ME: [Flipping channels with Ryan] Huh? Kim Kardashian is pregnant?
RYAN: Seriously?
ME: Maybe I do remember someone mentioning it the other day.
RYAN: They had the baby.
ME: Who?
RYAN: Her and Kanye.
ME: OMG it's Kanye's baby? How weird. [As I pull out my iPad]
RYAN: What do you do all day that you are so unaware of this?
ME: I don't know. I guess I'm more self-involved than a Kardashian?
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During the week, I am an attorney and legal technologies consultant. (This likely sounds less dorky than it actually is). I routinely meet with clients and need to appear well-groomed and professional Monday through Friday.
On the weekends, I garden. It's a dirty job, but the satisfaction I get from giving my green thumb a workout is worth devolving into a sweaty, muddy mess by day's end. It's worth it, as long as I keep my hands protected properly.
I have learned the hard way that, even with short nails, it is NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE to get dirt out from under them quickly. Cuticles are another story.
I would suffer with a nail brush in the shower, scrubbing away at fingertips already sore from shoveling, digging, amending or tilling until I found the world's best gardening gloves a few years ago.
Mud Gloves are a revelation. Specifically, I am addicted to the Cool Mud version. The manufacturer describes them as follows:
The seamless knit shell is form fitting and flexible. The palm is double coated with micro-surface latex, creating a superior grip for working with tools in wet and dry conditions. Machine washable, these gloves are perfect for wet and muddy jobs. The level of fit and function of the Cool Mud glove is absolutely amazing.
These handy helpers are $9 on Amazon. They also abound at local garden centers and supermarkets. If you garden, Cool Mud gloves are definitely worth a try.
I love these gloves because they feel as close to non-existent as you can get with a glove. They protect my hands and are cute too.
I rotate three pair on any given day because I do manage to completely submerge them quite often. For the waterproof version, check out Mud H2O.
If you're in search of the perfect pair of gardening gloves, or looking for a gift for someone with a green thumb, these Cool Mud gloves deserve a try.
Head over to FB for a chance to win a pair of your own!
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Well ... that's a lie.
I am head of procurement for the Freeman family and I do love to shop. We have more packages delivered than any local business and free shipping is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. Where I strive to be green in so many other ways ... shopping is not exactly one of them.
The term "stuff" is comprised of a few distinct categories.
Let's start with the girls.
Apparel: At ages two and four, they grow out of things daily. Hand-me-downs are few because either the season is wrong for the size or the article just doesn't look quite right on little sis. Clothing is an arch enemy in my war on stuff. Let's add the ridiculous number of tennis shoes, boots, Crocs, sandals and slippers and call the whole lot "Apparel".
Accessories: I'll put sunglasses, costumes, barrettes, purses, dress up shoes, jewelry, wands and wings here.
Toys: The small plastic things (that once belonged to a set and now are in a random bowl somewhere with the choke-ables I initially pulled out) are of major concern. The rest of the toys find homes in their respective bins with little consequence.
Ryan (by his own account) is not responsible for any part of our mess, as he doesn't lay claim to any part of the house except for his closet (which is an absolute disaster) and his dresser (which is empty with freshly folded laundry sitting atop).
As for me, I have my own areas of mayhem. I will just bullet this for you and let your imagination run wild.
I love projects. "Project Stuff" should literally be one of my categories because once I set my sights on a project (i.e. soap-making, canning, jewelry making, party planning) I need to acquire all the "stuff" that goes with it.
"Project Stuff" and "Work Stuff" pretty much covers me.
I catch myself daydreaming of a paralell universe where all the flat surfaces in my home are devoid of clutter, unopened mail, chargers, random Barbie shoes and clean dishes that need to be put away but are an odd shape so that extra energy must be expended to put them away and it just isn't going to happen right his minute.
What a lovely home that would be.
I can achieve this. I know I can. I just don't want to give up my project-oriented way of being to do it.
So I won't.
I am dedicating this summer to accomplishing an aggressive "to do" list while decluttering and optimizing this house into the utopian vision in my head.
Items (both projects and optimization efforts) include:
1) Build yard waste composter from old cedar playset
2) Tend my garden
3) Can and otherwise preserve the fruits of said garden
4) Learn how to make cheese (yes I'm serious)
5) Turn existing jewelry supplies into jewelry
6) Turn existing soap-making supplies into soap
7) Organize photos, make books and fill frames
8) Thoughtfully display the girls' artwork
9) Free up kitchen counter space
10) Organize home office
11) Organize playroom/craft space (including finding an alternative for the creepy looking sheers)
12) Clean/organize basement
13) Clean/organize my closet
14) Complete all of the unfinished renovation projects around the house, room by room
15) Donate everything I don't need
16) Spend time with family
Notice that "Relax" "Read" "Enjoy Myself" "Save Money" and "Lose 20 Pounds" is not on this list. Those are all on a list, just not this list.
Let this serve as my official declaration of my war on stuff.
It's going to be a busy summer.
How about you? Do you have a perpetual organizational "to do" list hanging over your head? Post a comment and share your fuss with us.
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It's hard to start again - to pick up where I left off. I changed companies last August and, given that it's June, I feel like the better part of the last year completely disappeared.
I remember last summer being incredibly fun. Spring came super early. And, looking back at my Instagram reel, we had been in the pool three or four times before Memorial Day. Ryan and I trained for and ran two half marathons, Leighton wanted to party all the time, and Mairin really came into her own.
I took several weeks off before starting my new job and made the most of every second.
I hit the ground running with my new company nearly ten months ago and have pushed myself to fully support clients in the 18 states assigned to me. "Hello June 2013. Nice to meet you. I'm exhausted and I miss me."
Since I started writing The Daily Fuss I've grown addicted to getting out of my head. If my thoughts are left swirling about for too long, without means of escape, I eventually begin to break down. To do all of the things I enjoy (from goofy to fussy to serious) I need to be organized, optimized and at the top of my game. Too much living in my own head and I get stuck.
So, after a six month break from The Fuss, I'm back in action - reformatted, rejuvenated and recommitted to delivering eleven categories of thoughtful content one day at a time.
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