Organize Right

Who is ready for the holidays? 🎄

You will be surprised how much better you’ll feel knowing that only the stuff that you use, like, and need is taking precious space in your home! Let your spaces breathe, your mind will thank you. 😊

💗

I cleaned all day today.
Literally. All day.

I folded laundry and washed dishes and picked up mismatched socks and stray Legos. I swept up scrambled eggs from breakfast and chicken nuggets from lunch.

I helped my oldest son organize the Crayons in his art set and my youngest son put away the rubber food that goes to his play kitchen.

I barely sat down, and I'm pretty sure the afternoon cup of coffee I was looking forward to is still sitting on the Keurig tray.

But despite my efforts and the efforts of my kids (yes, I do require them to help), my house still looks like this.

No, this is not a "before" photo. It is a right now photo after the hours I spent cleaning--and I just wanna say this about it:

If you walk into a home that looks like this, don't assume someone hasn't been working her (or his) tail off to keep the place inhabitable.

Don't assume a cleaning schedule needs to be put in place, or that better habits need to be maintained.

Don't assume no one cares.

Instead, you can safely assume someone probably feels defeated and a bit like she's failing.

You can assume she's overwhelmed. Frustrated. Hopeless to the point where she's considered burning the place down and starting over somewhere new.

You can assume she's tired. Soooo dang tired.

You can assume she has a ton on her plate. That between her marriage, children, friendships, career, and house, something will inevitably be neglected--and she's not going to let that something be her family.

You can assume she's trying really, really hard, but the force of life is more powerful than she is right now.

When you walk into a house that looks like this, comment on the sweetly scribbled artwork hanging on the refrigerator. Tell her you love how her house feels full of life. Tell her you're grateful she welcomed you into her home. Then offer to watch her kids for a day so she can clean without tiny tornadoes following closely behind (Kidding... Sort of.).

Mostly, just tell her she's doing a good job.

Because truthfully? The fact is she's probably been cleaning all day.

**Come say hi on Instagram!
Instagram.com/bouncing_forward

Anyone agree?

Mess is a topic that comes up in my sessions and conversations all the time!⁣⁣
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Mess can be particularly triggering for moms because it's often not their mess and it's neverending!⁣⁣
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Here are ways to manage your reaction to mess:⁣⁣
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〰️ Limit the number of toys out. I store my boys toys and rotate toys in and out so that the playroom doesn't become one big heap. ⁣⁣
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〰️ If it doesn't spark joy (😂) get rid of it! ⁣⁣
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〰️ Be selective about what you allow in your home⁣⁣
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〰️ Focus on open ended toys instead of "one and done" toys that will clutter the home and rarely get used⁣⁣
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〰️ Take from the clean laundry pile instead of constantly taking new clothes⁣⁣
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〰️ Wash a dirty dish to use rather than grabbing a new dish every time⁣
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〰️ Be gracious and kind with yourself on days when you can't manage the mess⁣
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〰️ Remind yourself that mess doesn't reflect your worth as a mom. ⁣
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〰️ Remind yourself that mess doesn't mean you're failing. ⁣
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〰️ If it's overwhelming and you don't know where to start, pick one small area to organize each day or week. You eat an elephant one small bite at a time.⁣
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〰️ Set a timer for 5, 10 or 15 mins and tidy what you can in that time. Make it a family affair and have the kids take part 😍⁣
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How do you manage mess?