The Beginning of Organization

Hi! My name is Heidi and I'm disorganized.

I always have been. When I was in fourth grade my desk was so full of books and papers and books and pens and books and ponytail holders that my teacher finally got sick of it and dumped the entire contents of my desk out on the floor near the coat rack where the entire class would see it when they came in in the morning. She wasn't trying to be mean; I think she genuinely thought that if she made it clear to me that I needed to change, I would. But the problem was that I just didn't know how to be organized, so then after that I was still disorganized, I just felt embarrassed and slightly frantic about it.

For a long time.

It's not that I didn't try. You must know that I tried so much. A lot. With lots of programs. I studied the blogs of domestic goddesses and read Flylady emails and talked about it with other people whose homes are perfect, and still I struggle. I'm not slovenly, mind you. The dishes are always washed and beds are always clean, but there is a distinct aura of busyness and clutter.

Then I stopped scrambling around my house trying to pick things up and figure out how Born Organized people manage to do it, and I started to do one of the things that I'm actually good at: thinking. I analyzed and brooded and mused and held elaborate conversations with myself and I started to realize some things about being organized. Deep things. Things that surprised me; things that surprised other people when I told them. I'll talk more about them this week, but for today, I want to start with this discovery:

I do not want to be an artisan homemaker.

For years, I aspired to be like Martha Stewart or Bree Van de Kamp or even Meredith (well, let's be honest, we all want to be Meredith), but then I realized something. I don't want to be an artisan homemaker; I just want to be a functional homemaker. I want surfaces to be uncluttered, laundry to be done, everything to be findable on the slightest whim, and things to smell nice. Beyond that I'm fine. You can keep your ruffled curtains, your chafing dishes, and your tea light rosebud candles floating in a fluted glass bowl. I want to develop a clean, functional house and then I want to leave it and go to the library. Or the park. Or the pet shop. Or up that little dirt trail that leads to who knows where, but has a lot of delightful twists and curves that look like they're just perfect for two kids in a double jogger.

And through steadiness and methodical persistence, I'm going to develop that clean house, day by day. I hope some of you will come along with me to watch me, encourage me and even, on occasion, judge me. (You'd think I'd have had enough of public humiliation, but I have an idea that puts a challenging twist on growing organization, but won't be too awfully scary.)

Subsequent weeks will focus on other things I'm trying to improve like attitude, follow-through, and physical health but for this week, the house is getting cleaner.

It's going to be wonderful!

Comments

[Mary]

Hi Heidi!

Well, I have to tell you..I know I am about 20 years older than you and you sound just like me when I was your age. What helped me? Age. Maturity. Being embarassed a million times because the house was a wreck. And my kids got past the point of scattering toys around the house. Now it is magazines, shoes, backpacks, hairbrushes. My kids got to the point where they wanted the house to be clean when friends came over. I tried flylady....too much thinking for me. Some days are better than others for me and I am constantly changing things up. Don't beat yourself up too much. You have 2 small children and you live in an apartment if my memory serves me (?). A very wise woman once told me that cleaning up after small children is like shoveling snow in a blizzard. I learned that to clean up big messes, it didn't seem so overwhelming if I did it in small bites. I would use the kitchen timer and tell myself that I was going to work on something for 10 minutes and then stop. I always seem to get more done that way. Just find what works for you and keep at it. You'll get there! Love the new Blog!

Mary

[Meredith from Merchant Ships]

Heidi! Even though I've been reading you for years, it's nice to know your name : )

I need some motivation with the deep cleaning, myself. Most of my creative projects only distract the eye from an unmopped floor!

[Heidi]

Hi! You guys are here!

Mary: I can't tell you how much your experience and insight in the past has helped me weed out what's really important from what I just THINK is important. Thanks for being here!

Meredith: A celebrity visit! Amazing! I don't believe one word about your floors being sticky, but it made me feel better anyway. LOL. Thanks!

[NJ]

Found your blog via Meredith's blog...wow! I could have written this post. I even had the same extraordinarily cluttered/stuffed desk in elementary. It took me a long time and I tried a lot of different things (hello, flylady), but I finally have my own system down now that even my husband and kids are on board with. The first time someone stopped by unexpectedly and our house was neat and clean, I was squeeing like mad on the inside (usually, when someone stopped by unexpectedly, our house was a disaster and I was dying of embarrassment). Like Mary, what finally worked was a "small bites" approach...Anyway, it can definitely be done. Good luck!

[Haley]

Ditto!! I'm afraid of having my "clean friends" over because they'll think..."did you see the dust bunny in the corner under the table that no one looks at?...I did." Having my "clean friends" over gives me a reason to dust and sweep and vacuum. But guess what? My house is cozy, comfortable, and people don't feel bad about putting their feet up, setting their drink on the table and having a good time.

[Pure and Sensible]

Here from Meredith's blog. You have such a pretty header! My house has amazingly been both clean and organized at the same time...seasonally. Those days are both memorable and efficient. Lots of work. And what gets me out of that state...having too much on my plate. I'm not in either state right now. So, I'm working on both again. *sigh* Thanks for the encouragement! Leinani