Fix. Not fixed. I have no idea which verb tense that would be, but it's the one that means something happens more than once. Over and over. Last year, when we bought our 13 year old Suburban, the weather was nice. Although we turned on the air, it didn't have to work very hard. A month or so later, when I needed it to work hard, I …
Works for me Wednesday
Birthday Parties – The "How Often" Dilemma
This isn't really a house-cleaning tip, but one that's good for people who struggle with Time Passage Awareness. Like I do. When it comes to scheduling kids' birthday parties, I'm thankful I have my mother's footsteps in which to follow. I started out this motherhood gig knowing that I would do it the way she did, because if it was good …
An Old Trick That Finally Makes Sense
My mother, the one who knows where to put EVERYthing, gave me a piece of advice many times through the years that really didn't make any sense to me. She said to put my pajamas under my pillow to be worn the next night. Great trick . . . except that I rarely wore the same pajamas two nights in a row because they had been shucked-and-dropped …
Reasons I Love Making My Bed
I used to be a die-hard what's-the-point-of-making-a-bed-when-you're-going-to-get-back-in-it-that-night advocate. I could argue my point, and feel completely justified. But when I started this deslobification process over a year ago, I began by making my bed. (Almost) every morning. I didn't know why, other than . . . that was what normal people …
A Tip for Remembering to Take Medication
Last spring, one of my children was diagnosed with a condition that requires medication three times daily. It was a shock to us, partially because of the life change that comes with dealing with a chronic condition, but partly because I'm not exactly the best at remembering medication. Any prescription that's supposed to take 10 days to complete …
How I Learned That It’s Okay to Use Less Soap in the Dishwasher
It seems like lately I've mentioned my nightly-running-of-the-dishwasher habit quite a bit. That's probably because it's the only thing I've been truly consistent on lately. Thankfully, it's also the one that makes the biggest difference. Anyway, I've learned that you don't have to fill the soap-thingamajig completely full. See, I'm a …
How to Get Dried Up Pancake Batter Off of Your Kitchen Counter – A Tip Normal People Don’t Need
Yesterday, as I was doing the massive clean-up from our Kid-Friendly Freezer Cooking Session, I decided that I should share a little tip. I don't like smelly, chemical-ly cleaners, but often end up having to use them, due to . . . ummm . . . lack of using the less-lethal-stuff when I should. Meaning, if I had wiped up the spilled pancake …
Bathroom Cleaning Checklist for the Kids
I shared on Monday that I'm determined to not let our home slip back into total chaos over the wonderfully-routine-free-summer. Part of that focus includes creating this printable, super-detailed bathroom cleaning checklist that can be used by kids (or adults, like me, who need a little help with focus!). When I was a teenager, from 16-18, I …
Kids’ Daily Checklist – Chore Chart
It has now been 5 ½ weeks since we started using this chore chart with my 6 and 8 year old children, both boys. If you are a regular reader, you know how much chore charts/checklists for my kids scared me. It wasn’t that I didn’t think my kids could do it. It wasn’t that I couldn’t find one with age appropriate chores. It was me. Any system …
