2012.05.28 The well-ordered life

But a well-ordered life isn't stiff and consumed by schedules, but is full of joy,

free to give 100 percent in every situation.  An ordered life is flexible yet focused,

available to meet the demands of the moment but still aimed toward a clear goal.

Having an ordered life takes effort and isn't always comfortable,

but it creates the security of knowing that the important things

are being preserved and emphasized daily.

When God Writes Your Life Story, page 176

by Eric and Leslie Ludy

Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.

~ Dorothea Lange

2012.04.17 . . . 3 reasons you should simplify your daily life

Simplifying your daily life . . . the why . . .

1.  to have more free time

to spend on people, places, or things you are passionate about

2.  to have more money to share and to save and to spend

on what is vital and crucial to your life

3.  to live your one life doing is what is meaningful and significant to you

-----------------------------------------------

" . . . do it all for the glory of God."  1 Corinthians 10:31b

2012.02.04 New website address . . .

. . . but you don't have to change anything . . .

simplify-daily-life.blogspot.com still works

and directs automatically to the new website address

which is . . . deborahcrecelius.com

In January of 2011,

I stopped using my initial blog arrange whatever pieces come your way

and switched to this blog.

"Arrange whatever pieces come your way" is a Virginia Woolf quote.

It also works as a six word memoir.

See here:  Six-Word Memoirs at Smith Magazine

and here:  Six-Word Memoirs slide show at NPR

I may be using this Virginia Woolf quote for the title on this blog.

Maybe.

New year = new way of seeing.

I may also include all the posts (453) from that first blog in this one.

Blogger is supposed to combine blogs seamlessly.

Although the Comments will be lost :(

Again, you don't have to change anything to get here.

Thanks for reading though this explanation.

For you . . . 

 Kim Klassen Providence linearburn / Pixel DustGauze Sheer overlay / PSE vignette

Linked to:

Kim Klassen

2011.12.24 How do I know Christmas is coming? Part 6

The wrapping container is out and in use . . .

2011.12.01 Finding joy in giving . . .

Christmastime is a time of giving.

Here are some gift ideas which, while gifts, are not "stuff" . . .
give a membership to any type of  museum, theater, zoo, botanical gardens . . .
tickets to a movie theater, restaurant, circus, concert, theme park . . .
an overnight stay at a bed and breakfast, state or national park inn, downtown hotel . . .
a class to learn a new skill such as sewing, welding, yoga, pottery . . .

You can donate to a charity with a dedication to your gift recipent . . .
If you or the gift recipient doesn't have a favorite charity, go to Just Give
     where you can locate local charities, specific charities,
     as well as Charity Collections such as Animals, Military, and the Environment.
Need help picking a responsible charitable organization?
     Go to Charity Navigator which rates and reviews charities.

Have more time than money?  Volunteer and dedicate your time to your gift recipent . . .
Help at a local food pantry, mission, or food bank.
Ring a bell for The Salvation Army.

There is always the gift of your time to your gift recipent
so they can relax while you clean, cook, babysit, or take care of other chores for them.

Happy giving!

Linked to:
Share the Joy at Meri's Musings

2011.06.29 My autobiography could be called . . .

LISTS ARE MY LIFE.

I have tried keeping lists (and calendars)

in day planners,

on computers,

on my phone-which-is-just-a-phone.

Nothing seems to work for me

as well as a plain notebook - well, two actually.

One is a standard size notebook.

It gets the longer-term ideas, financial planning thoughts,

book quotes, and the occasional book synopsis.

It also has my list of blog post ideas

and a few posts which arrive full-blown and just need to be written out

(like this one).

The second one is a smaller one which is carried in my purse.

It functions mostly as a to-do list, things to look up,

names and addresses and websites to remember,

ideas or thoughts to be added to the larger notebook.

There is no order to what is listed

or where

and so it is a jumble,

but things are usually marked off quickly.

Recently, I needed some organization to everything

which had accumulated in the small notebook.

I pulled out some large orange post-it notes and started dividing into categories:

more important,

fun to do but not really important,

minor maintenance,

and

things I can do in the evening while relaxing.

After just a few days, most of the items on the orange post-its are done.

Of course,

the items in the little notebook still keep growing . . . and growing . . . and growing . . .

2011.06.26 My earrings are organized

Yes, I know this is kinda hokey,

but I figured out a simple, inexpensive way for me

to keep my earrings accessible, visible, and untangled.

I used some Command hangers (#17006) and some combs from Conair.

Yes . . . combs.

The Command hooks are removable (the not-so-pretty white tabs)

and this fits inside the medicine cabinet perfectly.

Thanks to Theresa and Katie (Mama May I) for the suggestions

which got me to thinking about the best solution for my personal earring organization.

2011.06.23 A job done imperfectly . . .

One of the minor maintenance things on my current to-do list

was to transplant the bulbs from three pots of hyacinths

which were purchased and enjoyed indoors this past spring.

They "might" bloom in the garden next year,

so instead of tossing them out,

I wanted to spend a few minutes planting them.

Well worth 15 minutes if they bloom next spring and

we all can enjoy their beauty and scent again.

After planting them, I noticed some weeds

where the gravel drive meets the front walk (also gravel).

I pulled them.

Some came out with roots, some without.

Other weeds which were not at the entrance to the front walk,

I ignored totally.

Did I weed perfectly?

No.

But the entrance looks better,

and a job done imperfectly . . .

is still a job done.

Many times, good enough . . . is good enough.

2011.06.22 Painting one wall in the library / playroom . . .

. . . and the color will probably be the peach/rose color

in the background of the "V" bird coaster.

I bought a couple of samples yesterday, will paint test areas today,

and get opinions from everyone who lives here or stops in.

Why only one wall?

Because

1.  the paint on the other three walls is still in good shape,

2.  those other three walls contain lots and lots of shelves

and I would have to paint (trim) inside each!,

3.  we all still like the pale green color,

4.  I don't want to try to match the pale green,

5.  the wall to be painted has sun fading from posters and such,

6.  it also has lots of nail holes and dings,

and

7.  I'm taking the easy way keeping it simple!

2011-06-10 Tips and ideas - morning routine - and a question

One simple thing I do when I get ready

is set out all the things I will use after my shower.

I am NOT a morning person,

so having everything on the counter,

including jewelry,

simply means I won't forget anything,

such as lipstick, my only make-up.

I use Cover Girl's Outlast HERE -

I've used Plum Satin #880 for a long time.

For me, it truly lasts all day

(unless I eat barbecued ribs :)

Just a couple of ways I simplify my life . . . and hopefully, yours.

And, now for the question - actually two of them . . .

Last December, I had my ears pierced

and since then, I've accumulated 14 pairs of earrings.

Several have been gifts (many thanks!), but I've also bought quite a few.

Currently, the earrings are jumbled together in this small box . . .

My questions:

1.  How do you organize your pierced earrings???

2.  Do I give away my clip earrings?

Some of my clips I really like and don't have anything similar (yet) in pierced.

Let me know your advice!

Thanks.

2011.06.01 Simplify and organize the upstairs shelves

Upstairs, at the top of the landing,

there is a wall of shelves which runs the width of the house.

There is an opening to the hallway in the middle of the wall.

The left shelves are used by John and Theresa and kiddos.

The right side has books, boxes, and magazines belonging to Vince and me.

I had two goals:  open up some shelves for John / Theresa

and just eliminate things I no longer need; I didn't change Vince's things.

Although this photo only shows the shelves above the railing height,

this is most of the right side "before" I started . . .

The shelves aren't overly crowded,

but books have just been stacked in haphazardly as they've been moved from other areas.

And, these are all things which need to have their usefulness re-visited.

Afterwards, the shelves are clean, John / Theresa have an additional 6 shelves for their use,

and 14 small bags are leaving for other homes . . .

Yesterday evening, as I was catching up on blogs I read,

there was a great post by Leo Babauta on his Zen Habits.

All his posts are insightful and inspiring, and this one was particularly apt

for my slow-but-steady simplifying (decluttering) of my things.

The title is "Decluttering as Zen Meditation".

It's excellent; you should read it.

2011.05.24 Meals and menu cards

A decade ago, I was a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom of three.

And, as I had always done, each afternoon I would find myself

standing in front of the refrigerator thinking "What am I fixing for dinner?".

My goal was to have dinner ready before my hard-working husband came home.

I had devoured the book for setting up a chore/cleaning system by Pam Young and Peggy Jones,
sisters, The Sidetracked Home Executives.  This book was first published in 1977.
It is still in print today and available at Amazon.
Link here:  Sidetracked Home Executives to their website.

They had also written a book for tackling the kitchen and meals (now out-of-print).

Something had to give; there had to be a better way than my seat-of-the-pants approach to dinner.

The meal planning system relies on 3x5 index cards just as their chore system does.

The system has worked wonderfully since we began using it in the year 2000.

You create a 3x5 card for each meal.  Start with your favorites.
It seems they suggested starting with 31 meals, enough for a month without a repeat.

If you're like me, you might think "I can't think of that many different meals",
but you have been eating dinner for years, so what have you been eating???
Those are your meals.

The front of the card gets the name of the main dish with side dishes listed underneath.
The upper right lists how much time the meal takes to prepare
so you know when to start making it.

The back lists the major ingredients (not the things you will always have on-hand in your kitchen).

Each week you pick the week's meals.
Then, turn the cards over and add the ingredients to your grocery list.

Each day, pick the meal card for that evening.
You'll have all the ingredients and know when to start the prep.  SO MUCH EASIER!

Once you have fixed the meal, write the date on the front of the card.
Now you know when you last ate this meal when you are picking out your next meals.
Fewer repeats.

After using this system for a while, I told one of my sisters (the gourmet cook who reads recipe books for fun) about the system of picking meals for the week and adding the things you need to your grocery list.
She looked at me completely baffled.  "What other way is there?"

Hmmmmm.

2011.05.14 Spring Garden Maintenance

Every morning this week,
I spent 30 to 90 minutes in the garden for spring clean-up.

I've found that when I wait for the "right day"
(reasonable temperature, minimal rain/hail/wind, a day off of work)
the gardening will wait . . . and wait . . . and wait . . .

So every morning this week,
I put on gardening clothes and stepped outside.
My work day started after that morning's bit of gardening was done.

I simplified the garden areas when I knew my kids would be leaving and my "free" help would be gone.
(Little did I know, none would go very far :)

For the last decade, the garden has only shrubs, grasses, and perennial flowers.

Some have grown to overlap others; many have open space around them.

Planning ahead for a simplified landscape,

we removed the fenced area which had previously been raised beds for vegetables and annuals.

The fenced area in early spring 2002 . . .

 Other perennial beds were reduced in size or eliminated.  

This triangle bed in the center of the front garden, again in early spring 2002 . . .

was eliminated in 2009 . . .

Although we still have several perennial beds,

minimal maintenance keeps gardening enjoyable.

More soon on which plants I think are the best value = beautiful + easy maintenance.

2011.05.03 Quote

With task management, as with any type of organization, my philosophy is to reduce before you organize.  If you only have three things to organize, instead of twenty, you actually don't need to organize.  With time management, that means you should reduce what you need to do.  You can eliminate tasks, delegate them, postpone them, get out of commitments.  Focus always on simplifying, reducing, eliminating.  And keep your focus on what's important.  Everything else is easy.
~ Leo Babauto, The Power of Less, Zen Habits

2011.05.02 Quote

Simplifying isn't meant to leave your life empty -
it's meant to leave space in your life for what you really want to do.
~ Leo Babauto, The Power of Less, Zen Habits

Anne's one-word take on de-cluttering and simplifying an area to leave open spaces:  possibilities

2011.04.29 De-clutter, simplify and organize . . . the after . . .

. . . of the display shelves above the games and crafts cabinets.

Isn't all that empty space appealing?

I saved three empty frames, have at least a dozen to give away,

condensed some things in the library to make room for

the photo albums and scrapbooks.

I did a quick de-clutter and organize on the cabinets below.

One section was emptied (more for giving away)

and now the backpack and diaper bag have a convenient, but hidden home.

Also did a quick de-clutter of the hang bar in the entry closet

so that the "coat chair" is gone.

 Just a week or so ago, Vince said "Do you actually NEED all those jackets?"

(Yeah, they were mostly mine.)

But, they are leaving now

so the kids' coats have hanger space and pegs available.

Again, convenient to use, but put out of sight.

There are several other areas

which have become "hot spots" on my de-cluttering radar.

Their turns will come.

A side-by-side comparison . . .

Did you notice the tables?

Theresa asked if we could switch the square one from the library

with the oval one originally here.

Theresa:  Change is good.

I agree.

2011.04.29 De-clutter, simplify and organize . . .

. . . the display shelves above the games and crafts cabinets.

Now that I'm not working 6 days a week (tax season),

I'm ready for some spring cleaning and de-cluttering.

For me, the de-cluttering and organizing is much more enjoyable than the cleaning,

but cleaning a shelf is so easy when there is nothing on it :)

First step, mull it over in my mind and decide what's leaving.

Study the area for a couple of days to figure out the good and bad,

what's still functional, and what isn't.

Maybe the purpose of the area should be totally changed?

Am I just moving some things somewhere else?

Have things gotten old?  boring?  not needed?

Here's the before photo . . .

I've never been able to figure how areas become cluttered, but I know they do.

There is a very small storage room upstairs and I think stuff multiplies in the dark.

The top two shelves are mostly decorative and include the CD/radio.

The short third shelf has always been a challenge because it's only 5 1/2 inches high.

The table in front is an "extra" table for games, puzzles, craft projects,

and extra seating during family holidays and celebrations.

But, right now, it's mostly a catch-all for backpacks, diaper bags,

library make-and-take projects, and just stuff.

What I've decided so far ~ always subject to change ~

is to move all the photo albums and scrapbooks to the library

which will free up the cabinet top.

I love empty surfaces; they look so ready for projects and activities.

I also want to condense the display photos.

Condense means remove the photo(s) and file them in a photo box;

sell, pack, or give-away the frames.

Definitely keeping the decorative lamps and the CD/radio.

Problem:  there isn't any "free" space in the library for the albums.

This will require a quick de-clutter of a shelf in the library.

The after photo will be posted soon (I hope).

2011.03.14 Mind mapping

Go have some fun at Text 2 MindMap

Let me know if you find a way to size the blocks.

I would have liked to show the importance of each block by its size.

Home and family should be much larger.

I went searching for a cup hook to add to

the seven cup hooks already on the mantle.

Then I remembered that the toolbox has needed straightening

for a  l.o.n.g  time.

The toolbox and the supply box . . .

The toolbox had become a jumble of tools, parts,

and items of questionable value.

After a bit of work and a consultation with Vince,

the toolbox now contains only tools.

All the plumber, electrician and carpenter supplies

will be added to an existing box of similar things in the cellar.

The supply box only has items

which might be used by me

such as picture hanging supplies and felt protective pads.

The trash will be taken out.

The result . . . toolbox, box going to cellar,

supply box and trash bag in the back . . .

Why was I looking for a cup hook?

Because yesterday evening, I finished this . . .

Today I spent some time on garden maintenance.

John did some weed-eating on the perennial beds

which saved me hours of hand cutting.

What did have to be cut by hand was easy

because I had an excellent helper

to fill the sled, haul, and dump the refuse . . .

Once back inside, Ian helped me remove most of the screens

from the windows and brush them clean.

He then handed them up to me as I stored them in the garage attic.

This evening, I plan to get back to the re-organization

of the library which was started yesterday.

Anya is MOBILE

and lots of shelves are now reachable by her.