I have been using a very loose "schedule" (more like lists!) thanks to Crystal's inspiration, and it's worked quite well for me. This weekend, I made a few changes to the "schedule", which will hopefully help things to run even more smoothly! :) (Read more...)

Today started out with high hopes (on my part) of doing a few homemaking-sorts of things... after all, Crystal hosts Making Your Home a Haven every Monday, and I'm really getting left in the dust!! My kitchen counters are packed with junk, and the other day when I tried to set something on top of the fridge, dust bunnies flew down onto my head.

So today I was really going to be on the ball. I decided I would do my projects in the morning, take pictures, and then spend some of Eliyahu's nap time posting on my blog about it all. Then I would take a nap myself, and have the rest of the day free. Haha!! That didn't exactly happen. ;)

Task number one: Give Ruth a bath. She smelled like sour milk! Yehoshua and Eliyahu helped run the bath water, and watched closely while I bathed her. Here she is in her long-sleeved onesie (a great invention for winter babies!) right before her bath. I don't have any during-pictures, because I can't quite manage two toddlers plus a camera while bathing a newborn. ;)

Yehoshua got to pick out Ruth's clean outfit. He loves this blue turtle sleeper. :) After I nursed Ruth, she fell asleep. I put her in her bed, got the boys busy playing, and jumped in the shower. Even though I hurried, Eliyahu got antsy and Ruth woke up before I was done! At least I got a shower. :D

Now, the laundry part. This was going to be so easy. (haha!) Read more...

I have really been enjoying Crystal's blog series this week focusing on making our home a haven! This post was one of my favorites -- but all of them have been really encouraging and good, so be sure to go to her blog and check them out! :)

I thought I would share a few pictures and write about how I've used this challenge in our home! Morning routine, before and after shots, and things I'm thankful for -- Read more...

A reader asked this question after reading about the pumpkin I did yesterday:

So on a day like this.....is your house a disaster or did you do your chores before you started on the pumkins? What does a typical day look like housework wise for you?

Good questions! :) When I spend a good part of the day canning (or doing any other sort of major cooking projects!), I don't have a lot of time for "everything else". Read more...

Last Friday, I went to a semi-annual rummage sale at a church here in town. A heaping bag full of things is just $1, and so many times I have come home with special answers to prayer -- things we had needed. :)

This time, I was excited to find a couple maternity shirts, clothing for Yehoshua, a jacket for Joshua, and this beautiful, shiny, stainless steel serving tray.

I usually pass quickly through most of the household trinkets, but this tray caught my eye. Heavy, and so shiny that it's like a mirror, I decided that there just has to be a practical use for such a nice tray.

I'm not sure I want to save it for use only when we have guests (which is about the only time I put food on some special sort of serving platter!), so I'd love to hear suggestions and ideas for incorporating this bit of "loveliness" into our home! :)

Can you tell I'm more of a "cook" than a "decorator"?! :)

Making homemade greeting cards is something I really enjoy doing! It's relaxing, and the recipient of the card is always excited about a more personal, homemade card -- no matter how simple. And after pricing greeting cards in the store, I just can't spend that much money on something that's not nearly as fun or sweet as a homemade card!

In former days (e.g. when I had only one child!) I always had a nice little stash of homemade cards, just waiting to be sent. Before Eliyahu was born, I made several dozen thank-you cards to use after the birth and in later months, while I was occupied with my two little ones.

Those cards have long since been used, and I just hadn't taken the time to make any more. Sadly, this has meant that I've only made cards for very special occasions (like weddings or something!) and I've written very few thank-you cards in the past year. :|

I realized that my main problem was that I was making unique cards that each took about 30 minutes of creative energy. While I love sitting down to a table full of stamps, ink pads, paper, glue, scissors, and all that -- it's not something I can do while the children are awake. And an entire evening (after bedtime for the babies!) spent making 4 or 5 cards isn't really something I can budget my time towards right now.

So, I came up with a simple, two-color, three-stamp card that I can make in larger quantities. Now, I can spend 5-10 minutes here and there, working on some portion of the stack of partially-completed cards, with minimal supplies on the table (i.e. no inky children!!). :)

Read more for photos and instructions for making the cards!

I received this question from Tania:

I was interested in making the cleaning supplies (I'm guessing you mean the homemade scouring powder! ) and detergent, but came accross these articles about Borax.  Just wondering what you thought.  It this still safer than store bought cleaning supplies?

Hi, Tania! :)

First, let me say that borax is toxic, and shouldn't be stored where children have access! Just because it's "natural" doesn't make it non-toxic, or as safe as something like baking soda. :) So be sure to read the box and use care when handling borax. :)

Second, now, I agree that the page you sent me a link for makes borax sound rather dangerous! Do I think it's safer than using Comet to cour my sinks? Yes, because in my experience, the bleach in commercial scouring powders is just as dangerous (or more dangerous... just Google that one too! ) and I had difficulty getting my sink/shower completely rinsed after scouring with Comet. I would rinse and rinse and rinse, but there was still gritty, bleach-smelling residue. My homemade scouring powder rinses easily and I don't feel as though it lingers like the commercial scouring powder did.

If you want a safer scouring powder, you could always try just baking soda and salt! Or, purchase some sort of all-natural one if you live near a health-food store. :)

About using borax in laundry detergent -- laundry detergent from the grocery store should be stored away from children and has warnings about possible eye and skin irritations. Treat your homemade laundry soap in the same way! :)

To be honest, I am not any expert on borax and its safety. :) However, I've found that many, many ingredients in household products have questionable levels of safety. (Just Google for information about triclosan, sodium laurel sulfate, talc, etc.)

It's my personal opinion that something like my homemade scouring powder (borax, salt, and baking soda) is better for us than using the commercial scouring powders that I have used in the past. :) But definitely, do your own research, and come up with a solution that you feel is best for your home and family! :)

Last Friday, I decided to mop our kitchen floor, Bethany-style!

The floor was pretty dirty. I vacumed it and then told the children to get ready... because we were going to be mopping the floor "a special way" and they were going to help!

The results? Probably the funnest, cleanest mop-job I've ever done. :)

Read more for photos!

Crystal blogged about her method of storing shoes, and asked for others' ideas. Here's what works for our shoes!

On our back porch, we have a small metal shelf. One shelf is for parent shoes and one shelf is for child shoes. My boys seem to have a lot of pairs of shoes... they were all hand-me-downs!

We don't wear shoes inside the house, so storing the shoes by the back door makes them easily accessible and easy to put away when we get home.

I keep my shoes pretty simple. I have a pair of sandals, a pair of flip flops, walking shoes, mowing shoes, and house slippers. I spend the most time barefoot though! :)