DIY...

Last week, Jen from IHeart Organizing linked up a few great DIY projects which did not cost a dime, basically because the readers had all of the items already on hand.

I was dreading for quite q while now with how the top of the toyshelf looked by now. In fact, we like to keep the kids books on there so they can grab them whenever they feel like reading. We wanted to lead them towards a little more independance and exactly that made the top shelf look like this...

Now that's not very pretty, is it?

So I logged off and thought with myself: If I had anything on hand to make it look better, I would do it now... Then I remembered I had just gotten a new box of powder to wash my laundry, and there was just enough left for a wash or two in the old one... So I just dropped the leftover powder into the new box. In fact I made sure that all of the leftover powder was out...

So this is how it started...

It was a little big, so I just cut it off, going by the biggest book I would put in there.

After that, I took some wrapping paper I already had on hand and wrapped the box up as good as I could. I do not have pictures available of this process, because I was getting sidetracked running after all these gaming cards that seem to accumulate at home. In fact they are supposed to be in the plastic box on the left side of the top self, along with some ither nic nacs. Now if I... Wait, I HAD...

Two small cereal boxes. The ones that include one serving and I like to buy for the kids so they can try out other sorts and brands of cereal without having to boy one big box...
I took a game card to see it it would fit and...

After some cutting and adjusting, I had gotten this...

I chose not to use the same wrapping paper again, but a sheet in a matching color. I also chose to cut out one of the fish from the wrapping paper, and glue it to the now colored boxes as well.
Now I was left with the nic nacs. Too good I had an empty soupcan from the night before's dinner. After washing it out and making sure it was dry, I chose yet another color of colored paper and wrapped it. Sticking the cereal box to the powder box was an easy one. The soup can was a little more challenging... But I made it... :)

First mission accomplished. The space looks more presentable now. I esp like that the plastic box with the cards and small games is gone. I need at least 2 more powder boxes to finish. It could take a while until the one I just started will be empty, so I asked around to make sure to get some as soon as possible. I am also looking for diaper boxes to turn them into personalized and colorful toyboxes (as seen on Pinterest). I hope you like what I did and check back soon to see the progress:)

My husband's new job

I am very excited to announce that next Monday, my husband will be starting his new job. He's worked as a gardener for quite a while now which allowed us to enjoy fresh fruit and vegetables he could take home, however, his job never made him very happy. We knew right from the start that this job was a temporar solution. He could not work as a tailor altho he is an approved one. Somehow, male tailor are not very popular in this area. For over a year now, he took training classes to work as a welding operator. And now, finally, he got a job to owrk as one. However, it includes two days a week of additional training. He is excited and so am I. We're hoping to be able to spend more time together again when he comes home. Since the gardening job didn't make him happy, all he wanted when coming home was being left alone. I accepted it because afterall, he only took this job to be able to provide for us. I cannot say I need to forgive him, because I was never mad about it at first hand. I hope and pray, that once happy with his job, he will be excited to share more of his day when coming home, just the way it is like right now when he comes home from his training classes.

Honey, I also want to thank you. I thanked you each day in my heart, and every now and then verbally (I feel I should have told you more often, you probably needed a cheerlader), or with little gestures. You did what seemed right to you. You did a job you didn't enjoy, just for us, for your family, but you never gave up and finally get to do what you wanted for so long now. You are a great role model to our kids, showing them it's never to late to do what you enjoy, if you can't do plan A, there's always plan B, even if ittakes time. You're showing them yourself that learning and getting ahead is a life long process. I can only hope that they follow your footsteps! I love you!

Marriage and in-laws

First of all, I am back from my summer break:) I decided to join a challenge over at Time-Warp Wife. Please take a moment to check that wonderful site out.


Todays challenge is to invite your inlaws over or skype with them.. Well, I guess I have to do this my way... My father in law passed away in 1984 when my husband was only 10. My mother in law lives a 5 hour flight away from me, and never been on a computer.

In 2005 I was about to marry my husband and we decided that all things considered (esp the VERY big family of his side), the wedding should take place in Burkina Faso. It was also the very first time I was about to meet his family. I was nervous, and wanted them to like me. Before chosing a dress for the wedding, I even asked my now-husband what kind of dresses his mom likes because I would never ever have gotten married in a dress she'd dissaprove. I felt like I owned so much to this woman, Aminata Traore, since she had given life to my husband. On the other hand I heard so much about MIL's, they're witches, monsters, and whatever you want to name them, so I was convinced, that probably, I was just NOT supposed to like her because she was my MIL. I was in a twist there. So the day arrived. We hired a taxi from the house we rented and the driver took us to my MIL's house. My now-husband paid the driver, and got out of the car and so did I. I heard neighbours screaming, and saw a woman almost being hit by a car. Little did I know at that very moment that this woman was my MIL. She was talking to the neighbour living across the street and she was so excited to see her son again after 5 years that she completely forgot the traffic and just kept running towards him. After hugging and kissing him a few times, she also came and greeted me with a big hug. Then I knew that I could never bring myself to not like her. We were invited inside of the house, where I had the pleasure to meet my MIL's mom. We stayed for a while, and I was so nervous, I honestly do not remember a lot, only that the kind of perfume my MIL uses smells SO good. I saw her a few times more back there, memories are kind of blurry. I don't understand her language, and she does not speak or understand mine. Religion used to be a problem for her in the beginning, too.
Sometimes, I feel very bad that I only have one picture of her and me together. That I never got to meet my FIL. Sometimes, I wish she'd live closer, because I'd like to have her around a little more. She's scared of planes, and will probably never come over to see how we live, to see the kids school. Maybe one day? I hope so!!

Kids Room... *sigh*

So we finally went to purchase the kids new closet last Saturday. We opted for this one at IKEA. It was definately not the cheapest but the only one we could actually picture being in their room AND be solid enough. The last closet they had was big and cost next to nothing back in 2007. The first drawers broke in the beginning of 2008 and by the end of that year, Karim's been fixing it over and over. By March of this year, it's been falling apart little by little and even Karim could no longer fix it. The new closet is MUCH smaller and I purchased some more containers to put under the beds. This is where I can stuff blankets and snuggies, stuff we actually only need during the colder months of the year. Just in case we still have too much stuff, I guess this is the perfect occasion to get rid of some more.
We also need some progress concerning toy organization because the old system does not really work any longer. My daughter basically pulls out eveything, which is frustrating for the boys who, finally, do put the toys into the right boxes when asked. Her pulling everything out again immediately is not very rewarding, right? I plan to purchase one or even two of these and use the shelf we had the toys on as bookshelf. I will probably paint white before. I really hope that we are getting it done soon!

The story of Us

Today, I want to take a little time to tell you how my husband and I met. I was 21 and in June, our French class took a trip to Paris (mind me reminding you I live in Luxembourg and Paris is only about 3 hours away!). I still had to buy a few small souvenirs, so I entered a shop just a few steps away from the Moulin Rouge and snagged a few shirts I had not seen anywhere else during the trip. While I paid I felt someone was watching me and spotted a guy sitting close to the cashier. Sparkling eyes, braided hair. He was watching me and I felt weird. In fact, I don't like the feeling of being observed. When I came outside, my friends were asking me what happened inside, because apparently, my face was as red as a tomato usually is... Fast forward to December of the same year. I was still 21 and at the hairdressers. I know, this was definately NOT where I would expected to meet the man of my life. He knew the owner of the hairsaloon and just came to say hello. I sat there, I saw him entering and I just knew it. I knew it was HIM right from the first moment. Before, I never believed you could just know it and now that this really happened to me, I was scared. In main time, I tried to stay calm, telling myself that I must be wrong. He sat down just next to me and talked to me. I just recall him asking about my name, and being blown away by his eyes. They were sparkling like stars. I can't recall anything else of the conversation. Seriously... Until at once, his phone rang and he just said:"I am sorry, I won't be there. Sorry you were waiting for me, but I just can't. I feel I have to stay where I am right now." When my hair was done, and I was about to go home, I know nothing but his name but I knew that I HAD to do something. People who know me know I am pretty shy, and I would never EVER just DO something to meet a man again (makes me feel trashy...). However, this time, everything was different. I wrote down my number on a small piece of paper and when I turned around he was just gone. Of course I wouldn't have given my number to him in front of everyone. I was just hoping he would follow me... BUT... I guess I was wrong then. A little relieved, but still a little dissapointed, I went outside and there he was. Handing me a pen and a piece of paper, asking if he could get my number because he wanted to see me again. So... yay. no need to feel trashy because I did not need to give the piece of paper I had originally written.
A few days and phonecalls later, we saw each other again, and everything went pretty fast from there on. However, it was not until he went to get to know my mom that I experienced a... surprise... Mom just hung the laundry when we arrived. There were a few shirts from Paris being hung there was well. We went inside, and my mom was getting drinks when he said:"I knew you looked familiar." Me: "What do you mean?" Him:"You are the red faced girl buying shirts at my friends shop in Paris, not far away from the Moulin Rouge." Indeet, I could not deny that I had bought shirts in a shop close to the Moulin Rouge... "I was checking you out behind the counter. You were so embarrassed you almost forgot your change. I had braids back then. Remember?" Oh yeah, I did... LOL. Nowdays, I wonder how I did not feel the connection in Paris but felt it at the hair saloon.
The problem we faced once our relationship was getting very serious was faith. Karim is Muslim, and I am Catholic. Before I could never imagine being with anyone besides a Catholic man. It took us a lot of time to adjust, and it is STILL going on now, 9 years later. Sometimes it makes me sad that the kids are muslim, too. However, he has never put any pressure on me to become muslim, or even suggested it. He accepts my faith, me going to church, the way I pray. I, in return, accept his faith, that he and the kids eat no porc meat (me neither, out of respect!). I cannot say that this is what I imagined, but I am confident that Gods plan for me was better than the one I had for myself.

Project 'Burkina Faso'

Yes, that's the country my husband is from. And honestly, altho I visited Burkina and we got married there, I feel horrible to say I never attempted to learn anything about their culture, let alone cook something specifically from Burkina Faso. I tried African in general tho.
So next week, I am trying to cook only dishes from Burkina Faso.
I'll come back to this post once I found a link to a recipe.. So consider this my Menu Planning Monday post.. On Friday.

Monday:
Dinner: Munyu Caf Couscous

Tuesday:
Dinner: Maan Nezim Nzedo (Fish Stew with Vegetables)

Wednesday:
Dinner: Riz gras au Poulet

Thursday:
Dinner: Sauce aux Gombos with Tô

Friday:
Dinner:

Saturday:
Dinner: Couscous Burkinabé

Sunday:
Dinner:



Other:
Mango Chutney
Beignets d'haricots

Kitchen.. and news on the kids room... sort of

So, I mentionned that I have to do something in the kids room this week. I started yesterday. Rearranging and sorting out a few toys. I am kind of excited because the plan is to get the new closet for the kids next Saturday. We went to IKEA last Saturday to check and see what we like and gave ourselves a few days to think about it. The closet we're going to get is MUCH smaller, so we will see how it goes.

I've also done a little something in the kitchen. Not today, not yesterday, but a few days ago.

Here it goes... It looked like this...

And now, it looks like this.

:)

Menu Plan Monday

Sooo, last week I did not completely stick to my menu. Basically because I didn't get the tilapia I was looking for. I rotated and switched, added leftovers where I could and it worked out anyways:)

So let's see...
Tuesday
Lunch: Soup with Pancakes
Dinner: Spaghetti with Shrimp Sauce

Wednesday
Lunch: Omelette
Dinner: Amish Husbands Delight (since I did not make it last week)

Thursday
Lunch: Tuna Sandwiches
Dinner: Stuffed Peppers on a bed of rice

Friday
Lunch: Old School Potato Soup
Dinner: Crock Pot Beef Stew

Saturday
Lunch: Simple Arroz con Pollo
Dinner: Couscous with Mushrooms and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Sunday
Lunch: Easy Shepherd's Pie with Garlic Romano Potatoes
Dinner: Mixed salad with garlic bread

Monday
Lunch: Tropical Salad with Pineapple Vinaigrette
Dinner: Sicilian Meat Roll with potatoes

Found inspiration??

Organizing my own closet

"52 weeks of organizing" challenge at "I am an Organizing Junkie" here I come again...



I've been procastinating to organize my own closet for quite a while now. But let's face it... Now with the winterclothes definately being out of season, I could do it while sorting them out, right? RIGHT! It was not what I planned to do when I got up this morning, nope, it was a coincidence because I was at my chinese store again and saw a few small and not too expensive tools which I hoped would help to get my mess into a more acceptable shape...
So this is the BEFORE picture

What you can't see in the picture is the small plastic containers containing sunglasses, scarves, belts...

I also had two drawers just close to the bed, in which I kept my socks and underwear.

First of all I took out everything that did not belong there and put it into it's place. Then I kept going through everything single piece of clothing, and tossed everything which was for one or another reason in an inacceptable shape.
I sorted out the winter clothes, putting everything I had kept from the winter before but not worn last winter into a big plastic bag to give away.

I put my little tools together. 3 small drawers and a closet organizer... When I was done, I put the remaining socks into one small drawer, the underwear into another one, and all the belts, sunglasses etc into the third one. I put them on one of the shelfs in my closet, and put the handbags I decided to keep just next. I neatly folded the jeans and shirts as well as my PJ's, put them into the 'closet organizer'.
And, what did I see? There was one ENTIRE shelf completely empty!!! I took my chance, and put the bath towels there, knowing they won't remain there forever. We'll be getting a new closet for the kids soon which means my daughter's will become the new closet to keep these kind of things. Oh, and due to the weird weather, I didn't dare to put the box with my winter clothes I'll keep, too dar away. So it is still sitting there, on the bottom where it is easy for me to reach.
Time for the AFTER picture :)

Well, that's better, isn't it? :)

So, Laura from "I am an Organizing Junkie" asked in this weeks "52 weeks of organizing" post:

Do you rotate your seasonal clothing? If so, have you done it yet?
I usually do not rotate seasonal clothing, not mine anyways. Doing it now made me realize that this helps me keep the clutter in my closet to a certain minimum.

Are you celebrating your accomplishments as you go? It’s so important no matter how big or small the task is you complete!
Well, the high I get from it is celebration and motivation to me. But I admit it: For every week I keep going, I get myself some good ice cream from the supergood gelateria at the end of my street :)

What’s on your list for this next week?
This is hard to tell. There are quite a few things I have to tackle. It also depends on the tools I find, or inspirations I have. Looking around it *might* be the kids toys.

Our linen closet

If I had to chose one single closet in our home that was causing me a headache, that was definately the linen closet. WAS. Yesterday, I just dragged out about everything.
To give you an idea of what it looked like BEFORE, there you go.

I took out the big red overlay (which I absolutely had to get, along with the matching pillowscases and curtains, but just used once since), and this is what I saw.

No, we do not have a lot of bedsheets here. I tend to wash them as soon as I changed them, so we do not really need a lot of them.

A while ago, I bought a lot of boxes of different shapes. 3 of them were pretty flat, but large.

They were perfect to put the sheets in.

And there came the big challenge... Would the overlay fit in there?

The answer is no. So I tried with a dfferent box to put actually under the bed, and it still didn't fit. I did not really want to go back to just stuffing it in there with the rest. I needed something... big... The answer was right by my feet. The big laundry basket my husband got for the master bedroom. I haven't really used it because if I am good at something, then that is with keeping up with my laundry! One single basket is enough for us! And there you go... :D

I used small greet boxes to put in those extra pillowcases I might get rid of because they are not really matching any covers we have.
The final result:

Better, no?
I love it! :) Makes everything so much esier. Basically, I just drag out a box and have everything matching in there. :))

First aid and medications... duh....

So I take advantage of my early morning and a good cup of coffee to come over and blog about first aid and medications. I organized those on Sunday. Since we celebrated Easter at my moms on Saturday, I didn't really have a lot to do on Sunday, except for the Easter egg hunt for the kids in the morning.
I had quite a lot of meds that were expired (which I did not think prior to going through them), on top of that I had so much fluid medications that were open for I don't know how long and decided to toss it as well. They all went to a huge plastic bag and I am very proud to say I brought them to the pharmacy yesterday, so they will be disposed the way they should. Yesterday then, I decided to do something I wanted to do for quite a while now, which is keep an inventory list of the meds we have, why they are for, if they are for adults or for kids, and last but now least, when they expire. This way, just checking the list once at the end of each month, I just toss out whatever is about to expire. Like right now, I already tossed whatever expires May 2011. I guess working in the pharma industry years ago helped me to think about this...

So right now, the remaining items are sitting in two small baskets in my kitchen, which does not look very appealing, so I am thinking about another solution. I probably need to declutter some more in order to find just the right and perfect place for them!

Take Care :)

Work with what you have... Earth Day Challenge.

Jen over at 'Iheart Organizing' posed a challenge for Earth Day. The challenge was to find something you already had at home and use it to organize something.
I had a basket here for quite a while which I was tring to figure out what to do with. Without knowing, Jen gave me a good suggestion in her blog entry yesterday; I could roll up towels and washcloths and put it close to my bathtub. I also added a new bottle of shower gel. I could have made it prettier with getting new and matching towels and washcloth, but then I remembered to work with what I have (on top of that I really do not need any new washcloths and towels right now.

Please take a moment to check out Jen's amazing blog.

Menu Plan Monday

Ha.. You didn't think I actually would, right?
First of all, I am linking this beautiful button back to Laura's Site 'I am an Organizing Junkie'. Setting MPM (Menu Plan Monday) up, she deserves the credit!



So, now to the Menu Plan..

Monday

Lunch:Beef and Rice (altho I am leaving out the cellery due to an allergy I have, and I add a little tomato sauce to the carrot/beef/onion mixture)
Dinner: Mac&Cheese

Tuesday
Lunch: Beef Enchiladas
Dinner: Spicy Honey Soy Roasted
Dinner: Lemony-Garlicy-Cheesey Tilapia

Wednesday
Lunch: Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Dinner: Spinach Goat Cheese Lasagne

Thursday
Leftover Day

Friday
Lunch: Southwestern Vegetarian Pizza
Dinner: Spicy Honey Soy Roasted Chicken Thighs served with French fries and a mixed salad

Saturday
Lunch:?? probably leftovers
Dinner: Turkey Breasts and baked potatoes (topped with sour cream and cheddar cheese)

Sunday
Lunch:?? probably leftovers
Dinner: Moussaka and cottage cheese salad

Monday
Lunch: Large mixed salad with baguette
Dinner: Amish Husband's delight (willing to share the recipe if anyone is interested)

I never plan breakfast. We always have so many bagels, fruit, corn flakes, yoghurts etc over here that everyone just grabs what they feel like. Drinks are juice, chololate milk, milk, water, coffee and tea. Snacks are usually yoghurt, crackers or fruit as well. :)
Now off to fix lunch and write my shopping List for tomorrow:)

My drawer in the bathroom

Another great challenge at "I am an organizing junkie". The challenge was to get a drayer of your choice organized. I have so many drawers, some organized, some not, so out of all the drawers I had, I chose the one that I probably needed every day: The drawer in the bathroom where I keep my hairbrushes, nail polish, make up, hair scrunchies etc. I tossed a lot, unfortunaterly I forgot to take a before picture, however, the after picture looks so much better than the before one would have...
Dadaaaa

It's not THE big thing, but a small step forward:) Right?
I will even try to do the Menu Planning Monday challenge on "I am an organizing Junkie", but I'll probably do that in a speparate post later. Aaaaahhh, procastination....

Yep, still here

Altho I feel like I am talking to myself here, I am still here and posting. I've been busy these days, not because of Easter, but because we will finally buy our own house. We do not have a specific house in sight yet, however, just going to the bank, get the info, do all the talking is enough for me to get all excited. It won't be for another year but still, I do have some other goal to reach right now. The monthly down payment of a 3 bedroom house is less than the rent we pay right now, so go figure.
I did not take picture of my progress, but I took pictures of the kids, if that counts??

My oldest was pretty busy during Eastern Break, had something else to do every day, so no good pictures of him to share today, sorry.

I also decided to get my papers better in order, get boxes for different keepsakes, organize my pictures and get a recycling system up. Right now I like the ones IKEA have, but I haven't quite decided yet. I already organized papers when doing my home management binder and I was surprised how quickly I had some papers on my hands when I was looking for them a few weeks back. I knew exactly where to look and loved it. I felt less stressed than I usually would be, so this is a huge motivation for me to continue, altho I have been slacking a little during the last time. Oh, reminds me I also have to organize my recipes, toss out all those I tried which were not a hit, and type those we liked and add to our daily routine.
Well, I am off now, so see you:)

Here again

So it's been a while again. I was kind of struggling with what to say, and I could come up with excuses, but I won't. I won't give up my blog just like that. I can't say yet that I put much work and effort into it, but I intened to get SOMEWHERE and I will. So, nope, this is not a goodbye post.

I am unemployed as of March 14th. I have kind of seen it coming. No, I was not fired or anything like this. I was just there temporary and didn't manage to find something else in time. I am glad that my husband found at least work and started on April 1st after 3 years of unemployment but it is still like a slap in the face. We were planning to save up much more since we thought we finally had two paychecks again, thought we would not have to struggle as much as we did during the last 3 years. But still, if it had to happen I am glad it happened now, and not in a year or so, having to go back from two paychecks to one.

On a lighter note, my kids closets are set for summer. I am glad I kept my boys clothes from last year because they still fit! I know I won't resist when I see a cute shirt or a nice pair of shorts if they're not too expensive, but I am glad I do not have to start all over again. I got a lot for my 18 months old daughter from ebay, lots of brand stuff with the tags still on for next to nothing.

Being at home for a month now, it's organized and clean. Gone the unvaccumed floors and gone the dust on the furniture (I dust, vaccuum and mop every day!). I tend to iron again more, my laundry basket is almost empty most of the time. No processed food, nope, I have the time to actually cook and do everything from scratch. Yesterday, I even baked my own bread. From scratch of course. 3 weeks ago our big trashcan was so full of stuff I purged, we could not even close it anymore. I guess you never know how much clutter actually accumulates in your home unless you really look for it. And do not even get me started on the kids toys. I organized them a while ago, tossed everything that was broken or had pieces missing, I had to do it all over again. Do you all think I am bad for telling the kids that Santa inspects their rooms every now and then all year long to see how they treat the toys he brought them?

See you one of these days:) Probably with pictures of my progress :))

Update

I thought I'd just hop in and update! I didn't have too much time tp be online and blog laterly. Had two little ones home with the flu, and I am not feeling well myself for a few days now. Still haven't created a launchpad, and I am behind in my recipe binder as well. I will get back soon! Stay tuned :)

Launchpad Make Over

Another post with embarrassing pictures....
A bowl full of lemons has another weekly challenge up. So here we go... This weeks challenge is to create a launchpad. And I must just say OH MY. I know that I have to do something about it (with or without challenge) and a week is probably enough to fix the worst, but not everything.... Judge yourself.

This is our entry...

In case you didn't figure it out, I did not do any extra cleaning or picking up before taking the pictures, lol. The build in dresser is overfloating with my husbands stuff, and he is still in the process of decluttering it. I figured I will help him a little with that these days to at least have a enough space to hang the claots.
I did get a small shelf to put the shoes on today, so we will no longer have to put them into the build in dresser. We also finally need a desk for my computer. We need a place to hang our keys. This is just a small brainstorming about what we need to get done by the end of this week! Check back soon for changes and updates!

The cooking part.... and a few finds at the chinese store

Before we start this, I admit I am not the best cook and probably will never be. I could blame it on my mom who didn't teach me anything, but I am straight honest when I say I was never really interested in it either. I try my best, sometimes I succeed, sometimes I don't. And when I do, well, my husband and kids reactions motivate me to continue giving my best.
I decided to create apost every now and then about what I have been cooking, at least as long as I remember to take a picture of it.

Homemade Pizza Funghi

I just realized that I forgot to take apicture of my Omelette à la forstière earlier today... Oh well:/

However, I went to the chinese store today and found a few helpful tools to get organized.

Storage Boxed for tomatoes and peppers

This is for my husband actually. A few days ago he was talking about how he needs a small dresser to put his clothes he wore once or twice in, but are still not dirty, while he would put the washed clothes in his regular dresser. I do not understand the logic, but since he doesn't want his worn clothes and his washed clothes to get mixed with each other this should solve the problem without having to buy another dresser.

I found out today that switching my computer off after using it keeps me from using it all day. I got so much done today, had dinner ready in time and the kids were all in bed at 7:15pm (what's supposed to be their regular bedtime!)! I tend to deny that I am obsessed with the computer and with being online, so we can consider this as a start, right?

So today I....

Yesterday night I realized that the drawer I keep my silverware was in an innacceptable shape. It was when I was about to go to bed, so I took a picture of this desastrous drawer first thing in the morning.

As you can see there was way too much in there, which made it hard to keep it clean. So I took everything out of there and took this picture.. Gross...

After vaccuming it and completely cleaning the drawer as well cleaning the organizing tool (which is to be put into the drawer), I spotted an old coffee box which I had kept because it was so pretty. I decided this was the perfect tool to put my wooden spoons etc in.
So here we go with the AFTER pictures...

So one more thing got cleaned and a little organized and I am happy about that. :)See you later.

Under the kitchen sink

"I am an organizing junkie" has a great 52 week challenge to get organized. I thought I'd jump in... now. You bascally chose the drawer, closet, room or area of your home you want to organize and blog about it. The author, Laura, also asked a couple of questions, so I will do my best to answer them.

1. Name ONE reason you want to get organized. It will be neat to see the variety of answers: Saving time by looking for what I need. I want to be able to know EXACTLY where I put something instead of looking for it for an hour or more.

2. What did you organize last week & were you happy with the way it turned out?

My first area is.. Under the kitchen sink, since this is one of the areas I skipped at a previous challenge. I am almost too ashamed to admit it... BUT there was a huge mess under my kitchen sink. It yould be so cluttered and disorganized I was stuggling to find what I needed. The reason why I wanted to organize it so bad is because I really need the items there daily, so having it organized will actually save me a lot of time! You don't want to see a before picture of this, do you? Noooo... You don't? Really? Well... okay then... Ready?

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You were warned.. LOL. Now, I checked those ubercool plastic bags, and realized it was old stuff my husband had put there after he finished painting the living room. It was stashed there to bring it to the recycling center ONE day. Since he went to the recycling center yesterday and the day before yesterday because he realized there was too much stuff we no longer needed or were broken and couldn't be fixed, everyhere, I figured it would be a great time to get the counter under the sink a little organized. The rags and cleaning products, well, needless to say I needed them. So I put the cleaning producs along with some pieces for my vaccumer into one plastic container, and the rags (which I still need to fold neatly), into another one. I labeled each one of the containers. This saves me so much space that I could actually put a six pack of water under the sink as well, so it is not standing somewhere on the floor or cluttering up another area. Ready for the after picture? I bet you are...

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Before I forget itm here's a picture of a premature Valentines Day gift for mister "I don't need to organize my tools because I always know exactly where I put which item, btw, do you know where I put ______????"

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NO before picture possible because I would have needed to take pictures of each and every corner of our place. He had spread his toolds just EVERYWHERE because of "ongoing projects".
Yes, I am very happy with how everything turned out and I am motivated to maintain it this way!

3. Have you had any breakthroughs or a-ha moments yet? I would love to hear them!
I guess my biggest a-ha moment was the one when I realized it actually doesn't take as much time to organize an area than I thought. My biggest reason why I didn't get really organized before was because I didn't have the time, and whenever I had the time I kept procastinating by saying that I was short on money and couldn't spend a lot on storage containers. After finishing the area under the kicthen sink, I realized that it had not taken me as much time as the total of time combined while I was looking for something and couldn't find it. Same thing for the containers. They didn't cost me as much money as new items (I'd have to buy because I can't find the ones I know I already have) would. Taking the time, and the few dollars for containers, to actually organize an area saves you more time and more money in the futur.

Motivated to join me in the 52 week challenge?

By the way, I checked the statistics of my blog and realized I am getting quite a lot of hits. I'd be glad if you could leave your link so I can visit you too! Who knows, maybe you inspire me? :)