Tag: spring cleaning

Mother of all Messes — My Craft Room

Posted on February 27, 2018 by Mama

Hello Tuesday, I’m happy you’re here. If you tried to find your way to this little blog during the weekend, you probably received a really ugly error message. . . and so goes the world of technology when I happen to click one wrong button. *sigh* As you can see, Small Talk Mama is up and running once again and I’ll try (but can’t promise) not to maim my little site anytime soon.

So with my blog out of commission for a few days, I decided to concentrate on more of my Spring cleaning and attacked the mother of all messes — my craft room. Let me tell you, this room is usually in some state of disarray (even if I’m not in the middle of a project) because I have google eyes, glue, ribbon, fabric, paper and pictures stuffed in every little drawer, shelf and storage bin in the place. This room is full!

In an effort to become more productive and organized, I decided to give the whole room a flip-flop and throw away and donate lots of stuff in the process. I pulled down my paper craft supplies from the top cabinets and replaced it with the odds-and-ends crafting supplies that were in the closet. I don’t access that stuff as often, so it makes sense to put it out of easy reach. The closet now holds most of my bulky paper crafting supplies with a bit of room at the bottom for both of my sewing machines. Yes, I have two sewing machines. . . Is that a problem?

As you can see by the very top photo, this process was almost painful. In the middle of all the mess I almost threw in the towel, but I managed to work my way through the worst of it.. I still have a ways to go, but at least I can now see the floor. Below is everything that exited the craft room this weekend (I sure thought there would be more). I threw away three bags of trash and donated an entire box of fun stuff to the Hillcrest thrift shop. That takes me up to a total of nine items in my 40 Bags in 40 Days challenge. Yay!

Lenten Season Means Spring Cleaning for Soul and Home

Posted on February 17, 2018 by Mama

If you were busy exchanging smooches, sappy cards and chocolate kisses with your sweetheart this week, you may have missed the official beginning of this year’s Lenten season. Yes, Ash Wednesday fell right on Valentine’s Day and apparently came as a surprise to many of us. I was unaware until I spied a lady at my son’s school party craft station with black “marker” on her forehead. I wanted to warn her that she had a little something on her face. . . but luckily at the last minute I realized she was proudly wearing ashes and I kept my mouth shut. Whew!

Lent is the forty days between Ash Wednesday (Feb 14, 2018) and Easter Sunday (Apr 1, 2018) and is a time of prayerful preparation leading up to the celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Many people fast, give up luxuries and step up their prayer life during Lent as a way to respectfully mimic the sacrifice of Jesus and His journey in the desert before His crucifixion.

Being a Southern Baptist my whole life, Lent was something I was aware of but not something we celebrated much in the way of sacrifice (unlike my Catholic bred husband). We simply put all our emphasis on the single, super-special day of Easter. Oddly enough, in recent years the Baptist churches in which I have attended have been stepping up their game as far as religious days go. I have seen a much larger emphasis put on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and even Advent leading up to Christmas. I personally like this new awareness, because all these days were part of the master plan (or The Master’s plan) and it makes sense to be more aware of the whole picture.

On the less spiritual side of Lent is a fun little program called “40 Bags in 40 Days” hosted by Ann Marie at White House, Black Shutters. The whole idea is to purge our homes of the clutter that is weighing down our lives by discarding forty bags, boxes or items during the forty days of Lent. Don’t get me wrong, there are some real soul-lifting aspects of this program also and it can have a profound impact on your family dynamics, personal wellbeing and spiritual walk with Christ. Now, If you simply take part in this fun challenge for the pure desire of having a cleaner house, I say go for it girl! I have participated for a few years now; and although I’ve never met my 40-bag goal, I still feel less burdened without the stuff I purge from my life and I know my husband (who is definitely not of the hoarder sort) appreciates the cleaner closets and blank spaces.

I also like to consider Luke 10:38 from the [Holman] Bible, “While they were traveling, He entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.” You mean, Jesus just happened to stop by her house one day and she actually welcomed him in? That’s pretty amazing because I don’t even welcome my dearest friends (much less the Messiah) on some days; because let me tell ya, we have stuff and it can be absolutely everywhere! I know our homes don’t have to be perfect, but wouldn’t it be nice if people just popped over like they used to without our ducking behind the front door and hoping they didn’t see the shutters move?

So whether you’re unburdening your soul or your shelves this Lenten season, I hope you will do so with intention and, if your house is as full as mine, a hefty helping of prayer. God doesn’t mind if we ask for a little help, even with the most mundane of life’s challenges. . . and for some of us, we need all the help we can get.

The Grand Kitchen Cabinet Cleanout

Posted on April 3, 2017April 4, 2017 by Mama

With my Spring cleaning deadline looming, I decided it was time to tackle my messy kitchen cabinets last week. I sorted, stashed and said good-bye to old food, rarely used gadgets and space sucking storage containers. . . and it felt gooood!

I have a pretty small kitchen, as kitchens go, with only three regular-sized lower cabinets to the whole place. Unfortunately, this means I have to ~~cram~~ fit a lot of mixing bowls, pie plates, baking dishes and Tupperware in a pretty tiny place. That is why I opted for some smooth-gliding pullout organizers from Rev-A-Shelf to help me store everything after the grand cabinet cleanout.

I organized my pots and pans with a Rev-A-Shelf about two years ago, and it was one of the best kitchen choices I ever made. This sharp-looking, heavy duty pullout shelf has lots of room and slides like “butta.” Now I will admit that this storage solution is not the cheapest thing going, so shortly thereafter I tried a bargain brand organizer and was completely disappointed. I guess you get what you pay for and the Rev-A-Shelf is worth it. This brand is also super easy to install, which is a bonus!

So I finally decided it was time to make a go at my other two cabinets, and I opted for the two-tiered sliders this time because I certainly needed the room. I purchased my Rev-A-Shelf organizers at Lowe’s, but I’m sure you can get them other places also. Be sure to correctly measure your opening (with clearance for hinges) so that you can pick out the right size. The directions said it should take about 20 minutes to install each unit, and that was probably my average between the two. The top slider can even be installed at three different heights — pretty handy, indeed.

After some measuring and a few screws, the tough job began as I sorted and stashed every last item previously buried in that black hole beneath the countertop. I’m proud to say that everything now fits nicely, minus the mixing bowl I broke in the process, and I can easily see and reach what I need without the groaning and gnashing of teeth that previously accompanied my baking ventures.

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