HOLIDAY HIATUS

Good morning, everyone!

I know I've been absent a few weeks. Going into the holidays is always a busy time of year. For me, the end of 2017 meant a major decision I needed to push through with. I have chosen to leave my position as Marketing Director for the publishing company. While I loved working with the authors, I really felt the time had come to move into something that I enjoyed doing, could work on my (or Bob's) schedule and provide me with some income. The time had come for me to follow my own advice and Enjoy the Journey

One thing I am blessed with is the opportunity to do my own thing. Bob makes a good living and has never wanted me to work. However, I have been drawn to making my own living since I was setting up carnival games on the sidewalk outside our home and charging neighborhood kids a dime to play. I'm creative like that.

When my (step) mom introduced me to crafting, she opened up a whole new world of possibilities to do something I truly love and make money at the same time. I've dabbled over the years with small projects but I'm looking forward to 2018 to push my on-line sales for Stampin' Up! and start my own mixed media business. I am also blesssed with a stash of craft supplies so I'll have minimal investment. That's always a plus.

Bob has been off work since the beginning of October and will be until sometime after the new year. While I love having him home, cash flow is important. I'll be starting right after Christmas creating consumable books then move forward with the craftier projects I want to make and sell.

While I get things in motion, my blogs will be off-line until January 29th. I know that seems like a long time but I need the time to put things on track for 2018. I also don't work more than about 4 hours a day when Bob is home.

I want to start 2018 on the right track and content ready to roll.
Here's wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
Enjoy the Journey

FLYLADY WEDNESDAY - Coffee anyone?

I know I thought I'd have pictures of the laundry sorting unit but Bob hasn't finished it quite yet. Hopefully this week. Deer season will be starting soon so I need to get some of these projects out of the way before he disappears into the timber. 

While I'm not talking food this week, we are in the kitchen.

I wish I'd thought to take a picture of the before mess. The Keurig we had sat pretty much where this Hamilton Beach sits now. But there was an old fashioned trio of candy jar canisters in a wooden rack we'd gotten as a wedding present thirty-three years ago. They canisters collected a variety of tea/ cocoa packets we never used. Mostly because they were behind and we never thought to look there. We'd go for one of the tea boxes piled on top of it (or themselves). There had to be a better way.

I loved the idea of having the tea bags in glass jars. I've been moving a lot of items to glass canning jars over the past couple of years. So my mind went into planning mode. While I decided what I wanted to put the jars in, I removed all the tea bags from various boxes/ containers and put them into their own wide-mouth pint jar and labeled them.

I pondered the storage issue for several weeks then I came across THESE crates at Hobby Lobby. 

I knew four cubbies wasn't going to be enough but four together would work. I painted them all white. leaving the hardware it's natural state. Then my husband glued them all together. 

I still have a couple of labels to make.

Because this still sits behind the pot, I put the jars of tea we use most often on the top two rows and down the left side. If we need the others, they're easy enough to get to. 

If you look on the right side of the first photo, you'll see we had to move the K-cup drawer unit to a new location. The unit fit under the Keurig but the Hamilton Beach is a bit taller. We moved it to the side and Bob built a box for me to keep the cooking wines/ oils contained in one place. I can move these easily when I clean the counters on my Kitchen Zone cleaning when I move things and scrub the entire counter.

WEIGH IN - A bit late

185/169/135

I got a little caught up in a straw bale delivery yesterday and never got to any of my blog posts. I did weigh in before the thirty bales arrived and I spent most of the day working off pounds - I hope.

Thirty bales later Bob and I spent the day placing bales to create places to grow tomatoes, corn and anything else that I can think of next spring.

I've tried getting the bales in the spring but they are so difficult to come by. So I decided this year I would buy them in the fall when they are in abundance and hope they don't break down too much over the winter. If I don't 'condition' them - encouraging the decomposition process, I think I'll be okay.

Not sure what I'm doing the rest of the week. I do know we're having tacos for supper tonight, Ham and Beans tomorrow. Bob has a lodge meeting Thursday night so it's liver and onions with mashed taters for me. Friday is Chili, Saturday homemade pork burritos and Bob's favorite Pot Roast on Sunday.

I'll try to introduce you to what makes my Liver and Onions special next Wednesday and the recipe for the pork burritos, a recipe I learned at the age of 9 from a Mexican woman who lived in the trailer park where I lived. These are authentic Mexican pork burritos with two small shortcuts... shortcuts that in no way affect the flavor.  You'll see what I mean in a couple of weeks.

Whatever's on your plan for the week...

Enjoy the Journey

Kelly

RECIPE WEDNESDAY - Meal Planning

I guess I've shown the planner in the past month. but I like this cover shot better. I finally got the opportunity to sit and menu plan last week. I showed the planner to Bob so he knows what's for dinner on which day. I'm also keeping the shopping list handy so as I think of something, I can just flip open to the next shopping week and add it to the list. This next shot isn't very clear but does show the a shopping list in progress.

This week:

Monday - Leftover Pot Roast (from freezer)

Tuesday - Chicken Enchiladas

Wednesday - Meatloaf/ Scalloped taters/ cheesy green beans

Thursday - Tilapia/ Wild Rice/ peas

Friday - Chicken Fried Steak/ mashed taters

Saturday - Raid the Fridge/ Freezer

Sunday - Pot Roast and homemade rolls.

The Chicken Enchiladas were super easy. Sunday night when we got home from shopping I put 4 large boneless/ skinless chicken breasts in the crock pot with a 1/2 C water and about 4T Taco Seasoning Mix. Put the lid on and set to LOW. Monday morning, they were perfectly cooked. I turned the crock pot off and let them cool while we ate breakfast. Then Bob forked the meat apart and put it in the refrigerator until Tuesday.

Last night I added about another 3 T. Taco Seasoning and 1/2 can petite diced tomatoes for moistness to about half of the shredded chicken and heated it up.

I heated 8" flour tortilla shells in the microwave on a paper towel for 15 seconds. One at a time, then sprinkled a bit of shredded taco blend cheese down the center, topped with a generous 1/4 C of the chicken, rolled them up and placed them seam side down in a  9x12 glass casserole dish that I'd pretreated with a butter cooking spray and a cup of homemade cheese sauce. I got 6 enchiladas in the dish then poured another cup of the cheese sauce over top, making sure to cover all of the tortilla shell so they'd stay soft during cooking. I put uncovered in a 350* oven for about 20 minutes... the length of time it took me to mix up a batch of breakfast muffins. (I'll share that recipe next week)

We each started with two (though Bob went back for a 3rd). I topped mine with diced tomato, shredded lettuce, sour cream, guacamole and Taco Bell taco sauce. Bob just had tomato and sour cream.

I had heated up a can of refried beans but we forgot they were in the microwave. Today I'll buy a small beef roast and make a batch of burritos for the freezer. One can of refried beans, a tiny can of diced green chiles and a small beef or pork roast will make over two dozen burritos!

We're moving in to week 2. We'll see how this goes. With Bob being off work until things on the river pick up again, I need to make use of the contents in our freezer and pantry. As cold temps move in really early, I'm thinking a pot of chili. Leftovers will go great on top of the burritos. 

This week we're combining the Master Bedroom and the bathroom. 

For most of the time we've lived here, we've kept collapsible laundry hampers in the bathtub to sort laundry in to. Of course, that means moving them to another location when we want to use the bubble tub. And frankly, they really take away from the beauty of one of my favorite rooms in the house. So after seeing THIS on pinterest, I decided while Bob is off we need to fix the blight.

Putting this laundry sorting unit into an empty corner of the bedroom will bring the beauty back to the bathroom and get rid of those horrid collapsible hampers. Bob will be able to put his clothes in the basket rather than piling them on the floor by his side of the bed and I can grab a basket on my way out in the morning and start a load without wondering if I have everything. 

I hope to have pictures of the build next week. 

WEIGH IN 10-23-17

185/172/135

Not a number I expected to see on the scale this week. With all of the traveling, family visiting and my husband's birthday yesterday I have managed to stay on point. I didn't overeat at any of the places I ate out and there wasn't even cake for Bob's birthday yesterday. He did get a hot fudge sundae at Colton's from the staff and I only had two bites of his ice cream. So let's back up.

The last time I stopped in, I was headed for the Ozark Creative Writer's Conference in Eureka Springs AR. My sister, Kitty, our friend Linda and I arrived early enough on Thursday to enjoy the lunch buffet. I ate mostly protein and no cream soup. We also ate there on Thursday night. I had the hot roast beef with - but didn't eat the mashed potatoes.

Friday was breakfast at the same hotel restaurant. two scrambled eggs with bacon and toast. For lunch I had a sandwich and the salad bar. Now dinner, was a bit different. Friday and Saturday's meals were part of the conference. Friday night is always BBQ. I ate a small portion of the scalloped potatoes, green beans and 3 chicken thighs. I wasn't able to eat the brisket or the ribs without risk loosening my teeth. I passed on dessert.  

Saturday was more or less a repeat of Friday. The banquet fare was comfort foods. I enjoyed a piece of meatloaf and two pieces of their famous fried chicken with corn and green beans. While I drank water the entire weekend at all of my meals, I did stray and have a double shot of Peach Schnapps on the rocks. It's a tradition for my sister and me. 

Sunday, we had the brunch buffet. Made to order omelet with all the vegies, bacon, ham and chicken.  Sunday night, I threw together Hamburger Helper when I got home.

Monday, Bob and I drove into Springfield to meet his brother/ wife. Dean and Rhonda drove over from Oklahoma to spend the week with us. We ate at The Hill, an Italian Buffet named for the same heritage district in St. Louis. Tuesday we ate at Hemmingway's Blue Water Cafe at Bass Pro. While the past was a bit off course, I will say you can't eat as much as you think you can. Pasta fills you quick. At Hemmingways, I only made one trip and only proteins. No soup, no dessert.

Wednesday - Friday we ate here at home. I made basic comfort foods and never had seconds. Though I probably drank more soda than I should have. And thus the culprit. Bob has quit having a pitcher of tea in the fridge when he's home. He's been drinking more water. 

So my plan for this week, put a pitcher of unsweet tea in the fridge and keep the water jar filled and cold. 

The other thing I've started doing is making a weekly menu. I bought a Week on 2-pages planner specifically. If I've not shown that to you, that will be my post for Recipe Wednesday. Otherwise, I'll be showing you a recipe. I'm going to trade off between a Recipe and Flylady.

Bob is looking at being home more  as the weather changes and work on the river slows down. So there will be less cash-flow and I'll be making use of what's on hand for most meals. As we are fast approaching National Novel Writing Month, I see a lot of crock pot meals in our future. 

Do you have a go-to crock pot recipe? I'd love to know. Please share!

Enjoy the Journey!

Weigh In 10-9-17

185/167/135

Okay..The good news - Bob won the last challenge. He lost 4 pounds! I a so proud of him. 

The news I'm okay with - I probably am not going to hit 165 by OCW.. I leave Wednesday.

However, I am down almost 25 pounds from last year. With that in mind, I am not going to complain. I can live with a 25 pound loss :-D

Yesterday, I began emptying out just the sewing corner of my studio. I was 407 steps shy of 10,000 steps by the time I quit last night. Bob needs to connect the two kaylix units together then I can start moving stuff back in. I've been up since 4 a.m. I see a nap in my future. If I'd asked him to connect the units last night, I'm sure he would have then I could have been putting stuff back this morning. But he had put in a long day, too. By 6 p.m. we were both ready to call it a day. I was in bed by 9. Probably why I was up at 4 LOL

This will probably be my only post this week. I leave on Wednesday for Eureka Springs AR and the Ozark Creative Writers Conference. Four days in one of my favorite communities and the forecast is GLORIOUS fall weather. The dogwoods may even be changing color by then. 

I do lots of walking in ES so maybe there will be a lower number next week.. though I'm not hopeful. The food is amazing at Myrtie May's and Best Western Inn of the Ozarks. If you need some get away time, that is the place to stay!

Enjoy the journey!

PLANNING FOR THE WEEKEND & FLY-LADY UPDATE

I apologize for not getting in here on Wednesday. I was determined to get my music work done for the entire month as well as catch up some stuff for my boss. I did promise to show you the first section of my office that is FINISHED!

Here are a couple shots of the BEFORE.

Stamp storage and Scrap Rack Unit.

Anchored by two 2-drawer filing cabinets that hold adhesives

and large tape rolls such as packing/ painters/ carpet, etc.

This is the paper unit Bob built me earlier this year. 

This unit is supposed to be primarily Stampin' UP! product

as well as other scrapbook paper companies that I use

Okay, full disclosure nightmare aside, cleaning this area really didn't take that long. Was more a matter of just putting things where they belonged. I wanted this area completely cleaned as I will use this area for filming YouTube and Periscope videos.

Here's the results:

The general stamp cabinet as well as my triple base Scrap Rack

All of my stamps, including retired Stampin' UP! are stored by theme

in the Recollections Photo Boxes. Photo Boxes from Hobby Lobby are 

approximately 1/8" - 1/4" narrower and will not hold the stamp cases horizontally.

The top 1/2 of the paper cabinet. 

Top Shelf: 

Completed Christmas cards, Project items, Binder Clips, December Daily basket.

1st Row of Cubbies (L-R): 

SU 12x12 cardstock, Xyron sticker machine, Awards Cubbie, Past Catalogs and Business binders

2nd Row of Cubbies:

8.5 x 11" Stampin' UP! cardstock (rainbow order) Neutrals and precut/ scored cardbases. 12x12 Designer Series Paper

3rd Row of Cubbies:

Glitters/ micro beads (both non-SU), Current SU Stamp sets/ Embossing Folders, 6x6 paper pads, Paper Pumpkin kits/ stamp sets

The Bottom half of the unit

Narrow drawers are all ribbon, on cards and $1 stamp sets (narrow boxes next to drawers)

First Row of Cubbies:

Recollections cardstock, washi tape storage unit and larger paper tools, non- SU Paper pads, Seasonal/ Themed scrapbook paper

Bottom Row of Cubbies:

Light box, Cinch machine, Watercolor painting tote, 12x12 Paper pads in individual sleeves. 

The two magazine holders in the center cubby on the right are Stamping magazines from the UK.

The rest of the area has been in order but thought I'd show them off quick, too.

Storage rolling carts beneath the West window. 

Stores SU business files, past SU embellishments (for now), micro beads

Here you have a better shot of the top of the shelf below the West window.

This is where I store all of my mini ink pads, coordinating ink refills and mister bottles.

Then a shot into the corner. Wire rack holds the wifi modem as well as fruit jars of silk flowers.

 Above the West Window

A display shelf. Holds pre-made cards by theme/ occasion

Looks like a little row of houses.

Printers Box 

some of my my artsy style stamps as well as holiday stamps.

To the left of the West Window

My TV/ entertainment unit with a shadow box covering the electrical panel

Close up of the Shadow Box

This display of ACTs was made by friends from my scrapbook class 

when I worked at Michaels. Co-workers also signed it when I left.

One part of the office is complete... now to finish the rest of the office THIS weekend. I HAVE to have the room finished and the hide-a-bed pulled out and made for company before I leave on Thursday. They will arrive on Monday.. the day after I get back from conference. Going to be a busy weekend.

Whatever you have planned for the weekend, remember to Enjoy the Journey!

WEIGH IN 10-2-17

185/168/135

And the see-saw continues. I'm pretty sure that extra pound came as a result of the delishes Mexican Enchiladas Supramas platter at Los Amigos on Saturday... a platter that was chased with a large Pepsi. After walking the Pioneer Days festival I was in the  mood for a Pepsi. One thing that I have in my favor is that most of the time I don't just want a soda.. but I have a taste for something specific. Some days it's a Pepsi, even though I know the citric in Pepsi is going to make my psoriasis flare up. When I'm home, I'm content with a mini can - 100 calories size is plenty to satisfy my taste without doing too much damage to the scales. 

I'm down to the final nine days to get things in shape before I'm no longer home alone to work my own schedule. 

Yesterday, I put 4 C of shredded zucchini in 2-cup bags in the freezer. They'll be perfect for zucchini bread or adding to a spiced cake mix for quick muffins. I do the recipe with a 302 can (15 oz?) of pumpkin most of the time but I thought adding zucchini either in place of or in conjunction with the pumpkin would be an added fiber/ vegi quotient.

The recipe: 1 box of spiced cake mix plus one 302 can of pumpkin. That's it.. No oil, no eggs - nothing else. Then bake as usual. 

Today I have the components ready to stir up a crock pot of gumbo to snack on for the next couple of days. I use a modified version of Paula Deen's gumbo.  This recipe is usually in the crock pot on Christmas baking weekend.

Whatever your path this week, enjoy the journey

RECIPE WEDNESDAY - New Meal Planner

While out shopping at Hobby Lobby last Friday, I had to browse planners. Not that I NEED another planner. I just love them. It's the OCD in me. I have several. But I knew I didn't need to buy one.  Then THIS fell into my line of vision.. okay it didn't 'fall' per say but I did come across this pretty on the main drive isle by the registers:

Take note of the price. Nearly 75% off AND is good through the end of 2018! Yeah, for that price I can play and see if I'll actually USE a meal planner. I'd apologize for the next pictures, but I've learned from watching FoodNetwork that you don't apologize. Not to point out the negative. It is what it is. I'll do better next time :-)

I told my sister about this planner and she had me pick one up for her while I was in town yesterday.

This planner has a Month On Two Pages. Good to have an overall view of the month. I can track Bob's work schedule so I know when he's home.. aka more actual meals and less 'what sounds good to me today' kind of meal planning.

While I am a Daily kind of planner girl, I like the Week On Two Pages for meal planning. I mean, meals are planned by the week, right? This enables me to get an idea of what I need to pick up on my weekly trip to the grocery store.

A couple of years ago I picked up a Note kit from Barnes & Noble that had elongated notepads - 1 for each month. I have tons of the sheets on each one left because I've only used them in the planners for things like this. So I can add one to each weekly page with a piece of Washi tape:

Bob is gone until October 11th so I won't be doing a ton of meal planning before then for me, but we have company coming for a week a few days after he gets home. So I can start now planning the meals for that week and filling out the shopping list. I'm gone the week he gets home so I want everything in place before I leave. 

I've taken all of the 'before' pictures around the house. Next week I'll be showing you the office progress. For real this time :-) I wound up having to work all weekend for my boss and got zip done in there last weekend. I HAVE to work on it this weekend. 

Enjoy the Journey!

WEIGH IN 9-25-17

185/167/135

A bit of a loss.Mostly due to being home most of the time. I did go into town on Friday but no matter what I ate, the bottom plate did not want to stay in place so most of the places I ate, I didn't eat much of anything. 

I didn't get on the Gazelle last week. I spent most of my time either in the recliner with the laptop trying to get stuff caught up for my boss or deep-cleaning the house. Most of the time has been spent on the publisher stuff so the pictures I'll have to show you on Wednesday will not be pretty. What I have done though is gone through the entire house and taken 'before' pictures of the areas I still need to work in. Mostly my office/ studio. I got work mostly caught up yesterday. Will finish tomorrow (I'm writing this post on Sunday) to a  point that I can coast a bit this week and work on the office. I only have just shy of two weeks to get that room finished. The project will take a couple days of intense focus. I just need the days where I am not multi-tasking throughout the house. 

Short post today if I'm to get my To Do list accomplished. Tomorrow is my birthday (and my daughter's - Happy Birthday Ninja!) and I have a shopping trip on my agenda. And at this point, I'm not even thinking food unless it's protein. I have my eye on a  purse ;-) 

Here's to a great week and Enjoy the Journey!

Kelly

RECIPE WEDNESDAY - Flylady

Yes, I know it's Thursday. But considering I was part of the way through yesterday before I realized Wednesday was half gone....

Anyhow... I'm showcasing Living Room progress this week. Keep in mind, that a week ago there was a path between stuff and our chairs, with an opening big enough to see the TV screen through.

I never seem to take 'before' pictures. Not because I'm embarrased for people to see the CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) but because I just dive right in to the cleaning and don't think about taking a 'before' photo. I'm going to make a point to do that for the office this weekend. 

Anyhow... this is the East side of the living room. Prior to it looking like this, there was a large Sterilite tub in front of the window (which may go back because it's a favorite sleeping spot for the cats) as well as the portable kitchen island and the dog supply cart. This is also where the treadmill used to take up twice the space the gazelle does. This side of the entertainment unit holds Bob's videos and also has a couple of shelves designated for the girls' coloring books/ games/ videos. The empty shelf on the bottom is used to house the Wii board. I'm going to move the girls' videos to this shelf.

The Gazelle is heavier than it looks when it comes to folding it up. I'm going to buy short bungi chords this weekend so that when I fold it up against the book case, it doesn't roll back out on it's own. Once the office is cleaned up, I can move it in there for the holidays as this is where our big 8' tree goes.. the one I've been unable to put up in the past four years! The last time our big tree saw the light of day was in 2013. You can see it HERE

This is the West side of the living room. A little more bare. We have to have the blanket rack to keep the cats from laying on our lap blankets when not in use, otherwise I'd get rid of it. The black tripod is temporary. That's where I'm putting my blog boards this weekend while the office cleaning is in progress. I should be able to move it back to the office by the following weekend at the latest.

I have little things on the shelves that don't belong that I'll move to their appropriate homes over the next couple of weeks. This was about decluttering the big items.

The point of this first step is that I can see the floor. 

Next week - the office. And I promise... before pictures will be taken. They will come with a warning :-)  

Enjoy the Journey!

Kelly

WEIGH IN 9-18-17

185/169/135

And I'm back up. Well, all things considered I am not surprised. I spent three days in Springfield with my sister last week. Springfield always includes food. 

Wednesday night we went to The Hill.  This is an all you can eat Italian buffet with foods similar to what you would find in The Hill district of St. Louis.... Little Italy if you will. I take a little of this and a little of that. One dish I love is their cheese ravioli in a mushroom/ wine sauce. Man, is that dish rich and full of flavor. I also tried the Tiramisu cake. Kitty was done eating and had her dessert but I gave her a taste of mine.. next thing I know she's asking our waitress, Andrea, for a new fork and was going after her own piece. LOL yeah.. the food is THAT good.

We went to Colton's Steakhouse for lunch on thursday. Just something light to hold us til dinner.I ordered the Honey BBQ Boneless wings. Kitty ordered the catfish and we shared an order of Onion Tanglers:

For dinner, she indulged my desire for seafood. We went to Hemingway's Blue Water Cafe in Bass Pro. While you won't see it on their menu, on Thursday nights they up the price of their buffet if you want the all you can eat crab legs. I am a sea food fanatic.

 I know the calories in sea food are high but I don't get to this treat in Springfield as often as it sounds by my blog posts. ;-)

She left Friday morning and I hung over an extra day to finish my errands. Friday night I had crab legs and mussels in black bean sauce at Asian King - my favorite Chinese buffet in Springfield. I will tell you this. I've read some of the reviews on yelp and I'm not sure we are eating at the same place. My servers are always smiling and friendly, the food is always good... though some days are better than others but I chalk that up to whomever is in the kitchen. Face it, some people are better at their job than others. The complaint about waiting for crab legs is legit. But that is not the only thing coming out of the kitchen and they expect you to eat other things on the buffet. One thing that would be helpful is if some people would show consideration and not pile their plate with legs as I as possible so that only 2 or 3 people get crab legs while the rest of us wait for the next round. Show some courtesy, people!

While I do eat at a lot of buffets, I am able to step away before the point of misery. I have decent self-control. It isn't the quantity that raises the scale but the types of food. And they are treats.

While in Springfield I went out to a thrift store I'd been in several months ago. They are in a strip mall across the street from my dental office. When I was their last time, they had a Tony Little Gazelle. Like a nitwit, I gave away my knock off- cloud walker several years ago, thinking I'd use the treadmill more and we didn't have room for everything. I've regretted that decision a hundred times over and wanted a replacement. This time, the treadmill is going!

While they didn't have the Gazelle I'd looked at before, they had gotten one in the day before. The price for this piece of equipment ranges from $175-$229 new. I picked this one up for $8.88 before Senior discount. I thought maybe those numbers were a code but the team member assured me that was the price! Umm... load me up please!  

Here's a YouTube video taking you through an entire work-out, with Tony!

Wednesday, I'll be back to show you what I accomplished in the Living Room yesterday. Flylady is keeping me on track and motivating me to GET THINGS DONE so I can decorate and enjoy the holidays.

Whatever's on track for your week.... Enjoy the Journey!

Kelly

RECIPE WEDNESDAY - FlyLady

While this week is supposed to be all about the Living Room - Zone 3, I am backtracking to show you what I did in the Master Bedroom last week.

I will get the zones on track the way they should be... just going to take some time. Baby Steps

I told you last week I was going to tackle the closet before Bob left back out. I knew I needed a second shelf towards the back of the top shelf and while I had everything out of the way for Bob to install that, I wanted to go through everything.  Here's the photo gallery with captions:

Top Shelf - West end

Top Shelf - East end

Full clothing rod

Drawers

When we first moved in, we had 2 sets of waterbed storage bases from our old waterbed. The bedroom is too small for dressers - though we have book cases. Go figure LOL The drawer bases fit perfectly the width of the closet. Bob has the same configuration on his side. 

First, I took everything out of the closet except the drawers/ contents. I'd gone through those in the spring so didn't need to go back through them.

Loose items from shelf on bed for sorting/ trying on.

Bob's empty shoe rack with storage boxes from the shelf as well as some loose items.

Incidentally, we had taken his shoe rack apart and moved it out of the closet when the girls came. Adrian's mattress was in the open closet space. 

Abby's roll a way sat where the shoe rack is in the picture.

We put the rack back together in preparation for putting back in the closet but utilized it for this.

Then the sorting began. I tried on everything on the shelf. If it didn't fit or wasn't going to fit in the next #5 loss, then it went in the thrift store bag. I got rid of a lot of things I haven't worn in years and knew I never would. Some of the items dated back to my days as an Undercover Wear agent. I loved the pieces but they just didn't belong in my closet any longer.

This was the end result...

Look at all those EMPTY hangers!

Thrift Store

When I dropped them off, the gal asked if I'd had a garage sale!

A much more organized space! There are things to the back of the shelf yet, but those are 'keeper' things like funeral books and keepsakes.

Top shelf neat and tidy. Bulky things I wear every day easily accessed.

Jeans and the soon to be worn sweaters

A lot less crowded clothing bar. 

Next week I'll show you how I've decluttered the Week 3 Zone - the Living Room.

Are you decluttering? Should you be? Think how much easier you'll breathe!

Enjoy the Journey!

WEIGH IN 9-11-17

“One of the worst days in America’s history saw some of the bravest acts in Americans’ history. We’ll always honor the heroes of 9/11. And here at this hallowed place, we pledge that we will never forget their sacrifice.”

—President George W. Bush at the Pentagon in 2008

185/167/135

Down two pounds. Whoo Hooo! Well, technically I was down a pound the day after Bob and I weighed. With Bob gone I eat more of the food I like that he doesn't care for and I don't fix full meals. Mostly proteins here and there with fruits and vegies for snacks. Looks as if he'll be gone until at least the first week in October, possibly longer so I have plenty of time to stay on track and hopefully hit my goal of 165 by October 12th - in time for the Ozark Creative Writers Conference.

I apologize for not getting in here on Friday. I started out running errands and didn't get back until late evening.

The flylady program is working pretty good so far. While I'm still building habits - baby steps - I am making progress. Before I can build a full-fledged routine, I have to get the house back in a semblance of order. I've packed up the girls' toys. I need to pick up another Sterilite footlocker for their beach/ sandbox toys.  Pictured below, I bought ours at Walmart for the Home Depot price. They have inset wheels on one end to make them easy to move around. We chose this rather than standard tubs. They'll make nice 'toy boxes' for the girls' items when they come back and we know at a glance these are their things - separate from home stuff.

My focus for this week is some of the mixed media items in the office. I HAVE to have the office in a semblance of order in time for my brother -in-law and his wife to visit us the week after I get back from conference. 

Whatever you have planned for this week, remember to 

Enjoy the Journey!

Kelly