My daughter was so excited when the football student section themes were decided upon...she was especially thrilled that there was an 80's night. She started asking me questions about what was in style in the 80's. Now being from a rural town in the Midwest, the style was fairly tame besides big hair.

She wasn't convinced though because she had searched 80's styles.
And she was certain that the outfit she had in mind was
definitely what was worn by everyone in the 80's including
me her dear old mom. Never mind the fact that I was born in
1980, so I was in my early childhood years and definitely not
concerned with fashion. I wore dresses that my mom had sewn,
lots of large floral print, and sweatshirts with ruffled shoulders.

However, thanks to the Internet, my 15 year old believes
that I went around in clothes like this...

So, I would just like to thank all of the search engines for helping

my daughter to believe that everyone in the 80's went around in the clothes

worn by the ladies in the workout videos. If only my life had actually

been that cool, lol!

But sadly dear daughter, I will put it in words you will understand by quoting Danny Duncan "No it's not that!"

How my list making addiction benefited my family

So, confession time...I am addicted to making lists. I absolutely love, love, LOVE to create lists. It can be a list for chores, groceries, to prepare for an event, anything really. I will even admit that I get more satisfaction from creating the list than I do actually doing any of the items on the list. LOL

However, I have found that making lists has actually made me and my family better at actually completing an entire task. For instance, cleaning the house is one thing that the entire family seems to easily get side-tracked on. And none of us our immune from our inability to stay focused.

The youngest started cleaning the kitchen, but when she went outside to take out the trash, she saw the kitten and had to stop and pet it. Then she realized the kitten needs food, and that her box needs a fresh blanket put down. Two hours later, my sweet girl comes back inside from taking out the trash and completely forgets to finish cleaning the kitchen.

My son was given the chore of doing laundry. While collecting dirty clothes from all bedrooms, he notices his sister's wrestling bag on the floor which reminded him that he forgot to bring in his practice clothes after open mats the night before. When he goes into the garage to get his clothes from the truck, he sees the sign that he had painted for his room and left to dry. So, he brings it inside to hang on his wall, yet still never grabbed his practice clothes from the truck or even changed around one load of laundry.

I could actually make lists upon lists (we know how much I love to make lists) of the ways that all of us get distracted. Not one member of our household is immune from it.

So how have we worked together to come to a solution for this issue?

I made a list!!! I know you're shocked right now!!! haha I actually made several lists...ahhh talk about therapeutic. Mama's now in her happy place.

Here's how I did it:

I stopped trying to make it about doing one chore for the whole house at once. Instead, I broke each room down. So, laundry no longer includes going room to room to collect dirty clothes, washing windows doesn't mean every window in the house, even sweeping the floors is done room by room.

I, also, I made the lists very specific, and each list is put in the room that it is for, so if I am cleaning the kitchen and get distracted in another room, I can come right back to see what needs completed. Sometimes I will even start on lists in another room. Like when I'm putting away laundry that has been piled on the living room couch, I will see the list in my room and decide that I should go ahead and make my bed. I enjoy doing it that way. I like going room to room and doing a few things, but thanks to my lists, I know exactly what else still needs to be completed. I just turn on the music and go at my own pace.

Now the kids, they like to make it into a competition to see who can complete the most list items the fastest, and as they complete something, it gets crossed off and initialed. They have always enjoyed competing over everything from who can eat their food the fastest, who can get their seat belt on first, and now who can complete the most number of chores!

I'm not going to complain at all about their competitiveness if it means the chores are getting done! Mama gets to make lists and clean at her pace, and the kiddos have found a way to make it fun for them. Where as before there was always fighting about who had to do which chore. Now they look at the list and get to work.

Here's a few examples of the lists that I make for each room:

Upstairs bathroom
Clean mirror
clean mirror frame
clean window, make sure to clean the window sill
clean off and organize vanity countertop
wipe down vanity countertop, sink, and faucet
clean inside toilet bowl
wipe off outside of toilet bowl and the top, sides, and bottom or tank
clean shower walls, shower floor, shower head
take dirty clothes to the laundry room
sweep and mop floors

Dining room
clean off table
wash table top and dry it
put table runner back on, if it is dirty, take to laundry and put a new table runner down
wipe down chairs: backs, seats, legs
if chair cushions are dirty, use a rag and spot treat it
move all chairs to sweep and mop under table
wash window, this means also flipping window in to wash the outside of it
take all shoes to the front closet or bedrooms of the shoe owner and washing the window track
sweep and mop the floor by the patio door
wash patio door - inside, outside, and door track

As you can see the list is comprehensive, not just clean off the table which to me as mom would include everything listed. However, I have learned that to my husband and children, clean off the table simply means removing items from the table and does not include actually washing it down, replacing dirty table runners, etc. I have found the more detailed I am, the better it all gets done.

We are far from perfect, and there are days that even my lists aren't able to save us. But they do help a ton, and I hope they will help you, too!

And remember...a messy house means that you've been blessed with a family that is loving life, well-dressed, and eating well!

7 Last minute costume ideas that are easy on the pocket book

Halloween is just 2 weeks away, and if you're anything like me, it came faster than you were prepared for. Luckily, for me, the girls had already decided on costumes a while ago and planned them out themselves this year. However, that hasn't always been the case!

Now I am not one that is going to rush out and spend way too much money on a flimsy costume that will most likely have the stitching rip out before we even get home from trick-or-treat, but I still want my kids to be able to dress up as something better than a ghost in a sheet with eye holes cut out.  So, that means it’s time to get creative. Here's seven of great alternatives to spending a lot of money that we have come up with over the years. Most of these are free or next to free!

Who doesn't love that?!!!!

#1 Cowboy/Cowgirl

What’s cuter than a little cowboy/cowgirl? And it honestly doesn’t get much simpler. The year Penelope wanted to be a cowgirl, we started by looking through her closet. We found a  plain white shirt to pair with a jean jacket, cowboy boots, and one of my cowboy hats, and her look was almost complete. She opted for a skirt instead of jeans, but we didn’t have a jean skirt that fit her at the moment. Easy fix, I cut strips of fabric from some scraps I had from a quilt tied them onto a ribbon and tied the ribbon around her waist! Zero dollars for an adorable cowgirl! I call that a win-win for everyone

#2 Nerd

When Gretchen came to me and said that she wanted to be a nerd, I was immediately smiling. She had found a picture of a costume that she liked, but she said she was pretty sure that she already had everything in her closet. She was right for the most part. She had the skinny jeans, button shirt, and hair bows. She had to borrow the suspenders and bow tie from her brother, and we made a quick trip to the dollar store for a pair of glasses. I now was the proud mom to the sweetest little nerd that you’ll ever meet!

#3 Pumpkin

I was not sure about this one when Gretchen approached me with it. She said, “mama, all I need this year is face paint, my orange dress and one of dad’s old hunting hats that he no longer wears. This was truly a no sweat costume, and in the end, I cherished the memory of watching her create her own unique look.

#4 Raggedy Ann

Blue long sleeve under a white sun dress, red yarn attached to an old stocking cap, and face paint. Sounds easy enough doesn’t it. You know why it sounds that way? Because it is! I picked up a few partial skeins of red yarn from the local thrift store for under $1 each. With a few running stitches, I was able to attach the yarn down the center of the stocking cap, separate it into pig tails, and add a few stitches here and there to hold it in place. Add some red checks and lips and some eye lashes and freckles and we had a charming little rag doll!

#5 Vampire

Logan hasn’t dressed up for a few years…the difference between a teenage boy and teenage girls, I guess. But one of the last years he did dress up, he wanted to be a vampire. I scrolled through pages of costumes looking for the perfect vampire costume, when it suddenly struck me that all these costumes were cheap, thin, and expensive. Also, they had a strong resemblance to the outfit that he had worn for Christmas Mass the prior year. Light bulb moment!!! I could order his suit for Christmas now, and he could wear it for both Halloween and Christmas! Feeling like a genius, I placed the order and made my trip to the dollar store to pick up a set of vampire teeth and some white & red face paint.

#6 Teddy Bear

Who doesn’t have a giant teddy bear sitting around? And if you don’t, there are usually plenty to choose from at thrift stores. We actually got ours from a neighbor that was going to throw it away. With a few carefully placed snips to the seems in the back, we were able to pull out all the stuffing. One quick run through delicate cycle in the washing machine and a tumble on low heat, and the bear costume was ready. Well, we thought it was ready. We did have to cut new eye holes and cut out the bottom of the feet since the girls’ legs were a little too long, but the girls still look great!

#7 Cat…or zombie cat as was the case at our house

Black leggings and a black hoodie…Can you say closet essentials? Add a pair of cat ears and tail from the dollar store with a little face paint, and you have the perfect feline for under $5!

I hope these help get your creative juices flowing! Happy trick-or-treating everyone!