Organizing the Laundry room

Fascinating Womanhood is really paying off. I'm taking babysteps, but definitely making improvements. I'm keeping the house neater, making a big dent on the laundry, and getting things organized. I'm making a concerted effort to be dressed nice and have my makeup and hair done--even if it's just hair brushed and eyeliner and lipstick. My husband has really appreciated the difference. Amazingly, he said I even sound softer, that my voice is softer and more feminine. The strange thing is that I've been meaning to work on that, but hadn't gotten around to it yet. I guess it's just starting to come naturally.

The other night I went to bed early because I'd had a really hard day, and when my husband got home from work at midnight, he stayed up two hours cleaning the kitchen and living room and doing the dishes, and left a lovely note for me for when I got up. He helps out like this a lot, but this time he was doing it to show me his appreciation, and not just making a sacrifice for me, or doing it because he knew it wouldn't get done otherwise.

Tonight, I got the laundry pile done to the point I could organize the laundry room. It's not that big, but it will do. I took an idea from Michelle Duggar, who was featured on "14 Children and Pregnant Again!" on the Discovery Health Network. She has a big dressing room, apparently where the laundry room is. They have two washers and two dryers, and on top of them are plastic bins for each family member's socks and undergarments, and the rest of their clothing is all hung in that room. They dress in there, and deposit dirty clothes right into the hampers. Then the washing, folding, sorting and putting away is all done in one room. Pretty brilliant!

Since my laundry room is small and my husband and I have a walk in closet upstairs, I put just the children's clothes in the laundry room. That way I don't have to run up and down to three separate bedrooms on two other levels for the children's clothing...I usually change them all together in the living room, since their so young.

On one sideof the laundry room, behind the door, is the washer and dryer, and alongside that is a rolling laundry cart with three bags in it for sorting. Then next to that is a small shelf unit with the iron, detergent, and other laundry necessities.

On the other side I put my daughter's tall, narrow dresser and my two sons' plastic rolling chests of drawers, stacked one on top of the other (wheels off of the top one, of course). Next to that is a large hanging rack for laundry. It's pretty nice and sturdy, chrome and black, with a wire shelf above, and a rack on the bottom for shoes, etc. Hanging from the pole is one of those canvas hanging organizers with canvas shelves in it for sweaters, etc. This one is made for children and has a flap on each shelf with the day of the week embroidered on it. I plan each week to put a set of clothing for each child in each cubby for that day. That way, if my husband gets up with the kids, the clothing will be all ready for him to dress the kids in, and it will all match. ;-) I plan to hang my daughters nicer dresses and the boys' church clothing from the rack also, leaving as much room as possible for me to hang my drip-dry dresses. I bought both the laundry rack and the hanging organizer from Target.

Eventually I'd like to install wire shelving above and alongside the washer and dryer. But until then, this layout will work really well, I think. I can't wait to get all the laundry done and folded. Since we just moved, and had had many boxes of clothing in storage, much of it had to be re-washed. Plus I have to hunt through the too-small-clothing boxes for the baby stuff and wash it, as my next baby is due in ten weeks. Plus we started with a ton of laundry that was dirty before we even moved from the last house. PLUS, I've let myself get behind on the laundry here since we moved! *sigh* But at least I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I have about eight or so loads of laundry to do, then I'll be done...until I find the rest of the baby stuff...and we get the rest of our stuff out of storage! I seriously need to pare back on the clothing! That's what yard sales will do to you, lol.

Well, back to the laundry!

Making Progress

I am pretty proud of myself today. So far, I've exercised, taken my vitamins, done two loads of laundry, folded one load AND put it away (seriously, that's a major feat for me), and made my husband's lunch. I also prompted my 3 year old son to tell his Daddy "thank you for working so hard for our family." I am trying to make sure my husband feels appreciated, and teach my children to show him the same appreciation.

Now, I admit to feeding my kids PB&J sandwiches for lunch...again...but I'll follow up with fruit, and make sure their dinner is more diverse and balanced.

I am hoping to clean the toilets today, they're getting bad. If I can find the toilet scrubber! We just moved (again) so everything is still in boxes in one room. I am planning today to move the boxes into some of the empty closets so the house looks more presentable. That way, I can work on it one box at a time and not feel overwhelmed by a huge messy room. I also want to catch up on the laundry today. At the very least, I'd like to do one more load, and fold everything that's been washed so far (two other loads from last night, one that was already waiting on the dryer, and two more from today). That's a pretty ambitious day for me, if I complete it, I will be REALLY proud of myself!

Part of why I've been so depressed lately is because I have come to hate who I am. I know I'm slacking off, and can be doing a lot better. But when you get in a rut and get depressed, it's hard to find the motivation to change that. But I'm doing it in baby steps, and finding that the more I do, the easier it is to do it. Yay, me!

My Journey from Housewife to Homemaker

I have been a wife and stay at home mother for four years now. So far it has been a struggle for me. I am not naturally organized, and I am admittedly lazy, so running a household without children was an effort for me. Once I had my first child ten months after marraige, then a second thirteen months later, than a third thirteen months after that...well, let's just say things started really falling apart. You can let a lot slide with just one child, but with three...no can do!

So now, expecting my fourth child (this time I had a "break", there will be 21 months between this one and the last, lol) I have realized it's time to get serious. My children need a "together" mom, my husband deserves a fabulous wife, and I can honestly say I'm nowhere close to being either. So this blog will document my journey and struggles to stop being a housewife (to me, a wife stuck in a house) and become a homemaker (a woman joyfully dedicated to the care of her family and the making of a true home).

This is mostly for my own sanity--the ability to vent, to get it out, to think out loud (sort of). But perhaps there are others out there who can learn from my mistakes, or who have a large family of their own and can offer advice. It really helps to know there are others out there like yourself when you feel alone with your problems.

So, welcome!