Checklists

Since I have moved my cleaning routine has gone out the window. I had created a FABULOUS checklist that meant that I had something to refer to everyday. Having said this, it is about to be relaunched in this household. My house is not unclean by any stretch of the imagination but I spend time fluffing around trying to remember what I need to do next, when I had my checklist I didn't have this issue.

Creating a checklist

When you create a checklist you need to think of the things that you want to do around the house. The one that I created was fairly comprehensive and covered all the things that I needed to do to ensure that if I had an inspection there wasn't any last minute panic over trying to get the house in order (bear in mind that in one of my previous posts I talked about the real estate agent that had it in for me). There are lots of checklists on the internet and I know that there were a lot of things on their lists that we just not feasible for me. 

Why create a checklist

When I moved to the SC I wanted things to be orderly again. I had missed my belongings and having my own stuff and I just wanted to feel settled. Mum and dad's place will always be home but I wanted to feel the same way about the four walls my family lived in. I soon realised that there wasn't enough time in a day to clean all the things that I wanted to clean and fix and doing it in one hit with two little ones nearly sent me loopy. I would get one space tidy, walk away to clean another space, turn around and the original space looked like I had never been there. I was getting sick of dishes in the sink, clothes on the laundry floor and then the maintenance jobs I needed to do weren't getting done because I was chasing my tail constantly. I read somewhere that doing alititle but everyday reduces the BIG clean that you might do once a week. PLUS I found that I actually had more time through the day AND I had a clean house... Crazy right?!

I was getting the morning jobs done first thing which left me time to spend with the girls and then I would do the afternoon jobs when the girls went to sleep. This also meant that I had a clean house when I went to bed (I had my first introduction to GIANT cockroaches when I moved to Qld).

My Checklist

Above is my checklist. You can see that I have my AM and PM list (it was in a table on the original). Underneath the AM and PM are some other jobs grouped together. Each group represented a day in the month. As you can see I have five weeks because I wanted to cover a whole month...plus not every month starts on a Monday. So what I used to do (and WILL be doing) is printing this list out. Placing it on the fridge and writing the dates in (as if it was a blank calendar) and voila... Off I go.

Having moved into another place and it being a little different (ie vertical blinds not curtains) I will tweak this list a little and depending on how clever I am I will even attempt to make it prettier :-o

Things To Consider

I understand that some of you are working professionals, some of you are students and some of you are stay at home parents... We all have varying lifestyles right... Think about the space that you live in. Do you rent or own? What are the primary things that you want to achieve? For me, at the worst I want the beds made, the kitchen and bathrooms clean and the washing done. So for me they were vital to do. For you, it might be vital that the toys are packed away, that the lounge is tidy and the bathroom is clean. 

I always remember a saying I read on my favourite blog The Organised Housewife.

It only takes a minute.

Out your whole day doing something only takes a minute (Ok in some cases ten) BUT doing lots of little things over a week saves you spending a huge amount of time on your Sat or Sun (or whatever your cleaning day).

Good luck. If you have any questions or want help creating your own cleaning list send me an email at ruffled.lace@live.com.au (I might even be able to make it all pretty for you).

Keep smiling!

Lauren

xxx

Under The Sea

As most of you know I have two toddlers and an infant. Some people think that we are crazy and some knew that even before we had children, I wanted my little ones close together in age. I am also a qualified teacher and I miss being in a classroom with lots of smiley kidlets but I wouldn't give up my time with my children for anything right now.

So I have decided on a happy medium. Last year I got really excited about doing some activities with the girls... Activities which to date we have not completed. Thus I introduce to you (drumroll please)... Kidlets Craft! Every Wednesday I am going to share with you all a weeks worth of activities for the following week. Now I understand some of you may be time restricted and that is totally fine. It's about having some activities in your " play" bank. Because I am a teacher I like things themed and in groupings (this also ties in with that perfectionism I have laughed about).

Here we go. Remember I am trying to occupy two spirited toddlers... You don't have to follow this format. One thing I will add is make sure you have smocks for artwork... Big W, KMart or Spotlight have smocks (plastic are fab for wiping down) just check your local supermarket or dollar store sometimes they have stocks...

UNDER THE SEA

CRAFT:

Monday- Fish Decorations

Things needed: blue card (or paint some card in blue), white card, icy pole sticks, glitter, glue, sequins, tissue paper, scrap paper, paint

What to do: Cut out some under the sea animals from the white card and paint in chosen colours (you can use coloured card here instead). Cut a line about 2cm from bottom leaving about 2cm uncut at either end (this is to slip your icy pole stick through). Decorate your water scene and your sea creature. Once you have done that attach your sea creature to the icy pole stick.

Tuesday- Handprint Crabs

Things needed: white paper and paint (your choice of colour)

What to do: Get your little person (or people) to put paint on their hands. You can roll this on or get them to dip their hands in paint. Get them to place one hand on the paper. Place the other hand on the paper ensuring that the palms overlap. When the paint is dried draw on some eyes (or if you have them glue on some googly eyes).

Wednesday- Bottle Jellyfish

Things needed: empty water bottle, paint, plastic braiding string (dollar store, Big W, craft shop) googly eyes

What to do: Cut the bottle in half. Get your little person to paint the inside of the bottle. When it has dried poke some holes near the bottom of the cut edge. Feed some of the braid string through the holes (I found it easier to fold braid in half and feed that through holes then put lose ends of braid through the loops). Glue on the googly eyes.

Thursday- Thumbprint Fish

Things needed: Large white card, paint, coloured markers

What to do: Get your little person to put their fingers in the paint and place on the paper. Put as Manu on as you like. Once the paint has dried draw on your creatures ie tentacles for jellyfish, fins and tail for fish, legs for crabs.

Friday- Shark Hat

Things needed: white card, colouring pencils, sticky tape or stapler.

What to do: Cut a long strip of paper and fit it around your little persons head, get them to colour it in. Tape or staple together. Cut out another strip to go over the head, get your little person to colour this too. Measure this also and tape to the other strip. It will create almost a helmet look. Cut out a tail and a fin, again get your little person to colour this in also and attach the fin to the top strip and the tail to the back of the other strip. Now go and have fun playing games with the shark helmet.

Please if you find the credits for these images let me know so I can adjust.

Tips: I found that because my two are quite little and need some direction, I pre cut anything that needed to be cut and did an extra one so that I could do it with them and show them what I was doing. Make sure they are wearing smocks because inevitably the paint goes everywhere. My best advice is use the weekend to collect any items you need and have it all ready in a craft box for the week.

OUTDOORS:

Monday- Don't Fall in the Sea

Get some paper, card, placemats or cushions and place randomly over the floor. Make sure you place them so that with a small jump your little person can reach them. The idea of this is to get your little one to jump or step from one spot to the next one without falling in the sea. Best way to do this is play on their imagination. Tell them that the carpet, grass or tiles is the ocean and there are animals in there and the person that can jump from spot to spot without falling in the sea wins. This is a fabulous activity to work on your little persons balance.

Tuesday- Water Play

This can be a bucket, a water table, a bowl, the bath tub... It's a very simple one. Let them play.

Wednesday- Water Garden

I want my little ones to feel like they help in the garden because they really do love helping AND they love water. I just hook up the hose, put on their gardening shoes and our we go to water the garden.

Thursday- Bubbles

You can buy some of those bubble wands from a dollar store (or make up your own mixture - Google is fab) and sit in the yard with them and get them to catch the bubble.

Friday- Water Balloons

This one can be a little wet so pop some bathers on (and slip, slop and slap) and fill up a bucket with water balloons. Place them in the yard on the grass and get them to jump in the water balloons. Another idea for the older ones is to simply throw water balloons and the person that is the most dry wins.

 I hope these inspire you to have a little crafty, messy and totally memorable fun!

Keep smiling

Lauren

xxx

Marvellous Meatsafes

I'm a little excited to share with you my most recent Furniture upcycle...

B and I decided when our lease came up at the end of Oct. that we would move. Aside from the fact the neighbours had been kicked out (thank goodness) our property manager had it in for me. Not B. Just me. Not that I minded because I really didn't have to deal with her but it certainly made things uncomfortable, especially around inspection time. So, with a little assistance we found a really lovely home a little off the coast. 

Heavily pregnant B and I moved all our worldly belongings to our new home and settled in. I have often put thought to buying and knocking down the back rooms to give us more yard and going up for all the things that we need but I have gone against that as I might as well build on a block if I am going to start thinking about renovating and really... I do it in every house I am in.

Over the last few months I have stared at my kitchen living space and felt like one wall was very bare and screaming for some love and attention. So love and attention it got. 

For those of you that have read my blog you will know that I upcycled the buffet on the left and I also upcycled the coffee table. Before I did my little meatsafe upcycle, there was nothing running along that right wall so as you can imagine it was looking a little bare to say the least. B bought me the rocking chair when I was pregnant with Isabella (somehow it has avoided my desire to paint everything white). So I popped that in the corner (keep your eyes peeled for another post about this chair). I then searched and searched from something to run along that wall... It took me weeks but BAM! There it was. A vintage meat safe.

 

Apart from the harrowing car ride to get the item (that is a WHOLE other story) which ended in me blubbering in my mother in laws arms.... It was perfect. The previous owners had obviously attempted to "restore it" (using a nail gun mind you) and it showed some signs of neglect... Not only in the paintwork but the wood... Overall though it was in very good condition for its age.

I purchased and collected this item while my mother in law (MIL) and father in law (FIL) were here and my father in law is one of those people who cannot sit still (like father like son) and as an added bonus is a very handy person to have around with things like this. So we had a discussion about what I wanted to do (replace the top of the cupboard- again they used a NAIL GUN... Tut tut) and off he set to the wood reclaimers up the road.

He came home with some beautiful tongue and groove floorboards. Yes I know they are floorboards but they are unique and vintage and suited this project perfectly.

 

We started by removing the top of the meatsafe and leveling it up. Once we did that FIL cleaned up some of woodwork, removed the doors and cut the floorboards to length. He then sanded them back a little. Once that was done out came the orbital sander. Now sadly I am one of those people who like a clean surface but b's orbital sanding pad is not attaching to sandpaper pads very well at the moment (oops!) so I just gave the entire surface a light going over so that I had a good surface for painting.

 

I used an aerosol undercoat from Bunnings (there are a few) and then used my trust Taubmans Accent Satin paint in Dulux's USA Antique White (this is the same paint and colour I have used for all of my other projects). After each layer I gave it a light (hand) sand and then wiped over and applied another layer. In total I applied two coats of paint to this project. It helped that it was already white. 

 

I then sanded back the top until the timber was "clean" but I didn't want to go too nuts because I like the character of the timber. While I waited for all of this to dry I worked on the doors. I removed the mesh, tacks, handle and hinges and sanded the surface. I applied the undercoat and once that had dried I applied two coats of paint. The mesh was in good condition, I would suggest it was new so once the paint dried I reattached the mesh with the original tacks. I then reattached the hinges and the doors to the meatsafe. I decided I didn't want to reattach the handle so I ordered more of the crystal door handles like on the buffet from eBay (they arrived today - yippee!)

 

I gave it a quick wipe, put it in its new home and filled it with my recipe books that I had hidden in my glory box.

 

 

Voila! My new and improved meat safe.

I am totally in love!

Keep smiling

Lauren

xxx

Meal Plans

Having three little ones under four is hard work (I am not going to lie), however I find that when I am disorganised it seems so much harder, my patience is much thinner and I find that I subsequently feel out of control (and I am POSITIVE that the girls feed off that stress). I have noticed that on days when I get all of the essentials out of the way, I am much calmer and the days seem to be more "doable" and B doesn't get the "I'm having an ass of a day" phone call. I was having a laugh today with the girls at PG (Playgroup) about how much of a perfectionist I am and my meal plans etc and I thought that it was the perfect kick off to me "honing" my blog.

For me, as I am sure it is for all of you, feeding the little ones and yourself is really important. I have to be honest I am not the most inventive lunch maker (we are going to work on that)... But one thing that I do have sorted nearly everyday is the dinner. I don't know about you, but to organise dinner any later than 3pm is a nightmare... Miss 3.5 wants snacks all afternoon and bosses her sister around when she is hungry (she's a crank like her mother), Miss 1.75 gets around my feet and becomes needy, she wants cuddles and she grizzles (she does try to play with cranky but that always ends in tears). Master 10wks really is a good baby overall but certainly after 4.30pm is his whinging time.

I have found that I can be as organised as I want of a day but if I haven't planned the meal, got all the  ingredients and written it down somewhere, it still turns into chaos. So, to avoid this I meal plan. Now I have seen some pretty impressive meal plans (ie for the month) but I like to stick to my one (and if I am good) two weeks meal plans. This means two things... 1. I can organise my grocery list early and 2. When I am doing my shopping I can buy "specials" because I know that it will get used. 

B gets paid on a Thursday but I run my meal plans generally from a Sunday to a Sunday. The reason that I do this is because on a Sunday, I plan a big cook up for the week based on my meal plan (because B is around to help with little people). I can cook food in advance (sometimes in double batches) and freeze the meals.

Once I have decided on the meals I write my list (and decide what I CAN do in double batches to freeze) and I write my grocery list. I want to add here that I LOVE pottering around a supermarket and shopping for food BUT I HATE it with three little ones. Even just with Miss 3.5 and Miss 1.75, I found it really stressful when they threw tantrums for food or the iPad (yes, the used to sit in the trolley with the iPad, watching Peppa Pig). People weren't very understanding about children and were very quick to judge and I found that I was taking it personally. Ok sidetracking!!!! At the moment because of child logistics I have been having my groceries delivered. IT IS FABULOUS! All I do is find the groceries I want, click quantity, check list at end, click which products I am happy for them to substitute (if they need to), select what time I would like the groceries delivered and pay. I can see the merit of such a service for mummies like me and I can also see that for some people (ie working households) having a personal shopper would take the stress out of meals. I have to say though that once my little ones are old enough for me to brave the supermarkets again I will be there armed with my shopping list, (the iPad) and the trolley. :-)

So after all that, how do you effectively meal plan?

CREATE:

Create a meal plan that works for you. Print one of the internet, create one of your own. Make lots of copies of one or laminate and use whiteboard marker on one. Use your diary. For me, I have a calendar on my pantry door and write my list on that. Make sure that whichever way you choose to write your meal plan that you have it in a prominent place (or somewhere you can easily be reminded).

PLAN:

When writing your meal plan think about what you and your family are doing through the week. Do you have a party or BBQ? Will you be out all day? I find that because Sunday is my cook up day! to minimise chaos for me I am best to have a Slow Cooker meal that day which frees up my oven and stove for all my cooking :-)

CHECK:

Quickly check your pantry, fridge and freezer and see if you have anything in it that needs to be used up. That is a great way to reduce any food wastage.

Also check your supermarket of choice or butcher of choice for specials. This can help reduce your bill and sometimes buying whilst on special means that you can cook in bulk (planning ahead).

LIST: 

List your meals on your planner and from that write a grocery list. I find that if you go in with a grocery list you are less likely to impulse buy. This means not only are you creating healthy meals but you are reducing your expenditure and food wastage.

Some of you might feel that meal planning is a waste of time but I can honestly say that it is actually the complete opposite. Obviously I am time poor and being able to spend an hour planning and shopping reduces the hours I used to spend thinking about meals, getting everyone into and out of the car, wandering around the shop and coming home to prepare. Plus best of all... It saves my temper and sanity.

There are some fabulous meal planners out there and some brilliant blogs about it. My next goal is to plan lunches and snacks as well (wish me luck).

Take a look at some of the lovely ideas below that help to get Meal Planning down to a fine art :-)

 PHOTO CREDIT: Re-made Just Right

PHOTO CREDIT: Everyday Enchanting

PHOTO CREDIT: Etsy

Keep smiling

Lauren

xxx

I'm baaaaaack... (With a plan this time)...

Hi! So. I have been a little stop and start with this blog I know and I have had some of you say to me "Lauren I love it... Keep going". For that I am grateful and although or know that my blog isn't "specific" it was never really meant to be. It was about my experiences as a housewife and all the things I wanted to do to create a beautiful home. So I will sit here with my cup of tea and tell you my plan...

For those of you who know me personally, you will know that my mother is incredibly gentle, feminine and giving. Like all of us she has her moments and she will be the first to say that she was far more meek and mild when she was younger and it was only as she got older that she became more assertive. In some ways I am like my mother. I am a pleaser. I try to do things to keep others happy even if it is not necessarily something that I want to do or should do. Being a pleaser has massive downfalls... I find that instead of standing up for myself or just saying no, I end up being walked all over or letting years worth of pent up anger explode, to the shock of the person who cops all that. I have tried the assertive thing... But because I am not an assertive person it just comes across as aggression. I have tried walking away but then I stew on it for a LONG time after.

My mother always (and still does) keep a beautiful home. She is always dressed well. She always has a cake or scones or a slice at the ready... Although she worked for many of the years that we grew up, she really was a fabulous housewife. I guess that what it comes down to is that I want to be like her. I want to have the tidy house. I want to have the happy children. I want a husband that loves coming home to his family. Being a perfectionist (don't kid yourself - I'm terrible) I find this massive pressure I out on myself to be that. Whilst it does my head in sometimes - you will all benefit I hope.

I will be sharing with you some of my tips and tricks to making my day to day life easier. I will be sharing some of my furniture up do's that I do to create a beautiful home (well beautiful in my eyes - not everyone's cup of tea). I will share with you some of my craftiness and I am SURE there will be a few funny anecdotes and kidlet stories along the way (like the day my children got to the red food dye, or emptied the sprinkle container in their tee pee). 

Keep your eyes peeled... Here are some teasers...

Cannot wait to share all of these with you all.

Keep smiling...

Lauren

Xxx

Terrible Two's and Three's

Oh my goodness!!!! I have just had one of those explosive moments. You know the ones. Where every cell in your body gets suddenly VERY hot, your blood pressure just shot through the roof and your stomach knots up like a prezel. It takes every ounce of your being not to totally lose your s***.

As you all know, I have two beautiful girls and am 11 weeks away from having another little person in my life... I love my girls and as a general rule they are happy, kind and sweet children...

However, there is a much darker side...

My eldest Miss 3 has decided (in the last two weeks) that she is going to do everything possible to induce labour early for me. Fun, fun. Today was another prime example. She has a reward chart, that I made up to try and curb some of this infuriating behaviour, when she listens to mummy and daddy and is a good girl she gets a sticker on the chart. After 10 stickers she gets a "prize" for being a good girl. We were on track today and I thought whoo hoo... PROGRESS! Then BAM! REGRESSSION. After sitting with her while she played. Keeping her happy and quiet (while Miss 1.5 slept), I told her I was just going to do some washing. I walked out of the living space, loaded the things into the maching, put in the powder and switched it on. I walked back out and could see Bella with the 3L milk bottle. I thought "oh no". I couldnt see it anywhere so I thought that maybe, just maybe she had only just managed to get it (even if I did think that the levels within the carton looked depleted). Then I heard it... drip drip drip drip... Uh oh... That was when I saw it. At least 1L of milk dripping from the top of her toy shelf into her toy boxes. Angry doesn't even cover how I felt...

This is only the most recent of bad behaviours... Late last week I took the opportunity of an early morning and good tempers to race to the shopping centre to do some christmas shopping (with 11 weeks to go I have to take all the chances I can get). I got there and it was like a switch had flicked. Miss 3 put it on. Racing ahead. Sneaking off while I was looking for a size. Playing with every toy she could get her hand on. Throwing herself to the ground to get away from me holding her hand. Having a tantrum. Then right at the end of the shopping trip, I was speaking to a friend and we were saying goodbye, when Bella suddenly darted to the right and up a step escalator. Now normally I would have just followed but prams don't go on step escalators and she was on her way... So I had to ask my friend to watch the pram (with everything I own and in addition to her pram) while 29 weeks pregnant I flew after her to retrieve her. To say I felt angry and ill was an understatement.

I thought that although she was a little testing through her two's, I was doing ok. We hadn't had many major meltdowns and she was reasonably compliant. Haha! Well that thinking bit me in the butt.

At the moment, she refuses to follow instructions, citing "no mummy" or "not right now". She is a runner, so although most of the time she will stand nearby and hold the pram, that has been going out the window (and she seems to pick checkouts and queues to run off). She watches EVERYTHING. I am sure B thinks that I must just lay on my bed all day, because she takes moments, like me ducking off to the ladies, to have a shower, put on washing, change nappies or wiping bathrooms to get into and do all the destructive things. We have had smeared "business", smooshed butter, spilt milk,  emptied cordial, spritzed cleaning sprays, tipped out bath bubbles,  spread toothpaste,  pasted peanut butter, wiped vegemite,  squished playdough, water all over the place, in things and just generally creating a MASSIVE mess.

I know that she will grow out of it but MAN... It definitely tests your patience. Then comes the hour after when you are still stewing on it and she comes up for a hug, or to ask for something and all you can think is "HELL NO".

Do you let it go and move on and just continue your discipline for every bad deed?
Do you remind her why she isn't getting the "bubbles" or "milk" or "tv"?

How do you deal with your Mr or Miss 3's???

Bold Bureau

After a fabulous 4.50am wake up, care of Miss 3 and Miss 1.5... I have achieved very little this morning. Normally they are climbing into my bed around 5.30 and by 9 we are all fed and the housework is complete. Although completely by accident, we have fallen into a routine that has worked quite well for us. Both little Miss' have been unwell and I would say that although we are in the final days of that, it may have contributed to the early morning. I HAD resorted to putting a gate across their door to contain them, as Miss 3 was very helpful in my pantry of a morning, but after a few mornings of Miss 1.5 getting trapped between the gate and the door (in a space of cm's) we pulled it down. As any parent would understand, the safety of our girls was more important than a few emptied Tupperware containers.

 

Digressing. Again. I had a visit from one of my cousins (it was unbelievably comforting) yesterday and she told me how inspired she felt reading my blog. It was incredibly flattering and I wanted to take the opportunity to tell all of you, including Mrs L, that you can take ANY piece of furniture that you fall in love with and make it beautiful. I do recommend that you start with smaller pieces and work your way up (it would be incredibly daunting to start on a wardrobe for example as opposed to a coffee table or writing bureau.

 

Speaking of which, here the next of my projects.

 

 

 

I had been looking for a writing bureau for months... My mother has a beautiful one (in perfect condition) that belonged to my grandfather. It still has that beautiful musty smell when you open it, reminding me of childhood scents of them.

 

I have ALWAYS loved this piece of furniture and it wasn't until mum sent me a pic message of something that she had seen in Better Homes and Gardens, that I developed an obsession with having a writing bureau myself.

 

Now I COMPLETELY understand that my mother would have LOVED to have painted her bureau but for sentimental and decor reasons, I think that her decision to keep it in its original condition was the best decision. I, on the other hand, have been upcycling my furniture to Dulux USA Antique White, and I feel that I need to keep that white theme running through all my furniture. So, began the hunt for a writing bureau that I could upcycle. I was sitting on the couch one evening when my DH said to me "Is this what you are after", while showing me a picture from a FaceBook For Sale site. Sure enough, it looked like it was what I was after. So I accepted the sale and we collected the item.

 

 

Although, size wise, it was little smaller than I had hoped for, it was a really cute piece and it definitely grew on me. So I began the "revamp". I had this wondeful idea that keeping it within my blue and white theme was the way to go. I sanded as much of the old paint as I could from the desk, with my main purpose being to clean and smooth the desk, as there were some marks and chips on it.

 

 

As you can see, when I did this project I kept the doors etc on the item and therefore I coudn't get to all the edges and corners, not leaving me with a perfect finish. I do recommend pulling doors, handles, drawers etc out. It does make for a much more professional job and a job that lasts much longer too.

 

I then moved onto painting the interior of the cupboard.

 

I used an spray paint for this section as it was quite fiddly to paint. It did require a few coats but was a gloss paint so finished really well.

 

 

Here is the complete desk. In my bedroom and all.

 

Now, I am going to make a confession here. I attempted to cut a few corners and as a result I am not 100% happy with the result.

 

Although I am not going to attempt a re do of this in the near future it WILL be something that I will fix. I found that once the blue was on the item, although the same blue looked awesome on the buffet, on the desk it ovepowered the desk. My plan now is to paint the drop down table and base of the desk white and the inside of the lower cupboard white. I will also be doing a little bit of patching, replacing the drawer handles and adding door handles. The key for the desk has been broken into the lock so I will be replacing that with a new lock OR a handle as well. Now I am also on the hunt for a comfy chair to finish the piece off (I might even attempt a re cover)...

 

See even Lozzie's don't get it right all the time :-)

 

I hope that you all understand that you can attempt anything... If it isn't right you can go back and fix.

 

Enjoy your Wednesday!!!!

 

Keep smiling.

 

Lauren

xxx