And then there's the how...

OK...so I've answered what & why, now comes the how.  What's my plan for this journey?  How do I plan to proceed now that I've made the declaration?  

The answer is...I'm still trying to figure that out!  Ha!

As is usually the case with me, I have a gazillion & one ideas swirling around in my head.  Huge plans that if I can bring to fruition will produce amazing results; however, I often overthink things.  My ideas are sometimes too lofty for my mere abilities, and when this happens, I start thinking "What's the point of even starting?"  I have trouble coming up with a jumping off point, and so when that happens, I just don't jump at all.  Which I guess is probably one of the main reasons I've gotten myself into this mess!  I suppose that's also one of the main reasons why I started this blog.  Accountability.  If I make the declaration, and others could possibly hold me to it, then hopefully I won't give up before I've even gotten started.


So, I'm gonna start with the essential element ~ the house.  As a stay-at-home mom, I'm under this roof for the better part of the day, every day of the week.  And if it's in disarray, then pretty much every other area of my life follows the same pattern.  I'm sure this stems from growing up with a neat freak mother, but when things around me are the least bit disorganized, I find that I can't think straight.  I get all nervous & stressed out, and I've found that here lately that just causes me to run away from the issue instead of confronting it head on.  It's time to put a stop to that & get back on track again.

Our home is also in dire need of a good, thorough cleaning.  We have lived here about 4 months shy of 4 years, and I am ashamed to say that in that time, I haven't tackled any kind of spring or fall cleaning.  Of course, I've had lofty aspirations of doing it, but it's never actually gotten accomplished.  My mother would be probably is quite ashamed.  So that's where I plan on starting, and as I'm doing a good, thorough cleaning, I also plan to tackle the issue of simplifying.  That means it's time to go through every room, every drawer, every closet, every shelf, and purge, purge, purge!  Then, whatever is left can be organized and put away in a nice, neat, new home.  :)


See...I told you my aspirations were often lofty!  Ha!  However, I think if I play my cards right, I can actually get this thing accomplished.  My goal is to have everything done by November 20th, so that our family can enter into the holiday season fresh & clean.  I know for myself, if my home is clean, organized, and a reflection of simplification, then my mind and my heart will be renewed as well.  That's just the way I am...a true product of my surroundings.  And in turn, I know that our family will then be able to focus on the true reason for the season ~ the celebration of our Savior's birth ~ without feeling the need to join with the masses in the usual crazy holiday madness.

So, that gives me 6.5 weeks.  I think that's a pretty fair amount of time to complete what I hope to accomplish.  I'm going to take things slowly, tackling one area at a time, as I work my way back to a calm heart and a peaceful spirit.  I'm planning on updating the blog every single step of the way, with progress notes and pictures, so stay tuned for that.  It's sure to be riveting!


Now...to just figure out a place to start....  ;)