Mindful Monday: Fifteen Minutes Again!

Last week's Mindful Monday post was such a success! I got a lot done in my art room, and restricting myself to the 15 minutes made me really want to get back into it the next day. I got a lot done, but there is still more.

I also tempered my work time by getting to a couple of easy, niggling craft tasks as I came across them. This had a double benefit - it broke up the time nicely, giving me small reminders of why I so badly want this space functional and getting a couple of things done meant having a couple less things to find a home for as I organize.

For this week - I'm having anoutehr go-round of this task, to see how much more I can get done! 

Look! You can almost see the work table!

Who: Me
What: Fifteen minutes of cleaning everyday in my art room.
Why: To get 'er done.
How: First thing after Sister-Bug goes down for her nap, bust in to the space for fifteen minutes no more, no less. Last week I focused on clearing space for the future work of sorting and storing. That meant a lot of just picking messes up and boxing it for later organizing. This week, I want to focus on clearing out some of those boxes of chaos. I also want to make the "work box" drawers that I have for the kids accessible and functional. I think if they are,  I can have a little more time in my room...

I'm gonna get this done, I swear. I probably will have it all nice so I can mess it up well and good in Holiday preparations.

Daily Haiku: October 31st

Last of harvest days.
We gather for feast and fun,
Pumpkins lit a-glow.

Simple Saturday: Independent Snacking

One of the things that can drive me crazy is how the Little Bugs always seem to get hungry the minute I have gotten my hands deep in a project, sat down to nurse, or just opened my book. I know I shouldn't get peeved - they are growing and they get hungry and that's okay.

But really? I just started writing this! Two minutes ago I was in the kitchen, digging through the fridge, and you couldn't want a snack then?

In answer to this, I decided to simplify and empower. To do this I got a smaller selection of snacks, focusing on nutritional and flavor balance as well as things I was okay with both kids eating whenever. Then I got three plastic containers with lids that Brother-Bug can easily open.

I keep these bins in a low cupboards, and/or on the bottom shelf of the fridge. Brother-Bug can help himself anytime he is hungry - and he usually takes on sharing with his sister as well.

I keep refreshing the snacks as they need it, and I usually put two different things in each bin. One might have fruit leather and nuts, one crackers and nori, and one carrot and green bean pieces. I try to stick to our concept of The Three Gs as my guidelines. If there is something sweet like fruit leather, they have to eat everything in the bin, not just the sweetie) before that bin is replenished.

Some things I have packed in these bins: cheese and meat bites, seaweed, assorted nuts, chips, crackers, freeze dried fruits and veggies, cooked chickpeas, fresh carrots, peas, celery, or green beans, tofu dip, yogurt, dried fruit, carrot & beet chips, trail mix...

I'm having fun finding fun snacks to diversify their bins, and also finding a special surprise snack occasionally. I think they are both learning about meeting their own needs, saving the sweets so they last (delayed gratification), and a little nutrition. When I do go to get a more prepared snack, I find that I am more inspired to make it fun a different because it's something I do once a day instead of three or four times a day.

And when someone comes in the middle of my writing time, I can easily remind them that the snacks ate within their reach.

Daily Haiku: October 30th

Today, dreams of time
that unspools endlessly,
scattered with bright stars.

Housekeeping Week - Friday

After the craziness that is any week input home, I'm ready to slow down and have a not-so-essential chore on Friday. One that I can comfortably miss if we are out of town or there has been too much going on and we need a down day.

Friday is Clean the Bedroom Day.

We use the bedroom for sleeping, movies, and getting dressed, so it doesn't get very messy over the course of a week, but of I don't put it on the schedule it gets pretty darn messy before I prioritize it. And I feel that we all sleep better if we are sleeping in clean space.


To get this room good enough I
*clear the surfaces.
*put the clean laundry away, and the dirty laundry in the laundry room.
*pick up the random stuff.

Ultimately I try to
*dust.
*vacuum.
*wash the sheets.




Because its such a light set of tasks, Friday is also the day I clean the hall.

Like the bedroom, it doesn't need much. I feel it's good enough if I
*do a quick tidy up on our family desk.
*sweep.

Ultimately I try to
*dust the desk and photos hanging in the hall.
*organize the random piles that grow on the desk.
*wash the floor.

Mostly I can get through both these tasks with ease, leaving the rest of the day free for a quick living room pick up.

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Housekeeping schedule benefit! I don't have to worry about messes (smallish, non-sticky messes anyway) when I see them. I know that it will be less than a week - and usually less than four days - until I clean it up. I don't have to do it now, or think about those dust bunnies because I know when I will be thinking about them. My mind is free to pursue more interesting things.

Housekeeping Week - Thursday

Paradoxically, Thursday is also my favorite, and for the opposite reason of Wednesday.

Thursday is Bathroom Day.

Unlike the day-long cleaning evolution that is Wednesday, the bathroom is an easy chore that I get done first thing in the morning. I scrub the tub, pop the kids in their bath, and keep an eye on them while they play and I clean the rest of the bathroom.

I start the day with my chore already done, which is good since Thursday is also when I run errands.

If I am doing a 'good enough' clean I
*scrub the tub.
*clean the toilet.
*wipe down the sink.
*sweep.
*take dirty laundry out.

If the kids are both happily splashing, I ultimately try to
*wash the floor.
*clean the mirror.
*wipe out any storage bins that need it.
*deep clean behind the sink, toilet, etc.

This is really only a twenty minute chore, so that leaves me plenty of time to prep dinner, make the shopping list, and otherwise prepare for errands.

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Housekeeping schedule benefit! Because each room gets cleaned on such a regular schedule, it means that the ultimate things aren't always so pressing. Odds are all of them get done within a couple of weeks, and the basics are always covered.

Housekeeping Week - Wednesday

Wednesday has become a favorite. It is the Kitchen Day.

My habit has become to start first thing in the morning and slowly work through it over the course of the day. This chore has, by far, the longest 'good enough' and 'ultimate' lists.

For a good enough kitchen I need to
*clear and wipe all the counters (including under the counter appliances).
*empty the dish drainer.
*clear out old food & leftovers from the fridge.
*pick up the laundry room (which is small and attached to the kitchen).
*sweep and wash the floors.

Looks like a lot, but ultimately I also try to
*scrub the sink.
*clean the toaster & microwave.
*wipe out the fridge.
*clean the stove and/or oven.
*sort the odd socks in the laundry room.
*wipe down the cupboards.

This happens on Wednesday for a couple of strategical reasons. First, Papa-Bug has the car most Wednesdays, so I can assume I will be at home to work on the kitchen all day. Second, since I get home late on Tuesday, we don't usually get our after dinner kitchen clean up done and the dishes are just piled up after dinner. Lastly, I run errands on Thursday, so cleaning the kitchen the day before means I have a clear fridge to put the new food in, as well as a good idea of what we need at the grocery store. Additionally, having the kitchen sparkling as we head into the last part of the week feels good - up and over the hump.

I find, as I work through the day that other kitchen tasks make their way into my chore - like sorting bones and starting a batch of broth, making fruit leather out of some fruit that must be used, and so on. It's relaxing to be tied to this essential room for the day.

Today I opted not to wash the floor - we are carving pumpkins tomorrow evening and I know it will need a wash after that mess. I ended up with time today to start re-claiming the windowsill, taking off some old hardware that was making it look unkempt. I hope to make a little kitchen altar there in the near future - something to look at while I do the never ending dishes. 

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Housekeeping schedule benefit! Because I know I will have this extended time in the kitchen, I don't stress too much throughout the rest of the week - I just try to keep the mess to a minimal pile. The big things I will tackle today. This has opened up a lot of time the rest of the week for Brother-Bug's school time, my time, folding laundry, and whatnot.

Wordless Wednesday: What I Saw Out The Window

Daily Haiku: October 26th

Mother holds baby.
Arms create a circle strong,
Made of love and bone.

(Written for a friend and her new son.)

Housekeeping Week - Tuesday

On Tuesday I have to be at our food co-op for my volunteer shift by 4:30. I also have to get dinner in the slow-cooker so Papa-Bug and the kids can eat dinner easily while I'm gone. I get home right before bedtime, just enough time to feed myself and hear how the evening was. So I need the Tuesday chore to be pretty simple and one that won't be really noticed if I miss it.

Tuesday is the day we clean the Playroom.

To get it just good enough, we
*pick up the toys off the floor.
*make the bed.
*put the laundry away.

If we are all feeling cooperative (and it wasn't too big a mess to start with!) we also, ultimately, can
*sweep and wash the floor.
*get the toys put in their proper homes.
*wash the sheets (since the kids sleep with us, I don't worry about that so much).



Also on Tuesday I water the houseplants. It's not a big deal, so I easily forget to do it - unless it is on the schedule.

Having the playroom clean on Tuesday means that Papa-Bug has a nice play space for his evening with the kids. And, like I opened with, Tuesday can get a little crazy, so this is a pretty mellow thing to get done.

Another aspect of the kids room that I recently added is the style of their toy storage. I found that a local ice cream parlor gives the sugar cone boxes away. These make for cheerful, standardized storage. The lid is perfect for writing what belongs in the box - and even if the contents are a jumble, the outside looks tidy.

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Housekeeping schedule benefit! Having a small thing, like watering the plants, gives me something I can do first thing and feel accomplished right away in the morning.