Confessions of a Disorganized Housewife: End of the Week Recap, and New Focus

 Yup, this is my view of my kitchen table most days. Chubs fights me for a chance to lie on the keyboard, my cell phone is nearby, the pink thing in the background is my camera case. On the day this was taken, The Hubby had just come back from a grocery run for me. Most days my kitchen table is my desk. It keeps J in my sight and I have no excuse to know get work done in here. It seems to work, for now. Slowly I'm getting my kitchen to the point that I like it.

•  My pantry is accessible, not a jumbled mess.
• I can pull out my flatware, kitchen towel, and measuring cup/accessory drawers and immediately find what I need in mere seconds, if that long.
• The bottom cabinets now hold my mixing bowls, waffle maker, and other baking essentials, plus some out of the way stuff in the back.
• My baking center counter... has been cleared off but is finding the clutter creep once again. 
• The fridge and freezer are clean, and while not as well organized as I'd like, we are able to see what we have and what is needed. 
• There are 4 bags in the corner waiting to find new homes at the thrift store. 
• The dishes are done each day, minus the three glasses that managed to escape my notice last night as I went to bed, and the floor is swept daily.

Not bad progress for a week. I've been picking up hit or miss in other rooms, and my bed is made daily. I truly enjoy that sight each day. I feel like I can come up with a plan for the day and give myself time to write (non blog related) or make cards or art journal without feeling the guilt of the house overwhelm me.  My house is far from being guest worthy yet, but it's getting there.
One thing I've been doing this week is reading the blogs of women who know how to organize and keep house seemingly without blinking. I am amazed at the information they are willing to share, and I want to put some of it into practice. One other blog I've been reading, as you know if you've read this blog any during the last week, is A Slob Comes Clean. Nony has been where I am today. She understands the struggle. Because I am a slob. I'm reading her blog from the time she began writing, forward so I can see.
   One thing she did was start with the dishes. It grew from there. Each week she added what she called a non negotiable to her list of what she did each day. A non negotiable is something that gets done every day, regardless of what else gets done or not. My list of must do's at this point is very short: Make the bed,  do the dishes, sweep the kitchen floor. I've decided that Saturdays are when I will add a new "must do" to my list. This week, I'm adding my son's room to the list. Specifically, each day I will check his room for clutter. Then he and I will remove the clutter and straighten it together. 
  Eventually I want that must do to go to his own daily task list, with little or no prompting from me. Why did I add that room as mine? Because tacitly over the years I've taught him it's okay to let his room spiral into chaos. I've turned a blind eye to it until when I finally do notice, it discourages me. His room is right off of the kitchen so there are no excuses anymore. The state of J's room affects the way I feel about the house and it affects my mood.
  I bought a set of dishes yesterday, that were on clearance. They have pink and blue flowers on them and they make me smile. I told a friend that I bought them because they are pretty. I want pretty things in my house to bring joy. That in turn makes me want to keep the house clean and usable. It's a good incentive for me. 
 Have a great day

 Yup, this is my view of my kitchen table most days. Chubs fights me for a chance to lie on the keyboard, my cell phone is nearby, the pink thing in the background is my camera case. On the day this was taken, The Hubby had just come back from a grocery run for me. Most days my kitchen table is my desk. It keeps J in my sight and I have no excuse to know get work done in here. It seems to work, for now. Slowly I'm getting my kitchen to the point that I like it.

•  My pantry is accessible, not a jumbled mess.
• I can pull out my flatware, kitchen towel, and measuring cup/accessory drawers and immediately find what I need in mere seconds, if that long.
• The bottom cabinets now hold my mixing bowls, waffle maker, and other baking essentials, plus some out of the way stuff in the back.
• My baking center counter... has been cleared off but is finding the clutter creep once again. 
• The fridge and freezer are clean, and while not as well organized as I'd like, we are able to see what we have and what is needed. 
• There are 4 bags in the corner waiting to find new homes at the thrift store. 
• The dishes are done each day, minus the three glasses that managed to escape my notice last night as I went to bed, and the floor is swept daily.

Not bad progress for a week. I've been picking up hit or miss in other rooms, and my bed is made daily. I truly enjoy that sight each day. I feel like I can come up with a plan for the day and give myself time to write (non blog related) or make cards or art journal without feeling the guilt of the house overwhelm me.  My house is far from being guest worthy yet, but it's getting there.
One thing I've been doing this week is reading the blogs of women who know how to organize and keep house seemingly without blinking. I am amazed at the information they are willing to share, and I want to put some of it into practice. One other blog I've been reading, as you know if you've read this blog any during the last week, is A Slob Comes Clean. Nony has been where I am today. She understands the struggle. Because I am a slob. I'm reading her blog from the time she began writing, forward so I can see.
   One thing she did was start with the dishes. It grew from there. Each week she added what she called a non negotiable to her list of what she did each day. A non negotiable is something that gets done every day, regardless of what else gets done or not. My list of must do's at this point is very short: Make the bed,  do the dishes, sweep the kitchen floor. I've decided that Saturdays are when I will add a new "must do" to my list. This week, I'm adding my son's room to the list. Specifically, each day I will check his room for clutter. Then he and I will remove the clutter and straighten it together. 
  Eventually I want that must do to go to his own daily task list, with little or no prompting from me. Why did I add that room as mine? Because tacitly over the years I've taught him it's okay to let his room spiral into chaos. I've turned a blind eye to it until when I finally do notice, it discourages me. His room is right off of the kitchen so there are no excuses anymore. The state of J's room affects the way I feel about the house and it affects my mood.
  I bought a set of dishes yesterday, that were on clearance. They have pink and blue flowers on them and they make me smile. I told a friend that I bought them because they are pretty. I want pretty things in my house to bring joy. That in turn makes me want to keep the house clean and usable. It's a good incentive for me. 
 Have a great day