(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

In honor of the fact that we have snow flurries blowing about today!

(from vacation this past summer - son C in black and orange suit, Little Man in light blue)

Room Makeover

 Or, more accurately, room clean-up and re-arrange!

Our living room/dining room has needed a really deep clean for a very long time.  But I had no physical or emotional energy to do it.  Over the course of last school year, both of our desktop computers located in these rooms died, and there they sat.  Carcasses of modern technology.  Every horizontal surface was layered with stuff placed there by several of our children, who either didn't notice or seem to care about the clutter.  Keepin' it real..... here is the proof....."before":

I had a dream to re-arrange the living room and turn it into more of a music room.  Music is just a wonderful, wonderful thing.  I am so thankful God created music!  It is calming, motivating, praise-inspiring, and downright therapy for daughter H  (probably for all of us!).  Five of our six children play some kind of instrument on a daily basis and there is always much music in our home.  I LOVE it.  How to make the room more conducive to the making of music?

I "girded up my loins" as the Old Testament would say (I have always wondered exactly what that means, but I think a loose translation for my situation might be "I put on my big girl panties!") and cranked out the entire room in one afternoon/evening.  The evening that everyone else in the family was at church for Stockade and youth groups.  So I could toss things to my heart's content! ;)  I went through every paper pile, and all the old computer games/discs, and cleaned and scrubbed every corner as I went.

Here is the "during".....  (antique desk already moved to the far right corner in this first pic)

I consolidated all our "office" things onto one desk.  Moved that desk to a different corner.  Took down a 6 foot long table we were (not) using as a two person desk, and removed two other pieces of furniture from the room.  Boxed up all the broken computer parts and electronics.  Cleaned, dusted, took pictures of toys and games as I found them and immediately posted them for sale online.  I was a whirling dirvish I tell you!  (again, what is that???)  And speaking of music, I did all this while playing motown tunes on very high volume.

Here is the "after".....

Moved the piano to where the antique desk used to be.  Now we have a music corner!

Our window seat is the perfect height for someone to sit on and play the keyboard!

When the family all got home from church and saw this room they were astonished and thrilled.  Maybe the clutter did bother them a little bit.  And the best part is......the next day our teen boys picked up their guitars spontaneously, daughter H went to the piano, son C to the keyboard, and they all began jamming together.  LOVE!

Oh sweet music room, how I love thee!

(office corner not shown because it is the one surface not put away!)

Wordless Wednesday

Our Week In Review

With a family of 8 to feed, each day there is usually a fair amount of cooking.  Recently a few of our teens have begun taking turns making dinner!  For son L's night to cook he chose to make french toast.  A delicious and easy choice for a beginner.  He did GREAT and the dinner was delish!

For daughter H's night she focused her efforts on a yummy sauce that she poured over chicken, and we then ate the chicken and sauce over noodles.  It was a winner!

Daughter G took a turn last week, too, but I forgot to get a picture.  Three less nights for me to cook, yippee!

Actually, when I am rested and in the right mood, I really enjoy cooking and especially baking.  Since getting my cast off I have been cooking up a storm and having fun trying new things for my family.  Believe it or not, this is one of my happy places. :)

I tried a recipe for scrambled egg "muffins" that was floating around facebook a few weeks ago.  They turned out looking and smelling great, but I made the mistake of freezing them.  They don't freeze well.  Note to self:  eat fresh or refrigerate for a few days.

But I still had fun in the kitchen!  And oh yes, we did do school last week, too. ;)