Abby's Keep your house clean! cleaning schedule

If you've been reading for long then you know how much I hate cleaning and how bad I am at it! I tried the flylady thing and it didn't really work, but I thought maybe I could simplify it and make up my own cleaning schedule. All this is in hopes that I wont have to have these major overhaul cleaning days. I'm going to try it next month and see if it helps. Let me know if you think I missed anything or have any ideas to improve my system.

Abby's Keep your house clean cleaning schedule!

Daily – pick up toys in living room, clean kitchen, water plants

Every Monday – clean bathrooms (scrub sinks, toilets, bathtubs and showers)
Every Tuesday – Wash bed linens and clean outside of my kitchen appliances
Every Wednesday – Dust and Vacuum whole house
Every Thursday – mop kitchen and do laundry (major laundry day)
Every Friday – off day


Week one
Monday – meal plan for the month and grocery shop
Tuesday – clean girls rooms
Wednesday - dust ceiling fans
Thursday – organize playroom
Friday – off day

Week two
Monday – dust baseboards and grocery shop
Tuesday – organize dresser drawers in kids rooms
Wednesday – clean windows inside
Thursday – clean windows outside
Friday – off day

Week three
Monday – grocery shop and iron clothes (yes, that’s right, I don’t iron much)
Tuesday – organize our dresser drawers
Wednesday – dust blinds
Thursday – clean out inside of fridge
Friday – off day

Week four –
Monday – grocery shop and organize cabinets and inventory food in pantry
Tuesday – pull weeds outside
Wednesday – every other month, wash slipcover on sofa
Thursday – clean out car (wash and vacuum)
Friday – off day

Who's out there???

I have been wondering who all looks at my blog and also wanting some new blogs to look at, so if you visit my blog give me a shoutout and if you have your own blog(s), give me the address so I can cut and paste it into my own blog list and keep up with you!

Thanks to those who have commented already. This is so fun and I am trying to add everyone to my blog as you comment. I am terrible about finding new blogs to read, so y'all are making this super easy!

Daddy's Day Off, Zoo, Zoe's and ZZZZs

We had a wonderful day at the zoo this week. Trey is working a ton lately, so it was so great just to hang out as a family and take the girls to do something fun. We ended up buying the year pass to the zoo, so if anybody wants to return with us, let me know. I of course had to bring my camera. I only took 544 pics! Here are a few of my favorites. There were tons because all the animals were out and so cooperative. We even heard the lion and tiger roaring! It was the best trip I've ever had to the zoo.


After the zoo, it was off to Zoe's for some yummy chicken salad sandwich and grilled chicken pita! Then we all headed home for a nap! To top it off, church that night was phenomenal. The worship was so powerful as was the message on Tabernacle Prayer. All in all, it was a Fab Day! Hope all of you have a Fab Day this week too!

Starting the day off at the Sea Lion Splash Show

and from here on out, the pictures are in no particular order!

This is the only picture of me, you are WELCOME!

Big EYES

He's eatin crackers just like Selah.

Five Little Monkey's sittin on a branch, one fell off and...

Butterfly House, fast little buggers, hard to shoot

This Tiger has the most beautiful blue eyes. This was the only shot I could get, the others he had them tighly shut.

Bad Hair Day

Hungry Hungry Hippos

Rhino

We saw them and I said, "Wow, that is amazing they just stay here in their little spot." (there's no cage or net) Then Trey told me they probably clipped their wings so they can't fly, oh, sad=(

Selah keepin busy in the stroller with her Ritz

We joke that these are Sophie's "hot pants" but they are just so darn cute. I mean when else can you pull it off and still look cute!

I love the colors on this lizard. He could inspire a room or something.

Ok, this is one scary gator!

Selah getting pretty sleepy towards the end! And she's out....zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Photography

Here's my latest attempt with my new canon. I took the girls to Homewood Park the other day ALL BY MYSELF and was crazy enough to bring my camera. Watching two kids and taking pictures is a feat in and of itself. I am hoping to go back tomorrow with Trey (he actually has a whole day off!) You definitely need that #2 man to get the kids attention so you can snap the shots. Anyway, I still don't know what I am doing, but apparently my camera does, cause I think some of them are pretty cute. I took about 300, theses are a few of my faves. Still don't know how to edit.... need to work on that one soon!!! Enjoy and if you have any pointers, feel free=)

Drool

Sisters Chubby legs
Smile

Eyelashes

Swing and Sky

Cutest shoes in the world! (Keens-please make them for women in pink!!)

Sweet Feet

Grin

Heights

Climber

Contemplating small group ideas...

I am not sure what to do this Fall about a small group. Here are a few ideas I have rolling around in my head. I am going to pray about it and look into meeting places and childcare ideas before I decide. I really don't know that I can handle leading a small group with how much Trey is gone now. I feel like I barely make it through the days sometimes. Hopefully I'll be more adjusted by then and when Sophie goes back to school, that should help. Y'all let me know any ideas you have too!

-Natural Childbirth and Pregnancy support group - This idea came to me one night at church when I was sitting next to a girl who was about 6 months pregnant. I just kept looking at her and thinking about how God has really given me a heart and special love for this stage in a woman's life. I also am passionate about natural childbirth and although I know it's not for everyone, I love telling people about how special my experience was and I'm always game for trying to convince people to try it. It was truly empowering and one of the most amazing things I think I've ever done.

- Mom's Notes - I led this group last year and I really felt like I did a terrible job, I was just so disorganized. So maybe this year I could try to revamp it and do a little better this time around.

-I am also interested in being in a small group that will be a good old fashioned women's bible study. I am so jealous of Trey and the education about the bible he received at Briarwood. I feel like he has an understanding of the bible and its history and how it all fits together that I just don't know if I'll ever have. It's such a blessing to him and I hope that we'll be able to put our kids in Briarwood so that they can be blessed by this type of education too.

-I had talked about doing a sampler small group for moms last year that would have a new topic each week. That way I could incorporate all the things I want to cover into one group. We could sample strategic shopping, GKGW, Mom's Notes, sewing, meal planning and lots of other stuff too!

How to annoy your labor and delivery nurse...

No job is without frustrations and annoyances. I love my job but have had to learn to laugh at the things that happen daily while I'm at work. You gotta laugh to keep from pulling your hair out! So without further ado...
**** Please continue reading only if you have a sense of humor.

If you want to annoy your labor and delivery nurse…

Show up at labor and delivery without having even called your doctor first! Trust me, your doctor will "love" this too.

Call 911 and arrive by ambulance after having 1 contraction at home. (If you come in by ambulance, we are usually betting that you will either be holding a baby in your arms when you arrive or you'll be 1 cm/30/-4.

Approximately 15 seconds after you push that baby out, please by all means, ask "How much does she weigh? or How long is he?" (note:When you see scales or a measuring tape, this might be a good indicator of when to ask this question.)

Push your call light and when your nurse comes in the door, ask her to hand you something on the table right next to you.

Push your call light, when your nurse comes in, ask her for some ice, then when she comes back in the room, ask her for a spoon, then when she comes back with that, ask her for some socks, a toothbrush and some toothpaste. (Seriously, did you not think to bring a toothbrush to the hospital? You knew you'd be here for at least 2 days.)

Rate your pain a 10 out of 10 while lying in bed watching MTV and talking on the phone with a friend.

Please tell your mother and mother in law to coordinate schedules and alternate coming in every 7 minutes to ask the following questions...
"How are things going?" - Well about the same as 7 minutes ago.
"Has she dilated any more?" Well, we try not to do cervical exams every 5 minutes, you know that whole infection thing. If you want I can just keep my hand up there all day long so we'll know immediately when anything happens.
"When do you think the baby will be here?" Well if i knew that I'd be making a lot more money than I am right now.
"Can you come get me if anything changes?" Sure thing, if something happens, the first thing I'll do is walk away from my patient to come inform you.

Also, tell your whole family to stand behind me while I am charting and comment on the contractions and the baby's heart rate incessantly saying - "OOhhh, look at those contractions, wow they are big!" "Wow, that one went off the chart!" "Wow is the baby's heart rate supposed to be doing that? Should you call the doctor?" "How close together are the contractions?"

When you get nauseated and throw up, don't grab the bag/emesis basin I just gave you, just throw up in the bed or on the floor and then you and your whole family can watch me clean it up.

Tell me that you are uncomfortable and then you and your baby daddy proceed to lay there and watch while I struggle to move your deadweight epiduralized self into a "comfortable" position. Seriously people, it's called LABOR for a reason. It's not a day at the spa. This is especially "funny" when your nurse is pregnant.

When it's time to push and I ask "Dad" to help hold a leg, by all means, dare him to tell me no. First of all, I cannot hold both of your dead legs up and help you push at the same time. Second of all, he got you in this mess, it's the LEAST he can do.

Get your whole family to come stand at the desk, watch the strips from other rooms and start asking questions about other patients. Ever heard of HIPAA people??

Tell me you want to be "No information" and then don't tell your family what room you are in. Then get mad at us for not telling them you are here when they ask for you at the desk. What part of NO INFORMATION is not clear to you?

Get your family to go in and out of the after hours door to smoke (the one where we have to buzz them in) over and over and over again! And the button on the wall, just press it once, you don't have to lay on it like a horn. BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!

When I ask your family to go to the waiting room, tell them to just congregate in the hall right outside your door blocking the way to the OR.


Ok, that is all for now, I may add some later. These are all so funny because all these situations happen VERY frequently. You can ask any labor nurse and I guarantee she has encountered all these situations more than once. It really does start to become funny because everbody does and says the same things! I really do love my job though and can't imagine doing anything else!

*****I no longer work in labor and delivery, but I loved being a nurse and I treated my patients like gold.  I never voiced any of these annoyances to a patient, ever!  If you watch any of my birthing videos you can see that I think childbirth is an amazing thing.  I made my patients feel like they were the most important woman in the world and did my very best to insure that they had a wonderful and memorable birth experience.  So if the cranky pants of the world could please refrain from sending me an ugly comment that would be great!  =)

Ha-larious!

Elaine sent this to me... so funny especially if you have a baby this age and picture their face up there
http://www.evianliveyoung.com/#/en/4-Home

Italian Dinner Night

We had an Italian Dinner the other night at YaYa's house. I brought all the food, Elaine did most of the cooking and dessert and Yaya provided her house for us to destroy=).

Sophie and Luke drank their juice boxes on the deck and giggled while we cooked. I walked out there at one point to check on things and Sophie was singing, "I like to move it move it, I like to move it move it" over and over, so I think they were having fun.
Selah played in the Johnny Jump Up which she adores. She can really get moving on that thing. I wish they made an adult version, I think it could be quite fun! And a great workout! We made Gnocchi (which Trey and I discovered the yummy goodness of in Italy), Spaghetti (and by Spaghetti, I mean angel hair pasta cause the Tants only like angel hair!) with meatballs. Elaine made some delicious blueberry thing that I don't have a picture of but it was gooooood.

A 98% real smile from Sophie. And if you know her, you know it is hard to get a genuine smile from her if a camera is within a 75 ft radius. She's got such a great smile, but she does this cheesy fake smile for pictures, cracks me up.

The table all set with our feast + one bottle of vino from Italy that we got on a bike/castle tour in Florence+one bottle of Trader Joe's red wine that is supposed to be good and cheap=).

After we all stuffed our faces, Selah got tickled and the "kids" went into the living room to....

dance to the Curious George soundtrack!
Then I found a frog outside. I told Luke and Sophie to be very quiet and brought them outside to see it. Sophie didn't want to touch it while Luke tried to stomp on it and grab it until it ran away to a safe place.

That's all for now, I am off to clean my house...