Welcome Noise (Strange for Me)

Today is one of those rare days when I don't mind noise (anyone who knows me well knows that I have a bit of an auditory sensory issue). Who needs a quiet house, when your kids are completely, totally entertained? My friend's two boys were here today and there was not one fight. There was, however, a lot of running, jumping loudly off staircases, capes, swords, light sabres, bicycle horns and even a little Wii. I spent my free time puttering around the house, enjoying my last day before classes start and using up the remainder of zucchini my neighbor gave me to make zucchini bread (and stuffed zucchini for dinner!).

Is this what it's going to be like to have three boys??? Because I think I can handle the noise if it comes with the kind boy-joy I hear around here today. It's the sound of a full life.

Last Days of Summer

Yesterday was one of those great, do-nothing kind of days, of which we've had far too few. I was dragging and didn't even get dressed until 9:45am (at which point the boys asked me when I was going to get dressed). The fact that the boys rejoiced when I told them we had nothing to do until 4pm is a definite indicator that we do too much, in general. I also noticed that, as can be expected, the boys got along great and there was virtually no whining or crying because I played with them for much of the day. While I can't do that every day, I'm glad we were able to have one day like this right before school starts.

Something had to happen to break up the wrestling
(which I'm not sure I'll ever be entirely used to!)

Sending the boys up to clean their room can always be dicey. Somehow it usually degenerates...

Connor comes down the stairs looking like
The Skipper and singing "The Ants Go Marching One by One"
(opera style)


Who knows??? I thought I had thrown these things away!!!

All our chores were done, so we relaxed with a game of Go Fish:

Kirby contemplates his next move


Connor contemplates telling us every single card in his hand

And so, watching a lightning storm, eating tomato soup and discussing the upcoming school year, it was easy to believe that the chaos which would ensue later in the evening (during our trip to Costco) was just a bad dream.

Ahhhh...Organization!

I'm no domestic maven. I have friends that I really would put in that category due to their ability to (and enjoyment of) clean, organize, sew, decorate, paint, improvise furniture, etc. I go through waves. When I'm feelin' it, I do it. That being said, I have always enjoyed organization. I remember sorting my mom's spices alphabetically when I was a kid, and organizing the medicine cabinet with labels like, "Things to make your head feel better" and "Things for owies".(Note: Sometimes you wouldn't know this to be in my house and look in my cabinets, drawers or closets. Know that I am perfectly aware when something is disorganized. In fact, I've usually got an idea exactly how I would like to organize it. I simply do not rearrange my life, nor do I miss out on any fun or relaxation to organize, clean, etc. Like I said, when I'm feelin' it, I do it!)

Here are some recent small organizational projects that put a smile on my face every time I see them:
This cupboard used to be the bane of my existence, with all of these pans piled up on top of each other. I would end up accidentally pulling out pans I didn't need and then others would come piling out and in frustration, I would jam everything back in and it would get even worse. A $6 rack from Wal-Mart changed that. Note the shelf above that holds a few pans horizontally. Husband cut a niche in it so that the tall pans can easily slide all the way to the back of the cupboard. I actually do not dread opening this door anymore, and I swear, it makes baking more enjoyable!


My mom used to have a shoe organizer hanging from her utility closet door. She kept all of her bills and receipts organized in it. I never thought of using one for cleaning supplies until we visited our friends in Montana and saw that they had done just that. Husband hung a $7 shoe organizer for me, and now every time I have to look for some cleaning supply, it's so much faster than pulling down baskets and looking through them.



This little photo album, purchased 2 years ago to organize my recipes, now holds all of the loose cards and clippings that were in a huge mound on my cookbook shelf. I used to have to sit cross-legged on the kitchen floor and sift through the mound every time I wanted to find a recipe. This only took me 3 hours, yet I put it off for a good couple of years for some really ridiculous reasons (for instance, my label maker is broken - like you absolutely have to have a label maker to do this!). I also threw away recipes that I clipped but have never used. I love to purge!

That's it for now. My next task is to tackle the Dennis the Menace closet in my office, so that it can become the nursery closet. I'm not sure I'll ever be feelin' that one. I may just have to jump in. My Aunt Dot noted that she thinks I'm already in the nesting phase. I think she's right. I may have to clone Husband, because I think that will be the only way we'll get through my list by December!