Wednesday, December 02, 2009

Home: Cared For

Good morning, we had a good day yesterday! I did not get everything done on my list - but it was a good day together! I've enjoyed reading your lists and about all the ladies who are pursuing a beautiful home!

Our house is looking much better after just focusing on it for two days (note to self: WHY do I not keep up on it a little at a time instead of letting it get to this point?) and it was so much fun to cook dinner tonight with clear and clean counters!

With all that has been accomplished in only two days - I realize I must be wasting time on other days as I don't feel like I always get this much done. God seems to be multiplying energy and time for me to accomplish these goals.

But, Lynn Marie made a great point in the comments yesterday - all of us who are ambitious to get a lot done must be careful that we don't push so hard we make ourselves sick. I had this same thought the night before while laying in bed. I must know when my body needs to rest and I usually sit and craft, read or watch a movie (something restful) during the one hour in the afternoon that all three littles are in quiet time.

I did well on my list but did not take as many pictures - I did not get the master bath cleaned or finish the dusting. The girls will feed the birds today instead and during their quiet time - I sat down, listened to some uplifting music and worked on garlands! I've cut out 14 garlands today and hung three on ribbon plus took ten to the post office - they are coming! We also played outside for a while!

I also made a batch of cream soup mix since I was out and needed some for dinner!

You asked about my December calendar with an activity a day?
Here it is - it was a gift - it is a little Precious Moments calendar with a good deed listed every day. We've only opened one and it was to put bird seed out for the birds.

Now, for today:

Fold laundry and put away
Quiet Time
Assign chores
Breakfast
Start Laundry
Morning chores
School
Switch laundry
Emily - dentist appointment
Drive by deposit at ATM
Wal-Mart for a few things
Funeral home (last detail from my father-in-law's funeral)
Little ladies paint snowflake ornaments
Lunch
Quiet Time: me - work on garlands
Make M&M cookies with Emily
Clean out fridge
Set oven to clean
Dinner: Fajitas; chips and salsa
Evening - mend a few things and work on more garlands, work on grocery list

Tell me about your goals for the day! Oh, and what you are fixing for dinner - I'm loving hearing what you are cooking!

29 comments:

Ginger said...

So glad you posted your link to the cream soup recipe; I will certainly get the ingredients and make that this weekend.

Carol @ Pure Sugar said...

Your post is helping to motivate me! My FIL is visiting tomorrow from Miami (last-minute!) and I have so much to straighten up, so I will be tackling chores right along with you. For dinner tonight I've planned a crockpot meal (so glad it worked out that way). I'm just going to simmer some chicken and veggies in a Butter Chicken sauce I purchased and I'll serve it with rice. Have a wonderful day! :-D

Wendi said...

I love hearing about what you are doing. It motivates me to get moving myself.

For today: clean bathroom, iron, clear off computer desk top, wash towels & sheets, menu for the month & plan some fun crafts for Megan.

On the dinner menu: roasted chicken, mashed potatoes & gravy, green beans & rolls.

Have a great day!

Bevy @ Treasured Up and Pondered said...

I must tell you that I have been following along...on the side. This is the first time commenting on this series. I really appreciate the "teaching" and you're leading by example. The Lord has just been "revealing" some heart issues for me (personally) that need to be "tidied", "cleaned", "organized", etc. and it just feels so ironic that this is your current series and I happened upon Proverbs 14:1 (coinciding with Prov. 24:3-4) and felt it was talking about me and my house - literally meaning my heart. So, I would ask for your thoughts and prayers (anyone's for that matter) as I get busy..."around the house".
~B

Jennilee said...

I too, did not finish everything yesterday, so today is a long list! Wednesday is the bathrooms, so I'll be working on those plush finishing what I did not yesterday (kitchen). It's also an early day for my kids and there is Girl Scouts this afternoon. And laundry, of course!

Dinner tonight is my Chicken and Dumplings

Ami said...

I think you really need a circle cutter!

Jenn said...

I am enjoying reading about your goals and accomplishments. I just did this last week before Thanksgiving. I still do need to work on locating and putting up some Christmas decorations and could also start packing up the basement and finish rotating and properly storing the summer clothing. Always something to work on!!

Last night I made a chicken and potato bake with cream of chicken and Lipton onion soup mix along with steamed broccoli. I am not sure about tonight. We did not go shopping normally last week and are eating mostly out of the freezer and pantry. I spent $50 last week for a family of 10 (we have 3 relatives staying with us for a time). Pretty good! :-)

Chrissy said...

Today for me:

keeping an eye on the weather...it could be bad later...isn't it December?!?!

laundry
dinner prep
tidy bedrooms, living room, and kitchen
dinner prep
cvs
make today's chore list for kids
car pool from school in the afternoon
help with homework as needed

My goal every day is to have my chores done by the time the kidlets arrive in the afternoon so they can have my full attention. A lofty goal for sure...sometimes it happens, sometimes not, but I keep trying. Have a good day!

Chrissy said...

Today for me:

keeping an eye on the weather...it could be bad later...isn't it December?!?!

laundry
dinner prep
tidy bedrooms, living room, and kitchen
dinner prep
cvs
make today's chore list for kids
car pool from school in the afternoon
help with homework as needed

My goal every day is to have my chores done by the time the kidlets arrive in the afternoon so they can have my full attention. A lofty goal for sure...sometimes it happens, sometimes not, but I keep trying. Have a good day!

Lauren said...

Hope you have another productive day!! Here is my link to my list and thoughts for today.

http://homewitholivia.blogspot.com/2009/12/making-my-home-haven-cared-for.html

Bonnie said...

Well, I managed to keep the house and kitchen fairly well picked up while baking, but the decorating and sewing never happened. I did get all the laundry washed and folded, but I still need to put it away.
We had chicken enchilada's in white sauce for dinner.
Today, is falling apart as we speak, so the revised plan is more baking, decorating, sewing, maybe a Wal*Mart run, putting away the folded laundry, making a menu and grocery list, and stamping christmas cards.
French onion soup, french bread, and salad are on the menu for tonight,and grilled cheese for the kiddos, as this soup is one I don't require them to eat.

Elise said...

You amaze me...I was so happy to see that your counters looked like mine, too!! I am not exactly following along, but I am making it my goal to get my house picked up, de-cluttered, change sheets. My dinner, beef dip{recipe on my blog} is already in the crockpot and that feels fabulous!! It helps that I have a friend coming over tomorrow-she's never been here and I need to break her in gently the first time. :)
Elise

Susannah said...

Monica could you explain the difference between "cleaning" and "caring for" your home? Thank you and I appreciate all you do!

Debbie Fisher (debbiedee) said...

I love reading your blog! It seems God is speaking to my heart the same as to yours. Your blog has blessed me immensely!

I work full time and wish I could spend more time on my home. Tonite while my "boys" are at youth group I plan to vacuum and pick up and put up the Christmas tree then we can decorate this weekend.

PS: Bevy, I prayed for you as I read your comment.

Julia said...

Cute calendar!

Dayna (Spear) Guenther said...

Bevy, I'm praying for you too. This song (link below) has spoken to my heart so much lately! I'm seeking to allow God into every secret part of my heart.

http://daynaguenther.blogspot.com/2009/11/secret-place.html

(You'll need to scroll to the bottom of the blog and pause the regular player in order to hear the video properly.)

Monica, thank you for your inspiration and leading by example. I enjoy reading.

Bridgett said...

It is more fun to cook in a clean kitchen and doing the dishes afterwards is not so bad either.

I've been following your "tidy" & "clean" but not so much "cared for" today. Tomorrow is my oldest's son's birthday party. So between school, meals, & naps I'm working on making sure everything is ready! He'll be 5 and we're having a bowling party. It'll be his first party not at home. I'm pretty big on that & only having a few that are "somewhere".

Your garlands are beautiful and I hope you enjoy your day.

Anonymous said...

Such a good series!
My to-do list seems to grow even as I mark things off.

For today...
Make bed and tidy bedroom.

Address Christmas photo cards and have them ready to mail tomorrow.

Shrink wrap 4 Chritmas gift baskets and box them up to take to the post office tomorrow with the cards.

Return Library books

Grocery Store

Prepare Dinner - leftover spaghetti in a baking dish with a cheese topping for a spaghetti bake with a garden salad and garlic bread.

Welcome hubby home from work!

Blessings to each of you today!
Jenny Goldsby

Debra said...

I love your little calendar!

Yesterday was a total bust for me here at home for reasons I will not bore you with. :)

Today is quite a bit better so far:
~went to Jazzercise (boy I needed that)
~painted part of the frame around the door leading to the garage that the dog scratched when we first got him
~laundry - 2 loads so far including sheets, put on new sheets
Still to do:
~some work on the computer (not blogging!)
~more laundry
~empty dishwasher
~eat lunch (this helps with the staying healthy thing you mentioned)
~pick up daughter from school & finish decorating our tree

We are having Chicken Alfredo and salad for dinner

Thanks for this fun post!

Heather said...

This has been a fun week making my home a haven! I plan to do this more intentionally every few months in 2010. We were out of the house this morning so I will not accomplish as much as I would have liked. Here is what I hope our day will look like:

Grocery shopping
Attend a La Leche League meeting
Lunch
Tidy kitchen and living room
Vacuum
Pick up girls from school and pick up fresh wreath for front door
Drop off donations to St. Vincent DePaul Society
Get family in PJs early because it is a cool and rainy day
Dinner - Stuffed shells and salad
Finish laundry
Finish Christmas cards so I can mail tomorrow
Work on Christmas craft

Unknown said...

Thank you for your wonderful blog, I have only just started reading it in the last weeks but it touches my heart. Largly because I am a homaker in my heart but at this time I am needed to work to support my household so it refreshes me to read your posts where my heart it. So I will writing for the working woman.
Get up
kiss husband
set out dinner things to be ready
(take one of the 4 meals I made on the weekend out of the freezer)
drive to work early
get coffee and do quiet time
work 4 hours
on lunch grocery shop for week, swing by ATM for month budget cash, post office
back to work for 4 hours
drive home while catching up on calls
come in and fix dinner, eat, say hi to husband
get ready for family pictures, clean me while tidy as I see the house on my way
home, address Christmas cards, add postage, print letters,
prepare for bible study tomorrow
bed, hoping sometime on the weekend I can clean! but making time for cooking the 4 meals that keep me sain on the weekdays.

rachel@thecupcakesprinklesinlife said...

Monica,
Everytime you do a "care for your home" day- I get inspired too. Today was a backwards day for us, we got out all of our Christmas things, set them up- still working on and will do school a bit later. (one of the great things about homeschooling)
Yesterday I cooked up "Baked Tacos" which were super yum-o! Up next, put finishing touches on Holiday decor, Dust, School, fold laundry, cut out gift tags from old christmas cards, and work on my knitting.

Butterfly Momma said...

First and foremost - we are taking our little boys to see the CPR Holiday Train when it stops in our community. Our oldest boy (age 2) will be so excited!! Other than that ... my goals for today are to get my enormous pile of dishes washed, the kitchen swept and mopped, the living room tidied up and two loads of laundry completed, along with a load of diapers. Then hopefully I will have time to make a batch of Pear Cream Cheese muffins. Not sure if I'll get it all done, but here's hoping!! Oh, and for supper tonight we are having Chicken Nachos with homemade Creamed Corn. And thank you for posting the recipe for the Maple syrup and the Cream Soup base. I have added the cookbook "More-With-Less Cookbook" to my shopping cart at Amazon. Hopefully I'll get the order completed in the next couple of days! :) It sounds exactly like my type of cookbook. God bless!

Nicole Ross said...

Thanks for doing this series. It's motivating me to really focus on my home and not on outside activities. I already see the benefits of doing this.
Nicole

Monica Wilkinson said...

Hi Susannah!

Here is what my mind thinks of when I hear those two terms:

*Clean - the obvious caring for the cleanliness of my home.

*Cared For - the less obvious maintaining of our homes. Cleaning the oven, fixing something that is broken, mending or less frequent jobs.

This is merely my opinion - but that is what I was thinking of when I suggested the title.

Have a great day!
Monica

Peggy said...

Monica,

Thank you so very much for doing this series! You see I let our house go for far too long! The clutter had taken over and I really do dislike clutter (not to mention my husband dislikes it as well!) As you were starting this series we were getting our house ready to sell. In January we are moving over 3600 miles... Alaska to Indiana. So now is the time we are sorting, seperating, giving away, and throwing out! It is amazing how much STUFF we amassed but it is equally fulfilling the amount which is leaving our home! I am so glad that God has enabled us to bless others with his abundance!

Once again thank you!!

Wife of Rob said...

I loved the cream soup idea so much that I'm going to make some for me and for some gifts this weekend. I gave you a little "shout out" on my blog regarding the recipe. Here is the link to the post. Hope you have had an awesome day! I appreciate all of your tips and recipes....you gave me some inspiration this week!

http://pairofbartletts.typepad.com/a-pair-of-bartletts/2009/12/homemade-pantry-pleasures.html

{{Hugs}}
jen

Jennie Shutt said...

I am trying to make my way to a detailed cleaning of each room on the main floor before this weekend when we put up Christmas decorations. So far this week I did the master bedroom, living room, and school room. I still have the kitchen, laundry, bathroom, my husband’s office, and my office. I did not get to any of the detailed cleaning today so I will try to tackle the kitchen and bathroom tomorrow since we will have our SWAM group here tomorrow night. Today's theme was Cared For and here is my list for today:

Quiet Time: Tea Time with God pg 12&13

Breakfast: Chocolate Silk Coffee (Folgers)

Read: Continue reading The Gift of Christmas Present by Melody Carlson

Tidy, tidy, tidy! I walk around my house and put everything away that is out of place each morning and again before bed.

Computer: read blogs & check email

Lunch: Leftovers

Baking: I baked Oreo Cookie Brownies

Laundry: Wash, fold, and put away 1 load of laundry- towels

Kitchen: Pick up the kitchen and put things away.

Baking: I made a triple batch of Banana Oatmeal Cookies. We have our SWAM (Students With A Mission) group meeting tomorrow and the kids have a Christmas Party Friday with our homeschool groups teen’s. I packaged them up along with the Oatmeal Chocolate Chip I made yesterday.

Project: My kids are going to a Mad Hatter Party on Saturday and they are planning their costumes. I was helping them come up with something to wear and lending ideas. They are doing the work and enjoying themselves.

Dinner: Pork Lion Chops, Cheesy Mashed Potatoes, with Green Beans and Garlic

Computer: blog

Tidy, tidy, tidy! My before bed routine.

A JoyFilled Life said...

I recieved the garland! Thank you so much. It's going to stay up each year from Christmas to Easter!