I too decided this was the year to "get it together". I've let it slide far too long :( When I had my second son almost 6 years ago, life seemed to turn upside down. He had a double hernia operation at 4 months old so not sure if it contributed but he was extremely miserable for the first 4 months of life and he grew into a toddler with a very difficult personality (he's SO much better now). My personality wasn't able to cope very well with it. At some point during the difficult toddler years, we finished our basement. Everything that was down there had to come upstairs very quickly. Some of them boxes that hadn't been opened since we moved here several years prior. I'm sure I fell into some kind of depression. What I learned from Hoarders is that I think we do develop a sort of "clutter blindness". It's how we can survive living with stuff everywhere. I'm certainly not a level "5" or anything but I had stuff piled up in places and I was able to just live around it (like it didn't exsist). I also came to realize I hadn't thrown anything away in my many years. I still had stuff from when I was a teenager. I used to work in the beauty business and had SO much stuff I had acquired for free that wasn't being used. We started a couple years ago with a huge garage sale (sold $1,000). I had another one last spring (sold $500) but I still had stuff everywhere in certain spots. I'm keeping only certain things from my kids for the future. Who even knows if they'll need them? I kept a few special books and some special toys (like Playmobil) and that's it. I've stored them properly away and we'll see what happens with them. We save artwork for a year and then we go through it and pick only a special few pieces which I then store in special boxes I created for them. Like this one: http://iheartorganizing.blogspot.com/2010/11/school-paperwork-storage.html My Mom and I made a pact that this year we were going to get organized and help each other achieve it. That's been the best decision ever! It's so much better doing these projects with help. An outside eye that can help you make decisions and move forward. We tackled my lower landing which had become a catch all for stuff and my basement laundry room. My laundry room was new as part of our basement refinish and it's very large. It has a huge table in the middle on castors (ala Martha Stewart) and the kids and I can do crafts here, I wrap gifts here and fold laundry. It too had "caught" stuff and wasn't being utilized as I had intended. Anywho ... two full days of purging and cleaning ... one car load of stuff taken away to charity ... and they both look wonderful! I still have a few items in the laundry room that have significant value so I'm taking them to consignment this week and I have some laundry to work through. When we built the room, I had it wired for a wall mount tv so I'm finally going to get that set up. I'm excited about the possibilities now! I lie in bed at night thinking of what the next project will be. I have hope that finally this house will get in order. I think I may take your advice and hire a cleaning lady to keep things clean while I focus on getting things in order. Even if I just do it for this year, I think it would help a lot. I'm excited for my kids. I want them to grow up in organization and know how to do it for themselves when the time comes. I really think for some (like me) it's a skill you need to learn. It doesn't come naturally. I'll keep checking in to see how you're doing as I keep forging forward myself. My next project is at my mom's house. We are tackling her kitchen. She's already been out and bought some Oxo containers for her pantry and some other handy organizing pieces. We're going to whip her kitchen into shape! Best of luck! Looking forward to hearing how you accomplish your goals.

Way to go everyone. Glass, you see, just a little more "exercise" and things start toning up. You are getting much more than you realize so I guess you will have to use the 14's for the quilt, right? Michelle, you are right it is easier with a friend, but we will do the best we can to help. We know you can do it, just need a little push and that is what we are for. DH tries to help me and he does well with the exercise part, but the rest is up to me. It is hard to avoid the fridge for me, so I have to get moral support from my friends. Sharon as long as you move for at least 30 minutes a day you can even count walking from the parking lot. I have to get up and move every 20-30 minutes when I sew or I get so stiff I can't move. It cuts down on my productivity, but it keeps me mobile. Bread and pasta are my downfall and I have to work hard to avoid them. I could eat pasta every meal and never get tired of it, but alas, I must try to avoid it. I keep fruit on the counter where I have to pass it regularly and the "bad" snacks are closed up in the pantry and harder to get to. This has helped with choosing better snacks, but I do still snack more than I should. Every thing in good time. I didn't gain it over one year, so I shouldn't expect to lose it in one year either. If we can lose one pound a week we are going in the right direction and by Thanksgiving we will be 8 pounds lighter. By Christmas 12 pounds lighter. Sounds doable doesn't it. beverly

Ok - another tip - clean up the grout lines the next day if you use thinset to set the tiles. It takes several days for the mortor to fully cure, and it will be quite soft and crumbly the day after - makes cleaning any high spots out of the grout lines rather simple. If you wait several days, it will harden (like cement should) and it will be very difficult to remove. I spent about 30 mn this morning carefully going over the grout lines in my one wall (I have learned to be anal about this so I don't have "spots" when I grout) - I normally end up ruining a fingernail or two in the process but that is normal for me. BTW - here is what I got done yesterday. I mixed up too much thinset the first time, I forgot I was dealing with a small wall area and not a big floor! it looks a lot better after I took down the spacers and cleaned it all up. I had one "sliver" I had to cut for up by the range hood, it was 1/4" wide by 2" long, and the tile saw handled it fine. Ceramic is so much easier to deal with than porceline as it's softer and does not crack as easy when cutting. I used the rotozip for any "U" shaped cuts around the outlets and the tile saw for everything else. Here is an "in process" picture I had boards cut for the area needed for the border. By using them I could get my tile edges very straight - just make sure you don't accidentally cement the boards to the wall. This is what I got done the first "batch" and then I fitted and cut the rest of the perimeter tiles (they are laying on the coutner in this picture - ready to install). I put the border in after all the rest of the tiles were set. Here is my mixing setup. I use our smaller hammer drill (but not hammer mode) and a five gallon bucket so things don't splash. I have a scale (it's a fish scale, I'm not using a good kitchen one on this) to measure the powder and measuring cup for the water. Add the water to the bucket and carefull add the powder - if you simply dump it in, you'll get a plume of cement dust! And I have a timer - you mix for five minutes, wait for ten and mix for two and then use. one wall down - one to go! Now, we'll see if the resident experts come on here and rip me a new one for all the things I've done wrong. I think I'm learning why people rarely show "in progress" pictures on this forum. I'm showing the way I did things, I am not saying that I think this way is the only way to do it.

I also agree.I majored in dressmaking and design in high school and have been sewing ever since,and that adds up to about 50 years.Wow didn't realize it was that long til i stopped to think about it!! DH bought me my first machine after the birth of our first son(1959) because i kept borrowing my sisters.We went on to have 2 more sons and a dd.I sewed for all of them.I sewed a lot of the boys clothing right up to high school days and of course all of dd's as well.Also sewed all my own clothes,things for the home,and when dh retired from the military i made him a few suits as well. I have taken a lot of classes over the years,free motion embroidery,smocking,quilting,etc to name a few.I still take classes from time to time.My motto is,"you're never too old to learn something new." Now i have a new Great GD that just 5 weeks old,so i have someone new to sew for and have already made her 2 quilts,burp pads,crib bumpers.Can't wait to start sewing her clothes,and believe it or not,i still have some of the patterns i used for my own kids all those years ago.Kids patterns never go out of fashion,and i like the older ones better than the newer one.JMO I learned on here recently how to make a foot stool from a plant stand/holder thingy and made one last week or so.I never would have thought of that idea. So thank gals,keep inspiring us. Kathi