Living with Organization

It's that time of year again, when the frenzy of cleaning and home organization articles start.  Everywhere you look are photos of perfectly organized homes with coordinating colors in baskets, hooks, pegboards, and gorgeous containers.  Each one looks like a shelf at Bed Bath and Beyond.

I would love to have every shelf and cabinet in my home look like this bathroom cabinet.  (iheartorganizing.blogspot.com)  Daunting cleaning checklists for daily chores, seasonal tasks, and special tasks are everywhere.  It makes my head spin just thinking about all that work. 

Here's how it works at my house.  I take everything out of the pantry, wipe off the shelves and start putting it all back:  canned goods on one shelf, baking supplies on another, beans, rice, and pasta on another.  When I'm done, I stand back and admire all that work that lasts about 3 days.  Then my schedule gets busy, company is coming, I go to the store and buy all the food I need to entertain them and suddenly there is no more room on one of the shelves.  So what do I do?  I put it on the wrong shelf just to have it out of sight and pretty soon the whole system is shot.

My life is hectic, as is yours and most other people's lives, and since I don't live in Pleasantville and since I work and just signed up for some online classes, plus have a lot of other obligations, I have more to do than keep my house looking perfect.  Some people have that clean, make it look effortless, keep it organized gene.  My mother has it, but unfortunately, I don't.  It's a real effort to keep things in order.  I have many interests and lots of supplies and materials for each of them.  I get a lot done each day, but things are usually not in perfect order.

creative space organizing

I have a friend whose home is always spotless.  She works, yet her laundry is always done and nothing is ever out of place.  I feel like a failure when I'm in a perfect house like that, but the reason her house is always immaculate is she has no hobbies.  She doesn't cook, sew, craft, garden, scrapbook, or do anything that ever makes a mess.  Her free time is spent watching a movie or reading a book.  There is something to be said for not making messes, but I'm a creative person to the max.  There is almost always a project in process somewhere in the house and I really cook.  Last night I made ribs, greens, lima beans (because in our area I couldn't find black eyed peas), and cornbread for New Year's Day.  I made a spice rub to put on the ribs and oven baked them.  They turned out super tender and delicious.

While the ribs baked, I fashioned new handles and a knob for a popcorn pan that has been passed down for generations in my family.  http://anamericanhomemaker.blogspot.com/2014/01/happy-new-year-and-pot-facelift.html  It's a seriously ugly pan and the handles and knob were crumbing, so now it has new red handles.  I know most people would have thrown it out, but it has history and makes the most amazing popcorn you've ever tasted. 

I once designed my ideal house on paper.  It had more space in storage, cabinets, and closets than in living space.  I'd love to have a big room to sew, craft, and paint in; something organized and pretty as well.  It would be great to have a designated space for all that fun stuff and not have to constantly be clearing off the table so we can eat, only to drag it all out again after the meal.  We all have dreams and that is a good thing.

Gotta go get ready for work.  I'm seriously going to try that Spring Cleaning 365 Day plan where you work on organizing a specific area for at least 5-10 minutes a day.  I think I can find that much time, but you never know.

Life goes on, no matter how clean or dirty your home is and the really important things are the people and relationships in our lives, but I still want my home to be clean and organized.  It's a challenge, just like the rest of life.