Treasures...Keep those cards and letters coming...and going!

Ever need to stay home while work is being done to a part of your house? Did you set aside a special project or task, easily interrupted, to occupy you so that you were available for the potential myriad of questions from the soul who chose to assist you in refreshing your home? My advice is this: have a stocked fridge, the coffee or tea kettle ready, and a clear work space. And if you are visually hypersensitive, as I am, then know what soothes you during the disruption to your visual senses. For me, I am calmed by Mozart, deep breathing and objective family members who remind me that this disruption is temporary.

Painting the master bedroom and bathroom seemed like a brilliant idea, especially on paper when I scheduled it a few months ago. Amazing how a simple, fresh coat of paint will cheer up a room! I am fortunate to have high, sloping ceilings in my bedroom, and although I could do this task myself, do not relish the idea of tottering on a ladder craning my neck for three days at such a lofty height!

Sunday was spent pulling everything out of my room to make space to move the large furniture into the middle of the room come "paint day." This could have taken an hour, but...those of you who know me, know I cannot simply remove things without peering inside the drawer, the box, the trunk. So I spent much of Sunday looking through my personal things, sorting, purging and reminiscing.

Yes, I can be very organized. But I am also sentimental and have a little trouble letting go of treasures! Mine includes boxes of cards and letters that have collected over the years never to be tossed or dismissed. Today I read through about 100 cards and letters sent years ago. Yes, I sat in the midst of my office, crammed full of the overflow from my bedroom, and poured over old messages and pretty cards.

There are several from my Nana, and many from mother's cousin who has faithfully written to me a few times every year with her beautiful, recognizable penmanship. Despite having never met her in person, I feel a connection through these many letters.

These treasures reminded me yet again of the many blessings in my life...friends and family, moments and events, weddings and  births, and thank you's for long since forgotten gifts of self. Saying thank you is such a simple task and yet so meaningful to the recipient. I have a happy heart tonight as I write a few thank you's of my own. I am saving a few of the cards and letters for myself, setting aside a few to share with friends and family to remind them of long past memories, and recycling the rest! They have served a beautiful purpose, a walk down memory lane, and now safely stashed in the "blue recycle bin" for the next collection. Perhaps, they will serve to save a tree!

Time Management..."Today, I will deadhead my roses!" she said.

I love our home gardens! They are not perfect and would not suit everyone, but they suit me and isn't that the point?!

What does this have to do with time management, you ask? Everything! The rose bed that greets me every time I drive up to my house was dropping petals yesterday and in need of a little TLC. I come from a long line of green thumbs, so knew just looking at it that 15 minutes would transform this little space that brings me such joy.

As I tended my roses this morning, my neighbor's words came back to me and I would like to share them with you now.

She commented to me several months ago when I was outside gardening, saying "That looks pretty, but I DON'T have time to garden!" I felt judged and dismissed.  I also smiled to myself and went back to my task. Because what she doesn't understand, is that this is not a chore for me.

It is a time that I set aside to clear my mind, to be grateful for my life and all that is good and to step away from my busy day to day and just breathe. You could say that this 15 minute break in my day is actually prayer time for me.

We ALL have 24 hours in each day and it is up to us how we use that time. Carving out a few minutes every day to do something that reenergizes you physically and mentally and renews your sense of gratitude is a good idea. How will you spend your day?!

Spring Cleaning...time for joy, time for cheer

Finals, projects, graduation and end of the year dance recitals signal summer vacation is quickly approaching! Cherished rituals all!! And then summer slips in as a sweet reward for all the hard work.

I LOVE summer, the change in routine and the opportunity to shift focus. My goals for this summer are to have a clean pallet to begin with and to truly embrace the summer months with my family. I won't be bogged down by the clutter this year...having done so much to open the spaces, makes cleaning a quicker process and leaving tables and surfaces available for new experiences...sewing projects, trying new recipes, and exploring our beautiful city and beyond, camera in hand!

So today I am in full cleaning mode, gloves on, buckets and rags ready. Yes, I could hire someone else to do this for me, and have done so when I could not clear my schedule, but there is something to be said for the immediate gratification gained from doing it yourself. Ideas for changes and tweaks in each space occur to me as I move through the house. Not quite a runner's high, but similar.

Stopping to make changes that can be implemented immediately is a choice that I make, so cleaning is not a straight line for me as I interrupt myself often. I accept this and actually enjoy the process more making a game of it all.

For instance, I am sitting here blogging, gloves still on because, I am, honestly, heading into the bathroom that my teenagers use. I am listening to downloads from American Idol and Smash. Aaaahhhhh...lovely ear candy!!

Keeping your favorite tools handy means you can just plunge in when the day opens up. No need to run out to the store which is important for someone like me who is easily sidetracked. : )

Here are a few of my must-haves, beginning with the most important:

music (cranked up loudly)

thin, disposable gloves (saves my hands)

Swiffer dusters

clean rags

sponges

buckets

Mrs. Meyer's lemon cleaning solution (smells like heaven and environmentally          gentle)

Wish me luck! And as always thank you for visiting my blog. Feedback is welcome!

Photographs and Memories...sometimes a change is as good as a rest

You may have noticed that I quote children's literature frequently. One could argue that I have a simple mind, or perhaps, simply, that I read books aloud to my children so many times when they were young that the stories are permanently etched into my memory leaving an easy path to cherished, happy moments in time?! Let's not argue...both answers are correct. And who could not love Winnie The Pooh?!

My son and oldest child will graduate from high school in a few weeks. So it is no surprise that I am pensive and moody, remembering the path that has led to this point in time where I appreciate the mature young man he has become. As I anticipate family arriving in a few weeks to celebrate with us, I am compelled to revisit and to change the photographs on display in our more public rooms.

My usual MO is to frantically clean and menu plan, shove the clutter into drawers or the garage. Not restful and not relaxing to be around me when I am in company is coming mode. But the sense of order that has evolved in the house over the past few months is allowing me to take a different direction which is unexpected, liberating and restful not only for me but for everyone in the house. Even our cat, Gabby has her ears in neutral position. (see Hallways, Entryways and Alleyways)

So I found that I had time to spare and began what I call my photo project. The same photographs have been sitting on display, some for the past 12 years, so I did not remove them without feeling a little angst. Some will be placed into albums, and the few that remain our true favorites will be reframed and displayed in what we refer to as the reading room.

I have grown to truly love and appreciate the calmness of a simple black frame. They tend to look modern and fresh. And, the photographs become the focal point. But although we have an eclectic style, modern doesn't truly suit some of the spaces in our home. Lucky for me,  I discovered a few, old world style black frames on sale at one of my favorite stores. Photos will soon be hanging on the walls in a few chosen spaces. They will be quick and easy to dust.

As the clutter is replaced with open spaces, I feel a growing sense of calm. You have got to love that!

Hallways, Entryways, & Alleyways...when the cat has her ears flicking backwards, best you pay attention!

I have a cat named Gabby who prefers that the house be calm and orderly. So you can imagine how disruptive the process of clearing and decluttering is for her.

My office is now a beautiful, organized space and Gabby is lounging near the window...content! Not so yesterday!! What I no longer wanted in my office work space had accumulated in the hallway and down the stairs into the entryway.

My task or should I say, my priority yesterday was to make sense of the piles, and then move them out of those walkways or out of the house if possible. Every time I passed Gabby I knew there was more work to do since her ears are a telltale sign of disapproval.

Today she is happy and I can walk through the house without tripping over anything but my own feet. The entry is as it should be to suit me...shoes, a key basket and a few things to take on my errands. The hallway is open and ready for the next project. Sorry Gabby...I am not finished with the house, but for now, it feels calm and orderly, just the way we like it!

Stuck for ideas on sharing unwanted or no longer needed items? Here are two of my favorites.

   1. AMVETS-will pick up household items that can be lifted by one person               Call-1-877-990-VETS or check out www.teamvets.com

   2. Carmel Mountain Vision Care-collects usable, discarded eyewear for Lions Club Optometrics 9320 Carmel Mountain Rd., Suite E, San Diego, CA 92129  (858) 484-1500 

Kitchen...leaning in a new direction

Before you ask, I have not finished recreating my office space, because a new need presented itself. So I took a little detour and found myself in the kitchen.

I suspect most of us find this room particularly challenging. I did not intend to work on this room yet. Gadgets alone can be overwhelming. But while making dinner a few weeks ago, I overheard Ellen Degeneres speaking with Kathy Freston about her new book, "The Lean." I admit I was intrigued, stopped what I was doing to look for it on the web and ordered it there and then. It arrived in the mail a few days later...you have got to love internet shopping, and I have been reading a chapter a day ever since.

You may be asking yourself what does this have to do with creating spaces in your home and to uncluttering? Everything! I am learning, at least for myself, my health and happiness are not in a neat and tidy little box either. I needed to take inventory of the food in my kitchen and make some adjustments to follow this eating plan that is really more of a series of adjustments.

So at least for this week, the changes that I made in the kitchen were food related. Checking expiration dates and freshness of ingredients, replacing empty containers with healthy grains and keeping the fruit bowl full have kept me from reaching for the unhealthier choices that have beckoned me in the past.

If you have considered vegetarian or vegan eating, Freston's book is sensible and easy to follow. The pantry is in order, at least for now, and I am "leaning" in a new direction.

Bathroom Cabinets...Baby steps will still get you there, just ask the tortoise!

Today, I went to the furthest corner of my house, which happens to be a tiny powder room in the master suite. Tiny, yes, but every journey begins with a single step, just ask the tortoise! Decluttering and reorganizing this space is one piece of the larger picture, one part of a greater whole, and much less intimidating.

I pulled out all of the expired over the counter remedies, half empty lotions and potions bottles,  old makeup that I will never use...you get the idea.

It is all gone and what I discovered is that I have enough room for what I truly need and for my favorite guilt-free pleasures, too. Keep it clean...I am talking about my mani/pedi stuff. Yes! I admit it! I have been a BIG fan of nail polish since I was a young girl admiring my Nana with her perfectly painted size 5 feet dash about in high heels.

The sea salt scrub, and my lost-and-now-found favorite lipstick which my kids had given me for Christmas have found a new home where I actually use them.  First aid supplies are all together and in just one space...think about how much time is wasted hunting for one thing that gets put away in a random spot that makes sense at the time until months later when you have no idea why you can't find it!

Labeling clear container boxes is really helpful. Yes, you can see through the boxes but reading a legible label at a glance tells me which box to pull out for OTC's vs. an Ace Wrap. Just gave myself the gift of time!

This little room needs a new coat of paint, and the cabinet needs to be refinished, but for now it is a space that is working for me and I am pleased!