The Latest from SOH

Here are some of the latest organizing/homemaking posts you may find beneficial to you from Simply Organized Homemaking...
***Staying Organized with a Planner
***Storing Medicine
***Conquering the Paper Piles
***Organizing Your Laundry

Boy Oh Boy!

These boys of mine. Oh how they make my life interesting. They always keep me on my toes...I never know what to expect. And although at times it can be exhausting (mentally, physically and emotionally....even near tears at some moments)...I wouldn't trade it (occasional times of peace and quiet are a necessity though!).

After schooling yesterday Madelyn and Xavier went with my mom to my dad's garage. Madelyn helped my mom with some things and X got busy building. When he got home...this is what he had built *all on his own*...

It is a catapult! It's fantastic! He had built one with the men leaders and other boys in his Defenders of the Faith class during one of our homeschool co-op class days. Pretty neat, huh? Schooling does *not* end when we close the books!

Today, the sun is shining...we are getting through schoolwork (slowly but surely). I have been doing a lot of cleaning/organizing and purging. I have loads to take to the thrift store...after already taking a load there a week or two ago! It's amazing how much you have and realize you really don't *need*! ;)  I also have laundry out on the lines and have more to hang out. I am so thankful for these sun-filled days. Even though it is bitterly cold outside, the sun helps and makes the house cheery. Lunch is coming up and is cooking on the stove...then the afternoon will be spent finishing schoolwork, cleaning, playing and doing odds and ends. 
Hope your day is not only sun-filled but also Son-filled. So thankful for Him...as I just could not make it through the difficult days without Him. :) 
Warmly,
Katy

They really are *this* cute!

My family doesn't *do* Halloween...but my sister does with hers. She loves to make the costumes for her girls! This year, Eloise just *loves* Peter Pan...so that is who she was for Halloween! Dinah was transformed into Tinkerbell! They looked incredibly cute! I think my sister did an absolutely FANTASTIC job on their costumes, don't you? 

Peter Pan with my Madelyn (notice El even has a felt dagger her mama made her?)...

Playing cars with X...

Is this not the cutest Tinkerbell you have ever seen???

She is just so darling!

Oh no! Tink is falling apart! ;)

It's always such a joy to spend time with our girls! We all love them to pieces! :)  Hope you enjoyed the photos! 
Warmly, Katy

Digging Potatoes

We dug potatoes from our garden earlier this week. It was quite chilly and getting dark quickly...but it was fun! :)

Madelyn is rubbing her Ma's shoulders (Chris's mom) in the pic below. Bending over, digging potatoes can make your back and shoulders terribly sore!

I am quite smitten seeing my man on a tractor...

What have YOU been up to lately? :)

Schooling, Reading, Sleeping, Planning & *Home*

These October days are getting colder...we had to start the outdoor wood stove yesterday (as it was only 58* in the house yesterday!). We try to wait as long as possible to start it...but it was just much-too-frigid in the house yesterday. No matter what you wore and how many blankets you covered up with, you just couldn't shake that cold off!

 We are still working hard on our schoolwork daily. Reading, workbooks, lapbooks and videos...

I have some books that I plan on reading and rather than just putting them on a bookshelf I decided to place them in this basket so I can remember exactly which ones I have *on deck* to read. 

The Queen of the Home book that is in front, I have already read some. Right now, I am reading Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist by John Piper. 

On the piano, I have placed my oh-so-lovely  Bunco Ugly Traveling Trophy. I spent a couple hours at a lovely Christian, homeschooling mama's house with some other women and we played Bunco, had wonderful fellowship, laughter and fun. I won the game so I was awarded the traveling trophy. I will add to it and then take it back to our next game night and the winner that night will get to take it home! ;)

Madelyn was invited to a sleepover at a friend's (from our homeschool co-op) house on Friday night. Her and 8 other girls had a lot of fun...they did some scrapbooking, watched movies and giggled a lot (or so I am told). I picked her up on Saturday and when we got home she helped with hauling and stacking wood for the wood stove. By the afternoon, she had collapsed onto the couch for a nice, long, much-needed nap!

A little of home...

We enjoy a lot of candlelight during colder months...

This evening, while Chris and the children went to his brother's house to watch a little football, I spent some time planning my upcoming week in my planner...

Our church service was a blessing today. It was on John 6:22-29. Our preacher goes verse by verse in each chapter of the books of the Bible. Expository preaching (as opposed to topical preaching) is the best! Everything is kept in proper context, as it was intended to be read and understood. :) There is so much I need to apply, study and pray about. I realize, every day, something more that needs to be changed in me. I praise God has He continues to mold me, make me and refine me.  Have you listened to Joni Eareckson Tada speak? Oh, she is just lovely and really helps one realize how much we need Jesus. And oh, how we do...we need Him. More than we need our next breath of air or morsel of food....we need Him. I was listening to her speak at the Strange Fire conference (which Challies talks about HERE) on youtube. You can watch her speak HERE. (They sing a hymn first...but then she speaks). I hope you are encouraged by it, as I was!  Well, it's getting late (the clock is inching its way to 9pm...which is quite late for this early bird!). I hope your weekend was joy-filled and Christ-centered. Remember, everything is about Him.  Thanks for visiting friends! Warmly, Katy It's all about Jesus Christ being first.... and second and third and fourth and fifth.   What I'm saying is, don't put Jesus first.  Jesus is everything.   He's not just first in the rank,  He is everything.  ~Paul Washer
**A few of the links in this post are affiliate links. If you click on them and purchase something I may make a small amount from that. This post is straight from my heart but links I would leave for things I recommend anyway are used to help benefit our family! :)

***Visiting***

Earlier this week, we received a visit from my sister and her girls! (It's my favorite day of the week!) Eloise was drawn right to the piano!

Madelyn and El had fun playing some tunes for us...

Pearl was out and about eating grass and leaves. When I looked out the front door I saw her lying sweetly on the ground, just relaxing! It was incredibly darling!

She came up on the porch and visited a minute with Dinah-girl...

To keep that noggin of hers warm, Dinah was wearing her pumpkin hat that I knit for her...

Almost time to eat! Mama was getting her food ready...

Xavier and Eloise played the piano (oh the not-quite-melodious sounds that were coming from the piano that day! ;)...

I remember when Jaxson was the baby of the family... oh how it doesn't seem that long ago...but here he is with *the* baby of the family. We all love our Dinah-girl!

Oh how I treasure the days I get to spend with my sister and her girls! I know my children love it too! Every time I hear Eloise say *Aunt TiTi*, my heart overflows! I can't wait until Dinah is saying it too (which if she keeps on track with Eloise at this age, it won't be long! She is already walking around at this young age!). 
I know many of you who read here have watched my children grow up through pictures...and now also my nieces. I hope you enjoy the pictures I share! 
Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope your weekend ahead is truly glorious!
Warmly, Katy

The Piano

I have wanted a piano for some time but didn't think it would be possible to fit on in our home. My mom found one for us, though, that would work and for a great price! Madelyn has been terribly antsy to get a piano...she longs to learn to play more and I look forward to listening as she does!

Madelyn and I cleared a spot for the piano as good friends helped Chris pick it up this evening. The piano was very heavy and needed 4 guys to move it! I'm so thankful for the help our friends gave! We couldn't have gotten here without them!

The guys moved it off the truck (my dad's tiltbed) and began bringing it to the house...

 Chris and his brother bringing up the front and then two other good friends of ours bringing up the back...

It turns out that the piano cannot be placed where we cleared a spot (much to my disappointment)...it would cover up our heater vent and we *need* that vent through the winter. So, it was decided that my desk would have to move from it's *perfect spot* in the dining room over to where the piano was originally intended to go...

I am not 100% sold on the desk being here...I may move it to the wall where the star is (and then have to move the star....although I really like it there too)....ahhh...decisions, decisions!

The piano then took my desk's old spot...

I am quite bummed that my desk couldn't stay where it was, as I really (really) liked it there...but at the same time, having a piano in the house is such a gift and I am just thankful we have a place for it to fit and be put to good use.

So...here it is officially...

Our New Piano

Edited to add: 
So, I decided to move the desk a bit again too....I *think* I like this better...I will have to see if it grows on me or not! ;)

We'll see... That's the fun about homemaking...you get to make decisions and then change them if you want to! :)