I was just thinking how nice it was that I could actually find where I put the scissors AND the scotch tape....plus the ribbon AND the wrapping paper for a special gift....in less than three minutes today! WOW. This is a big deal for someone like me who is scatter brained and organizationally challenged.
I honestly remember when my kids were young, being so overwhelmed with the house work in our tiny apartment that I would drape a bath towel over the dirty dishes in the kitchen and just pretend they were not there! Trudging to the laundromat ....when I did not have enough quarters....did not happen often enough back then. I would have mounds and mounds of laundry to do when I finally got around to the laundry.
The whole idea of keeping up always alluded me. I would be the kind of person who would DIE of embarrassment if someone showed up to my home un announced and saw the ongoing mess. I did not want anyone to really KNOW how far behind I perpetually was with my housework!
Maybe it was the lack of sleep, the inexperience, the mundane routine of never ending thankless tasks but I was way behind the learning curve when it came to "keeping" my house! One day I saw a little sign posted in a store that gave me some perspective. It said something like "Cleaning the house while the kids are still growing is like shoveling the walk while it is still snowing!" Boy can I relate to THAT saying! Nevertheless there are people who seem to know how to keep it all in order and actually wash their dishes rather than cover them up like I used to do.
Amazingly enough it is funny now for me to look back and see how far I have come. I am still not the neatest and most organized person on the planet but I have come a long way. There is even a sense of order in my house for the most part and you have no idea what a miracle it is to be able to find what I need when I need it! It has been a slow, almost imperceptible process of setting little goals to get each small aspect of my life in order. I know my family is thankful that I did not give up and that I slowly but surely have been able to figure out how to better master the art of "taking care of business".
I am sure there are those of you out there who are experts at keeping up with the necessary evils and making order out of the chaos of life. Can you share with us how you do it?
Well its nice to hear that I'm not the only one feeling like this! I've only been a SAHM for about 6 years myself but the things that works for me is finding that daily routine and trying to get stuff done before it actually needs it. (exp. filling the dishwasher before the sink over flows and leaving it there until it dishwasher is full and you can do a full load)Staying one step ahead is my key.
ReplyDeleteGood luck.
I find that if my kitchen is clean I can do anything. For some reason this one part of the house bothers me the most when it is messy. I feel anxious when I go to cook and it is messy in my little kitchen. Also, when I come home and dishes are in the sink it weighs on me so. I put that as a priority and find that the other things fall into place.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I have learned to let things go. I was one of those moms that could not stand things being out of place. I need order! But over the years I have learned to "let go" and let some things just "be". My kids and I are much more relaxed this way and things just don't have to be perfect all the time. Nice...