I was in a car accident several weeks ago.  Because of my injuries and our totaled vehicle, life as I knew it came crashing to a halt.  I will say, though, that out of the pain and suffering I've endured, good things have come.  My boys, ages 8 and 5, have been an immense help to me over these weeks.  I've learned that my 8 year old can make lunch for he and his brother on weekdays when Daddy isn't here to help. I've learned how loving and compassionate my young children can be to their mom when she's in pain.  My boys have learned to adjust to life with absolutely no routine.  Some days mom was able to teach, others she was out of commission.  They both have really enjoyed being "grown up" and taking care of Mom. 

With all of this time I've had not being able to move around the house as usual, I've had lots of time to think.  I reorganized and rearranged the entire house--in my mind--many times.  I invented new routines to implement once I got up and running again.  I wanted to share one of the ideas I was able to put into practice a couple of weeks after the accident. 

My boys really do not care what they wear each day.  And, if leave them to their own devices, they will come up with some very strange and comical combinations of pants and shirts.  And, actually, my youngest would be quite comfortable not even wearing pants!  So, I was in the habit of picking out their clothes each morning.  After the accident, I was in no shape to travel up and down the stairs to do laundry and to pick out clothes each morning.  My husband took over the laundry for me (thank you!), and I came up with a new way of handling the "what to wear" issue.

I had my husband buy me a few boxes of 2.5 gallon ziploc bags...the kind with the sliding zipper pull on top.  Into each ziploc bag went a day's worth of clothes:  pants, shirt, undies, and socks.  I wrote the boys' names on the bags, and voila!  Two weeks worth of "what to wear" were finished.  Now, the boys just grab a bag when they wake up and get dressed.  This has worked out so well that I think we'll keep doing this even after I'm healed!