Cleaning Drawers around here

 Just had to share the pictures...it's so motivating :) I had told you I was cleaning the other day....here's the "yet-to-do" drawer:

And here's the done drawer :)

*happy sigh*

A weekday Project

 Our dryer has been on the fritz the last couple weeks. It at first stopped drying, and then started a horrendous squeal every time we ran it. Therefore, for the time being, I went the old-fashioned way of drying our clothes, and kept laundry to a minimum.

But there comes a time when I just didn't appreciate the racks of clothes hanging around. So I thought maybe I'd check into fixing it myself!

I "Googled" Squealing Dryer, and came up with a couple great websites. The main one I used, was Dave's Repair. (I highly recommend it if you need to fix the same problem as me!)

 So first I set out the tools I would need: a Phillips screwdriver, a socket wrench, gloves, and some sewing machine oil.

 And I un-plugged it from the wall.

 It took a couple tries, but I finally figured out how to get the lid up. That was exciting to see progress :)
Then I stopped to feed baby.

 The next step was to take off the front panel. This one took a bit more muscle and probably took me the longest of everything! (It helps if you read the directions and FOLLOW them about where to push and pull)
Then I took a break to feed and change baby. Took a phone call. Etc.

 The front pannel was off and looking good (though linty).

 Some unexpected springs fell out. Oops.
The next thing was to take the belt off and the "drum' out, but poor little me didn't have enough muscles to do it. Thank goodness for Grandma stopping by :) And she even brought a snack and her vaccuum cleaner so we could get all the lint out. :)

Quite a fascinating mechanism once you get it all taken apart! I oiled the bearings and moving parts, hoping that as the directions said, that would stop the squeal. Then we had to put it all back together. (Of course, after eating said snack, taking a baby break, etc)

After all was said and done, we turned the dryer on for a "test drive" and lo-and-behold, NO SQUEAL! Ha. Just goes to show you what one can do with a little reading and the right tools (and muscle from Mom).

The best part, was at the bottom of the article it said, "You just saved $100." Nice. Of course, I spent probably 3 hours doing it, but it was exciting to me.

Now on to the next problem....no heat. :) But after this....I'm sure that will be a cinch!

When Company Comes: Cleaning

This is a personal post. I mean, this is probably a very personal family preference as far as what I'm about to say. It pertains to cleaning.

When company comes, I must admit, it sends me into a flurry of cleaning things up. Particularly the kitchen floor and bathroom. I guess those get neglected more than I like to admit.

But either way, I tend to do a cleaning right before we know company is coming. Well, not RIGHT before, but if we will have supper guests, that morning or afternoon I will tend to start washing things up.

And here is where we come to the crutch of the matter.

If company is coming, washing the bathroom right before they come might not be the best time of choice. Why, you ask? Well, for our household, because I use PineSol cleaner, and it ends up being a fairly strong smell that lingers throughout our apartment.

M. comes home, and he can instantly tell I've been cleaning. And honestly, I'm not convinced that PineSol is the most aromatic or welcoming smell to come home to :)

So my advice (which I'll need to take myself), is if you know company is coming consider these options

• Clean the bathroom the day before you know company is coming
• Have a regular weekly day to clean the bathroom no matter when company comes
• Clean the bathroom with natural cleaners that have a lighter smell or no smell
• Just wipe down the counters
• In the summer, open the windows
• As a last resort, just make sure to clean the bathroom hours before company comes, and then burn a candle or make brownies or something

Cleaning

Oh how I wish I had a picture to share!

Yesterday my "big" project was to clean out 2 of my 3 junk drawers. It was really refreshing. I cleaned out the "baggie and aluminum" drawer in the kitchen, throwing out things like broken clothspins, ripped itty-bitty pieces of aluminum foil, broken birthday candles, and a handful of twist-ties just because I still have a lot. I was able to organize the drawer with some boxes and jars to contain things that were sliding around like a clown on an ice rink. Such a nice feeling to open the drawer now!

The other drawer I did was our "tape and scissors' drawer in the dining room. This drawer had WAY more than tape and scissors in it! It had become a catch-all for my coupons, newspapers, miscelaneous papers and notebooks, pens that didn't work, random screws and brackets, a train whistle, a penny whistle, a yo-yo, stickers, glue sticks that were all dried up, and much much more! :) Again, I was able to clean out and recycle a whole bunch of stuff, making the drawer actually functional to find things now! ha!

I still have one more drawer to tackle someday. It's my "craft and catch all drawer." I'm afraid this drawer gets stuffed with small items that have no other home, or have a home and I just haven't put them away and instead shove them in this drawer. I know it contains really random collections, from paint to glue to pictures and cards and calendars. It probably has other surprises that I'll only find once I get to cleaning it. But that all depends on a certain Baby's napping :)

So, with or without pictures, I wish you happy cleaning too!

Last minute orginazation

There were some important, and not so important, last minute things on my to-do list last week. One of them was cleaning and organizing our freezer.

I decided between the above-the-fridge freezer and our little chest freezer there needed to be some consolidating.

Our Above-the-Fridge freezer was designated as our "quick meal" space. I filled it with pre-cooked beans, meat, veggies to steam, and some hotdishes from Mom. Now everything is pretty easy to access, and, I found out we're pretty set for the whole rest of the month. Nice!

The other freezer became my "misc and baking freezer." It's in this freezer that I found out how much zucchini we were blessed with last summer. Ha. How about at least 15 bags of it! Now I need to start using it up. Here are some plans I have:

• Zucchini Pancakes (like Potato Pancakes)
• Chocolate Zucchini Cake or cupcakes
• Muffins with zucchini

Any other ideas?

Cleaning

The other day I was looking up tips and such on keeping things clean. Mostly it inspires me to do a better job, and now that I have a few more hours in my day, I'm doing much better at that. :)

My new mentality I'm trying ('cause I got lazy) is that "a meal isn't over till the dishes are done." I don't know about you, but that makes for some looooong meals at our house :) Sometimes I'm not even done with "breakfast" till I'm starting supper. But, it's working. Slowly but surely. I guess that's the way discipline and/or a new habit are anyway.

I've really enjoyed browsing around at Tipnut.com They just have some fun stuff.

But my favorite quote of the week:

"Take a couple minutes a day to run through the bathroom."

Ha ha. Now, just so you know, this little quote was buried amidst a list of "Things you can do in 10 minutes to keep your house clean" or something like that. And really, the list was quite helpful. Until I got to that one.

I know I've wanted to stay active and get moving, but "running" through my bathroom for 2 minutes....weeelllll.....that one kind of stretches my imagination. I'm pretty sure I'd have to make about 50 three foot laps to even make it to one minute,  though if you add in the amounts of toe-stubs and door bangings I'd end up doing, maybe that would make up the time. But either way, I'm not sure that the goal would be accomplished. :)

But it was great for a laugh anyway :) Now off to cleaning....

De-Clutter

You know, after reading the book on simplifying, and having a weekend off to clean, and hearing stories of my sister's de-cluttering project, I'm in the mood to de-clutter too.

I was thinking alot of my husband in the process. We differ quite a bit on our view of "stuff." Of course, when I stop and think about Indian houses, and how simple they were, minamilistic really, I can understand a bit more.

I mean, really, their kitchens are small and their fridges are empty. Thier bedrooms are minimalistic, as well as most every other room in the house. You will not find many knick-knacks, no hobby stuff (i.e. books, crafting supplies, tools, etc), and even toys are scarce. They cook just enough for the meal, every meal, beacuse leftovers don't keep well. When you can get fresh veggies and fruit, just around the corner, every day, for cents on the dollar, you don't really need to "stock up."

They usually have one closet of clothes. Maybe one shelf of shoes for the whole family. They can watch movies on TV, so don't own a player or extra videos. They listen to all music on the TV also, maybe a radio, so don't have piles of CDs. Most bathrooms don't need toilet paper, and most kitchens have sponges rather than paper towels.

And then I look at our house, and there is so.much.stuff! *sigh* sometimes I just want to take a bucket and dump everything in.

But there is a time and place for everything. I like this article. And this one too.

There are a few things for me to remember as I feel the urge to purge.

• There is a reason Indian culture is clutter-free. They really have only two seasons....hot and dry, and hot and wet. Either way, a pair of sandals is sufficient for shoes. They don't need winter boots. They don't need winter coats and fall coats and rain coats. They don't need tennis shoes, and tennis rackets, and fishing poles, and fishing gear. They don't need gardening supplies. They don't need 5 pairs of colored sandals to match every outfit. They have 2. That's it. I've got to remember, I can learn from India, but I can't be India. Minnesota is very different!
• There is a time to keep things, and a time to give away. I don't need to keep every single souvineer from every trip and person. If I'm afraid of forgetting the trip or person, keeping the knick-knack isn't the solution to that problem. I don't even need to keep every single birthday card from every single birthday. Perhaps a few of the special ones, but every one? Probably not.
• For us at least, it is okay to keep project & hobby supplies. We have time and space for that. It saves us money in the long run if we don't go out and buy new material or paint or glue every single time. But I need to remember, I don't need 10 glues and 14 toilet paper tubes. I don't need 5 rolls of tape that don't work if I can have 2 that do.
• Labels, closets, and containers are life-savers. If it doesn't look cluttered, if it's easy to access, if I know we'll use it, then we keep it, right? If I loose it in the closet, of course I won't use it!

So hopefully, in the coming weeks, I will get started on my clutter-project. Auditing, minimizing, and maximizing what God has given us.

My to-do list:

• Make a master camping list.
• Sort camping stuff, and make sure it's in order, complete, and ready to use at a moments notice.
• Sort winter clothes.
• Make meat marinades to put in freezer for quick suppers & grills.
• Sort tool closet....take inventory...keep list of useful tools and get rid of the rest.
• Sort craft supplies.
• Start rummage sale pile.
• Clean kitchen drawers.
• Make of list of "hope-to-dos" for this summer.

Home Inspiration

I received the Better Homes and Garden e-newsletter...and it was time to check out their decorating ideas on a budget. I really like the above picture...a nice clean room, and the "canopy" is pretty neat too!

Another idea I liked was this bathroom towel rack, made out of a wine rack!


I have a couple projects in mind for our house....to get things in order and de-clutter. Some of the things I'd like to work on are:

• Make a serving tray (have 2 "collections" of memoriablia that are just taking up space)
• Make cards and therefore clean out craft/scrap drawer
• Clean off fridge & find a good place for all the pictures
• Clean out display case
• Clean/de-clutter living room and sitting room, including giving away unused books and magazines.
• Clean out kitchen drawers of unused items (both food and utensils)
• Sew apron and rag doll to use up material scraps
• Clean out laundry room....I don't even know what is in there!

About Organization

I've just finished reading this book....and it was really great! I'm kind of an organizing junkie anyway (though I don't always apply what I learn), but this book was full of fun and useful tips. I checked it out at our library. You should check it out at yours!

Here are just some of the things I copied out of the book:

• Put rubber car mats over your wind shield in the winter and they won't frost over.
• To get more juice from a lemon, microwave it for 30 seconds. You'll get twice the juice and loose no nutritional value.
• Write your check for the total bill amount, before coupons, and then put that cash toward a savings goal you have.
• If you want de-boned chicken breasts, put in the whole chicken breasts and parboil them for 10 to 12 minutes, and the meat will peel right off the bone.
• A toddler can set the table. Make a placemat out of paper and draw the shapes of the fork, plate, spoon, and glass. The child gets to put each item in its proper place.
• Set 90 day goals in these categories:

1. Physical goals (ex. 50 sit ups by such and such date)
2. Spiritual goals (read a chapter from the Bible every day)
3. Community support goals (hand out red cross fliers)
4. Mental goals (memorize the 50 state capitals)
5. Social goals (invite so and so over for supper)
6. Professional goals (study one new course)
7. Financial goals (save so much toward this thing by so and so date)
8. Marriage/family goals (do a family fun outing once a month)

Jackpine Retreat

Every year we pack up our gear and head north for a weekend get-a-way.

I'm sure it's not the most luxury trip you've ever heard of....or even the most restful! But it's fun. And we look forward to it every fall.

This year we braved rain and mist, but it wasn't as cold as it can be (below zero!).

The campground is hosted by a small congregation in Warroard, MN. We sleep in tents and eat around campfires and use outhouses. We play volley ball and roast marshmallows and listen to Bible studies. We sing songs and play games and cuddle up in warm sleeping bags. (Just for the record, I made sure to enjoy lots of toasted marshmallows!)

This year's theme was Running the Race. We were reminded of how important Preparation is before beginning anything.

We were encouraged to Participate. To actually go out and DO IT, not just prepare ourselves and then never start.

We were reminded of how Perseverance is important. Even when tough stuff comes, to keep heading for the goal.

And finally, we were reminded of the Prize, our goal....Heaven....God's arms open wide.

M. and I got home yesterday afternoon with wet tents and gear, and a wet afternoon outside. So, here is what our house looks like right now (add dirty dishes, loads of laundry, and drying sleeping bags to the other parts of our house and you get the picture):

In a hilarious and embarissing sort of way, I also receieved a call this morning that the state inspector was here with our landlord and was going to check out our apartment today! There's not much I can do about it now!

Freezing Food Stuff

Now this is impressive....






This is my new goal....to get my freezer to look like this! (Does your freezer already look like this?! I'm impressed!)


To read the article accompanying this picture, click here.

Summer

It's been a long winter, and a start-and-stop spring, but finally....SUMMER is here.

You Know It Is Summer When...

Thunderclouds are a normal afternoon sight.....

Barefeet are in season...

Kittens are born....




Lilacs are blooming...



Your backyard is a jungle...



Gardens are sprouting...
(Uh, that's supposed to be a pea....if you can see past all the weeds)

And the ants are back.

I really am happy summer weather is here. Our town is so green and lush right now, and the weather is perfect for evening walks and bike rides.

Sadly, our "Summer Company" is back too. Today I found a spider making it's home in our bathroom, and my orange candy bag filled with ugly black ants.

I went on an Ant Rampage tonight, trying to get our kitchen area under control again. They came so fast! Before starting the war, I sat and watched them a while, to see where they were coming from. I was mighty surprised to see them making a trail to a crack in our ceiling! Not sure how to stop that!

I bleached out our garbage can-again-and washed down the walls. I also sprikled some black pepper around the corner, but I haven't figured out what to do on the ceiling yet. Any tips? Hopefully this will stop them for tonight at least!

Spring Cleaning

Today I decided to do some spring cleaning! It was nice to re-arrange a bit, although you can't tell a whole lot from the pictures.

Here was our kitchen after making dosa in the morning, and after my grochery shopping.
Here it was after I scrubbed the counters, put away the food, made supper and washed up the dishes. What a nice feeling to have it all clean!

Here was our living room in the morning. Stuff all over. I did a bit of re-arranging (the toy bin and the blankets and the table runners)
Here it is all picked up and simpler.
I also improvised a book shelf for Mathew's study books.


And I put a vase a pussy willows in the corner. :)

Here was our in-progress laundry. I'm afraid this part takes me the longest!

And our simplified kitchen....by changing the tablecloth and centerpiece, sweeping, and putting away odds and ends.

I always like seeing a very messy place go to a very clean place! It's refreshing to come home to this after work!

Psalm 51:10

Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

Piano Tuning

Monday night we had the Piano Tuner come over to tune our new/used piano. It was quite an adventure!!! First of all, he tightened some pins and screws and fixed my damper pedal. Then, as he was testing the keys, a little brown knob fell out from among the hammer heads and rolled across the keys. Mathew & I thought it was a piece of wood, but the tuner said "Well, that's as far as we'll go here. Time to take it apart!" It turned out, it was a piece of DOG FOOD! So he pried off all the keys from the keyboard and laid them out on a towel! I had never seen that done before! Turns out, it's quite common he said.

Look at all that dog food! We got out our vaccuum and proceeded to vaccuum up all that dog food and straw (the people from whom we bought the piano have two house dogs, so that's where the dog food came from)


This is how much we got (about 5 cups I suppose). Turns out, a mouse had made his house in our piano before we bought it, and carried the dog food up piece by piece by piece. (Along with a little straw) There were some chew marks on the inside wood, but not enough to harm anything. Thankfully, we didn't find the mouse!!! ha ha He was long gone with all the moving, and it was nice to know we don't have any in our house now (otherwise we would've found him) I guess it's rather common for him to find piano-mouse houses. But it was quite hilarious!

After putting the piano all back together again, he tuned it. It hasn't been tuned in about 6 years, so was a 1/2 step out of tune (that is ALOT in piano terms). Since it was so out of whack, he only tuned it up part of the way (A330) so as to not break the strings. Then, we will get it re-tuned in a couple months to bring it up farther....eventually being in tune (A440). Hopefully we don't find another mouse house!!!!! The piano sounds so much better now! It's lovely!

Tuesday Morning

Tuesday morning I woke up to a bad smell in the hallway. At first I thought it was the garbage, but we had just taken it out. So then I thought it was the can itself, but it was clean. I thought perhaps it was coming from the apartment next to us, but that didn't seem plausable either. I set out an air freshener and hoped it would go away while I made breakfast.
It didn't.
So then, I played "Investigator." I started in the kitchen, sniffing my way toward the smell. It led me into the hallway (which I had already known but ah well) and then close to the bathroom. "Ah ha," I thought, "it's here! But much to my chagrin, as I moved into the bathroom doorway the smell grew fainter. Turning around mystified, I stood in the hall, wondering if there was possibly something in the wall. I had ruled out the laundry room before, seeing as how it was just a pile of ironing to do and a waste basket filled with lint. But now as I stood in the doorway between the bathroom and the laundry room, it seemed my only choice. Much to my surprise, the smell grew stronger as I walked into the room! Puzzled, I wandered past the irnoning basket, past the wastebasket and then stopped embarrasedly in front of the washing machine. Slowly opening up the lid, I knew what I would find.....yup, there it was.....the wet smelly laundry that I had forgotten since yesterday morning to throw in the dryer! Whew, it smelled mighty musty! So, I set it on another wash cycle, determined not to make the same mistake again, I stayed around until it finished and quickly tossed it in the dryer before heading out to work.
Now I'm just hoping I remember to take it out of the dryer before next laundry day!

Unwelcome Vistors

It seems this summer, that the neighborhood insects have taken a liking to my house. It's a good thing I like bugs (or at least am not screamy) but I've definitely had my fill! I've found out that spiders think my front bay windows are the real "treat!" I've opened the shades quite a few times now to the soft, glistening of a new web. I'm afraid that the spider's home has become "fast food service" in the sense, they'd better catch their food fast because their web doesn't last very long! So now, my morning routine is sweeping my windows and front ceiling.

Last weekend I had to take drastic measures in my kitchen. I have a family (a quite large and extended family I'm sure with many cousins and aunts and uncles) of black ants that have made a trail through my kitchen. It's very handy for them that their vacationing takes them right past my cupboards and fridge but rather startling for me as I'm standing doing dishes! I read once that a way to repel ants is to sprinkle around some black peper. So, guess what my kitchen looked like for a day or so! *laugh* But it worked! (amidst all the sneezing!) It's a temorary fix at least until I can find a better way.

This morning I had a third visitor. (One to which I wasn't so hospitable!) I went to pick up my carry-all bag from the porch so I could take my books and papers to work but when I looked inside I had quite a surprise! There, staring calmly up at me (I'm not sure that he even registered I was there), was a large 1 inch, fat cricket! I wasn't quite as calm and quickly shook him outside, wondering what else could be awaiting me!

So now, I guess, I am the official Bug Remover. I even had a chance to practice my new trade at the office, when on seperate occasions a cricket and a grasshopper decided to hitchike on the back of our receptionist!

Here's a list of ways to keep Ant Infestation Down:

• Getting rid of ants in your house:
• Do the dishes regularly.
• Wipe down your kitchen counters with bleach water every night.
• Clean your room and pick up food wrappers.
• Seal door sills, window sills, and mend broken screens.
• Mop floors with bleach regularly.
• Put food and leftovers (especially sweets) in proper containers.
  Take out the trash as often as possible