Get to know your local thrift stores

Now that I am a housewife, I have need for different kinds of clothing. I have tons of work clothing but who wants to wear that when around the house? I was in need of additional clothing but when going from two incomes to one, going on a shopping spree the local mall does not seem like the best idea since we have gone from two incomes to one.

My recommendation is to get to know your local thrift stores. I have discovered a ton of great things at my local thrift stores. People donate things they have never used, great clothing they don’t fit in anymore, great things you could find out you need.

There is this great tool to find out what stores are near you. Go to several in the area because some stores may have different better things. For example, I found great Easter baskets at the store by my parents house, great clothing at another location and some yarn for crochet at another location. Look around and you may be surprised at what you find.

Figure out how to end/start your day

Being a housewife can be overwhelming…You think it will be easy, that you can get up and get so much done each day while meeting everyone’s needs. Usually it ends up being a day where you don’t get much done but play referee with your kids, get everyone fed and end the day with a list of to-dos undone. Learning that is ok is another blog but one thing I discovered is figuring out how to start and end your day can help.

There is this women, Fly Lady, who has beginner babysteps about how to deal with being overwhelmed at home. Day 1 is Go Shine Your Sink. Her list is full of a combination of action items and words of affirmation. As great as they looked, I did not complete the steps but I did clean my sink every day for a few days. I discovered that when I woke up to a clean kitchen, my day started better with more productivity then when I went to bed with things out.

Waking up to this mess – not so fun for me!

But waking up to this, wonderful!

The funny thing is that I do not have to put away the dishes that night, but I can leave them out to put away the next day.

This started a trend on me starting my day more. I was not spending the morning in my PJs dreaming of a shower while nothing got done. I got up, and took a shower as soon as I could, I made yummy breakfast and was ready to take on each day more. A lot still does not get done in each day but my attitude was different and that was what really mattered.

Now you do not need to do the same thing. Most of all, the lesson is to figure out what works for you. What makes your attitude better, what starts your day off right…everyone is so different so I can not tell you what works for you but cheer you on as your figure out what you need to make your day great.

The Learning Curve

The Learning Curve - Give yourself some grace

I have been learning a ton about cooking, cleaning, thrifting, child schedules, community, etc. Sometimes the learning has gone smooth and I was successful at trying something new the first time...but lets be honest, most of the time my first try is not a successful one. Learning includes many tries, being willing to try something new and make a mistake and we often don't get it right the first time. Most of the time, I am frustrated, angry, and upset at myself that I can not get this down. It seems like so many people glide with this transition or at least they act like they do. I have been discovering that being a housewife is not an easy job...it is not to be done in heels and a skirt, and is often a messy job!

As much as I am serious about learning to be good at my job, I keep having to remind myself to have some grace...please do the same if you are learning this skill too! Remember that learning takes time and many tries and be honest with each other. Knowing other women I admire have struggled with this has made my transition a much easier one. As for me, I try to count the day as a good one if I get one shower, the kids and husband were fed and loved, and I did not go crazy. So here is to many good says to come!

The Joy Of Lemons - Use your Resources

I have been learning how to use my resources - what do you do when you have too many lemons?

1. Make Lemonade: The obvious first thing you think to do with lemons. I looked online and found a recipe on www.epicurious.com. First, make simple syrup. Next, add in the lemon juice and water to your personal taste. Learning Tip: taste the raw lemon juice first to see how sweet or tart the juice is. You may want to adjust the amount of simple syrup or water based on the taste of the juice you get. We made our first batch too sweet because we did not realize the lemons we had were really sweet.

2. Preserve the juice/zest: Make frozen cubes of lemon juice so you don't need to purchase the juice at the grocery store (or lemons). We use lemon juice in so many things (cooking, baking and even cleaning). If you freeze it, you can wait until you are ready to get to that resource. Once the cubes are frozen, place them in large ziplock freezer bags with a label and date.

Also, the zest is often used in baking, but it does not keep as well when just frozen. Learning Tip: A friend gave me a wonderful suggestion to put some juice with the zest in a ice cube tray. That way you keep a little bit in a container and the juice keeps the rind from getting dried out.

3. Cleaning: Hard water stains on glass are hard to keep up with...especially in the shower. I found out from an awesome video on YouTube by ehowhome. It shows how you can take an opaque water-stained shower door and make it clear again.

Take the lemon juice, poor it on a sponge and rub into the glass. After you have let it sit for a while or rubbed it in good with the sponge, spray the area with white vinegar water. It is so much friendlier then the store purchased product that requires gloves and scared me to use.

4. Share with your neighbors: It is always nice to share what you have and so bring the lemons to those around to your neighbors. It is also nice to share the blessing to those around us.

There are more things to learn about this wonderful fruit but that is what I have been learning so far. I never knew lemons could be such a blessing.

The start!

Hello world...

I am trying something new...about 8 months ago I went from working Mom of one child to a housewife of two children. It has been a learning experience and I have found there is a art to being a true housewife. I did not get raised learning how to cook, clean or sew. I was expected to go to college and get a job. I was educated in how to interview and network well but did not learn how to cook well. Since I worked during the first 2.5 years of my eldest child's life, I figured the balance of keeping the house clean and taking care of kids should be easy. After all I managed work and a kid while making my own baby food. But I was wrong!

I reflect on the housewives I grew up with....Carol with the Brady Bunch (she had the help of Alice), Peggy in Married...with Children (eating bonbons doing nothing) and Kitty Forman in That 70s Show...not that much insight on how to do the job. Then you can look back at the classics where the housewife was strong. I keep wondering how they did it? How did they keep their house clean, take care of the kids, keep themselves clean while getting dinner on the table by 5? I am just happy if I can get a daily shower.

Also, I was not trained in any of these skills! But with the wonder of the internet, I can learn about them. I have been learning so much so far but still have tons to learn I just thought I would share the process. I will link all my resources as I go.

My goal is to just learn more about how to do things. I take pride in my work! In caring for my kids, learning to cook, keeping my house clean, learning to save money as we go from two to one incomes, etc. Here is a journal of what I have been learning. I hope you enjoy!!