How important is it that I have a clean house? I struggle with this daily. I don't know if my desire for a clean house is to please other people (though I'm sure this plays a part) as much as it is a mental health issue for me. I feel frustrated in the midst of chaos and so I look around the house and have the desire to clean up, but not a strong enough motivation to actually get started. I know that when I start, I will not be able to make it look the way that I envision, with everything in its place.
There are things in this house that really just do not have a place. Take the photo albums for example. In our old house, they could be put on a shelf, since we had many. Here, there are no shelves, so the albums sit on coffee tables, the fireplace, and on the t.v. stand. This bothers me to no end because it is clutter. They do not truly have a place. We intend to build bookshelves, but that costs money. Another issue are the books. Again, the problem is the lack of shelves to put them on. Four boxes of books are still in the garage.
The biggest problem is that I like to start projects that are ongoing (such as scrapbooking) or that I don't always finish. These things sometimes sit out for weeks or, if they are put away, they are stashed in the closet that is already full. There doesn't seem to be an effective way to organize these projects. Then, of course, there are the dishes, the laundry, and all of the other daily chores. So, each day I make a choice. Either I will 1) Get some "chores" done or 2) Work on a project 3) Organize something 4) Run errands (real or imagined) 5) Do nothing. Many times (more than I would like to admit) I lean towards option five.
Today, I have imagined some errands for myself, so I am off to OSH to buy some flowers to replace the dead ones in the front yard. Productive, yes, but the house is still a mess. I'm still not sure how much I care.
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2 comments:
Oh, yes, the Cleaning House fiasco. I know you are much more of a neat person than I am but the clutter does start to drive me crazy after a while. When Mia is mobile then the true adventures begin. I always try to have at least one room in order for sanity and then avoid stressing too much about the rest. There's always time for cleaning but babies won't be babies long...
Auntie Dorina
It seems like just yesterday that Tiana was born and I was relishing in her just like you are relishing in Mia. Now she's 8 and turning into a mini-me. It's shocking if I really think about how quickly time has flown. I am a perfectionist also, but with each child, God has beat that out of me so now I'm only partially as detail-oriented as I used to be. It's still a struggle. I have to self-talk myself often and put my house issues into perspective. God only expects me to do my best. The character of my children is more important than a spotless house. It also helps to just tackle one thing each day. I've found that I accomplish more in the total of a year if I do a little each day, rather than trying to tackle it in big bursts. When I view it as a big job, I will get discouraged and not even start. Again, something is better than nothing!
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