34 Weeks of Clean: Rinse and Repeat Week 34

When we started 34 Weeks of Clean- Rinse and Repeat 34 weeks ago, it was truly not a challenge just for you.  It was was for me as well.  I knew that the timing was perfect for cleaning and organizing after just being in our house a year.  It also gave me a chance to connect with new friends along the way, locally and on the web.  And while the clean and organized house makes me want to cheer, it is the community of friends I have made along the way that have blessed me the most!  You all have made this journey fun and have encouraged me along the way and I THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!

In addition to the simple art of cleaning and organizing, I hope these are some takeaways you also got from this journey-

• Our stuff does not make us who we are!
• Memories are best held in our hearts, not in our things!
• Everything has a home!  If not, get rid of it!
• Before you buy something, ask yourself, is it useful and do I really need it?
• If you love it, use it, and would buy it again, keep it.  If not, out it goes!
• One person's trash is another person's treasure!  Be willing to share!
• Five minutes of pick up a day will keep your house cleaner than you think!
• The less you have, the easier it is to be organized.  Declutter!
• Buying more containers does not amount to less stuff!

So where do we go from here?  Now that you should have a relatively clean and organized house, I am going to let you in on a little secret.

 It will not stay that way without a little effort!

So what's a girl to do?  Rinse and repeat!


Maybe you do not need to start again tomorrow, but you will probably need to start again at some point, sooner than later.  I already know several areas in my own home that need some attention!

A clean and organized house does not just happen.  It takes commitment and a little effort.  You can do!

A BIG thank you to all who participated!  It has been so much fun to interact with you and to see your successes.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

A BIG thank you also to my friends at 62 Gifts and Redeemed for their generous prize donations!

And speaking of prizes- our GRAND PRIZE winner is....

Kelly J   

Despite some pretty serious health struggles and even a surgery, along the way, Kelly submitted a picture every week of our challenge!  Way to hang in there, my friend.  Be checking your mail for your goodies!

Thank you again, friends.  I hope you will stick with us here at Family, Faith and Fridays!  We would love to have you!

Blessings,

34 Weeks of Clean! Week 34- The Finale!

When we started 34 Weeks of Clean 34 weeks ago, it was truly not a challenge just for you.  It was was for me as well.  I knew that the timing was perfect for cleaning and organizing while my husband was away for the year.  It would give me something to do to pass the time productively, it would allow us time to get prepared for our upcoming move in December, and it would give me a community to connect with.  I'm happy to say that it did accomplish all three of those things!  And while the clean and organized house makes me want to cheer, it is the community of friends I have made along the way that have blessed me the most!  You all have made this journey fun and have encouraged me in some pretty dark days and I THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!

In addition to the simple art of cleaning and organizing, I hope these are some takeaways you also got from this journey-

Our stuff does not make us who we are!
Memories are best held in our hearts, not in our things!
Everything has a home!  If not, get rid of it!
Before you buy something, ask yourself, is it useful and do I really need it?
If you love it, use it, and would buy it again, keep it.  If not, out it goes!
One person's trash is another person's treasure!  Be willing to share!
Five minutes of pick up a day will keep your house cleaner than you think!
The less you have, the easier it is to be organized.  Declutter!
Buying more containers does not amount to less stuff!

So where do we go from here?  Now that you should have a relatively clean and organized house, I am going to let you in on a little secret.

 It will not stay that way without a little effort!

So what's a girl to do?  Rinse and repeat!

Maybe you do not need to start again tomorrow, but you will probably need to start again at some point, sooner than later.  I already know several areas in my own home that need some attention!

To help you get ready to begin again, Kemi from Homemaking Organized has graciously put together a 34 Weeks of Clean ebook for you to follow.  This ebook is FREE to subscribers of Family, Faith, and Fridays Blog as well as anyone who actively participated in our 34 Weeks of Clean Series.  Just shoot me an email, and I will be happy to provide the link for you!

A BIG thank you to all who participated!  It has been so much fun to interact with you and to see your successes.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

From Kemi-

As we end the 34 Weeks of Clean Challenge with Michele I'm actually sad to see it go. Even though some weeks I didn't get to the challenge or I would get really behind on the current challenge what this project served to do in my home was to get me back on track to regular deep cleaning. Not just daily cleaning. 

In the past several years a couple of moves have upset my neatly orchestrated deep cleaning schedule and and left me floundering to keep up. I always meant to get it together and adjust but never seemed to. 

After tackling each room in our home these past 34 Weeks we have made several updates and completed quite a few home projects. Sure there is still much to be done but progress is made.

Another thing that came out of this challenge was the idea of a simple of ebook so that you (and I) can reboot our homes in 34 weeks. Now what about the other 18 weeks in the year? Well since this challenge ends right before the new school year happens my tip is to focus on back to school and the holiday season and then get ready to dive back in come next January. Hopefully we can talk Michele into hosting it again ;)

Kemi

The winner of our 34 Weeks of Clean Prize Basket will be announced on the blog on Monday!
Until then, you have the weekend off of cleaning! ;)

Blessings,

And the winner of The Reunion is...

Bob P.

 

Congratulations Bob!

 

Enjoy!

 

Thanks to all who entered.  If you did not win, I encourage you to use the code a byu yourself a copy of this book!  It is one you will enjoy!  Blessings!
 

And the winner is...

Tim-Melissa Williamson!

 

CONGRATULATIONS!!!  I HOPE YOU ENJOY!

I have sent you an email!

And the Winner is...

Sarah A!

 

 

Congratulations Sarah on winning The Brinkman Adventure CDs!  I have sent you an email.

 

Thanks to all who entered!  Pop in tomorrow for my next giveaway!

And the winner is...

Entry #47- Jess!

Congratulations!  I have emailed you.

THANK YOU to all who entered and took time to visit our blog!  You have blessed us by doing so, and we pray you are blessed equally by being here.  Also, thank you for some great tips- we are already starting to try out several new ones.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Crock pot candy and a winner!

Is it really Friday already? This week has flown by, guys!  Week two of my recovery is over- not the new woman that I had hoped for-yet- but headed in the right direction. And I actually drove the car yesterday, the first time in over two weeks. Oh, did it feel good to get out, if only for a few minutes and with my 18 year old as a chaperon, "in case".   So things are looking up!

Have I told you that I really love my crock pot?  Can't recommend it enough for so many reasons. In honor of one of my top five favorite kitchen appliances, here's a fun recipe for your Crock Pot.  I haven't tried it since my outings have been nil lately, but my next trip to the grocery store will be to get the ingredients. (yep, don't tell my once a month shopping buddies;)). It sounds yummy and we thank our new friends in Washington for sharing it with us!

Crock Pot Candy

1 16oz. dry, roasted , unsalted peanuts
1 16oz. dry roasted, salted peanuts
1 12oz. package semi sweet chocolate chips
1 bar (4oz) sweetened German chocolate, broken into pieces
3 lbs. (2 24oz. pkgs) white almond bark, broken into pieces.

Put ingredients into 4 or 5qt. crock pot in exact order and cook on lowest setting for 3 hours. DO NOT REMOVE LID!
Turn off and allow to cool slightly.  Mixture will not be melted but will be soft.
Mix thoroughly and drop by teaspoon onto wax paper.  Let cool.
Makes approximately 150-170 pieces.
Notes- Every crock pot cooks differently.  Keep an eye on this as to not burn it. 
            Altering ingredients may alter the quality of the finished product.

If we sneak this in tonight I will for sure post pictures for you!

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Next important order of business...the winner for our first giveaway-the Child Training Bible Kit. The winner is-

LINDA B

Congratulations Linda! I will be emailing you about shipping. 

A huge thanks to all who entered and to all of our new followers. I wish I could bless you each with a set. Really, I do! I encourage you to order one for yourself and one for a friend...you will not regret it. There is no better word to share with your kids than God's Word!

Coming up this month-

Four new reviews,

Garden update,

Guest blog from my daughter, (did you know her post on modesty has been viewed by over 600 people? Puts me in my place! Haha

Recipes,

And many more ramblings!

Looking forward to spending June with you dear friends!