When you give a mom a scrapbook…

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When you give a mom a scrapbook she can’t get started because she needs to update her software.  Then she will need to reset all her settings to find all her papers and elements.

Then she will need to check online to see if there are any new digital packages that will work for her project.  She will find plenty and even buy a few….but none for her current project!

When you give a mom a scrapbook, she will then need to gather all her photos and try to find the journal entry where she wrote down all the notes and things she wanted to remember from her trip.

When you give a mom a scrapbook she can’t get started until she searches Facebook to see if anyone else took photos she might want to include in her scrapbook.

When you give a mom a scrapbook, it will take her so long to get organized that she will use up all her free time just trying to get organized!

::sigh::

But at least I’m organized now!  😉

My birthday present

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Yes, I know it is 38 days until my birthday (no, I do not have a countdown to my birthday – but I do have a calendar right next to my laptop! lol) but as we are going on our big trip in 12 days (calendar again) I asked Eric if I could have my birthday gift a bit early! And he agreed.

(Pardon me while I panic for a bit about taking 6 people on a big vacation in only 12 days!!  Breath in, breath out…ok, I’m better!)

So yesterday, we picked up my gift:  A new digital camera.  It’s a Samsung and the most important features to me are the zoom (5x) and size (just a bit bigger than my phone so VERY easy to toss in my purse)!

Here is an example of the zoom:

Backyard at normal zoom

Same picture at 5x zoom – you might have to click to see my windchime.

While I was playing with my camera – I was also painting my toes and Sissy wanted hers done too.

Tada!

“I love it!”

But now we have to wait for them to dry – no fun!

Happy Girl!

Singing

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This Sunday, Sissy didn’t want to go into the nursery.  Instead she wanted to “sing with Daddy”.  I thought that was cute enough and I prefer our kids be with us in church whenever possible.  But I didn’t expect her to sing.

And, boy did she!  Every time there was music – she was singing! Of course, she has no ideas what the right words are – and I’m pretty sure she could care less!  It was definitely a joyful noise!

I’m hoping that Eric will sneak his Flip video camera in next week so we can record her singing! It is definitely something I’d like to remember!! 🙂

Psa 100:1 [[A Psalm of praise.]] Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.

iPod Touch App review: HomeRoutines

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Are you a Flybaby?  I’ve followed FlyLady since I’ve been online – way back in the 1990s!  However, it’s been many years since I’ve gotten her emails. And, it can be hard to keep up on your routines/zones without accountability. Over the years, my sister Beth and my sister-in-law Christy discovered her and I was encouraged to keep going.  But I had a hard time keeping track of what I wanted to do each day.

While searching for iPod/iPhone apps for mom’s I found this one: HomeRoutines. There was a cost – $4.99 – which I gladly paid.  Now that I have and use the app, I realize it’s worth even more than that!

Here are some of the aspects of this app that I enjoy:

  • The app is very easy to customize for your own purposes.  I tweaked my morning, midday, evening routines to fit my schedule and my routines.
  • A 15 min timer! Perfect for unpleasant jobs! And, it’s remarkable what you can get done in 15 mins!
  • Focus zones – again, completely customizable to fit my life and my home.
  • Gold stars! Woot! When I finish a task I get to reward myself with a gold star! At first I didn’t think too much about this – but now I realize that I love it! Works for my preschooler and works for me! lol

The app makers maintain a blog at http://www.homeroutines.com/blog/ where you can learn more about how others are tweaking the app to fit their needs.  One recent one I loved was the gal who tweaked the daily reminders to help here plan her meals.  You can read more about it here.

Also on their site you will find tutorials which are helpful when you are starting out.

But if you need help setting up your routines, I suggest you get Flylady’s emails or read the SideTracked Home executives books.  I’ve tweaked mine over the years to reflect our current lives…your routine has to be YOUR routine or it will not work for you.  If you want to talk it through with someone, drop me an email and I share what works for me as a homeschooling, work-at-home mom who wants to make sure her family eats well and has a restful, clean place to hang out.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m far from perfect, but I’ve learned some shortcuts over the years that make it much easier for me!  (hmm…maybe this should be another blog posts)

Bottom line:  HomeRoutines is a great app that can change your home and your life!  That might sound extreme, but with this tool, you can start making small changes to your life to make it more peaceful.  Who wouldn’t want that, right?! I HIGHLY recommend it to all!

Yeah, I definitely feel the need for another blog post coming on! 😉