Home Sanctuary

Turn in April Points!

I missed you all yesterday!  I'm back in Big Spring, TX, finishing up the murals for Life Church's children's wing.  With a day and a half to go, I'm starting to feel *hope* that I will be able to complete everything. Prayers are welcome.  I'll save yesterday's thwarted Small Thing for another day, because TODAY is the day to turn in points for April. Woo!

Did you keep track of points this month?  Don't worry if you missed some days or only had a chance to do a few things.  Life is like that sometimes....but just keep on trying.  Even if you are simply reading the Small Thing and walking away without doing anything, something good is still happening inside you.  You're starting to see how little things can add up, and how much small things count in life. This is priceless, my sweet Company Girls!

Since I'm out of town and things are just a little more difficult on my laptop, I will remind us of the great prizes we are "competing" for this month by linking to it here.  You will LOVE Ikea's products, and believe me...$75.00 can go a long way in that store. The Random Drawing prize is a wonderful book, Dancing with my Father, by Sally Clarkson.

Today's Small Thing takes TWO steps, but both are easy and will only take a minute.

1. Fill out the pretty "points form" below, created by Joyce at Keeping Up with the Moys.. Check it OUT!  She put it together, sent me the links and instructions...and WOW! We've gone from "bumpkin" to "professional" in one fell swoop around here! Thank you so much, Joyce, for streamlining this process for me.  You are awesome.

2. Leave a comment, letting us know what your favorite Small Thing of the month was. Now that we have an official form, this might seem a little redundant, but the reason I ask for the comment on the blog is for the benefit of other readers, who might not otherwise know how much fun/meaningful/silly/helpful they are.  If you only want to comment on the Small Thing once, just do it here on the blog, rather than in the form. I don't want to over-burden you.

Are you on the fence, wondering if you should give the Small Things a try? A whole new month is just about to begin...and that's a PERFECT time to jump in and give them a shot. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain...plus you get a whole new group of friends to do the easy tasks with. Start making your home a sanctuary with us...c'mon!

Company Girl Coffee

I’m back in Big Spring, TX to finish up Life Church’s children’s murals. Everything looks exactly as I left it.

Half done.

To get into the spirit of painting "on the road", the first thing I did was splurge on Sonic fast food for dinner.

The strawberry-banana smoothie was an excellent choice.

 

The large order of tater tots was not. What was I thinking??

 

 

I knew half way through the carton that I would regret it, but I waited until I was completely finished with them to let the feeling of remorse finally sink in. Is it any wonder that the package itself says, “Don’t feel bad about eating these tots?” Feeling bad about eating greasy deep fried nuggets of shredded potatoes that make your intestines complain must be a universal reaction.

I hope ya'll have had a great week. Company Girl Coffee is our chance to link up and makes some new friends/visit with old friends.  Just grab the coffee logo that's over in the right sidebar and put it into your blog post...and then put your link here.  Non-bloggers are encouraged to visit with us in the comments...and don't forget we also have a community with a forum for chatting as well!

Internet trouble

Hi ladies! I'm out of town and can't get Internet service this morning. So my post will have to wait until tomorrow. Waah! I will see you then.

Love, Rachel Anne

Little Crooked House

We've done this one before, but I love a good nursery rhyme to go with my home keeping, don't you?

There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile,
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.
He bought a crooked cat, which caught a crooked mouse.
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.

This was a fun little poem to recite when I was a small child.  But as an adult, I find that it mocks me.  I glance around my hovel and think that old guy would feel right at home here.  Yep, bring your crooked little cat, too, my decrepit friend. There isn't a straightened item in here to make you feel uncomfortable.

When I try and work around a disaster in every room, I get so depressed I start hunching up my shoulders and walking around like the old man in the poem.   Real crooked-like.

One thing that helps me get my head in the game is to take a few minutes to straighten things up around the house.  The best thing I ever discovered was Minimum Maintenance, a method designed by my housekeeping guru, Bonnie McCullough.

We've extolled the virtues of a Minimum Maintenance habit many times.  But for today, we'll do a shorter version of it and get the same amount of points as if we did the full-blown job.

Today's Small Thing is to give yourself 5 to 15 minutes, no more, and just see what a little bit of straightening can do.  You could grab a trash bag and dump old newspapers and paper plates with last night's nachos in for greater impact.  Tuck pillows and cushions where they belong, clear off the coffee table, toss the dirty socks into the laundry.  Work like you mean it for a few minutes!  You can even enlist the help of your little crooked kids, if you'd like.

I find that my general posture AND outlook improves when things are straight.  I can think about other, more pressing, things with a mental sharpness that is impressive...if not poetic.

POINTS: 40 for 5-15 minutes of walking the line by straightening things up

BONUS POINTS: 20 for getting someone to help you....but just for 5-15 minutes or they might balk the next time.  Try setting a timer if you think you might go overboard.

Confession is good for the soul: what's the oddest, oldest or messiest thing you straightened today?

Timing is Everything

http://www.flickr.com/photos/angies/15688998/

One evening awhile back, I was checking email, reading blogs and doing my own thing.  My husband Tom was in the room with me, watching TV and doing his own thing.  Companionable silence, it was nice.

Suddenly, out of the blue, he says, "Hey, I don't really like the way you have your hair right now."

I lifted my eyes from the screen and fixed my gaze upon him.  I pursed my lips.

Oooh KAAAY.  I'll log THAT away.

"Oh really."  Do tell.

"It just makes your head look kind of boxy on top."

Diggin' a hole, buddy.

"I liked it better the other way."

Diggin' a deeper hole, pal.

Now he's talking faster, as if he's realized he's in dangerous territory.  Except for my raised eyebrows, I feel I am maintaining incredible cool. 

"I just saw this newscaster on TV and thought she had good hair and that reminded me that I was meaning to tell you that I liked it  better when it flipped out more on the sides or something...."  he trails off and mumbles incoherently.

"Well, thanks for the advice," I say.  I was annoyed.  Why would you bring THAT up out of nowhere?

I was still annoyed an hour later as we were getting ready to crawl in for the night.  I ripped the covers over me and made a point of getting my pillows organized.  Hmph.  BOXY?  The nerve.

Then I realized that there is probably never a good time for a man to voice a negative opinion about his wife's hair.  Out of the blue is probably just as good a time as any, because it's never going to go over very well.  Now, a guy might want to have a good exit strategy, like a getaway car waiting with engine running, if he values his life at all.  At the very least, he ought to have a big distraction to pull off, like a fire alarm or a well-timed phone call.  It's a conversation that has no good ending, just a narrow escape.

Upon reflection, I think I'm just as guilty as he is about unloading bombshells at inopportune moments.  Telling him the septic tank is backed up again just as he walks in the door from work is not real smart.  Bringing up the subject of the kids needing new tennis shoes and dental work might best be brought up after a nice dinner. 

But nooooo.  Bursting with the need to share every detail with my sweet love makes me speak first and think later.

Sometimes I do it on purpose.  So what if he's had a bad day?  Mine's been worse, and I want him to feel my pain.  Misery enjoys company.  "And by the way, we're overdrawn on our checking account, so THERE."  No prelude, no nice lead-in.  Then I wonder why he snaps at the kids and withdraws into silence.  On second thought, misery doesn't enjoy company.  It's just misery.

I'm reminded that the words we speak are just as important as the moment we choose to say them.  I'm trying to make a habit of pausing for a minute before blurting out my garbage.  Is now a good time?  Would it be better to wait until his favorite show is over?  Maybe I should just sit on it for a day and think about what I want to communicate.  Or give him a heads up that there's something we need to talk about later, rather than sucker-punching him when he's not ready.  It takes some self control and a lot of prayer to hold my peace rather than destroy his.  It's a work in progress, let me assure you.

While still smarting over my hair, I tried to be philosophical about it.  I could probably wield the curling iron around a little differently to get rid of the boxy look.  Lord knows I didn't want to look like there was a UPS package sitting on top of my neck.  I suppose I should have thanked him. He knows important good hair is to me, and that I can't actually SEE the top of my own head.  I'm sure he thought he was doing me a favor.

But next time, perhaps a box of chocolates AND a getaway car on hand would be a good idea.  At least then I could soothe my hurt feelings with candy while the curling iron heats up.  I'll suggest that to him...over a nice dinner.

Today's Small Thing is to consider TIMING before uttering your words. If you are married, take the opportunity to use this task with your husband. Pause long enough to add a gentle tone or remember to add a positive spin. Kindness goes a long, long way.

POINTS: 50 for exercising self control with your tongue.

Feeling Trapped?

Yeah, me too.

I've got a million things to do today and I'd like to just run away from them all. I'm bitter because I told myself I was going to get a pedicure this weekend BECAUSE I DESERVE IT, DARN IT, (plus my feet are reeeally sorry lookin') but I was trapped by my "awesome" To Do List. The weekend came and went and my feet are still rough as cobs and I'm still angry about it.

Well, the next best thing to running away from your work is to become engrossed in something that's not on your list of things to do but will make you feel enormously proud of yourself afterward.  I have just the perfect thing.

Traps.

Yep. Since we're already feeling trapped, let's just extend that feeling to our Small Thing and work on the traps that work so hard in our homes and yet never get much recognition. Think of how THEY feel.

I can think of several traps right off the bat that could use some attention:

Dryer lint trap

Air conditioning filters

Vent filters

Sink food trap/stopper thingies

Window screens

Car oil filter

Mouse traps (hey, you never know)

Today's Small Thing is to follow the old adage, "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," and clean at least one of the above mentioned traps (or another one of your choice).  It'll be like sticking a finger in the eye of freedom and and saying, "who needs ya??" Yeah, that'll feel good.

POINTS: 20 per trap you can find to clean, no limit - I don't want to hold you back.

What other traps can you find around the house??

I'm on a Famous Person's Blog! That Makes Me....

...feel like I've had a brush with celebrity.
 
Today, I'm a guest blogger on Hannah Keeley's website! Remember, she is doing a special promotion with American Standard Heating and Air Conditioning, and has invited several guests to help promote it.  I'd LOVE to have a huge Company Girl participation so people sit up and say, "who ARE those girls???"

Aww, just the Company Girls, yeah. Company Girl NATION, that's who.

Could you use a new $15,000 heating and air conditioning system?  We could. Our upstairs unit has been on its last legs for the past decade. The last time we had someone out to repair it, the guy laughed and adjusted his hat before saying, "Ma'am, they stopped making those units in the 1980's." Just fix it, buddy, I don't need your commentary.

All you have to do is fill out the form for a chance to win. You might even win a 1/2 day home makeover with Hannah herself...and I think that in itself would be super cool. I love her blog, her tips and her faith and am so glad to have found her website.  I know you'll enjoy it, too.

If you stop over, would you leave a comment so she knows how you happened by?? If you tweet, feel free to do that, too. Thanks, ladies!

Company Girls Coffee AND Small Thing

It's a "Two For One" post today! Kinda like a "Buy One Get One" sale on shoes, except not as fashionably fun for your feet.

Our Small Thing Today is all about Zoning Out, something for which I'm famous for. I'm forever wondering why I walked into a room, or what I'm in the produce department of the grocery store for. My husband has to tell me something several times, and my mother, STILL to this day, will tell me to write something down so I won't forget it.

I'm Zoned Out. Often, I'm imagining that I'm running through fields of clover, or deciding which shade of yellow those dandelions are, or figuring out how to paint feathery clouds. Sometimes, my mind is just blank.

But I was in a Zone of a different kind the other day. My kitchen zone.

My entire house needed cleaning and I nearly took a nap to avoid doing anything at all, until I decided that I would limit myself to ONE. Single. Area. of the house.  I would spend my nearly depleted physical energy and my severely limited mental ability on the kitchen...and then call it done.

It felt good to wash the floor, knowing that I wouldn't have to extend my efforts any further than the edge of the tile. I wiped down the stove happily, thinking that I would NOT be wiping down the bathroom counters that day.  By the time I was done (less than an hour) I had a great feeling of satisfaction, knowing that one area of the house was completely clean.

At least for one, brief, shining moment.

Today's Small Thing is to focus on one area of your house. Kitchen, a bathroom, entryway, bedroom, closet...you choose. You can call it "Zoning Out" or "Zoning In," but rather than doing a little bit haphazardly here and there and everywhere, stick to one place and make it look good.

POINTS: 50 for getting in a zone and making it sparkle.

Now, I invite you to link up for a virtual "coffee time" with online girlfriends! Simply link to your blog below and then enjoy the company that comes over!  Non bloggers can participate in the comment section...and don't forget that we've started a Community and there are already several conversations going.  I hope you'll be a part!

Groupies

Well, I finally did it.  I created an official Company Girl community on BlogFrog yesterday!  You might have noticed the widget in the right sidebar.

I'll admit I've been reluctant to create any kind of official online group...mostly because I've been afraid it would take too much time to set up and moderate. I've worried that creeps would lurk around and that I'd have to kick people out. And to be honest, I didn't feel like the world needed another online forum.

You are already aware that I over-think things, right? This, again, proves it.

But then I realized: We're already a group! I've never had to kick anyone out and I've always been blessed by the incredible mix of women who take the time to be part of Home Sanctuary and the Company Girls. You girls are fun, you love your families, you encourage each other, you lead interesting lives, you are fun....how could creating a community be anything but GOOD!

And I think I have a tiny little vision for what a little community could do. See, I'll bet each one of us has some kind of "thing" that we want to do in the world.  I know there are a couple of Company Girls who are writing (or want to write) Bible Studies. Some of you have Etsy shops or have a home-based business. You are writers, artists, bakers, homemakers, crafters, scrap bookers and dreamers.  Not only can we connect as friends, but we can help each other follow our dreams and make them a reality.

The first step is to have a good way to make those connections with one another. Don't stop coming here, please! But by adding a forum and blog community, we can easily find one another and start sharing. From there, let's just see what happens! I'd love to see social networking work for US...a little group of gals who can come together to make something good happen.

Today's Small Thing is to simply check out our BlogFrog Community and, if you feel like it, join in. If an online community is not your thing, that's perfectly OK. There is no pressure! I look forward to seeing you there.

POINTS: 40 for popping over to the Company Girl Community. I hope you'll join in, but even if you don't, go ahead and take today's points. So easy!

PS I'm a Heating Pad Evangelist!

At The End of the Day, Yada Yada

 

Oh, how I hate overused cliches.  You might never know that, based on my tongue-in-cheek approach to blogging, but believe me.  When I watch news programs, sports broadcasts or listen to talk shows, I'm just awestruck by the serious use of badly overdone phrases by people who should know better.

"At the end of the day" strikes me as one of the worst offenders.  Please, oh, please just say "the bottom line" instead!  I could stomach that far better.

But Today's Small Thing has an ironic twist.  You see, our task is to work backwards....from the end of the day to the beginning.  Follow me if you will:

When you crawl into bed tonight, what ONE THING do you want to have accomplished at the end of the day?  I've got something on my list that has been dogging me for weeks on end.  My days have been so full of STUFF, that the really important tasks have sorta been left undone.

You may not have a super-important, earth-shattering task to complete, but maybe you've got a bag of trash that has sat, waiting to go out, for longer than you care to admit.  Or a thank you card to write, a bill to pay or a DVD to return.

When the blue shadows of night overtake you, won't it feel great to have that one thing crossed off your list?  Maybe we should all get started on our tasks before the day is too far gone!

POINTS: 50 for finishing that "one thing" by the end of the day!

What will YOU have done at the end of the day? I will finish my parents' 50th anniversary invitation.