I learned several years ago to have different email accounts for different purposes. I have three email accounts right now, and although that may sound like a lot, it has really helped me declutter and keep my life organized. Maybe you can try this, too, if you haven't already!
1. Work Email Account
I check this account multiple times a day and receive a couple of hundred emails a week through this account. Not all of the emails apply directly to me, but many of them do. Thankfully, this email account has tools that allow me to save the emails into different categories, and it is setup by the school system where I am employed, so it is free. If your employer does not provide an email account for you, there are many free ones out there for you to choose from. Just do some exploring and find what best meets your needs!
2. Personal Email
A few years ago, I learned how important it is to separate personal emails from work emails. It was just too much to process having everything come through one account, especially when so many emails already come through my work email account. Also, my work emails are monitored, and there are some pieces of information that I don't care to share with my employers.
3. Temporary Email (Specific for a Cause/Group)
I am on the steering team for the local Evening MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group, and it is my job to update the blog and Facebook page for this group. I had to have an email account in order to do this, and I wanted to create an account that is only related to this topic so that the information doesn't get lost in the shuffle of my "regular" personal email. Also, whenever my time with MOPS is complete, I can delete the email account and not have to worry about it. If you are ever a team leader for a fundraiser or event, this is a great way to go, too.
If you have found this post helpful, please share it with others. Thanks so much!
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Homemade "Febreze"
A few weeks ago I shared an easy and frugal way to clean a shower using products most of us already have around the house. If you haven't tried it yet, I really encourage you to do it. I promise it works like a charm if you follow the directions!
______________
Today, I would like to share another awesome and frugal cleaning tip with you. I have been a huge fan of Febreze for years. I love how it helps freshen up furniture, carpets, rugs, bedding, and curtains, as well as almost anything that has been in storage for a while. In a busy house, it's really a necessity. However, I have never liked the price of it. That stuff is stinkin' expensive!
So, you know me; I went to my friend {Pinterest} for some ideas, and ladies and gentlemen, she did not let me down! There were several pins/blogs about how to make your own "Febreze", so I read about three of them and compared them. All of them were pretty similar, so, I set out to get what I needed and tried it out. I was not disappointed, and I don't think you will be either. Just make sure you follow all the directions, and you'll be set. You'll also love the extra bucks in your wallet!
Here's what you need:
* 1/8 cup liquid fabric softener (I got mine at Dollar Tree.)
* 2 Tablespoons baking soda (I already had this!)
* A funnel
* Hot tap water
NOTE: I used my existing 27 ounce Febreze container. If your spray bottle is a different size, you may need to adjust the amounts of fabric softener and baking soda.
What you do:
1. Pour the fabric softener into the spray bottle.
2. Add the baking soda.
3. Fill the rest of the spray bottle with hot tap water.
4. Shake well and don't forget to shake the bottle before each use. This step is very important!
Try it out and let me know what you think!
______________
Today, I would like to share another awesome and frugal cleaning tip with you. I have been a huge fan of Febreze for years. I love how it helps freshen up furniture, carpets, rugs, bedding, and curtains, as well as almost anything that has been in storage for a while. In a busy house, it's really a necessity. However, I have never liked the price of it. That stuff is stinkin' expensive!
So, you know me; I went to my friend {Pinterest} for some ideas, and ladies and gentlemen, she did not let me down! There were several pins/blogs about how to make your own "Febreze", so I read about three of them and compared them. All of them were pretty similar, so, I set out to get what I needed and tried it out. I was not disappointed, and I don't think you will be either. Just make sure you follow all the directions, and you'll be set. You'll also love the extra bucks in your wallet!
Here's what you need:
* 1/8 cup liquid fabric softener (I got mine at Dollar Tree.)
* 2 Tablespoons baking soda (I already had this!)
* A funnel
* Hot tap water
NOTE: I used my existing 27 ounce Febreze container. If your spray bottle is a different size, you may need to adjust the amounts of fabric softener and baking soda.
What you do:
1. Pour the fabric softener into the spray bottle.
2. Add the baking soda.
3. Fill the rest of the spray bottle with hot tap water.
4. Shake well and don't forget to shake the bottle before each use. This step is very important!
Try it out and let me know what you think!
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Why I Didn't Clean My House Over the Weekend
I've made several posts lately about how I keep my house clean. Please don't misunderstand me- my house is definitely not spotless! There are days (and sometimes several days in a row) when I don't do much cleaning at all around my house. This past weekend is the perfect example. Let me tell you why.
Last Wednesday was Chandler's 4th birthday. His Thomas the Train party was Friday night. I went straight from work to Ingles, to the church to decorate. I wanted to make it magical for my special little guy. We weren't home until after 9:30 p.m., but we had a blast! I opted for bed rather than cleaning.
Saturday morning, the three of us got up and headed for the circus. We made a day of it by having lunch at Red Lobster, buying Chandler's soccer gear, heading to the Verizon store, and stopping by Race Trac for some yummy yogurt before heading home. It's the first time in a while I've spent the entire day out with my two favorite guys! I didn't do any cleaning that day, either, although I did do a couple of loads of laundry out of necessity.
Just know that it's okay NOT to clean your house every day. It may mean that you have to do a little extra next time, but that's okay. Life happens. Memories are made. Smiles come in abundance.
I have learned that little ones don't stay little long, and it's definitely more important to spend time with the ones I love than to have a magnificently clean house.
Last Wednesday was Chandler's 4th birthday. His Thomas the Train party was Friday night. I went straight from work to Ingles, to the church to decorate. I wanted to make it magical for my special little guy. We weren't home until after 9:30 p.m., but we had a blast! I opted for bed rather than cleaning.
Saturday morning, the three of us got up and headed for the circus. We made a day of it by having lunch at Red Lobster, buying Chandler's soccer gear, heading to the Verizon store, and stopping by Race Trac for some yummy yogurt before heading home. It's the first time in a while I've spent the entire day out with my two favorite guys! I didn't do any cleaning that day, either, although I did do a couple of loads of laundry out of necessity.
Just know that it's okay NOT to clean your house every day. It may mean that you have to do a little extra next time, but that's okay. Life happens. Memories are made. Smiles come in abundance.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
The Last Time
This morning was the last time a three-year-old boy climbed sleepily out of bed at my house.
This morning was the last time I carried that same three-year-old boy across the hall to the bathroom.
This morning was the last time I helped that three-year-old boy put on his socks and shoes.
This morning was the last time a three-year-old boy rode in the car to Grandmama's house.
This afternoon was the last time I brought that three-year-old boy home.
This evening was the last time that three-year-old feet ran across my kitchen floor before dinner.
Tonight was the last night I got to read and cuddle with my favorite three-year-old boy.
Tonight was the last time I tucked that three-year-old boy in as we said goodnight prayers together.
Right now is the last time I will cry over that three-year-old boy, for tomorrow he will be four.
This morning was the last time I carried that same three-year-old boy across the hall to the bathroom.
This morning was the last time I helped that three-year-old boy put on his socks and shoes.
This morning was the last time a three-year-old boy rode in the car to Grandmama's house.
This afternoon was the last time I brought that three-year-old boy home.
This evening was the last time that three-year-old feet ran across my kitchen floor before dinner.
Tonight was the last night I got to read and cuddle with my favorite three-year-old boy.
Tonight was the last time I tucked that three-year-old boy in as we said goodnight prayers together.
Right now is the last time I will cry over that three-year-old boy, for tomorrow he will be four.
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Doors
I have always heard that God opens and closes doors in our lives. Now, at almost 33 years old, I have personally experienced the opening and closing of doors several times in my life. Sometimes, those doors open and close unexpectedly. Actually, that is almost always the case. Sometimes it comes along with grief, pain, and sadness. However, each and every time, He has brought me through.
I will think I know exactly what is going on and exactly what I should do. I'll have a "perfect plan". The funny thing is, God has always had the perfect plan for me. He just has to wait on me sometimes to realize it. I'm a little stubborn like that. I am so thankful, though, that He hasn't given up on me yet. I know He will lead me in the direction I need to go if I just take his hand and follow Him.
I will think I know exactly what is going on and exactly what I should do. I'll have a "perfect plan". The funny thing is, God has always had the perfect plan for me. He just has to wait on me sometimes to realize it. I'm a little stubborn like that. I am so thankful, though, that He hasn't given up on me yet. I know He will lead me in the direction I need to go if I just take his hand and follow Him.
Friday, January 31, 2014
How I Keep My House Clean: Part 3
You've seen my daily and weekly lists, so now here's an overview of monthly tasks I try to tackle. I don't necessarily do all of these things on the same day always, but many of them are simple enough that I can do several of them in one day. What would you add to this list?
MONTHLY TASKS: sweep out and clean up garage, dust ceiling fans and light globes, wash walls and light switch plates, clean baseboards, clean out fridge and both freezers, wipe down all doors, cycle clean the dishwasher and washing machine, clean garbage cans, wash bed quilts, straighten up all closets
MY NOTES ABOUT DAILY TASKS:
* Garage cleaning is something Brent and I do together. We remove the car and truck first, and then we sweep, use the shop vacuum, and put away stray items. It's about a 30 minute task, and we try to do it on a day when the weather is nice.
* This is another team task since I can't reach some of the ceiling fans without getting on a ladder. If you have ceiling fans over your bed, clean them while the linens are in the wash or use an old bed sheet to catch the dust bunnies. This task takes less than 5 minutes per ceiling fan.
* Okay, so I don't wash all of the walls from top to bottom necessarily, but I do go to each room and look for hot spots (around light switches, near the baseboards, Chandler's room, etc...). Most of the time I just use a soft wet cloth and gently scrub any spots I see. Switch plates are fairly easy to clean with just a damp cloth.
* Baseboards are not my friend! They collect dust way more quickly than I like, and they take a lot of time to clean. However, a couple of years ago, thanks to Pinterest, I discovered that wiping them down with a dryer sheet helps keep at least some of the dust from settling on them. So, after I clean them well, I usually wipe them down with a dryer sheet. I am teaching Chandler how to do this in hopes that he might take over one day. (A girl can dream, right?)
* I take everything out of the fridge and freezers (I have a small one in addition to the one with the fridge) and wipe them down with a cloth soaked in warm, soapy water. It takes about half an hour to do all three as long as I don't wait too long in between cleaning sessions.
* If I ever build a house, the doors inside of it will be solid with no panels. Dusting doors with panels isn't necessarily all that difficult, but after you do about 10 (or more) of them front and back, it can get pretty boring. As long as I don't wait too long between cleanings, I can usually use a damp cloth for this task.
* Clean cycling the dishwasher and washing machine are actually two of the easiest tasks on this list. I use vinegar, and it works wonders!
* Cleaning the garbage cans is something I generally have Brent to do. He generally uses dish detergent and the water hose outside, and then he turns them over to drain and dry for a while before putting them back inside. When I first started asking him to do this, he thought I was crazy. However, it's a necessary task in order to keep a clean and fresh-smelling house.
* Washing the bed quilts is another relatively simple task, and it keeps our beds looking and smelling fresh.
* I like to go through all of the closets in the house about once a month and do some general straightening up. I spend about five minutes per closet putting things back in their proper place or tidying up the spaces. It saves me a lot of time later on, and I love the way it looks.
MONTHLY TASKS: sweep out and clean up garage, dust ceiling fans and light globes, wash walls and light switch plates, clean baseboards, clean out fridge and both freezers, wipe down all doors, cycle clean the dishwasher and washing machine, clean garbage cans, wash bed quilts, straighten up all closets
MY NOTES ABOUT DAILY TASKS:
* Garage cleaning is something Brent and I do together. We remove the car and truck first, and then we sweep, use the shop vacuum, and put away stray items. It's about a 30 minute task, and we try to do it on a day when the weather is nice.
* This is another team task since I can't reach some of the ceiling fans without getting on a ladder. If you have ceiling fans over your bed, clean them while the linens are in the wash or use an old bed sheet to catch the dust bunnies. This task takes less than 5 minutes per ceiling fan.
* Okay, so I don't wash all of the walls from top to bottom necessarily, but I do go to each room and look for hot spots (around light switches, near the baseboards, Chandler's room, etc...). Most of the time I just use a soft wet cloth and gently scrub any spots I see. Switch plates are fairly easy to clean with just a damp cloth.
* Baseboards are not my friend! They collect dust way more quickly than I like, and they take a lot of time to clean. However, a couple of years ago, thanks to Pinterest, I discovered that wiping them down with a dryer sheet helps keep at least some of the dust from settling on them. So, after I clean them well, I usually wipe them down with a dryer sheet. I am teaching Chandler how to do this in hopes that he might take over one day. (A girl can dream, right?)
* I take everything out of the fridge and freezers (I have a small one in addition to the one with the fridge) and wipe them down with a cloth soaked in warm, soapy water. It takes about half an hour to do all three as long as I don't wait too long in between cleaning sessions.
* If I ever build a house, the doors inside of it will be solid with no panels. Dusting doors with panels isn't necessarily all that difficult, but after you do about 10 (or more) of them front and back, it can get pretty boring. As long as I don't wait too long between cleanings, I can usually use a damp cloth for this task.
* Clean cycling the dishwasher and washing machine are actually two of the easiest tasks on this list. I use vinegar, and it works wonders!
* Cleaning the garbage cans is something I generally have Brent to do. He generally uses dish detergent and the water hose outside, and then he turns them over to drain and dry for a while before putting them back inside. When I first started asking him to do this, he thought I was crazy. However, it's a necessary task in order to keep a clean and fresh-smelling house.
* Washing the bed quilts is another relatively simple task, and it keeps our beds looking and smelling fresh.
* I like to go through all of the closets in the house about once a month and do some general straightening up. I spend about five minutes per closet putting things back in their proper place or tidying up the spaces. It saves me a lot of time later on, and I love the way it looks.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
How I Keep My House Clean: Part 2
A couple of days ago I posted my daily cleaning tasks. Here, I would like to elaborate on the weekly tasks I do in addition to the daily tasks. Some weeks, I do all of these things in one day over about a three-hour span. Sometimes I do one big chore a day throughout the week. It really just depends on how busy things are in my life. (Some weeks I am mostly on my own because of Brent's work schedule, but when he can, he helps, too.)
WEEKLY TASKS: dust and wipe down all furniture, vacuum entire house, vacuum under sofa cushions, sweep and clean all floors, wash bed sheets, deep clean kitchen and bathrooms, wipe down and clean out refrigerator, shred junk mail, clean all glass and the microwave
MY NOTES ABOUT DAILY TASKS:
* I must admit that dusting is one of my least favorite tasks around the house. Thankfully, I do have two helpers most weeks with this task. Chandler loves having his own duster! I also wipe down all the kitchen chairs and use a lint brush as needed on our sofa. (For some reason, dust likes to settle there.)
* We have mostly hardwood floors, so vacuuming my entire house doesn't take very long. If you have mostly carpet, it may take a little longer, but it is necessary to vacuum regularly no matter what size your house is to cut down on allergens in your home.
* While I have out the vacuum, I usually go ahead and vacuum under the sofa cushions. I have a preschooler, so I always find all kinds of "treasures" here. If you don't have small children, you can probably get by with doing this task monthly.
* Since I sweep the main part of the house daily, sweeping the entire house really isn't all that bad. After sweeping, I like to use my Swiffer Wet Jet.
* Bed sheets can honestly be one of the dirtiest items in a house. I like to wash ours once a week. Thankfully, Chandler's is the same color as ours, so I can do one large load and save some time and money.
* Because I am in the habit of wiping down kitchen and bathroom counters daily, it doesn't take long to deep clean these rooms. I do spend extra time in these rooms on which ever day I decide to deep clean them. I found an amazing way to clean my shower and tub recently, and it saves me so much time!
* While I am deep cleaning the kitchen, I wipe down all the shelves and drawers and throw out any old food. (We don't throw away much around here, so don't worry!)
* Since we sort mail most days, we like to save up a week's worth of junk mail and shred it at one time. If you don't have a shredder, make sure you blot out personal information, and then you can recycle it if you wish.
* I've tried other brands, but Windex is by far my favorite for cleaning all the mirrors, glass, and the microwave at our house. This is a task that Brent usually does while I am working on something else.
Do you have some weekly that you would add to this list? I would love to hear all about them!
WEEKLY TASKS: dust and wipe down all furniture, vacuum entire house, vacuum under sofa cushions, sweep and clean all floors, wash bed sheets, deep clean kitchen and bathrooms, wipe down and clean out refrigerator, shred junk mail, clean all glass and the microwave
MY NOTES ABOUT DAILY TASKS:
* I must admit that dusting is one of my least favorite tasks around the house. Thankfully, I do have two helpers most weeks with this task. Chandler loves having his own duster! I also wipe down all the kitchen chairs and use a lint brush as needed on our sofa. (For some reason, dust likes to settle there.)
* We have mostly hardwood floors, so vacuuming my entire house doesn't take very long. If you have mostly carpet, it may take a little longer, but it is necessary to vacuum regularly no matter what size your house is to cut down on allergens in your home.
* While I have out the vacuum, I usually go ahead and vacuum under the sofa cushions. I have a preschooler, so I always find all kinds of "treasures" here. If you don't have small children, you can probably get by with doing this task monthly.
* Since I sweep the main part of the house daily, sweeping the entire house really isn't all that bad. After sweeping, I like to use my Swiffer Wet Jet.
* Bed sheets can honestly be one of the dirtiest items in a house. I like to wash ours once a week. Thankfully, Chandler's is the same color as ours, so I can do one large load and save some time and money.
* Because I am in the habit of wiping down kitchen and bathroom counters daily, it doesn't take long to deep clean these rooms. I do spend extra time in these rooms on which ever day I decide to deep clean them. I found an amazing way to clean my shower and tub recently, and it saves me so much time!
* While I am deep cleaning the kitchen, I wipe down all the shelves and drawers and throw out any old food. (We don't throw away much around here, so don't worry!)
* Since we sort mail most days, we like to save up a week's worth of junk mail and shred it at one time. If you don't have a shredder, make sure you blot out personal information, and then you can recycle it if you wish.
* I've tried other brands, but Windex is by far my favorite for cleaning all the mirrors, glass, and the microwave at our house. This is a task that Brent usually does while I am working on something else.
Do you have some weekly that you would add to this list? I would love to hear all about them!
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