I Hope...
Between work and home, I've been finding that home especially has been getting a wee bit overwhelming... cleaning, laundry, being responsible for the lives and welfare of 3 other people... y'know. Home, in and of itself isn't SO bad if it's the ONLY thing... but add onto it the schedule of a self-employed person and it gets crazy.
So yesterday I decided that I had to do something about it. I've said it before, and tried it before in various incarnations: but this time it might stick. It's a little something I call the "Job Jar".
I've written down all of the things that need to be done around here on a daily basis - from emptying the dishwasher right through to cleaning up the dog poop outside - and I've put them in a jar. The plan is that every morning, EVERYONE in the family picks one slip out of the jar and is responsible for that job all day (no trading!) - that means 3 less things for me to do everyday (though I'll still be responsible for the rest). It's a Good Start.
*Hopefully* it will be 2 slips soon...
*update* : It's working :) - J (my youngest) is SO eager to help that she takes a slip, does the task and comes back asking for another! C on the other hand will DO the chore... but requires help and supervision because she doesn't like to do the "nasty" jobs like taking out the garbage and recycling. *sigh* Also? I don't think C has even taken a slip yet - but I DID get help cleaning up yesterday. YAY!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
I think I am... I think I am...
Well, I think I *might* be.
Pregnant, that is.
With symptoms already ranging from SORE breasts to nasty gas to being soooo tired... which is kinda crazy considering I can't even reliably pee on a stick for another 6 days - that said, I simply can't come up with another reason for the symptoms.
I know I'm talking about it *too* early, if indeed pregnancy is what the symptoms mean - but I didn't talk about it at ALL last time and I think I really needed to. So, for those of you that will put up with it, I WILL be blogging about it... the ups and (hopefully not) downs. Cathartic, it is.
If I am, I hope and pray that it's not ectopic this time. Third time lucky?
If I'm not... well, I guess we'll just have to keep trying :)
Pregnant, that is.
With symptoms already ranging from SORE breasts to nasty gas to being soooo tired... which is kinda crazy considering I can't even reliably pee on a stick for another 6 days - that said, I simply can't come up with another reason for the symptoms.
I know I'm talking about it *too* early, if indeed pregnancy is what the symptoms mean - but I didn't talk about it at ALL last time and I think I really needed to. So, for those of you that will put up with it, I WILL be blogging about it... the ups and (hopefully not) downs. Cathartic, it is.
If I am, I hope and pray that it's not ectopic this time. Third time lucky?
If I'm not... well, I guess we'll just have to keep trying :)
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
To clean, or not to clean?
That is a Very Good Question.
Do you clean up for company? I think that most people do, depending on the definition of "company" and the definition of "clean".
Chris's Dad and his stepmom were going to come over today. His Dad to see the house for the first time. I was freaking out because there is dust and the carpets are dirty and the bathrooms aren't absolutely clean and the windows need washing and the basement's a mess and Mike forbid... there are DISHES on the counter in the kitchen. Here's the thing though - I don't worry about it when someone just drops by. I mean... I DO, but since there really isn't anything that can be done about it in the moment, I don't worry about it, y'know?
Our house is neither gross, nor is it a Palace of Clean. We work, we have kids... the house gets cleaned when we have the time and are so inclined. BUT. When it's not clean I stress about it. "What will they think if they come by and it's a mess"... or "OMG what a disgusting mess" (when really it's a couple of things laying around). I can hear my mother's voice in the back of my head after visiting a house that isn't pristine ... "Oh, what a mess that house was... why doesn't she clean it"... always blaming the wife or mother for the "work" not being done. WHY have I taken this on in my life? I didn't used to care... much ;) How do I lose this guilt? Rid myself of the unwanted compulsion to judge my own space?
What about you?
Do you clean up for company? I think that most people do, depending on the definition of "company" and the definition of "clean".
Chris's Dad and his stepmom were going to come over today. His Dad to see the house for the first time. I was freaking out because there is dust and the carpets are dirty and the bathrooms aren't absolutely clean and the windows need washing and the basement's a mess and Mike forbid... there are DISHES on the counter in the kitchen. Here's the thing though - I don't worry about it when someone just drops by. I mean... I DO, but since there really isn't anything that can be done about it in the moment, I don't worry about it, y'know?
Our house is neither gross, nor is it a Palace of Clean. We work, we have kids... the house gets cleaned when we have the time and are so inclined. BUT. When it's not clean I stress about it. "What will they think if they come by and it's a mess"... or "OMG what a disgusting mess" (when really it's a couple of things laying around). I can hear my mother's voice in the back of my head after visiting a house that isn't pristine ... "Oh, what a mess that house was... why doesn't she clean it"... always blaming the wife or mother for the "work" not being done. WHY have I taken this on in my life? I didn't used to care... much ;) How do I lose this guilt? Rid myself of the unwanted compulsion to judge my own space?
What about you?
Friday, April 9, 2010
More of a journal entry than...
Hello :)
We decided awhile back (like, a year and a half) that we wanted to have a baby. I now want to get properly pregnant. I think that prior to this, I just wanted a baby... have been frustrated with ectopic (tubal) pregnancies, emergency surgeries and the general frustration of last year... but now i actually WANT to get properly pregnant and have a successful pregnancy and healthy baby. For some reason, "girl" keeps coming to mind when I think about this. Is that because I have 2 girls? Or is it the universe telling me that it will be another girl? Odd, this - especially considering that I have always wanted to have a boy.
Another thing that has been on my mind lately is travelling. A LOT. I need a vacation... preferably somewhere warm - or if not, then somewhere I speak the language: Chris has been dreaming of Montmartre, which would be amazing this time of year. Still, an all inclusive with a flying trapeze and water sports and laying on the beach with a trashy vacation novel would be nice. Time will be an issue until the girls are out of school...
And finishing the house.
There are so many things on my mind these days that writing them down becomes difficult, which is probably why I haven't been here since February.
We need to find the time and money to:
Vacation (NOT stay-cation)
Fence and landscape the back yard
Install hardwood so that the dog/cat/kid grossness is easier to clean
FINISH THE DAMN BASEMENT so that we can get the office out of the bedroom (SO important)
... but there needs to be an order to it all - and of course a budget for each project.
Baby steps, right? First up: fence... it's the least expensive and most practical for the $ right now. Also? It would be really nice to be able to let the dog run free :).
I have to be honest here - I've thought about building all of this stuff one 2x4 at a time - no kidding! $3/day, one 2x4 closer to finishing the framing. It would be kinda cool (and i'm only saying this 'cause I'm pretty sure he doesn't read this blog) to build the basement on the sly... to one day have him come home to me moving the girl's rooms and laugh at the query on his brow. It'd be pretty fun - and I could probably pull it off. He leaves for work at 8am and rarely gets home before 8pm - that gives me at LEAST 2 hours a day in which to do it. *hmm*. The tricky bit would be getting the drywall downstairs without attracting attention, 'cause that would definitely be something I would need help lifting. Oh, and the bathroom. I'm not a plumber and he may notice the big chunk of $ gone... but other than that, he rarely goes downstairs. Teehee.
I *may* just do this.
We decided awhile back (like, a year and a half) that we wanted to have a baby. I now want to get properly pregnant. I think that prior to this, I just wanted a baby... have been frustrated with ectopic (tubal) pregnancies, emergency surgeries and the general frustration of last year... but now i actually WANT to get properly pregnant and have a successful pregnancy and healthy baby. For some reason, "girl" keeps coming to mind when I think about this. Is that because I have 2 girls? Or is it the universe telling me that it will be another girl? Odd, this - especially considering that I have always wanted to have a boy.
Another thing that has been on my mind lately is travelling. A LOT. I need a vacation... preferably somewhere warm - or if not, then somewhere I speak the language: Chris has been dreaming of Montmartre, which would be amazing this time of year. Still, an all inclusive with a flying trapeze and water sports and laying on the beach with a trashy vacation novel would be nice. Time will be an issue until the girls are out of school...
And finishing the house.
There are so many things on my mind these days that writing them down becomes difficult, which is probably why I haven't been here since February.
We need to find the time and money to:
Vacation (NOT stay-cation)
Fence and landscape the back yard
Install hardwood so that the dog/cat/kid grossness is easier to clean
FINISH THE DAMN BASEMENT so that we can get the office out of the bedroom (SO important)
... but there needs to be an order to it all - and of course a budget for each project.
Baby steps, right? First up: fence... it's the least expensive and most practical for the $ right now. Also? It would be really nice to be able to let the dog run free :).
I have to be honest here - I've thought about building all of this stuff one 2x4 at a time - no kidding! $3/day, one 2x4 closer to finishing the framing. It would be kinda cool (and i'm only saying this 'cause I'm pretty sure he doesn't read this blog) to build the basement on the sly... to one day have him come home to me moving the girl's rooms and laugh at the query on his brow. It'd be pretty fun - and I could probably pull it off. He leaves for work at 8am and rarely gets home before 8pm - that gives me at LEAST 2 hours a day in which to do it. *hmm*. The tricky bit would be getting the drywall downstairs without attracting attention, 'cause that would definitely be something I would need help lifting. Oh, and the bathroom. I'm not a plumber and he may notice the big chunk of $ gone... but other than that, he rarely goes downstairs. Teehee.
I *may* just do this.
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