AT Fall Cure: Day 13

Day 13: Declutter Books and Media

I once asked, how much should I declutter? How much room should I make in my drawers? in my closets? on my shelves? The answer came back: clear as much room as you think you will need for the items coming into your home in the future. Of course, the next question is, how far into the future?

So, here we are. Books. How much room should I make on my shelves for them?

Maxwell said 10% --but then he urged us to get rid of 25%. That's a lot. For me, anyway. The more books you have, the larger the number of books 25% actually represents. It is more than I am likely to fill back up in 5 years. We just haven't bought that many books in the last few years (homeschool curriculum doesn't count!) nor is that likely to change.

But, I suppose I could do with a good weeding out. I could aim for 10% of every shelf--at least. Maybe. It will depend on the shelf!

Here are the bookshelves under attack, by room.

Living room: They flank the fireplace.

On the left:


On the right:



(These shelves need a complete overhaul, as usual.)

The Dining room/Office.

Above the desk:



The Expedit:



and the bookshelf:


The stair landing has two shallow bookcases. My husband and I made them.


When you turn on the landing to continue up the stairs, this is what greets you:



There are bookshelves in our bedroom:



and in the kitchen:




It is a little overwhelming.

AT Fall Cure: Days 11 & 12

Day 11: Clean One Room

Thank goodness for this one.

I tackled the Master Bedroom. I did it in four parts.

1) 15 minute surface and quick de-clutter
2) Changed the sheets
3) 20 minute surface "Cure Clean"
4) Put on love seat cover

I have been wanting to restore this room to serenity for ages. Ever since August. That's when I decided to use it as a dumping ground for both my daughter's things when I cleared out her room and for the things from the bathroom when I redecorated it. The room had not been properly dusted or vacuumed in 2 1/2 months. Ugh.

So, the bathroom isn't quite done. I just have the new shelves to put up -- and they are coming along, albeit slowly. I'm tired of having the bathroom's contents on my dresser, though, so I moved it all into a laundry basket: now sitting on the old school chair. Once I had solved that little problem, the cleaning could commence.

I got all the dust bunnies! I swear, I chased them all away. I used my ostrich feather duster on the furniture and I swiffered and vacuumed the floor. I pulled out the couch and the bed and bedside tables and got everything along the walls. It was most gratifying.

(I have no idea why I took all of these vertically.)

Ta Da!


I figure that if I pick up daily and swiffer weekly, I'll only need to vacuum once a month. Wouldn't it be fantastic if I could manage that?!


Day 12: Buy Flowers.

In honour of ephemera:



And now, I'm all caught up!

(I have no idea if I shall stay caught up, though.)

Menu Planning Time

And so here we are.

An explanation of how I plan my menus for the month is here.

I didn't time how long it took to do my pantry and freezer inventory. I did those when I was cleaning the pantry, but they really didn't take that long.

I used menu plans from Nov 2009 and last month to create this month's plan. It really saved time: it took only 30 minutes to come up with all the meals we'll be eating this month.

It took another hour and a half to look up each recipe and mark down what I needed on all my various forms. I even added an extra step: in the Time Management course, Aby hands out a weekly menu plan and shopping list combined. I filled it out (by hand) for each week and then wrote in the produce and other fresh food items I would want to buy that week for those dinners.


I filed each sheet in my Tickler/planner behind the corresponding Sunday (the day I like to do my weekly shopping). I will plan what we'll do for lunch then.

Then, I typed up my dinner plans onto the calendar (above). That took 23 minutes (and allowed me to add any items I may have missed to my various forms).

So, all in all, it took me less than 2 1/2 hours to plan my meals (and shopping list) for the month.

The ladies in my Time Management course are all raving about Ziplist, though, so maybe, next month, I'll have all the recipes inputted into my computer--and it will take even less time.

Here's hoping. I do not enjoy this task one bit.

AT Fall Cure: Days 9 & 10

Day 9: Find a New Recipe and Cook Tonight

UPDATE: My husband hated this soup. He asked me for permission to toss it after a couple of days of taking it to work. I let him: and then I tossed the book the recipe came from!

I cook every night. Nonetheless, I found this new recipe to try:

Autumn Celebration Soup
from Canada's Best Slow Cooker Recipes, by Donna-Marie Pye.

1 lb (500g) rutabaga, peeled and cut into 1" (2.5cm) cubes (about 4 cups or 1 L)
1 onion, chopped
1 potato, peeled and cubed
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 cup (250 ml) chicken stock
1/2 ( 125 ml) cup dry white wine
2 cups (500 ml) water
2 tablespoons (25 ml) brown sugar
2 teaspoons (10 ml) caraway seeds
1 tablespoon( 15 ml) paprika
2 cups (500 ml) milk or light (5%) cream
Sour Cream
Crisp Bacon bits

1. In a slow cooker, combine rutabaga, onion, potato, carrots, stock, wine, water, sugar, caraway seeds, and paprika. Cover and cook on Low for 10 to 12 hours, or on High for 6 to 8 hours, until vegetables are tender.

2. Strain the vegetables, reserving stock. In a blender or food processor, puree vegetables in batches. Transfer back to slow cooker; add reserved stock and milk, Heat on Low for 25 to 30 minutes or until warmed through.

3. Spoon soup into bowls and garnish with dollops of sour cream and a sprinkle of bacon bits.

I will skip Step. 2. (and likely Step 3!) This soup will be put in the fridge and kept all week for my husband to take to work for lunch.

(One of the disadvantages of frozen home made soup stock: takes a while to thaw, even after microwaving it).


Day 10: Make a List of Top Six Home Needs.

I already have a list.

It goes like this:

Daughter's Room:

• Hang curtains
• Sand ceiling
• Find solution for “hole” for Chandelier
• Shorten chandelier
• Buy inserts for organizing desk
• Paint ceiling
• Paint shelves in alcove
• Framing Horse Picture project
  

Laundry Room:

• Paint paneling wall
• Paint small dresser
• Re-hang drying cord
• Re-configure donation station table to hold four laundry baskets.

Upstairs Bathroom:

• build new shelves
• Paint new shelves
• Hang new shelves
• Add decorative bits to new mirror
• Install mirror.

Kitchen:

• Paint upper cabinet frames
• Paint upper cabinet doors
• Wash walls
• Paint walls
• Paint pine shelving?

Back Entry:

• Re-paint boards yellow
• Mount hooks on boards
• Mount boards to wall
• Paint walls and "ceiling."

Basement Storage Area:

• Hang new curtain line (attach to old, somehow?)
• Re-hang curtains

Or does Maxwell mean we ought to make a list of the repairs and structural sort of things we need to do? In which case, there is this list of six things:

1. Replace floor tiles in Kitchen
2. Replace flooring in upstairs bathroom
3. Re-wire house
4. Repair cracks in foundation
5. Insulate walls in Basement
6. Install exhaust fan for stove

Or as he did in the video, does Maxwell mean an off-the-top of your head "Today, this sounds good list?"


1. Purchase and install new bath tub surround.

I have long wanted simple, classic 4x4 black and white tiles here. (All white, with a horizontal strip of black.) Inexpensive and not that difficult to do, assuming the wall is sound.

But, it is never going to happen. It would have to be a DIY to fit within our budget: and given this is our only tub and shower--I can't see it being out of commission for the week (or more) I would need to get it done. I don't know. Maybe I'm just too exhausted by the whole idea.

I'm wondering if hubby and I can give each other a new tub surround (in white) installed for Christmas? Imagine, picking something out in a store: and then having someone else do the work. Wow. What a concept.

2. Spot clean or purchase new living room carpet.
My son is eating in there without permission and when we leave the dog alone, he leaves us "presents." Enough said.

3. Build a headboard for the Master bedroom
This has been on my Cure list for some time!

4. Hang the Photo from Montreal in Living Room

5. Do I really have to come up with something else just to prove a point?

6. Well, I'll consider the point proven. We have lots to do. Anyone who is remotely interested in their space can think of things to do. This cure is not for the likes of me, I think. The Eight step cure has room enough: but not this one. Oh well. I'm getting lots done, aren't I?

Kitchn Cure: Week One Progress Report

No, I haven't forgotten about the Cure over at the The Kitchn. Thing is, I'm still in Week One: Clean the Freezer, Fridge and Pantry and they posted Week Three on Friday.

The Pantry in the basement is done, thank goodness.

The freezer compartment on the fridge is also done and I've nearly finished the fridge, too. I've just the top shelf and the door to do.

But, I have the feeling that "pantry" also means washing out the inside of any cupboards which hold food and purging and organizing them. Whether it does or not, mine are certainly in need of it.

Here's the worst offender: the baking shelf. I have had this on my to do list since September. It's the second shelf from the top.

Before:



and after:



I put all the half empty sprinkler containers into a tin I purchased at a garage sale a long time ago. I also emptied out three open bags of chocolate chips into a glass jar and I found a basket for the extracts and food colouring bottles. But the best thing I did was put a lazy Susan in the corner (underneath the baking powder in the fuzzy picture) --and that cleared up 90% of the clutter right there.

So, I have a few more shelves to go and, yes, the freezer in the basement is in dire need of a defrosting. So we could be in Week One for a while.

AT Fall Cure: Days 7 & 8. The Halloween Edition

Day 7: Buy Flowers and sit for 10 minutes

The flowers we bought a few days ago are doing really well!


I didn't sit. I really don't have time. I have to prepare for school next week--last week I timed it and discovered it take 3 1/2 hours--when I have stuff prepared--and I'm not prepared this week. Additionally, I have th Big Shop this Tuesday: so I have to do my pantry inventory and big shop for the month. Last month I timed how long that took: four hours. So, the only place I'm sitting is behind the eight ball.

Day 8: Establish a Landing Strip

I was looking through some old pictures from past cures and I found this one from of my Front Hallway.



It looks like this today:



Fresher, I think, and cheerier, menacing spider notwithstanding. More in keeping with the colourful fresh vibe I want to live in.

The back door is also a busy place: at Aby's suggestion, I hung up a pocket organizer. It's supposed to go inside a closet, I think, and hold socks and shoes and what not, but it is perfect in this narrow space for dog leashes and toys, gardening implements and gloves, sunglasses and things. I just painted the strip: obviously, that blue clashes with the pocket organizer and I need to re-do it. It's a quick job, really, but not one I expect to get to for a long time, yet.



Because I already have landing strips, I washed the walls and vacuumed the floors. Good to get it done. That's all I'll say about that.

AT Fall Cure Days 5&6

Day 5: Buy or replace Eco-Cleaner.

All our detergents are phosphate free. I stear clear of anti-bacterial soap and everything except the toilet bowl cleaner is "environmentally friendly."

I recently started using micro-fibre cloths for window and mirror cleaning --they're wonderful!


Day 6: Floor and Surface Clean One Room

I had intended to do my bedroom. And, in fact, I may still do it tomorrow as it needs a thorough dusting and vacuum.

But, I went down to the basement to declutter and wash my pantry shelves--and wound up doing a surface clean of the entire laundry room --including folding laundry and taking it to the places it belongs. (I even put away some of it!)

Remember how it looked a few days ago?


I've been plugging steadily away at it.

And here is it as of tonight:

(sigh. A basement is still a basement.) I like Leena's suggestion of going with painting that back wall white, as indeed, the contents of the room are visually chaotic enough. I was also reminded tonight of an idea I once had to paint the rafters white too--since, if you look closely, it seems someone already started.

Unfortunately, my camera is acting up dreadfully. I don't have all my before shots--nor all my afters, neither. I do have a little from today though, just to give you a taste.

This is taken from standing at the washer and dryer--looking back at the stairs.
We keep recyclables here as well as items for the bottle depot.


We have a nice donation of old towels for the animal shelter all bagged up and ready to go!




And here is the pantry. It's is directly in front of me when I fold the laundry. It's quite soothing, all spiffed up!


(We've had that cubby unit since I was 14--at that time it held record albums. It is shaped like a ziggeraut with the cubes painted to accentuate that. I love it. I merely added some inexpensive "closet organizers" to the mix and now it looks vaguely like a well stocked tansu.)