Maximum Organization for Maximum Space

I love organization and lately, closets have been my project.  Tonight I finally finished the office closet!  It was great to really unpack the office for the first time.  Sure the boxes have been long gone, but now I feel like all my scrapbooking and craft supplies are accessible!  

I left the right side of the sliding door closet for hanging clothes should we ever use it as a bedroom, but added shelves to the left side [all by myself!]. 

I had a lot of fun picking out cute boxes to house all my supplies.  :)

The Master Closet was my fist project.  Dad came over and helped me take down the existing shelves, move them up, and add another layer to the bottom.

Now there is plenty of room for Ronnie's clothes when he comes back!

We even let the shelving go above the door to maximize storage space!

So that's what's new around the house.  :)

Pintentional Home

I think a lot of people would agree that Pinterest is a great way to waste time and procrastinate, but it is also a valuable resource. This last week, I have spent my time organizing our new home with the help of Pinterest. It has been fun to try out so many of the cool ideas I have seen on-line. Here are just a few of the things I have been working on.  

Projects:

The inspiration for my bathroom... I needed hooks and found this awesome mirror for above the tub!

With stainless steel fridges somehow not being magnetic (blows my mind), I needed a new solution to hang things in the kitchen.  Planning to fill in with more cork later. 

Room by room checklist; laminated so you can wipe eras.  Find it HERE.

I love my expedite.  Probably my favorite piece of furniture.  This time I used it as a bookshelf in the sitting room. I used this site as inspiration:  7 ways to display books

I also laminated this cool daily to-do.  Find it HERE.

In the Laundry room

For some reason there are no shelves in my laundry cabinets so I used a tension rod.  Also note the Jar for checking pockets.  :)

Homemade Reusable Clorox wipes to replace the pricy ones.  Recipe HERE.  Keep an eye on Dawn concentration- use less if highly concentrated!

Our Prayer Board.  It's a place for all the photos of loved ones to pray for. 

Ticket Frame for the upstairs theater/man cave

Mason Jars:

Match Jar complete with sand paper top.  Note:  only works with strike anywhere matches.

Salt Jar and Caramels (just because I like them)

Pick-a-date jar.  These ideas are color coded by cost (Free, cheap, and expensive).  Taken from many different sites of date ideas. 

Sewing Jar

For the Love of Binders:

Ok, so these are not pinterest... This is just from my own love of organization.

All past college courses organized with syllabi and tests for easy access

All our love notes in one place.  Makes it fun to look back too.

Business Cards all organized!

Boxes!

Everything has a place.

Game Box in the living room

In the works is Office closet organization... all the boxes are there, just need to hang some shelves. 

So that's what I've been up to the last couple weeks.  Can you tell I like Pinterest?  LOL

Scrapbooking and Yummies

Tonight was a fun girls night.  I hosted a Heritage Makers digital scrapbooking party!  It was so much fun learning about something that I am already passionate about- memory saving.  So fun.  Anyways, I also had fun making the spread of snacks for the event which were a huge hit.  So I thought I would share these pinterest treasures.

Cake Batter Fruit Dip

Great on Fruit and Cookies and tastes like Cold Stone Ice cream!  Would also make good cream for sandwiching cookies if you make it thicker with more cake mix.  PS~ This is only a small portion that was left over... forgot to take a pre-party pic of it...

Mix together

• 8oz container of light Cool Whip (thawed)
• 8oz bar of light cream cheese (softened)
• 1/3 cup (or more if desired) box cake mix (I used Yellow, but I've seen others use red velvet or funfetti.)
• A container of sprinkles [reserving a few more for the top]

See original recipe HERE. 

Brownie and Fruit Kabobs

ok, so this was a spin on a July 4th idea that excluded the grapes.  Pretty self explanatory...

• Brownies cut in squares (works best if chilled)
• Marshmallows
• Strawberries
• Grapes
• Blueberries
• And of course, Kabob sticks 

See original recipe HERE.

I know I can be a pretty opinionated person.  I think that is the curse of being able to talk before age 18 months.  But I know when to stop and I feel that arguments are a complete waste of time.  Why should I expect you to think like me??  

This whole Chick-fil-A drama has got people piping hot.  I'm  a little unsure why it is an issue at all.  Why should a company get slammed for having an opinion?  A wide spread one at that!?  And what happened to freedom of speech, separation of church and state, and tolerance (because really if you are refusing to eat at a christian restaurant that is willing to serve you, who is really being intolerant????)?  

As a Christian, I support that same view, but like Chick-fil-A, I'm not condemning or judging people who don't think like me (no one was EVER denied service for being gay!).  Now, DO NOT get me wrong on this.  I do not think truth is relative and that sin is only sin to some and fine for others.  I just think matters of the heart should be left to God because I for one am not qualified to pick a fight.  Besides, isn't HIS opinion ultimately the only one that matters?  I am a huge believer in God speaking to people and helping to convict them in their sin.  If someone is truly a Christian, I believe God will convict them.  That is not to say that I cant help shed a little light but it is to say that it is not my job to convince or convict.  I am commanded to love everyone, because maybe there is some truth in "being born gay".... afterall, we are ALL born sinners.  But that is not what we are called to be.  It is not our DNA.  We are called to be holy vessels of Christ and that cant be done if we are too busy arguing, fighting, and condemning.  

So.  All that to say, I went out today to support not only Chick-fil-A, but family values, freedom of speech, and moral standards.  But no, I am not being intolerant or judgmental.  In fact, I leave your sin with you and God, no matter what it may be.  But do me the honor of leaving me and my opinions alone too. 

PS~ Chick-fil-A has been an amazing contributor to the wounded warriors and their families in San Antonio as they provide free meals several time a month and walk the cow around the hospital to cheer up injured soldiers.  It was always a blessing to have that provided meal when we lived in a hotel room with no kitchen.  THAT has eternal value. 

A few of my favorite things

I am IN LOVE with my new kitchen.  Here are a few of my favorite things from an organizational stand point...

Pull out drawers for my pantry and cabinets

Built in china cabinet!

Pull out spice rack

All the Crazy People

A collection of some of my favorite pictures from when my Cousins came to visit. Enjoy!

4th of July

We had a great 4th of July with Family and friends this year. After a BBQ at my parents', we headed downtown to see the fireworks. We had great spots this year, too! We sat in a Lilly Parking lot with a great view. Here is just a taste of the fun we had...

A virtual tour

We are all settled into our new place and we have pictures to prove it! Click HERE to see the rest of our pictures via facebook!

Whirl Wind Week

The last week has been a tornado of chaos, but such an amazing adventure. Ronnie and I loaded up the UHAUL with the help of amazing San Antonio friends on Wednesday morning. I was amazed at how quickly we got everything loaded up! We were out of the apartment by about 2pm! I flew out of Texas on Wednesday night and Ronnie and his dad (and Mia) began the 22 hour drive with the UHAUL towing my car. They made great time and made it into Indy Thursday evening.

Closing went without a hitch on Friday morning and by 11:30am, we were unloading the truck with the help of our Indy friends. Now... I have to brag for a second. With all of our amazing help, we were unpacked by mid afternoon and nearly COMPLETELY UNPACKED by evening! I'm talking every room having the necessities unpacked and almost all boxes emptied! Impressive? I thought so. And just in time!

Saturday morning began our nearly nonstop guest hosting with Ronnie's Nana and Grandpa. They stayed through the weekend and my grandma came down from Ft. Wayne to visit too. After a grand time with the grandparents, my Uncle Erwin, Aunt Janett, and cousins Lindsay and Hailey came to stay for a week. We divided them up and my sisters and cousins stayed at our place (Ronnie was very outnumbered). We've had fun with 4th of July fireworks, playing games, and hanging out. It has been a busy first week in Indy, but it has been fun seeing so many relatives and opening up our new home to them for the first time.

Ronnie's Un-Birthday

Ronnie's birthday is not until the end of the month, but since we will be apart for his birthday, I took the opportunity to throw a little surprise birthday party. My family and my uncle's family joined us at Ronnie's favorite eatery... McDonald's. Afterwards, I surprised him with a custom cake from Kim's Kakes with matching cupcakes in a variety of flavors (we can never pick just one). It was a burger filled day and I think Ronnie really liked it. Happy early birthday, love! And thanks again, Kim, for another amazing cake!!