Knowing that I don't have to de-clutter all at once has been a large relief. The thought of cleaning out simply one space a day means 28 places in my home by the end of the month! Now that's progress! Just visualize 28 places in the home. The thought of what I can accomplish in two months is astounding! Oh yea, this is a goal I can reach!
De-cluttering every day is not an all-work-no-play kind of week, either. Cleaning out a space can take anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple of hours. This leaves plenty of time to play, too! Play can consist of anything from knitting, trying out a new recipe, or helping out a friend. It also means having time to watch a movie without the feeling that I should be up doing something.
This week (my first big week at cleaning clutter), I've also managed to help a friend with her yearly room re-model project. My job was to pull the baseboards off the wall and to paint the trim. The bending over, climbing a ladder, and stretching created a great work out.
Then we decided to dedicate the room with our favorite scriptures written on the sub-floor. Imagine, God's word, His living and active word, forever in the house. We were so excited at the thought, we wrote several scriptures on the floor. My favorite, and most appropriate was...
Hopefully, one day, I will be able to do the same in our own home. I'd love to place Gideon Bibles in the walls, too!
This week also allowed time to knit. I love, love, love knitting socks. This particular pair was created with my favorite, Opal yarn. The self-stripping yarn from Germany creates a sock that simply feels great and looks great!
If you are interested in Opal yarn, Simply Socks or Etsy are both a great place to purchase a wide variety on-line. (The web-sites are linked to the store title.)
I generally give socks as Christmas gifts and have never kept a pair for myself...until now. I love how this pair looks and feels! Yes, it feels great to have my own pair.
This week, I also painted the front door. It was looking a little tired and needed to be freshened up a bit. The original door was painted an off white and showed every little hand print. The bottom of the door was looking dirty and I couldn't seem to clean it up. Green paint sounded boring (hubby's idea) but I found a color we both liked and kept the trim a crisp egg shell color.
Isn't the flip-flop wreath a fun addition to the entry? This took only about an hour and was a fun way to spend Sunday afternoon. I've included the link to the easy directions. Try it! There's so many ways to personalize it!
To start off a new week, I've managed to work on my budget a little. That means creating a budget binder, and working on a plan to keep closer tabs on spending. A young gal I work with has really inspired me with her own budget plan. They've managed to work out of debt and create a savings for emergencies. I feel like life has been one continuous emergency and there's no way to squeeze anymore blood from this turnip. Yet, maybe, just maybe, there's hope for us,yet.
As a teacher, I've always loved creating things for my classroom. My co-workers (team members) have encouraged me to start posting things for other teachers to purchase. So...I've also started putting some things together to open my own teaching accessory store.
First is my Cooperative Learning Flip Book. This handy tool is great when sitting down to plan activities to go with any unit.
I'd be happy to share and give away 5 free copies to the first five people that comment. That could take awhile, as I haven't told anyone about my blog. So far, this is just my private place in the world. Yet, it is posted and published...is there anyone out there?
Oh, and last but not least...(drum roll) I did loose 3 lbs last week! Oh yes! The sweet feeling of success!
