Remember why you started!!!!

When we first started RiOak we had no idea our business would grow so fast.  We have had ups and downs but never the less our business continues to grow everyday.  I can't help but wonder where it will be in five years from now.  I was talking to my husband last night about our business and we laughed.  We have signs all over our basement drying and lining our walls and I told him, "Remember when we first started I said, I just want to make enough money to cover two weeks of daycare?"  This was my goal.  My goal has obviously changed since then but I have to remember I started this with a small goal of just having a little extra money in our pockets. 

 

(This is where it all started, cluttered in a 1,000 square foot home, on a little 4 ft table and my Kitchen table, signs lined everywhere among the toys, against the furniture, EVERYWHERE)

 

You see I am a VERY competitive person.  I grew up in a very competitive household.  I was a barrel racer for years and of course you go to the rodeo to win.  In being competitive you also have to learn to be a gracious loser,,, I became good at this as well!!  BUT it is my opinion if you are going to do something then strive to be the best, not like the rest.   With this being said with my competitive nature I feel like I have to keep up, continue to create and basically wear myself so thin that I FORGET WHY I STARTED this business.  I did this for my family not to compete with ANYONE.  Before I entered into this competitive business I had no Idea there were so many business doing the exact same thing I am doing.  Also many businesses I was connected with are no longer in business.  I can't help but wonder why?  Sometimes it was due to stress, family and other times it was burnout.  Many new businesses have started as well, so I have learned some will come and some will go.  I can't worry about what others are doing, I can only worry about what I am doing. Do you know I work only from Facebook and referrals?  I have not ventured into many other markets, BUT we are in a few stores now. 

(My Very FIRST craft show,,,,lol this was a learning experience)

The first year I started this I decided I was going to do shows.  Well I have become so busy with custom work I don't have time to do shows.  I love doing them but why lug all of my product around when I can promote and sell from the comforts of my own home??  I have participated in some really good shows and really bad shows.  I have chose for now to only do a couple a year.  I do enjoy the atmosphere of the shows.  It is neat seeing people come into your booth and buy the things you have created!  I get a high from this, but I also enjoy creating one of kind custom orders that our customers come to us with.  Maybe one day I will have time to both. 

(My craft booth a year later....I learned a lot in a years time....this booth was really pretty this year)

I have become so busy I now have a month waiting list.  I feared this at first.  Many businesses promote and brag about how fast they can pump out product.  This is great for them, but we take our time in creating.  We make sure each sign has our undivided attention.  You cannot create a handmade product that is quality in a matter of minutes, at least not what we do.  We get our material from the local lumber yard.  We cut, sand, detail, make hand made stencils to the customers liking and hand paint our signs.  Each sign has a protective coat, a hanger and our stamp on the back.  Sometimes this can take hours.  When you get a sign from RiOak know that it has been created with two little girls running around laughing (or screaming), music is playing, a pot of coffee is ALWAYS on, a couple has talked over your sign, and discussed your sign at least 10 times.  We take pride in what we do and take pride in providing a good quality product for you, your sign can already tell some stories by the time it leaves our home and goes to yours!

We are venturing into furniture making soon.  If anyone knows my husband, he will not do anything unless it is done right.  I make fun of him and tell him he is going to have to pump out product a little quicker than a table or a bed every three months....lol.  He just smiles and says, "Well it will be done right when I get done with it."  Of course with this comes all of the tools.  We have spent countless hours on ebay, taking a road trip to Kansas and shopping around for the "RIGHT" tools we need.  We should be having a biscuit joiner join our family of tools tomorrow!!  Clint will biscuit joint all of our tables.  This will create a more sturdy table that our customers will be able to use for many years and hopefully pass down to their kids. 

We don't just create things to pump out product as quickly as we can to try to compete with other businesses....we are remembering why we got started!  We want to build our company, make it grow, and have a great reputation with our customers.  I am proud to say we have several repeat customers.  This is the best compliment we receive on a monthly basis. 

(Here is the kitchen table!  This was taken in our old house, but eat and paint from this table nightly)

 

During one of my bridal showers the game was to write down a piece of advice for the bride. I think the best piece of advice I received was from my sister in law..."Always remember why you got married."  I have taken this to heart and can apply this theme to many different aspects in life.  So whatever your doing now whether it be getting married, starting a business...or being in business for years, a career or school....REMEMBER WHY YOU STARTED!  Hopefully the passion will come back to you.  I wish everyone of my readers the passion to continue on your journey and never forget why you started.

Another day in the LIFE of RiOak!

Take the Time and ENJOY the little Moments

 

(Riley and Me...getting some hugs and loves in)

 

As most of you know we are very busy.  We both work full time, run a home sign business and have two little girls.  We get very little sleep and take very little time to enjoy the "little moments" life has to offer.  This past weekend I took some time to enjoy those little moments, I thought I would share my little moment day and give you some pointers or ideas of how you too can enjoy these little moment, or maybe you are and just haven't noted it!

Started off by cleaning, although not a favorite moment there is nothing like walking through your house and everything is in it's place and ahhhhh that feels so nice (it's not quite there but getting closer!) 

Riley and I took some time to create designs on her tablet.  She loves graphic design apps so we created a WHOLE bunch,,,,now was this fun for me?  Not really but the look on her face when I told her to come and sit on my lap and said, "Can I play" was priceless.  This was a "little moment" that she enjoyed and because she enjoyed, so did I.  I know I need to work on this but please remember to take the time to play with your kids, it's not your enjoyment that matters its the little moments and benefits your kids receive just by getting to be with you!!  It does make a difference.

After leftovers for lunch we headed outside, I mean 50 degree weather in January must be enjoyed as  reality was this week,,,,eeekkkk 5degree mornings!  Did I want to stand there and put Oaklee up on the slide 20 times over and over again, not really, but the smiles on their faces made that "Little moment" worth it plus it gave my arms a work out.

 

My husband was sick and had been all weekend, so I made a big fresh pitcher of sweet tea.  After he got up from his nap I fixed him a big glass of tea and we sat outside and watched the girls.  It was nice just to sit beside each other and enjoy the fresh air.

We sat down for dinner, chocolate shakes and a good movie.  Do you know with all of our hectic life this is one thing that I demand of all of us (yes even the 18 month old) we sit down to dinner every night at our table (no gadgets, not radio, no T.V---just each other)  We say our prayer which is usually led by Riley,

"Tic Toc goes the clock, now it's time to pray.  We fold our hands and bow our head and thank the lord for daily bread."  This is her favorite prayer....isn't it sweet?

We talk about the best and worst things that happened and how this made us feel.  We do this every night.  It is a time I get to actually listen to my 5 year old, I mean I really listen.  I know how busy life can get but please remember their little voices do need to be heard.  I work on this every day, It is easier to say, "In just a minute, hold on, I can't right now."  I caught myself doing this one day, finally I turned around and said Riley what do you need?"  She said, "Mom, I love you."  Wow, okay so now I feel completely like a jerk.  "I love you too."

We have made a deal starting this week.  We realize plans will come up BUT we have decided on Sunday evenings we will do some sort of fun snack and have Movie Night. We watched Homeward Bound, ( I will keep you updated on how our movie nights are going)  We cuddled up with blankets and loved and snuggled with each other this past Sunday.  Me and my girls all piled on the couch....smelling their fresh clean hair, hearing the giggles....it's these "little moments" that add up to be our lives.  These are memories we are creating with our children, so make them good and look forward to all the "little moments" in your life.

I need to take note and cherish every day I have with these priceless children.  I am one of the most influential people that will impact them.  They will have my attitude, my outlook and my skills.  So what do I want to teach my girls....ENJOY the little moments of life, have fun, be happy and LOVE life and your family...

A Day in the LIFE of RiOak

SMALL TOWN LIVING-PRICELESS

Some people may say no thank you, to living in a small town but I say YES please!  I love living in Cole Camp, MO.  I moved to Cole Camp when I was 4 years old.  I went to Cole Camp school K-12 (yes it is one school).  Cole Camp is dear to my heart as I drive through our four way stop in town sometimes I just think to myself....I love this place.  As my whole family knows I just love the life of being a small town gal.  Yes it has it's downs such as gossip....wow!  But in general life is great in the good ol' town of CC.

Yesterday was a day.  I go to work to find out one of my co-worker's house has burnt down and she has nothing left, I mean nothing.  I spent all morning going through clothes for her and trying to gather what we could for her.  As I go to pick up my daughter from pre school I am telling one of the teachers about this tragic event.  Now the lady I am speaking to about this also works part time where I work (she also is the mom of my childhood baby sitter-see small town living--connections every turn you take).  She agrees she wants to do something and agreed to go to the store and buy over the counter medications to put in our laundry basket of goodies we were putting together. So I take my daughter back to daycare and head to Dollar General to get items for my coworker and I see a wreck.  I pull into Dollar General, wave at my childhood babysitter as she pulled into the parking lot.  She waves back then I see her running down the road.  IT JUST HIT ME, AHHHH THATS MY OTHER COWORKER THAT WAS IN THE WRECK.  So I go running down the road as well.   Here she was doing a good deed for someone and gets her car totaled.  Some days,,,,wow some days! By the time I got back to work with everything I felt like I needed a drink or high blood pressure medication and it was only 12:00!

The great part about living in a small town.  The highway patrol who was called on scene was a child hood friend of mine.  His dad and my dad have worked together for over 20 years.  The CC chief of police was there, his kids and I went to school together.  The ambulance workers, fire trucks etc....I knew everyone.  Then a fund was already started where I work, clothes were being donated etc.  All of this in just 4 hours.  In a time of need you can count on a small town to pull through.

Then tonight I received a message from my aunt requesting a sign to be donated for a young gentleman who works for my uncle.  He has had several health issues and has a young family.  My answer to her was "Count us In." He has a very hefty hospital bill and the small town neighboring mine is pulling together to do a silent auction to donate money to him and his family.  It never fails when times get tough it sure is nice to live in a town of people who really do care.

Follow us on Pinterest, I have created a whole board to small town living.  I have heard people say, "There's nothing to do in a small town."  This is not true.  There is always stuff to do.  I remember growing up, playing at the pool, riding bikes all around town, hanging out with my friends, knowing everyone who walked down the street or at the grocery store....there is always someone to talk to (or about...lol).  Gravel roads have solved a lot of problems and made many memories.  Creeks have served as a great place to play, muddy trails have seen many laughs and good times on four wheelers.  Endless open fields served the perfect place to ride my barrel horses, they heard many problems that come with being a teenager (oh I also use to sing to them like I was Reba or Martina...they never complained they just kept walking). The woods have served as a great place to build bon fires and talk.  As I have gotten older I love being outside and our neighbor is 1/2 mile away because our driveway is 1/2 mile long.  We love being able to sit outside in the summer and the only sounds we hear are coyotes.  It's nice to have quiet and living in the country and from a small town quiet is exactly what you get.  In a small town when you hear a siren you wonder, "Who,"  it's not a background noise for us.  Of course within a matter of 24 hours you can have all of the information about what had happened maybe even with a few extra details...:) Although we still have a noon whistle everyday!
I am excited about raising my girls in the town my husband and I grew up in.  They will go to the same school we went to and even have some of the same teachers who taught us.  I am proud to call Cole Camp my forever home.  AND yes for those of you who don't know me, I did live in a city when I went to college.  It wasn't huge but over 100,000.  I will never forget walking into my first college class and the room had 458 students in it.  I know I looked like a deer in a head light as the room was filled with as many people as half of my town I grew up in.  I enjoyed living there but I was never "at home" there.  I would go to the grocery store and I never ran into anyone I ever knew, I would walk down the street and NOPE no one I even recognized.  It just wasn't for me. 
After my experience I have learned living in a small town although not for everyone is PRICELESS TO ME.

Are you blankety, blank, blank- kidding me?

As I sit down to write this evening, it's been one of those days where I have had to really "count my blessings."  I have tried to go back to my last post and count my blessings, but it's been hard today.  Let me walk you through my last two days.

Yesterday I woke up with a migraine at 3:30 in the morning, my throat was raw and my nose was stuffy.  I took some medicine and tried to go back to bed but my head felt as if it was going to pop off.  I called into work at 5:30 in the morning, stayed up so my kids could sleep in a little bit, got them dressed and took them to daycare (because you know the hubby had to sleep in as late as possible and he would be late if he took them).  A mom's job is never done.  I came back home and laid on the couch for a while feeling non human, my hair all over my head, coffee brewing and thinking, am I going to live?  As a wife and a mother I have this overwhelming feeling of guilt if I am at home and not working.  I feel like I have to do something, I can't relax.  Why is that?  I should not feel guilt, but I do.  I managed to get myself off of the couch, fix a cup of coffee and put on a load of clothes, fold two loads that were on the couch and put them away.  Laid back down, got up unloaded and reloaded the dish washer, laid back down.  Posted on facebook for RiOak and made a promotion and watched my likes go up...laid back down, got up swept and did another load of laundry.  Finally I ate around 1:00 and laid back down.  Then I got up and finally made my bed for the day and cleaned our bathroom.  You see how the day went?  I had a sign delivery at 5:00 so I thought I needed to make myself a little presentable, got dressed, sprayed my hair and left to do the delivery.  Stopped by the store and then picked the girls up from daycare.  Came home only to YES you guessed, cook dinner.  Dinner and then painting was it in order.  Hit the hay about 10:00 which is rare for me.  You see as a mom you are NEVER done!  No matter how bad you feel there is ALWAYS laundry and food to be fixed for everyone, I know, I know, ENJOY IT WHY YOU CAN. I feel blessed was not the feeling I was having but yes I know I am , I am blessed, enjoy this....I kept telling myself this.

Back up at 6:30am to start on laundry and the girls woke up to move their mountains at about 6:45.  Okay so I still don't feel the best but I am determined today has to be a more productive day.  I started painting on a sign, then breakfast, then clean up breakfast, then more painting.  I get everyone dressed for the day and hubby heads out to the shop.  Now the oldest is old enough to go out there with him but here I am with a sign to complete and an 18 month old....this is a task in itself.  Little miss Oaklee is into everything and her favorite is toilet paper at the moment.  I put one coat on all my letters and then go to find her.  She is sitting in my bathroom with toilet paper everywhere.  I clean it up, take her out of the bathroom, shut the door, first mess to clean up for the day.
Continue to paint on my sign as my oldest, Riley comes in (only 30 minutes after she went outside) and is hungry...because she didn't feel like eating when we had fixed pancakes for breakfast.  Sooooo up again to fix a little snack.  She loved it so much she wanted more than what I had fixed the first time, sooooo you guessed it, up again to fix more.  I told her to go and play and then I put Oaklee down for her nap.  Hubby is still out in the barn....although I am so thankful he is a hard worker,  there are times like this that I think hmmmm it would be so nice to be the man in this relationship.  I mean think about it, he left out of the house at 10:00 in the morning and has done nothing with the girls except change one diaper and put plates on the table for breakfast.  Okay Ashley don't be bitter, don't be bitter, I repeat don't be bitter.  I go back to painting for the 2nd coat of paint on my wording.  Get up unload the dish washer and reload...dishes are never done either!  Go back to the sign for the third coat then pick up the house a little.  By now it's about noon and Oaklee is back up.  Even after I have picked up the house, there are still toys scattered.  I asked Riley to pick up and she asked if she did, could we put a puzzle together...sure!  During this time, I hear the 10 syllable word, "Mooooommmmmm,"  I go to find Riley and she has dropped my eye shadow and tried to clean it up, my grout is now blue in our master bathroom...just another mess, Mess 2 cleaned up for the day.  By this point I feel like we all need some fresh air and it is 1:00.  I get the girls bundled up and we go out to the barn to find hubby cutting on boards...but what do I see only three things...WHAT????  He explains he has taken a whole stack of pallets apart as well.  Ohhh I said, just wondering as I have painted and taken care of the girls for the last three hours and still have to finish the sign and go to the store for our family Christmas tomorrow.  He just looks at me with that blank look that every husband has and goes back to cutting wood.  I leave with the girls and head back up to the house.  As Riley stomps through every single mud puddle she can find....yep a mess... I just let her do it because she thought it was a blast, I will just clean it up, what's another mess at this point? Hubby comes in shortly and opens up the puzzle for only ME to do with Riley.  I lay down on the floor and put together a floor puzzle while he relaxes on the couch and plays on his phone,,,,don't be bitter Ashley, don't be bitter...lol  Floor puzzle was complete and gorgeous I might add.  I then go back to painting.  Sign completed, or so I thought.
Riley has made 1,001 request and had at least 1 million questions to be answered today...at one point Riley even tells my hubby, moms can do everything!  I poured myself another cup of coffee and cheers it to myself!  Hubby goes back out to the barn.  No problem...I got it!!  My mom and dad come by for a little while to see the girls.  My mom says, "What happened to Oaklee's face?"  I said "Well that doesn't sound good and I have no idea."  My mom brings Oaklee down and she has blue marker all over her face....great, just another mess! Mess three (as I made riley take her boots off and we didn't have a mess, only if your counting).
I took my sign out to rough it up, put stain on it and a protective coat.  Hubby comes in and as Oaklee is fussing he scoops her up and takes her for up for another nap.  My mom and I ran to the grocery store.  He stays inside to hold the fort down!  Sure why not at this point, one kid is out at the barn with the horses and the other is taking a nap...just relax Clint, just relax buddy.  I came back from the store and we put away the groceries.  I ask for him to get me a pallet sign so I can start on it tonight, so he does do that for me.
Mom and dad sit down to play a game with Riley and I go to get my sign to take a picture and post it...no sooner did I post it a fan messages me and told me a word was misspelled....oh no!!!  Sure enough I look over and there it was the dreaded misspelled word!  This does happen, not often thank goodness, why didn't I catch that I have only painted that word 4 times today....ahhhhh.  Mommy is about to go nuts at this point.  I am having  a very difficult time finding positive right now as I can only focus on how much time it is going to take me to fix it.  My mom and dad leave and Riley wants me to sit down to play her game with her....dinner is cooking on the stove, Oaklee is screaming up stair...Hold on Riley, I will here in a minute.  "Mom will you play with me."  "Hold on Ri, I will here in a minute."  "Hey mom will you play with me..."  (Breathe Ashley, don't yell, just breathe) with a big breath and exhale, "Riley I told you I would play, let me get Oaklee's diaper changed, stir the taco meat AND then yes I will play.
Three games played and back to dinner I go....to only hear as I am putting the enchiladas together, the 10 syllable word, "Moooommmmmmmmm"  "Yes Riley,"  "I need you."  I leave the kitchen and asked where she was at, "I'm in the bathroom."  I think to myself, this is not going to be good as we have already cleaned up three messes in here already....I walk around the corner and there is the fourth BIG mess of the day.  There stood my 5 year old with poop on her hand, on my wall and all down her leg.  She has this look of panic on her face.  Breathe Ashley, Breathe.  "Riley what happened and why is there poop all over my wall?"  She said, I didn't do it.  "Oh really did the poop just jump from your butt?" I asked in the most calm mommy voice I had at the moment.  This is where the blankety, blank, blank comes in I am saying all kinds of things in my head right now!!  But trying to be patient.  I told her it was an accident but next time it happened to please call me before it got to this point....mess 4 cleaned up...back to dinner (of course after thoroughly cleaning my hands and I told her to go and wash hers after I had already wiped her down) It is a miracle at this point I haven't burnt dinner.  I am finishing dinner and she comes down with her big brown eyes and huge smile and says, "I washed my hands here smell them."  I couldn't hold it in at this point, "Riley I am not going to smell your hands after you just had poop all over them, I am cooking dinner."  She gets tears in her eyes and said,  "I washed them like you told me to."  I gently explained I appreciated her listening, there was no need to cry, I was not being mean but I am not smelling her hand"  Is this too harsh?  I just couldn't do it!  At this point Oaklee is hungry and is pulling my shirt everywhere I am sure I looked like a hula dancer gone bad by the way she was pulling me back and forth, back and forth at the stove.  She is whining, I HATE whining.  I get her some cheese for a snack, she still is whining.  At this point I am whinny too!  Clint FINALLY comes in and has two pallet boards.  I look at him and say, "Mommy is about done for the day."  I think he knew, as he went in and got plates out and checked on the dinner.  He pours me a glass of wine and I just sit on the couch.  We all ate dinner and now here I am. 

I know every woman has a day, or maybe you feel everyday is like this for you.  I wrote this to hopefully let you know, YOU ARE NOT A LONE IN FEELING LIKE YOU COULD JUST GO BLANKETY BLANK, BLANK ON ANYONE WHO MIGHT CROSS YOUR PATH ON ANY CERTAIN DAYS! 
I was very proud of myself as I have only raised my voice one time today!  My glass of wine is completed a fresh cup of coffee is in order and I think I have fixed the sign!!  Getting ready to post here in a little bit.

Hope you have had a little better day than mine but if not, I feel for you.  Just take a breath and drowned out all the noise for at least 10 minutes!! 
It has been just another day at RiOak!

Here is super easy Recipe for the Enchiladas I made tonight-Great for us busy mom's who have to clean up poop right in the middle of cooking, this recipe is bomb proof I tell ya!!

2 lbs of hamburger
1 package of taco seasoning
1 block of cream cheese
2 cans of enchilada sauce
1 bag of sharp cheddar cheese
6 large tortilla shells

Cook hamburger until complete, sprinkle with taco seasoning and then drain.
Mix enchilada mix with cream cheese, pour into cooked hamburger

In 9 x13 pan-Spray with non stick spray then you are going to layer
Rip up your tortilla shells (3 of them) in the bottom, put layer of meat and sauce mix, then layer with 1/2 bag of cheese, Repeat again.
Bake in oven at 350 for approximately 20 minutes or until cheese is completely melted

I bought some new salsa (lime and garlic...very good), put that on top, with refried beans and sour cream.

You could make this more diet friendly by using ground turkey, low fat cream cheese and sour cream and 1/2 bag of fat free cheese.

Hopefully I will be better tomorrow counting my blessings, but for today I just say....Blankety, Blank Blank and goodnight!

Count Your Blessings

Hello out there, hope you are having a great week so far.  We are starting to unthaw here in Missouri as we hit 35 degrees today!  It's hard to do wood working for our little business with no heat in our shop yet so we have been using up the boards we had on hand for our painting the last three days. 

It's so easy to get wrapped up in life, isn't it?  This hit me today as I was driving to pick up my girls from daycare. This was my thought process as I was driving: I have at least 5 loads of laundry in the hampers, two loads patiently waiting on the couch to be folded or picked out to wear.  I still have my two Christmas tree's up, toys are scattered, my dinning room table is covered with painting supplies....so much so I am going to have to clean it off or eat in the living room tonight.  Which then leads to the ultimate question...what am I going to fix for dinner?  Bills need to be paid, garage needs to be organized.  Taxes...oh taxes for the business needs to be done.  Baths, bedtime stories, will Riley pick out a story that has chapters tonight? Ahh I really don't have time.  Do you see where I am going with this?  I was so wrapped up in what needs to be done and my life being overwhelming I forgot to count my blessings.  Let me try to put a positive spin on this.

Although I have 5 loads of laundry, my family and I still have clean clothes to wear for the week.  If the clothes stay on the couch, I won't have to walk up the stairs 100 times looking for that pair of socks for the girls. The couch is easy access and  a handy clean clothes hamper!  My Christmas trees will still be enjoyed this weekend as we are having one more Christmas at our house with my husband's family , due to our recent loss, it was the first time we could all get back together.  If I don't get my trees down, I can always start a tradition of having the girls make paper hearts and we will use them for Valentines day trees...lol I hope not but a positive way to look at it.  My girls toys are scattered throughout the home.... we have a home to have the toys scattered about.  Our home is warm and cozy tonight and place we can rest. One day my house can be clean but for now we are making memories, about to drive mom crazy memories, but we are making memories.  I am thankful my business is taking off and I have the ability to use my dinning room table as this is where I feel comfortable and can get into my "painting mode".  Dinner, I have food to fill and nourish our bodies.  Bills have to be paid and although this is no fun at least we have jobs and are able to pay our bills each month.  Taxes have to be done, its just a part of life, at least I am alive to do them.  Baths, we all have to have them!  Bedtime stories, this is a way of life for us as we try to read at least 3 to 4 nights a week.  I am thankful my child loves books and wants to spend this time with me.  I have heard over and over again, "Enjoy it while it last."  Sometimes this is hard to imagine missing the hustle and bustle of raising kids but I know the day will come when I will look at a young mother and tell her this very same thing.  My mom always says, "When they are gone and gone for good, it is the loudest sound you will ever hear, nothing, it's quiet."  Although I think to myself this would be wonderful I know how much I also enjoy hearing those little giggles coming from sisters, the word mom in the mornings when Riley and I sneak coffee together and watch a morning cartoon, the sound of my baby saying "Mama" over and over again.  These are blessings I have to count and remember.

You see there is always a way to look at anything in a positive manner.  I struggle with this on a daily basis.  I am trying to become better as most days I am stressed to the max and exhausted from my daily routine BUT I am trying really hard to count my blessings each and every day.  I hope you can take a look at your life and although it is stressful and I am sure exhausting most days, please remember all the positive ways to look at your life and always remember TO COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS.

Just another day in the life at RiOak!

Bleaching LIFE

I have never known life without bleach.  My Granny Mae always had a distinct smell on her hands and I LOVED that smell.  As I got older and started cleaning myself, I realized she always smelled like bleach, lol.  Now I have a love hate relationship with bleach as my mother also has always cleaned with bleach (love you mom) but I would go to get my "cool" shirt out of the dryer....and you guessed it there would be a bleach mark on it.  Of course I would say, "Moooommmmm," Every mom knows this tone, the kids can lengthen the word mom to be like a 10 syllable word.  She would just look at me with that mom look (and every mother knows how to give one of these).  Now as I am "Mooooommmmm"  I am following in the footsteps of the amazing women who raised me, my answer for everything....bleach.  I was mopping my floors this morning, with bleach water of course, and thought this would be a great topic for my blog.  I have set out this morning to tell you how great this cheap cleaner is for many uses.  I will tell you a little about how I use bleach and then I did some reading to get more ideas for you.

1. Bleach Toys-Fill sink with warm water add two caps full of bleach to the water (caps make great measuring cups).  Did you know bleach disinfects in 30 seconds...great tip for us busy moms.  Take out and let air dry....simple enough!
2. Bleach fights mildew-Yep use warm water with 4 caps full of bleach and it will get rid of mildew...make sure not to saturate the area with the water but wet the area with the water and bleach combination and work small circles...GONE
3. Clean butcher block-No explanation needed...clean with bleach.
4. Toilet Bowl and Bleach together....not a good Idea....definetly a chemical reaction and this is a whole other story...BUT DON'T DO IT, lol.
5. Clean your laundry basket.....does anyone do this?  Honestly I hardly ever do this, but it makes since as when you put dirty clothes in there are germs in there too!!  I usually only put dirty clothes in ours because once the load is done either we get it out of the dryer to wear or a pile is started on the couch! (My mother in law loves laundry so every time she comes over to our house she probably has a heart attack) I personally would rather clean all the grout in a 5,000 sq foot tiled home with a tooth brush than do LAUNDRY...I hate it.  I guess it's because it is a job that is never done!
6. Now I am no doctor so please consult your physician, BUT a bad cut....put bleach on it, it does burn but no infection....my mom does this all the time, I know this is harsh but it will help with preventing infection, in our circumstances anyway.
7. Bug bites---Bleach bath, fill up tub put a couple of caps of bleach, WaaaLAAA it will dry them chigger bites right up---also might speak with a physician on this.
8.  My youngest daughter suffers with eczema and as I was researching anything to help this poor baby guess what I found?  Yes you guessed it, bleach baths (as described above, just a cap, which really dilutes the bleach but it is enough I guess to do the job....again ask physician before you try this) So I give my girls a bleach bath when skin issues appear, it does work!
9. Want to make your fresh cut flowers last longer.....one quarter tea spoon of bleach per one quart of water (I have never tried this, but I have heard that it works....if you try it let me know!)
10. Remove coffee or tea stains-Soak glasses in water bleach mixture, wipe with soft cloth.
11. As I was looking for alternative ways to use bleach I ran across this one and I thought is was creative and funny...It says to put sand into two bleach bottles and you have homemade dumbbells.
12. Use bleach instead of jet dry, it supposedly cleans glass and china and makes them sparkle.
13. For the kids....after jug of bleach is empty clean thourghly take cap off, cut off bottom and make into a mega phone (probably a good idea for summer time so you can send them outside to shout out at the world instead of your ear!)  This is a cute idea for any container, the kids could decorate it, serves two purposes for keeping their little minds and hands busy.
14. Cut the bottle in half after complete and make a scoop out of it, like for dog food etc.

It is also important to remember never to mix bleach and ammonia together as this creates a very toxic chemical.  Did you know bleach only has a shelf life of about 6 months...I had no idea. 

I know much of this is common since but thought I would share my life experience with BLEACHing  in my life!