Spinning out of control!

Sometimes I feel as though things are spinning out of control.  I have been having a week (or maybe a few weeks) like that lately.

February 1st starts the birthdays in our family.  We have February 1, 3 and 26, and March 11.  This year included a First Birthday.  So we had the first birthday party back home, first birthday pictures, and parties for the older kids.  We were birthday-ing all through February and the first 2 weeks of March!

My sister was moving the end of February.  So I drove down to help her pack and move every weekend I was available that month.  Throw in opening day of trout season for Jackson, a full week of work for me and 4 snow days for the kids, and you get a pretty crazy month and a half!

Now that our calendar has fewer things, you would think my life would feel on track.  Unfortunately, that isn't the case.  I have gotten so behind on things.  Jackson is great at cleaning on his days off, but the days he works, things just fall apart.  I feel like I am running in circles and not accomplishing a thing. 

The problem... I am being thwarted by a one year old.  I spend so much time picking up after Paxton, I can't get much done for myself.  Gray came home sick from school the other day, and when he got home he said, "Every day after school, there is new mess".  That day it was cereal on the floor.  Right now, there is popcorn that Pax dumped on the floor behind my chair.  I will sweep it up as soon as I finish writing.  He digs things out of the trash and recycling.  Yesterday I caught him eating a biscuit I had thrown away after breakfast!  I keep all of the doors shut, or he will throw things in the toilet and pull things off my dresser and night stand.  We have locked almost all of the cabinets, but he still finds things to get into.  If I sit down to work at the desk, he cries until I pick him up and then starts grabbing things... anything he can get his hands on, stapler, pens, pencils, anything.  Now that he is walking, he can reach higher, so I have to keep things off the surfaces he can reach.   I don't remember the other kids being such mess makers!

My to-do list is never ending.  I need to go through the kids clothes for spring.  Gray just pulled out 3 shirts that no longer fit, and I know the other kids have things, too.  I need to find things to sell in a garage sale and plan the sale.  I need to work on plans for my 15-year class reunion.  I need to work on planning our vacation.  Find time to exercise, read, scrapbook...

I will try to take Jackson's advice and focus on one thing at a time.  Though I am often interrupted by someone needing something.  Maybe I will focus on a few things at a time.  It seems to work better for me that way.  I will also remind myself of my accomplishments.  Maybe I should keep a running have-done list instead of, or in addition to, a to-do list, since I have never been very good at crossing things off my to-do list.

I have just had an ah-ha moment!  This may be the answer to my frustration.  Right now I am starting my have-done list for the week.

• I attended the Parent Advisory Committee meeting and the PTA Meeting
• I remembered to take the stuff for the planting activity after the PTA Meeting (this is something I was really worried about)
• I cleared most of my desk yesterday and finally feel like I can sit down at it without being in utter chaos.  
• I have caught up with the laundry.  
• I did some major grocery shopping and bought most of the Easter outfits last weekend.  
• I have found a chance to write a bit, even though I have had to stop about 10 times during this short post.    

I am sure I can think of some more things, but it's a start.  I'm glad I started writing today.  I may never have thought of this otherwise...I am going to try to keep a have-done list for the next few weeks.  Maybe it will help me feel like I am back on track.

I left them in this room for less than 20 min. while I was cleaning the kitchen.

 

Maybe they need a better calculator.

My husband and I have the 200 MB data plan from AT&T.  We have a wireless router at our house and try to use wifi when we are out and about.  We rarely go over our data usage.  About a week and a half ago, he got a message telling him he had used 65% of his data, so he started being mindful about when and where he used his phone.  Yesterday he got a 90% alert. 

We have really been trying to cut excess spending, so he disabled all of the push notifications and tried to disable the 4g.  He also checked to see exactly what his usage was and was surprised to see he had only used 109 MB.  Most people could figure out that that is just above 50% (54.5% to be exact).  Not that complicated... or so one would think.

He asked me to call AT&T to see which was correct.  Oh, my!  From the beginning, the customer service gal was not understanding the problem.  She confirmed that the 109 MB usage was correct.  I told her they needed to figure out why the alert was sent.  She said it was for both of us.  Though I, too, had only used 50%.  Trying to explain that was like trying to explain algebra to a kindergartner.  She kept saying, "Yes, but it is for both lines."  She finally realized that 200 out of 400 is not 90% no matter how you figure it.  Though probably 5 times she put me on a brief hold to calculate.  Then she decided my complaint was that it only took a week to go from 65% to 90% and started asking if we had used the internet connection.  Never mind the fact that both lines are nowhere near 65% according to the system. 

Finally she said I could upgrade my plan to be sure I wouldn't go over.  I didn't need an upgrade!  I have barely used half the data with only a week to go!  I told her, "Here's what I'm going to do.  I am going to take your name, write down the exact usage you are showing with the date and if I get charged overage, I will be calling back to get a refund."  She didn't have much of a response.

All I wanted was a confirmation that the alert was an error, and if so, bring it to their attention that the error had occurred.  Or, a guarantee that we would not be charged an overage would have been nice.  I was amazed at how difficult that was to explain.  I still don't know if she ever understood.  

Back to what I'm good at.

It is only 6 days into the new year... 2013.  I don't really believe in making New Year's Resolutions... maybe I just don't believe in making them.  I always think of things I could work on, though I usually refrain from saying them out loud. 

This year I decided to try and better my life before my next birthday.  I listed several things, right here on my blog, that I would like to do better.  I know I'm only 3 months in, but not much has changed since then.  New Year's Day was coming up and I thought, "I am totally going to get back into exercise, logging my food and exercise into the My Fitness Pal app, get back on my Bible reading plan, keep my messes under control, and, a big one for me, work on my organization."  Yep, failed at all of the above so far.  I did clean up the Christmas wrapping paper mess in my crafting room tonight.  I can at least give myself credit for that one!

Right now I sit, typing at my desk that is covered in paper + lots of other things.  It is after midnight... pushing 1 am.  I finished my kids' Christmas gifts for their school teachers.  I was going to make them the Wednesday night before Christmas, but we ended up with two snow days and began our break early.  I had all break, but I chose to hold off until the night before break is over.  I also procrastinated on creating a flyer for a PTA event and printing the PTA cards that are long overdue to new members.  I have good excuses for putting that off (ran out of cards and had to wait for the new ones to come in and computer trouble), but still, I had all of the break!  

I am headed right back to what I am good at.  Going all day until all I want to do is sit when I get the kids to bed.  Procrastinating every chance I get.  Forgetting to do those things that 3 months ago seemed important enough to blog about and just last week struck me as New Year's Resolutions I should try to keep.

Why is it so hard to change?  Maybe I'll figure it out later...  

Lesson learned...the hard way.

The first week of December started out pretty much as usual.  December is always crazy... school programs, church programs, gifts to buy and wrap, parties to plan, treats to make, cards to make and send; the list can go on and on.  December is also an expensive month.  This year we had saved and planned to buy most of our gifts in one shopping trip.  The list was made, my parents were in town and they had agreed to watch the kids.  So off we went to buy a ton of stuff.  We filled a cart with gifts for the kids, grandparents, brothers and sisters, a few groceries... maybe the most we have spent in one trip to WalMart without buying one big item.  I was feeling pretty good.

In addition to all of the Christmas craziness, my computer had started acting kind of funny the day before our big shopping trip.  I assumed it could be solved by using the disk first aid.  Unfortunately I was wrong.  The next day, I took it to an appointment at the genius bar and received the news that the hard drive was failing.  Immediately, I was having some major buyer's remorse.  Why had I just spent all of my extra money the night before? 

I found someone who could replace the hard drive for a resonable price, but I was devastated to find out that we may not be able to recover my data.  I have close to 10,000 photos on that computer!  I have backed up maybe 9000, but it's been a year or so since the last time I backed up the photos.  Pretty much all of Paxton's life.  It was going to cost significantly more to do the data recovery, but I had to do it.  I want those pictures and videos, and I should probably try to recover my tax returns, too.  The computer headed to the shop. 

I never realized how much I rely on my computer.  I keep track of my spending, the weather, Christmas deliveries I was waiting on.  I found myself not keeping track of the days because I usually get on the computer in the morning to check my e-mail, bank account and facebook.  I forgot to go to an executive PTA meeting and my volunteer night at the dental clinic.  I was late getting my Christmas cards out because I couldn't make them, then I didn't have pictures I wanted from earlier in the year.  I couldn't print photos of Paxton or my nephew to put in First Christmas ornaments I had bought.  I had to find recipes for Christmas treats on my Kindle and my phone.  I gave up on the great ideas I had pinned for Christmas crafts and homemade gifts.  I am totally lost without a computer!

It was only a week and a half before I was able to pick the computer up, but it felt like an eternity.  Ultimately I survived.  My holiday preparations were a little more troublesome and there were things that I just didn't finish.  Two things were learned from this unfortunate inconvenience,  maybe I need to back off a bit from relying the computer, and I absolutely must start backing up my data.  I have yet to put anything back on the computer, but I will be using an external hard drive to back up all of my precious family memories from now on.  They were able to recover all of my data, but that isn't always the case.  The guy who did the repair said put it this way~ a failed hard drive can be a disaster, but if you keep up with your data back up, it is a mere inconvenience.

Lesson learned.   

To smoke, or not to smoke... That's not the question.

I am going to have to stop reading posts on facebook!  I don't find it useful to attack others' opinions, especially strangers who I know nothing about, but I am finding it hard to keep my mouth shut on several issues.  There is always someone arguing the evilness of WalMart or the "right" way to raise children.  I am a stay-at-home mom of four because my husband has a great job at WalMart.  These things hit home.  I know these are just opinions, and often, they are from extremists.  So I bite my tongue and try to forget the comments.  But today, I have gotten so riled up, I need to vent.  So I am going to choose to write about something that can make a difference.

Our town is in the midst of a clean air debate.  There are many looking for the city council to pass a smoking ban on public places.  Currently there are several restaurants in town that already offer a non-smoking environment, but there are many that still have smoking sections.  As with any debate, you have two sides.  I am on the side for clean air.

I have been amazed at the arguments people have posted against Clean Air.  One particularly offensive man made several posts about things he thought should be "band".  Those included buffets (because "fat pigs stuffing their faces" made him sick), potatoes (because they make people fat) and kids under five in all public places (because he can't stand smelly, screaming kids that don't mind).  Another guy said he smokes and he should have that right just like you should have the right to have a drink, and that everyone who supports it is crazy.  Seriously? Do the people who wrote these really think the goal is banning things we don't like? Obviously they are totally missing the point.  You can't get drunk just from standing next to someone.  Alcohol doesn't enter your body through the air you breathe.  And, the debate isn't about smoking or not smoking, its about where to smoke. 

We have all been informed of the dangers of smoking and second-hand smoke, so I won't go into that. I appreciate not smelling like smoke after I go out to eat.  While in college, I loved to play pool.  My friends and I would spend lots of time at pool halls, which allowed smoking.  I would have to do laundry more frequently just to keep the smokey smell out of the dorm room.   It didn't bother me as much then, but now that I have experienced non-smoking establishments, I am hooked.   We went to a birthday party in a bar a few weeks ago and spent several hours there.  I was glad I didn't come home smelling of smoke.  It's amazing how quickly the smell of smoke can permeate your clothing and how long it can last.  Jackson went to a restaurant with a smoking section for lunch a couple of days ago.  He sat in the non-smoking section and was only there for an hour.  5 hours later, he came home, and I could smell the smoke on him.

Many people who are against the ban claim the fear of loss of business.  I will admit, I have not done my research, and don't have the time to do it at the moment.  Someone did post a link that supported the increase of business after smoking bans, but I have not looked at it.  My past experience tells me that it could definitely help business.  There have been countless times I have gone to restaurants and waited for non-smoking seating while there are numerous spots available in the smoking section.  More tables seated= more revenue, right?  Who hasn't left a restaurant and headed to another to avoid a long wait?  Places like bowling alleys, and maybe even pool halls, could see more business from families who avoid the smoking establishments for the health of their young children.

The thing that bothers me the most about the debates I read online, is the way people choose to argue their opinion; by attacking others and being offensive.  I shared some of the comments above to show how offensive some people can be.  Name calling and insults are not effective arguing techniques.  Though I disagreed with many of the opponents, I tried to state my reasons without attacking anyone.  I cannot say that I have never said someone who had differing opinions was crazy or nuts.  I just read the post Jackson and caught myself saying, "Isn't that guy crazy?"  I would never say that to his face, or post it on a public forum, though.  I just wish people would show some respect.  You are much more likely to have your opinions heard if you share them in a respectful way.       


 

Part Time Project/ First Day

After I made the commitment to begin my project, I jumped right in.  I spent the morning with my two little ones.  We had lunch and around 1 o'clock, I started to work. 

I first made better use of the bookshelves.  I had several things that could find other, more appropriate, homes.  There was no sense taking up prime book space for an empty wedding album box or our home inspection binder.  Those moved to long-term storage in the attic.  I put away all of the books the children had left on the floor or on the desk.  I made enough space to fit some new chapter books we had been given.  They had previously been sitting in boxes just inside the doorway.

I kept a trash bag handy for all of the useless things I found... Broken pencils, scraps of paper, shopping bags and receipts left over after gift-wrapping, fast-food toys, etc.  I also  had a recycle box for paper and a box for things I wanted to sell or donate. 

I went through and tossed about half of my craft paints that were nearly empty or dried out.  I removed a canvas storage piece that no longer suited my needs.  I found a few books we didn't need, though I should have spent more time sorting through them because I am sure there are more I could part with.  I found several other things I could part with including scrap fabric from a Halloween costume I made 10 years ago!

In just 3 hours I had made a significant difference in the room!   I had to quit for the day to get the older boys and head to church, but seeing the huge improvement in so little time gave me the motivation to finish the cleaning phase.

My Dirty Little Secret

I have a secret...

Though some have seen it, many have not.  It is difficult to hide, frustrating to look at and something I am embarrassed by.  My craft room/library is a nightmare to anyone who is neat and tidy.  I walk by every day and ignore the challenge.  It is a small room, but it has no door.  The kids go in and out to get books or craft items and never put them away.  I run in to wrap a gift and leave the scissors and tape out.  Keepsake items and photos that I eventually plan to scrapbook are piled on every flat surface and fill at least two boxes.  I look inside and can't even think of where to begin.  We have lived here for 2 years, and though at times the room has been useful, it has never been the great space I dreamed of.  I am now ready to conquer it.  It will be my part time project.  Something I work on a little at a time, with the goal of finishing someday.  I don't want to be too specific with a timeline, and it may take a while, but it will get finished.

I am doing it part time because with four kids, anything I focus completely on, takes me away from the things that have to be done.  When I was painting, I spent several days doing minimal laundry, cooking and cleaning.  The older kids were away at Nanna's, so I could do work on painting.  I have to work this project into my daily life without neglecting things.  I have visions of painting and decorating.  Having it all organized to maximize its usefulness.

Desk covered with papers and craft items.

So many things out of place that you can't walk!

Many things in here aren't even useful anymore.

For now, I have to start with the obvious... remove the stuff we no longer use and the things that don't belong and put things where they go.