The Contents of this Room... (Part 1)

...may be hazardous to your health.  The clipart to the left reveals what I discovered in my daughter's room yesterday.  I noticed that the clothes I just washed, dried, and folded were still on her desk where I laid them the day or two before.  I also found a plate she used for pizza rolls and two glasses that had who knows what in them.  

Today, I decided we would go through all her clothes to see what fit and didn't fit to make room for clothes that needed to be put away and possibly clothes she will receive for her birthday or Christmas. Since her bed wasn't made I decided to do that for her...what I found was probably not shocking to most parents but it was to me.  In between the wall and the mattress were a ton of clothes that I assume had been worn, an empty sleeve of crackers, crumbs from whatever, candy wrappers, and books.  I found more clothes under her pillow, two glasses in her window sill, and tissues on the floor that had fallen short of the trash can.       

Going through the clothes wasn't a big deal.  She didn't complain unless she got into an outfit she couldn't get out of and quickly discovered she had a lot of clothes she didn't remember she had!  I anticipated getting rid of more clothes than we did but at least we got rid of a couple of shopping bags full.    

This weekend she is going to stay with a close friend and I plan to take advantage of this time to clean her room!  Her room needs to go on a "stuff" diet.  Right now it looks as though it is a storage unit -cluttered and unkempt.  We have three additional kiddos coming to stay with us the middle of November and this room will have some resemblance of order before they get here!  

Although I am really looking forward to having time alone with my husband, I think between the two of us we can tackle this project head on and then have some well deserved time for us!

DIY Halloween Costume

Halloween is just around the corner.  Kira is going out with some of her friends on Friday night and the original plan (among the girls) was that they would dress as super heroes.  I'm sorry, I don't want to pay $35 dollars for a costume that she would wear once and really don't think I have the skills to make one.  So instead, we decided to use some things we had at home...

For a couple of years now, Kira has wanted to be Nancy Drew.  The only problem was that she didn't have a trench coat.  Last year my parents bought her a coat for her birthday.  She loved it!  We watched the movie Nancy Drew to get an idea of what she wore and also searched Pintrest.

We decided to combine the two pictures and make up our own "Nancy".  In Florida, as sweater is rarely needed so we nixed that right off the bat.  She has a trench coat, the white blouse, and we just picked up a plaid skirt that is really cute!  I'm going to loan her one of my flashlights and she will just wear her tennis shoes since I am sure they will be walking house to house (at least I hope so.)  She has a purse, but I'm going to see if we can find another one similar.  Last but not least we need a magnifying glass and then the costume is complete!

November 2014 Mission of the Month

A couple of years ago I participated in Mama Jenn's Mission of the Month. I found when I was actively participating that I accomplished so much more.  I don't know why I stopped, just that I did.  I just feel off the wagon so to speak.

If you are just now following my blog, let me catch you up to speed. Mission of the Month was started by Mama Jenn in hopes that we can use our blogs to motivate ourselves and others.  We are to make a list of our goals (aka missions) we would like to accomplish for a month - just for one month.  At the end of the month, we share with others in the group whether we succeeded or were a complete failure.  It has been really great to read what others have posted and it has also given me ideas as to what I could/should accomplish in the future.  

My missions for this month revolve around my daughter's bedroom.  We will be having 3 additional kiddos stay with us in the middle of November and I want to make sure her room is cleaner and more organized.

1. Go through clothes - The daughter is growing like a weed.  I have discovered that many of her clothes don't fit or are just on the verge of being outgrown.  She also has a number of "favorites" and I need to rotate them.  Instead of the clothes being hung up or folded and put away, her clothes are folded but laying out.  Sometimes she doesn't know if they are clean or not.   
2. Fix game cabinet doors - The cabinet doors have been broken for years.  All they need is some plexi-glass to fill the empty spaces or some plywood.  Once this is accomplished during Christmas break I would love to paint but that will be a mission for another month!
3. Go through the toys - She has toys galore and with her birthday and Christmas coming up we really need to pair down her "stuff".  She's growing up and really needs a "big girl" room.  I have a plan, lets just hope she goes along with it.
4. Clean out the closet - I'm not sure that the closet has ever been cleaned out.  Well at least not in a very long time!  She only uses one side for clothes - the other side is storage for blankets and other odds and ends.  Things that most likely can go to storage but for some reason they are here.
5. Buy new sheets - Her bed is a trundle bed and has only one set of sheets for the extra long twin.  We really need to get two sets that match.  I'd also like to get a plastic cover to go under the sheets.  Last time we had a sleepover, we had a kiddo get sick in the bed and cleaning it up was a nightmare!!  

Once all of this gets organized, my hubby will take stuff to storage.  I'm hoping to get a jump start on my mission this this weekend since the munchkin will not be at home! Cross your fingers!!

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie...

I think almost all parents are familiar with the If You Give a Mouse a Cookie book or series.  There are days I feel as though my not so little munchkin is that mouse.  Take today for example we had this conversation while I was doing dishes and she was working on school...

Kira:  There's this sentence in my language lesson on rhubarb.  What is rhubarb?
Me:  Rhubarb is a vegetable.  Papa grew rhubarb in his garden.
Kira:  What's it look like?
Me:  It's kind of bushy and if I remember correctly it had red stalks like celery. Google it.
Kira:  Oh, so that's what it looks like!  You know, Laurie Berkner sang a song about rhubarb pie.
*She starts singing "Rhubarb Pie" by Laurie Berkner*
Kira: Did Papa like rhubarb pie?
Me:  I don't know if he did or not.
Kira: I'd like to taste rhubarb.  Did you know you can make a strawberry-rhubarb pie?  Can we grow some rhubarb?
Me:  Can you get back to language and we'll discuss this later?