Newest, latest and greatest "project"

Starting something new again.

I have decided to take a stab at keeping the house clean and organized. I don't do a "bad" job necessarily, but I know I can do better (as I stare at my closets that need to be cleaned, and dusting that hasn't been done in ages). I am taking some advice from "FlyLady," http://www.flylady.net/. Which I found via a Facebook link from Jill...thanks Jill!! So it appears I am a FlyBaby. I have just read a little bit of the website. I am just taking some tips and suggestions from it and tweaking it to fit the ever-changing lifestyle of Lisa.

The gist: plan a cleaning schedule, stick to it, and don't try to do it all in one day. Seems like there is a daily task to accomplish to organize your house and eliminate chaos.

Day 1 (Sept 14, for me) - Shine your sink!! I can do that. Seems like an easy day 1, and I just shined my sink YESTERDAY....so I could be ahead of the game, but I will "play nice" and shine my sink tomorrow.

I cheated and looked ahead to Day 2, and that is just to make sure you get ready in the morning, which I do anyway. So I cheated again, and read Day 3. This seems to be when it starts. I am about to log in and find out the rest of it, and I will keep you posted. If you decided to join me on this journey, keep me posted on how you are doing.

Update on Food Plan (previous project): This was the best idea ever!! Jocelyn is 19 days old, and I still have frozen meals left. With generous friends that also gave us some meals, we ate for days and days and I have barely had to cook a thing. It has been wonderful and relaxing not to think about food, but at the same time I miss it too. My freezer still has meals in there, but I am now mixing in a few of my own cooked meals with the already prepared meals, but being able to warm something up on a whim is GREAT vs. trying to plan and prepare something when I feel like I don't have much time.

Heath and Fitness: Prior to being pregnant I had worked hard to lose about 43 lbs. I put on 34 pounds over the last 9 mos, and I want to get back to being fit and healthy. I am not exactly sure how to do this while maintaining the calories I need for breastfeeding, but I joined a site today http://www.babyfit.com/. Its a place to track calories and a workout routine with cardio and strength training. While I haven't been given the "green light" from the doctor yet, I am going to start tracking my food, water and vitamins, and work in some light strength training and cardio. Its free, and is a great way to put down what you have eaten. This is by the same creators of SparkPeople, but is specifically geared towards pregnant/breastfeeding women. Since having the baby I have lost 16 lbs. Which of course is mostly the baby and her previous "room" she housed, but its a start. I do feel extra round at the moment, but I know that will change as soon as I start actually working on it.

In a perfect world I see this in my future: A mother of 2 (done), married to a great man (done), trying to find a balance between work and family while maintaining a healthy lifestyle, a clean house, and the crazy schedule of a newborn and a busy 6 year old with many school activities.............

The more I think about all of it.......the more I worry that I can't do it. I am going to try to take it day-to-day and not stress about it. Who REALLY cares if there is laundry in the laundry room and a floor that hasn't been swept? In the end, I will not be judged by how clean my house is, or how organized my food plan is, but to me its important. I want to set and example for my daughters that it can be done if you want it bad enough. I want them to know that if you make a plan, and do everything you can to stick to it you can accomplish anything you want.

So, back to Day 1: I will shine the sink! I also will feed the baby every 3 hours, find Maia's cheer clothes, do some laundry, and some generla pick-up/cleaning of the house. Maia's school lunch is already packed, and her clothes are ready for school tomorrow. The baby is due to eat in an hour, she is happily sleeping. Then I will hope that she sleeps well tonight so I can maintain this mental momentum to start tomorrow off with a BANG!!