The Bermuda Triangle

If you're thinking it's been a while since I have posted, you'd be right. I've been trying to invest my free time and energy firstly into surviving the hectic days, and secondly beginning the process of deep cleaning my house, which is admittedly in pithy condition. We have got a three-pronged problem here at our house, one which I will go into in just a minute. But before I get there, let me illustrate how out of control things have gotten around here: each night, I sit in my certain spot at the kitchen table and I pump milk for Van's rice cereal. Beginning three weeks ago, each time I did this I just happened to look down at the corner tile of the dining room floor and notice a fallen grape---the same grape. Each time I would think, 'I need to remember to pick up that grape when I'm done pumping,' and yet each time I finished pumping, I forgot all about the grape until the next night. So the story continued, and over the course of two weeks I had a front-row seat in watching that plump fat grape make the full transformation into a shriveled raisin. Yes, that is to say that I did not sweep my floors for over two whole weeks. Yikes. And three nights ago when I finally did, the large collection of debris within that dustpan looked like the kind of place where large animals go to die.

It's gotten that bad, folks.

So here is the three-pronged problem which is currently being addressed in our home:

1. We have way too much stuff.
2. We don't consistently spend time teaching our kids how to clean up their toys.
3. I spend so much time picking up a ridiculous number of toys at the end of the day that I fall exhausted on the couch to watch The Colbert Report and eat a bowl of popcorn without having any time to upkeep cleanliness in other parts of the house.

This is insane. I can't live like this any longer.

The sudden cognizance of our three-pronged problem, which I might as well name the Bermuda Triangle, was made particularly clear by spending a week with BJ's family in a lovely cabin on the side of a mountain in Colorado earlier this month. For a solid week we lived in the most fresh-smelling, pine-tree laden, deer-visited, cozy cabin, of which our little family occupied two small rooms. We took minimal clothing with us, thus enabling us to do a fresh load of laundry each night. We took only a small box of toys, which was plenty for the boys. We kept our place tidy, we were not inundated with stuff, and most importantly, we enjoyed ourselves and had fun with the simpler amount that we had. It was truly a breath of fresh air when compared to the cluttered chaos of our everyday existence. In sharp contrast, on the day that we came home we went grocery shopping and bought several days' worth of baby foods for Van. When I realized that there was absolutely no pantry or cabinet space in my kitchen for a meager supply of pureed baby foods, I about hit the ceiling. "WHAT," I bellowed, "ARE WE DOING?" Now I'm using my kitchen counter as storage because the 27 cabinets I have just aren't enough?? We don't have a storage problem in this house! We have a collection problem!

That evening I sat down with BJ and had a heart-to-heart with him. I reminded him of our simpler times, about backpacking 60 miles of the John Muir Trail carrying all that we needed on our backs (did yall know we did that?). About the way we used to be poor and we saved for nearly every purchase we made. About the way that we entertained ourselves by walking Tex to the library and taking turns going inside, and playing frisbee golf or tennis without relying on gadgets (besides frisbees and racquets). About the time that I got a tattoo of a cute little pine tree to always remind me to get back to the basics and never lose sight of what it means to live simply. How did we let ourselves get to the point that we have forgotten what color carpet we have because of all the toys laying around on it, and we can't even find a shoe-box sized space to put some baby food packages in because we have to have every kitchen gadget known to man- and womankind? No, I said, I'm done. The clutter of this house is sucking my soul right out like dementors, Harry-Potter style.

BJ and I set a Friday and Saturday on the calendar for a garage sale and decided to roll up our sleeves. We don't have a lot of spare time as it is, but this effort will be worth the sacrifice because I think it will give me a greater sense of inner peace once we have more breathing room in this house. We're attacking Prong # 1 (the way-too-much-stuff one) first, as I think that our other problems stem from this one. We began with the attic, which we completely revamped on Saturday. Everything came down and got sorted through. Much of it got tossed, much of it got set aside in the garage to sell, and the rest was consolidated and organized back into the attic. Much of it was total crap that I can't believe we ever thought we should keep. Just days ago the attic was the kind of place that one plowed through and hoped for the best, but now things are neatly pushed into small piles with tons of space in between. The idea now is that we can go through the house room by room doing the same process--trash, selling, or keeping, with the option of putting some things up into the now-spacious attic (to of course become the crap that I lament about in five more years). I began with the inside of the house last night after everyone went to sleep and I single-handedly tackled the beastliest closet in our house. The A/C was out for two days and it was hot, so by the time I wrangled the beast I was covered in sweat and my hair likened itself to Maria Von Trapp's, but I didn't care. Half of the contents got put in the sale pile, a quarter got thrown away, and a quarter of it was kept. Room to spare! I only wish I had taken a 'before' picture.

Honestly, before I tackled this closet, the mess began at the ground level and extended nearly to my waist. You could go wading into a clutter-bath of towels, candles, batteries, and command hooks if you so desired!

Now that's some bad hair!

 With each room I expect to see improvement, and we will finish with a grand finale of toy downsizing.

Once we complete Prong # 1, then Prong #2 should be easy to implement; when the boys (and we) aren't so overwhelmed with the sheer magnitude of toys, then knowing when and where to put them away when they are finished playing with them should be much simpler. Staying on top of the boys about keeping their play space (AKA my living room) tidy is something I can be consistent about, particularly once we've all gotten used to it. Thereby naturally should follow Prong # 3, which is that I will then have extra time to focus on, say, sweeping the floors every couple of days and perhaps even mopping them once in a while!

Following this post, I'm sure no one wants to visit my house ever again. I'm figuring it out, though, and I'm making necessary adjustments to enrich our lives as individuals and as a family, so that we might be less tied to things that we think we need but really don't. Just think of it this way: Margaret Thatcher once said, "Any woman who understands the problems of running a home will be nearer to understanding the problems of running a country." By that token, I'd make an awfully good Senate candidate this fall! Vote for Jenny, Bermuda Triangle District, 2014! Kind of makes you want to be my friend a little more, huh?

Tornado Update and Pictures

I'm tired and headed to bed soon, but wanted to post some pics that I took today of our home, neighborhood, and adjacent park. All of these places are within easy walking distance of our house, like an eighth to about a quarter of a mile. Lots of recovery and rebuilding ahead, but I can't tell you how encouraged I already feel by what we saw today. People are in good spirits, and we even saw residents of the most ravaged street in our area all joining together for grilled burgers on a lunch break in the middle of their street!

Basically, the update is that we were able to get to our home today to get some things. We have water now but no power still, so we are continuing to stay elsewhere. Soon we'll be moving back and readjusting to our new environment. There are absolutely no structural problems with our house. Hours of cleanup is ahead for us, but we are only out a grill, a bird feeder, and the contents of our refrigerator. We are so lucky. Silas is handling it beautifully, conceptualizing it as a big storm that caused many "broken" things and "boo boos," and he is already excited to watch the clean-up process. The construction vehicles are everywhere, and he loudly has stated, "That excavator is helping to clean the play place!" As a family we decided to spend some time in the park this weekend on a clean-up mission, doing our part to heal a park that we have so grown to love.

Thank you all a million times for your love and support. The promised pictures:

The playground at our park

Look closely: nearly the entire house is gone, but the mugs and plates are still calmly placed on their shelves in the cabinet.

 Yep, that's a guard rail hanging from that power line.

One of the debris piles in our creek.

Debates are going in our family...is that a surfboard or a giant chain saw blade sticking out of that house?

And here are a couple of shots of our deck and patio. Covered in muck and debris, but nothing that a little elbow grease won't erase!

 

Jay-Bay

Saturday evening in our house was spent decorating the Christmas tree and hauling out boxes with stockings, Santas, and the assortment of holiday decorations that I have purchased from Pier 1 in moments of impulse throughout the years. This was the first year that Silas participated in the process; the last two years we decorated the tree while he napped and surprised him with it upon awakening. He will NEVER let us do that again! This kid was on fire to decorate for Christmas. He unwrapped all items from the boxes and wanted to be the one to place them where they belong. Many of these items have since 'moved' from their places because he just can't seem to resist touching them, either. (Three times yesterday I replaced the two glittery Christmas trees from the nightstands in our bedroom, only to find that someone had moved them back again to the couch or dining room table.)

So here is my cute story: among our ornaments is a red metal bell that belonged to BJ when he was a small boy, and it is marked with his name. On Saturday night, I asked Silas what letters were on the bell and he replied. "B. (pause) J." I said, "That's daddy's name, B.J. This was daddy's ornament when he was a boy like you."

The next morning, Silas ran out to the Christmas tree and began removing ornaments at will, just so that he could inspect them again. When Silas pulled the red bell from the tree, BJ asked him, "What does the bell say on it?" Silas looked at the bell and replied matter-of-factly, "It says you, Jay-Bay!" And this is precisely what he is now calling BJ half the time.

My adorable two-year-old (who has also mastered a gorilla impersonation, by the way).

My littlest turkey-boy, just for good measure.  Since dairy is no longer an issue, this guy ate big-time on Thanksgiving Day--cranberries, sweet potatoes, green beans, peas, bread, stuffing, corn, and pumpkin pie! Sparsity of teeth wasn't stopping him!

Growth Sticks

A few months ago I was browsing a boutique and saw some adorable growth measuring sticks for kids. I was charmed until I saw the price...28 dollars a piece! "You must be joking!" methinks. "I bet I could make something like this for far less money!"

So I did.

And for a grand total of 11 dollars, I made not one, but two growth sticks, one for each of my boys. I picked out two good quality 1x6's from Home Depot, painted them with leftover paints in our closet, used wood glue to affix cheap and adorable wooden figurines from Hobby Lobby, spelled the boys' names out of little wooden blocks on top, and then drew lines and foot-markers with a Sharpie. Not too much work, all with a decent result! Pics:

The Mudroom

Meet the boring wall in our entry way, between the garage and the kitchen door. Hello boring wall.

Thank goodness life is really all about teamwork, because I envisioned something much better for that wall but had little capability of producing it without my talented posse. My vision became a reality that was even better than my vision, thanks to my dad and BJ.

Now, meet the boring-wall-turned mudroom!

Man oh man, those boys are talented! My gorgeous mudroom cost about $200, which included the wood, wainscotting, molding, and all other supplies, the hooks, the baskets, and a little bit of the decor on top. I thought that labor would only cost me a lunch at McDonald's for my dad, but he ended up slipping cash into my purse for that. I'm so thankful for these men in my life that put up with my projects! (And that's not even mentioning the chair rail that BJ put up in Silas' room for me! I painted the wall beneath it a warm brown.)

But I digress!

This mudroom is a combination of several different mudroom designs I have seen, all rolled into one. I wanted some funky-looking hooks, and BJ found these at Lowe's for a real steal.

It was important to me to create a space that is functional for our family's needs; we often throw purses, diaper bags and work bags, Silas shoes, and gear (I'll call it gear--winter gear in the winter, rain gear on wet days, sun hats in the summer) onto a nice wooden bench I have in the entryway that I never intended to become a catch-all. The hooks are perfect for everything from bags to nursing covers to cameras. The bench legs run straight down into the tile so that we don't have to feel guilty about throwing boots or snowy shoes straight under them. In addition to its function, my posse kept the class intact by adding base molding and front-facing 1x2's.

 The top of the mudroom consists of functional cubbies and a decorative shelf. The baskets hold winter hats, baby scarves, and jogging essentials.

All in all, this mudroom is one of my new favorite features of our house! Thanks guys!