I rarely look at the paper bills. 9 times out of 10 if I want to know the particulars I look it up online. I wanted to know what you all thought before I made the switch. Also, what about bank statements??

This isn't smart. It's actually quite the opposite so this may be on the wrong board. I had a conversation with my 14 year old DD that went like this... Me: Turn on the a/c. DD: Okay, do you want it hot or cold? Me: (speechless, shaking head) DD: What?!?!?

I feel for your daughter. My brothers, my son and I all get them though not everyday. That's terrible. I had a friend who had chronic migraines and she had to go through a course of steroids and that stopped the cycle. I know with mine hormones play a huge role. Does she have any troubles in that area? I hope you get it figured out and I'm sorry if I duplicated any answers. I don't have time to read them all yet. ETA: I got my worst migraines as a teenager and we all know hormones are crazy during that time. I think I'd really look into it.

I'm feeling overwhelmed and a little lazy so I'm posting here for some accountability. We're taking all the clothes to the laundromat when DH gets back from hunting. I need to sort them plus weed out any that are no good or don't fit anymore. Here I go!!

Back home only to put pants on...I went to get DD from school in my PJ pants and realized she had Girl Scouts after school. I'm the co-leader for Pete's sake. Luckily, the leader was doing the meeting this week. I have to go back to school and help. I'll start again when I get back home. Goals for when I get home: Dinner and then cleaning the toilet in the front bathroom. I think you all are right about having my friend help. I think I'll pick-up first and then ask her to help me declutter. I do tend to hang on to things. Once I get everything somewhat under control I need to check into FlyLady, again. It's been awhile since I attempted her program. It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown comes on tonight so other than washing clothes for tomorrow, I'm going to take the evening off. I'll be gone most of the day tomorrow. I plan on hitting it hard this weekend, though.

We're back from the doctor. Lunch is done and the kids are practicing their instruments. They have some things to do school wise that require me so I'll do that for a bit and then work an hour on the house before I have to pick up little DD. I didn't finish my last goal. I'll finish it as soon as I'm done with the kids.

Okay...I'm back. Hopefully I won't drive people crazy pushing this thread to the front page. I have to go to the doctor at 11:45 so I have about 2 hours this morning. Once I'm home I don't have anything scheduled for the day except picking my youngest up from school. My other two have to their school work today but I'm planning a few quick chores for them. Before I go to the doctor, I plan to clean and vacuum the small hallway off the living room. I also clear the clutter off the end tables, love seat and the breakfast bar that divides the living room from the kitchen. I'll then wipe down those areas. I'll check back after that. I love the laundry mat idea. I have a ton to do. I was dreading it. I called DH this morning and he agreed to go with me Saturday afternoon. Thank you for the encouragement! It's motivating me!!

Thank you!! It helps so much to come back and post updates. 75% of my living room floor is picked up and vacuumed!! We'll do the last quarter when we get home tonight. I haven't touched surfaces (other than my desk) yet. I'll do that tomorrow. Official bag count is 7...ack!! That includes my first round of 15 minutes pick-ups in the BR, K and LR. I'll check back tonight.

Desk done and vacuuming of clean half done. We're going to start the 3rd quarter and then I'll vacuum it. After that, I have to get a shower and get ready to leave. Lots and lots of trash has been bagged up and taken to the trash cans. I'll get a count from dd later. It's really shameful. There's very few things in the box for the stuff that belongs in other rooms. It's been mainly dirty clothes, books and trash. Horrible. Once I have the living room, front bathroom and kitchen under control I'll start purging as I go from room to room. I need to get these areas clean so I can regain some sanity. I did get rid of a bunch of shoes that sit by the front door. They were either too small or trashed. DD is going to put the nicer shoes in the clothes closet at church tonight. ETA: I can't really afford to pay someone right now. Even if I could, it's so bad I'd be too humiliated to let anyone in the house. I have a very close friend that's offered to help on more than one occasion but I just can't bring myself to let her help.

The 2nd quarter is done. I'm going to vacuum and then work on my desk/computer area, which is in the living room, while the kids practice their instruments. They have lessons today and my desk is the one area they don't know how to straighten. Books, books and more books!! I need help in this area. For now, we're putting them on shelves and when we run out of room we're going to box them and deal with them later.

Things I'm discovering: I usually spend too much time on one thing. I would have loved to empty the cabinet under the tv and organize all that stuff but I just stuffed the dvds and things into it for now. I think I'm a bit of a perfectionist contrary to what a visit to my home would lead you to believe. To make skipping over jobs easier mentally, I'm going to keep a list of things I want to come back and do once we have all the rooms 'acceptable'. I'm also adding a 'good grief I just don't know what to do with this' box. I'll deal with it later. We're not doing school today. The kids are helping without complaining which usually doesn't happen. It helps tremendously. On to the next quarter!

Again...thank you so much. I appreciate the posts that gave suggestions on maintenance, too. The main focus is going to be the living room. We school there and spend most of our time in it. Here's our plan for today: 1. Do one more load of dishes. They should all be clean after that. 2. Start another load of laundry. 3. Per my son's suggestion, we're going to break the living room into quarters and focus on a quarter at a time. I'm going to get a giveaway box, belongs in a different room box and a trash bag. We're going to set a timer and do our best to finish a quarter in 15 minutes. There's three of us so it might be possible. We only have about 2 1/2 hours to work on it today. My overall goal for today is to get all the crap up in the living room and vacuum it. We're going to turn some music on and get started!

Okay....I'm done with my first tasks. I'm going to reread the thread now while I eat breakfast.

Oh, my gosh!! Thank you all so much! I seriously could cry right now. I'm so ashamed of letting things get this bad and honestly it's been this way for a long, long time. At night, I think of all of the things I'm going to do the next day and then come morning I'm so overwhelmed I just find a way to take my mind off of it...computer, book, phone, planning the school schedule, etc... My kids are 14, 10 and 8 so they can definitely help. I'm going to get the machines going and do 15 minutes in the front bathroom, living room and kitchen. Then I'm going to reread all the suggestions and will form the rest of my plan from there. I'm going to check-in via this thread. I need accountability.

Where would you start? What steps would you take after you started? My house is a wreck. Not only is there stuff lying around everywhere, every inch needs scrubbed. It's seriously impacting our schooling. I've been in a funk for quite a length of time and now that I'm coming out of it I'm noticing how awful everything is. It's serious enough to make me contemplate heading back into my funk. I'd appreciate some detailed steps if anyone has the time.

I'd like to change my username. I want something that will be less identifiable. I use the current one on other boards and as part of my email address.

I thought this was kind of strange: http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/10/baby-lisa-irwin-eerie-similarities-another-missing-baby-case

I agree. I can't stand watching the 20/20 undercover stuff for just that reason. I saw a lady on there once pour her heart out to a teen that was posing to be pregnant and was being pressured by her boyfriend to get an abortion. I'd be so ticked that they wasted my time on their little social experiment. John Quinones would've gotten more than an earful from me.

Ma slapping a bear. Pa being buried in the snowy creek bank during a blizzard. Mary and Laura carrying in the whole woodpile while Ma and Pa were gone. Jack. He was a major part of Laura's childhood. Laura passing the teacher's exam and getting her first teaching job. Twisting hay to burn during the long winter. Laura painting pictures with words for Mary. The grasshopper invasion. There's so, so many. I might be back with more.

My son does feel things very deeply. He can't stand any type of injustice at all whether it's dished out on him or others. He's so intense. When he has a melt down he feels so guilty afterward most times. My daughter has very mild sensory issues and I'm wondering if that doesn't add to her grumpiness. She hates the way winter coats feel and usually doesn't wear one but if it's in the teens or lower I make her. She's a total grouch the whole time she's wearing it. She hates sticky hands, dry hands, static in her hair, etc...These things also make her moody. I'll keep in mind the idea of a learning disability for my youngest. I hadn't thought of that. What other symptoms did the kids with allergies and Celiac have? ETA: I don't feel that they're being manipulative but I know sometimes it's hard to see those things in your own children. I'm going to ponder it, though.

I should have voted less than 1% instead of 1-2%. Somehow I overlooked that option.

I feel your pain. My 14 year old wears size 3 jeans but is outgrowing her 'C' cup bras. Ack!! It's a nightmare!

This happens to me, too. I was 23 when I had my 14 year old (oldest) but I've been told on occasion that I don't look 30 yet. I'm flattered in a way but it sometimes makes me feel like people are walking around judging me and thinking I was pushing out kids left and right while still a teenager. What I don't get is there need to ask me about it....people I've never even met! I should add DD14 looks more like a DD16 (that's a whole other issue) so it makes it a little worse.