she won't nap, so I don't nap either.

Next weekend is Kitty's 6th birthday.  I need to get a headcount tomorrow and decide what to buy.  We are having a cookout at the park, which will be a lot of fun.  I'm hoping it doesn't rain.  Its rained the past few weekends.  Friday is supposed to be sunny, so hopefully that will continue through the weekend.  Otherwise we'll have too many people in our apartment and we have almost no seating.  Plus, the dentists downstairs are open and the kids will be too loud, which will result in an angry call from the landlord.

So, now I head to bed.  Murl should be done with my kindle, so I can play sudoku as I fall asleep.  He hogs it!

To the Park!

Wolf and I walked to the park again today.  I'd like to do this every day, but we'll see.  It was 85 out and really hot for a walk, so hopefully it won't be too much warmer than that for most of the summer.

We swung for a bit, but mostly sat in the sandbox.  This is the second time he's been in the sand and he didn't cry.  He raked his fingers around and stick some sticks in his mouth.  Mostly he watched all the other kids run around and yell.  I think its hard for him to concentrate on what he's doing when there's so much else going on.

This time we didn't get anything thrown at us, which I liked.  It was pretty busy, but I guess if you want your kids to play outside after school then you take them to the park.  Its what I'll be doing until we have a yard and probably after that, too.

I did the next part of my cleaning yesterday, but never wrote about it.  Real quick: The bedroom looks really nice.  I just need to get Murl to quit throwing his clothes on the floor.  I think we can keep it this way!  Now I just need a day with the car to clean that out.

Zone Defense 2.1 - Your Clothes Closet

Today I started on the official first zone from Zone Defense, which is my personal space.  Today I tackled the closet.  Most of what I owned doesn't fit and was from when I worked at Macy's 6 years ago.  I have close to $1000 of nice clothes in there (don't worry, I didn't pay anywhere near that for them!).  So, some will go to Megan and the rest to the thrift store.  I kept a few skirts, a couple dresses and a couple blouses.  I need to get a new knit sweater, since mine has some holes in it.

I cleaned out my bureau a couple months and haven't bought anything new since then, so I'm leaving that alone for now.  I need to do the top of my bureau and my nightstand, plus vacuuming the floor and closet and that room will be done.  Oh, and the windowsill.  Perhaps I'll make curtains, too, finally!

It feels good to be getting something done.  It seems I'll be working my way up to the harder stuff, since the bedroom isn't that bad.

Zone Defense 1 : The Playing Field

1.1 Evaluate Your Home's Strengths

Step one is to answer some questions and evaluate my home:

1. What are the problem areas you face in daily cleaning? Motivation! Also, the kitchen is always a mess and the bedroom needs to always be cleaned up.
2. Where does clutter tend to pile up in your home? On our bureaus, the shelf next to the stairs, the kitchen counter next to the sink, my desk, table, book cases, the floor in the kids room, coffee table.
3. Is it easy for you to get ready in the morning? If not, what do you think is the problem? Yes.  I don't go anywhere and currently the baby is easy to get ready.  When Sophia is with us its harder because she is easily distracted and doesn't like to listen.
4. What is your favorite room of the house? Why is that? (You’re going to want to think about this, so that you can duplicate that feeling in other areas of your home.) The living room because its where we gather.  
5. What room do you avoid at all costs? Describe this room and think about what annoys you about it. What would you need to do/buy to make it better? (We want to solve this problem and keep it from spreading throughout the house!) The kid's room.  Currently Sophia's toys are everywhere, her blankets are on the floor and she does not pick up, even when we ask her to.  The living room is where it would spread, and it does, but I can motivate her to pick up out there by threatening to take away the toys she leaves out.
6. Which cleaning tasks do you avoid like the plague? Chances are you can make these jobs easier with a little decluttering and organizing. I hate cleaning the toilet; its super gross!  The kitchen floor because it never seems to not have crumbs.  I sweep it every day and vacuum once a week and it just never seems to be clean!  And, the bathroom floor.  Its stone and because of the cement stuff between the stones I can't sweep, so I have to vacuum using an attachment which takes FOREVER.
7. Where do you hide your clutter? (Yeah, that’s gonna have to stop.) And why is that? Are you rushed? Don’t know where to put it? Lazy? On my desk, on the coffee table, on the table, in boxes.  A lot of it is paperwork that I probably just need to throw out and a few things to file.  Other things need to find places to go and there's stuff to get rid of I'm sure.
8. Are there parts of your home that are broken or in need of repair or a makeover? Keep a running list. If they are urgent, make plans to fix them now. If not, chances are we’ll cover it in the coming weeks. We rent, so there's not really anything we can fix.  We just call someone; it's nice.  I can make a list of stuff I would change, but that's kind of a waste of time.
9. Is it too much stuff, failure to put it away, or plain disorganization that holds you back from having a home you love? All!

That was easy!

1.2 Pinterest board!

I have a Pinterest board for organizing and cleaning and my crafts board has lots of ideas for around the house, too.  So, I will be relying on that a little.  I could go internet crazy and find a ton of stuff to pin, but that would really be me wasting time.

1.3 Get Your Equipment Ready
The third step is to get everything ready.  So, I need to get any cleaning supplies I need.  Out of Life as Mom's list, I only need the spray bottles, more vinegar (which I meant to get today.  whops!) and more trash bags.  I wish I had a hand vacuum and a steam mop, but I don't and can't afford them.  Oh well.

1.4 Dump or Donate
I have an issue with throwing things away, that's part of why I need to do this.  I have a stash of underwear that I need to turn into rags.  I have socks that I lost one of like 5 years ago.  All Sophia's clothes go to her cousin.  Anything I don't need or can't use I try to give to someone.  I donated an easy bake oven that works, but has no pieces to it.  Hopefully someone could use it.

1.5 Good Reads for Organizing
I have Organized Simplicity by Tsh Oxenreider, which is how I found her blog Simple Mom, which is how I eventually found Life as Mom.  I think this book is definitely going to help.

So, that is the first zone.  Time for the cleaning!  Probably Monday at the soonest.  We'll see what this weekend brings.

Zone Defense Cleaning Plan

I'm struggling right now with getting cleaning and organizing done. I have boxes I still need to go through and I'm sure things will be donated or tossed, but before I do that I need to organize the things we have out of boxes. There are toys to pare down, I have so many clothes that I don't wear or don't fit anymore, my craft stuff needs to move to my desk so we can eat at the kitchen table. PLUS my normal cleaning, which I honestly slack off on most weeks anyways.  Its kind of ridiculous.
So, my plan is to jump into the Zone Defense plan from Life as Mom. Yes, it started back in January, but that's OK because I have a small apartment with no yard, so I think I can catch up pretty easily. Hopefully having a structured plan will help me get on the ball with this. I'm home 6 days of the week and I only have one baby right now, so hey, why not?
My goal for this week is to get at least partway through the first step: The Playing Field and hope this blog will keep me on task.
Tomorrow is grocery shopping day, so I'm trying to get dinners planned through the next two weekends.  We'll have Sophia for both weekends, so that'll be 4 days of Sophia-friendly dinner's and lunches.  That means pasta, broccoli, strawberries, my tasty chicken fingers and probably carrot sticks.  I save the flavorful, adventurous food for weekdays.  The good news is that Wolfie seems to like most of what he's eaten from our dinners so far.  I'll be glad to have a non-picky kid.  There's so many new recipes I want to add to my repertoire, which is another blog area I'd like to explore.
So, here's a call to my motivation.  I'm going to kick my butt into gear!