Back to the binder

OK, I have once again become the most disorganized person! Everything is a mess and I can't take it. It hasn't helped that DH has been laid off for 2 months and DD & DS are out of school due to snow for the last week.
I've decided to go back to using a homemanagement binder. I started using one early last year and once I got started it was WONDERFUL! Things got done and I wasn't overwhelmed every day. Well, too many trips to the hospital and laziness on my part (yes, I admit it-I got lazy!) and now it's all a mess again. I need a simple system that anyone can fall into my shoes can follow. I found an e-book for under $9 that got me started. I tweeked it for me & life was much simpler. I've seen it put into a card file instead of a large binder and that was really cool too but it would be lost in our house-guaranteed.
I spent last night with the old binder out going thru all of what I had and deciding what will & what won't still work. It wasn't as hard as I thought. Most things just needed updates for our current needs. I don't use all of the sections in the e-book since some don't apply but they are a reaaly nice staring point. I have also begun researching other types of checklists for cleaning. I need something to keep me on the right track and there are so many great ideas out there.
I find my creativity goes out the window when I get stressed. A messy house is STRESS. Now it's probably gonna take me a few weeks to fix this mess but I've learned to not try to do it all in a day or two. It didn't happen that way & I can't fix it that fast. Don't think I haven't tried-it never happens and I get too frazzled.
I got my e-book from http://myblessedhome.blogspot.com/
It's a great starting point and she's got a lot of information about making this "yours". I have the previous version but it's been updated now and I'm thinking about getting the newer version because it's that good.
Simplemom.net also have some great checklists and ideas to incorporate into this. Just remember it will never be "finished". It should evolve as you do, parts will come and go as needed or not used. My challenge was to tweek it for a special needs family-try one of these if you find yourself feeling scattered. It doesn't have to be a binder, the card box is one of several options that take up very little space. I like the idea of having a 31 daybox and just rotating out the day as needed. Pretty nice way to keep track of things, huh. Good luck and God bless!

We're finally home!

OK, I didn't have any time to get this posted before or during this ordeal so here's the scoop. Mikayla got sick-sinus infection on 8/19 then Nikolas "couldn't let her have all the fun" and got sick too. Well he was throwing up anything we gave him, including his medicines. Not good since they are for seizures. Well the Peds doctor sent us to St. Vincent on Wed 8/20. We figured-over night IV fluids to prevent dehydration and we'd be home. HA! No such luck. His usual shunt series (to be sure it's working & not the cause of the illness) showed one of his cysts in his brain had grown. WONDERFUL!! (grrrrrr...) That meant that we'd be staying over the weekend and have brain surgery on Monday. PEACHY!! Now we're here 'til Tuesday night or Wednesday morning. Nope. He's now classified as a "slow metabolizer". In other words the narcotic pain medicines he got (tylenol with codeine) cannot be processed by his body like they should and almost killed him. Well he come thru ok and we got to leave Friday early afternoon.
On a much sadder note. Please pray for the family of Jacob Brokering (preschool aide's nephew). He had surgery at the same time on Monday and passed away on Wednesday from complications. He was 15 and also special needs. Also please pray for the family of Kelsey and Aaron Mock. Aaron was 38 & a single dad of a 12yr old girl in my daughter's grade. He died very unexpectedly this past Wednesday. I found out because on of my closest friends was his ex-fiance. My daughter found out at school because Kelsey was absent for the last few days.

What's new??

Well the mini-vacation was nice but way too short! Oh well, next year we'll try for another 1 weeker.

I've added a new style of diaper to all of my sizes. It's based on a Rita's Rump (THANKS!!) with a few modifications. It sits a bit under the belly and a bit higher in the back. I'm offering it in flannel or with a PUL (waterproof) outer layer and birdseye or flannel inner. It has either hemp/cotton or microfiber terry for the soaker based on preference & availability. I will also have additional soakers with velour tops available. I've got the infant thru youth pattern ready and adult sizes are almost done. I'm hoping to have some sewn, "ready to ship", and listed by this weekend. I'm also nearly finished with several g-tube pads that will be ready to mail as well. I'm cutting back on the custom orders, but not stopping, until school starts again so I can spend more time with the kiddies. Have a great week everyone!

So distracted.....sorry

I've been so busy with life and family that I've been really bad about keeping my shop stocked. There have been a great deal of challenges hitting our home recently. We've had health problems with both my mother, my children and my mother-in-law. My son's 2 1/2 yr old dog (who we were training to help us with him) got very sick and passed away very unexpectedly. We miss you so much Maximillian (Max the wonder doggie!). I know some don't see the reason for such sadness-"it's only a dog". Not for us-Max and our other pets are family members. They are loved as much as our children. I've planted a beautiful rose bush for him and another will go in (if it ever stops raining here) for our other lost doggie-Sadie Mae. She passed during my pregnancy with Nikolas.

I am working on a current order and getting ready to get some instock items finished. I am adding several new cloth diapers in a range of sizes. I am also happy to add a new diaper "Nikolas" in honor of my son. This diaper is higher in the back, slightly lower in the front and comes with an additional snap in soaker. It works wonderfully for those wheelchair bound kiddos and doesn't give "plumber rear" for those who lay on the floor and scoot around. :D

I've take the best parts of several different patterns I've seen, used or simply just like the look of and meshed them all together. This diaper will come in several sizes but I am getting the large, XL, and youth ready first. Larges will fit about a 2t-3t, XL will be 3T-5T and youth fits sizes 5-7/8. They have multiple snap settings across the front for a lot of adjustability. Please remember all sizes are approximate since we are all shaped a bit differently. I will post measurements to help when selecting a size. These will be available for custom orders and I will also have some listed that are ready to ship. If life stays calm, I'm hoping to have these ready and listed on both Etsy and Ebay in the next 4-6 weeks.

Please pray for the calm times! We could all use them right now. Wishing for peace and tranquility for all of you-
Suzanne W. :D

A special thanks...

I just wanted to give a special "Thank you" to the members of Special Child Exchange. Thanks to Steve for starting it and to all the wonderful members who allow me to help out their very special kids. It is my privilege and I am very thankful for it!

It's Christmas time

I really love this time of year! Everyone is trying to be nice to everyone else and things are looking brighter (even if they really aren't). Maybe it's just the thought of all the good times and family gatherings we all are having.
I love to give the gifts to my friends and family (hate shopping-crowds aren't my thing). I think my favorite part are the decorations and the music. I love seeing all the lights and all the hard work people put into making their place special for everyone to see.
I haven't gotten the first decoration up yet :( which is really unusual for me. Normally,by now if it doesn't move it's decorated! But we're painting (YEA!!) after the remodel so I'll have to wait a bit longer. I told Jim that I'm decorating by the 17at the very latest so we've gotta get on it.
I have to say, just having all the drywall up and the basics done has really got me feeling better. Now that the bulk of the remodel is finished I can see that light at the end of the tunnel.
For those who don't know-we gutted the entire house and have been remodeling and living in it at the same time. I DON'T recommend that! We made the entire main level handicapped accessible for our son and my mother-in-law. Tore out old plaster (this house is 100 yrs old) and put in new wiring and drywall, widened doorways, and reshaped rooms. That is a horribly messy job. Remodeled the main bath and put in a new second bath with roll in shower to accommodate both wheelchairs. Now mil doesn't need her chair and has gotten to move back to her house so it's mainly for our son. He's still a little small but this will be nice as he gets older.
It's finally beginning to be at a point where I can put things away in their real "homes" and get this place organized. Which has now become my current project, aside from the custom orders on Etsy.