I registered my kids in high school today. My daughter is a sophomore and my youngest son is a...*gasp*...senior. And to answer your question, yes, I totally got emotional! My babies are growing up way too fast! Where in the world did the time go? What happened to filling cartoon character and superhero backpacks full of all those cutesy school supplies? *sigh*
After registering the monkeys and getting the boy's hair cut, we shot over to Wal-Mart. I've been slowly adding to my wardrobe, but frankly, buying true vintage can get quite expensive. Soooo, I've been making my own. (someday I'll post Outfit Of The Day). Here's the pattern I bought today:
I don't really have any circle skirts (although I have a couple dresses with the fuller skirts), so I decided to remedy that! I haven't bought the fabric yet, but I promise to post as soon as I find what I want. I'll probably make a few at one time so I have a good variety.
Now, I should totally be fabric hunting, but instead, I'm utilizing the last of my zucchinis for the summer. (I got sick for over a week and my squash and zucchini plants died since no one was taking care of them!) I currently have loaves 3 and 4 in the oven.
Yep, four loaves of zucchini bread from one zucchini! Once those are cooled I'll make some more and pop them in the freezer. How awesome will it be on cool autumn days or days when the kids and I are snowed in to run out and grab some comfort food straight from our freezer? Of course, I made these loaves wearing one of my sweet aprons. (Man, I really need to start taking some more pics!)
On another note, my mom and I took the kids thrift store shopping for some school clothes (hate buying a whole new wardrobe because it's hot for the first couple months, and my daughter is growing way too fast to buy anything too far in advance!) Check out this sweet dress I got for about $10!
I know the shoes are hideous, but they're all I have other than black flats, black heels, black knee high boots, and tennis shoes! I REALLY need some flats in different colors and some kitten heels!
That's it for today! I LOVE seeing what you've been adding to your wardrobes! Feel free to share you blogs with me so I can go stalk your pages!
While I would so adore being as close to a 1950s housewife as possible, life doesn't always allow it. Sure, I could disconnect my Internet, but then I wouldn't get to talk to all of you, nor would I get to do any research. Therefore, I've had to put myself on a pretty strict schedule (although I struggle every day to stick to it!)
For years I struggled with a way to stick to a schedule - I've even tried setting an alarm to remind me to do this or that. From all the posts, videos, and blogs I've read and watched The Retro Housewife has a fantastic series that has fit my lifestyle more than any other. Don't worry, when I say "series" it's only a couple of videos. I had to change mine up a little because, frankly, I'm a creature of habit. Monday has always been clean sheet day, therefore, I had to switch the Tuesday bedroom schedule to Monday. Little things like that had to be altered, but all in all this system is working best for me so far. So here is my day to day schedule. Some things are done daily, while others are once a week. I'll try to keep it to just bullet points for now.
Daily:
Make bed
Swish and Swipe toilet and sink (check out Flylady for some more cool tips)
empty trash cans
wipe down counters
daily dishes (after each meal. Way easier than having to do all of them at once)
sweep floors
feed animals (first thing before I even have coffee)
vacuum and sweep, and mop if needed.
I won't break down the individual chores for each room, but here's how I break up the week and avoid having to spend my entire weekend doing deep cleaning. Each room takes me approximately thirty minutes, and the rest of my day is spent on sewing, writing, and dealing with my Damsel In Defense business.
Mondays - Bedrooms
Tuesdays - Kitchen
Wednesdays - Living Rooms (I have a living area in the basement, too) and dining room
Thursdays - Bathrooms
Fridays - I tend to do my running on Mondays, so I allot the last day of the week to straightening up my husband's office, my "cave" (my personal work area), and the area where my daughter and I sew. During the warmer months I use Fridays to weed the gardens, muck the chicken coop, and any misc things that need to be done outside.
Like I said before, I got the basics of the schedule from The Retro Housewife Life, but I had to tweek it according to my personal schedule and family. In the weeks to come I'd be happy to break down what I do on each day, but if you really want a great place for printouts etc head over to The Retro Housewife's blog - she has the prettiest printouts, and even has some for spring and fall cleaning, as well!
If you use a housekeeping binder, or a cleaning schedule I'd love to see it or hear about it!
I guess some of these videos may come off as sexist to some, but at this time in the world it was just normal for the woman to run the home. In fact, the woman was literally the CEO of the home and ensured that everyone's life ran smoothly. It seems to me more and more women are not just dreaming of returning to the life of a vintage housewife, but are doing it. I'm one of them. I've always been proud to call myself a housewife - aka, stay at home mom.
Relax! I meant the end of the year. Yeah, I do think I'm funny. Anyway, the point of this post:
You can pretend all you want that you don't make them, but we all think about the changes we can make in each new year. Honestly, it'd be silly NOT to find ways to grow. Last year, I began the great purge of 2014...the purge is still going. Every single time I bring something new in, two things go out. If I come across something that I don't use, don't love, or have no sentimental tie to...gone. Slowly yet surely I'm minimizing all the clutter in our home.
So what do I plan on implementing this year? Actually, there are two major things I'm going to be working on (and of course work on losing the weight I gained during the holidays).
The first one is:
I have so many rooms that I haven't finished painting, so many projects laying around the house just begging to be finished!
The second one, and one so many people try every single year is:
This is something I've been pecking at for a while. It's hard to get organized, though, when you still have entirely too much junk in your home. In the meantime, I've come across this blog at Bits Of Everything. She has some fabulous downloadable printouts to help get your day organized. My problem is I try to finish one thing and then....
Just like so many THOUSANDS, TENS of thousands - okay, a majority of the population - I get distracted by so many things. Just today my husband and I were discussing why I don't work out at home. I would go into my room to change and make the bed. Of course, then I would notice the glass from the night before and would take it into the kitchen. In the kitchen is the breakfast dishes...so on and so forth. You get the point. You do it, too.
Earlier in the year I started using a housekeeping binder. The Retro Housewife has some awesome posts and videos on building your own cleaning schedule and homemaking binder. Once you get one aspect of your life organized, other things start to fall into place seamlessly.
I want to know what you're planning for the new year? Do you outwardly make New Year's Resolutions, or do you just know you'll be adding something new to help you grow as a person each year/month/whatever?
I've been absent for a while due to health issues and family matters, so I apologize for the silence. I've been trying to get my thoughts clear on the path of this blog; it seems to have taken a path of its own. While I try my damnedest to be entertaining, I know what I'm most passionate about is family, tradition, raising children to be contributors to our society instead of complete and total drains. Sooooo, now I have to decide how many of my posts will be heavy, how many will focus primarily on my 1950s housewife life, and how many will debut...me. I can't promise any tutorials, as I'm still learning so much myself. But I do promise to share and all helpful hints, tips, or blogs I find. So, without further ado I direct your attention to The Retro Housewife Life. If you haven't checked out her site yet make sure to head over there now...well, wait until after reading this blog first.
Her page was a huge reminder of how I want to treat my family. If I can look nice when I go into public, why not look nice for the people I love most? Why do I save the crazy messy hair, the lounge clothes for the person I most want to find me attractive? Nope. Not anymore. In fact, here's a shot of me today...
Yeah, it's a little close up but I took it for Facebook to prove I indeed did successfully apply false lashes. That was literally the first time I've ever tried to put on a full set and it wasn't nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. I had on nice clothes earlier, but had to work in the chicken coop when I got home; nothing says dry cleaner like chicken poop on your vintage skirt!
One of the major game changers for me was a song The Retro Housewife posted.
Hey, little girl, comb your hair, fix your make-up, soon he will open the door, Don’t think because there’s a ring on your finger, you needn’t try any more. For wives should always be lovers too, Run to his arms the moment that he comes home to you. I’m warning you, Day after day, there are girls at the office and the men will always be men, Don’t stand him up, with your hair still in curlers, you may not see him again. Wives should always be lovers too, Run to his arms the moment he comes home to you. He’s almost here, hey, little girl, better wear something pretty, Something you wear to go to the city, Dim all the lights, pour the wine, start the music, time to get ready for love. Time to get ready for love, yes it’s time to get ready for love, It’s time to get ready for love…
Frank Sinatra , “Wives and Lovers” 1964
Here's Dionne Warwick's version. Love it!
While the idea seems antiquated to some, those of us dedicated to living our lives as close to the traditional 1950s housewife as possible get what he's trying to say. Do you enjoy your husband farting in front of you, scratching places you'd rather not see scratched, etc? Or would you rather he continue to make you feel special, like a lady, like he did when you were dating? THAT'S what I'm trying to say! We spent so much time looking good for him, trying to win him over, then one day we decided "We got him. We no longer need to try." Nope. Not me. Not anymore.
What about you? Have you made an effort to look good for your significant other every day when they get home? (even if you work outside the home, too) Do you appreciate when he/she makes an effort to make you feel special?
