Latest Home Improvement Project - Anything but clean!

I am excited about the latest home improvement project we have going.  So excited, that I have embraced it over cleaning on my 31 Days schedule right now.  Which is fine, because sometimes you just have to do something else to keep from going insane.  Learn about the 31 Day Challenge (that I am behind on) here.

We live in a nice, unassuming brick rancher in a nice, suburban neighborhood.  We bought it several years ago as a fixer-upper, and we have been fixing up ever since - new roof, new HVAC - you get the idea. 

Now we are to the fun part - decorating.  I decided to start on the master bathroom.  I decided that was the place to start for two reasons:

1. It was small and could be completed quickly, giving me the mental boost to continue in other rooms; and,
2. while I was sitting there watching 3 year old Jackson play in the tub, I started absent-mindedly picking at the outdated wallpaper.  Half an hour later, I was into full blown wallpaper removal before I knew it. So I kinda had to finish it.

Here is a photo of the bathroom before:

Pretty bland, huh?

Of course, being the Type A, bull dog personality that I am, I of course had to purchase some new things for the bath: rug, shower curtain, towels, and new light fixture.  I drew the line at the toilet cozy, because, well, I really don't like them. 

Here are the goodies I bought:

Yes, the pink poodle is mine.  What of it?

I am really pumped about the new light fixture.  After seeing the old one, wouldn't you agree a change is in order?

I am keeping an eye out for a good deal on a vanity.  All of our old vanities are the 1970's Formica-type.  Utilitarian, but definitely not beautiful.  

I do plan to get back on my 31 Days to Clean.  Honest!  Just not today.



Distractions

My sister-in-law and I have this on-going joke. Whenever we start to do something and it seems to  inevitably not get done, our go-to excuse is, "I got distracted." In my case, it usually is a child wanting something, the phone ringing, or just walking out of one room into another and forgetting why I am there.

I get distracted.  A lot.

Which is why I like to make lists.  Lots of lists.  I even have an app for my lists on my iPad.  I call it my list of lists.  (Let me go on record as saying, iPads are AWESOME!).

Sorry. I got distracted.

My inability to focus on things make the Challenge a challenge.  That is why I particularly got excited about the List of Six in the Martha/Mary Challenge for Day 6.  Prioritize the top six things you need to accomplish on any given day.  Put them in order of importance.  Only list six things.  If you don't finish one, put it at the top of tomorrow's list.  Easy peasy, huh?  You can read more about it here.

My list for today (and I had to revise it already) is:

1. Get my hair cut (may throw in an eyebrow wax and totally get pampered).
2. Find my old resume or create a new one (I want to make some extra income by becoming an adjunct professor at a local college).
3. Write a new blog post.
4. Sit in the sun.
5. Do my Martha/Mary Challenge
6. Clip 3 year old's toenails.

I have had #6 on my to-do list for about 3 days - I keep forgetting!  So far, I have completed 1 - 4.  Feeling pretty good about my progress!

Do you keep a to-do list?  What would your list of Six Things be?

Already behind

I started this 31 day challenge to gain a clean house and not lose my soul to it last Sunday.  I can honestly say:  I. Am. Behind.  BIG TIME.  You can read about the Challenge on Joyful Mothering.

Obviously the challenges were made more for stay-at-home moms and not moms who have jobs outside the home.  I am finding it nearly impossible (not impossible, just nearly so) to meet the Martha challenges.  For those of you who are not aware of what the Martha Challenge is, it is basically a chore assignment for each of the 31 days.  For instance, the first day was to clean your 'fridge.

Anyway, when I come home from work the last thing I want to do is housework.  I want to play with my two kids. I want to have a real conversation with my husband.  But failure to do housework makes my home chaotic.  And I've already determined that chaotic makes me anxious -   anxious does not a fun wife/mama make.

So I try to do everything that I can to keep up, but still miss the mark.  Is this failure? No, I don't think so.  I just consider it a revised plan.  While some followers of the Challenge may do all of the challenges on schedule, this girl is making up her own schedule.  A lot of my work will, by necessity, be done late in the evening after kids are in bed or on the weekend.  Either way, I will come out ahead.  As long as there is improvement, I am content.  And isn't that all we really need? Contentment?

Praying for contentment for you!

Thirty-One Days to Clean - a Challenge

A couple of weeks ago, I was reading through a friend's Facebook page.  She had read that a new eBook about house-cleaning was about to be published called, Thirty-One Days to Clean: Having a Martha House the Mary Way, by Sarah Rae.  The premise of the book intrigued me.  You can check it out here.

It bring to my mind the story of Martha and her sister Mary from the Bible in Luke 10:38-42.  Jesus and his disciples were traveling among several towns when they came to the village of Martha and Mary.    I can just imagine how the story would read in modern times: Martha invites Jesus into her and Mary's home.  It is a mess!  How could she let Jesus see her home in such disarray?  She immediately sets to work cleaning, fluffing pillows, picking up Mary's shoes (she always just seemed to walk out of them the minute she came through the door - was it too much to ask for her to put them away?).  Meanwhile, Mary is sitting in the living room listening to Jesus teach.

When Martha complains to Jesus about Mary sitting there while she did all the work, Jesus replies: "Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but one thing is necessary.  Mary has made the right choice, and it will not be taken away from her." (Luke 10:41-42)

This gets me thinking.  Why I am so anxious about my house being clean and neat, or more aptly, not being clean and neat?  Was I going about this all the wrong way?  Why do I snap at my family when they mess things up or don't help out as much as I think they should? Moreover, why is it so important to me that I keep our house neat and clean?

I feel like I put a lot of undue pressure on myself when it comes to home and family.  I cannot seem to balance these as well as I would like.  I started searching out others who seemed to have found that balance.  In my search, I found Christin's blog, Joyful Mothering.  She is farther along in her journey to find that balance.  Her blog is inspiring, uplifting and, most of all, hopeful.  I highly recommend it.

It was on Joyful Mothering that I discovered Christin's 31 Day Challenge using Sarah Rae's book.  You can read about Christin's challenge on her blog.  I have nothing to lose and everything to gain by taking the challenge.  A good friend from church is taking the challenge as well, although she won't be blogging about it.

The challenges are relatively simple.  Perhaps the most difficult challenge is the very first one: deciding why it is important to me to keep a clean and neat home;  I thought a lot about it, and came to this conclusion:

I need order around me so that I have a sense of calm.  If my surroundings are chaotic, messy and disorganized, I am anxious and unable to focus. 

My friend that I mentioned above, Debbie, did her "Mission Statement" so to speak. I liked it so much, that I asked if I could include it in this post. 




Debbie's Mission Statement

I have begun my mission.  May those of you embarking on similar missions have success!

The Easter Bunny came!

I've been thinking a lot lately about the paths that I have chosen and whether or not I want to continue down these same paths.  Some paths have been perfect just the way I've travelled them:  For instance, I would definitely choose my husband and kids all over again. I would choose the narrow way and not the wide path. I would not choose the convertible car, but I would choose the minivan (even though it is SO non-sexy!).  I would choose the English/journalism major again.  I would not the law degree.  Do you get the idea?

The cool thing about paths is that you can always deviate from them.  Just be sure that in your trailblazing you keep you eye on the final destination.  In my case, I am not sure of the path, but I AM sure of the final destination: that place where I am able to give my God and my family the best me that I can give.  I can see that place.  I am not sure of its name, though.

I am not on the right path yet, but I have my maps, books and a good GPS.  I have every intention of finding my way.   And I am looking forward to it!  Happy Trails to you!

Change of Direction

I have decided that I need a change of direction.  I have felt the gentle (and sometimes, not so gentle) nudge in my spirit to simplify, declutter, and toss things that are draining to me and my family.  In doing so, I hope to get myself and family to a healthier place.

A big part of getting there involves reworking this blog.  I am not the speediest person on earth - I tend to move slowly on techno stuff.  BUT, with that said, stay tuned for changes...'cause they are a'coming!