I just wanted to send out an update to tell you about the progress I’ve been making on some of the things I have been working on. I know I haven’t been very consistent about keeping you posted, but I promise I have been working on a few things here and there. Some of them have to do with parenting, homemaking, school, church, and my business. I wouldn’t say I have been busy because I have had quite a bit of down time while I searched for motivation to do anything. In fact, as I was reading about Harriet Tubman, I really was inspired by how she used the power within herself to accomplish great things! No one asked her to free her people or to work for the Union Army, nor to turn her house into a home for assisted living. She felt inside of her that it was the right thing to do and she accomplished great things one mission at a time.
Homemaking:
Here are a few small things I like to do to accomplish more.
1: I fold my grocery bags. Yup, when I get home from the grocery store, I stop and I fold those plastic bags up so I can tuck them into the bottom of garbage cans, my purse, or bring them out to the car to collect garbage. It’s really pretty simple, and it’s so much easier than having those giant wods of plastic bags floating around and not knowing what to do with them!
2: I have been working on a system for my laundry. I start a load in the washer in the morning when I get up, and then I change it over and start a new load before I go to bed. That way, I’m not using other precious time to work on the laundry, and I basically forget about it. When I do my chores, I fold the load that I pull out of the dryer in the morning and then it’s done. Of course, this all works really well in theory, but I’m still working on perfecting it.
3: I recently read the 4-Hour Work Week. Great book for single 20-, 30-somethings without a family, however, I did glean a few treasures here and there as a homemaker. The author talks about focus, discipline, and effectiveness vs. efficiency. In light of these things, I try to get my dishes washed and laundry folded first thing in the morning so the rest of my day is free. My goal is to not be distracted by the computer expect at designated times. Being efficient means that there is a place for everything and everything’s in its place. I love this mantra and I try to live by it. Being effective, however, means getting rid of 80% of the crap that you only use 20% of the time that you really wouldn’t miss. The example the author uses is email. If you sign up for all the cool notifications from all your favorite websites/blogs and then have a nice little filing system to keep them organized, you are being efficient. But, to be effective with your time and energy, only get what you will use right now, and unsubscribe from the rest. Stop wasting time!
Cherry Tomatoes
Beans
Cucumber
4: My garden is blooming! I mean, it is actually bearing fruit! It’s funny because I have really been only doing the minimal effort. A lot of the time I only water it because my daughter asks me to so she can play out on the balcony, or my husband does it because I haven’t thought about it! The nice thing is that our balcony faces south, south-west, I think, so it is sunny most of the day. They get plenty of nourishment that way!
5: I have been working on a quilt. It is my first quilt, and I used re-purposed fabrics so it’s only so pretty. 
Plus, my machine is old and ghetto. When I lift my foot off the peddle, it keeps going. It has been a struggle, but I am almost finished! It’s been difficult finding the time to do it, but I would really like to be able to do a lot more…someday.
Motherhood:
All I have to say about my sweet children is that they make it a joy to be their mom! My daughter is growing quickly, and she is learning fast! I love watching her navigate through my husband’s Nook Color to get to the books and apps that she wants! I can’t believe how much a two-year-old can accomplish these days with technology! My son is almost nine months old and he is all over the place. 
He starts to crawl on his hands and knees for a little bit, and then he plops onto his stomach to do his army crawl! He is pulling himself up to stand on everything though. It won’t be long before he is running around 
with my toddler!
At the Farm
One small thing I have been working on is keeping him on a flexible schedule like the one in The Baby Whisperer book. I would feed my son when he first wakes up and then put him down to sleep when he’s tired. I rarely have nursed him to sleep ever. I had to start from birth. Now, he is always happy, and going to sleep for him is never a struggle!! He is awesome! Most nights he sleeps through the night, but I don’t have a problem when he gets up once. I quickly feed him and he goes right back to sleep.
School:
Today I had an appointment with my school advisor to map out the remainder of my degree. She was really amazing. She went through her college career with children while they were in grade school. She understands that children are the first priority and was really nice about not making me feel bad about going back to school again. I still have a long way to go, but she was very encouraging. I want to get this finished before my kids get too old because I plan to homeschool. I want to be able to focus on my children’s education without this distraction. Still, I am SO close! I can’t give up now. It’s been a long journey, but the end is in sight! A friend of mine posted this link earlier that was encouraging. If only I could be a super hero and save the world! 😀
Business:
I have had this product idea stirring around in my head for a couple of years. Lately with my husband’s underemployment and difficulty finding a new job, we have been inspired to get things off the ground. At first I thought we were going to have to create everything from scratch and do all the testing and preparations from home. When we tried, it was impossible. With more research lately, I have found that there are much easier ways to do what I had hoped! I have read 4-hour Work Week, Rework, and How to License Your Million Dollar Idea for more insight and ideas. I have lately been working with a manufacturer to get a legitimate product created! We will start the testing process in the next couple of weeks and hopefully have a finished product before Christmas! I will keep you posted. You will know when we are making progress!
Church:
I have a new calling – finally! Well, I have been wanting a calling that will inspire me to be more productive. I guess the Lord was preserving me for this calling so I could be available to accept it. I will be teaching the Beehive class in Young Women. I am excited about this calling because I feel like it is the right one for me right now. I hope that I will fulfill my role to these young women to the best of my ability.
I think that’s just about everything for now. I will try to keep you posted on all the little things I am trying to do. Currently I am reading (actually listening to) Made to Stick and Switch by the same authors. I am in need of some serious inspiration! Feels like a lot of thing happening to me are discouraging and I am trying to combat them by being positive and having more self discipline. Sort of failing, but there is hope on the horizon!
By Small & Simple Means 