…is a tattoo parlor. Yesterday, Emily and I were taking a break from de-cluttering and went shopping for buttons. She dared me to get a tattoo, so…

GOTCHA!!!!

It’s really a “tattoo sleeve.” I’m not sure when (or why) I got this in the first place, but it’s one of the things we found when cleaning up. I think I’ll hang onto it for the kids to play with.

We’re leaving tomorrow to spend the long weekend with my parents. I expect to do lots of knitting, but little or no blogging, so see you next week!

My new Favorite Song: Lace for Boyz written by HizKnits and WonderMike

It’s a beautiful, sunny 60 degree day here in Maryland. Jay is sleeping, James is sleeping, Selma and a friend have been riding bikes and now they’re picnicking in the back yard (they requested sliced oranges, hummus and tortilla chips). Sophie, Selma’s guest said, “this is such a great play date!” I think they’re relishing in their new 8-year-old freedom of being basically in control of their free time. The house is quiet and I’m liking my free time too.

I did some laundry and picked up the really awful messes of the past day or so, but when I started on a pile on a couch side-table, I realized, what looked at first like clutter was a project in progress. We have a lot of “active” clutter in the house because its small, we don’t have dedicated room for the kids to do crafts, and although they have a play room they play everywhere.

And looking around, I realized, I didn’t mind this kind of clutter, I actually like it. It’s interesting to see what activities are happening in the house by what little piles are being created. That said, sometimes an “active” pile becomes stagnant–I just spotted the remnants of our Christmas card project. Before I can really put that away, I need to enter new addresses into my address book. But it isn’t an active project any more, it’s stuck.

With our impending move, I’ve had to be a lot more pro-active about sorting. I don’t want to take any unnecessary stuff to Alaska, and I want to have room for stocking up on needed supplies. I’ve already done a pass on all the bedrooms, and the rest of the house is much harder. My mom and I have promised each other that we’d tackle one small de-cluttering task per day on our houses, so today, I’m going to have a go at a problematic kitchen cupboard.

I found the neatest new project bag at the hardware store yesterday.

It’s from a German company called Koziol — I’ve found they’ve got really great designed household stuff in addition to the bag. Check it out!

http://www.koziol.de

I’m addicted to containers… I always think the next great box or basket is going to get me organized. What I may end up with is a mess of containers. We move a lot because my husband James is in the Coast Guard, so I frequently get to start over setting up house. I love doing this–I’m continuously optomistic that this time, I’m going to get it right. Of course, for the last year, we’ve been squeezed into 670 square feet, so when we move in a month or so to a nice big three bedroom house, I’m sure we’ll be more organized than we are now. I’m already dreaming about how to set up the perfect craft space. Hmm… I think I’ll need some more containers.