Take that, Laundry Monster!

I must confess…I feel a little ridiculous posting this.  I imagine most decent mothers and homemakers have been doing this very thing since…well…forever.  But just in case anyone out there is buried under a pile of laundry with no foreseeable hope for the future…I will share the story of the new system that has completely changed the face of my battle against the laundry monster.

If this is all a re-run for you, you are welcome to use this time to throw in a load of laundry.

First…a before shot.  There is no picture.  I don’t need that kind of humiliation.  But allow me to describe the situation:

I have a laundry room.  I realize that puts me in the minority of women lucky enough to have a door to close on the whole mess when it gets out of control.  I don’t have to lug laundry to the basement; my washer and dryer aren’t out in view for the world to see.  However, it’s a small, windowless room, into which my children always thought they should just chuck their dirty laundry.  In the last several months, the small space has become even smaller due to the fact that I put a big, industrial shelving unit in there so I could store my little girls’ clothes where they can’t reach them.  (Ugh…that’s a story unto itself!)

So picture the scene:  Small room with laundry all over the floor.  Very bad.  And the worst part is that the pile was ever-replenishing:  As I would process load after load of laundry, more would show up to take its place.  Very discouraging.  This really caused problems because little things—like socks and child-sized underwear—always worked their way to the bottom of the stack, often putting me on the receiving end of an inquisition:

Mom…why I don’t have any panties!  Where are all the socks?!  I’m out of bras!

Very irritating.

Well, it’s not altogether pretty, but here’s what I did:

• I found four tall laundry hampers in the house.  None of them match.  But such is life at Stately Bennett Manor!
• I labeled them with words and pictures.  (I took pictures of some of our actual clothes rather than waste time searching through magazines or catalogs.) 
• My categories are #1) underwear, socks, towels, sheets, white clothes; #2) anything made of denim, Kuk Sool Won uniforms, and camouflage pants; #3) dark colors; #4) everything else.
• I called the kids together and gave them a brief tutorial.
• I quizzed them by handing them pieces of laundry off the mountain and asking the kids to file them correctly.
• They caught on so quickly (and actually thought it was so fun!) that, in no time, they had sorted Mt. Laundry to its very foundation!
• I located and swept the laundry room floor.

Kinda makes you want to cry, doesn't it?

Now, in truth, I subdivide my laundry a little more than that…and I regularly run into something that has been mis-sorted…but since the closet that serves as the home for our laundry system is directly across the hall from the laundry room, I don’t even have to leave the room to get the wayward article into its rightful place…and it’s improving my hook shot!  And going through the “Everything Else” hamper to separate bright colors from more muted ones is really not a big deal as far as I’m concerned…especially compared to the conditions I’ve been working under for over 20 years!

When it’s laundry time (so…every day), I assess which basket is closest to overflowing, and that’s where the day’s battle starts.

Sam, Hannah, and Mercy (who really was having fun!)

And here’s the most amazing thing:  I’ve had a clean, well-organized laundry room ever since!  The kids are sorting faithfully!  Every day, I overhear one of them ask another something along the lines of, “Is this a ‘dark’ or an ‘everything else’?”

They’re learning how this part of life works, and that will only make it easier to teach them how to take over for me as soon as they can reach the dials and knobs!

Oh, wait…maybe my next acquisition should be a step-stool!

Blessings!

Missy

 When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
   for all of them are clothed in scarlet. 

Proverbs 31:21

The laundry closet serves double-duty as the school closet.  Talk about one-stop shopping!

Of March Snowfalls and Dog Biscuits

Here in Illinois, we have had a weirdly wimpy winter.  Many would disagree with me, but we have had WAY too little snow and entirely too few winter storms for my liking.  I'm sorry...I know a lot of people around here hate winter, but to me, there is just something so cozy about knowing we couldn't get out even if we wanted to.  I love snuggling up, wearing jammie pants all day, making cookies, and calling a snow day (even though, truth be told, we rarely have trouble making it to the kitchen table for school even in the worst of weather). 

Call me crazy, but I just love watching the wind blow the snow around outside when my family is nice and warm inside.

However, in typical Illinois fashion, we got a really nice snow just about the time the snow-lovers had thrown in the towel...and right about the time the snow-haters had started to gloat.  Last Sunday, on Grace's 15th birthday (which is another story entirely!) we were the recipients of just such a snowfall.  We left the church after evening services to walk across the yard to Ye Olde Parsonage, and this is what it looked like:

 

Yeah...I know it's not a great picture, but you need to understand that I took it while juggling several small children, a couple boxes of leftover pizza, and a plate of birthday cake.  It looked a little better in the morning when I stepped out onto the front porch in my socks and captured this:

Pretty, right?  I actually have a whole blog post on my mental back-burner, simmering away with my thoughts from that walk across the snow to get home from church.  That should be done cooking in a day or so--probably after I reveal the significance of that mysterious star-shaped object that lives in my bathroom cabinet!

But anyway...on Monday, I couldn't in good conscience ask the kids to do a full day of school when I knew that, sadly, this was probably going to be their last opportunity to play in the snow until next winter.  So whenever they came inside to warm up, I would make them tackle a subject, then set them free again.

About lunchtime, I told Daniel to call our dog Josie into the garage to warm up while we had lunch.  He called her and called her--and since she's a short-haired dog, I just knew that she would want to head into her warm igloo.  When she didn't gallop right into the garage, I started to get a little concerned, but then I looked out the French doors onto the deck.

Here's a shot from early in the day, while kids were still in their pj's.

Up against the house, there was a 12-inch strip of the deck that wasn't snow-covered.  Maybe it had already melted as the temperature crept up on Monday or perhaps it had been protected by the house and hadn't been covered with snow to begin with, but Josie had found a place to sit where she wasn't perched on snow, and that was good enough for her!

I stood at the window, and I watched her.  

She was at attention.  She could hear her Daniel calling for her--and she just loves her kids!

She knew that, inside the garage, it was warm and dry...there was food and water...

But between her and where she wanted to be, there was snow that had to be crossed.

I could almost hear the fight going on inside her:  

• It's Daniel!  Daniel!  Let's go!
• My feet are cold!  Let's stay put!
• The igloo!  The food!  The water!  Daniel!
• Oh...it's not so bad here.  Look...my feet are dry!
• Food!
• Oh...I'm not hungry.  Very.
• It's warm in there!
• Gee...I'm really OK here.  It's not so bad...

And I looked at her, and I thought, Oh, baby...I know just how you feel!

How many times have I backed myself into a tiny little corner of...not real comfort...but of a reduced discomfort?

How well do I know that desire to be restored to true joy and safety and warmth...but I just can't stand the thought of the transient pain that is required to get there?

How often have I stood there, considering what that step onto the snow was going to cost me?

And how sad is it that a one-year old puppy should be the best teacher at our house that day?

To her credit, Josie finally stepped onto the snow and slush and galloped off to answer the call of her Daniel...but not before she reminded me that, no matter what I have done to snow myself into a spiritual corner, I am never going to be truly content if I'm perched anywhere outside the center of God's will for me.

And the more quickly I respond to His call, the sooner I'll find myself back in the only place where the merely acceptable is replaced by true joy.  

And doggie biscuits.

Blessings!

Missy

 “The son said to [his father], 

‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 

I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

   “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! 

Bring the best robe and put it on him. 

Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.  

Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate.  

For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; 

he was lost and is found.’ 

                                      So they began to celebrate.

Luke 15:21-24 

March 1st: I can't stop posting pictures!

Oh, see...now look what's happened!  I can't stop!  I see something photo-worthy about every five minutes, and I think, "Yes!  Totally a blog picture!"

Well, self-imposed assignment or not, this was just too cute not to share...

If you read yesterday's post, you know that Sweet Jimmy B went to Harrisburg, Illinois, to help with disaster relief after the devastating tornado that went through.  Last night, I did what I almost always do when My Buddy is gone:  I stayed up too late, puttering around with this and that, then watched a little mindless TV until I couldn't possibly keep my eyes open.

This morning, Mary told me that it must be kind of nice when Daddy is gone because I can sprawl over the whole bed if I want to.  (This is a seven-year old's idea of a silver lining.)  I had to break it to her that I really stay on my side, and I don't sleep very well because I keep waking up, wondering why Daddy isn't on his side of the bed.

I could see the wheels turning.  Wheels turning is Mary's usual condition, but I could tell the RPM's were increasing.  Then, sly dog that she is, she said, "There's no reason I'm asking, but how do you get to where you write a note on the computer?"

By the time I got to the computer, she had figured it out for herself.  Someone help me with this kid!

A little while later, she banned me from my own bedroom.

That's because she thought the appropriate way to cheer me up when I was missing Daddy would be to at least make my bed a pretty place:

 Here's a close-up of that note on the pillow:

We took today off from school so we could get some housekeeping done.  (We like it when Daddy comes home to a cleaner house than the one he left.)  It was nice of Mary to contribute without being asked...and she exercised her computer skills to boot!

Now I better get to work myself!

Blessings!

Missy

Don't you see that children are God's best gift?
      the fruit of the womb his generous legacy?

Psalm 127:3 (The Message)

February 29th: Something I'm Listening To...

Life is funny stuff.

I woke up this morning with my day all planned out, including what I was going to do for my final February Photo-a-Day Challenge blog post.

Sometimes I crack me up!

Because instead of listening to the cacophony of school noise this morning, I spent a lot of time listening to news reports about the tornadoes that went through southern Missouri and Illinois early this morning.

This afternoon, when I had expected to be listening to the steady hum of the washing machine and the delighted laughter of children, happily cleaning their rooms, instead I found myself listening to myself barking orders and making phone calls.

And later, I spent a lot of time listening to kids who only really whine to this degree when their daddy has left the premises for an indefinite number of days...because in the course of just a couple hours today, we got SJB and our 13-year old son Jamie packed up to go help with relief efforts in Harrisburg, Illinois.

This is well-traveled territory for us.  Jim has gone on at least one mission trip every year since 2003.  And this mission to Harrisburg marks his third relief trip since last spring.  So in the sense that we all know what to expect when he's gone, I guess each trip gets a little easier.

However, in the sense that knowing in advance that the root canal is going to hurt doesn't make it hurt any less, it still stinks when he's gone.

And now that Jamie is old enough to go along and be Dad's right-hand man, that also leaves me without one of my most reliable and cheerful assistants...and one of my loudest sources of happy noise.

In fact, right about now, in that patch of time when Grace and Jamie are the only kids who have yet to toddle off to bed, I am used to hearing the sounds of the nightly father-son Call-of-Duty smack down.  Tonight, I'm listening to Grace yammer about her upcoming birthday plans while she watches 101 Dalmatians.

And here in a bit, once I kick her down the stairs to her bedroom, I'll be missing what I'm accustomed to listening to during the hour of the grown-up:  a gripping movie, a mindless sit-com, an end-of-the-day catch-up talk, deliberations over the perfect evening snack...

And tonight, instead, I'll be listening to this:

This is not my favorite song.

But if history is any indication--and I have no reason to believe this time should be any different than all the other times we've had to be apart--this sacrifice just makes the time sweeter when we are back together.  I always love hearing about all the ways SJB got to see God at work on the mission field!  And I love feeling like I contributed in my own ways even though I never left home.  Those are couch-talks worth listening to!  I'll make popcorn!

Blessings!  (And thanks for going on this wild ride with me!  Whew!)

Missy

If I had gone ahead and blogged February 29th as I had planned, 

this song would have definitely made an appearance somewhere.  

And I'm pleased to polish off the month with it...

February 28th: Money...

What can I say about money that hasn't already been said to death?  Not much!  So I decided to share some random money funnies!

Perhaps you remember Tevye, one of the great thinkers of all time, and his future son-in-law Perchik.  Embroiled in a discussion about money, Perchik declares, "Money is the world's curse."

Tevye's response:  "May the Lord smite me with it. And may I never recover."

That Tevye!  He's got it going on!

And speaking of great thinkers, my daughter Mary has tried her best to contribute something to every day of this photo challenge!  She has talked about the subject of the day, offered me helpful suggestions, posed for pictures, and drawn a lot of original artwork.  But when she saw that today's topic was Money...well, that was the high-water mark for Mary!

For reasons which I do not understand, based on a discussion I do not remember, Mary (who is only 7 years old) has been obsessed for years about one day going to the Mint in Washington DC so she can watch money being made...and so she can buy a sheet of un-cut money.  I have no explanation other than to suggest that perhaps she and Alex P. Keaton may have a thing or two in common.

At any rate, here is the picture she drew today.  It requires no description.

Finally, I leave you on a serious note.  This musical video clip pretty much sums up financial life at Stately Bennett Manor.  ;-)

Blessings!

Missy

Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap 

and into many foolish and harmful desires 

that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. 

Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith 

and pierced themselves with many griefs. 

1 Timothy 6:9-10

(Or...as my favorite preacher said recently, it's not a sin to have money.  It's not even a sin to enjoy the money God has chosen to share with you.  But to love it and allow it to rule you?  There's your sin problem!)

February 27th: Something I Ate...

Seriously?  Something I ate?

My first thought was that it would probably be a more visually pleasant photo assignment if it was phrased, "Something I'm about to eat."  But sometimes the old English teacher in me can't seem to help the way words paint pictures in my mind.

I digress.

This picture contains products I have eaten...though I actually only ate one of them today.  That Chobani passion-fruit yogurt!  Gad zooks!  I love that stuff!

 Yep...that cereal (and the wonderful bread made by the same company)

is a recipe from the Bible!

The reason these items have posed for a still-life together is that they were all purchased from my food co-op, and today was co-op day! 

For the uninitiated, a food co-op is a group of people who get together to order, distribute, and share healthy foods--often in bulk.  Truthfully, some of the items available through the co-op are much cheaper at Sam's Club or WalMart...or on Amazon.  Where the co-op is really worth its weight in gold is when I order 50 pounds of organic rolled oats or 25 pounds of white popcorn.  The shipping on that stuff is a real killer!

I realize that not everyone has a 5-gallon bucket of brown rice in her pantry, but for those of us who cook for a crowd, buying in bulk can be a real money- and energy-saver.

Of course, there's also the health aspect of buying whole foods...and this is where I chase my own tail a lot!  In a perfect world, where I had unlimited funds, I would probably buy more organic and natural foods for my family...but as much as I would like to be able to feed them the very best food, they also seem to like wearing clothes and having a functioning van to haul them around to their various activities.  Where do I draw the line?

Plus, I don't know how much time you have spent researching nutrition, but the sheer magnitude of information out there is horrifyingly daunting!  And the theories seem to change from one day to the next.  Should I go whole wheat or gluten-free?  Low-carb or vegetarian?  All raw foods?  A focus on the fermented and cultured?  And how am I supposed to bank-roll the dietary wisdom du jour?

I know some people who seem so anxious about doing every little thing right nutritionally-speaking that food (or at least the paranoia about it) appears to be all they think about.  Is that as far over the line in one direction as other moms go in the opposite direction...you know, the ones who feed their kids lots of processed convenience foods without a second thought.

Talk about walking a tight-rope!

It reminds me of a Beth Moore Bible study I took once.  Possibly Breaking Free...but I don't remember for sure.  Beth told a story about a woman who confessed to having had a struggle with her weight.  Here is the story as I remember her telling it:

I have been everything from a size 6 to a size 16, and what I've learned is that around a size 12 is where I'm not sinning.  Yes, I can become very thin, but in order to maintain it, I have to think constantly about every bite I put into my mouth and every minute I spend in exercise...to the point that it becomes idolatry.  If I'm a size 16, I'm not concerning myself whatsoever with how I treat my body--which is also sin.  Somewhere in the middle, I can be rightly concerned with respecting the temple without worshiping it.

I really like that.

And that's sort of the position I have taken with planning the meals I serve my family.  I want to make wise (but not anxious) decisions, while also being a good steward of every month's grocery money.  I want to do a good job of feeding all the little (and big) bodies God has entrusted to my care, but I also want to confidently trust Him to fill in the gaps where I'm not perfect.

Practically speaking, that means I'll still be dividing my money between Sam's Club, an assortment of grocery stores, and my trusty Rainbow Food Co-op.  It also means that I'm trying to make more things from scratch using whole-food ingredients.  And I'm going to give myself a little grace (and a lot of Greek yogurt) in the process.

Blessings!

Missy

Man shall not live on bread alone, 

but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.

Matthew 4:4b

February 26th: Night...

Piece.

Of.

Cake!

It's 10:00 at night.  What does that mean? 

It's the hour of the grown-up!  Hope you're enjoying yours as much as we are enjoying ours!  

(By the way, I would like to say that we look all blurry and out-of-focus because Jamie took this picture.  The truth of the matter is that this is just how we look by the end of the day...especially on a Sunday night!)

Blessings!

Missy

Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest
   is my beloved among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
   and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
 Let him lead me to the banquet hall,
   and let his banner over me be love.
 Strengthen me with raisins,
   refresh me with apples,
   for I am faint with love.
 His left arm is under my head,
   and his right arm embraces me. 

Song of Solomon 2:3-6