Organizing 101: Dining Room

Toni over at A Bowl Full of Lemons is hosting Home Organizing 101, a 14-week challenge to get your home organized.  I have not been keeping up with it, but decided to start this week and play catch-up at my own pace  (primarily because I am home today because of Hurricane Sandy).

The main problem with our dining room is that the buffet and table become a catch-all for everyone's stuff.  Mail, paperwork, school work...it all ends up here.

Here are the pictures of the chaos on a daily basis:

To start with, I removed all of the clutter.  Got rid of school papers, junk mail, and filed everything where it belonged.

My clean buffet and Halloween decorations

Crap to be filed.

I pulled out and sorted through some of my place mats and cloth napkins that I use for entertaining.  This is only HALF of the napkins because I have a ton that I need to iron.

Top drawer of the buffet holds place mats (some holiday ones are with the specific decorations):

Second drawer holds napkins and napkin rings:

Third drawer is my camera bag and more napkins will go here:

The buffet has two cabinets.  One has my china and some candle holders that I use for tablescapes (I can't believe I used that word in a sentence).  The other cabinet currently holds my entertaining pieces, although I *may* move these and use this cabinet for something else, like a homework station.

Yeah...our dining room is small and there is not much room to take pictures of the buffet!

Clean and happy. Don't be jealous of the pumpkin coffee mug.

I am participating in...

It helps me keep on track with all the organizing and cleaning that goes by the wayside nowadays. Interested? Stop by A Bowl Full of Lemons to sign up!

How green are we? Part Two

Let's talk about cleaning. Cleaning the GREEN WAY, if you will.
When it comes to cleaning supplies, I seem to have brand loyalty. And if it isn't this brand, it does not work (at least in my mind. That brand? Clorox.

And I am having a hard time letting go of my cleaning supplies. I do not understand how VINEGAR, LEMON JUICE, and WATER can GET RID OF THE GERMS and DISINFECT!? I will admit, I am a tad OCD about germs and to me, I need to SMELL the cleaning supplies to know the room is actually CLEAN!! I have posted before about my kitchen cleaning supplies and not much has changed. I still use:



but yet CAN'T LET GO OF:
I know that the wipes are not environmentally friendly at all, but in a pinch and for a quick clean-up, they are perfect for the bathroom and kitchen. We have them in both baths and under the sink.

Another cleaning supply not environmentally friendly?

The smell of bleach is strong and probably horrible for you, but dang, does it get my grout clean

And my best, most favoritest thing ever?

source

I puffy heart my Wet Jet. In fact, I dedicated an entire post to my discovery of the Wet Jet. I also love the regular Swiffer pads and we also use the one that extends so that I can get to the cobwebby corners and such.

So tell me, how did you give up your cleaning supplies and move on to "greener pastures?" I need some assistance in letting go!

How green are we? Part One

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I will admit it. We are not the most economically-friendly family. I feel like I try, but then I reflect on it and it really is a half-hearted attempt. This year, one of my resolutions was to become more "green" and to implement more eco-friendly methods into our family.

I am a huge fan of the cloth grocery bags and use them for EVERYTHING around the house. They are perfect for toting things to and from people's houses as well as to and from school (when I have an extra large amount of papers/projects to grade). But then when I go to the actual STORE, I forget them at home. Jen, who writes my NEW FAVORITEST BLOG, IHeart Organizing, stores her bags in this container and then pops the container right in her car! Incidentally, these containers with the green lids are my favorite Rubbermaid containers. They match my kitchen.

Source

We actually use the plastic grocery bags for cleaning kitty litter, so it is at least getting another use out of it without being thrown out!

We are also starting to recycle. We have lived in our house for almost two years and I finally searched out the recycling program in our city. They have recently changed it and made it more "user-friendly" by not forcing residents to separate by type of material and are now picking up once a week as opposed to every other week. I am really excited to finally start doing this because every time I throw out a milk jug, I feel extreme guilt.

So, how green are you? Do you recycle? How have you resolved to live greener this year? Stay tuned as we discuss green cleaning later this week!

Spring Cleaning

I am lucky to be able to have a spring break (one of the few perks of being a teacher) and have big plans to get my house decluttered, cleaned, and organized by the time I go back to school on Monday. The vast majority of our house is kept clean, but a few areas (extra bedroom, Master bedroom, closests) are not in the best of shape. I also want to get done all of the things that don't get done during the winter (hello, dirty windows) and get started on our landscape cleanup! So, here is our gameplan for the rest of the week:

Monday: Master bedroom. Closet, bag up clothes to donate, windows, dust and vacuum
Tuesday: 3rd bedroom (take bins of decor to garage, closet, gather paperwork to be shredded and shred, scrapbooking/desk area)
Wednesday: Kitchen (cabinets, pantry, drawers, scrub cupboards, sweep and mop floors)
Thursday: Windows
Friday: Outside (powerwash glider, clean out and prep herb pots, rake out and weed flower beds, make list of plants that are needed)

I am sure I will add to this as the week continues. Have you done your spring cleaning yet? What am I missing? Any tips or tricks you would like to share??

Quick Tip: Sink Cleaning

Every week, I give my sink a good scrub down and polish, along with the daily wipe-down it receives. So, here is what I use:

I have no idea why the picture is crooked...weird.

Anyway, first I scrub out the sink with Bar Keeper's Friend. To anyone with stainless steel pots and pans or sink, this should become your best friend. When I scorch a pan (hey, it happens to the best of us) or make something that is seemingly impossible to clean, this product does the trick!

The second step is to dump a handful of baking soda down your drains. Follow this up with approximately a cup of vinegar. Carefully pour the vinegar down the drain and then cover it and let it sit for about 10 minutes. After the vinegar has a chance to work its magic with the baking soda, pour hot water carefully down the drain.

You can use the same to clean your garbage disposal. Running ice cubes through your disposal will help to keep the blades sharp, and don't forget to toss your lemon rinds in there as well, to make your sink area smell fresh and clean! I also use biodegradable garbage disposal cleaners every few months as well, just in case I have missed some gunk.

Last step: Use Windex to make your sink shine! Now, doesn't your sink look fantastic??

PS: I have to give credit for these tips to the no-longer-in-existence Hyper Homemaker blog. Katie was my idol, and I still use her tips and tricks! A very much belated thank you for inspiring us to make our homes beautiful!

Sundays with Santa's Little Helpers!

Do the holidays make you light up with excitement? Do you burst at the seams just waiting for their arrival? Are you just nuts about decorating, baking and family parties? Well, if you answered yes, stick around! You are about to be bombarded with holiday goodness! But wait! If you said no, don’t go anywhere either! Why you ask? Because there is a good chance I know why you aren’t excited. Does the thought of the holidays make your skin crawl? Are you nervous and anxious at the same time? Does the chaos, entertaining, decorating, baking and cleaning make you want to hibernate with the bears? Well then you should stick around too! Sit back, grab a cup of spiced cider, hot cocoa, hot toddy or whatever else you like, for we are about to embark on a holiday challenge like never before!

I’ve teamed up with Kristen at The Working Woman’s Guide for Domestic Success and Molly at a My Happy House to bring you this series of posts in order to make your holidays painless. Starting next Sunday, we’ll each do a weekly post with the same theme and pump you full of knowledge while challenging you to do some of the same things we’re doing!

Are you as excited as we are? If so, post in the comments and tell me you are committed! We are going to conquer the holidays one week at a time, and it’ll be enjoyable- I PROMISE! And make sure to stop in every Sunday (well…you can stop in every day if you’d like…I’d like it…) and join Santa’s Little Helpers during the most wonderful time of the year!

Twilight Birthday Party

Jamie is having a sleepover for seven friends on Saturday night, and it is a Twilight-themed party. I made the invitations myself and when Jamie's friends received them, she was so proud to say, "My mom made them!" when they asked where she bought them!

Menu:

Taco Bar

-Taco meat

-Hard and soft tacos

-Lettuce

-Tomatoes

-Salsa

-Sour Cream

-Cheddar Cheese

-Taco sauce

Chips and dip

Cake and ice cream

And for breakfast, buttermilk pancakes and orange juice!

Timeline:

Thursday:

- Tint fondant black and red and mold chess piece and apple for cake.

-Print out Happy Birthday Jamie in Twilight font so I can write on her cake

-Clean bathrooms and clear out family room

-Bake sugar cookies and pumpkin roll (for Friday's "Thanksgiving dinner") and decorate

with royal icing

-Make Twilight jeopardy game

Friday:

-Dust and vacuum LR and DR

-Set up table and buffet for party on Saturday

-Bake and crumb coat cake

-Decorate LR and FR for party

-Dinner with friends!

-Decorate cake after dinner

Saturday:

-Up early because the girls have their Christmas pictures! Hair must be done and outfits

coordinated!

-Vacuum and dust FR

-Prep veggies for taco bar

-Try to survive an evening with 9 tweens!

-Cook BBQ pork tenderloin overnight in crockpot; leave to warm on Sunday

Sunday:

-Breakfast for the girls and kick them out before lunch

-Clean the disaster that I am sure my house will be

-Quick wipe-down of bathrooms

-Prep cheesy potatoes

-Bake second cake!

-Family over at 4 for dinner of BBQ pulled pork and cheesy potatoes

LOTS to get done in a few short days! It is so important to remain organized. I am keeping a

running list of things I am going to need at the store before this weekend, which is definitely helping!

My Kitchen Cleaning Must-Haves

These are the cleaning supplies that I use in my kitchen. I will be honest; I consider myself to be eco-conscious but not "green." I feel that kitchens and bathrooms MUST be disinfected for germs and all the other GROSSNESS that is tracked in. I would love to use more green or homemade cleaning products, but they do not have the disinfectant that other more harsh cleaners have. I am almost, but not quite, a germophobe, so I have a tendency to stick to Clorox products.

The Magic Eraser. Works wonders on my white painted kitchen cabinets and those really stubborn stains!

I am very neurotic and OCD about my counters, so I clean them several times a day with Clorox Green Works All-Purpose Cleaner. Again, excellent for a quick clean, but does not disinfect.

Then I use THIS GUY. Clorox Disinfecting Anywhere cleaner. The bonus about this is that it is safe enough to use around food, etc.
What did we do before Clorox wipes? I use them primarily for the bathrooms but keep them in the kitchen just in case. In an effort to be more eco-friendly, I steer away from them and paper towels for the most part. I purchase a stack of white washcloths from Target and use those for my counters. They can be tossed in with the rest of my bleach load of laundry.
And Bar Keepers Friend. Perfect for stainless steel and you can even use it on enamel. I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT for my SS pots and pans!
So what are YOUR kitchen cleaning MUST-HAVES? In preparation for our big kitchen clean-up this weekend, let's gather ideas and see what works best for everyone!

Christmas cleaning, continued

So I was really accomplished today and finished most of my to-do list for the day. I ended up sleeping until 11:45 (EEK!) and then got up and cleaned.

I started at the furthest end of our apartment with our bedroom. I cleaned that from top to bottom and then Chuck's bathroom (he is the only one who showers in it because J and I both hate shower doors). I vacuumed and dusted and even washed the bathroom floor! I did a few loads of laundry and put away the MOUNTAIN of clean clothes that were mine and in a ginormous pile in front of my dresser.

I moved on to the bathroom off the main hallway and scrubbed that as well, along with washing the floors. I was vacuuming the hall as I went along, and just have to finish up tomorrow.

Chuck got home from work and we decided to run some errands and head to Chipotle for dinner (YUM!). I got another stupid dozen eggs and some stuff to make a doughnut croquembouche. Except I decided to BUY the doughnuts and I am going to use chocolate to attach the candies instead of royal icing, because I am out of meringue powder (which I need to pick up on Friday). We came home and I rearrangd the furniture to set up for Christmas and give us a smidge more room.

Here is the disaster this morning:And here it is post-clean up and post-furniture move:

This is the view of our dining area; the table is extended and now I just have to set the table!

Here are my china dishes and the smaller accent Christmas plates I bought from Kohl's:


Aren't they the cutest!?


I threw together the batch of cranberry pistachio biscotti which is currently in the oven, I have another load of clothes drying, and I am going to toss one more in.

Tomorrow, I need to:

• Assemble croquembouche
• Make dough and prep scones (which includes cooking bacon)
  
• Assemble breakfast casseroles (which includes browning sausage)
• Vacuum
• Put together cookie trays for my uncle's house (just in case we go)
• Paint toenails!
• Get myself prettied up for Christmas Eve!