paper piles

today while pondering the pile o' papers that i need to tackle; i found via my growing home - a simple way to organize and prioritize school papers. She has four piles: #1 Papers with Dates #2 Items to Read #3 To Keep #4 To Do or To Buy i think this is simple enough. its a system i could apply to my other "piles". how do you organize the piles of papers in your home?

update :: medifast

Ok people, so here is the update. i have lost about 13 lbs so far and then my birthday celebrations hit! you know how that goes. so i am back on it and have a few observations: 1. my problem time is supper time, cooking the supper, waiting to eat, and then celebrating when the husband comes home -- the wine flows and that is making it hard to lose. 2. i really like having the even feeling - this is a very low-glycemic level diet - so if i am following my 5 small snacks and then my lean & green meal faithfully, i don't get the shakes!! 3. i have significantly cut down on my caffeine (french press coffee) intake - that is about one cup per day. i find that i don't need more then that. plus i would rather be drinking my water instead. 4. i am learning so much about my body and how i react to certain foods - like the time i fell off the wagon and ate a bunch of cookie dough that i was making for the kids - and then an hour later the sugar depression hit me and i was a crazy mama! i noticed the next day, even after a very good night's sleep, i had to take a nap in the afternoon - the sugar was still effecting my system. i do not like that feeling at all. i need to remember this feeling and avoid it at all costs. 5. i am not a big fan of anything but the shakes and the bars - and even those are really hard to get down. 6. my body really craves fruits and vegetables and whole, clean foods. i love that! these are all good observations and since i am going to finish up my medifast food this month and then go back to eating the way i should, for financial reasons, i need to remember these points!!!

keeping :: self

hello friends, i know i need to do an update post on my diet using Medifast, and i will but i just needed to post about this. I have just started reading Say Yes To Hoboken (sister-in-law to Jordan of Oh Happy Day and Gabrielle of DesignMom). I thought her post yesterday was so, simply, good. I decided to make my own list - let me see ... 1. blog :: (i wish that i did this blog thing more often, every day - but sometimes i find it overwhelming because i am a perfectionist. no not everything in my house is perfect (or life for that matter) - precisely because if i can't do it perfect, then i won't do it at all or even try. blogging is such an amazing form of communication and expression and i do long to enter in to this world. so i will keep trying to pick it up and make a habit - because it helps me plan, focus, align my thoughts and heart, connect and share. 2. knit :: (i do love to knit - it ebbs & flows withe season and the project.) i am not a great knitter but i do love the process even more then the finished product. 3. garden :: (it is nearly spring and i am waiting for just a bit more warmth, before i venture out to clean up my garden and plan my spring and summer greenery.) - our life is in transition (perpetually) right now, so i go back and forth with actually putting a garden in. i think what i may do some container gardening and use the square foot spaces that we have from two years worth of gardening to plant lettuces and cilantro. i have so many seed packets left over from last year - are those still good. i think so. 4. walking :: i love being outside on a walk. its so good for my mood. in fact, even the quick little trip to pull the garbage cans from the curb (when its super cold outside this is a challenge!!:) is a mood-lifter. we live in such a beautiful part of the city and so close to town. i need to insist that our family takes walks at least once a week. everyday we will be walking to and from school when the weather is warm enough. we borrowed a very nice double jogger - perfect for tired little four-year olds and six-year olds to hop in to. no excuses for me!! do you have anyways that you need to incorporate back in to your daily life that keep you?