2011 Reflections and Reality…

2011-12-31T05:00:00.000-06:00

Well here it is the end of 2011 and as much as I hate to admit it, I totally failed at completing the project this year. I had such big plans for this project. I even had most of my 52 weekly themes all planned out. I did really good with taking photos + journaling during the month of January but here is where the reality part sets in… I realized that this past year was hard for us (In a totally good kind of way) – despite the failed Project Life album this year – and that I was going to accept all the challenges (moving our family to a “new to us” home, being so sick for 20 weeks this spring + summer, finishing up Caleb Davis’ kindergarten year, and starting another school year this fall, etc…) and the joyous occasions (lots of great family memories and learning moments, finding out we were pregnant and welcoming Merry Layne to our family this year. etc…) and simply embrace the great moment in time that we call 2011.

So… Here we go on to a New Year and and in my case, that would mean a new Project for 2012.

I hope you will join us on this new journey…

Week 2 - What I Am Reading

2011-01-15T05:00:00.000-06:00

Week 1 - Our Morning Routine

2011-01-08T05:00:00.000-06:00

I am super excited about this year’s project and I have a ton of “themes” going through my head but I thought a good place to start would be with our morning routine each day. I know that it is pretty boring and somewhat ordinary but it is a part of our story so that in itself deems it worthy of being told so here goes…

When our feet hit the floor in the morning, one of the first things that we do is shower + dress for the day and make up our beds…

Soon after, we are all gathered around the breakfast table, say our daily good-byes to Daddy, and we are headed to finish up our morning chores.

I set about to shining my sink – Yes, this comes from FlyLady. I found her in September 2006 right before I had Nathan James and she has changed my life (all for the better).

This usually just involves cleaning up from breakfast and if it is a Monday morning, there is guaranteed to be lots of clutter laying around the kitchen from church the day before so I clean that all up. Tell me that we are not the only ones who come in from church on Sunday night and leave our bags + paper laying all around.

While I am in the kitchen, I will also set out some fresh (according to Nate, it must be icy) water for us to drink that day. Not so sure about you but my kids are constantly (from the time they wake up to the time they go to bed) asking us for water to drink. I could literally stay in the kitchen all day filling up cups for them so I just start out each morning with fresh cups of water that they can easily reach. I have also found that as a nursing Mommy that this is a big help to me so that I make sure to drink lots throughout the day myself. When I walk past the kitchen, it is so nice to just grab a quick sip of water and move on to the next task. I usually fill mine up at least 3 – 4 times per day just because I have it out and easy to reach.

Before I leave the kitchen, I also do a quick glance at our menu for dinner that night, that way I know if something needs to be defrosted or simmer in the crockpot throughout the afternoon.

Next up…

I am headed to start my daily loads of laundry. I usually do 2 each day. One is a clothes load and the other is a daily load of towels.

Then I move on to…

The boys can dress themselves but I try to make sure that the 2 little princesses are dressed and all dolled up for the day.

Then I move on to…

After everyone has teeth brushed and hairs combed, I am headed to do one of my favorite things of the day – swish and swipe the bathrooms! Yes, I actually really enjoy cleaning my bathrooms and yes, I do it EVERY single day – with the exception of Sunday of course, that is a true day of rest around here.

Now.. don’t go thinking, I am crazy and absolutely OCD. This really only takes me about 2-3 minutes to do and having a clean bathroom everyday makes me feel like the entire house is clean (which I know that never happens). My trick is that I have my glass cleaner + bathroom cleaner + cleaning cloths right under the sink. All I do is grab my supplies and do a quick spritz of the mirror, then quickly move on to the sink + counters (set out a fresh hand towel) and last the potty. Like I said, this is quick and if you do it everyday, you never have to scrub with your elbows like you do when you go a week or two without ever touching it. Keep in mind, that this is NOT a deep clean of the bathrooms, I leave that for my once a month zones where we tackle the showers, clean around the potty, etc…. You get the idea, right? A quick wipe down each day to make things shine and smell good.

Oh and I should also mention that we only have 2 bathrooms in our house. One is our “main” family bathroom that we use for all baths + teeth brushing (that one gets shined every day) and the other is more like a guest bathroom which we only use for daily hand washing + quick trips to the potty (that ones only gets wiped down every other day).

Ok… So did I really just type that much about cleaning my bathroom? Ha!!

While I am taking care of the girls and finishing up with my other morning tasks, you can usually find the boys in their rooms…

They are great about getting dressed (before breakfast) and making up their beds and straightening up their rooms and the living room (after breakfast).

Whew!! Once I typed it all out, that sure seems like a lot in the mornings but really, it is just daily stuff that we all do each day. I know that it might seem silly or even unthinkable that we (mostly me) do the exact same thing every single morning but it really helps me to get on track (I am not a morning person) and get all those “have tos” done so that I can focus on my main priorities for the day – teaching and loving on my family. Plus on those days where I do not get up before the kids or I start out with a leaky diaper and have to throw the sheets in the washer first, I can just rewind and jump back into the morning routine and my day does not feel “so” off track.

Oh and please… do not think that we are all perfect and that it all runs smoothly every morning because it soooo does not! Most mornings, this all takes me about an hour (sometimes hour and half depending on morning circumstances and if I decide to match my clothes and fix my hair + face for the day but that only happens on the days that I plan to leave the house, otherwise it is comfy clothes + ponytail + moisturizer + lip gloss for me). We try to be done by 8:30 am (9:00 am at the very latest) so that we can start school for the day.

But trust me… Life is constantly changing (babies have a new schedule every week) and there are always new challenges each day. That is when I cling to this…

Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed,for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
Lamentations 2: 22-23

And here is my digital layout for our album…

Journaling on the left side.

Photo Page on the right.

Thanks for taking a peek into our Project Life this week.

Elmore Family :: Project Life 2011

2011 Reflections and Reality…

Week 2 - What I Am Reading

Week 1 - Our Morning Routine