Video – Unlikely Martha

Living• Video• Vlog

Weekend Rewind + Vlog | Dance Competition and the Usual

From the day Addison was born it was understood that she would don a leotard, tights and ballet shoes as soon as a dance school would take her, simply because my mother did it for me. I fondly remember the day when the time came to purchase her first leotard, tights, ballet and tap shoes. I vividly recall wishing my mother was there to experience my girl going off to dance for the first time , instead I clung to my own memories of her and I heading to the dance studio in Georgetown with the large glass window every Saturday.

When I signed Addison up for dance and watched her week after week I started to think at some point she had a natural talent that the others in her class didn’t seem to have, but seeing as how every mother thinks their child is awesome I pushed it aside. Now, I’m pretty confident my child is well on her way to becoming an amazing dancer.

This weekend we traveled to her first dance competition of the season and as I watched her smile light up the stage and her facial expressions move the judges and the crowd it was evident she loves performing. As she hit every beat and step, at some point I felt like I wanted to cry. Being a mother is so hard, there are so many things to mess up and yet somehow when you see your child on stage exhibiting a talent they love, one in which you have poured money, time and dedication into, you feel like that is one thing you absolutely got right. I introduced her to dance not knowing that she would fall in love with it and be great at it. I simply did it because my own mother had done it for me, however I never really loved it.

Addison and I are on a different trajectory, from the moment she wakes up she is dancing, practicing her turns, and flips, often working my nerves because her jumps sound like the floor is caving in. I don’t have to push her, if anything I have to encourage her to allow her body to rest. Now comes the task of figuring out how to not just let her be average in this thing but seeking out vigorous Summer programs and auditions for her to attend outside of her dance school. Operation build a star is in full effect!

Outside of the dance competition we had a pretty normal weekend. You know cleaning, grocery shopping etc. My god brother’s birthday was on the 15th so we celebrated with cupcakes Saturday and had movie night. Thursday night, the Mr. and I fell off in the club with the millennials for his actual birthday celebration.

Let me tell you, partying during the week and having to wake up in the morning and do adult things like getting children off to school when you’ve had a drink or three is quite laborious. Nonetheless, we celebrated and had a great time.

Catch our full weekend on the vlog!

How was your weekend? Anything spectacular?

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Home• Organization• Video

Kids Room Organization | Tips for Organizing Kids Drawers + Video

The amount of stuff kids can accumulate is mind boggling. From toys to too small clothing the propensity for things to get out of control and fast in a child’s room is real. As quickly as you buy things they outgrow them, those $5 toys that we pick up here and there start to add up if we don’t constantly purge and before we know it we are living in a cluttered mess. But today I bring you one of the best kids room organization hacks. And it cost effective too.

Kids Room Organization | Tips for Organizing Kids Drawers

As part of the #OrganizedOnFleek organization challenge, my second space to declutter was Addison’s drawers. I’d needed to go through and purge too small things before Christmas, but Christmas…..so there’s that.

My very first hurdle was emptying the drawers, dividing everything into a pile of “Keep” “Throw Away” and “Donate.” Once I had everything separated the items that were to go back into the drawers were rolled and put into Dollar Tree shoe boxes to keep them neat and tidy. Addison has the Malm drawer from Ikea and the shoe boxes fit perfectly. I add a dot of poster tack, also from Dollar Tree to the bottom of the box to keep it from sliding around in the drawer.

After successfully cleaning everything out, poor thing needs some new clothes but I couldn’t see that for all of the mess. This hour out of my day not only saved my sanity but has also saved me money because I know exactly what she needs going into Spring. Now to fill up these cute DIY Gold Plastic Hangers I made for her with clothes that actually fit.

Danielle, Trina and I are still running our #OrganizedOnFleek Instagram Challenge. For the month of February get in the action by organizing a space or spaces in your home. Need some inspiration? Check out the hashtag on Instagram.

Here’s a fun video of me cleaning out her drawers!

What area in your home do you desperately need to declutter and organize? What’s your favorite kids room organization hack?

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Living• Video

Happy New Year Video

H A P P Y N E W Y E A R!!!!!

As the old church folks say we are still in the number. No matter how hard or rough the road has been we are here to usher in another new year full of promise and opportunity.

I hope your festivities went well whether they consisted of being in the streets, watching the apple drop or watching the back of your eyelids. We continued our tradition of a midnight toast complete with Welch’s sparkling cider in wine glasses and watching our neighbors put on a fireworks show that rivaled a July 4th showing.

Instead of typing out what to expect from Unlikely Martha in 2018, I’m starting off the new year with something a little different. Below is a short video about the direction of content, how I need your help and most importantly how thankful I am for your support in 2017 and beyond.

I hope your new year is off to a great start!

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Home• Video

How to Clean and Descale Your Keurig + Video

I drink coffee daily. It’s like a reflex, fix breakfast, pack lunchbox, put child on school bus, make coffee.

Then do the things.

I’ve mentioned before I use the zone cleaning method to keep my h ouse clean, and weekly I take care to wipe down the Keurig and the coffee station when I’m in the kitchen zone. Recently I couldn’t recall the last time I broke down the Keurig for a deep clean.

I’m talking take it apart and descale clean.

While a little cumbersome and time intensive, cleaning your Keurig is something you need to put on your monthly cleaning list. Calcium backup, rogue coffee grinds and sitting water is just a recipe for disgusting gook and nasty coffee.

Nobody has time for nasty coffee, literally and figuratively.

Can’t remember the last time, if ever you bothered to deep clean your Keurig? I got you.

Here’s how.

YOU WILL NEED:

| Descaling solution or white vinegar

| Soapy water

| Cleaning cloth, preferably a lint free microfiber one

| Water filter if needed

STEPS:

(note there are are many different Keurig models. These steps are generic but if you find you need more specific info I would encourage you to google your model for more info)

| Start with lifting the arm and pulling out the actual housing where you place the k-cup ( be careful, there is a needle inside this casing that punctures the k-cup)

| Remove water reservoir, drip pan and grate. Be sure to remove the water filter from the reservoir

| Once these parts are removed soak and wash them in warm soapy water

| With the reservoir, casing and drip pan parts soaking, take a soapy cloth and wash the inside of the area where the casing is housed, as well as the outside of the machine.

| Once the machine and components are cleaned, put the machine back together, replacing or putting in a new water filter and turn it on.

| Once the reservoir and water filter are back in place, if using Keurig descaling solution follow the directions on the bottle for your model. Mine required me to pour the whole bottle in and add a full bottle of water to it. If using white vinegar, fill to the max water level line.

| Turn the Keurig on and run multiple cycles until you need to replace the water. (you will see all kinds of coffee grounds in the water, as you continue to run the cycles the water will become clear)

| Once the first set of cycles are done, add another full reservoir of water and continue to run cleansing cycles until more water is needed.

| All done!

Here’s a little video if you need a little visual reinforcement. Please be sure to follow my Youtube channel for all of my video content!

Do you drink coffee? Do you prefer to make it on your own or grab it on the go?

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