Adventures in Laundry... aka the Family Closet

Have you missed me? Yes, it has been over a month since my last blog post. Life got a bit crazy and I fell behind a bit... but that's another story for later. :)

So I thought I would start back with a previously mentioned idea - the family closet. I admit, I had never heard of this until I saw it on a tv show about a family with a lot of kids, even more than me!! (now what WAS their name???) I was quite intrigued, and when we finally bought our own house, I told my husband that the sun room/enclosed porch was going to serve double duty as our family closet. Yes, this did get me some strange looks, but hey, I'm used to that by now!!

To start, I did some internet research and looked at pictures and descriptions of how other families had built their family closets and decided what we needed to fit our needs. We purchased 4 standing clothing racks and arranged them against the wall, hoping that would make them a bit more stable. Since our closet is in the sun room and is composed of so many windows, attaching shelves and rods to the wall wasn't really an option. Next, a trip to the dollar store for some various colored bins to hold small items, and of course buying some extra hangers! When we left our rental house, we gave away all of our dressers but one (which I kept to use as a changing table/cloth diaper storage)and haven't looked back!!

For now, my oldest two girls share a rack with shirts and dresses hanging on the top, pants and skirts on the bottom. This is because so much of their clothing is shared since they are similar in size. The other children have one rack each that holds tops, bottoms, dresses, etc. Each child has two bins. One holds underwear, the other socks. Pajamas are folded on a shelf next to the hanging clothing.

So, the real question is, did it work? I am going to call it a success. Yes, I still get behind putting laundry away, but then who doesn't? :) It is much easier to put everything away in one location rather than sorting/folding/hanging in several different rooms, and thankfully the sun room is located just off the utility/laundry room so the laundry doesn't have to go far to be put away!

I asked the girls the other day while we were hanging up laundry if they liked the new family closet and it got the thumbs up!! They told me it makes it so much easier to see their clothes and pick out what they want to wear. :) Easier for me, easier for them. Mission Accomplished!!!

A big birthday, and mysterious ways...

I have always heard that the Lord works in mysterious ways...

Today, my oldest son turned 5. What a milestone! Kindergarten in the fall... off to the REAL school ;) This morning he asked, "Mommy, am I 5 now?" I told him he was... he showed me his muscle and replied, "Then I am strong!"

Monday birthday celebrations are tough though, so we celebrated on Saturday instead.  My husband had to work, so my mother came in the morning and brought Pop Tarts for breakfast for all the kids, and a birthday gift for David: Real skates just like his sisters have!

After Daddy returned from work, David opened our presents: Some new t-shirts,  play-dough sets and a box of real big-kid Legos :)

Then we took a trip to see Daddy's grandmother, affectionately known as Granny Jane, in the nursing home.  Last month we went with some other family and she shared some of her leftovers from the memorial day cookout with David, so it seemed only fair that he would return to share some of his birthday cake with her! She even helped him blow out the candle!

After leaving the nursing home, we went to the park where the kids played on the playground and we took a fun family walk through the woods together, enjoying nature and all the beautiful sights and sounds!!

For dinner, a trip to Sam's Club. Yes, you heard right. They have DELICIOUS pizza, huge slices, for a great price. It is a huge bargain for a treat for a larger family!!

WHERE IS THE MYSTERY IN THIS?

A few weeks ago we learned that Granny Jane had stage 4 lung cancer and no treatments could be done.  She asked my mother-in-law if her "little buddy" would be coming back to see her, so of course we had to go, and thought she might enjoy sharing a small piece of cake with him. She seemed tired, but was sitting up in her wheelchair, talking with everyone, arguing with them in her usual way. LOL 

The next morning, Granny Jane passed away.  To be honest, we almost didn't go, as the trip took extra gas that we hadn't budgeted for... but now we are so glad we did. Always appreciate your loved ones while they are here, for none of us are promised tomorrow...

I wonder how I do it too!

I hear this all the time. "I don't know HOW you do it, especially with ALL THOSE kids!"  It seems to amaze people that we can all be fed, clothed and live in a semi-clean house. LOL I have heard, "You must be a super mom." and "I can barely manage with one (or two or three)". 

To tell the truth, I don't feel like I am that great at any of it! It must be part of my personality, the perfectionist in me, but to me there are not enough hours in the day or enough energy in my body to accomplish all that needs done.  My garage, for example, is wall to wall boxes still, and we moved in April! It looks like something you'd see in an episode of Hoarders!! No matter how many times I would vacuum, there will still be crumbs, dog hair, and bits of guinea pig food and bedding scattered all over my living room, along with an array of socks, shoes, kids artwork, and toys. I am forever behind on laundry, and sometimes the kids run out of socks (see above sentence to find missing socks!) and I run out of skirts and shirts at least once a week and spend the day doing chores in my pajamas while I wash them. LOL!

Most of the time, I feel truly inadequate and overwhelmed with the number of responsibilities that face me. So, if you are looking to read the blog of Super Mom who will tell you how to keep your kitchen floor spotless, clean your baseboards with a q-tip, or organize your sock drawer by color, you should probably keep looking!!

This is life here:

So when I start to feel overwhelmed, I take a breath and remind myself how far I have come. When I got married and moved out, I didn't know how to cook - not even spaghetti or mashed potatoes! Now I am confident in taking a recipe and giving it a shot - I have even tackled one of my biggest fears, yeast!! I don't remember changing a diaper before I had kids. Now I could do it with my eyes closed, and use and wash cloth diapers too!  Life is a journey, and I am continuing to learn something new every day. Kids will do that for you ;) As I learn and find better ways to do things, I will share with you my hard-found wisdom! LOL Stay tuned for posts on cloth diapering and my family closet!!

Trip to the Pagoda...

I remember when my girls would ask for a trip to the park, or maybe to order pizza as a reward for their hard work in school. It seems those days are no more... They brought home their first report cards from their new school at the end of the school year with awesome grades yet again. I am so proud of them. They work so very hard and it definitely shows!!

As I was beaming over their wonderful marks, I commented that they definitely deserve a reward for their hard work. (Not that I don't expect them to get decent grades, mind you, but they all excel and I believe hard work and accomplishment deserves praise!!)

So, what, you are wondering, did they beg for as a reward? PIERCING. No, no, not THOSE kinds of piercings. Thank goodness we aren't into tongues/eyebrows/noses/tongues and such yet... lol.  So, off to the Piercing Pagoda we went...

Libby the Brave went first. She told me she was going to be brave after she wanted her ears pierced for her 6th birthday and then backed out at the last minute! She totally proved her words to be true, though, and she stepped right up to be first in line!!

She picked these adorable little crosses for her first earrings!! <3

Maddie and McKaelyn already have their ears pierced once, so they asked for a second piercing, and being the awesome cool mom I am I said yes. ;) Well, I have 2, so how could I say no? lol

Maddie went next!!

Purple titanium for her!

McKaelyn went last, and boy did she look nervous!

Silver stainless for Miss Mac!

The girls are so happy with their pretty new earrings, and are being so responsible in helping to clean and turn them daily :) I am glad to have a reason to give them such a treat, and I hope they continue to be encouraged to work hard and never settle for less than their best!!

They also reminded me that their midterm treat never happened because of the move and my hugely pregnant state. Oh my!

How My Blog Got Its Name

June 14, 2012

Any parent of more than the usual 2.5 children has surely heard the millions of oh-so-creative comments people utter when they count your brood several times as if in disbelief...

• Are they all yours?
• Are any of them twins?
• Don't you know what causes that?
• Don't you own a tv?
• Are you DONE yet?
• Are you trying to catch up to the Duggars?
• Are you Catholic/Mormon/ETC...?
• When are you going to get fixed?
• You MUST be crazy...
• Better you than me...

Then there is the old stand-by comment: You really have your hands full!! 

Now, I had been trying to think of a good name for my blog for a couple of days, and nothing quite seemed right... Thank goodness I ran out of bread and peanut butter!! This meant we were forced to take a trip to the grocery store.  So we packed up our big van and headed to Aldi.  Now, for those who have never been to an Aldi, they keep their carts outside the store and you put a quarter in a slot to release a cart, then get the quarter back when you replace the cart. Picture a woman carrying a baby in an infant seat, with a 9 year old girl pushing a 2 year old girl in an umbrella stroller, with 8 and 6 year old girls and 4 year old boy in tow, on our way to get a cart... I had my quarter in my hand (It always pays to be prepared!) and there were very few carts in the lanes, we were going to have to walk way toward the end. A gentleman, maybe in his 70's, is about to return his cart, but seeing me and the kids, he turned it around and brought it back to me. How kind and appreciated!! I offered him my quarter in exchange, but he refused to take it, saying, "You look like you have your hands full!"  I replied, "Yes, some days I do!" lol... He turned to walk away, muttering "I don't know how you women do it..."

This sweet man gave me a nice giggle on my way into the store, and Life With My Hands Full was born :) Yes, I suppose I do have my hands full, but I wouldn't trade it for anything!!

Welcome To Life With My Hands Full

June 13, 2012

Well, I've done it. After much encouragement from my husband, I have started this blog, which he insists people will actually read. I suppose time will tell if he is right!

I guess the best way to begin one's blog is with an introduction, so here goes!! My name is Angie, but mostly I go by Mom or Mommy. ;)  I am happily married to a wonderful man named Mike and we will be celebrating our 12th wedding anniversary this fall. This is us in 2010:

Mike is a driver for a local company, and I am very blessed to be a stay at home mom to:
McKaelyn - 9, Maddie - 8, Libby - 6, David - 4, Lexi - 23 months, and Dean - 8 weeks. Yep, you counted right, that equals six kids. :) 4 girls and 2 boys. We are truly richly blessed!!!

2012 has been a year of many changes and adjustments for our family! We recently bought our first home and moved on Easter weekend because I was very, VERY pregnant with #6 and was determined to be moved before he was born.  This meant a change of schools in the middle of the year for the oldest three girls and the end of preschool as he knew it for David. Dean made his appearance just as they started their new school adventure!

Consider this your invitation to join me in my adventures as a mom of a large family (compared to most, at least LOL!) as I am trying to make things run more smoothly on a daily basis :)