Day 4: Overcoming My Tendency to Observe (for my cousin Emma, who says that makes me lame)

After just a few days, the house is looking much better overall. I think it's the result of being more chore-minded in general. And I love having a list to follow. A list that someone else wrote. A list that feels authoritative. A list I don't have to think about, just follow. It leaves room to think about all those heart issues.

Yesterday I was charged to bring life to my domain. This can be interpreted in many ways, depending on how your domain is defined. I began mulling over how to do this. I already have fresh flowers from my yard placed in my kitchen...I have four children and two cats (that's a lotta life)...I try to do little decorative things...I invite guests over regularly...??? How else should I be bringing life to my domain?

Then I thought about my tendency to observe my surroundings. I have been like this for a long time. I'm not often a participator, unless it involves talking or music. Or reading. But reading isn't often participatory. And it is the same in my home. I try to keep life a little bit at an arm's length so it doesn't have such a harsh impact (face it, four kids whining for breakfast can be harsh). Unfortunately, this isn't the best approach--or even possible--when you have children. So I began to think of ways to put myself in their place and also to benefit them and further enhance their home.

Step One was bringing a water cooler full of ice water and some paper cups out to the backyard. Usually when the kids are playing out in the hot, they come in when they're thirsty, usually interrupting me from something I feel is important. Step Two was to go sit on my swing and be with them in the backyard, something I don't often make time for. Have I mentioned I don't like to be hot? It's hard to make time for things you really don't like, like sweating.

But I noticed right away that the children didn't go in and out of the house at all while I was outside. I think they were so thrilled I was out there, that the 90+ temperature suddenly didn't bother them. Because interestingly, they didn't get that many drinks, either. I would get little visitors at my swing who would then dart back out to the sandbox. Having me within eyeshot was enough. It was my presence they were thirsty for.

I've also noticed that I'm interacting more with my surroundings, not just the children. Being focused on what chores are getting done has made me more aware of the house itself. Normally if I see folded laundry sitting on the dining room table, I walk by thinking, "I really need to put that away." (Observing, but not participating.) Now when I see folded laundry sitting on the table, I think "don't get trapped in the vicious cycle!" and go put it away. When I see dirty dishes, I don't groan and think about how unpleasant it would be to do them. I wash them and smile at my empty counter and shining sink. (See Emma? Interactive! ...I wonder if Emma even reads these...)

My husband is home and I think he'd like me to talk to him instead of typing. See? Life-bringing. Onward!

Day 2

So here I am...on the journey to a consistently clean home.

I have wandered down this path many times before. Every time, I have retreated in fear of...what? Success? Cleanliness? Order? Discipline?

Ah, discipline. That's probably it. But perhaps it wasn't fear of discipline so much as plain old lack of self-control.

I am usually way too easy on myself. Very sympathetic with my struggles. Very understanding and forgiving if I don't feel "up to" doing any given task. After all, I tell myself kindly, you have a lot of children and you don't get enough sleep. And sometimes, your head hurts. Or you feel kind of dizzy. Or you're really stressed out.

See? I'm full of excuses for myself.

However, after doing some investigation, I've decided that this is not what God wants for me. I am a wife, a mother, a teacher, and a keeper of our home. High orders that call for discipline, endurance, and energy. Whatever else God has planned for my life, these things are not to be neglected. Which is why I'm so glad to be on this journey with someone (thank you again, Sarah Mae) who will tell me what to do for a month. I really need that accountability...that direction...that bossiness. I'm hoping that after 31 Days of following directions I will be able to continue on, fueled by consistency and good results. And hopefully my heart will have received the boost of motivation that comes from the "Mary Challenges" the book offers.

I'm still kinda nervous though, because I've already cheated by cleaning my kitchen the day before the challenge began, so I knew it would get done. I'm much more a "clean it in a whirlwind before company comes" kind of gal. Everyday maintenance has always been my failing point. Even in school, I was a "write the whole paper the night before it's due" kind of gal. Just ask my mom. So I find myself wondering--Am I doomed??

*calming breaths*

Just taking it one day at a time. I'm even trying to not read ahead in the book so I don't try to do in a week what is supposed to take a month. I'm committing to not fizzle. Start strong, stay strong. Slow and steady, people. Slow and steady.

(Photo attributed to ahannon1)

One final issue I'm tackling today is my extreme dislike of putting away folded laundry. And my extreme extreme dislike of hanging clean clothes. Sarah Mae addresses this as well. In fact, based on what she's written, I'm pretty sure she has hidden cameras in my home. She encourages us to not go onto another load of laundry until we've fold AND PUT AWAY the one we've just done. I've tried to do this before, but it never lasts because I'm not disciplined. Because I'm lazy. (THERE, I SAID IT!!) But I tried something new yesterday: I kept a pile of hangers next to my clean laundry basket and stuck the hang-up clothes right on them as I found them. When I was done, they were all ready to be hung. I loved sliding them effortlessly into the closet. If you struggle as I do, you should give it a try.

Well, as fascinating as my house-cleaning sagas are, I think I'll bring this post to a close.

"The best time for planning a book is while you're doing the dishes." ~Agatha Christie

"We labor to make a house a home, then every time we're expecting visitors, we rush to turn it back into a house." ~Robert Brault

31 Days

I'm getting ready to take part in a focus group for the book 31 Days to Clean: Having a Martha House the Mary Way. I'm excited. And a little nervous. But the author (the lovely Sarah Mae) promised it would be doable, even with small children.

So I'm working on my motivation. (like the actors do?)

I want my house to be beautiful and organized. I want my family (including me!) to enjoy our home's environment, surroundings, whatnot...every day because it's regularly maintained. I want to keep up with the laundry. Rather...I don't want to see piles of folded laundry sitting around because I don't like putting it away. I want to be more disciplined so I can feel like a real grownup. I want my relationship with God to thrive because I'm pursuing Him and my calling as Mother and Keeper of the Home with dedication. I want the order in my home to reflect the peace and purpose I feel in my relationship with God.

Let's talk about some quotes, shall we?

"I think housework is the reason most women go to the office." ~Heloise Cruse

"I'm not going to vacuum until Sears makes one you can ride on." ~Roseanne Barr

"Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing." ~Phyllis Diller, Phyllis Diller's Housekeeping Hints, 1966

Even way back in 1966 (and before, surely) women were trying to escape work. Do you know what society labels a man who doesn't want to go to work and provide for his family's security? Lazy. Bum. But it's acceptable for women to shirk their duties and complain that they have to do all the housework...when that's their job? We wives, we mothers...we provide for the emotional security of our families when we do our job well. So what I'm hoping for is a dramatic shift in my attitude towards housework. I'd like to focus on the eternal effect of what I do. I'd like to be able to focus on "bringing life to the mundane in order to love well." (Sarah Mae)

Let's replace those quotes with some life-bringing ones, shall we?

"Peace - that was the other name for home." ~Kathleen Norris

"The light is what guides you home, the warmth is what keeps you there." ~Ellie Rodriguez

"I am thankful for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.... I am thankful for the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby." ~Nancie J. Carmody

I start Monday with my 31 days of challenges. Hold on to yer bonnets!

Spring Fever

I'm not really deeply enamored with St. Patrick's Day (Sorry, Sasha) but at the moment, I just have to keep reminding myself that the world will turn green again. After several blissful days of weather in the 50s, I'm just not ready to go back to the real February. So I shan't. I'll keep believing that Winter is merely taking its last, gasping breaths before Spring descends upon us.

And hopefully, it won't snow into April this year.

No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. ~Hal Borland

O, wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind? ~Percy Bysshe Shelley

It's spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want - oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so! ~Mark Twain

See? There's plenty of hope for us all.

My New Friend

Yum.

If you like eating ice cream for breakfast...if you love honey...if you love anything thick, creamy, sweet, and amazingly delicious...do yourself a favor and go buy a cup (or if you're feeling bold, a bucket) of this yogurt.

I felt like I was getting away with something when I tried it at breakfast this morning. I kept peeking over my shoulder to see if the children would try to steal it from me. But lucky for me, it appeared I was eating my regular bowl of yogurt and there were no takers. Bliss!

Stirred

I just finished watching Julie and Julia. It reminded me why I love to write. How could it not? An entire movie based on a woman who gives herself a year-long blog challenge and cooks (and blogs) through Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

Many of the blog entries are narrated, which I love. And I got to see Julie typing them as she narrated, which I loved even more. Reading the written word aloud is delicious to me.

I'm not an amazing cook. I don't love it with all of my being. I am not inspired to follow in Julie's footsteps and blog about a cooking adventure. But I have been nudged to pick up where I left off.

It's the middle of the night. Our family has been battling a variety of illnesses over the past three weeks and I have spent a lot of time inside my house. I am currently unable to chew very much, due to some sort of tooth/sinus infection...so I'm a little hungrier than usual. None of these issues lend themselves to eloquence, but my creativity has definitely been stirred.

Perhaps in the morning I'll have something more interesting to say. And just maybe I'll plop myself down on my tomato red stool and type it out for you.

Until then, my friends.

My Name Is Not Madeline

And my husband's name is not Jacob. But I want this necklace. Just with different names, savvy?

If you too desire beautiful jewelry procured through dreamy Lisa Leonard Giveaways, please pop over to my farmgirl's blog and leave her a comment. (And for those of you who go to HPC with me, isn't it a little wild that this isn't our Lisa Leonard? The first time I heard about Lisa the Jewelry Designer, I thought she was one and the same as the HPC Lisa and thought she'd been holding out on us.)

For those of you readers who are men and might not have your heart captured by cute clustered necklaces, let me remind you that Valentines Day is right around the corner and that this is jewelry I believe any woman would love. Lots of different styles. Just a thought.