Spring Cleaning in the Winter

Children are a gift from the Lord; They are a reward from Him.
Psalm 127:3

So my husband re worked my side of the closet since he has half of that space as well as his. That meant for the last couple weeks this is how we have lived, off tables. I will be honest it has been driving me crazy.

I had moved the supplies from my quilting area to the bedroom at Christmas to provide space for us to set up the table to play games, watch tv etc. We don't have couches so it is quite an interesting way to spend time together.

He had finished up the rods for me, and I noticed already Jakob's clothes on my side. I guess that SPOKE volumes. 

I worked all day going through everything and my side is done. I also worked on the inner area of the closet that was intended by the previous owners as a bathroom. We just turned it into my quilting and other "stuff" storage area.

This is how his side looked when he came home. I was praying he would be inspired, since I was up since 2 just distraught at the crazy insane mess we were living in.

I was really hoping he would actually go through this as well and I could have some of my shelves back. Really all he did was straighten it all.

I did find a problem with so many quilts the last two years. I have mountains of batting that I need to maybe make rag quilts with. Its not enough for Tshirt or Baby quilts so I need a good idea. I doubt I would make much selling boxes of batting scraps.

So for the record he was inspired this is now his side of the closet and he let me store Jakob's Letterman's jacket on his side as long as all his jackets were able to be in the back hall way. I guess its a good compromise.

I even have most of the bedroom finished up. I really need to take time to have him make the wood framing for windows, doors, and the baseboards. When I had to redo all the walls this summer due to mold that all was removed but we have never had time to cut new boards.

Now if I could figure out how to maneuver the room. I will be honest, its bad enough my daughters study area is in our room, his gun cabinet doesn't brighten my day. I am super thankful for all the energy to get so much accomplished. Now I need to work on my quilt order. Its a good thing I only have two.

google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

Proverbs 31 Wife and Mother

I really desire to be a Proverbs 31 wife and mother. I like being organized, on time and efficient. I try very hard to menu plan and stick to it. I try to keep a tidy house, often times falling short. I do well at helping with homework, keeping the kids on task and being involved in their daily lives. As we continue to get more active I desire a way to cut my time down on the maintaining portion of our daily lives.
I came across a book this summer and decided I would finally get around to starting it. 

It is called Having a Martha House the Mary Way by Sarah Mae. 

I do wish I had it downloaded so I could print it, right now it is just on the PC version of Kindle. 

This required me to have a notebook as I like to have things written down, make notes etc.

There is a lot to be said about a physical book too.
Regardless I am excited as I journey through Day One.

Today was interesting. You write specific reasons of why you want a clean home.
I just jotted words down like 

"warmth, comfort, inviting, fellowship, gathering, organized, simplified and togetherness."

Then you work on a mission statement.
I tried to decorate it, I wanted to put a sunflower picture behind it- that didn't go so well, so for now its just plain and simple and typed.
Here is what I came up with.

I strive to be a Proverbs 31 wife and mother

by having a home that is clean,

organized and simplified.

This will allow me to provide

my family and friends

with a dwelling that will

radiate warmth, love and comfort,

while we fellowship with one another.

It will also allow us to live simply

so that we lead less stressful

and complete lives.

I am very excited to finish day one. I guess I should have started it at the beginning of the month but I am not sure how well weekends will work with this idea anyway so having a few extra days will probably be to my benefit. I am excited to see what the house will look like in 31 Days. I did great on the 40 Bags in 40 Days challenge. It is interesting to have written a mission statement about our home. I can't say I have ever done that before. Happy Cleaning.

Tackle it Tuesday

Zekaryah's Room before

This is Jakob's room - the loft.. Just to show how crazy the move really is.

Picture two... I forgot to get pictures of the other side of Zekaryah's it was pretty crazy too. Note they had moved some things before I tackled it today.. it was a family job for sure!

Part One of Zekaryah's NEW ROOM
For now he does not have a dresser. I would love to put some bookcases in this area to store his clothes. He never used dressers before. He doesn't seem to like them. So for now will see how this works. I did find these bins that were storing fabric of mine, and we turned them into toy containers for now- so it was free for the time being.

Here you see that Zek does own some books! LOL I love this bookshelf. I had given it to Jakob when he was in fourth grade- it is when my dad made it for me. Jakob has now passed it on to Zekaryah. He has lots of counter top space that still can be used, so that is really nice. I do still have to paint and take all the wallpaper down, or paint over it. I am still trying to decide.

Carrying this TV thing up was a pain. Our friends Matt and Stef gave it to Zekaryah a year ago- so he was not willing to part with it. He had quite a few wall decor items in the old room so it was nice to see it all come together in this one. We are going to add wood trim along the top which I will paint Navy, then paint the walls a sea green or something. Make it BOAT like..

Here is Mekenzei already enjoying Zekaryah's room. I like the futon couch thing. Jakob always left it flat because he had to sleep diagonally - Z won't have that problem for a little while. I do still need to paint- as that was the agreement for the bribe to trade rooms- Something Jakob really needed. Then I also have some material to hem on all four sides to then staple to the railing- like I did for Jakob before. Since they have different themed rooms I had to take the old down, but no worries it will become pillow covers for a chair in Jakob's current room. Still need to finish Z's quilt too.

Now here is Jakob's NEW Room
Still need to cover the pillows for this chair, thankfully the fabric he had on the railing will work perfectly for that. I have four huge floor pillows to cover, I hope to get at least three of them done. Getting all his books sorted was his job! I did put all his clothes away.

I am so happy with this rug. I made it out of tapestry. I just happened to find a small piece for $2 its about 50 by 70, or thereabouts..It really is nice for his room, plus the previous owners cut the real wood out in a huge area under the rug- in the closet part so it hides the imperfection!

Jakob enjoying his new room- funny cause he started out with this bed- our old one- when we first moved here, but when he switched with Mekenzei the first summer, he lost it. No way I was carrying it up to the loft! The nice thing about the extra dresser is it matches the bed frame and other dresser. My old boss gave us the whole set. Before the mattress had always just sat on the floor. Now this dresser stores a few polo shirts he refuses to wear, but that I wont throw out because they were free and he will need them for something- I guarantee it. Then his video game parts and Lego's he was not willing to let go of. So no clutter. YEAH MOMMY!!!

I still need to find some game type wall stuff, paint the desk that should go next to the bed. Recover the chair my dad gave me from his work years ago- yes mom I still have it. Then finish up his quilt. I want to get a $20 rug from Walmart to throw on the floor too, because I never have sealed the wood so its quite drafty. (if that is a word)