Winter / Spring Projects

After Christmas when things slowed down, I started a few organizational projects.  I'm still not done but thought I'd share what I've done so far.  The office was the biggest area that needed help.  I found a good deal on these nice 12"x12" boxes and went through all the papers and tried to put them in categories, and then in boxes.  I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.  I wanted to make fancier labels, but that will have to wait till some other long winter.  Some of the boxes are different years of VBS programs that we rotate.  They were a real mess so I was especially glad to get them in order.

Then, I had some papers I just wasn't sure where to put, so I made a "Keeper of the Home" binder since I couldn't think of any other name.  In it I have a section on gardening, cooking, Christmas, and a few others.  I haven't got this one really going yet but look forward to having time to use it and put the things in it that need to be in it. 

I had a whole stack of notebooks that I keep lists and notes in.  I can't ever find what notebook I put what in!  So, I made a smaller 7"x9" binder to keep all those lists and stuff in.

I added pretty pager and pictures to the dividers and used laminate to make them extra tough.   The categories pretty much cover the things I write notes on the most.

I even made a few pocket pages to slip in other things.  I enjoy making paper craft type things so this was a fun thing to do and I already LOVE using it!

In the office there was a corner full of shelves and two file cabinets blocking the shelves off.  We moved the shelves.  One thing I haven't done yet is paint the corner, as you can see.  I ripped out some of the old wallpaper from the 70's or sometime way back.  Most of the stuff on the shelves are in the brown boxes now.  We got rid of the file cabinets and put most of the stuff in the wood boxes under the new bench Arthur made for me.  We don't usually sit in the office, but with daughters nursing babies, we wanted someplace they felt free to sit without people around, and still hear what's going on. I made the cushions out of pillows and pillowcases sewed together.  See the globe in the top left corner?  That poor globe had no stand and has rolled around this house for years!  I wasn't sure what to do with it because we still look at it so I hung it from an upper shelf.  Eventually, I hope to have a place for a playpen in this room too for sleeping babies.

We built the new living room on the other side of this office and the window just sat there empty.  I showed Arthur a picture online of someone who put shelves in their window and it wasn't long before he had shelves put in.  It's a great place for all those tiny crafty things that get lost in my other cupboards.  Also went through all my fabric and craft stuff in the office which was a huge job.  Glad to have it done for a long time to come!  Well, there's still some things I'd like to do but it might have to wait till next January.  Meanwhile ... 

Spring is here and that means sucker fishing which opened today.  I'm not overly fond of suckers as straight fish but they taste good smoked or pickled.  You can't see it but the guys are wet up to their shoulders!  Guess the river was  pretty deep!  Karen and Priscilla and Arthur went along too.

Behind the house, in the "courtyard" area, we made a sand pile (more like gravel) for the grandchildren.  We don't have a wall yet on the far side so we put some wood there to give the little ones a boundary.

We outlined the sand pile with logs and they have just as much fun with the logs as the sand.

It's a gorgeous day out today!  Warm and sunny!  God sent us a little rain last night so the grass should start growing a little more.  I hope you all have a wonderful day enjoying the great weather wherever you are!