Pinterest 365

Posted on November 1, 2012 by gracieed

I have always loved bulletin boards.  As a kid, I would pin up pictures of my favorite movie stars, pictures of my boyfriend (now my hubby), cards and memorabilia.  At my last job (children’s director at my church), I had a huge cork board where I pinned up craft projects I did with the kids, cards from kids, a huge thermometer where we tracked the money we raised to buy a cow for a village in Africa, pictures of the kids and lots of memories.  Imagine my delight when Pinterest came along and now I could carry my love for all things ‘bulletin boards’ over into the virtual world.

In my constant search for crafts of all kinds, I would often find ideas, print them out, file them in sheet protectors and store them away in 3-ring folders.  Before that I would pour through magazines, cutting out articles and tutorials and glue-sticking them to card stock, which then went into the sheet protectors and 3-ring binders.  This takes up an enormous amount of space.

Pinterest is brilliant.  Not only does Pinterest allow me to ‘pin’ the ideas I find to virtual boards, it let’s me make as many boards as I want and it lets me follow my friends to see what’s on their boards.  They can also follow me, by the way, which is really sort of cool.  It is a strangely gratifying feeling when you see that 95 other people pinned that cable scarf tutorial.  Makes you kind of feel like you’ve discovered something really cool and 95 other people agree with you.  Not really, but it’s a good feeling :-).

Now I know that the pins on Pinterest do not come from Pinterest.  They come from the creative minds of bloggers  and designers all over the web and these folks need to be properly credited for their work.  The phrase, “I found it on Pinterest”, is quickly becoming part of our culture, but we need to remember Pinterest is only the starting point.  These pins lead us to the sites of incredibly creative people who have much to teach us.

To that end, I am embarking on what I’m calling ‘Pinterest365’, an adventure to work on one Pin from my Pinterest boards every day for the next year.  Most of the pins I choose will be completed in one day, but some will stretch over, but I will share the completed projects.  I often say to myself, “you should spend as much time doing the things on your boards as you do just pinning.”  I have over 6,000 pins on my 59 boards, so 365 seems like a drop in the bucket.

I will be publishing my Pinterest365 posts at the end of each day.  I love the creative process and am excited about digging into these tutorials and ideas.

“Ellie and I are ready anytime you need to take a break from this new thing you’re doing.  You know I’m happiest when I’m catching a tennis ball and Ellie’s happiest when she’s watching me catch a tennis ball, right?  And we know you want us to be happy, so it’s a win-win for everyone.”

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31 Days {Day 31} || Committing to Change – Just the beginning

Posted on October 31, 2012 by gracieed

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” – Theodore Roosevelt

This 31-day challenge has been a wonderful experience and I don’t want it to end.  I don’t know what the future holds, but I do want to spend myself in worthy causes occasionally experiencing high achievement but always daring greatly.

Things I’ve learned in 31 days.

  • A lot can be accomplished in 30 days.
  • Slow and steady wins the race.
  • You don’t have to wait for things to be perfect to change.  Do it today.
  • Discipline is a daily, if not hourly, exercise.
  • Find someone you trust to share your ideas/dreams/struggles.
  • Habits really can be formed in a short amount of time.
  • I really enjoy writing.
  • It’s important to share your struggles as well as your triumphs.
  • I used to be so focused on ‘finishing’.  Now I’m really jazzed by ‘progress’.
  • I am so thankful for my life and everyone in it.

Thank you for all the kind comments, encouragement and laughs.  This experience exceeded my expectations.

And now I need to go walk Woody and Ellie and dream about tomorrow’s post.

Have an enjoyable Halloween evening, 

“I know you just practicing your make-shift muzzle on Ellie, but I think you were really trying to dress her up as a mummy for Halloween.  You do know that won’t work with me, right?”

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31 Days {Day 30} || Committing to Change – Grateful for Change

Posted on October 30, 2012 by gracieed

In one of my previous posts, I wrote about change being hard work.  It is and it’s also inevitable.  I’m learning that I can either fight it tooth and nail or welcome it.  Those are opposite ends of the spectrum and life is lived somewhere in the middle.

As I was walking this morning, I noticed that the leaves in our neighborhood are finally changing colors.  I don’t keep track of the exact time when they’re supposed to change, but today was the day I noticed.  I love this time of year because our neighborhood has some of the most stunning trees that reach to the sky and treat us to a symphony of color.  It takes my breath away.  And after the color change, the leaves fall leaving us with bare branches in winter that are preparing for the spring with new growth.  The new leaves can’t show up if the old ones are still on the branches.  Nature seems to handle change quite well.

I had this all in my mind today and wished I was as adept at handling change like the trees are.  Mike and I switched cars today.  It’s a very practical, economical solution for us right now, but I must confess I’m a little bothered by it.  Logically I know it makes complete sense: my car has fewer miles, is newer and gets better gas mileage (he drives about 60 miles/day.  I drive about 20 miles/week); the sound system works in mine (he can listen to his music while he commutes).  There are other reasons and quite honestly I don’t know why we didn’t switch sooner than this, but now it just makes the best sense.  As I’ve processed while I’m having a problem with this, it really just comes down to the fact that I’m used to my car and I’m not used to his.  In the big scheme of things this is what I would describe as a first world problem (instead of a third world problem like starvation).  Even as I write about this there’s a part of me that feels very small and petty, but it’s ultimately not about the car, it’s about how I handle change.

Part of what helps the process is having appreciation every single day for the blessings in my life.  We all have stuff that presents us with challenges (some more than others), but we also all have many more things in our lives to be thankful for.  So as I have committed to the change in my life (either self-imposed or not), part of that commitment requires an attitude of thankfulness for my circumstances and for unknown blessings that will arrive as a result of the change.  And before you think I’m a Pollyanna personality, let me assure you I’m not.  I’m just learning to look at change differently.  Yes there are times when the change we’re experiencing royally sucks, but most of the time it’s just that we’re used to the way things were.  It’s in those times that I want to take a broader view and be grateful.

“Mom, in case you weren’t sure, we don’t like change.  Change really bothers us.  There’s a reason they call us ‘creatures of habit’.  Keep that in mind the next time you change our walk route.  Just ’cause you’re bored doesn’t mean we are.”

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31 Days {Day 29} || Committing to Change – The Finish in Sight

Posted on October 29, 2012 by gracieed

Almost to the end of 31 days and I wanted to do a recap of the past 28 days.

So let’s review:

Day 1:  Intro

Day 2:  No-Wheat.  So far so good.  I have lost 2 pounds and 2 inches from my tummy.  Overall I feel good and am not feeling deprived at all.  Mike mentioned yesterday that he hasn’t had to take any meds for a stuffy nose which he has constantly this time of year.  I have to say it hasn’t been difficult at all, but planning and being prepared has been critical to our success.  If you’re interested in checking out a no-wheat lifestyle, go to http://www.wheatbellyblog.com.  In fact, their post from Oct 28th is fascinating.

Day 3:  Household Chores.  I’ve been staying on top of the chores pretty well, but the real proof of this came yesterday, when it took me exactly 30 minutes to get the house straightened up for company.  In the past it would have taken me all day.  It felt really good to not have that nagging feeling of wondering when I last cleaned the toilets.

Day 4: The Backyard.  This hasn’t been progressing as well as we would like.  Mike took care of our back gutter (removed it) and painted the remaining wood.  It looks so much better now.  Part of the problem with this area is that we both need to do this and our weekends have been full with other commitments.  We need to sit down and block out a few Saturdays and say no to other stuff.

Day 5: Reducing Waste.  This has been great.  Menuing every week definitely helps to reduce food waste and anything that is perishable that doesn’t get eaten, gets cut up or pureed and frozen.  To the systems I already have in place, I’ve added: making my own dishwasher soap and keeping it in a mason jar as well as making yogurt and using mason jars to store it as well.  This has significantly reduced the number of plastic yogurt containers we use.

Day 6:  Daily Exercise.  I have been walking at least 5 days a week for 30 minutes and am really feeling the benefit of it.  I need to do my exercise in the mornings because if I wait until the afternoon it just doesn’t get done.  I’ve also been listening to an audio book while I walk to help pass the time.  I’m hoping as I lose weight and get more fit, I’ll begin to enjoy it a little more.

Day 7:  95% No Eating Out.  Been doing really well with this and even declined a couple of invites in favor of eating what we already prepared.  The difficult part about declining invites is that we love to spend time with folks, but don’t necessarily want to eat out.  I think I’m going to start suggesting that we have people over instead of going out.  Kill two birds with one stone.

Day 8:  Meal Planning.  This is definitely getting easy, almost habit now.  We’ve been planning a lot of the same meals, so I’m ready for a little change there, but there’s a great deal of comfort knowing that you’ve got what you need to prepare dinner.  Frees me up to spend time thinking about other things.

Day 9:  Using my Organizer.  This is working out great.  I’m currently working on a plan to enhance it by adding some pages to accommodate my ‘Next Step’ system.

Day 10:  Decluttering.  Moving along pretty nicely.  Are halfway through Mike’s study, completely decluttered all his clothes and am about 25% through my craft room.

Day 11: Walking my Dogs.  Luckily I have two persistent pooches for this one and rarely miss a day.

Day 12:  Organizing my yarn.  Have sorted out and identified all my sock yarn.

Day 13:  Unfinished Projects.  1.  Super hero capes – The sewing machine is out, the fabric is cut.  Just need to sew away.  2.  Alisa’s sweater.  Back still finished.  Started on left side, but haven’t made anymore progress.  Need to schedule time on my calendar for this one.

Day 14:  Project Life. I’ve decided to print my pictures at CVS every week.  We have one just down the road, within walking distance.  It’s cheaper than printing my own pictures, so as I go through the week, I’ll be able to use post-it notes as place holders for the pics, insert my journaling and then just put the pictures in when I pick them up from CVS.  I want to start sharing my album on this blog, but it may be a week behind.

Day 15:  Reading more.  I finished Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and am half way through the second book.  I finished ‘Heaven is for Real’ and started ‘The SuperStress Solution‘.

Day 17:  Lists.  Working on how to incorporate my ‘Next Step’ strategy into my organizer.  I consider this a ‘List Extraordinaire’.

Day 19:  Budgets.  Staying on track, but need to work hard at not just buying stuff on a whim.  This is going to be particularly interested as we are heading into the holiday season.

Day 20:  From Scratch.  Made my first batch of yogurt and granola (both recipes from the Frugal Girl).  Both, I have to say, I scorched a bit.  The second batch of granola was much better and less charcoal in color.  I didn’t throw out the yogurt because I discovered with enough maple syrup you can barely taste the soot :-).  Despite my mishap, I absolutely loved the process.  I can name the ingredients without needed an advanced degree in chemistry and I can use my mason jars over and over again to store my creations.  Now onto powdered laundry detergent.

Day 21:  Curing a Constipated Goldfish.  Well I haven’t started any online classes yet, but I did cure my fish, Faith, or rather she cured herself my doing a couple of very large fishy poops.  Go Faith!

Day 22:  Procrastination.  When I find myself procrastinating I try to figure out why.  Do I need sleep?  Am I avoiding?  Am I afraid to fail so I put off starting?  It’s been helpful going through this process.

Day 23:    Home for the Holidays.  I finalized my 2012 Christmas Movie List and located the Christmas lights.

Day 25:  Accountability.  It really, really helps having someone to share the ups and downs with.

Day 26:  The Next Step.  This has been revolutionary.  Just being able to see all my commitments at a glance and then not being overwhelmed by the enormity of it all, but only needing to focus on the next step has been a game changer for me.

Day 27:  Bloggity Blog.  I have to say I’ve had a few heart palpitations in the time since I shared about my plans for the blog.  Mostly because I know me and my propensity for not following through on my hair-brained ideas.  What has helped has been this review process and the reminders of taking it all in its stride.  I’m actually excited now.

Day 28:  Rest.  So important and a habit that I need to take seriously.

Thanks for sticking with me for the past 28 days.  Only 3 more to go and then the beginning of something totally new.  I’ll share my overall thoughts of this journey on day 31, so until then…

“What we’ve loved about the past 28 days is all our friends coming over to play.   We give you ‘two paws’ up for that.” 

Posted in 31 Days, Accountability, Backyard, Books, Budgeting, Christmas, Cleaning, DeCluttering, Dogs, Education, Exercise, Homemade, Lists, Meal planning, Organization, Project Life, Saving Money, Wheat-free | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

31 Days {Day 28} || Committing to Change – Rest

Posted on October 28, 2012 by gracieed

Rest is something I struggle with.  Resting from activity, that is.  I am very good at sleeping and taking long naps, but resting from constant motion is not my forte.  I wonder if it’s because, as I get older, I’m acutely aware that the years are getting fewer and I still have so much that I want to do.

I sometimes feel very guilty when I take time to just be still, but I’m learning that there is great purpose and reward in stillness.  Our physical bodies need time to regenerate and that only comes during rest.  We need to sleep well so our cells can prepare themselves for the next day.  If you’re an athlete, you know that rest is critical for improvement in any sport.  Your muscles need to repair so they can be ready and stronger for the next effort.  Our minds need to rest as well.  We need to give them time to clear the cobwebs and process what we’ve absorbed.  I know I don’t give myself the time I truly need to be physically or mentally ready for the next challenges in life.

As I move forward with these commitments to change in areas of my life, I need to also allow space to just rest.  And I have to say this is probably the hardest challenge of all.  I am uncomfortable with stillness and definitely troubled by slowness (moving slowly).  But I also, thankfully, am gathering a little wisdom as I grow older and recognize that without taking time to rest and breathe, I will ultimately be the cause of my own undoing.

Eight years ago, Mike and I trained to walk a marathon.  The training plan included many days of long miles, but it also included days of rest.  I remember reading the description of the rest session and it saying to treat this with the same importance that I treat the walking sessions.  The only way our muscles can repair is if we rest and if they don’t repair then we open ourselves up to injury.  I’m glad the person who wrote that training plan felt it was critical to highlight the importance of rest for those of us who think that rest if for wimps.

Here’s to not being a wimp anymore!

“Rest is something we do really well and are willing to spend lots of time showing you how.”

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31 Days {Day 27} || Committing to Change – Bloggity Blog

Posted on October 27, 2012 by gracieed

One of the last commitments to change that I’m going to talk about in the 31 day challenge is continuing with this blog.  {Side note:  This is by no means the last commitment I will ever make in my life :-)}  As I talked about in my first post, I have started and stopped a couple of blogs over the past few years.  Something always seemed to get in the way (mostly my lack of discipline).  But accepting the 31 day challenge has given me an opportunity to lay the groundwork for an adventure.

Before I tell you my plans, let me tell you that I LOVE blogs.  I love the idea of people sharing their ideas, their journeys and their lives with the whole world.  There are some pretty genius folks out their that would only be able to amaze their local friends and families if it weren’t for the web and their blogs.  I use Google Reader to access the blogs I follow.  And when I say follow, I mean I scan most of them on a daily basis and read a handful in their entirety every day.  I have them organized by category; it just helps me to keep track.

Some of my favorites that I read everyday:

I few months ago, well before my job ended, I was toying with the idea of putting together a blog as a potential launching pad for a business.  On countless walks (with doggies), I thought about the subject of my blog.  I considered knitting, dogs, general crafts, sewing, repurposing, scrapbooking, you name it I thought of it.  Nothing seemed to be hitting the spot until one day when I thought to myself, why not have the blog be about all of it.  Ideas and musings worked out while walking my dogs.

So that’s the thought process that went into the title of this blog.  As for the content, I’m counting on it being worked out as I go along.  I have loved creating and making stuff ever since I received my first set of sewing cards when I was 4 and my first ‘big box’ of Crayola crayons with the sharpener in the back of the box.  I still get a giddy feeling when I clap eyes on a fresh box of crayons.  My only set plan is to embark on what I’m calling ‘Pinterest365’, an adventure to present one Pin from my boards every day for the next year.  Most of the pins I choose will be completed in one day, but some will stretch over, but I will share the completed projects.  I often say to myself, “someday you should actually do some of the things that you pin.”  I have participated in several Pinterest Parties, but with over 6,000 pins on my boards, I’ve only cracked the surface.

In the blog world, I have nothing to recommend me expect a promise of creative things to come.  The past 27 days have been an excellent chance to dip my big toe in and see if I like the water.  And I do.  I hope you join me, Ellie and Woody on our walks.

“Mom, you taught me how to walk down the stairs, now Woody and I will help you learn how to do this blog thing.  We’re just hoping that most of the pins that you make will be dog-related.”

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31 Days {Day 26} || Committing to Change – The Next Step

Posted on October 26, 2012 by gracieed

I am very aware that I spend a lot of time trying to figure out the most efficient way to do things and while that’s a good thing to do, it sometimes gets in the way of actually ‘doing’ stuff.  For the past 25 days I’ve been working on commitments I’ve made and have been doing well  chipping away at them, but there are some days where I wake up not knowing what to do next.

I remember hearing Ali Edwards remark on a PaperClipping podcast, when asked how she gets so much stuff done, “I just do the next thing on the list.”  I actually had to rewind that a couple of times to make sure I heard her correctly.  It hit me like a bolt of lightning, the pure genius of her comment as well as the simplicity.

As you know, I have an affection for lists, so this organizational lightening bolt really got my attention.  For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been working on a process that incorporates my scheduled commitments and the steps needed to get ready.  I can become incredibly overwhelmed with how much I need to work on as well as fight with feelings that say “I don’t feel like doing [insert activity] today.”  I’m working on the moral fortitude to push past the temptation to skip the item and I’m ready to show you what I’ve come up with.  Keep in mind, this is all a work in progress, but this is something that I’ve been working with for about a week now.

I call it the Next Step.  I pulled out my calendar for the next 3 months and placed each activity/appointment in a purple box.  There’s no rational for the color choice other than I just like purple.  Then under each activity/appointment, I put another box indicating what I believe is the next step.  Then after that step, I put another box outlining the step after that and so on.  The initial box is purple, orange boxes are for steps involving going to the store, light blue boxes are for phone calls/texts/emails, apple green boxes are for steps that take 1/2 hour or less and  lavender boxes are for steps that will take an hour or that I’m willing to work on an hour at a time.  You’ll notice that I have some boxes that are white.  These are steps that really should be moved to the top, colored purple and broken down even further.

The colors help me to see at a glance how much time I need to devote to projects and allows me to see how much I’ve committed to and where to pull in the reins.  It forces me to think through the steps needed, consolidate chores like shopping and phone calls and gives me options about how I want to spend my time.  Each day I review my ‘Next Step’ chart, cross off items I’ve completed, and add relevant steps to my Daily To Do List.  I like seeing a global view of my life and commitments as well as knowing what my daily to-dos are.

It is by no means a comprehensive system and I’m still working out glitches, but it works for how I think and for my needs.  Keeping up with the changes that I’ve implemented over the past 25 days has meant that I’ve needed to add tools (like the ‘Next Step’ chart) that help me to be successful. 

“The only steps we understand are the ones we take as we go out the door for our walk.  Are there other kinds?”

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31 Days {Day 25} || Committing to Change – Accountability

Posted on October 25, 2012 by gracieed

I don’t know about you, but the word ‘accountability’ has always had a negative ring to me.  Dictionary.com describes the word accountable this way:  “subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible; answerable.”  Doesn’t sound like much fun does it?  Sounds very weighty and uncomfortable.

But I’m discovering, for me, it’s the key to making progress with my goals.  Every article I read on achieving success in any endeavor includes a comment or two about finding someone to hold you accountable or someone who you can report your progress to.  I have a group of wonderful friends that endure my wild ideas, don’t try to talk me about of them, are incredibly gracious when said wild ideas don’t happen and cheer me on when I do finish something.  It’s a great feeling to have someone ask, “so how’s ‘xyz’ going?” or “where are you with your plan to do ‘xyz’?” and know they genuinely are interested.

I think sometimes I don’t want to be held accountable because I want an escape hatch built in to my plans because they’re a bit outlandish or I’m not completely serious about finishing them.  If I quit a project and haven’t told anyone then I don’t have to feel the inevitable remorse that comes with letting someone else down.  But having an escape hatch makes it far too easy to, well, escape.  And I don’t want to be let off that easy with the commitments that I’ve been writing about.   I know there will be struggles, setbacks and adjustments, but that’s what an accountability partner is for.  Along with asking the “so how are you doing with ‘xyz’ questions”, they’re also great sources of wisdom because they know you.  They can help guide you, setup you up for success, cheer with you when you do success and always be there to pick you back up when you fall short.

I highly recommend finding one or two people who you trust to speak into your life and ask them to help you with your dreams.  It doesn’t have to be anything formal and it certainly doesn’t have to be a drag.  And make yourself available to your friends and be someone who is worthy of being trusted with their dreams.

Until tomorrow,

“Woody’s my accountability partner…  well it’s more like he gives an ‘account’ to mom every time I do something ‘not on’.  That’s what mom calls my inappropriate activities – ‘not on’.  And before you think he goes around wearing a halo, ask him about all the venetian blinds and couch cushions he’s destroyed.”

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31 Days {Day 24} || Committing to Change – A Mixed Bag

Posted on October 24, 2012 by gracieed

As I’m closing in on the completion of the 31 day challenge of committing to change, I must confess that my posts are less and less about areas that I’ve identified that need change and more about things I’m learning along the way or techniques that I use to help me with the commitment.  Today is a mixed bag of ideas and thoughts that have been floating around my mind for the past 23 days.

Opportunity Cost | I took a microeconomics class in college and while I don’t remember much, the one thing I do remember is the idea of opportunity cost.  When I told you about making household items from scratch, I realize I’m saving dollars, but there is an opportunity cost in the form of my time.  Even though my time is a little more abundant these days, I still have to be mindful of not wasting it.  I need to remember that there is always a cost or price for everything.  Doesn’t mean that it’s not worth paying, but it does mean that I need to be aware of the cost.

Working smarter |  There is a real danger is flitting away the hours of a day.  I do my best to come up with a rough schedule everyday of things I must do, things I want to do and things I’d like to do.  There are commonalities to every day, like walking the dogs, exercise, meals, reading, housework, but the rest of the time spent on my to do list in order of importance.  This is where pure, unadulterated discipline comes into play.  I was just introduced to an e-book called “21 Days to a More Disciplined Life” by Crystal Paine through the Frugal Girl.  I’m 75% of the way through and it’s excellent.  I feel like we’re kindred spirits.  And you can get the e-book for 99 cents until Thursday, Oct 25th.  Click on the book link above if you’re interested.

Changing my methods |  As you know I’m a collector :-).  I collect ideas, have for years.  Any magazine I would look through ended up as a shadow of its former self because of all the articles/pictures/craft ideas I tore from its binding.  Or while reading my crafty blogs, I would find ideas and print them off on my printer.  I would take these ideas and glue them into 5-subject college-ruled notebooks for future reference.  And each notebook held a single topic like ‘home ideas’, ‘crafts’, ‘gardens’, etc.  I have a couple of shelves in my craft room devoted to these notebooks.  About a decade ago, I switched to a plastic sheet protector/3-ring binder system and they join my notebooks on the shelf.  Then about a year ago I discovered Pinterest.  If you are aware of Pinterest then I don’t have to say much more, but I will.  I LOVE PINTEREST.  It’s my notebooks; just much neater and requiring less space/paper/ink.  Now when I find an idea, I pin it to one of my boards and wait for the day when I need to retrieve it.  With the billions of ideas floating around the webosphere these days and the ability to corral those ideas into the organizational marvel that is Pinterest… well I’ve changed my method of saving ideas!  Here are pictures of projects from some Pinterest parties I’ve been to. Follow Me on Pinterest

Projects from some Pinterest Parties

Time |  Time is constant, but there are moments when it appears like it’s flashing by or slugging along.  We’ve all experienced that:  the days before the vacation seem to drag on and the actual vacation is over before you know it.  I’ve been thinking about time these days in terms of how I work best.  As I’ve been writing this blog and have outlined areas that I want to commit to lasting change, I’ve realized that I don’t actually have enough time in the day to devote to all those areas.  I can’t walk dogs/exercise/declutter/read/sort out yarn/menu plan/do housework/yard work every day because there just isn’t the hours.  I can, however, devote small chunks of time to the areas I want to focus on and whittle away at the mountain of yarn until the job is done.  OR I can decide to just knuckle down and block at huge sections of time to just get the job done.  Some activities are going to be part of my days every day for the rest of my life, like exercise and eating.  But organizing my craft room is a one time activity.  Maintaining the organization will become a daily activity, but the initial organization is a one time gig.

I know these seem a little haphazard, but it’s a little how I feel these days.  Life is starting to take shape, but there are still areas that are a little fuzzy.  Fuzzy’s okay, but being someone who loves structure and purpose, fuzzy’s not my best place.  So I’m going to keep on decluttering, blogging, cleaning, cooking, walking and working on my commitments to lasting change. 

“What’s wrong with devoting every minute of every day to us?  We do that for you.“

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31 Days {Day 23} || Committing to Change – Home for the Holidays

Posted on October 23, 2012 by gracieed

For the past 7 years, I have served as the Children’s Director at my church.  It was a wonderful job that ranged in responsibilities from Sunday morning children’s services to large-scale neighborhood events.  Christmas was a particularly busy time, as you can imagine, and so for the past 7 years I have not decorated my house for the holidays.  Not even a tree.  The children’s musical along with an early December neighborhood event meant that my days were really packed beginning in November and all the way through Christmas eve.  Don’t get me wrong, I loved it, but it meant that I had to give up some things.

Now let me be clear.  I placed great value in what I was doing with the kids and their families and didn’t for one minute regret that my house was plain for the holidays.  Some years it was a pleasant relief to have such a great excuse for why our abode wasn’t decked out with boughs of holly.  And I certainly wasn’t going to kill myself and be sick for most of January by trying to accomplish it all.

But this year is different.  I will be dragging out the boxes of ornaments and tinsel, my Santa and snowman collections, my special fake tree with only dog ornaments (forgone conclusion, huh?) and decorating away.  I will also be taking part with a group of folks when we go and sing Christmas carols at some local rest homes.  I will be able to enjoy what the kids present this year without all the stress.  I might even dust off my list of 25 Christmas movies and watch one each night starting on Dec 1st.

I think sometimes committing to change is also about looking back on favored traditions and reviving them.  Taking the old, giving it a little spit and polish and enjoying it in the present.   And I think it means instituting some new changes as well.  Don’t know what those are yet, but I’ll keep you posted.

“Just need to be clear.  We don’t wear reindeer antlers, elf hats or anything that lights up.  We do like treats in our stockings, a brand new Nylabone on Christmas morning and a fresh sleeve of tennis balls.  As while you’re ‘instituting new changes’, how about those dog beds you’ve been promising?”

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