Trying to get back on track

I have always been one who loves schedules and routines. I firmly believe that everything has a place and everything should be in it's place. I love having a clean and organized home.

I have a small confession to make. I can't seem to get anything to work here in my new home. I've been trying for months to get my old routines back and have failed miserably. I simply haven't understood why life can't be as simple (in a way) as it used to be. Until I realized....

1- I have tripled my square footage so there is no way that I can clean the way I used to. I wrote a post once about my cleaning routine which I can hardly think about now. Of course that was in a house that was barely 1000 sq feet.

2- I have a larger outside life than what I used to have. Before I was at home running a daycare dreaming of the day I could socialize with people with more than a Sesame Street vocabulary. That day has come and I feel that I'm hardly home. There is always a social group or playdate of some sort to go to.

3- I'm pregnant and therefore get tired very easily.

With that said, I have realized that I need to cut back on a few things. This is the difficult part because I want to do everything but I am stressed that I can't do anything.

My solution is to revisit my old schedules and routines for my home. I need to think in my new conditions and what I truly can do in one day.

I have written down everything that I want to do. Including the things that might not be realistic. Everything from working out, craft time, reading, journaling, gardening, errands, time with Livy (especially preschool), blog/Internet time, scripture study, family time......

I thought about how my mornings are and what I normally do. I'm not a morning person and I know that I can not fit too much here. I need to keep it simple. Right now my mornings are: wake up and quick clean up (put on hat, brush teeth), same for Livy, grab water bottle and milk/snack for Livy and head out for an hour long walk. I don't want to change this. In fact I notice a huge difference on the morning I don't go walking.

I thought about when things normally happen. When do I attend craft group, playgroup, and run errands. What other weekly scheduled events do I have?

I continued to think into the evenings. What time do I want to have dinner? How about after dinner but before Livy's bedtime? I want to have time together as a family. How about my own bedtime routine? That's one I've struggled with for years. I get busy doing things (like now working on this blog post) when I should be heading to bed. This needs to stop!

Then I started to piece everything into a master schedule. Once I had everything down, I found I had time to do some crafting and personal reading, just in moderation. There is free space and not every minute is scheduled. I know that I won't follow this 100%. It's important to be flexible for spontaneous things like doctor visits.

My goal for this week is to finish my cleaning schedule. I am breaking everything up over 6 days, instead of my daily super sprint clean. I am also thinking of long term things like what needs to be done monthly or quarterly.

My hope with this is to get the balance back in my life. I realized today, my life has been without balance and routine since we put the old house on the market. That was last August! It's been nearly a year! No wonder I'm feeling so overwhelmed with life right now!

Do you have a schedule, routine or cleaning regimen that you follow?

Things left equal projects

This is something that I have been left with. A 16 certain somethings that has turned into a longer project than expected.

These are my window sills as left my the previous owners. I think they speak for themselves.

Only 6 more to clean and disinfect. I am looking forward to this project being finished!

From a Sitter, For a Sitter

As a teenager, I had a few families that I regularly tended for. I remember one who had an index card for each child so I knew what to expect. I knew the house rules so the kids couldn't say, "but my mom lets me......" I have been thinking about putting together a small information packet for my sitters. I want them to know what I expect and in return what they can expect out of me. (A good paycheck!)

First it's good to know what they want out of us. I have tried to remember what I wanted when I was a teenager and after pregnancy brain and a lot of years, I have failed. On a blog, Chatting at the Sky, she interviewed several babysitting girls and asked them several questions. I found it very enlightening and often it was, yes I totally remember that now. I felt the same way! It's a 4 part series so check it out.

So for my end of the deal, I am filling out my babysitter instructions. Just a simple book (like 4 pages) filled with the basics like our address, phone numbers and who to reach in case of an emergency. Then I have detailed areas with when nap time is and what our routine is. I hope that our sitters won't think of me as some crazy over-protective mother. I want them to know that I expect them to change poopy diapers (a past problem) and that I have a crazy dog that should remain locked up.

I am facing a few challenges with this project like our phone situation. We do not have a land line phone but rather cell phones. What if my sitter doesn't have a personal phone? My first thought was to get a prepaid cell phone but that might be extreme. Well perhaps it would be reasonable if we went out a lot. So the most logical solution is for us to take one phone and leave the other for her use.

Have you created something like this for your sitters? What valuable information do you want your sitter to know?

Oquirrh Temple Open House

On Saturday we took Olivia to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple House. This is the new temple that we will be assigned to once it's dedicated. It was a beautiful experience!

Livy loves the temple. This past winter we took her to a different open house (Draper) and didn't think much of it. She was roughly 2 and didn't have much concept of what a temple was or how special they were. When we left, she talked about the temple (or Tempay as she calls it) for months. Even several months later she was talk about what she saw or point out temples while we are driving. It must has been a very powerful experience for her, plus I like to think the veil is thin for someone so young.

After the Draper Temple open house, I knew I wanted her to experience going through another temple. I know that she had an enjoyable time going through the Oquirrh Temple!

Here we are in front of the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. (It's a little dark, it was taken at dusk).

Livy enjoying the temple grounds, which are always beautiful!

If you are not of my faith and wonder why we build temples, here is a short video on exactly that.

A summer time favorite

I personally love my homemade potato salad. Call me bias, but I consider it some of the best I've had. For your summer enjoyment, I am sharing this recipe with you.

Classic Potato Salad

6 medium potatoes-- I like to peal and dice mine before boiling to speed up the process

1 1/4 C Mayo

2 T mustard

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 C thinly sliced celery (abt 2 stalks)

1/3 C chopped onion (I like it finely chopped)

1/2 C dill pickles

1 T pickle relish

1 small can sliced black olives

1 T pickle juice (inside the pickle jar)

6 Hard boiled eggs, coarsely chopped

paprika

How to:

1- Cook the potatoes. Boil roughly 20 minutes or until tender.

2- While potatoes are cooking, prepare the dressing. In large bowl combine mayo, mustard, salt and pepper. Stir in celery, pickles, relish, olives, and onion. Add cooked, drained potatoes and eggs. Toss lightly to coat. Cover and chill for 6 to 24 hours.

To serve, I like to slice a few hard boiled eggs on top and sprinkle with paprika.

A finished room for my big girl!

I am so excited to finally say that my sweet Livy's bedroom is finished! At least until we get new carpet. It has been a slow process full of unfinished projects since December and I was determined to have it finished before I start on the new baby's room.

Livy's bedroom journey started out as yellowish green room with fish on the walls. Not my choice, but provided by the previous owners.

And soon turned into this......

Welcome to a room perfect for any little girl!

Fresh paint and bead board really make this room into a feminine space. The hanging butterflies above the bed are from her nursery in the old house. They give her room a little something whimsical.

Her dresser with the new inserts. (See below) I added some ribbon around the lamp and painted the once outdated frame.

This dresser was used when I did daycare to store diapers and such. In December we moved Livy to a toddler bed and no longer used her changing table/dresser. I pulled this one out for her use and hated how I could see the drawer organizers through the plastic fronts. (Only Ikea would think of doing that!) So I had the idea to put some bright scrapbook paper behind it. I love it!

Her custom butterfly pictures made by me before she was born. I changed out the cherry frames from white ones.

As inspired from this blog, I created a simple monogram for her wall. I decided to frame it so it can be used in a different room (far in the future when she moves to a room downstairs). This project was a HUGE learning process. I have taken very good mental notes on what to do differently if I do one for the new baby. I am happy to report this project cost me a total of $2.65. (.66 for poster board and 1.99 for the bright pink paint. Everything else I had on hand!)

A big project that Eduardo completed this weekend was a beautiful curio cabinet for Livy's pretty things. I was given this curio after we moved and simply didn't know what to do with it. It was oak, which is not me, and I truly didn't want it. Then I thought how special would it be for my little girl to have a place to keep her collectibles safe. Out with the stripper, and several coats of paint and polyurethane Livy now has a beautiful piece of furniture. (Book basket in the corner, which we rotate OFTEN. I am so grateful Livy loves books! And her precious baby.)

This was my bathroom mirror in the old house. A good coat of spray paint and it is perfect in here!

Finding good curtains was important to me. Not only do they soften the window but they truly finish a room. I love the pom-poms on the top.

Livy loves her new room. I can't explain how excited she was as we were hanging pictures and moving the furniture. I hope she will always love her room and that she will find it a place to play, explore, read, think and grow.

Search Engine Results

It is always interesting to know how people came to find me in my little corner in the blogging world. I have been keeping track of the search engine results that lead here to Classy & Sophisticated. Some are rather interesting and other results leave me thinking. Here are some of this weeks results:

How to talk sophisticated-- something that left me thinking, do I speak sophisticated? I have been told that I have a slight English accent. Perhaps I do. I do find it important to escape the local upbrining and the bad habits here. People here tend to drop the t or mush words together. Or there is my favorite of saying "git" instead of "get".

Hair Pin tutorial or how to make beaded bobby pins-- find that post here!

Hanging pictures on freshly painted walls-- I did a tutorial on how to hang pictures.

Vet tech shoes-- I found this ones funny. It took them right to my post on a poor vet tech who I hope took an extra change of clothes to work that day!

Sophisticated books-- Another one to think about. What would you consider to a be sophiticated book? Is it a timeless classic by Jane Austen or a heavy text book full of difficult language. In my quest of become a little more classy and sophisticated, I want to fill my book shelves with books that uplift me, give me purpose and edify me. This can be many things from etiquette books, the scriptures, and good books by both modern and classic authors.

Classy Decor blog-- oh how I wish for this! It is a long process, but I do feel my house is slowly coming along.

Toddler lunch menus-- a fun blog post here

Where do you store your bathroom cleaning supplies-- that's an easy question! In my cleaning closet.

What is my top search result? How to make hair bows. With at least 60 results a week! If you haven't seen the tutorial, check it out here. I'm getting ready to make some large hair bows soon! Livy has too much hair for the small ones!

Home Maintenance: Does it smell in here?

As many of you know, my husband is an insurance adjuster. He works with homeowners who are filing claims on their homes. With his training and experience, he has learned many home maintenance tips that many people are unaware of. At least I find this very true for me and I consider myself rather savvy!

I am starting a small series where I am going to share some of the things he has seen that we can avoid. By preforming simple tasks and making wise purchasing choices, I can worry a little less. It is also a nice thought that the things in my home will take a little longer to break down.

First we are going to talk about toilets! Here is a question to consider. When is the last time your wax ring was changed? Tough question that many of us don't know. For me, with living in this house for 7 months, I have to think that the previous owners never changed it. Therefore it is probably original to the house or about 8 years old. This can cause a problem!

Why should they be changed? Each time you flush or sit on the toilet it wears away at the wax ring. This ring is what keeps the sewage where it should be. So if it wears away and you don't change it you will have leakage between the tile/linoleum and the sub floor. Can will all say gross! That is fecal matter leaking into your bathroom. This can cause a horrid smell, mold and rot.

A very simple and inexpensive solution is to change out your toilet wax rings. A few things to consider:

1-- Change them out frequently! Depending on usage, change every 2 to 5 years. A good rule of thumb is go off of the guarantee on the box. If it has a 5 year guarantee change it out every 2.5 years. A ten year guarantee change it every 5.

2-- Spend the few extra dollars and get the metal reinforced kind. Worth it!

Also, it is wise to change out the plastic water supply lines with the metal meshy ones. They hold up so much better! Plastic tends to wear out quicker which can cause leaks and damage.

To help make this easier, here is video. It is on how to change your old toilet for a new one. Everything applies except use your same toilet. (Unless you want a new one!)

The focal point!

What a busy weekend! When we should have been celebrating our countries birth and freedom, we spent it working on projects. This is big for us considering that either we have been busy, it's been raining, or I have been too tired from pregnancy to think about projects.

We originally had one project planned and it turned into several spontaneous projects, all that I am happy with. I will show the "original" project later this week. I must set it up tonight first.

Perhaps I have seen too many home decorating shows like "Curb Appeal" or maybe it is lodged in my mind from countless home improvement books, but your front door should be a focal point of your house. I live in a neighborhood where all the doors seem to remain the original white color from the builders. Every once in a while you may find a colored door, but it happens to be the same color as the shutters. My understanding is that your door color should be different than the house and trim colors. This is to pull your eye in toward the door.

This is my house as we saw it last summer/fall. Notice the white door!

Close up of the door complete with bird droppings above it. For some reason the birds have claimed my front door as their sleeping area. No nest, just peaceful summer nights perched above my door. Don't get me wrong, I love birds. But it would be better if they were potty trained!

So after a whole 5 minute debate on which color to use, I decided on this one. Doesn't it look great!

I think it certainly draws the eye towards the door and makes it seem so inviting!

Hopefully in the future I can find some nice things to adorn the porch. For now there is a bistro table and chairs. I picture a large outdoor rug, tons of planters, a non tacky door mat and something hanging on the wall. Until then, I am very happy with my new focal point!

It came!

I love getting packages in the mail, especially fun ones that I order. Today the baby's bedding arrived and I'm looking forward to clearing out her room (currently used for storage) and decorating!

Let the planning begin!