Life Simpler

I'm a big fan of things, habits, and practices that make life simpler. Who couldn't use more of that, huh?
I feel like I've been on the journey of trying to become more efficient and organized for years, and I'll probably never really get there, but this week, three things I believe got me closer!

1. Laundry Chute
Aaron and I saw a house with a laundry chute a couple of years ago when we were looking at houses to buy. We thought it was so cool and tucked it away in our brains until a couple of weeks ago, when it was mentioned again. Well this weekend, Aaron and my dad cut a big hole in the floor of our closet and in the ceiling of our laundry room, and then Aaron built the chute, complete with door. Now my kids fight over who gets "dirty clothes duty". So far no one has jumped through, though I did see a pair of Carson feet dangling into the laundry room yesterday.

2. Roomba 
My mom picked up this fabulous wonder-machine at a garage sale for $15 and gave it to us. I adore it. I use it every day. I sit on the couch and read magazines as it vacuums my floors and under my furniture. It's glorious.

3. Get Rid of Stuff
I've filled up my trunk twice now with stuff to donate and give away. Much of it, I'd been piling up for months, and I just decided it was time  to clear it all out. I also went through my closet and got rid of a lot of the stuff that I never wear. I was inspired by the blog Small Notebook that my friend, Amanda, told me about. It feels GOOD.

I'd love to hear about any of the things that help you simplify, organize, or be more efficient!

Getting Organized

Organization is not my forte. My tendency is to give my time and attention to whatever is screaming the loudest – the result being that I always feel like I’m dropping something. I have trouble balancing being a wife/mother, maintaining our home/household, my business, and ministry… not to mention making time for friends and for myself.

I always felt like when my kids started school, I’d have an abundance of time and that getting things done would be easy.

Wrong.

I still have to grocery shop, do laundry, run a business, plan Sunday school lessons, and more. And I’m still disorganized. So the past month or two, I’m on a mission to improve this about myself. I’m on a mission to become more organized and to practice self-discipline, and I’m finding there are a lot of tools and strategies out there that are helping me a lot. So I thought I’d share a few.

1. Family Binder
This is still a work in progress, but so far I really like the idea of having a binder with all family and household information in it, from a shopping list and menu plan, to medical information, to schedules, etc. There are a ton of resources online with suggestions, but you really just have to play around with it to make it work for your family. My favorite find has been this Daily Docket from Simple Mom. I love it and it’s amazing and it helps me SOOO MUCH. I print one off for each weekday and make my lists first thing in the morning.

2. The One Minute Rule
I came across this in this month’s issue of Good Housekeeping. The one minute rule is simply this: “Any task that can be finished in less than one minute is something I must do. Hang up my coat, read a letter and toss it, put my umbrella away, answer an e-mail, note down a citation, pick up my phone messages, file a paper, put a cup in the dishwasher, put the magazines away...and so on. Because the tasks are so quick, it isn’t too hard to make myself follow the rule — and I get big results.” (Read more of the article here.)

I’d love to hear how you do it! I have so many women in my life whom I admire and know that I could learn a lot from, so please share!

WE'RE DEBT FREEEEEE!!!

Well, this is actually kind of old news now, but I never got around to posting it. Furthermore, I generally do not make it a practice of talking about our finances with other people. However, this is something that I want to remember, and I especially want my kids to remember as they become adults, so for that purpose, I am telling our story.

Several years ago (or more -- Abby was just a little thing), we were fairly newly married, had two car payments, student loan debt, and a good chunk of credit card debt. We were pretty normal, I suppose, but always felt the weight of all the payments and never feeling like we could get ahead. On a visit to my parents' house, my dad started talking about this guy he'd been listening to on the radio and what he'd been learning. Turned out this guy was Dave Ramsey, and my Dad offered to pay for us to go to his Total Money Makeover event here in San Antonio if we'd be willing to go. Well, we weren't going to turn it down, but it was admittedly a little hard to get excited about going to talk about money. We went, though, and were totally inspired. There was hope. We didn't have to live this way!

So we decided on a plan. We saved up a little emergency fund, cut up our credit card, and we began to pay off debt. I won't say it was easy. It wasn't. And there were a couple points where we lost focus (we bought two cars along the way, adding to our debt). BUT... the more we paid off, the faster things got moving and the more excited we became, until five years later (PRAISE THE LORD FOR HIS PROVISION!), we finished paying off every last dollar! (Except for the house.)

All along (especially the past year or two) the kids have been very involved in the process. When we paid everything off, they were thrilled about calling in for Dave's Debt Free Friday, and screaming "We're debt FREEEEEEEEEEE!" But with our schedules, we never seemed to be able to get all together at the right time. So a couple weeks ago when I heard that Dave would be in town for a book signing, the kids asked if we could go meet him and tell him about being debt free. So we did! We got the chance to meet him, have him sign our book, and (though the kids chickened out and hid behind me) tell him we were debt free. We didn't scream in the book store, but he and his team said, "Yaaaaaaay!!!" It was quick fleeting moment, but it was fun. :) Our friends Daniel and Amanda were there too and were kind enough to snap a quick pic.

While paying off debt was thrilling, I think the most exciting part was being able to buy a car without a car payment in August. That was one thing we just never thought would be possible! It wasn't expensive or fancy, but it's not dragging a payment with it, and THAT feels good!

Scripture Memory [Verse 1]

This year, I have committed to (along with my friend Gina, inspired by Beth Moore's Scripture Memory Team) memorize 24 scriptures. I’m excited. I’ve really felt God calling to take my relationship with him and my faith to a new level lately. Which means doing things I haven’t done (ever or at least in a while). When I was a kid/teen, I spent a lot of time memorizing scripture for Bible Drill, and I firmly believe that it made a huge difference in my outlook on life and relationship with God. So… when Gina shared Scripture Memory Challenge with me, I was happy to take it on.

One of the things that Beth Moore said on her blog that really struck me was, “Scripture memorization has been among the most profoundly effective disciplines of the faith that God has ever given me to practice. Honestly, I think I would’ve lost my mind by now if He had not pasted His Word all over it. Every personal battle we face is won or lost on the playing field of our mind.”

I’m excited to see how God speaks to me through his Word this year! Consider joining me (my kids have)!

Sunday Mornings

I really enjoy going to church on Sunday mornings. Now I'll admit that getting there (happily, on time, without incident) is sometimes an ordeal, but once I get there, it's awesome just to slow down and realize God's presence all around.

I sometimes forget to blog this part of our life, because it's just so normal for us, but I'm truly grateful to be part of such an amazing community. Also, while I'm on the subject, I wanted to drop a link to last week's sermon called "A Vision of the King". It was so amazing... rich with wisdom, perspective, and inspiration. I definitely encourage you to check it out if you didn't get the chance to hear it.

Reading Resources

At the suggestion of her teacher, we are beginning to work more with Abby on her letters, sounds, and [beginning] reading skills in general. I'm looking for ways to make it fun and just purchased Reader Rabbit (which I remember playing as a kid -- can't believe it's still out there) and I'm looking for some resources online that will help her begin to understand it all better. Came across this site that she seems to enjoy and will share more as I find them. If you know of any great resources for enjoyable learning, I'd love to know what they are!

UPDATE: Found this great article on The Mom Crowd. Read it here.