Five-Minute-Cleaning

I read this somewhere - please forgive me if I don't credit the person! The wording is not my idea but when I read about it, I knew what they were talking about immediately. Because I do it all the time. I am a clean freak BUT only in the way of not even making the mess, instead of wanting to clean all the time. So I try to teach my kids that in being careful and watch what they do that they make lesser messes.... it works most of the time....

So obliviously I don't like cleaning, at least not for hours and hours. So this Five-Minute-Cleaning approach works for me. I mostly start when something bothers me, like our mail on the dining room table, or a messy bathroom. I clean just that one thing, in five minutes, give or take, of course, and I am done.

You think I am full of it? Try it out, it works. Five minutes here and five minutes there can add up to a lot of time cleaning! So now you want to know what one can do in five minutes when filling up the bucket for floor cleaning takes up already two of those five minutes? Well, we are talking about fast cleaning here, not deep cleaning! I can put a list together below....

But one other thing that makes it a nice tool: you do it when you have those five minutes, so one doesn't feel so overwhelmed at times. Like when you wait for a neighbor to show up, or you have five extra minutes before having to leave. It also works great when you have a sudden burst of energy that you don't have at night, after the kids are in bed.

Hey, it might not work for you, but I sure know that it works for me!
It does NOT replace the deep cleaning that has to be done once in a while! But just know that little messes can be cleaned up right away, so it doesn't become a big burden once it is a big mess! And I feel great about it for accomplishing small things when I wasn't in the mood for a huge project.

Here is a list:
- make all the beds in the house
- put the dishes in the dishwasher
- swipe the kitchen floor
- clean one toilet bowl, maybe including the sinks
- wipe a bookshelf
- clean the front window of the car
- quick clean your oven, inside and top
- vacuum one room in the house
etc

I think you get the idea! It is simple, and most of the time making things easier and less overwhelming, makes you happier and you feel you actually can do all the loads of things we have to do!

Being Blessed

I promised I will write more once my stressful time was over, so here I am. After this crazy week, I wanted to count my blessings, because there are so many. I have a wonderful life with the greatest family, and I just feel so awesome right now - after a terrible morning, where the first two hours felt more like the last entire week. But it got much better after having to babysit my neighbor's kid. The kids played together very nicely, shared and took turns. I am trying to teach Coqui that 'Ladies Go First' and he did very good of being patient and wait his turn with bathroom breaks and washing hands. I AM SO BLESSED.

And here is why: I feel blessed because....

- my pap smear test came back normal today
- my CT scan didn't show any abnormalities
- I didn't get a reaction from the iodine this past Monday
- I love my oncologist because she is a woman and I can talk to her about anything
- my kids did great this week with Mami being on the 'foggy' side
- Peanut is getting her first tooth - finally! - just felt it this morning!
- I have the bestest husband in the whole world
- I finally cleaned and scrubbed my kitchen and dining room floors last night, INSTEAD of going to the gym, but it was still a good 'work-out'
- we got a surprise package from Mema yesterday with some small goodies for the whole family - she is so awesome!
- I have friends that care about me and check up on me!
- I have Coqui and Coqui loves Mami
- I have a very clingy baby that loves me, too - just can't say it yet.
- my life is great right now!

Thanks for being with me today! I appreciate all my readers, which I am sure there are not that many! But the few really count to ME!!! Thank you and please be blessed yourself!

Two-and-a-half-years cancer-free

I am back! The last couple of days have been a little stressful for me. After my two-year mark of two years cancer-free, I only have to go to the oncology every six months. Right after that two year mark, I had my X-rays done. Now, half a year later, my CT scan was due. So two years ago, when I had it done the very first time, I found out that I have an allergic reaction to the iodine they inject for the scan. Not fun! Believe me, my entire body was covered in hives and it itched for days..... So last year, they medicated me for 24 hours, which didn't help. It was less itchy but I was still covered in hives for a couple of days. So this year, they tried pre-medicating for 48 hours, 24 before and 24 hours after the procedure!

But let's start from the beginning. I had to get blood work done on Friday, and that was just the beginning of my medical weekend. The kids did great at the doctor's office. (You have to know that I have to be laid down for this! I don't like needles and I can't see blood!) So having Peanut standing and sucking on my pocket book handles, while Coqui tries to 'watch' her.... Well, the staff was very understanding and patient with this. It only took a couple of minutes anyway, but this is an oncology, not a pediatrician! So I appreciate that they love us to come by and check out the babies. And just smile. Smile and say: "No problem. We love babies." What an atmosphere - better than their pediatrician!!!

I mean serious, if there is a 'perfect' place to be sick , then it is this Oncology! I love going there. I always feel safe. I can bring the kids and they will be loved. I can asked stupid and not-so-stupid questions. I absolutely love my oncologist. I believe she is a great doctor but also a great woman to talk to about things that one doesn't talk to anybody about! Usually, I am trembling by the time I get there for my appointment, so being in good hands helps alot.

So Sunday morning, I had to start my pre-meds. I was on Benadryl and a steriod, that is suppose to counteract the sleepiness. So Sunday morning, I felt pretty nauseous. I am not sure from which medication that was. By the afternoon, I felt a little better, but took a nap! Oh yeah!!! In the evening I was fine, and at night, I couldn't sleep. Oh well. So I asked the nurse Monday morning, if I could not take the steroid, but that was not part of their plan! Sorry.

So Monday morning was the CT scan at the oncology. Once again, the staff is phenomenal over there, when we roll in with the entire family! They took good care of me while the Hubby had to entertain the two kiddos! They explain every little detail of what they are about to do to you! The last two years, we had to go to a Radiology, a central place for our city, due to insurance reasons. They are fine over there, but still not even close as this nice! I felt as comfortable as one can be in a situation like this. And to make it short, all went well with the iodine. No reactions then and none later!!! So this 48-hours thing might actually work. (Even though I am not looking forward to do it again next year!)

This morning, Wednesday, I had my regular appointment with my doctor. She is awesome. I was shaking by the time I got there, so the nurses always tell me what a great blood pressure I have - I tell them they should catch me on a day when I don't have to see the doc!!! (I have very low blood pressure!) Coqui was such an awesome little boy. We brought his Leapster with us, so he could play while the nurses were watching him when Mami was inside the doctor's room! Just Peanut did not cooperate well. I had saved giving her her bottle for then, but she wanted to be with me! So she had to come in the room with me!!! Oh what fun!!! (For all the people who have no idea, please imagine bringing your baby to the OB-Gyn appointment!!! Now you know what I am talking about!)

The doctor told me that everything looked good on the scan! Hallelujah! Praise God!!! What a relieve. It had been so stressful for me up to this point. Then the rest of the exam was a breeze and over in no time. (I don't like the exam!) I should have the results from the swap test by Friday, but she said everything looks great!!! I love her. And we always find a few moments to just chat about our families! Did I mention that I love her? Yeah. I believe that I had to come to this city to get cancer just for her! I KNOW that I wouldn't have found a doc as good as her on the east coast! I feel blessed!

So I hope I can write a little more often now! Having this big milestone behind me.

Daily struggle with dinner

A little while ago, a friend of mine has blogged about leftovers. Here is the link:
http://cbethblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/lovely-leftovers.html

Dinner is a daily struggle that I fight! It is exhausting and very stressful for me. All day I am fine, I can eat what I like and feed the kids what I think is healthy for them, at least most of the time.
But by around four or five o'clock, I am reminded of the fact that I need to provide dinner for my husband, my kids, and actually me, too.

Growing up in a German household, things might be a little different. Usually, Germans eat their biggest meal at lunch and the smallest at dinner. So naturally, I eat a pretty good lunch, and I think the kids as well. I mean, I don't just eat a little salad like I have seen so many other women do it. I eat something that I cooked for myself - Vegan mostly. The kids eat either the same thing or I make something different for them. But at dinner, I am just perfectly fine with just bread and butter and hummus or something, or that salad we talked about before! Coqui loves bread, so he doesn't mind when once in a while, we just have bread for dinner - as he eat real lunches anyway.

But of course, my lovely husband is not okay with just bread and butter for dinner. He usually buys stuff for lunch that hold him over until he gets home. But by then, he is usually pretty starved. So I should have dinner ready for him.... but unfortunately, not always! Yep, I am a 'bad' wife, in that department at least. There are two complications to the story. He doesn't like leftovers, and he has Crohn's Disease, so he can't eat everything that I like, actually none of what I like. He needs lots of carbs and protein!!! So here we go: what can I make??? I can't taste anything that I make for him because it is not Vegan. So I kind of cook with LOTS of luck....

Hope your dinner tables are not as boring as ours lately. I have such a hard time with it. But I can not complain, lately he has told me what he wants, and we try to pick things up together, planning for the week ahead! It helps. Thanks, Hubby, for being so patient with me!!! I love you!