Routines Rule

I am such a creature of habit. I drive the kids to school the same route every day. I clean bathrooms the same way I have for over 20 years (meaning not very well!). I know this about myself: I function better with routines.

So, in an effort to get on top of some of my goals, I set up two new routines today.

I have a routine for laundry. It goes like this:

Mon: Master bedroom & bathroom
Tues: little girls
Wed: little boys (although they really aren't that little)
Thur: Judson
Fri: Master bedroom & bathroom
Sat: Mikalah (technically so she can do her own, but...)
Sun: delicate/hand washables

It works for me. I used to have a day where I did 20 loads of laundry. Now I do two loads every day in between everything else. It really seems like I am never doing laundry.

However, that has been the only area where I had a specific routine and somehow the only area I felt like I had some control over. So, new routine:

Cleaning:
Mon: Master bedroom
Tues: Girls & boys room
Wed: Living/dining/kitchen (these are lumped together because of the flooring)
Thur: Bathrooms - deep clean
Fri: basement
Sat: garage/outside
Sun: relax!

So the idea is that on that day I will spend time in that room cleaning/straightening something. Some days I will have a few hours and it will be amazing. Other days I may only have 30 min and will manage to straighten things up or just dust. So, we will try this for four weeks and I will check back with you at the beginning of April (lordy how does the year go by!) and let you know how it is going.

Another routine developed - kitchen duties.

Three chores: helping with food, clearing the table, and the dishwasher.
Rotate children through so they help every other day.

Example:
Mon: child 6 helps with food, child 5 clears the table, child 4 loads the dishwasher
Tues: child 3 helps with food, child 2 clears the table, child 1 loads the dishwasher
Wed: child 4 helps with food, child 6 clears the table, child 5 loads the dishwasher
and so on...

Again, we will try this for the rest of the week and see how it goes.

Costco Wedding

I may have a few years before this is a reality in our house, but it is nice to know that Costco is there for me!!!

Sick Day Activities

I know, the fact that I am sick is not new news. And I'm not complaining (much), but this is day FIVE! So this morning I went to the doctor to make sure it wasn't anything more than just a bad case of the flu. The good news is I don't have strep and I don't have pneumonia. Just a really bad case of the flu! My kids that had the flu were down and back up within three days. Somehow they also still had energy. I have no energy.

I have been in bed for the past several days. My computer next to me and occasionally I will work on it, but really, my fingers almost hurt too much to type. (pathetic, I know) So I have watched quite a bit of TV. HGTV, TLC, CNN, Food Network. After four days of this routine, I have discovered a few things.

1. News people stretch a 10 sec news story into 30 min and really say nothing new

2. All the good food contains lots of butter, chocolate, or cream

3. People looking for a new house are unrealistic and picky

4. People remodeling their home underestimate how much what they want will cost and aren't usually willing to sacrifice to stay on budget

5. It is possible to cook in a kitchen without granite counter-tops

6. Most families who participate in pageants spend more money than it would cost to send that child to college.

7. I really want to learn to make cupcakes

8. Christiane Amanpour is my favorite reporter.

9. I now know that T.U.F.F. Puppy is. I could have lived without knowing

10. My husband is amazing and does a wonderful job caring for our children when I can't.

Too Much

Some days take too much out of you!

Dr. Visits

Kickin' Butt

Unfortunately it is my butt that is being kicked. It seems we have three or four different illnesses in the house right now. So we are boosting immune systems, spraying the lysol, and wishing for warmer weather where we could open all the windows. I'm taking Morgan and Jeffrey to the doctor tomorrow, and Mikalah's antibiotics don't seem to be kicking the sinus infection. So far, Mike and Meredith win the prize for health!

I'm just praying the sub zero temps and the snow that is headed our way for the next five days doesn't drive us all stir crazy!

Influenza A

I have always had this theory that we don't get flu shots, because we are not in a high risk situation. We got flu shots one year and we all got some strain of the flu. It was not pretty. You can't make me do that again!

Well, this year, the first time in six years, the flu has struck the Iverson household. Yesterday I took JJ to the doctor for a strep test. I thought for sure, the fever, chills, and cough were going to result in strep. Nope. Influenza A.

Others in the family seem to be fighting well. No one else has succumb yet.

And JJ...the doctor gave him Tamiflu. That stuff is amazing! Less than 24 hours later and JJ is up and running like nothing was wrong. Who knew? An Anti-Viral! I'm on to them now! No more going to the doctor and coming out empty handed!