to do list: the bench.

Though we thought we were coming to the end of whatever sickness the boys are fighting (two days ago everyone seemed better), yesterday was definitely round two. If the virus had a voice, I bet it would have whispered, "Oh, I'm just getting started" in our ears. Thankfully - all glory to God - I have been spared of anything other than occasionally feeling a little off (my main concern being the baby). While I should have spent the day resting whenever possible or disinfecting the house - I got as far as the door knobs - I was determined to cross at least one thing off my "other" to do list. Well, I'm proud to report that I crossed off two.

We recently moved a book case out of the front room to make space for the new media cabinet, so there were lots of books piled on top of the dining room table and I was starting to feel like a hoarder. It was great motivation to finally sort through them, as well as all our other books, putting aside those that we don't plan on reading again (or ever). I ended up with two bags and a box-full ready to be sold to Half Price Books. In an age of e-readers (of which I'm not a fan) I tend to treat books like liquid gold, so letting go of them was made easier by the promise of cold hard cash in my hot little hand. I went into the store with approximately fifty books to sell and walked back out with $33. Tim had predicted $10, so getting triple that was "better than a kick in the pants" as my dad likes to say.

The project I was really itching to get to though was the dining room bench. That's it above, if you hadn't guessed, complete with that infamous $20 pillow I splurged on. Formerly, the seat cushion was collecting dust at my mom's waiting to be re-covered and the bench top was always littered with papers and random things we didn't have a place for. However, the top was nothing compared to the mess that lurked below in the cabinet:

It's like one of those cliche joke cupboards where if you open the door or take one thing out, everything comes toppling down. I wanted the space to primarily serve as a place to store games so I started by sorting and condensing those. I took out the tea lights but kept the bigger candles, which we rotate on the mantlepiece, and made room for some dvds we needed a place for. I also found a spot for the placemats, which almost never get used except when my mom's here (she's the only one that bothers to get them out). I don't even want to know what she thought every time she'd go to get them out since they were always just shoved in a corner. Hopefully she'll be pleasantly surprised by their handy location and tidy appearance the next time she's in the mood for a placemat.

Not too shabby, considering it took me all of twenty minutes to organize. 

Project List

I don't know if it's because I'm pregnant or I'm simply growing into my role as full-time homemaker, but lately I've wanted the house to be clean, not just tidy. Sure I can throw a pile of clothes into the closet without folding them but I know that behind closed doors there's mess. Same goes for crumbs on the floor or dust on the shelves or dirt ground into the area rug. Even if everything is "put away" in its place, the house can still feel cluttered or just plain dirty.

The same goes for streamlining and organizing. I'm ready to get rid of all the stuff we don't use or particularly enjoy in the house. For instance, I've been itching to go through our DVD collection, pairing it down to the movies we actually watch more than once or twice a year. Some DVDs we never watch, which makes me question why we still hang on to them. I think it must be that mentality of "I might want to watch it someday." There's always that fear that the moment you no longer possess something, you'll have a need for it. But of course, that's exactly why shows like "Hoarding: Buried Alive" exist: because millions of other people feel the exact same way about their piles of stuff.

About a month ago I made a list of things I wanted to accomplish around the house that kept with the streamlining mentality. It also included home improvement ideas or things I'd like to purchase to help with creating a more pleasant/functional space. I started off on a roll, but after being taken out by a cold/sinus infection for two weeks, I lost my momentum. To get things back on track, I've created a projects tab to keep me accountable to my commitment. I included the projects I've already completed (and crossed them out) so I can track my true progress. I'll do my best to provide before and after pictures since I find those to be the most satisfying part of the process.

Cookies and Crock Pots

So the verdict is in on those "Outrageous" Chocolate Chip Cookies I made, though the jury (of one: me) is still a bit hung. A backwards analogy at best, as I think if a jury is hung then the verdict isn't in. But anyways, here's the deal: the cookies were good, but not that good (and certainly not outrageous). I wasn't blown away by the first bite which left them unworthy to be included in the recipes list. If our friend Cameron were here, he'd say "they're nothing to write home about." However, with each passing day they seemed to taste better and better, as if they knew their reputation was on the line. By Day 3 (today) there is only one cookie left*, which leads me to believe I liked them more than I'm willing to let on. We'll see how that last cookie tastes later today (or tomorrow, if I can show some self restraint).

My next culinary pursuit is to find a winning crock pot recipe. I find that slow cookers tend to lend themselves mostly to carnivores and rarely to the vegetarian (which I was for five years, before getting pregnant). While I love a good meat-laden dish just as much as the next person, just like the Hungry Caterpillar, every now and then I just want to eat a nice green leaf. The true motivation behind my search is all in the method: it's much easier, says the lazy housewife, to throw everything into a big pot and let it cook itself for 6 hours than it is to "slave" over a hot stove. But we'll commence the expedition in the name of innovative cookery, to save face.

* let's not be led astray here with assuming I ate a whole batch of cookies in less than 48 hours. To begin with, the recipe only made about 20 cookies and about 3/4 of them were consumed when I brought them to dinner at my sister's house (who has four cookie-loving children). So really, I've eaten about 4, maybe 5, cookies since. All in all, not completely shameful.