Getting Organized: Laundry Week 1 Review

I made it through my first week of my new laundry schedule, and I have to say that I really like it!

Here are the things that I liked about it:

1. I did not have to "think" or "decide" what laundry to do that day - my schedule told me what to do!

2. I would start a load first thing in the morning, and it was usually done and put away by the time that Dawson came home from work!

3. If I needed to do any "extra" loads, I could easily fit it in (such as a heavy comforter that I wanted to store away)

4. I did not have ANY laundry that needed to get done this weekend.

5. The laundry is "piling" up and it is not bothering me one bit - I know when it will get done! (and it is not "that bad" - I only have two children...although they do know how to get their clothes pretty dirty at times!)

6. I made sure that I folded and put away all of the clothes that I washed ASAP - that made it really nice to go to bed at night and not have a pile of unfolded clothes on our bed or in a laundry basket on the floor.

7. I am sure that there are some other things, but I cannot think of anything more at the moment! :)

At the end of this week, I also decided to look back over the week and to evaluate what I could improve about the laundry schedule or anything else that was related to laundry. So far, this is what I came up with:


Improvements Needed:

1. I think that I will have to try out the laundry schedule for a few more weeks to see how it really works for me. Like I said, so far, I really like it!

2. Right now, I have 2 hampers - one for lights/white and the other for darks. I would really like a 3-bin laundry sorter, but I am not sure which one I would like to invest in (because they are not cheap). I want one that is durable and will not fall apart...any suggestions??? (so far I know not to buy one from Target). I want a third compartment for Dawson's dress clothes - it would make it a little easier on me.

Last week, we did not go out too much because Smiles was diagnosed with strep throat, so it will be interesting to see how a busier schedule will impact what time of day that the laundry is done this week. Can I still get it done first thing in the morning, or will it have to wait? I know, the suspense it killing you! LOL Well, I am pretty excited about anything that makes my life a little more organized...it's the little things in life - right? :)

Getting Organized: Laundry

A few months ago, I had the privilege of speaking at our Mom's In Action Group at our church. I spoke about "Servanthood" in the role of wife and mom. I really had a great time speaking with the ladies and sharing with them what God has done in my life and what He is currently doing. One topic that I spoke about was laundry.

Laundry is a job/chore that is never completely done. You may "catch up" one day, but before the night is over, there are tops, bottoms, socks, etc. that are placed back into those empty hampers!!! The piles begin to form, and the mole hill turns into a mountain...if you don't stay on top of it! Sometimes, I have felt like "I just need a break" from doing laundry...unfortunately that break turns into a week or two...or until someone runs out of underwear, or my husband gently tells me that he has nothing to wear to work the next day! OOPS!!! "Are you sure that there is NOTHING that you can wear tomorrow, hunny????" I really do want my husband to look nice the next day at work, so I throw something in the washing machine and notice the piles that are in front of me, waiting for their turn to take a spin in the machine.

There has to be a better way to stay on top of this "chore"...without passing it off to another family member...although that is not a bad idea, however my 2 and 4 year old sons only know how to stuff the clothes into the washer and press the start button...I need to do the soap!

Flylady had a great idea - do one load a day, from start to finish. This means: wash, dry, fold and put away. Great idea, seriously, but somehow, this really did not work for me. (and I really do like Flylady's ideas!). I needed something more, but I did not know what.

Recently, I have been motivated to get more organization in my life and declutter my house so that I can start putting my dreams into reality. I have been praying and asking God to help me in this area - to stay motivated and to give me ideas and inspiration to get these things done, and I believe that he helped me do this!

So, last week, I decided that I need to come up with a laundry schedule that specified what would be washed on each day of the week...and leave the weekends free from laundry! I also decided that I needed to tackle my mountain and "catch up" with all of my laundry...so I ended up doing about 15 loads of laundry! I could not believe it!!! Now, that did included things like winter jackets that were waiting to be washed and stored away and tablecloths and various things like that...but still! WOW!

So, here is a peek at what my weekly list looks like:

Today was the first day, and I was really happy to get through my list and "be done" for the day. Tomorrow is a new day and I will be washing whites/lights...and there is a blanket that I took off of my son's bed that I want to wash and store for the summer, so I think that I will throw that in too.

I am really excited about my new schedule, and it seems like it is something that I will be able to easily keep up with.

So, what will my next organization project be...stay tuned!

And the Winners are...

The winners for the following contests are:


1. Crest Pro-Health Sensitive Shield - is comment #1, TCC (since this was the only comment that was left...I did not need to do anything special when choosing the winner!) - I will be getting in touch with you soon



2. "got milk?" bundle giveaway - I used the random number generator at random.org and the number chosen was #1!

Congratulations, Nonya, you won the gift pack and I will be contacting you soon!

Thank you to all who entered!

"got milk?"...another Giveaway!

I grew up drinking milk like it was water. We drank it all of the time and I really enjoyed it. I don't drink nearly as much as I did growing up, but I still enjoy having a glass of it now and then...I am more of a water drinker now!

I give milk to my sons to drink at each meal and inbetween meals too, but they differ in the amount that they will consume each day. My four year old enjoys drinking milk and I have no idea how much he actually drinks each day. My two year old is a different story. He drinks it because that is what his mommy gives him to drink (besides his apple juice/water mixture) getting him to drink 16 oz (two sippy cups) is not easy - sometimes, he will drink three cups worth, but I know that it is good for him...and he LOVES cereal with milk...so maybe we get another 6 oz in to him?!?


Well, the annual "got milk?" tour is coming this way and I am excited to be a part of it again! The name of their 2010 tour is "Milk the Moment.” Read more about it below and then be sure to enter the giveaway!


MILK MUSTACHE MOBILE TOUR VISITS HERSHEY!
The 2010 Milk Mustache Mobile “Milk the Moment” Tour has taken to America’s streets to educate families about the importance of healthy eating and will be making a stop in Harrisburg from May 27-29. This year, the tour is traveling coast-to-coast to showing moms that serving milk at dinnertime is an easy, and affordable, way to encourage healthy eating among her family and provide her children with the nutrition they need.

Did you know:
· Research supports the importance of parents’ role modeling a healthy diet for their kids; studies show that moms who drink milk are more likely to have daughters who drink milk.
· Research also demonstrates that kids who eat family dinners have higher fruit, vegetable and calcium intakes than their peers.
· Research shows that family dinners also are linked to better academic performance and mental health for kids.
· That three out of four Americans aren’t getting the recommended daily dose of calcium.
· Milk is the easiest way to get the 9 essential nutrients that you need every day.
· Milk, at only 25 cents a glass, offers more nutrition for your dollar than any other beverage.
· Leading health and nutrition organizations have recognized the valuable role that milk, including flavored milk, can play in meeting daily nutrient needs, and helping kids get the 3 daily servings of milk recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Health tips:
Check out a few interesting facts on how choosing milk can positively impact your family meal’s nutrient content.

• By serving fat free milk in place of that regular soft drink at the table with a typical meal of spaghetti, a side of broccoli, fruit and bread, you add an additional 300mg of calcium to your meal. Likewise, you increase vitamin D by more than 650 percent, and potassium and magnesium by about 30 percent (Visit whymilk.com for full dinner nutrition information).

• You want your family to be healthy and hydrated. And remember, beverages besides water can help with hydration too. Make the most of their dinnertime drink to help your family get the recommended three servings of milk each day. Along with a nutrient punch, milk is nearly 90 percent water!

• In recent years, soft drinks and sugary fruit drinks have been edging out milk at mealtime, but these drinks do not provide the nourishment kids need. Studies show that kids who regularly drink nutrient-rich lowfat milk (including flavored milk which has the same nutrient package as white milk!) have better quality diets and tend to be leaner than kids who drink little or no milk.

During the Milk Mustache Mobile events, you can:
· Play a fun, dinner-themed football toss activity sponsored by the Fuel Up to Play 60 program, which encourages healthy eating and 60 minutes of daily exercise
· Find out the benefits of setting the table with milk at the Mom/Health Tent
· Sample ice-cold milk from local dairies
· Speak with a registered dietitian about the benefits of milk and how Milk can help families stay healthy and relieve stress
· Pose for a celebrity-inspired Milk Mustache souvenir photo
Enter for a chance to win a trip for the ultimate family dinner experience with celebrity chef Tyler Florence

Event Schedule:
· Thursday, May 27, 6pm – 8pm, Harrisburg Senators Baseball
· Friday, May 28, 1pm – 6:30pm, Hershey’s Chocolate World
· Saturday, May 29, 11am – 4pm, Hershey Park

And now for the GIVEAWAY!

One "lucky" winner will receive a special bag of fun-filled prizes, which will include:

A "got milk?" T-shirt (size small), yummy recipes ideas, a lanyard, a frisbee, a pedometer, and chocolate milk mustache stickers!

To enter, please:

1. Leave a comment and a way for me to contact you. Deadline to enter is Saturday, May 29th at 8pm. (only open to USA residents)

2. The winner will be chosen randomly and I will contact you by email!

That's all!

If you are in the area, I hope that you are able to stop by and join the "got milk?" tour!

Giveaway and a Review: Crest Pro-Health Sensitive Shield

I never had sensitive teeth until about a year ago. After one of my cleanings, one of my bottom molars was really sensitive. I called the dentist to ask them why does it feel this way and what should I do? Their response: "Well, this sometimes can happen is the hygentist "digs" too deep" - or they said something along those lines. They also told me that this really can't be healed, but to try a toothpaste made for sensitive teeth. I tried one for a little while, but then stopped because my gum area felt a little better. However, the pain would still come and go, and I am not sure really why! If I touched my gum with my finger, I would be in pain, and that was not a very fun experience!

Well, about two months ago, I was asked if I wanted to review Crest's Pro-Health Sensitive Shield line of oral care. I said sure...I have nothing to lose, and maybe it will help heal my gum/tooth area that was causing me pain.

So, after trying out their Crest Pro-Health Sensitive Shield Toothpaste, Oral-B Pro-Health Gentle Clean Toothbrush, and Crest Glide Pro-Health Floss for Sensitive Gums, I am happy to say that my tooth/gum area is not sensitive like it used to be.

I grabbed the following from their website, because it explains exactly what I must have experienced in order for the sensitivity to subside in my tooth!

"How Does Sensitive Toothpaste Work?

Sensitive toothpastes work by either occluding exposed dentinal tubules (Crest Pro-Health) or by desensitizing the nerve endings in the dentinal tubules with potassium ions (Crest Sensitivity Protection). Sensitive toothpastes also contain fluoride, which has been shown to strengthen tooth enamel and prevent tooth decay. For a complete oral care routine, combine sensitive toothpaste with a soft-bristled toothbrush, mouth rinse, and wide, soft dental floss."

So, now that you know briefly about my experience with Crest's new products, I would like to give you a chance to win your own bundle of Crest Pro-Health Sensitive Shield products!

So, what do you need to do to win?:

1. Leave a comment and be sure that there is a way that I can contact you if you are indeed the winner!

2. The winner will be chosen randomly

3. If you are chosen, I will be sending your snail mail address to the marketing company that contacted me and they will be the ones that will send the bundle to you...only enter if you do not mind me sharing your info with them - they will only use the info to send you the products!

4. Deadline to enter for this giveaway is Friday, May 28th at 4:oo PM EST. I will contact the winner by email as soon as I am able to!

Good Luck!

Dreaming

I have always had pretty vivid dreams at night. I thought that everyone did until I started to talk with other people who said that they rarely remember their dreams. It is pretty neat. I feel that it is one way that God talks to me. I could go into some details about that, however, there is different dreaming that is taking place in my life that is new and fun and exciting!

I have begun to dream about how my house can be. How I want the rooms to look, what furniture I may want to add and subtract from each room. I have begun to realize that I can customize things and change things to be the way that I really want them to be! I have a long way to go in this area, but a spark has been lit! There is so much that is on my mind right now - things that I need to do, things that I want to do, waiting for catalogs to arrive, checking out some new-to-me blogs!

This new phase in my life is fun. I am enjoying this type of dreaming and planning. I have a long way to go...but I have to say that I am enjoying this new part of my journey!

Blogging...just haven't had the time!

I have thought about this blog of mine...really I have...but I have been so busy with trying to do some other things in my house and life, that this has "suffered" a little bit.

So, what have I been up to...Oh just watching soaps and eating bon bons...you know, what every SAHM does! HA! Just kidding...I don't even watch any TV during the day, except an occasional show with the kids!

OK, what have I REALLY been up to??? Well, that will have to wait for another post!

In the meantime, stay tuned...I am going to have a giveaway for you soon...just need to take the time to write about it!