29 day organizational challenge

Hello, there! It's been a long time since I've blogged. I just haven't had the urge...and I feel like I haven't had the time. I once said I desperately wanted to write a busy-mom blog...but didn't have time because I'm a busy mom! - and a friend said that that was what qualified me to write one. Yay. I'm qualified!

However...I'm a busy mom. Life is full, and it's hard, and it can drag you down and suck you into itself and lie and say that all there is is busy-ness. But I've learned that when I feel dragged down and drowning in life, it pays to make that effort to h.a.u.l. yourself up and peek over the edge at all the rest of life that's still. going. on. I'm even typing this with a toddler on my lap. Because...you know...that's my life.

So here I go. Consider this my virtual pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps.

(In my case, they're very cool, very worn, very comfy cowgirl boots

that I will someday own,

and someday wear,

on my someday cowgirl legs.)

I stumbled across this page, Ready. Set. Simplify., through the Facebook page of a friend from college. Sounds right up my alley, right? I'm attracted to anything regarding organizing and simplifying. (Probably because I wish to be so, and get a thrill from attempting it, but feel too busy to get there.)

She, in turn, is linking up with Org Junkie's 29 Day Organizational Challenge. Clearly, it's February 6th; I'm starting late. And - truth - I'm fighting about a million thoughts of "why will this work now? you've tried challenges before, and something always comes up to distract you and it doesn't get done. why keep trying something new? why not just try to keep up with the schedule you already have that you haven't perfected yet??"

Wow. I'm mean.

BUT. Elizabeth has a very specific reason for her 29 Day Challenge, and I admit, it intrigued me. And I'm stealing it. (I don't know her, but I don't think she'll mind.) It's her "Love by Decluttering" plan. Hubby and I don't have a great deal of extra funds at the moment (or ever), so Valentine's Day probably won't be a very big deal. (And it's on a Tuesday. Tricky.) But a great deal of stress for us is our bedroom. I think we both have this unspoken agreement that it doesn't need to be organized, because we're not in there except to sleep, and we know it'll get done...eventually. But it's cluttered. And not that big. And full of unnecessary furniture. And hard to walk around. And just not very restful. So when I read that Elizabeth was doing her bedroom as a gift to her hubby for February, I identified.

It's not entirely un-selfish. By the time I get to bed, it's imperative that I sleep immediately. There is no wind-down time, no relaxing, just sleep for functionality's sake. And I wake up in the morning and think, "ohmygosh, I have to do this all again." And I do. not. feel. rested. That's so wrong. And I think maybe if my surroundings weren't stressing me out, maybe I wouldn't dream about being stressed and busy and cluttered. (True story.)

click for bigger picture

So here's my first before picture. I'll probably take more. But this will give you your first shot at what I'll be up against. All while doing daily dishes, daily laundry, daily picking up, daily maintaining, daily showering, daily cooking, daily picking up couch blankets from the floor, daily pb&j and mac&cheese making, daily fighting with people to pick up their own stuff, daily telling people the floor is not a trash can, daily still-being-a-mom (who's-obviously-insane-for-taking on-something-else).

Well, supposedly "I can do all things through Christ Who gives me strength..." I'm gonna need it.