Things are coming together

Well, nervous as I am, things seem to be coming together. My procedure is set for Monday afternoon. It will be fine, it's just never fun facing this kind of thing.

I feel as though I have left my colleagues in a good place with what I accomplished this week at work. At home, I'm caught up on laundry and almost caught up on the dishes (and I still have all day tomorrow).

I have a meal plan made up that is full of easy options that my husband will have no problem pulling together himself until I'm back in the saddle.

I've done a little extra decluttering and cleaning this week, not as much as I should in a 'normal' week, but this week was not normal.

I'm even all caught up recording our receipts in my budgeting system and we have cash on hand to cover the ridiculous parking fees at the hospital.

All that's really left to do is to pack. I've been thinking about it a little and I believe I have a good idea of the bare essentials that I want to bring. I'll take care of that tomorrow.

Praying for peace and a speedy recovery.

Thank you for joining me on my journey as a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva

Alternate Motivations

Well, it's that time of the year again! Everyone has resolved to get fit, get organized, etc. Me? I am working on getting organized again, but I have alternate motivations. I have some medical stuff coming up and I won't be able to do much for a few weeks, so I would like to have things mostly in order beforehand, both at home and at work.

It's funny, I've been following different organizing, homemaking, and productivity sites for years, so I've heard so many strategies and tips.... they all seem very repetitive sometimes and I start to see the patterns most of them use.

That being said, all the information in the world is useless if you don't apply it!

So it's January 1st and I'm jumping on the bandwagon with so many others, and there's nothing wrong with that.

The main focus is baby-steps to avoid crash-and-burn. I don't need to be Wonder Woman, I just need to be me. It is also important that I spend some time with my husband, and since I work full-time, I need to take small organizing projects here and there, so I'm not spending all of my home-time ignoring my family.

I'm going to work through 3 main systems and incorporate them into my life with baby-steps and all of the general knowledge I have.

1. Taylor from Home Storage Solutions 101 has a Facebook group called Declutter 365 that I am a part of. I joined sometime in December with the intention of starting today. She has created calendars with daily missions for decluttering and links to more detailed information. And there is a great community on the Facebook group that talk about each mission, ask questions, and share their accomplishments.
2. Flylady, of course. I had definitely fallen off this bandwagon, but I'm working on baby-stepping my way back. Her set up is a great system of routines and encouragement. The only problem I've ever found with it was incorporating her zones into the layout of my house, which is quite different from her 'norm', but all it really took was a few minutes to sit down and figure out how to mesh it together.
3. The Secret. Lol! I'm also part of a 'secret' Facebook group that is a spinoff of a forum I used to be on. I'm making the commitment to join in on more of those conversations for the community, encouragement, and accountability.

Happy New Year!

Thank you for joining me on my journey as a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva

Progress not Perfection?

Progress not Perfection?

I wish progress was going a little faster, but at least it's something. The process with the insurance company seems to be dragging out a lot longer than it should, but we will get there eventually.

I'm currently working on setting up the new computers, figuring out Windows 8, and reconstructing the information from our budget spreadsheet.

Christmas is coming at the same rate, regardless of my situation, so I'm starting in on "all that stuff" also. My sister was over last weekend with her kidlets, who thoroughly entertained "Uncle Mark" while she and I did some baking. The kids helped some and we got done what we wanted to.

Our family has traditional Christmas 'goodies' that we like to have each year. So my sister and I have developed a chart with recipe names across the top, ingredients down the sides, and amounts filled in the middle. The amounts for each ingredient are totaled in one column and then each is assigned to one of us. We each contribute some of the ingredients and split the goodies when we are done.

Do you get together with anyone for Christmas baking? Do you do a cookie exchange? Comment on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page!

Thank you for joining me, it really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva 

Thinking About Christmas?

First off, I have to tell you, yes, in my opinion, it is still way too early for Christmas decorations and music. But, now is the perfect time to plan!

It's mid-November, craft shows are in high gear and we're starting to get into make-ahead season. Now is the time to set aside some extra time and some extra money (if you haven't already) to make sure that Christmas doesn't surprise you.

I encourage you to spend some time thinking about what you are going to do this year. Just ask yourself some questions and write down the answers:

• Who is on your gift list?
• How much money do you plan on spending on gifts?
• What might you get for each person?
• Are there any crafts you need to get going on?
• How many get-togethers do you want to go to?
• Are you hosting any of these get-togethers?
• What goodies are you going to bake?
• What baking can be made ahead?
• And don't forget your family traditions!

November is a great time to get started on crafts and baking. A friend of mine has a craft show every year with her mother and one or two other vendors. I always go and usually get all my stocking-stuffers there.

My sister and I bake together, and we had our first session on Saturday. It was extra fun this year because now my seven-year-old niece is old enough to help (not just busy-work 'help' but actually help). We make our list, pick our dates and split the groceries. It's always a lot of fun.

If you start planning now, you can beat the rush and avoid the malls on crazy December Saturdays. If you can swing it, try going on a weekday-day during November to get a head start on your gift buying.

Thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva or by email at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

A Welcoming Change - Peace

Well, it's a new year. 2013. It's going to take a while to remember to write all my dates properly... I'm sure I'll be erasing 2012 several times this week :)

A new year is a fresh start, resolutions, commitments, goals - all are floating through our heads. Yet, I'd like to caution you not to go overboard. The stereotypical 'get fit' resolutions that translate into 'go to the gym twice in January' resolutions are basically useless. We put too much pressure on ourselves, push really hard for a short while, then 'crash and burn'.

I'd encourage you to make smaller, incremental, resolutions.

I got a great form emailed to me from Marcia Francois called '2013 Intentions'. She asked us to choose a word for the year. I chose 'peace'. I want to make a calm home where we can relax and enjoy life. By focusing on my 'word for the year' I can more clearly choose my goals to fit inside 'peace'.

Naturally, clutter and chaos in a home takes away from 'peace'. So decluttering is on my list - my house definitely would NOT qualify for Hoarders but it can use some work. The main areas are decent but can be tweaked and the 'extra' rooms, especially 'my' rooms need overhauls.

BUT, I don't want to crash and burn, so I'm baby-stepping it. Easy as 1, 2, 3!

1. Knock out something small - Instead of writing down everything I can possibly think of to do, I'm spending some extra time flitting around taking care of the small tasks that don't take very long.
2. Just 15 minutes - This one's ingrained in my from Flylady, you don't have to do everything, just work on it for 15 minutes and make some progress. You'll be amazed at what you can do in 15 minutes!
3. Add to routines in babysteps - Don't add 25 things to your daily to do list today, add one thing and work at making it part of your routine, when you feel comfortable with that, add one more thing.

Will you 1-2-3 with me? What is your 'word for the year'?


Thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva or by email at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

Countdown to the Holidays! Feeling Crafty!

Happy Halloween everyone!

First off, I need to share my favorite Halloween tip with you before I forget:

COUNT the kiddies! Do it however you want - make a tally chart, count how many bags of chips are left and compare to how many you bought (don't forget to account for the ones you ate). Do whatever works for you, but count them. Write the number down and somewhere logical (I have a page in my holiday binder that I made up with cute, free Halloween graphics). Then next year you have a good idea of how many kids will be coming and how much candy to buy (plus extra for you). No need to steal from your kids' haul or get egged for being stingy :)

I hope you're all ready for the festivities tonight. My candy has been sitting by the door since we bought it, waiting patiently for tonight. I'll pull out my HUGE mixing bowl and pour the candy in and I'm all set!

I know it's still early, but now is the time to think about Christmas crafting, if you do any, or want to start. PLEASE don't over-burden yourself. Don't plan to make everyone on your list a cool afghan and then beat yourself up because you couldn't finish. Sit down and think about how much time you realistically have. Not how much time you'd have if no one ever got sick, had an appointment, or a flat tire that took up some of your time. Realistic time. Then cut it in half. Really. You don't want to over-burden yourself. Decide what you can do in THAT amount of time (half of your realistic time). Maybe make something small for several people or something big for one person. Start thinking about what you will make and pick up any materials you need so you can get started by next week to keep the pressure off.

I'm still learning to sew, so for me, this year all I'm committing to is stockings. I'm going to make us our own stockings. We've been using ones we just 'happened to have', but I want us to have OURS. I'm still having trouble deciding if I want to go 'classic' or 'fun' with them. But I have decided I want to do 2 or 3 coordinating fabrics mixing and matching for both stockings. So his will be made from fabric A and decorated with fabrics B and C and mine will be made from fabric B and decorated with fabrics A and C... make sense? Fat quarters should be the perfect size. I laid my stocking over a folded fat quarter, and there's lots of space for a seam allowance and extra decorating fabric. Now we just need to get to the fabric store :)

My sister and started our Christmas baking last week. We're doing 3 days over 6 weeks spreading it out and sharing ingredients. We made the freezable stuff first and will save the icing for the last day. We'll be finishing up on November 22nd, if plans don't change. Now THAT'S a stress-free holiday. I'll probably do more baking on my own, just because I can, but I'll have my Christmas 'necessities' done and no pressure on anything else.


Thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva or by email at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

Countdown to the Holidays! - Thanksgiving Prep

Hello everyone!

Since I'm making Turkey Dinner for my in-laws on Monday, I'm trying to spread my prep work out so I'm just doing a little each day.

Today I turned my turkey over (hoping this will help it thaw more evenly) in the fridge. I went over my recipes again and pulled out the rest of the ingredients I needed out of the freezer so they will be thawed in time.

I got out my turkey roasting pan (which I pretty much only use for Thanksgiving and Christmas) and washed it along with the rest of the dishes. DH put the dishwasher on for me, and I'm having my normal laundry day.

I'll also have a '15 minute tidy' later on, to baby-step the whole 'cleaning the house for company' thing. It's not too bad, just needs some touch ups. :)

It's cool and rainy today, maybe I'll do some baking, too. We'll see.

Are you getting ready for the big day?

Thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva or by email at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

Coundown to the Holidays! Getting it Together

Well, they DID actually have turkeys in stock yesterday morning, yay! So now I have two. One is defrosting in my fridge for Thanksgiving and the other is waiting patiently in my chest freezer for Christmas.

If you're cooking a turkey this year, it's time to get it thawing :) And  while you're putting the turkey in the fridge, you might want to clean it out. Not clean-wash, clean-declutter. Well, you can clean-wash if you want to. I'll be cleaning out my fridge today to make room for Thanksgiving.


While I was in town yesterday I also picked up bread at Westons - so much cheaper than the grocery store. They bake the name-brand bread and deliver to the grocery stores. What the stores don't sell the day of, gets returned, and I can get one-day-older bread at the Westons thrift store for less than half price! I was nice and grabbed two squished loaves as part of my purchase - they can be for stuffing.

Today is Thanksgiving grocery day for me. I'm going to look at my Thanksgiving Planner and pull the recipes for the dishes I picked. Then I'll check the fridge, freezers and pantry for what I already have and make a grocery list for what I don't, then it's off the the store! Shouldn't be too much. I already did a 'normal' grocery trip. This is just holiday 'touch-up'.



Thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me on the Homemaking Diva Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HomemakingDiva or by email at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

Clear and Free!

Well, after my last post I got to work. I cleared some space in the spare room downstairs that is going to be storage and a guest room eventually. Then I started to declutter up in my dressing room (also crafting room). DH was wondering what I was doing as I took load after load of stuff downstairs.

I did not just move my junk. I decluttered a bunch of stuff, put several things in more logical places, and even took my beautiful angel candle holder OUT of the box and put it on display in our front entry. Admission - it's been in the box since we got it.... but I'm using it now!

I took care to only put things downstairs that made sense to be there for storage: The luggage, extra pillows and blankets, 'decor' items not currently in rotation, and containers (nice boxes, empty plastic totes...).

The plan is to build my sewing table (cool idea I have from pinterest using bookshelves) in the middle of the room, so I moved what was left towards the walls. I grabbed my Rubba Sweepa and pulled up a bunch of hair :S Then I vacuumed really well.

I pulled out one of the bookshelves to build and discovered that it's a two person job, so it's going to have to wait a bit.

For now I'm enjoying my accomplishment. In the near future I'll have the table and start learning to sew!


Thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Love,
Valerie :D

Please comment or send your questions to me at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

Almost Christmas!

OK people, it's the day before Christmas Eve!

Challenge #1: This is the LAST day that you WANT to do any shopping, so triple-check your fridge against your list (if you don't have a list, you want a basic plan/idea of what you will eat from now until at least breakfast on the 27th). And check your presents if they're not done and get going! You want to enjoy Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day with family. Besides, many places will be closed, have weird hours, or be packed because they're the only ones open.

Challenge #2: Take something OFF your list! Make one less side for Christmas dinner, do one less activity, clean one less area (just close that door). YOU need enjoy Christmas also :)

Challenge #3: Pre-prep! What can you do today so you don't have to do tomorrow? What can you do tomorrow that you don't have to do Christmas Day? What can you do in the morning so you don't have to do right as Christmas Dinner is being served?

I have most of my wrapping done, just the gifts for my nieces and nephews left, but they're for the 2nd, and I HAVE the gifts. I'm hosting Christmas Dinner with my in-laws Christmas Eve. I'm making Saving Dinner's white bean dip today and one of my sides today. I'm going to make the mashed potatoes in the MORNING and put them in the crock cooker with a little butter over the top on 'keep warm' (this is a FABULOUS tip, but you really should TEST your crock before you try this for a meal, different crocks have different temperatures and as Leanne Ely says: 'Your mileage may vary' you don't want them to scorch). I'm also going to arrange my 'goodie tray' while the potatoes are boiling (and stick it covered in the garage).

So that means I'll only have one SIMPLE side to make while the turkey is 'resting' and I'm making the gravy :)

Saving Dinner's Christmas Morning Strata has become a tradition for us. (I usually half the recipe because we're only 2 people and then we eat it for a few days - love the toaster oven for re-heats!) It's super-good, decadent but easy AND you prep it the night before, and just pull it out of the fridge and bake in the morning! LOVE that!

Here's to a less stressful time! Merry Christmas!

So anyway, thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Please comment or send your questions to me at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

Have great day!

Valerie :D

Grocery Shopping

OK, people, let's talk food!

Everybody needs to eat and cooking your own food is the easiest way to be healthier and to save money. Now in order for cooking at home to save you time, you have to take a little time to do some planning. Running to the store or the drive through every evening wastes an incredible amount of time, plus knowing ahead of time what you want to make takes the stress out of dinner.

I try to grocery shop only once a week, usually when my list of dinner entrees is down to one and/or the milk is running low. I start with a menu plan. I have a pretty good idea of what food I already have in the house, so I can usually plan most of my meals around what's on hand and what's on sale. So my menu planning is really simple: I pick 6 entrees for dinners. That's it. As I pick the entrees I list ingredients that I don't already have on my shopping list and then I'm mostly all set. I quickly go through the flyer and see what else I "need" then I look in the fridge and pantry to scan for any staples that we're out of. I add that to the list, grab my shopping bags, and I'm ready to go.

Now, you may have noticed that I've been using a lot of singular words, so yes, I only shop at one grocery store and I really like that. It's the store closest to me, the next closest one is 10 minutes further away, and while 10 minutes doesn't sound like much, I'm not driving 10 extra minutes both ways every week just to save 15 cents on apples (or whatever). And even if I lived close to several stores, I still really like only shopping at one. I can find things faster because I am familiar with my store, I only have to stand in line once, and I only have to look through one flyer each week. I don't have to take the time to compare (and keep track of) pricing and sales at several stores.

Also, I have made up a form grocery list with items I buy frequently in an aisle by aisle format for my grocery store in the order I walk through the store. So picture that my piece of paper is divided into 12 squares and each square has several lines listing items (and prices) I frequently buy with a few spaces for other things to be written in. Because when I walk in the store I first come to the produce, deli, and bread departments, the first box has items I buy in those departments listed. (I enter the store, walk around the outside U of the store and then go through the centre aisles.) The second box is the meats and milk, the third is the dairy, frozen foods, eggs, and refrigerated juices. Then I get one box per middle aisle with those items listed and the best thing is that if I don't need anything in aisle 7, I don't have to walk through it!

I hope that form makes sense because it's really helpful to have one and I encourage you to make one. I did mine on the computer, but you don't have to. If you're already shopping at one store, you can start making it now. When you are familiar with a store you can remember roughly where things are. You know if you start in the middle or the outside of the store. Don't make your list in my order, make it in the order you walk around the store. Think about where you go first and write down a few things that you get in that aisle, then think about where you go next and continue the process. If you don't remember if the cereal is in aisle 5 or 6 don't worry about it, try to remember everything that you get from the cereal aisle and the next time you're in the store you can edit your list. It will take a few times to get it the way you want it, but that's ok. I still edit mine on occasion, but for the most part, I have the set up done.

When I started my form I didn't include prices, I added those later. I put down the regular price and the brand(in shorthand) of what I like to buy and that way I can tell if a deal is really all that great. Also, each square in the chart has a column for writing down how much you want and a column for checking it off.

So anyway, thank you for joining me, and I hope I can help you! It really is fun to be a Homemaking Diva!!

Please comment or send your questions to me at homemakingdiva@hotmail.com

Have great day!

Valerie :)
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