My new tickler file

I've really been enjoying the paper clutter class these past few weeks, learning a bit about myself and encouraged that I'm not the only one out there that struggles so much with all this paper LOL! One of my favorite take-aways from the class is the tickler file ... a set of 43 file folders labeled with the days of the month (31), as well as one for each of the 12 months. I set mine up about a week or so ago and it's already helped me tremendously. Here's a pic:
I used some colorful center tab folders that I wasn't using elsewhere, trimmed off the tab and added my own tabs using scrapbook paper and my dymo labeler. (Of course, this was totally unnecessary ... one could just label the original tabs and move on, but it was fun to be a little crafty and use up some otherwise ignored scrapbook paper.) I added a pretty tea canister (that I'd saved "just because") to hold a pair of paper scissors and a couple pens and pencils. I also added a stapler (it's sitting in front of the folders in the bottom of the bin) and a small pad of paper. The folders are contained in an Itso bin from Target.Each night I pull the next day's folder and set it out on the kitchen counter for me to work on the next day. First thing in the morning I check to see what's in there and plan my day around those items and any items listed on the calendar. Occasionally I will move something to another day's folder if it's not urgent and I know I won't have time that day, and it's such a great thing to know that it won't be forgotten or misplaced. When the folder is finally empty, back in the bin it goes ... my goal is to have it emptied by noon, if possible.

I'm also loving the tickler file for other reminders, too ... if dh asks me to mow the lawn the next day, I drop a note so I don't forget (because otherwise I definitely WILL forget LOL!) The small notepad is for this very thing. It's also great for prayer requests, like for instance, I found out earlier this week that my grandma was having surgery on Thursday ... I dropped a note in Thursday's folder to remind me to pray for her. Love it! And yesterday I came up with another idea, too ... I bought a new broom but am not sure if I'm going to like it, so I took off the cover and placed it in the folder for a week later ... I figure by then I'll know for sure if I like it or not, and if I don't like it, I can put the cover back on and return it. I'm looking forward to coming up with some other great ways to use my tickler file to keep me on track! I actually had 50 file folders so I have an extra 7 folders to play with ... still thinking about what I might want to use those 7 folders for. Any ideas?

How about you? Do you have a tickler file? If so, please share. And if not, put one together, give it a try and let me know how you like it. You can actually buy tickler files already put together and ready for your papers, but it's so much cheaper (and way more fun) to put one together yourself. If you're like me, you've already got everything you need LOL! Here are a few websites to get you started:

http://members.optusnet.com.au/~charles57/GTD/tickler.html
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/back-to-basics-the-tickler-file.html
http://tickler-file.com/
http://www.shockmd.com/2010/05/31/tickler-file-system/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YG0FU_M_YB8&feature=related
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art45671.asp
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art45672.asp
http://www.thehomeofficeorganizer.com/tickler-file-your-style/

Oh, my! There's a lot out there about tickler files ... I could go on and on LOL! Have fun!

Oh, dear! I almost got lost again!

Just a shout out that I'm not really lost ... I'm still here! I've just been so busy with getting the homeschool up and running after a lazy summer. But now it's week 4 and things are settling into a rhythm again, so hopefully I'll be able to start posting a little more often.

One of the things I've been missing out on is The Apron Goddesses' apron giveaways ... yikes! There have been some real cute ones in the last few weeks that I've missed out on. Bummer. However, it looks like I'm not too late for last week's giveaway ... this cute little red number. I love the shape of this apron and will definitely be crossing my fingers for this one!And, of course, I'm definitely not too late for this week's giveaway ... this fun Flower Power half-apron. Love that fabric!! So, yes, my fingers and my toes will be crossed for this one. I need to get my entries in asap.If you would like a chance to win either (or both!) of these aprons, just click here for the red one, and click here for the Flower Power, and follow the instructions. Good luck, everyone!

This week's TAG apron giveaway

Here's The Apron Goddesses' giveaway of the week ... a nice, full, wrap-around red floral apron! If you want to win it, then click here and ... well, you know what to do ...

Good luck!

Speaking of apron giveaways ...

The Apronista is having an Apron Fest this week! Lots of aprons will be given away, so do check back throughout the week ... with all these giveaways, our odds are bound to be good LOL! Good luck, everyone!

TAG's latest apron giveaway

Here's the latest apron giveaway over at The Apron Goddesses ... paisley! Click here and follow the instructions if you want to win it ... you know I do!

Hope you're having a great summer ... enjoy it while it lasts because the school year will be starting any minute!!

There's a quilt book up for grabs ...

If you like Gwen Marston's and Freddy Moran's quilting styles, now is your chance to win their latest book, Freddy & Gwen Collaborate Again ... click here for details!

A math lesson from the county fair

6 blue ribbons





plus





4 red ribbons




plus





1 white ribbon





equals 1 happy quilter!

My apron is working hard this morning!

In honor of The Apron Goddesses' "Aprons, Aprons Everywhere" event today, I'm sharing just a glimpse of my morning, wearing one of my favorite aprons ... yay for orange and green! My mother-in-law gave me this apron awhile back and I just love the cheerful colors. Makes me smile whenever I put it on.So, off we go ... first stop is to check the laundry. I'm in luck ... dh did a load last night, so I'm already one load ahead of the game. Love when that happens!Then upstairs to make some breakfast ... mmm, eggs ... I like mine over hard, very hard. No runny eggs for me {{shudder}}.Then, of course, we need to wash up the breakfast dishes (and, I must confess, the few left over from the day before ... shhh).Let's check on the plants, shall we? My daughter waters the garden in back, but I like to do the flowers up front ... aren't they pretty?Now for the beds ... usually the girls make their own beds, but it's time to change the sheets, so let me at 'em! Bed #1:Bed #2:Ah, that's better ... and if I find time this afternoon, I'll do our bed, too. Or maybe tomorrow ...

Well, that was my morning ... for the rest of the day, I will keep on working on laundry, maybe throw in a little lunch (my daughters will be happy about that, I think), and putter around the house doing a little here, a little there. The only big thing for today (and it's not really that big) is mailing out my quilt guild newsletters. They're all labeled and ready to go ... just need to get some stamps. And, hey, the P.O. is next to the Hobby Lobby ... hmmm, what do I really, really need? I'm sure I can think of something ...

Thanks for stopping by! For more apron goodness, click here.

A new week ... a new TAG apron giveaway

Yep, it's Monday ... which means a new apron giveaway from The Apron Goddesses. This week's apron is a lovely pink and brown number. I love this combination ... makes me think of raspberry filled chocolates!

For your chance to win, click here and follow the instructions. Good luck!

County Fair

I haven't done much sewing over the past couple days ... dealing with sick kids instead. Lots of cuddling and read-alouds and such are filling my days. But I did find some time to label my stack of entries for the county fair:I'm entering 11 items ... 5 quilts, 1 crocheted afghan, 1 decorated sweatshirt, 2 aprons and 2 tote bags. This is my second time ever entering a county fair (won a 2nd place ribbon the first time!), and my first in this county. I've lived in this county for 12 years now, and I can't believe I took this long to enter. Well, actually, I did think about entering a few years ago, but reading the fair's website was so confusing, I gave up. But one of the ladies at our guild got up during show-n-tell last summer to show off her ribbons and to encourage us to enter ... and I decided that I would do it the next year, no matter what!

So a few weeks ago I thought, "Hmmm ... the fair should be coming up soon." Glad I didn't stall after that ... when I got home and checked the website, I found that, while the fair was a month away, I actually had less than a week to submit an entry form. So I read the requirements and got confused again ... but I didn't let it stop me this time. Instead, I became a pest ... I found a contact email and sent them a whole list of questions. They responded, I asked more, so on and so on. And now, about 5 emails later, I have a stack waiting to take to the fair! Patting myself on the back here LOL! The girls think it's pretty neat that I'm going to have stuff at the fair ... though I think they're a little more excited about going on the rides. (I just hope they're feeling well enough to go later in the week!) And, who knows ... there just might be a ribbon or two hiding in that stack LOL!

AAQI reminder

Tomorrow is the last day to bid on this month's AAQI quilts ... once they're gone, they're gone! Happy bidding!!

Pie-makin' aprons galore!

The Tie One On pie-makin' apron gallery has been up for almost a week and I totally forgot to look for it! But just now I thought to check and, boy, am I glad ... there are some wonderful aprons to see! Plus there are some yummy (and interesting) pie recipes to go with them. Enjoy!

If you want to play along, check out the next theme ... plaid!You have until September 1st to enter. I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet ... re-purpose a plaid shirt maybe? We shall see ...

And another one ...

Not Quite June Cleaver is also having an apron giveaway (2 aprons, actually) this week. Check it out here! Can't wait for the sneak peek!

This week's TAG apron giveaway

The Apron Goddesses giveaway for this week is this reversible half-apron from Aprons by Julie ... love the high-waist and the funky pocket!You know the drill ... click here and follow the instructions. Good luck!

Lime-alicious!

Oh, my! The Secret Stitch Club is having a wonderful giveaway right now ... a recipe for yummy Filled Key Lime Cupcakes:
and this gorgeous apron:I'm all over this LOL! My birthday is next month and I think these cupcakes will have to be on the menu that day ... mmmm .... And if I could be wearing that apron, too, that would be so over the top!

If you want the recipe and a chance to win, click here and follow the instructions. Plus there's a bonus ... if you have a little one, you can also enter to win this sweet Cherry Limeade apron:Can't beat that! Good luck!

AAQI

Have you heard about Ami Simms' Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative? Ami started it to help raise money for Alzheimer's research and it's done wonderfully ... she's raised $290,000 so far! I'd heard about it before, but it wasn't until our guild did a Burpee catalog challenge for our last guild show that I actually made a quilt for the AAQI. The challenge was to make a quilt based on our particular catalog page ... and, while not a requirement, a bonus was to make it in the AAQI required size (9"x12") so that it could later be donated to the AAQI. I don't know how many entered the Burpee challenge, but I do know that 25 of us entered with the AAQI in mind! I made this quilt, "Strawberry Fields Forever".I filled out the paperwork, got my assigned number and sent it off, not knowing how long it'd take to end up on the auction block. Well, it's up! It and about two dozen other quilts are up for auction starting today. Click here to check them out ... maybe you'll find one or two that you want to bid on. But don't wait too long ... the auction only lasts for 10 days and then they're gone! But if you miss this one, check back at the beginning of each month for more quilts.

If you, too, would like to make a quilt to donate, check it out here. This is a great project for trying out new techniques on a small scale, or to use up your scraps ... have fun with it!

It's time for another TAG apron giveaway!

The Apron Goddesses blog has this week's apron giveaway up ... this sweet little number from Sugar Pie Chic.

Just click here and follow the instructions ... and, as always, good luck!

Introducing my mom ...

One thing I did while I was visiting my mom in Florida was help her get her blog, The Artful Diva, going. I'd love for you to visit her and maybe even leave her an encouraging comment. She is an amazing fiber artist ... I want to be just like her when I grow up LOL! One of my favorite places to hang out is her studio. She's got a wonderful fabric stash and drawers and drawers full of fun embellishments to play around with. I spent quite a bit of our vacation in there, working on a quilt for my guild's next quilt show challenge. (I can't show you it just yet, but I LOVE how it came out ... yes, I know I'm being a stinker LOL! I will definitely show it to you as soon as I can.)

I wish we lived closer to each other so we could sew together more often. I enjoyed working on the altered art page thingy with her, but there was one project we did together that was even more fun ... the three-year "I Remember Mama" project. For the second year of the project, they asked for quilts made by multi-generations (mothers and daughters, aunts and nieces, etc.). My mom asked me to work on a quilt with her, and this was the result:I learned a lot from her while we worked on this quilt together! You can see more of her work at her website here. Lots to see!

Thanks for letting me introduce you to one of my most favorite people in the whole world ... I love you, Mom!

Another giveaway?!?

Yes, another one! Through some blog surfing, I found this wonderful pile of scraps being given away in just a couple days ... don't you just want to dive in?!Click here to enter. And, as always, good luck!

Laundry day can be fun ...

if you're wearing the right apron! What?! You don't have a washday apron? Well, sheesh, neither do I ... now what? Hmmm ... we're going to have to remedy that ... with an apron giveaway, of course! Dear Diane (aka "Persuaded") from Tomato Soup Cake made 2 adorable aprons over the weekend in the cutest laundry themed fabrics, and she's graciously offering one of them in a giveaway on her blog. Isn't it sweet, modeled here by her lovely daughter, Millen?She sure looks like she's enjoying doing that laundry ... I need some of that joy LOL! If I don't win this apron, I think I just may have to make my own (wish I could get a hold of that pattern ... love it!) If you're in desperate need of some laundry joy, too, click here and follow the instructions. Good luck!