blessings amidst the clutter

Ah, blogging.
It's fantastic and sometimes not.
It can generate jealous and envy quicker than you can snap a finger.
(Pinterest has a way of doing that, too!)

Not that I am super prone to feelings of envy, but they can sneak up on me.
All of a sudden I look around my tiny and always cluttered home and sigh.
Why don't I have a beautiful kitchen?
Why can't the walls be free of scratches from previous owners?
Why this?
Why that?

But really, it's not such a big deal. Yeah, it may take me almost the whole week to clean up after our friends visit on the weekends (just in time for them to show up again, haha), but we spent that time with our friends. It's not our things that matter.

Obviously, I take pride in a clean house and yard and stuff.
But if when I wake up in the morning I give thanks to the Lord for all I have been given, clutter included, then I remember I am blessed.

Though you're still not seeing photos of the house on here when it's a wreck.

around the internet no. 1

It's snowing so profusely outside that I feel I ought to turn some Christmas music on and bake some cupcakes. I just might yet today, because I'm definitely not going anywhere.

Today's blog post is the start of a new series here on my blog. Every morning I get on Facebook and see all kinds of awesome links from the various pages/blogs I follow. I then proceed to share a few of them on Facebook. But I think maybe it'd be more efficient if I just shared them all in one place that isn't Facebook. So, without further ado, I present to you "around the internet" a posting series of links that I find in my travels and explorations online.

Health and Wellness

8 Things Your Grandparents Did That Could Save Your Life

Homemade Cough Syrup (with coconut oil!!)  


Frugal Homemaking

Top 5 Simple Green Ways to Stay Warm in Winter


Baking and other Sweet Treats

Homemade Powdered Sugar

Raw & Vegan Chocolate Peppermint Brownies (these just sound SO yummy)

Vegan Mango Bundt Cake (I made this the other day!)

Vegan Chocolate Avocado Cupcakes


Frugal and Healthy Beauty

Homemade Bronzer

Homemade Mascara

organizational chaos

I should have titled this post "why don't we have a basement?" but since we don't have one and won't until we move out of this place, there's no point in belaboring the fact.

But it sure does make for some sketchy organizing jobs.

Like shoving everything not necessary for everyday living into the back bedroom, which then has to be cleaned out whenever we have people stay over. Or I need to find something. (Getting the Christmas decorations out was kind of a week-long job. Ignoring the fact that I kept remembering various decorations after I thought I was done.)

To be honest, I've come to terms with the fact that our house will never be clutter-free at this stage in our lives. That doesn't make me any less stressed, though. :P

So I decided to make a list of good things about this "organizational chaos" I have found myself mired in. Here goes.

• My new found love of natural cleaning products is slowly but surely reducing clutter in the laundry room, kitchen, and both bathrooms. I call that a HUGE win.
• When you decide you're only going to cook real food (which I honestly always did, but when you really take the time to think, you end up with much less boxed/canned food), the kitchen cabinets, counters, and refrigerator become less cluttered, as well.
• As I clean and organize, my crafty side is coming out just as much as my frugal side (How many sides can a girl have? A lot, I guess.), and I like to think that decorating the walls with cute/pretty things helps to take my mind off the clutter that won't ever disappear.
• And last, but certainly not least, I can always take comfort in the fact that God (and my husband!) will always love me whether the house is clean or not. :)

Obviously, keeping house is a labor of love. If you don't believe it is, maybe you're not trying hard enough. Just kidding. Let's get real here; when I started college I didn't necessarily expect to be keeping house and cooking meals everyday so soon on the other side of graduation. I had hoped to be able to do some traveling with friends, or something of the sort. But God had other plans, and I am very glad of them. After all, I am learning many things about myself, and that is never a bad thing.