We have what we call our "17 foot wall of knowledge" in Ikea Billy bookcases. They have been around forever. We got the extensions for the top of them so they go floor to ceiling. Not always is it clean (grr!!) but here is a section of it.

I would hardly call myself a quilter. I have only made 4 tops and quilted 3 (lots of learning still to do) however in the quilting world there is something called a "block of the month". In this you get a bit of fabric every month and after about a year (sometimes less, rarely more) you have a finished quilt top. Now you still need to do the work of it (that is the fun) and you still need to get a backing and the batting but you get the idea. I would love to get something for my son (9) that doesn't just add to the clutter in my house. 3-4 kids (we foster), 3 bedroom house, a dog and 4 hermit crabs and no I don't live in 2000+ square feet! I would love to find something that he can have fun with every month and would build upon each other to the point that on the other end he has something useful. I have no idea what I want him to make but has anyone seen anything like this?

Sorry I fell off the radar. I got the flu. Add to that DH going on a business trip and I barely functional. I will be back in a day or 2.

I am so sorry that you have to live in fear of this. Many hugs to you and your family! Please let us know if you can think of a way that we can help you.

My children go to a saturday German school. For them they celebrate by putting their shoes outside the class door and then they get filled with candy and treats (orange is normally in there). We don't really celebrate at home but I have thought about it. However DH and I got married December 6 so that just makes it weird.

Where is everyone today? I can't be the only one flying! Is everyone okay? Oh and what time zone is everyone in? If you are outside the US just state the country ;).

Today hubby is working from home. :mellow: This means that typically I am on my A game. :mellow: After all I don't want him to know that I really don't work that hard when he is at work. :lol: Today's goals: Take child to child care take boys to swim class take package to post office go to grocery store educate ODS educate YDS breakfast lunch dinner snack figure out dinner laundry swish and swipe downstairs bathroom hot spot bedroom make phone call update blog put lock on cabinet put lights in kitchen put lights outside pick up child from child care Some of these things I seriously doubt I will get to, but at least I have a list for when I feel I need to look busy for DH. :laugh:

Good morning Flyminds! Welcome to the Flylady support thread. To find out what Flylady is: http://www.flylady.net/ You can also find people on YouTube if you search for it. We have completed the baby steps found here: http://forums.welltr...nday-october-1/ We have also completed a Building a Control Journal series found here: http://forums.welltr...-16-tue-oct-24/ If you would like to share your small accomplishments on instagram, please do so at #wtmflylady We will start the baby steps again January 1, 2018! So if you are a lurker, find us then! Also if anyone wants to do Accountable Kids with me, let me know. I am starting that up again very soon (maybe before the 1st of the year). Using this system with the Flylady system may mean you have a self cleaning house! How wonderful would that be? If you are new and would like to just jump right into the program please do so! This week the Flylady is focused on Zone 2 Kitchen. Tuesday - Planning Day - This could be anything that needs to be planned. Meal planning, lesson planning, activity planning, holiday planning, or anything else. Today's mission is to declutter the silverware drawer. This can be extended to any kitchen drawer or cabinet. Do you have lids to things that don't have a match? Get rid of it today! Is there broken items you have in a drawer that you just can never find the time to fix? Throw it out. Today is the day!

YAY Jean!!! :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray:

Scrubbing is never fun. I am glad it is going relatively well for you.

Wow! That is some grime! You might be able to use baking soda in addition to what you are using. It is a mild abrasive so it might help.

Only you can answer this question. My husband was a child when his father got his PhD. He remembers not seeing his father at all really. Now his father did his PhD while working so that may have something to do with it. However it wasn't easy. DH has also told me about he was while getting his PhD and honestly I am glad I didn't know him then. He also had very little time for anything else. Having said that, DH did his PhD in 5.5 years and he had 7 years to do it. So perhaps if he would have paced it out more it would have been doable. However sometimes you can't pace it out as you don't know the end game till it happens, KWIM? Honestly if I were you (assuming homeschooling is a priority like it is for me) then I would try to homeschool and then have a plan B. You having a higher degree will open a lot of doors for your family so I would look at that too. In this moment to me your degree would be slightly higher priority then homeschooling.

Yeah sadly this is ditto for me too! Yesterday my husband was talking to his mother. She is the one that told me that the larger the house the easier it is to clean... I wonder if they think that in Buckingham Palace? Anyway, she is now in a larger place and was complaining to him how it wasn't easy to keep clean. Sorry but I have to laugh at that one! Anyway, DH said we do Flylady and it has made our life much simpler. I told him to tell her I will be talking all about it on the blog (I have blogged for 11 years) so she should look at that. Watch, next time they come out she will telling me all about this new way of cleaning that she found called Flylady! Getting closer on my list but hot spots are next. :scared: :scared:

Well I just did something that took a lot for me to do and it didn't go over well. I live in a fairly urban suburban neighborhood. We all have roughly 3 car single car width driveways and we all have about 1 parking spot in front of our house. Well the neighbor across the street has someone that comes over EVERYDAY and they park in front of my house despite the fact that there is room in front of their house. I don't mind this as long as I know the street cleaner isn't coming by or a snow plow. So today, I saw them park there and I went out and asked nicely (really I was) if they could move their car if the street cleaners came through. The guy then told me that there are leaves on the other side of the road and they need to be cleaned up too. I said yes but how is that my problem. I am asking you nicely to just move your car. This is important to me (it should be noted I have neighbors that have their grass growing in the street and he never parks in front of their house). He then went on how I don't own the street and yata yata yata. I HATE confrontation. Seriously I avoid it all costs. I knew that he had a legal right to park in front of my house (otherwise I would have just let the police deal with him) but I thought if I were nice I might get them to change this habit. No he just decided that I should have to clean up my own front of the house whenever he decides to grace me the generousness of not parking in front of my house. Isn't that the most thoughtful person ever! Watch, now he will park there in snow storms and I will have shovel 3 feet into the street to get my car out. :rolleyes: I think my husband will just have to park the 17 year old car in front of our driveway in snow storms. Sorry for the vent. It is just another thing I have to put on my flylady list. ETA He just moved his car to in front of another house. I can't help but think that he just didn't want do what I requested for some strange reason but knew that it would be the "neighborly" thing to do. I don't really care as long as the front of my house gets the street sweeper... not that they really work anyway. :rolleyes:

I figured since we had some new people that I would expand the intro a bit. Let me know how you like it. :) It is FREEZING here! So glad I don't have to go out this morning! Today my sons have school again after a 3 week absence. This afternoon we are busy and I would like to get to the grocery store today... that may not be happening. My goals for today: download DH's photos from his phone to my computer - this sounds worse then it is... I need the photos of our foster that he took. laundry laundry Hot spot my bedroom hot spot my bedroom (have 2) figure out dinner do the daily challenge update blog breakfast lunch snack vitamins educate ODS educate YDS go grocery shopping get swim bag ready pack deep fryer part in box mail deep fryer part. make dinner I think that is it. Boring day today.

Good morning Flyminds! Welcome to the Flylady support thread. To find out what Flylady is: http://www.flylady.net/ You can also find people on YouTube if you search for it. We have completed the baby steps found here: http://forums.welltr...nday-october-1/ We have also completed a Building a Control Journal series found here: http://forums.welltr...-16-tue-oct-24/ If you would like to share your small accomplishments on instagram, please do so at #wtmflylady We will start the baby steps again January 1, 2018! So if you are a lurker, find us then! Also if anyone wants to do Accountable Kids with me, let me know. I am starting that up again very soon (maybe before the 1st of the year). Using this system with the Flylady system may mean you have a self cleaning house! How wonderful would that be? If you are new and would like to just jump right into the program please do so! This week the Flylady is focused on Zone 2 Kitchen. Monday - Weekly home blessing - Our mission today is to wipe down cabinets! Weekly home blessing is spending 10 minutes doing each of these: Vacuuming Dusting quick mop polish mirrors and door handles purge magazines and catalogs change all sheets empty trash. Please join in on the fun when you would like! No time like today to start your way to an easier way to keep your house clean!

I will look for the instant pot group. YAY! 3/16!!! Well my cousin wanted me to contribute to the family tree that he did on ancestry.com. TALK about a time suck! He has found family members going back to a birthday of 1367. Yeah you read that right. :jawdrop: And we know the name of his wife! I wish it wasn't $20 a month! I would totally sign up for maybe $10 a month. $20 is a bit spendy though! In other news, Christmas is starting to come out. I got the kids to help with the home blessing hour this week! DS9 did dusting, DS4 did wiping of door handles. DH did vacuuming and I mopped. :D Need to do this more often! Right now the kids are decorating the tree. :)

Great! I just ordered yesterday the rest of the components I need for my younger son an any foster's that we may get. I have also read the first step (it is a 4 step program). No I am not aware of this group. Please tell me more. I have using Once a Month Meals for instant pot meals. Today we need to take out christmas and do a home blessing hour. I have till 3:30 to do so. Ugg!

We will hold your hand! Start out with very small goals. Remember that everyday is just a new opportunity for success. There are no "failure" days. ;) If it would help, please list your goals for the day and come back and cross them off one by one so we can cheer you on! :D

I haven't taken out the diffuser since the trip (got back on Monday). However it is on my list to do today. I got wiped out. I woke up at 1:30 this morning coughing. So after realizing that I didn't have to wake up till 7:30 I thought a cough medication that lasts 4 hours or so would be good for me. So I took the night time version. WELL I woke up like a zombie! I am still trying to wake up after having 2 cups of coffee! Clearly my liver really likes cold medicine! I guess this is why 1 dose of benadryl lasts 3 days in me! Well I hope everyone is having a good weekend!

Oh no! Yes they are different densities! I did white sweet potatoes in mine last night. They came out green. I don't think that had anything to do with the Instant pot though. I think that is just what they do.

Wait till you join me and cook all of your dinners in it. LOL

I made my own in July. I also have a spot to put future dates that are beyond my current calendar. Makes it easier for me that way. Probably need to make another calendar soon as I have 3-4 in the future dates log. I like the way you think Jean. Finding the soap is a good positive first step!! I told DH that I wanted to go to Ikea tomorrow. I am tired of not having very many spoons in the house (I think we have 6 right now). However I was planning on going without the kids while they are in German class tomorrow. Nope! They have christmas meatballs! I must get those and I can't have Breakfast and Lunch there! It is too far from the school! So I will have to choose! :( I think I will also pick up some candles when I am there. I would do LED ones but they get horrible reviews. I will just be careful with the cheaper lit kind. I want some more Hygge!

Wow! Don't go looking for Orange Glo. It is impossible to find! I think I have oil soap somewhere. Not sure where it would be though. Did it work on your cabinets?

Yes you can if you put the address (just street, no need for city). I just tried it for my mom's address and I found what I have sent to her dating back to 2004! ETA I did this in the search box under orders on my computer. Not sure if you can do it on your phone or other means.