Simply Fall

Hannah has been taking photos like crazy. So far our fall has been beautiful. I love the huge maple tree next to our house. About 5 years ago we had about half of it trimmed so it wouldn't overhang and it looks like they literally cut the thing in half. From a certain angle, it looks like half a tree. But it's still beautiful this time of year.

Here's another view since I can't get enough....

This tree makes me smile! Hannah with a camera does, too.

Help Me with the Seasonal Clothing Switch!

Is there any way to simplify this task for a family of 6? I am bombarded by clothes! My boys continue to wear shorts and t-shirts around the house all through the winter (no, my thermostat is not too high-I usually am wearing a scarf). Point being-I don't put those away.

I try to purge but I'm still overwhelmed. I'm giving myself a deadline, here. The kids are anxious to bust out Halloween but I refuse until the regular clothing switch is finished. Any tips are greatly appreciated!

No posting on this blog-I haven't been actively simplifying.

An Update and the True Cost of Furniture

Do you remember this post? Here we are, less than 6 months later and I SOLD the computer cabinet! Craigslist, I love you! Actually I don't think I posted it until after Easter, so really, it only took about 3 months to sell. It was worth it. I had a price that I'd be happy with. Originally I posted for $300 more than that (what the heck, right?) No hits, then I brought it down by $100 increments twice and then reposted high just last week. A woman emailed asking if I'd accept the number I was originally thinking and she just came today with a deposit and will pay the balance when she picks it up. Yippee!

It is a good piece of furniture but I calculated the cost to us over the 11 years we've had it....$100/year. That may not sound like much but considering I haven't needed it for work since 2000 or so, I've had it exactly 10 years longer than I needed it. Ouch!

I think I'm more excited about the space it will free up than the cash. It will also force me to purge what was left in there and reorganize and make my other spaces more efficient to make room for the things that I do keep. All good.

Church Flea Markets

A great way to get rid of clutter and help your parish at the same time! I'm scouring the house for anything that would be saleable at our church's parish festival flea market. That would include just about anything. People buy the strangest things-even used mops. I'll post a photo and maybe a list of the things I parted with. Warning....unless you have a specific need, DO NOT under any circumstances visit the flea market. Especially don't let the kids in there!

Darn!

Every year one of my neighbors hosts a "multi-family" yard sale. Sometimes I'll put something out or let the kids man a table. She usually has it in June but decided to have it early. I wish I would have known sooner because there are still things in the house that I'd love to get out of here. I took so much stuff to the junk store over lent-and I'm glad I did. My point is had I known the sale was today, I'm sure I could dig up lots more clutter. It starts in an hour and a half and I'm certain I don't want to spend my quiet time scrambling around to find and price things. I'm even more certain I don't want to spend my day hovering over a table of my unwanted clutter. Maybe it's a good time to have a "free" table. I'll let you know.

Update on Waking Up

Just reporting that waking up without snoozing has not added or detracted from my days. It hasn't made my days better or worse. No, I'm not getting all the laundry finished by 7 am. I thought I'd be more tired at the other end of the day-but that hasn't happened. I still hit my wall at about 10:30. I'd have to say the only benefit is feeling good about getting up right away. Maybe I do feel a smidge better than when I sleep on and off for the next 20 minutes or so. My days are pretty much the same, though. So, if you're looking for something to transform your life, NOT SNOOZING is not your answer....snooze away. Will I go back to snoozing? No, I do prefer the habit of waking when the alarm goes off.

A Radical Experiment in Waking Up

I am the CHAMPION SNOOZE ALARMER! I've been a snoozer ever since high school-it's an evil invention, that snooze button. But there is just something about ENJOYING the coziness and luxurious comfort of that fluffy bed that makes me want to get back in it. Although I completely appreciate a good night's sleep, when you're enjoying a good night's sleep, you can't truly appreciate the coziness and luxurious comfort of your fluffy bed. As I've gotten older and more achy and after the hip-separating experience of child-birth, I've become accustomed to cozying up to a pillow between my bony elbows and another between my bony knees. I'm not sure I even move during the night.

I'm still an early riser. The alarm is set for 5:30 and I snooze until just before 6:00. I started getting up early when the kids were littler-I craved the early morning quiet before the busyness of the morning. Now that they're not waking up at the crack of dawn and tumbling out of bed at various times, I can still get a good hour of quiet before they make their way downstairs. They're also pretty self-sufficient so I can do other things to get ready for the day as they're having breakfast.

I love snoozing so much, I actually gave it up for lent one year when I was still working. It was so bad that I would snooze for about 20-30 minutes, take a shower and then get back into bed. I really didn't like my job. Unless I have a particularly bad night of sleep, I don't crawl back into bed anymore but I still LOVE to snooze.

I've found that this forum is GREAT for motivation and accountability-even though not many people read it yet. So, starting tomorrow, I'm not going to hit the snooze button. There, I said it. I'm going to try a week (that's reasonable) of getting up when the alarm tells me to. I just want to see if it makes my day more productive. I know I'll be more tired on the other end which doesn't work well for Mark's work schedule-he gets home late 3 nights a week and I do enjoy our time together. A week shouldn't kill us though.

I'll let you know how it goes.