Around the World in a Carry-On Bag: Containers

On Thursday, we will hit the 2-month mark in the countdown to Go Day for our grand RTW adventure. There is giddy excitement in the air and a million and two things that need to be done. I thought it would be fun to mark the occasion with a series of blog posts, answering one of the questions we get a lot: How are you going to travel around the world, entering into all kinds of climates and situations, with nothing but a carry-on apiece? Figuring out this puzzle has been one of the very fun (and slightly frustrating, at times) parts of planning this trip. We may find that we need things we don't have or that we have things we don't need, but all in all, we feel we've done a pretty good job of answering this question. I'm highlighting just my bag, but everyone's bag has similar contents, personalized for the individual. This post deals only with containers, but stay tuned to see the rest of the contents on my RTW bag.

Moving from left to right:

1. Tortuga Backpack--This is the main pack, into which everything else fits. It can be carried like a suitcase or worn as a backpack. It's a 44L bag, with plenty of pockets, including a laptop sleeve. I really love it!

2. Camera Bag/Wallet--I found this little gem at Walmart. The inside pouch is large enough for my camera, while the outside pocket houses an extra battery. There are multiple credit card/id slots inside, as well as a little pocket for cash and a small pen. I removed the wrist strap and replaced it with a shoulder strap to make it more convenient to carry.

3. American Tourister Toiletry Bag--I also found this at Walmart. There is lots of space for all my toiletries, and it hangs, which is perfect for those times when bathroom counter space is limited.

4. New Outlander Daypack--Anything I want to keep close at hand can easily fit in here, or it can be folded up into a very small pouch and left in the main bag, if I don't need to press it into service.

5. Eagle Creek Compression Packing Cubes--Adding these to my bag is what made me feel like I could really do this, because they help me keep all my things separate and organized. I have two larges ones and two small ones. One large one contains all my tops and the other all my bottoms, while the small ones house socks and underwear. I keep mine compressed down, but they can be unzipped to make more space, if necessary.

6. Eagle Creek Compression Sacs--These are amazing! I have two medium-sized sacs in my bag--one for my bulky winter gear and one for dirty clothes. They make all the difference on fitting everything in the bag.

7. Eagle Creek small Pack-It Quarter Cube Bag--This little bag houses all my chargers for my various electronics.

8. Quart-Sized Ziplocs--I have two of these in my toiletry bag--one for my liquids (which is a requirement for flying) and one for bars of soap.

9. The last picture is my bag, all packed up. The only thing visible is the containers (and the shoes, if you were to look closely). Having everything in it's place and easily accessible helps keep me sane.

Moving in a way I've never moved before

Jeff and I have moved a number of times during our marriage, but our next move is pretty different from all the rest. In the past, if I wasn't ready to commit to getting rid of something or if I wasn't sure if I should keep it, I simply boxed it up with everything else, to deal with "later." It was easy to become "sentimental" about things I just didn't want to think about. But, this time, with a vision for minimalism fully in place and not the slightest clue about where we might eventually land, I am eying everything with a critical eye. I'm not completely disregarding sentimentality, but I'm adjusting and fortifying my definition of the word and giving myself permission to let go of so much more than I ever have. I don't have to keep every item I received for a wedding gift, even if I got it from someone I adore. It is wonderfully freeing, and I shall continue to purge in the next couple of months.

However, there is one area that is still giving me some trouble, and in which sentimentality continues to rein: old print pictures. My children will never face this dilemma, having been born in the age of digital photography, but for me, it is truly agonizing. The intellectual side of me says, "Digitize your photos, get rid of the originals and enjoy all the extra cabinet/bookshelf/closet space." But my heart cries, "But digital pictures, in a folder on my computer, just aren't the same!" Now, mind you, I never really pull out the old photos to peruse, and I don't have long family history lessons with my kids about the (de)merits of 80s hair and clothes (though I probably should). But, still, the paper photos just seem better somehow, and I seriously struggle with the thought of not having them sitting there collecting dust or sticking (not artistically) to the pages of old photo albums that have seen better days. Most of the photos are not the least bit organized, so I'm a little worried that I'm just being sentimental because I don't want to think about it, and because I don't have the time to organize them enough to get them digitized.

So, I turn to you, dear readers. What should I do? What have you done? How do you minimize the clutter/stuff but keep the memories? Have any of you gone completely digital? Did you have to go into therapy afterward? Help me out. I'm running out of time, and I need to make some serious decisions about this soon.

Four Months

Four months from today, we will step onto a plane that will fly us off into a thrillingly uncertain future. I know well that four months pass in the blink of an eye. And, though there is still so much to do before we turn the page on this current chapter of our lives, there has been a flurry of preparatory activity in our household in the last couple of months.

• We have bought insurance, secured a lease on a car for our travels through Europe, and produced a lovely spreadsheet for our journey to help us track where we're going, how many nights we are staying there, how many days are left on our visa, and if we've already made a lodging reservation. 
• We've made firm plans for lodging in or near Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Hamburg, Berlin, London, Edinburgh, and Belfast, and we've put in requests for places in several other European cities. 
• We've already connected with some interesting people, one of whom grew up very near where Jeff grew up in west Texas and has been living in Germany for the past 20 years, renting out part of his quaint little house to visitors such as ourselves. 
• We've purchased new international phones, and deactivated and activated cell phone plans. 
• We've bought tickets to an amazing flower garden in Holland that is only open for six weeks out of the year. 
• We have learned a few German words, out of necessity.
• We've set up a virtual mailbox.
• We've made lists and lists and lists--things we have, things we need, things we need to get rid of, things we need to do before we leave, things to carry in our daypacks on travel days, things we want to see and do, etc, etc.
• We've discussed strategies for getting through airports (including turning our kitchen into a mock airport for the sake of practicing), staying safe, what to do if our bags are stolen, how to get along in tight spaces, schooling on the road, journaling, making the best of every situation, storing or selling our larger possessions, our eventual re-entry into the U.S. etc, etc.

Honestly, it's a bit of a whirlwind, and sometimes I have trouble keeping it all straight in my mind, even with all the lists. Sometimes, I get completely overwhelmed and just need to go to bed and start again the next day. But, for the most part, we are just chomping at the bit and ready to take on this amazing adventure. We are so excited and can't believe this dream will soon be a reality!

RTW Packing Favorites

Even though our RTW trip is still months away, we have already started packing. You see, we are trying to do this trip with just a carry-on sized bag apiece, and that takes some planning--and a little practice. Jeff and I pretty much have our bags packed, though we continue to tweak the contents and make adjustments. We won't pack the kids bags until closer to go-time, since they are still growing, but we are already starting to figure out bags and toiletries and other things that don't depend on growth spurts. It's an interesting and, at times, maddening challenge. I will admit that I have shed real tears over things as silly as which toiletries to bring and which to leave behind. But, I have also discovered some really cool products that I might not have otherwise been introduced to. Here are some of my RTW packing favorites. If you have any tried-and-true travel must-haves or packing strategies that make your travel life easier (or more beautiful, comfortable, etc.), please feel free to share them. I am more than willing to learn from the experience of others. 

The pack. It's nice because it converts from backpack to handheld carry-on.
It has a laptop sleeve, which is accessible without getting into the main packing compartment.
And, it has tons of pockets. I'm seriously amazed at how much stuff fits in here.

Jeff got me a set of these Eagle Creek compression bags for my birthday,
and I loved them so much I bought myself another set.
They're like dresser drawers for your suitcase, and they make me happy,
in a place-for-everything, everything-in-it's place kind of way.
Plus, mine are semi see-through, so I can just go straight for what I need. 

Convertible dress/skirts. Cute and comfortable, and just plain fun.
Not to mention quick-drying and relatively wrinkle free.
I have the one from Exofficio, on the left.
Ruth has the Mountain Hardwear one, on the right.

I was skeptical about this powered toothpaste, at first.
But, I really and truly love it, and might even use it if I wasn't traveling.
There are a bunch of variations, and I haven't tried all of them,
but this fluoride-free cinnamon one is wonderful.

Convertible pants are pretty much a requirement for a trip like the one we are taking,
but I knew upfront that I didn't want zip-off pants. That led me down the path of roll-up pants.
I love these from Eddie Bauer. They are stylish, comfortable, quick-drying
and have zippered pockets to deter pickpockets.

This actually took some getting used to. The first few times I used it, I didn't like it at all.
But, the more I used it, the more I liked it, and now here it is listed among my favorites.
It lasts a surprisingly long time, smells nice, leaves my hair feeling clean and not tangly,
and can also be used in place of shave gel, as well. So far, I have only tried the original,
but there are a ton of other formulas, which I'm looking forward to trying.

These are seriously the most comfortable shorts I have ever worn!
I loved them so much, I bought the skort, too. I want to wear them every single day!

The Nano Puff not only has a cool name, it also looks good,
is quite warm, and folds up into it's own pocket to make it super packable.

I liked the concept from the get-go but must admit that
this has required practice and patience and being comfortable with my body.
I am still learning but am overall very pleased with this little device.

It's a long-sleeved shirt. It's a ¾ length shirt. It's a jacket. It has a hidden pocket.
And, it is incredibly comfortable. The Shirtigan is one of my favorite travel pieces. 

Another multi-tasker. This turkish towel can be used as a towel, beach blanket, shawl, scarf or whatever.
Plus, it's soft, quick-drying, looks cute hanging up and takes up very little space in the suitcase. 

It seemed that taking a diffuser on our trip
was going to be out of the question, which made me sad.
But Jeff found this one and gave it to me for my birthday,
and it may be my very favorite thing on the list!
Now, I just have to prioritize which oils to take with me,
because a quart-size bag of liquids isn't all that much!

Let it go

Two months away from most of our worldly possessions has taught us that we have entirely too many worldly possessions. We lived minimally while we were away, and even then, many of the things we had with us went unused. When we returned home, we found a house full of things that we not only don't really need, but many that we don't even really want and have just been too lazy to take the time to get rid of. The American culture is one of consumerism, which tells us we need more things to be happier. We've bought into it. Literally. And I just have to tell you, it is a complete lie. In fact, in our family, we are often finding the opposite to be true. There is an inherent burden to owning things. So, with a little time on our hands this weekend, we have taken a critical look at our possessions, and a great many of them are no longer with us or will soon be moving on to a better place. Every one of us, from oldest to youngest, has been in on the purge, and I can sense a lightening in the household. Just by removing some of the clutter, we have also located a few items that we actually do care about, like a misplaced passport, the title to our van and a long lost pair of favorite shorts. If you've been to our house and you've seen something you love, just ask. There is a good chance I will be willing to part with it. However, if you are deluded into thinking that adding another thing to your collection will bring you more happiness, I will caution you that it is not very likely.

First of many similar loads to make their departure

Curbing the chaos

Y'all. I'm one of those people that requires order. I seriously need it to stay healthy. Unfortunately (but also fortunately), I decided to have four kids and inadvertently created an environment where chaos rules and order absolutely cannot thrive. I have mostly learned to act like it doesn't bother me ignore the day-to-day chaos. But if I'm really honest, I'm slowly suffocating in it. I can feel the tension creeping up in my neck and shoulders, threatening to choke the life out of me. And, I can hear myself becoming snappy and impatient with the people I live with. I know what's causing it, but I'm afraid I don't have the first clue as to how to fix it. It seems the best I can do while I have small chaos-producing children in the house is to reign in the controllable parts of the chaos from time to time, even though I know it won't last. Today, I tackled the smallest room in the house (the pantry), which is all I felt I could manage. When I was done, I wanted to lock myself inside and just breathe deeply from this life-saving air hole of order. Tomorrow, the kids will no doubt go in there and pull things off the shelves and spill things on the floor and quickly shove something where it doesn't belong in an effort to not get caught stealing, but for a few brief hours, I will have had the pleasure of knowing there was order in the midst of the chaos. And, in this chaotic world where I live, that counts as a victory. (By the way, if any of you experienced moms out there have figured out the key to controlling the chaos, feel free to share your wisdom!)

Controllable Chaos

Uncontrollable Chaos

Kitchen Love

I love home decor, but I've always been slow to decorate any house I've lived in. What it boils down to is commitment issues. A nail in the wall or purchasing new items just feels like a forever thing to me, so I need to be sure. And, by that, I mean I need to overanalyze until I lose interest in decorating altogether. But, last week, I was looking through some of my pins on Pinterest. The ones I create like a woman possessed, and then never do anything with. And, suddenly, I felt that I needed to do something productive with all those good ideas that other people had. So, I told Jeff I was thinking about doing a "Pin of the Week," and posting about it here on my blog, just for some accountability. And, then, before I knew what had come over me, I had ordered this wine/towel rack that I pinned eons ago, with the intention of turning it into a display rack for our rolling pin collection. It arrived, and Jeff hung it for me (using only one wall anchor!), and I love it! With that addition, the inspiration sort of started to run over, and the next thing I knew, I had bought baskets to organize a particularly rough-around-the-edges (literally!) cabinet that needed some serious organization. (You'll not be surprised to learn that it was the kids' cabinet, with all the plastic cups and plates, one of the doors of which had been broken off in an unauthorized game of hide-and-seek that got completely out of hand.) Then, while I was at it, I got out the wooden utensil collection we have been working on since we lived in Brazil. While there, we visited a museum that had the most amazing wooden utensil exhibit and decided we wanted a wooden utensil "exhibit" of our own. And, until today all the awesome wooden gadgets we've collected or been given from all over the world have been sitting in an unopened basket, waiting for me to get finished analyzing and never seeing the light of day. The decorating floodgates were already open, so it was time. And, now, my kitchen sink is flanked by wooden spoons and forks and things-I-don't-even-know-what-are-but-look-really-cool! And, it just makes me so happy to look at all the pretty little doodads. My kitchen has never felt so loved! And, I am in love with the way it all looks! I wish I would have taken the plunge years ago.

I am still going to try to do a "Pin of the Week," so check back in next week to see if I make good on that. I'm not promising it will be amazing, but it could be fun. And, it might just inspire you to take action on some of your long-neglected pins, as well.

This week's Pin of the Week: towel rack turned rolling pin display

Sanity saved, and it looks cute, too!

Wooden Utensil Exhibit

The (mostly) African Collection

Another Watts Weekend

On Friday, we took the whole crew into Austin for lunch at the Estancia Churrascaria for a birthday/half-birthday bash for everyone celebrating this month. It was so nice to have a little (BIG!) taste of Brazil, both culinarily and culturally. There were so many Brazilians eating there, speaking in Portuguese and kissing each other on the cheeks, we could almost feel as if we were back in that beautiful country. The only things missing were the chicken hearts and cow hump, which I guess don't go over too big here in the States.

We set no alarms on Saturday morning, which was a first for us since the fall sports began! Ruth did have her last volleyball game of the season, but it wasn't until noon, so we didn't have to rush around to get there. Nana and Papa were able to make it to the game and then join us for lunch at Bella Sera afterwards. Later in the day, I went over to Bee Cave to do a little kidless shopping, which was blissful, if I might just be honest. It was also quite productive, as I bought several gifts I needed to get, a new organization system for a problem cabinet, and some fancy shoes for a fancy date night coming up this next week.

Our Sunday morning began with the first dip in the hot tub of the season. Then, we headed over to Bee Cave to partake of the amazing brunch at Iron Cactus. After that, we picked up a few (million) things at Sam's, which is one of the kids (and Jeff's) favorite places to shop. Jeff had a meeting scheduled with one of his new contractors for noon, so the kids and I dropped him off and then went over to Zilker Park to enjoy the beautiful day. A couple of hours later, with the van weighed down with our Sam's haul and some of the colder things started to lose their chill, we headed home. Three miles from the house, we had a blowout. We had to rearrange the groceries to get to the jack and spare tire, and then Jeff spent the better part of thirty minutes just trying to get the jack under the van. It was a no-go because of how low to the ground it was. A kind stranger stopped to offer assistance, thinking it was just the kids and I stranded on the side of the road. No progress could be made with his jack either, so eventually, Jeff asked if the man could just give him a ride to our house so he could get our bigger/better jack and Jeff's car, in case we needed to evacuate the kids and groceries. Jeff still couldn't make any headway with the other jack and was just about to give up, when a tow truck driver stopped, of his own accord, without expectation of being reimbursed. He had the right equipment and Jeff was finally able to get the tire changed. One of our neighbor's even happened to be driving by and stopped to see if we needed any help. There are still good people in the world, and I can't even tell you how thankful we were for all the help and how grateful I am that this didn't happen while I was by myself, driving home in the dark last night! We ended the day as we began it, since we were all in need of a little relaxation at that point.

Watts Weekend

FRIDAY

• The kids and I participated in a fun field tip to Longhorn Cavern with our CC group. 
• The boys and I ran errands, while Ruth attended her art class.
• We closed on our Kingwood house!!! Finally, the albatross is lifted.
• We had breakfast for dinner and watched "Tangled."
• It was early to bed due to early sports the next day.

SATURDAY

• Ruth had a volleyball game at 8:00, which ended in her team's first victory of the season.
• Max played football at 9:00, and his team was also victorious.
• Weston's football game was at 10:00, and his team came away with a win as well. 
• Ruth and Jeff each took a turn in the concession stand during the football games.
• Mimi came to all the games and spent the afternoon with us.
• We had lunch at Tea Thyme after Weston's game, which is a place with lots of healthy options that we all just love. 
• We visited a life-size Old Testament Tabernacle replica, which will be set up in Marble Falls all week. It was very well done, and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience. 
• I found somewhere in the neighborhood of a thousand acorns in my washing machine and still don't know whether that was courtesy of just one boy or a concerted effort by all three. It was a good reminder to check pockets before throwing the clothes in.
• Weston, along with the rest of us, got to watch his beloved Longhorns take home a win.
• Ruth cleaned out and organized both refrigerators, which just makes happy. The cleaning part was one of her assigned chores for this week, but the organizing was her own idea. She's a girl after my own heart. 
• We set up a pizza bar, and everyone got to create their own culinary masterpieces for dinner. 
• I had several strokes while watching the Aggies try to eek out the victory over Ole Miss. I do not need that kind of stress in my life!
• The rain came down all night long, making beautiful music to sleep by, as it tapped on the metal roof. 
• Clay slept all night, which he has not been in the habit of doing lately.

SUNDAY

• Clay slept in until 7:30, which he also hasn't been in the habit of doing lately.
• The Dish Network service guy was at our house at 8:00 am to work on our satellite, on a Sunday, on a ladder, in the pouring rain. It was a pretty amazing customer service experience.
• Everyone else also slept in, as the rain continued to soak our little part of the world. 
• There were waffles and omelets for breakfast.
• I got all my CC prep work done before noon.
• Pinterest put the idea of a full-size milk carton igloo in my head, and now I'm trying to figure out how to save enough milk cartons to make it happen. I think my kids might be able to overlook some of my parenting uncoolness if I could make this appear in our loft. Jeff figured out that at our current rapid rate of milk consumption, it would take me about two years to save up enough, which kind of put a damper on my enthusiasm.
• Jeff tapped our surplus of sweet potatoes and made a delicious sweet potato and chicken curry for lunch and a yummy crustless sweet potato pie for dessert.
• A flock of wild turkeys wandered through our property and were just right outside our living room windows, causing all manner of excitement on the other side of the glass.
• Jeff created a web page for us to post articles we come across that help build vocabulary. We are trying this new contextual approach to learning vocabulary in our homeschool. Ruth reads an article or two during a particular class time, writes down and defines any words she doesn't know, and then discusses the article and the unknown words with either Jeff or myself. The web site is a way for us to gather our resources together and even share them with others. 
• Weston got to go to a birthday party for one of his football teammates at Pizza Hut, and I got to flex my socializing-with-people-I-don't-know muscles.
• I made the unfortunate choice to go grocery shopping on an empty stomach, but now we have plenty of everything, so we should be good for a while. 

Miracles Do Happen

Jeff and I have been married 14 1/2 years. In that time we have owned and lived in four homes with garages. We have never once parked a car in one of those garages. Cleaning out the garage has been on our to-do list for most of our marriage, but it just always seems to get pushed to the bottom. But this weekend, it finally made it to the top. It was a whole family effort. And, if I didn't believe in miracles before, I certainly do now. We actually got it all cleaned up and organized...and, AND we parked my van and Jeff's car in there!! There is also a place reserved for Jeff's truck, but it is attached to the trash trailer, awaiting a trip to the dump this week. This may be the best day of my life! (Okay, okay, wedding day, birthdays of my children, and then today). I never think of taking a before picture, but some of you have been to my house and know what an incredible mess it was. The rest of you will simply have to trust me on that. I do have the after photo covered though, so here you go: Our very own miracle.

A place for everything...

...And everything in its place

Complete with vehicles

Nesting

I have always heard about expectant moms who get a "nesting" urge before they have the baby. I was not one of those moms. It's possible that this was the case because my life seemed to be somewhat tumultuous when I was pregnant with most of my babies. We moved two weeks after Ruth was born, so the months prior to her birth were more about upheaval than settling. When I was pregnant with Max, we knew that a move to Brazil was imminent. And, when Clay was camping out inside me, we were months away from completing the building of our home, and we were living in my in-law's home. So, yeah, "nesting" was not really my thing. But, ironically, the knowledge that I'm probably not going to have any more babies has kicked the nesting instinct into high gear. I just want to clean this place from top to bottom, and I want to declutter as much as possible. I cleaned and sanitized every surface of my bathroom this week, steam mopped all the downstairs floors, walked the boys through a thorough cleaning of their bathroom, scrubbed the microwaves, assisted Jeff with a deep-cleaning of the stove burners, and made a very serious attempt at getting the garage ready to actually house our vehicles. We filled the back of my van AND the back end of Jeff's truck with stuff to donate today, and tomorrow we will load a trailer with a heaping pile of garbage to haul off. And, boy, does it feel good. I just wish the clean could last. But, alas, real {messy} people live here, so it's just not possible. I will give myself an "E" for effort, though.

(I secretly wanted the children to sleep in a little longer this morning, so I could enjoy the clean look and feel--not to mention smell--of everything).

Controlling the Chaos

The last couple of weekends have been about trying regain control of the space we occupy. It's amazing how quickly things things can get out of hand (or how they never were under control to begin with, in some cases). So here's what we've been doing:

• Jeff acquired a very nice executive desk for his office, to replace the plastic folding table he's been using for the last three years. It actually has drawers and everything, which I'm sure he'll use eventually. 
• I unburied the bench, counter and one of the dryers in the laundry room, and I'm amazed at how much usable space I have in there now! 
• The big boys and I also took on the garage (not for the first time!) and were able to clear a not-quite-van-sized path. But, it's close, and I have faith that I may actually be able to park a vehicle in there sometime in my lifetime. And the kids were totally impressed...because now they have so much more room to pile up their myriad toys. We'll work on that later.
• Making no small mess, I changed the filters in the water filter system all by myself. As a bonus, the floor in the utility room got a nice bath.
• I claimed a small section of the home school room for myself, which I set up with a desk and a bookcase, giving me a workspace that keeps me accessible to the kids during the day but clearly segregates their stuff from mine. 
• I found the floor in the storage closet upstairs, though that room still needs some serious attention. But a victory's a victory, no matter how small, so I'll take it. 
• Jeff installed some fabulous racks in the garage for storing our plastic folding chairs, further clearing up floor space in the garage and making his wife very happy indeed. 
• When we had to relegate one of the bar stools to the garage (this may be why it never quite seems to to reach it's full car-parking potential) because it was deemed unsafe for children to sit in, I decided it was finally time to bite the bullet and get some new ones. They should be arriving in the next couple of weeks, and in the meantime, the current stools and the table they go with will find a new home (freeing up a bit more space in soon-to-be-clean garage).
• Jeff changed all the AC filters. You know, you should really do that once in a blue moon, whether it needs to be done or not.
• The furniture in Clays' room received new positions, to prevent him from further damaging the blinds while he waits for someone to get him out of his bed. 
• We have talked to a landscaping company about coming out and giving us a consultation. In this case the chaos is not actively being controlled, but we've taken the first step, and that's something.

What do you do/have you done/will you do to control chaos at your house? And don't act like you don't have it, 'cause I know you do.

Organized Chaos

I often think about making this blog (or at least portions of it) into a book. There are companies who specialize in just that. But, I frequently get overwhelmed with the thought because how on earth do you narrow down four years worth of random posts into something remotely coherent?! Today, I decided to take the first step in organizing the posts by labeling them, which you will notice at the end of each post under the time stamp. I'm not really sure why I never did this before. I can't tell you how therapeutic it was to put my life (in the form of this blog), which so often feels like chaos, into some kind of order. To fit everything into nice little categories, even if those categories are things like "mess." It all just seems to make more sense now, and that's good enough for me.

All Is Vanity

Maybe once a year (or more like every 2 or 3, if I'm really honest), I begrudgingly set about the task of cleaning up my vanity area and the surrounding cabinets and drawers. Today was that day. Every time I undertake this task, I am absolutely amazed at how many products I find. And the purpose of each and every one of them is my own raging vanity. This one will make me smell better. That one will make my skin softer. Things for hair, nails, skin, lips, etc., etc. Now, raise your hand if this reminds you of your own vanity area? Come on, now, I know I'm not the only one. So as not to embarrass you further, we'll go back to me. (But I know you're out there). And the point is: all is vanity. And everything seems to be partially used up. Many things finally made their way to the trash can today. But today, as always, many things went back (more neatly, granted) into their hiding places with a promise from myself to check there first before buying anything new. But I'm honest enough to know that I will probably not be able to resist the siren song of the beauty aisle. And the real crazy thing is, I'm not really a product fanatic. Or a beauty nut. I just like to try new things every now and then, and they just add up over time. O.k. that's it. The point is, I have a lot of stuff, but it's more organized now.

This Vanity Insanity Moment has been brought to you by the letter (and the question) "Y," and the number "2," as in "2 Many."

eRATication

A couple of weeks ago I discovered rat poop in a rarely used stroller. My hope was that is was something leftover from long ago. But, I knew then that a garage-cleaning was in order. Then, I started hearing munchy-crunchy-scratchy noises coming from somewhere near the drain of my bathtub, and that put me over the edge. My dear, sweet, super-hero mom volunteered to help me out, and so today we set to work. I want to tell you up front, this was no small under-taking. As happens, things have piled up. But this time, there weren't just our things, there were rat things, too. All over the place. It was awful and disgusting and horrible. But, we successfully cleaned out the garage--from top to bottom and left to right--and we put out enough rat poison to kill a small city of rats. We also filled up one large garbage can, one fair-sized box and a 5 gallon bucket with trash. And we hauled off two full van-loads of stuff to Goodwill. It wasn't just a cleansing of the garage, it was a cleansing of the soul. I just feel lighter. And I will sleep peacefully, knowing that if I happen to hear crunchy-munchy sounds at 2 in the morning it will be because the rat has found our poison and not because he is trying to figure out how to break into my bedroom and eat me while I'm sleeping.

Playroom Found

Our playroom has been lost for quite a while. It kind of just became a dumping ground for all toys that we were too lazy to take upstairs or put away in their proper places. And, honestly, I was actually sort of afraid to go in there. But, you'll remember that the other day I had some major success in finding things in the play kitchen box that did not belong there. That box resides in the playroom, and so I was inspired to see what else I might find. And what do you know: I found the playroom! It's actually a very lovely room. I know it probably won't be long before it's back in complete disarray, but for now, everything is in it's place and some things have moved on to a new home outside of our house. And speaking of found rooms: Ruth spent the last two days (with strong prompting from the parents) finding her room, and it looks so good now. And she was so proud of her accomplishment. I just wish she would remember tomorrow how much she enjoyed it today. But, I digress. The point is we found two rooms in our house today, and that's really good news.

Lost And Found

Today, while trying to get things somewhat organized for Ruth's birthday party this weekend, I discovered that an essential bit of wardrobe for the stick-horse race was missing. So, I looked in all the dress-up bins in Ruth's room--although in retrospect, I'm not sure why on earth I thought it would be where it actually belonged. Then, I looked in all the nooks and cranies of her room. Then, I searched the nooks and cranies of Weston's room, as he has been known to take things from her room on occasion and deposit them in his room (or some other unidentified place). No luck. I looked in the playroom, the living room, and even my room, while periodically re-checking the party supply closet to see if I overlooked it. Nothing. So, when Ruth got home from gymnastics, I asked her if she knew where it was. Yep...Uh, maybe not. She looked in all the places I had looked-- and was also shocked not to find it where it belonged--and a few extra ones. After the kids went to bed, I decided to give it one more try, before I just chalked it up to that mystery place where the socks from the dryer go. You can't imagine what I turned up on my search. I found the living room coasters, which have been missing for over a month, in the bottom of the play kitchen box, along with one of my African napkin rings. I found Weston's Bible under the loveseat. I found a single flip-flop of Ruth's under the couch, the partner of which I threw away maybe six months ago because I thought it was a lost cause. I found two balls and a Portuguese picture dictionary under the cushions of the sofa. I even found a sippy cup in the yard. And finally, wedged between Jeff's guitar and the wall, over on the far side of Jeff's chair, where the sun doesn't shine, I found the cowgirl vest I was looking for. What a relief. I will certainly sleep better tonight.

Getting COZI

I discovered a wonderful little tool today that, I think, is going to revolutionize our whole household. It's called COZI Central and it's a calendar/shopping list/photo collage program. And best of all, it's free. If you want to get COZI too, visit their website: cozi.com.

So They All Rolled Over, And One Fell Out

Every four to six months I get a hankering to rearrange the furniture. I usually don't premeditate this act. Something just strikes me one day, and then, it's like if you move one thing, everything else has to move too. So, that's what I did today. Some things got pushed out to the garage (oh come on, you didn't really think it was going to stay clean forever, did you?!), some things that were upstairs moved down, some things that were down moved up, and some things are still waiting to hear their new position (which means they are just sitting in the middle of the floor "resting"). I'm quite happy with what I've done so far! The main thing is that the toy area (which is essentially the whole house) has been contained somewhat and some degree of order has been restored, which always makes me breathe a sigh of relief. I just feel like I can function better when things are in their place--of if not their place, at least some place that's relatively out of my way. My kids haven't caught on to that concept yet, but hey, they're young, so maybe there's still some hope. (Come to think of it, my husband hasn't really caught on to that concept either, so maybe there's not as much hope as I thought)! Well, the things in this house won't let me sleep until they've all been reassigned, so I must go attend to them.

One Person's Trash, Another Person's Treasure

How true that is. I listed 30 items for free on Craig's List today and as of now 29 of them are either gone or pending pick up. Most of them were spoken for within 30 minutes to an hour of my posting the ad. Wow! And my half-way clean garage gets cleaner and cleaner. And my minimalistic husband is thrilled. Life is good.