Healthy Happy Chaos

Hey there! So yep, it has been a bit since I last made a post. It’s not that I don’t want to, but by the time my day is done and I am able to sit down for even a few minutes of quiet time, it is time to go to bed so I can start it all over again. Well, leave it to time off from work to help me get started again. Hubby and I took a week off from work to go explore some of the state parks in Tennessee. Great way to unwind and reset. So, here I am at night enjoying the quiet because I don’t have the constant stuff to worry about at home. Man! I wish my brain wasn’t programmed the way it is. I have the hardest time just sitting down and enjoying some quiet when there is even one dish in the sink or I notice dog hair on the floor. All these things happen constantly and you would think after awhile I would be able to ignore and move of. NOPE! Not this girl! Just plain sucks sometimes, but I am working on it. One thing that I have started reading up on is organizing my house in such a way that eliminates the extra and unnecessary stuff. Insert Marie Kondo and tidying up skills.

Read about her on a Facebook post and thought it was worth a try to at least read her book. Ordered two of her books through my favorite used book website “Thirftbooks.com” and anxiously awaited their arrival. Funny thing is, I have to find time to read at least a few pages here and there in order to learn her ways. So, I have found a small amount of time in which to do this. Each night I read some stories to my four year old and then I hang out in his room sitting on the floor until he falls asleep. Yes I know what all the “parenting experts” say about this, but the only thing I have to say about it is the fact that he will grow up faster than I want him to and I want to cherish all the moments in life right now that he needs or wants me.

Anyways, different topic for a different day. As I sit with my little one waiting on him to fall asleep I read a little of a book. My most recent find is The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. I am that mom who just never sits down because there is always something to ‘tidy’ up. Dishes in the sink, toys on the floor, socks and shoes thrown about, etc. The list goes on and on and I always manage to find something to tidy. Sometimes it truly feels like I am shifting things from one spot to another. So I began my research on how to get things organized in a way that is simple for all my family. I mean, come on, there has to be the right way that I just haven’t found that will work with my boys, right? I absolutely hate clutter! I have always been this way and have always been picked at because of my OCD and constantly having to clean things. I am telling you, it’s bad. Heck, I never invite people over because I am always so stressed about the amount of ‘clutter’ that we have around the house. Insert Marie Kondo.

If I had the money I would totally hire her to come into my house and help me implement her tidying magic because WOW! First off, can I just say that I think it is totally cool to have a career centered around home organization? This is where I am picked on and called a ‘nerd’. Sorry if some find that offensive but I don’t which is why people call me that 🙂

Her ideas in the book are genius and I have even started watching her show on Netflix just to see her in action. It helps me to put it all together and really wrap my brain around how to make it work for me. The basic concept of it all is simply pairing down the stuff that you own. Seems so easy, but let me tell you what. If you were to try and go pair down all the stuff that you have in your home right now without any guidance on how to accomplish this, you would get stuck or overwhelmed.

Well along with the book and the Netflix series, I have been scrolling through the Facebook page as well. It is awesome to see other people’s ideas and inspiration. There are so many screen shots I have taken or photos I have saved for ideas on my stuff. My number one issue is time, but I know that once I get it done I will have so much time back because I won’t have to worry about all the constant cleaning up I do around the house. Clutter is not good for someone with anxiety. It just doesn’t allow us time to ever really relax. My mind is always on and bothered by the nonstop clutter in my house.

But the reason I bring up the Facebook page is because sometimes people don’t always understand what you are experiencing when it comes to your mind and organizing your home. All too often people post asking for help with ideas on how to organize a particular thing or area of their home and 75% of the responses are to just let it go or don’t let it bother you. It hurts me to hear that advice to someone because I know that in all reality that is probably not going to happen. We cannot just let it go. We are asking for ideas because we know we cannot just let it not bother us. It really is not so cut and dry.

For instance, one thing in our house that seems to cause me lots of anxiety is Legos. I can’t explain it but I am always wanting to work on sorting the thousands of legos we have. It bugs me to see one big pile. I have googled and Pinterest’d so many ideas just because I want to get them organized in a way that works. Well, other’s have the same thoughts and asked the question in the Facebook page. Guess what a majority of the hundred plus responses were. Yep! Just don’t let it bother you and throw them all into one big box. Kids don’t care right? Well mine do when they are trying to build something and looking for specific pieces and colors.

Ok, enough of that tangent. My main point in all of this is that finding peace in your own home helps you to deal with the day to day chaos that happens in life. Marie Kondo has inspired me and I am working towards that peace so I can enjoy my chaotic life. What are your thoughts on the subject? I would love to hear from you!