Home Sanctuary

Paper Chase + Company Girl Coffee

2013-05-24T04:32:57-07:00

via organizedhome.com

Of all the things that pile up in our homes, paper is one of the hardest to deal with. Every day there are receipts and bills, junk mail and magazines, school papers, art projects, tax forms....and it's difficult to know what to do with it all.

The Organized Home has some great suggestions for organizing your papers, and I really need those tips this week. With school ending, it seems like the paper piles are multiplying faster than a family of rabbits.

Today's Small Thing is to tackle a paper issue.

You might just take a few minutes to file things into folders, or maybe it's just a matter of throwing old junk mail away to make the pile smaller. The other day, I stored loose receipts into ziplock bags and just doing THAT made me feel so much happier! It didn't make my paper problem go away, but it made it seem more manageable.

Try creating an "Action File" with files labeled "To Pay," "To Do," and "To File." That alone will conquer the baddest of the paper problems!

POINTS: 40 for working on a paper problem...see if you can whittle away a pile!

BONUS: 20 for sharing your paper tips with us! How do you deal with all the paper that comes into your house?

Whew, I'm ready to take a load off and enjoy some virtual coffee with you. It has been quite a week, with Lauren's baby coming and getting her settled, and then getting back home to "pick up where I left off."

To participate in this World's Easiest Meme, simply link your blog post into the linky tool below! You don't have to have a fancy post prepared, but we'd like to get to know you! What is going on in your life? Do you have a paper pile - haha? A before and after pic of your containers from yesterday's Small Thing? A photo of your pet? We are easy to please around here....you get to choose the topic.

Have a great weekend! Save a cup of coffee for me!

Contain Yourself

2013-05-23T04:48:53-07:00

I'm back home from spending five days with Lauren and Robert and their gorgeous new baby. (Check out the post below to see some darling pics!) A care calendar is starting up and friends are lining up to bring meals for the next few weeks, so they will be well taken care of in the food department.

As I worked in my daughter's kitchen, I noticed that she has a nicely organized cupboard for storage containers. Bowls and lids - that match - are stacked and easily available. This is going to come in really handy when leftovers start piling up from the generous meals they'll receive.

I am inspired to straighten up my own conglomeration of storageware, which is not so neat right now. I have a crazy mix of sour cream containers, Rubbermaid disposable containers and just about every other brand of container. I have lids that don't fit anything...but I hang on to them just in case I can marry an odd pair. You never know.

Today's Small Thing is to straighten up your storage containers.

Are they all thrown in disarray in a drawer or cabinet? Do you have a bunch of lids waiting to be matched with their container, only to realize that no container will ever come to them? Put them out of their misery by tossing those lidless containers and containerless lids out, and making room for the pairs that actually work. I've got a whole bin full of singles taking up precious space that I can get rid of today.

If this job scares you because it seems too big, set a timer and give yourself 10-15 minutes MAX and then stop.

And hey, do some showing off! Post "Before and After" pictures on your blog, drag a family member over to see your handiwork, tell a friend what you did, or leave a comment! Enjoy the rush of container excitement when you see how organized you are!

This is a job that makes you feel incredibly organized and powerful, you'll see!

Points

Brand New Baby

2013-05-22T08:00:06-07:00

I'm late in getting this post up today, but I'm excited to share a few photos from this past week. Thank you for bearing with me as I've been "hit and miss" with my posts. Ivy Grace is about the sweetest little thing in the world, and getting to be part of her first week of life with my daughter, Lauren, and her husband, Robert, has been one of the highlights of my life.

Here is Ivy, brand spankin' new - just minutes old on May 16.

Ivy Grace - photo by Heidi Thadon-Pierce

Breathing in baby-ness. She smells sooo good. Lauren's expression in this photo is priceless...Oh, I love that girl and I'm so proud of her.

I loved every second I got to help hold, diaper, burp and cuddle. I've already invited Ivy to tea parties, cookie-making lessons and sleep-overs at my house. She was delighted to accept, and plans are already in the works for the next 20 years.

This photo, along with the other black and whites here, was taken by their doula, Heidi Thaden-Pierce. She did a fantastic job documenting the labor and delivery...she captured the emotion and the beauty of this event perfectly. It was a very tough labor, with a rare complication that added hours to the pushing stage. I'm so glad they have these photos so they can remember it all in a way that embraced the difficult process and celebrates the incredible miracle that came from it.

I had to include this one because this is where Tom and I got to meet Ivy for the first time, and congratulate Lauren on a heroic labor and delivery.

Robert - the new Daddy. He is already a great father and seeing him love his daughter gives me a lump in my throat everytime.

She found her thumb right away.

My heart was really full, when upon close inspection, we determined that this fuzz is strawberry blonde. I've been hoping for at least ONE red-headed grandchild, and it appears my prayers have been answered.

I could not stop marveling at the perfection of this baby, and the beauty of seeing Lauren become a mother. I almost have no words to describe it....but in those moments of wonder I felt a little piece of God there with us. There is so little that I understand about the world and the things that happen here.

But this I know:

For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
    when I was made in the secret place,
    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
    all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
    they would outnumber the grains of sand—
    when I awake, I am still with you.

Psalm 139: 13-18

Thank you, Lord. You are good.

Tops

2013-05-21T04:45:00-07:00

I'm still at my daughter Lauren's house, helping her and Robert get settled with baby Ivy. Ya'll, she is soooo precious! I could literally eat her. I'll post some pictures tomorrow, but as I write this, it is 2:30 am - I've been up with this little bundle awhile and am wondering how I could have forgotten how exhausting newborns are!

I'm reposting this Small Thing from sometime in 2012 because it's so easy....and because it's something I know I need to do in my home. I thank God for Small Things to accomplish each day - the little tasks that give me a sense of direction and movement when I get stuck in inertia, or overwhelm, or simply tiredness. Possibly even boredom.

Today's Small Thing is all about tops. I started noticing the tops of things the other day, when I happened to run my finger across the top of my coffee maker and realized I could draw a design in the dust. Ew. And I thought I'd just cleaned that. From there, my gaze went to the top of my stove vent hood. Oh mercy. Really, Rachel? Suddenly I noticed that the tops of every thing in my kitchen were dusty.

I am still afraid to look at the top of the fridge.

So I moved on to the next room, simply observing tops. Tops of picture frames. Tops of tables. Tops of lamps. Tops of books. Tops of electronics. Tops of vases. Tops of baseboards. Tops, tops, tops.

Tops. Basically, they are dust magnets!

Today's Small Thing is to fill in this blank: "Today, I cleaned the top of my _______________."

Now, if you are an indecisive person, you'll have to overcome your propensity to procrastinate and simply PICK ONE THING for your blank. What you can do is this: whip out a dust cloth, damp rag or feather duster and hit the high spots of a bunch of things as fast as you can. Then, find something odd or super high or perennially ignored for your blank fill-in. My refrigerator top comes immediately to mind....

What top will you tidy today? Fill in the blank in the comments today...let's see who's got the TOP top!!

POINTS: 40 for one top, 10 each for up to 3 more (70 max)

P.S. I'm praying for the people of Oklahoma in the wake of the awful tornadoes yesterday. Do you know of the best way to help them? I want to do something in the relief effort and would love to know your recommendation. I cannot imagine what they are going through.

In the Groove

2013-05-20T04:45:00-07:00

Groovy, man.

We might be the last remaining people in the United States who have a sliding glass door. When we first moved into this house, we had to replace the original sliding door. It would have been the perfect opportunity to put in French doors......but no. I suppose we were counting our pennies and went with the least expensive route at the time, but I sure do regret that decision.

Not so much for the style issue, but for the groove issue.

The grooves in the track that holds the doors collect dirt like crazy! I am always picking leaves and clumps of dirt from the grooves, and vacuuming it with a skinny attachment every chance I get. Even when it's clean, it doesn't really look clean.

But I'm feelin' groovy today, and I'm going to tackle those tracks. Let's be groovy together and find anything with grooves that need attention.

Today's Small Thing is to get into the groove.

"Groove," you might say? "I don't got any groove."

Ha! That is no excuse. Everyone's got at lease SOME groove! Even a white girl from the midwest, like me, who was raised by Norwegian Lutherans. It's in there, just waiting to get out...so let it flow, baby.

Let's put on our thinking caps and totally find your grooves:

Sliding doors

Window frames

Soap dishes

Shower mats

Small appliances

Large appliances

Car consoles (those things that hold change - yuk!)

Refrigerator water dispensers

Decorative edges on furniture

Laugh lines

Jewelry

Rubber welcome mat

Shoe soles

Computers- grooves all over the place, if you look

WOW! Girl, you got LOTS of groove! I'll bet I've only touched the tip of the iceberg....there's so much more just waiting to be discovered. Help us list even more grooves - and then get in there with Q-tips, brushes, cleaning cloths and vacuum attachments and bust a move.

You might want to break out the tie-dye T-shirt for this one. And sing "Feelin' Groovy" by Simon and Garfunkel...you know you want to.

POINTS: 40

for attacking at least ONE area groovy area

What grooves did you find? What attachments/tools did you use to clean them?

Ivy Grace is Here!

2013-05-17T04:45:00-07:00

Ivy Grace arrived yesterday at 8:46 am, after a long hard night of labor. Lauren, my daughter, was a trooper - I don't know how she did it! Fourteen hours of intense work to get her here. She and Robert are tired but ecstatic over this little miracle:

Weighing in at 8 lb. 12 oz., Ivy has a good start in life. She is 21.5" long. A KEEPER!

Blue eyes and (possibly) reddish hair....and all ten fingers and toes.

Can you tell I'm in heaven? I'm pinching myself to believe that this is all true!

I'll be back on Monday with the Small Things. For now I'm enjoying this precious new gift by helping my kids settle into life as new parents. It's the most fun I've ever had.

If you'd like to link up for Company Girl Coffee, I'd love to check in on you this weekend. Simply add your blog post URL to the linky tool below and you're all set! And ladies, go check out the blogs that link up and say hello!