If you give a mom a beautiful day, she is going to send the kids outside and open the windows.

Seeing the dirty, fingerprint covered windows, she is going to clean them.

Feeling the cool breeze blowing in, she will remember to turn off the a/c.

While turning off the a/c, she will think to check the filter and notice the thick layer of dust, so she will change it.

When she goes to throw away the used filter, she will decide to go ahead and take out all the trash in the house.

While emptying the bathroom trash, she will notice the toilet needs to be cleaned.

Since she's cleaning the toilet, she decides to clean the whole bathroom and wash the shower curtain.

When she puts the curtain in the washer, she sees the stacks of folded laundry that need to be put away, so she takes them to the kids' bedrooms.

After putting away the clean laundry, she notices a damp towel laying on the bedroom floor and takes it back to the bathroom.

Being in the bathroom reminds her of the shower curtain in the washer and she figures it is probably done by now.

She takes the shower curtain out of the washer and decides that the dryer will heat up the house, so she takes it outside to hang on the clothes line.

Once she gets outside, she remembers that it is a beautiful day and decides to stay outside with the kids where there aren't any chores to be done.

This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

Note: The above story is a based on actual events in this author's day. It is also an original creation and is not to be used without giving credit to the author - Christy at RaisingKnights.com. Thank you!

Linked to Mama Moment Mondays.

Free eBooks

I never understood what all the hoopla over smart phones was about...until I got one. One of my favorite things is being able to download free ebooks from Amazon.com directly to my Android phone. Here are several free ebooks, but I don't how long they will be free, so be quick!

Fresh Fruit Pies, Tarts, and Galettes - Every Recipe has a Gluten Free Alternative

Grandma's Best Muffin Recipes (Grandma's Best Recipes)

Healthy Whole Grains, Easy and Delicious Soup Recipes

The Organized Kitchen: Keep Your Kitchen Clean, Organized, and Full of Good Food-and Save Time, Money, (and Your Sanity) Every Day!

Amazon's collection of free Classics eBooks are perfect for homeschoolers or anyone interested in good literature. Download Treasure Island or Gulliver's Travels for the next time you have to wait in the car for soccer practice to finish or while you are waiting to see the dentist.

We Interrupt This Blog For Real Life

An amazing thing happened recently...my computer crashed. Well, actually two computers crashed, one of them twice. I was beginning to wonder if it was a divine sign after the first time. After two crashed computers...hmmm. I'm borrowing another of Papa Bear's computers to write this, but my camera is mysteriously broken also, so no pictures. Is it just me or does it seem that all of this broken technology points to more than coincidence?

In the meantime, I've been catching up on all those chores and projects that I thought I didn't have time for. I spent all yesterday afternoon and evening (until midnight) working on:

• Emptying the office closet, so I can make it a quiet nook for the boys and a safe place during storms. It's in the center of the house, under the stairs. I removed the lower shelf and added it to the top one to create a place for emergency supplies. My plan is to paint the walls, put a large cushion or floor pillow in the bottom, and maybe add a section of rain gutter bookshelves or other low-profile book holder.
• Reorganizing the downstairs and upstairs hall closets to make room for stuff from the office closet. That led to culling through our sheet sets. Some had to go, some were suitable for camping, a few lone flat sheets are going into a fort making kit for the boys, and the remaining complete sets are being stored in their respective bedrooms. I still need to find a place for our board games.
• Sorting and putting away a mountain of clothing that I had not wanted to deal with. Some outgrown things that needed to be put in storage. Mostly clean clothes that I had let pile up because putting away clothes is my least favorite chore. To make it easier for me and the hobbits to put things away, this became...
• Taking the sliding doors off of the hobbits closet, hanging a curtain rod, and using ring clips to hang twin sheet curtains. The three youngest share a closet and their chest of drawers is in there also. Of course, I had to straighten and clean out the closet and then that led to...
• Cleaning the hobbits' room. That by itself is a big job. Everything is now in its place. Even the space under the beds is clear. For the moment. Once the room was clean, I got started on... 
• Hanging a couple of pictures and peg racks on the walls for their hats and dress up stuff. I had found the peg racks at thrift stores long ago and finally spray painted them white yesterday, in between my other projects.

The hobbits love the changes to their room. None of them know about the empty closet yet or else they would be in it right now. Kids do love cozy nooks. Needless to say, I did not have a hard time falling asleep last night. Now, I'm off to buy a gift for my niece's daughter's birthday party tomorrow, pick out a paint color for the "secret nook", purchase a new shower curtain liner, browse the thrift store, and pick up a few groceries.

8 DIY Christmas Crafts Using Epsom Salts

It all started yesterday with this post by Melissa from The Inspired Room. I loved all of her simple DIY Christmas craft ideas, but the Jingle Bell Mason jar really caught my attention. With recycled jars and Epsom salts on hand, I only needed some twine, jingle bells, votive candles, and a couple of tiny bottle-brush trees (with the Christmas villages). All easy enough to find at your local WalMart or craft store. Hopefully, I'll find some time to work on them tomorrow. Of course, I'll post pictures. Here is some inspiration for creating your own simply snowy decorations.

Melissa @ The Inspired Room

1. Jingle Bell Mason jar

Amanda @ Crafts by Amanda

2. Epsom salt luminaries 

Amanda Formaro @ Craftown.com

3. Epsom salt ornaments

April @ You, Me & the Kid

4. Snow candles

April @ You, Me & the Kid

5. Snow-filled ornaments

Tracie @ Cleverly Inspired

6. Frosty wine bottles display

Donna @ Donna's Daze

7. Frosted window panes 

{doubles as a science experiment!}

Joy @ Thrifty Parsonage Living

8. Frosted candle & ornament display
{slight variation}

Linked to Homemaking Link-Up.

Hard Lotion Bars

Before Christmas, I purchased the ingredients to make soap, hard lotion bars, and lip balm from Bramble Berry. Today, I finally got around to making the hard lotion bars from the MadeOn tutorial. It was very easy to do and the resulting bars make my skin feel silky smooth. We only have occasional skin issues in our family but I have read many reviews on the success people have using these lotion bars with eczema. NG has had infrequent bouts of eczema and M2 has had one so far.

I used 4 oz. each of shea butter and beeswax pellets and 5 oz. of coconut oil. The bars turned out solid but the surface begins to melt in your hand immediately, as it should. I'll probably be giving these in gift baskets for Mother's Day and for Christmas.

 I

Got Ants? Need a Natural Solution?

We have ants. They've been coming out from under the downstairs toilet for a while. {Papa Bear and I are both afraid to see what's under our old toilet. It leans a little too.} And since someone spilled juice on our end table and it soaked into the felt pad on the base of our lamp, ants have found their way into our living room too. I removed the felt pad and scrubbed the area but they are persistent. They are only a minor nuisance right now, but I've got to do something before they invite more friends to the party or find their way into my kitchen.

Fortunately, when ants invaded our old house last year, I found Lindsay's ant trap recipe. It did the trick fast! The next morning after setting out the bait, I found dozens of ants sipping the sweet nectar to carry back to their nest. The next morning, the numbers were down. And by the third or fourth day, I didn't see any more ants.

Want to know how I did it?

Mix 1 tsp of Borax into 2 cups of hot water; stir to dissolve. Stir in 6 Tbsp of sugar. Dip a folded or crumpled paper towel into the solution, making sure it's saturated. Stuff the paper towel into a small dish, like a ramekin. Place the dish near the area where you see the ants, but out of reach of children and pets.

Sounds too easy, doesn't it? Believe me, it works. And after I did some research, I found that several marketed ant control products contain the same ingredients. It's easy and much cheaper to make your own.

Do you have any natural solutions for getting rid of uninvited pests?


Linked to Domestically Divine.

Homemade Glass Cleaner

Marriage is all about compromises. Even when it comes to simple things, like what you clean the windows with. Papa Bear hasn't minded too many of the changes I've made over the years, but he does like streak-free windows. And toilets that smell like bleach, but there's not a compromise there. I've purchased a few different kinds of all-natural glass cleaners and made my own with just vinegar and water. None of them meet Papa Bear's standards. Since his police cruiser is his "office" and visibility is a very important factor in doing his job well, our compromise was that he would use (and keep) commercial (read: toxic) window cleaner in his car.

But now...I found a recipe for Heloise's window cleaner and after trying it on a couple of mirrors in the house, this may be the one. My only concern is that it contains rubbing alcohol. I know it's dangerous so I'll definitely have to be more vigilant about keeping it out of reach of the little ones than I was with the plain vinegar/water solution. Just wondering, is rubbing alcohol considered natural?

Heloise's Window Cleaner

In a clean, empty spray bottle, combine:
12-16 oz water
1/2 c white vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
1/4 c rubbing alcohol (70%)
 a few drops of essential oil (lavender, orange, cinnamon, etc.), opt.

Heloise and many others recommend using newspaper to clean windows also. I stick to paper towels or microfiber cloths because we don't get the newspaper. It would be a great way to recycle them, though.

The true test of this homemade glass cleaner will come when I use it inside the van. I hate do not care for cleaning the van when it's cold outside, so it has accumulated quite a bit of filth. I have a couple of boys who love to display their artistic abilities in the condensation on the windows.

Inspiration for a New Year

Sometimes, the Creator of the universe grabs our attention through a computer screen. Through the inspired words of another mom in a blog post. In between reading about organizing tips and cookie recipes, I am halted by words that convict me, inspire me, give me hope, and redirect my focus. 

At the Well, I found parenting inspiration while reading A Heart to Serve and Parenting on Our Knees. Most of the time, I strive to do the right thing, the right way and become disappointed when I don't get the desired result. How easy it is to forget to turn it over to the Lord in prayer first, instead of waiting until my feeble, flawed human efforts don't produce the outcome I want.

While reading Courtney's post about her theme word for 2011 at Women Living Well, a word came to me - devotion. This year has flown by and was filled with life-changing events right out of the gate. Most were good things, but I allowed a few difficult experiences to steal my joy and I put up a wall to protect myself. In doing so, I pulled away from relationships and began to grow bitter. My goal for the new year is to be devoted - to making time for reading my Bible and having quiet time with God, to becoming a prayer warrior for my family, to becoming a better help mate for my husband, to becoming an instrument for the Lord, to teaching my sons by example. I will be devoted to letting God work in my life.

"Busy mom syndrome" has become my excuse for not reading my Bible regularly and it is apparent in the fruit of my daily life. Jess at Making Home says it better than I could with her article, Like a Newborn Baby. I was further inspired to action by reading Goal Setting Tips for the New Year - From a 7 Year Old. If Kat's 7yo daughter can read the Bible in a year, so can I. 

Reading blogs and blogging can distract you and steal your time, but God can redeem it by leading you to places that will refill your spirit and refocus your attention. I have to go now. I have things to do.

As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man.  -Proverbs 27:15 NIV

Organizing Tip - Hats and Gloves

This is how I used to store our family's winter hats and gloves. 

When we only had two boys, it worked out just fine. As we added more boys, it seemed like the accessories multiplied every time we closed the closet door. Which is partially true because my mom thinks you can never have enough {of anything} and buys the boys new hats and gloves every time she sees them on sale. Fortunately, she buys the same type of gloves most of the time and that helps to offset missing mate syndrome. Well, I'm sure you can guess what happened any time a boy needed a hat or gloves...yes, a huge pile all over the hall or closet floor.

Now it looks like this...

When we moved into our new house, I discovered that I couldn't use my shoe organizer because we have sliding doors on our bedroom closet. I remembered seeing this idea somewhere and knew it would work for us. I used 3M hooks to hang the mesh shoe organizer. Mesh works best so that you can see what is in the pockets. I put the younger hobbits' items at the bottom and go up according to size. The boys can easily find what they are looking for and nothing gets pulled out unnecessarily. The hobbits don't usually return their belongings to the closet yet, but we're working on that.

Have you repurposed something to organize your stuff?

Linked to Works for Us Wednesday and Large Family Organizing.

Easy & Affordable Green Cleaning

Baking soda and vinegar. 

These are my top two natural cleaners. They just can't be beat. I buy a 13.5 lb. bag of baking soda from Sam's Club and a large jug of store brand white vinegar at the grocery. Add some dish liquid and hot water and you can clean just about anything.

This is what I do with them:

• Bathtub/sink scrub - Run a little bit of hot water into the plugged tub (just about a 1/2-1 inch over drain) while getting sides of tub wet. Sprinkle about 1/2-3/4 cup of baking soda all around tub sides, then drizzle a little dish liquid (I use Seventh Generation natural dish liquid) over it. Use a scrubbing sponge to scrub tub in circular motions until clean and smooth. Unplug drain and rinse tub with hot water. 
• Drain cleaner - Put a large pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, pour 1/2 cup baking soda into drain. Pour about a cup of vinegar down drain. Let sit for about 5 minutes; pour boiling water down drain. Use a plunger (carefully, your drain is full of boiling water!), if drain is still going slow. Sometimes that helps to loosen the soap scum and hair. Run hot water to test drain. If it is still slow, it may need a second treatment. If you do this regularly, you're less likely to need a plumber for simple clogs. 
• Toilet bowl cleaner - Sprinkle baking soda around inside of bowl, add 1/2 cup vinegar to water, use toilet brush to scrub, and let sit as long as possible or overnight.
• Mildew remover - Ever leave a load of clothes in the washer overnight? ;) Wash on warm or hot and add 1 cup vinegar. Wash again on normal with detergent.
• Fabric softener - Add 1/2 cup vinegar to rinse cycle.
• Stainless steel pots & pans - Burnt food stuck to the bottom of pan? Sprinkle a layer of baking soda in bottom of pan, drizzle a little dish liquid, and add about an inch of hot water. Let soak for a while. Once it's softened up, use a spatula or scraper to remove food. For just regular pot cleaning, I sprinkle a little baking soda inside before washing with hot, soapy water and a scrubbing sponge.
• Kitchen cleaning - I clean my kitchen sink the same way I clean the bathtub. For cleaning the refrigerator shelves, sprinkle a little baking soda on a hot, soapy dishcloth or sponge and wipe down shelves. Rinse cloth or sponge and wipe shelves until clean. For disinfecting, use straight vinegar in spray bottle. Spray surface, let sit for a minute, wipe away.

You can find more uses for vinegar at Frugal Fun and for baking soda at The New Homemaker. Eco Child's Play has an article about using vinegar and hydrogen peroxide to disinfect. By using baking soda and vinegar for just the above-mentioned tasks, you can eliminate at least 5-6 toxic chemical cleaners from your home and save money.


Linked to:

Kitchen Sneak Peek

My kitchen cabinets are done! I am so excited! And that's saying a lot because not too many things make me feel giddy. I suppose that it's because I spend much of my day in the kitchen and my previous kitchens have always been smaller and old, um, retro or vintage. So, while it may not seem like much to others who live in newly built homes, it is a BIG deal to me. For this stay-at-home mom, the kitchen is where the action is. Cooking, cleaning, (and in our case) laundry, and studying all happen in the kitchen. It is truly the heart of our home. 

Here are the old cabinets on their way out. They are being reused in my SIL's workshop.

Noah is our budding carpenter. He loves building and deconstruction, of course. That screw he is working on in the picture did NOT want to come out. It finally took Papa Bear grinding the head off of it!

And here are the custom made cabinets that were made by Steve, a friend of my husband. Steve makes beautiful, top-quality cabinets in his spare time and is a humble, God-glorifying man. The unfinished back side of the L-shaped cabinet is going to be painted with black chalkboard paint. The empty spaces will be filled with a dishwasher (of course!) and an overhead microwave very soon.

I love the shine of a stainless steel sink, especially this one with offset, deep basins. Papa Bear is going to install the new faucet tomorrow. 

And the crowning glory...the PANTRY. Since I don't have a walk-in pantry or closet, I needed something to hold all of our dry goods and my small appliances. I was originally going to do a base/upper cabinet combo but, at the last minute, it struck me...the biggest pantry we could afford!

Want to see inside? Don't we all like to see what's in other people's cabinets? 

Now I need to find new lighting and window treatments, paint the walls, and cover the checkerboard linoleum with something more pleasing to the eye. All without breaking the bank. 

Thank you for sharing in my joy!