Organizing 8-19-2011

Today we worked for 2 hours cleaning Bobby's Fathead Life-sized Batman. Yes, 2 hours! I used warm soapy water and a sponge to clean the dust, fur, and dead bugs from the sticky back. It never really stayed up very well and we used pushpins to make it stay but as time went by it got dirty and started falling and tearing small holes where the pushpins were located. Last week it finally fell almost completely to the floor. I bought 3M Command poster strips to attach on the back and rehang it. Five hours later, it is still hanging! We'll see!

My lovely sister-in-law, Ann, told me about Pinterest a few weeks ago. I requested an invitation and downloaded the app to my iPhone but never really messed with it until today. While reading a blog that I regularly visit, I'm an Organizing Junkie, I noticed she had a link to follow her on Pinterest. So I did and what a goldmine Pinterest really is!

Copied from the Pinterest About page:
"Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.
Best of all, you can browse pinboards created by other people. Browsing pinboards is a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests."
 I found some wonderful organizing ideas. Here is one that I used today:

You can't see the labels but they are from top to bottom:

• Bobby's Medicine
• Razors & Cough Drops

The drawers are:

• Ointments - Neosporin, Anti-itch creams, etc.
• Bandaids
• Misc. - medicine cups, oral syringes, eyedropper

My other tool we have actually been using a couple of weeks. Bobby was driving me crazy asking "What's for dinner?" I either didn't have an answer or he didn't like my answer. I have attached a dry erase board to the inside of our pantry door. It is labeled with the days of the week and I use dry erase markers to write "What's for dinner." It has been so helpful! Now Bobby will start to ask me what's for dinner and catch himself. He turns and runs to the pantry.

In the following picture, Bobby has written Saturday's menu. I asked him last week to pick something he wanted to eat from his New Junior Cookbook (Better Homes & Gardens Cooking) He chose Chicken Strips, but being the terrible mom that we can all be from time to time, I didn't realize that I was out of chicken breasts! So, it got postponed a few days. Then it got postponed again due to Michael being out of town and then Bobby had a sleep over. I had him erase it and rewrite it on Saturday night.
Our Friday night is almost always pizza night. I think I might have a Bobby's choice night and maybe even a Daddy's choice (although he usually doesn't care except nothing weird, no casseroles, or spaghetti!)
The final part of the menu is "YOYO" night. I read this on another blog that I can't remember where but it stands for "Your On Your Own." This is the night that Mom doesn't cook except maybe heat up something for Bobby. It seems to be working!

Sunday is blank because we ate out. Monday was quesadillas. Tuesday was YOYO. Wednesday is blank because I was home alone until around 8:30 when Michael got home. Thursday night we had roast and potatoes. Friday is our usual pizza. And Saturday night, Bobby and I will make chicken strips with Cheez-It crackers!

Some of my meal ideas are taken from my E-mealz subscription. What a great idea! Dave Ramsey had recommended it and then I found out another lovely sister-in-law had used it when they were working through their Baby Steps with Dave Ramsey. They are money saving meals and are available with approximate costs based on different stores. You can subscribe for 2 or 4 people, the grocery store, and even diet specific needs. I download my meal plan every Thursday or Friday and copy the recipes into BigOven, a digital cookbook. I can access my recipes on my laptop, online, or on my iPhone! Awesomeness!

WOW! Lot's of information today! Two posts in one day? Scary! Of course that means I probably won't post again for a week! LOL! No, I'll probably be back early next week to report on my job interview on Monday. Also, I have a surprise for Bobby's teacher to share with you but I want to wait until after Monday just in case she reads this!

Last night was Meet the Teacher night for Bobby. I was dreading it all day. Finally, it was time to go. As we were driving to town, I could feel myself starting to panic.
"Breathe deep. Deep breath."
I turned on some music to give me some direction. Barlowe Girls "Enough" came on.
"Awww that's the stuff! Relax. Breathe deeper. You can do this. Bobby's worth every ounce of discomfort."
I thought about just walking around the side of the building and totally avoiding the foyer, but it was time to face my demons. We headed into the building. We walked in and my foe didn't even have the decency to speak to me, just Bobby.
But the best part was when it was time leave. We were standing in the foyer and all of a sudden a small child runs up and hugs me. I looked down and saw my sweet HG! She remembered me! I did make a difference! I know that my average IQ kids will remember me but when a child with special needs, like HG remember you, it's amazing!
So I did it! Was it worth it? YES!!! I felt so much better afterwards for facing my foe! I know now that I can do this. Yeah me!!
Monday, I have a job interview for a secretarial position in Gainesville! This weekend I'm going to work on my two minute sales pitch (have to sell myself to the interviewer!)

Book Sneeze!

No, I didn't just sneeze all over my new book! But thank you for the bless you anyway! Can't hurt! Actually, a few months ago a fellow blogger friend had mentioned she was getting FREE books from Book Sneeze. All you have to do is write a review of the book on your blog. Sounded easy enough so I signed up but none of the books really caught my eye so I didn't request any. So I just signed up for their RSS feed and moved on with life.
Fast forward through life a few months to last Wednesday. I'm reading through Google Reader and noticed there were some new books available and some of the author names looked familiar - Patsy Clairmont, Lisa Harper, Nicole Johnson, Sheila Walsh, & Jennifer Grant. These lovely, talented women are some of the most powerful speakers from the "Women of Faith" conference.I have attended this conference for the last 4 years in Dallas and will be returning this year in August. There is nothing like American Airlines Center filled with a ton of women all worshiping and praising God. AMAZING!
Anyway, I couldn't wait to sign up for a book and chose Stumbling Into Grace by Lisa Harper. Less than a week later, my book arrived! I'm so excited! The cover has the most adorable little girl with the "I'm so cute" head tilt, her mom's jewelry, ruffly skirt, pink shirt, green & white striped tights, & untied pink converse shoes! I just want to to hug her cute little neck!
I have already read the first chapter and am in love! Lisa uses real life stories to remind us that God gazes adoringly at us and moves heaven and earth for us!
At the end of each chapter, are some questions for reflection or group discussions and a journal entry.
I honestly don't know how long it will take me to read this book because my reading of traditional books, as opposed to e-books, has really slowed down. Right now on my coffee table, I have 5 in progress books, not including this one! Two of those books are Beth Moore Bible study books that I have been working through with some ladies @ church. So, stay tuned and I will do my best to keep motivated to finish it quickly. After all, there are more books on the booksneeze.com site that I'm interested in, too! I encourage you to check out their website and sign up.
Take care - remember God moves heaven and earth for you!