I can't be the only one, can I?

I had a few friends over the other day under the premis of- come to see me, not my house. But the thing is, I think I still shock people with the amount of clutter there is in my home and how, um, open I am about it.

Here's the deal. I hate housekeeping. I love the idea of organization, but stink at maintaining it.

<-- that's not my house but it easily could be.

It's not that I don't understand the concept that when you clear out clutter it makes room for the things you want in your home/life, but I battle both perfectionism (if you're going to do it, do it right, but to do that I'll have to do these other 50 things)  and procrastination (you know, I'd rather just start a new blog first) and I have four other people in my home (and two pets). I also have a knack for not seeing how bad things have become until it's really too far gone.

All that's to say, I know why the mess exists. I've read books. Subscribed to different gurus of organization. My house is better than it used to be but it still floors me (was that a house-y pun?) how other people can have such gleaming spaces and they also have spouses, children, and pets. What makes it so different for them? Do they never pursue their creative passions? I can honestly answer no to that- some of these people that wow me are also very creative. So how does it happen?

So this blog is part experiment (because I want to try some of these things out, these tips I find elsewhere) and it's part educational? Maybe you'll pick up some clever hints/tricks, too? And I hope it's conversational. Let me know what's working in your house and what's not. Do you see something happening in my house that used to happen in yours and you know a good solution? Let's talk about it.

This isn't a blog for the ones who have all the answers, it's a blog for the strugglers who still want nice spaces but aren't willing to make it their whole lives.

A little background- so you know where I'm coming from-- I don't have an *outside* job other than writing, which isn't really outside either. I have three kids under 8, a spouse, a cat, and a dog. My husband's job doesn't give him a lot of free time at home, and though our children have some chores, they don't really impact the real load of the home yet. That'll come.

So... my plan. Every month- attack a different area of the home. Apply different tricks & tips that I read about and see how they work in our house. I won't even entertain things I know I won't do or that feel impractical.

Target areas will include real pictures of our mess and what they look like at the end of the month. I'm not doing finished product that stayed that way only for a beautiful 30 seconds because that's not real life- though if it's really pretty I'll snap a shot so I can remember it. (Ha, Ha)

  

ClipArt by Clker.com

Let the magic begin, right?