Spring Cleaning, Decluttering, and Decorating.

The three topics in this post may not seem related, but I think you'll agree that they really are, once you have read this.

Spring Cleaning.

Being able to open the windows and let fresh air and sunshine stream in, seems to put people in the mood to “spring clean,” especially after a long, dark winter.  Along with doing some neglected deep cleaning, I am hoping to purge our home of some accumulated but unnecessary possessions this spring!

40 Bags in 40 Days

In a Declutter Challenge project called “40 bags in 40 days,” participants attempt to remove 40 trash bags full of unnecessary stuff from their homes over a 40 day period. I first found out about this from a blog called White House Black Shutters.  That blogger (Ann Marie) gave credit to the blog Clover Lane, as the place she first heard of this challenge. I have been unable to discover its actual origin, but this project is often associated with the 40 days of Lent.  It is an idea that has been in practice for a while; I found a post about it on the blog Simply Catholic, dating back to 2008.  One bag a day would really add up - and seems a lot easier to manage than my typical, unrealistic philosophy of “I’m going to declutter the whole house this weekend.”  Lent is almost over, but this project is applicable any time of year.  I’m in!

But wait - not so fast!

I'm going to be ruthless but cautious, when deciding what to discard!

Three of these beautifully painted hollow eggs were a high school graduation gift to me from a dear friend.  (I prefer not to calculate how many years I have treasured and enjoyed them!)

Many possessions can bog us down, and it is frequently advised that getting rid of items can have a liberating emotional affect.  Too much stuff is too much!  This is true, but my advice is be careful not to get too carried away.  Evaluate each item, for both its usefulness and sentimental value.  If it has both, and you have room to store it - it may be a good idea to keep it. This applies to most things, including childhood artwork.  

Be sure, however, that if you are keeping an item for sentimental reasons, the sentiment associated with it is a positive one!  I was given five beautiful hollow eggs as a graduation gift, hand painted by my friend.  Somewhere along the way, two of them became partially crushed.  I continued to save those anyway for years, and buried the crushed ends out of sight in the straw when I displayed them at Easter. One year, though, I realized that the guilt over not taking better care of them was weighing me down, and I threw the damaged ones away.  The value of the gift has not diminished - I still have three beautiful eggs as a reminder of that friendship - but none of the guilt.  Possessions should not make us feel guilty or unhappy!  

Childhood Artwork

Artwork made by our children, or even saved from our own childhood, can be precious but copious! Apply the rule in the previous paragraph, and ask yourself questions such as these:

• Useful?  Is it something you could decorate with, learn from or teach with, pass on to a future generation? Does it have a use?
• Sentimental? Probably all of your children's artwork is of sentimental value but which pieces evoke the strongest memory or emotion?
• Room to store it?   Decide what would be a reasonable amount of space to devote to storing artwork, and decide if you want this item to take up some of that space.  Could you save just a photo of this project, and be just as happy?  Do you already have another similar piece, and is one enough?

Once you answer these questions, you will have a pretty good idea of what you should keep.

 Inexpensive yet Priceless Decorations

For years, long after artistic abilities improved, I have decorated using some of the art my children made when they were small.  I treasure the elementary school ceramics that grace the mantle in our living room.  My laundry room (where I spend a lot of time!) is a cheerful art gallery of grade school projects.  I packed away favorite seasonal school projects in the appropriate boxes of holiday decorations, and we enjoy displaying them during Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas each year.

Luckily, my children had the same teacher for 2nd grade, so I have one of these pretty eggs made by each of them!

Holiday decorations need not be expensive or take a lot of room to store, especially if you use and reuse items you already have.  In addition to my kids projects from the past, I often look around my house to see what I already own that might be useful.  For instance, without buying a thing, I created a bird feeder, to use as a Christmas decoration and Valentine's Day Decoration, with only minor alterations.  (Click on these links for instructions* on how I made the feeder and modified it.)   The egg “tree” pictured near the beginning of this post was decorated with Christmas lights and holly sprigs in December.

Our marble collection was the perfect filler for the "lollipop bouquets " I've been using as an Easter centerpiece.  

Sunshine, plants beginning to grow on the South side of our house, and a slight tinge of green in the grass (uncovered when the snow melted yesterday), made me decide to take a few of these photos outdoors today - even though the decorations pictured are usually inside!

I love the idea of cutting down on clutter, but carefully consider what you are discarding as you put it into one of your 40 trash bags!

What is taking up unnecessary space in your home?

Have you ever thrown out or given away something that you later regretted?

A word of gratitude to my mother-in-law, who over the years has provided us with many holiday decorations, such as the ceramic bunny basket and Easter figurines in these photos!

*10/4/14 NOTE: The links to the articles mentioned do not currently work, as the site they was published on is no longer in existence. I apologize for this inconvenience, and if they are republished, I will update the links. Updated: 11/11/2015  Here is a link to the republished instructions: An Easy Christmas Gift  - for the Birds!

Spring Soccer

We woke up to soccer weather this morning.

This is actually the corner of a photo I took last fall - but the sky is even darker today.  After I cropped this photo,  the mountains and clouds lost a lot of definition and now almost look like they were painted!

The past few days have been lovely - temperatures in the mid to high 60’s (Fahrenheit) and mostly sunny.  When I went to bed last night it was 44 degrees. This morning it is 37 degrees, very overcast and alternating between rain, sleet and snow.  Definitely a soccer day.  Spring soccer where I live can be a very cold, wet sport - for players and spectators both!

Today is the first day of the spring season for my son's club soccer team.  He plays - I just watch. We have been a ”soccer family” for many years now, and my son has played in a variety of club, high school and travel teams.  Remembering what it was like to be a new soccer parent or spectator, I recently wrote an article on Five Things You Should Take to a Kid's Soccer Game, and today seems to be a good day to share it on this blog. Just click on the link if you are interested in reading it.

This season my son is playing with a new combination of boys, under a new coach.  I'm looking forward to bundling up and watching them play!

What is spring soccer like where you live?

10/4/14 Note: The link for Five Things You Should Take to a Kid's Soccer Game has been updated, as the old link was no longer functional. I apologize for any inconvenience!

Words to Live By - Week 3

The cover of one of my notepads suggests ways we should live more and live less.  Inspired by this message, (on Friday, March 28th, 2014) I wrote a post about "Words to Live By."  I have decided to make weekly updates to this post, until I start repeating myself!  I promise each weekly update will contain more information than just the five new phrases though!

Readers are invited to use the comment section below, if they have new ideas of "words to live by" which would complete the phrase _____________ more. ______________ less."

(Any time I use an idea that is not mine, I will credit the contributor and their blog, if they have one.  Just keep it family friendly, please!)

Here are the ideas for this week:

Give more. Take less.

Sleep more.  Stay up late less.

Eat healthy foods more.  Eat junk food less.
Smile more.  Frown less.
Wash hands more. Get sick less.

Good hand washing is the number one way to stop the spread of infection!  During flu season, or if someone in your family is immunocompromised, you might even consider providing disposable individual towels (or paper towels) to be used.

By the way, I only ran the water a few seconds for this photo, so it wasn't very wasteful!   Click on the link in the photo caption for a tutorial on correct hand hygiene from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). 

And yes, the hand-prints in the photo were made by one of my children years ago!

Just as a reminder --

Here is the list of phrases from previous posts: 

Love more. Fight less.

Enjoy more. Complain less.
Believe more. Doubt less.
Relax more. Worry less.
Play more. Work less. 

Praise more. Criticize less.

Read more.  Waste time less.
Promote equality more. Oppress less.
Exercise more. Eat less. 
Conserve more. Pollute less. 

Laugh more. Stress less. (“Anonymous”)

Listen more. Talk less.  (“Anonymous”)

Be brave more.  Fear less.

Donate more. Hoard less.

Achieve more.  Procrastinate less.

This notepad is from the Eccolo World Traveler "Lofty Thinking" collection.  The author of the words is unknown.

Many thanks to any readers who take the time to comment.

I'm trying to live more, not less.  How about you?  

What suggestions do you have?

Busy Day Pasta with Creamy Shrimp Sauce

A busy day.  You know the sort of day.  The hours just seemed to fly by: packed with work, errands, phone calls and writing or what-have-you.  Suddenly, you look at the clock and realize, "Oh NO, it is almost dinner time."  You realize your hungry family will be expecting to have a meal soon - and you have nothing planned.  Nothing.  What can you do?

This is unfortunately a common scenario in my home - even more so, now that I get immersed in writing or blogging projects.  Just a few weeks ago, I looked up from the computer and realized with horror that it was after six o’clock, I hadn't grocery shopped all week, and I had no plan for dinner.

A look in my pantry and some creativity saved the day.  I proceeded to throw together what I hoped would be a palatable and satisfying meal from the ingredients I had on hand.  In the process, I realized it might actually even border on great - and decided to take a few photos.  I rationalized that if it was delicious, not only would my family enjoy it - but I could write about it!  Multi-tasking, right?!

The recipe did turn out to be a good one, as well as ultra-easy, requiring quite staple ingredients that can be modified with whatever you actually have on hand.  The hardest part was giving it a name, before I could write about it though.  Why do I struggle so much to come up with titles?  I decided to just call it “Busy Day Pasta with Creamy Shrimp Sauce."

I have made this recipe twice now, and my family enjoyed it both times.  The second time was from memory during our spring break vacation in California.  The ingredients were something we could easily purchase and use up during the short time we were there, and the vacation rental home kitchen was stocked with all of the minimal cooking tools needed.  I hope if you try this recipe, you will enjoy it as much as we have!

Here are most of the ingredients you will need for this recipe, although the cream was still in the fridge when this photo was taken! Oh, and a disclaimer! I am not attempting to endorse any particular brands - I just happened to have shopped at one particular store for most of these ingredients.   The green blobs are my frozen homemade pesto.

My Recipe: Busy Day Pasta with Creamy Shrimp Sauce

Ingredients:

Note:  Quantities are suggestions, and can be modified as you desire

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (enough to coat pan)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 red pepper, seeded, cut in quarters and then sliced fairly thin
• 1 clove garlic (optional if using pesto)
• 2 tablespoons pesto*
•  (OR 1-2 additional cloves garlic, and a generous tablespoon of Italian Herb seasoning
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1/3 lb. (or more if you prefer) shrimp (fresh or frozen, but thawed)
• 1/3 cup half and half (or whole cream)  
• 12 - 16 oz spaghetti or linguine noodles
• salt and pepper
• Shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)

Don't hesitate to make substitutions, such as:

• chicken instead of shrimp 
• any color of pepper would be fine
• add canned or fresh, sliced mushrooms for even more flavor … 
• Italian herb seasonings are available from various different vendors, or you can make your own combination of dried oregano, parsley, basil or whatever herbs you prefer.

*A note on Pesto:

You can use either store bought or homemade in this recipe.  I like to freeze my homemade pesto, shaped into 1 tbsp. balls.  I add these to sauces while still frozen.

Directions:

1. Fill a large pot with water, and bring to a boil.
2. While water is heating, chop onion and pepper, and mince the garlic.  If necessary, continue thawing shrimp under cold running water, and remove tails.
3. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.  Add onion, red pepper and garlic and sauté until nearly soft.
4. Add pesto (or Italian spices) and can of diced tomatoes with juice.  Simmer about 5 minutes.   
5. Once water comes to a boil, add pasta and cook according to directions.
6. Just before pasta is done, add shrimp to tomato sauce and cook until just cooked (if using fresh) and heated through.  Try not overcook the shrimp!
7. Drain pasta.  Stir cream into sauce.  Season with salt as desired.
8. Serve pasta with sauce, freshly ground pepper and shredded Parmesan cheese.

A nice accompaniment would be a salad and bread, if you have the time and the ingredients.

Voila!  “Busy Day Pasta with Creamy Shrimp Sauce.”

The name I gave this recipe is descriptive - but pretty boring!  

What would you have named it - and what title would you have used for this post?  

What Defines You?

This is not the post I planned on writing today, but after reading about a young woman on Facebook, I realized she has a message I would like to help share.  Her name is Lizzie Velasquez, and she has truly figured out how to make the most of her moments.

I follow A Mighty Girl on Facebook (they post wonderful content about women and girls).  In their recent post (embedded below) they introduced me to Ms. Velasquez.

After reading about Lizzie Velasquez on Facebook, I was interested in learning more, so I visited her webpage, www.aboutlizzie.com.  There, I was able to view a YouTube video of her Ted Talk, “Brave. Starts. Here.”  She challenged everyone in the audience to figure out “what defines you.”  She explained that once she realized it is not her physical appearance that defines her, she was able to rise above the cyber-bullying she had experienced.  She decided to turn those negative things “around and use them as a ladder to climb up to my goals.”

During the development of this blog, I have been trying to give it a personality, to find a niche and to figure out what defines it.  In doing so, I have realized I need to do some self-assessment as well.  I think this will all be best accomplished if I remember to follow Ms. Velasquez's suggestion, to “let my goals, my success and my accomplishments be the things that define me” (and this blog).

I hope you will read through the write-up by A Mighty Girl, and listen to Lizzie's Ted Talk.  It will only take about 15 minutes, and I can guarantee the time it takes will inspire you to make even better use of all of your other moments.

I think Lizzie Velasquez is every bit as beautiful as any person I have ever seen or heard.

Post by A Mighty Girl.

Seven Ways to make the Most of a Moment - Week 3

Life is made up of many moments.  
Getting the very most out of your life starts with how you use each one. 

Here are this week’s suggestions:

1.  Next time someone in your family is traveling without you, put a little note of love or encouragement in their suitcase.

2.  Make someone a birthday cake. Even if it is lopsided, it will show how much you care!

3.  Remember to take your pets to the Vet to get their vaccinations done on time.

4.  Prepare a tasty snack for your kids and their friends, here's one to try: A Split-Second, Super-Easy Snack.

5.  Get up early enough to watch the sun rise - and take time to appreciate it!

6.  If a book has been made into a movie, try to read the book first.  I loved Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.

7.  The movie Frozen is a must-see, but be prepared to get the tunes stuck in your head!

How are you getting the most out of all your moments?
  If you share your ideas in a comment, I might include them in a future list!

(I'll be sure to credit you, and your blog if you have one, if I do.) 


10/4/14  NOTE: The original link for A Split-Second, Super-Easy Snack no longer exists. It has been updated to link to a post on this blog, where my recipe has been published.