My (never) Clean Home

This blog was going to be my daily nap time break from the real world... And here I sit almost a month since the terrible, horrible poop-face experience! I was going to post pictures of my not quite Rachel Ray meals with great recipe ideas... I was going to post pictures of me with a fake smile as I made my own homemade laundry detergent... And of course how-to's of not quite Martha Stewart fitted sheet folding experiences... But here I am... Almost a month later... No great inspiring readings or "Aha!" type moments... Just one busy, slightly crazed mama!! It's amazing how many ideas I have that can help save the world from disorganized, dirty homes and unhealthy eating habits... Here's the thing...

I don't do any of that.

I have 3 different systems for doing laundry everyday... However, they only work if you follow through...

I have a menu board with a grocery list and recipes attached... But hot dogs and sandwiches are SO much easier!

I have a new dishwasher... But somehow the dirty dishes collect on the counter because the sink is over flowing...

If you were to come over right now (and I let you in the house...) you would get covered in dog fur and find yourself changing a diaper for me so that I could quick clean the toilet. There will be dirty socks on the kitchen floor, Bug's clean underwear on a couch, Chicka Baby's sippy cup with some unknown substance... And of course, sticks and other "nature" items in the bathtub. I would offer you food and then pretend that smores is a great treat for special guests... Want something to drink? We have... water, milk, or formula... I might be able to dig a frozen juice out of the deep freeze...

Don't get me wrong, I have it all together... The only problem is that it's all together, all over the house... Give me a few minutes and I might be able to find it... Never mind... The cat ate it, I'm sure...

I LOVE having people over. I am in my glory when people are here... If they give me an hour (or a week...) to warn me that they are coming. If you call 10 minutes ahead, I promise to light a candle and hide the dirty dishes quickly before I throw all the stuff on the kitchen table into a laundry basket and hide it in the office...

If you just show up... This is your warning...
You are entering a real house with messy kids, crazy animals, and a side-tracked mama.
                                                Enter at your own risk!

I am just now getting to the point of accepting my messiness. I'm not condoning it, I'm just not crying about it as frequently. I am getting better at controlling it. Two years ago I would be classified as a level 1, boarder line level 2 hoarder. (The classifications can be found here)

For some reason it is truly hard for me to clean... I fight it like the way Chicka fights her veggies. I just have so many other fun things to do.

I could give you a thousand excuses right now as to why my house is messy. I could blame a whole lot of other people, but when all is said and done, a big part of it is on my shoulders.

Ugh!

One of the biggest helps for me was a friend who gave me permission to feel this way. She said that she didn't feel the need to call CPS (or take a shower as soon as she got home), but just that my house looked like someone under organized and overwhelmed. Instead of telling me what I needed to do or offering tons of unasked for advice, she let me know that she was there just a short time ago. Instead of a super clean home, she has a home that is clean enough for people to drop by unexpectedly.

It totally started to click... Keeping my home safe and ready for company doesn't mean I'm failing every time I don't scrub the floor boards with a toothbrush. It doesn't mean I'm failing when my home isn't ready for the Queen. (You know, she comes over ALL the time...) It means keeping it healthy and trying to sweep the dirt off the floor so that you don't feel all of the crushed Cherrios through your socks.

My home is not going to be white- glove ready... Actually, if you come over with white gloves, you will probably hear me yelling at the kids to be quiet and pretend we aren't home.

I think I'm ok with that. At least for now.

Veggie Tales are done, so it's time to get back to the babies.

Cloth Diapers!!

I love the idea of saving money, going green, being different, and tapping into my "50's housewife" self. One of the ways to do that was... Cloth diapers! I was overwhelmed by all of the options and the prices at first. I wanted to start easy, so I called up my mama and chatted with her about diaper services. She swore by DyDee service from when I was itty-bitty. A Google search and some phone calls later, I learned that DyDee was still around! They supply it ALL; everything you need for cloth that is... You don't even have to swirl the poops into the toilet... Awesome!

Until...

We talked about cost. At that time I had an almost potty trained boy, a night-soaker girl, and number 3 was going to pop in a few months. The biggest factor for "going cloth" was the denero we could save. Having an amazing service would cost as much as disposable diapers, so that idea was out. I started researching and asking questions and annoying Hubby with all the info I was learning. (Some day I can go ahead and break down all the lingo and options, but not today)

Eventually I chose One Size (OS) pocket diapers. One size meant I didn't have to do the extra sorting for each kid, all clean diapers going into the same pile= easy non-sorting! Pocket diapers looked nice because you have the option of using it as a cover or sliding the insert/ soaker into the diaper. That means when someone isn't used to cloth, they just remove the whole thing like a disposable- more easiness!

I again ran to my good friend, Google, to find durable, affordable diapers. That's when the world of EBay entered my home. Piece by piece I built up my supply. I decided I would not pay more than $4 per diaper (costs usually range from $15- $25 a piece). It took about 6 months to get a full supply. I liked doing it this way because then I was able to ease into it, find brands that worked for my babies, and cut down on the whole overwhelming factor.

Fast forward to today: I still use disposable sometimes, but have cut diaper costs by $50 a month. If I crack down and use only cloth, we will save over $75/ month, and that is including the laundry/ water costs.

Did I mention how adorable Chicka Baby looks, with her booty in cloth diapers and skinny jeans?