How the Queen Got Her Crown

Recently I have had several people say to me "I don't know how you do it." I know I had previously posted a blog about some of my super powered super tools. Today I was thinking about it to myself while dinner was going and I was folding laundry and I decided to divulge the rest of the secret: a tedious amount of organized multi-tasking. My entire day is planned around tasks that I can do at the same time to make my use of my (very) limited time more efficient. I also like to minimize our energy usage in an attempt to save as much money as possible so of course high energy tasks like laundry, dishes, baking and baths/showers for the kids must be done during our off peak energy time. I keep a notebook readily available that I write down they entire day's "to-dos" to help me stay on track. Some things need to be done every single day such as dishes, laundry, vitamins/meds, teeth, baths, and feed dogs. Yes, I DO include things like vitamins, teeth, bath, and feed dogs because in a house with 3 babies, things can sometimes get hectic and I would never want to forget any of those things. I personally like to do vitamins with lunch and meds with dinner then baths and finally teeth. I usually do baths and teeth while dinner is baking. If dinner needs to be cooked on the stove top, of course I wait until the kids are taken care of. I can multi task dishes, laundry and stove top dinners all around the same time. I drop in a load of laundry, start a load of dishes and then cook up dinner. By the time dinner is done, the dishes are also done and I can move the laundry to the dryer. I feed the dogs during the kids outdoor play time which is nice because the dogs can clean up any lunch that the kids have thrown to the floor. After outdoor time the kids usually take a nap or draw/color so I can use that time to vacuum and clean down counters. I try to always be doing 2 or more things at a time. It's super important to allow yourself rewards throughout the day though. My reward is usually time to check out facebook :) I also keep calendars and other lists to help me stay organized as well. Today's to-do list is pretty easy:

Design a Potty Chart for Aiden

Feed Dogs

Dishes

Teeth

Vitamins

Meds

Work on Book

3 Loads Laundry

Change Bedding on All Beds/Crib

Write Grocery List

Dust

Vacuum Downstairs

Bake

I've already got a few things and 2 loads of laundry done, I just need to sort it and put it away. Time to get back to work!

Let's Go to the Bathroom... and CLEAN!

Today at the Casey Castle, the bathrooms are being deep cleaned! Even under the sinks will be reorganized. It feels like the space under my sinks become a catch-all so I like to take the time to clean them out and reorganize every now and then. I do scrub and sanitize the toilet bowl a few times a week so I don't consider that deep cleaning but today I will also be scrubbing doors, walls, and the shower. Join me in keeping your bathroom clean today!

Purging 50

I told you I would post my list of 100 things. You don't necessarily need to throw it all away. You can give it away or sell it as well. Believe it or not, this was actually a harder task than I had anticipated it being. That being said I had to cut my 100 item goal into 50 items. Here's what I've got... or... no longer have :)

1) Baby outfit

2) Baby outfit

3) Baby outfit

4) Baby outfit

5) Baby outfit

6) Baby outfit

7) Underwear

8) Underwear

9) Boxers

10) Boxers

11) Boxers

12) T-Shirt

13) Dress Shirt

14) Lip Gloss

15) Lip Gloss

16) Mascara

17) Bedskirt

18) Baby shirt

19) Baby shirt

20) Baby shirt

21) Baby shirt

22) Baby shirt

23) Baby shirt

24) Baby overalls

25) Mason Jar

26) Book

27) Book

28) Video game

29) Video game

30) Video game

31) Bracelet

32) Candle

33) Candle

34) Cookie Jar

35) Collar

36) Toothbrush

37) Cookie Sheet

38) Lotion

39) Sippy Cup

40) Mixing Bowl

41) Jar of Candy

42) Jar of Candy

43) Thermometer

44) Salt Shaker

45) Pepper Shaker

46) Toy

47) Toy

48) Toy

49) Toy

50) Toy

51) Cutting Board

52) Bottle

53) Towel

54) Towel

55) Towel

56) Toddler Spoon

57) Toddler Spoon

Purging

I purge, you purge, we all purge for ice cream! Wait, that's not how it goes. However we all should do some purging now that the new year is upon us. I'm setting a goal to get rid of at least 100 things that I don't absolutely need. This will help declutter and give me more room for new stuff! HA! Just kidding about that last part. (or am I?) I got the idea from a fellow blogger at http://ablondesdiylife.blogspot.com. Anyway, you should join me in this feat because purging is cool! In this sense of the word at least. Your 100 things can be anything of any size. Good luck and have fun! I'll post a list of my 100 purged items when the task is complete.

Mission Accomplished

Holy cow! I was so productive today! I set out today with one goal: Clean and organize the upper half of my pantry. That was all. My ambition sky rocketed and I ended up going on a cleaning spree:

• Clean Master Bathroom
• 2 Loads of Dishes
• 3 Loads of Laundry
• Vacuum Living Room & Kitchen
• Vacuum Master Bedroom & Bathroom
• Mop Bathroom
• Mop Living Room & Kitchen
• Work on Template
• Prep all Chicken Meals for January (and freeze them)
• Organize Top 1/2 of Pantry
• Pull in Dumpster
• Empty all Trash Cans
• Empty Diaper Genie
• Vacuum Ambria's Room
• Deep Clean Stove Top
• Blog
• Refill Hubby's Prescriptions
• Pay Bills
• Organize Medicine Cabinet
• Wash New Red Linens

Here's hoping tomorrow is equally as productive. Let's make tomorrow Clean-Your-Fridge Day!

Jan Meal Plan

My "Meal Plan Monday" has temporarily been replaced because of a spurt of ambition. This post will be "Meal Plan January" and hopefully will be a great point of reference for anyone needing dinner ideas this month.

Jan. 04 - Chicken Pot Pie and Asparagus
Jan. 05 - Marinated Chicken and Rice
Jan. 06 - Meatloaf, Potatoes and Corn on the Cob
Jan. 07 - Teriyaki Chicken, Rice and Peas
Jan. 08 - Shepherd's Pie
Jan. 09 - White Chicken Chili
Jan. 10 - Breaded Chicken and Zesty Mashed Potatoes
Jan. 11 - Jerked Buffalo Chicken and Baked Zucchini
Jan. 12 - Spaghetti with Meatballs and Garlic Bread
Jan. 13 - Hawaiian Chicken
Jan. 14 - Cheeseburger Calzones
Jan. 15 - Mustgo
Jan. 16 - Stroganoff and Green Beans
Jan. 17 - Order Pizza! (YAY)
Jan. 18 - Lemon Pepper Chicken with Garlic Pasta
Jan. 19 - Chicken Tacos
Jan. 20 - Chicken Fettucine Alfredo
Jan. 21 - Mexican Beefy Burritos
Jan. 22 - Spicy Chicken Quesadillas
Jan. 23 - Chicken Hotdish
Jan. 24 - Chicken and Rice Pilaf
Jan. 25 - Lasagna
Jan. 26 - Tangy Ranch Chicken
Jan. 27 - Creamy Chicken Casserole
Jan. 28 - Order Pizza!

You might notice that our eating out nights are bolded. I'd like to remind you that it is not because I get a night off from cooking, (although that is a perk) it is because I simply love pizza. You might also notice that there are only two nights this month that we will be eating a non-homecooked dinner. This is for several reasons:
1) It's much healthier than eating out (usually)
2) We are tight on money and it would be stupid and irresponsible for us to be eating out any more often than this.
3) I'm not lazy. It is my job to take care of my family so I feed them. Simple as that.

On a different note; for those of you looking for a way to feel productive but don't know where to start, I'm going to be organizing the kitchen pantry (among many other things) today. Please feel free to join me and clean/organize your pantry as well. I like to keep everything in mine categorized by item. It helps keep the pantry looking clean as well as makes it easier to find what I am looking for. Happy cleaning!