I once read a book that talked about how your house should feel like a hotel. Close your eyes and remember how you feel when you first open the door and walk in to a hotel room- everything is neat and straight, cool and calm, everything in its place. The room typically smells fresh and clean; vacuum marks on the carpet. I don't know about you, but I instantly sense a calmness in the room and can feel myself start to relax.
As a realtor, I go in a LOT of houses. There's a definite WOW factor to walking in a home and seeing a neat and tidy house. Very few things on the kitchen counter, toys nicely put away in bins, no dirty clothes on the floors. If you are selling your house, it's positively crucial you clean out before putting that sign in the yard. But even if you aren't trying to sell, wouldn't it be nice to live in such a way that everything had a place and was in its place?
I LOVE the idea of having my home feel like a hotel. But just reading that depresses me because I am SO far from this being a reality. I long for a day when I walk in to my home and feel a sense of peace and not the overwhelming feeling of needing to clean up.
But, here's the reality of my life and probably most of yours too: we LIVE in our home. It can't look like a hotel because you don't live in a hotel. It's not feasible to always have your home that neat and tidy. Not only do my husband and I live in our home, we have Little People that live in our home.
We ran in to some friends of ours recently that were about to have their first child. We somehow got on the topic of decorating and my friend commented that she loves the Pottery Barn look. I laughed and reminded her that I hope she loves the Fischer Price look because her entire house was about to be filled with baby swings, highchairs, carseats, and strollers.
It's just plain HARD to keep your house neat and tidy. Never been my strength. Really can't even blame it on my Little People. My house was messy before we had children.
With the new school year about to start, I have been thinking about the extra time I will have on my hands and how I want to use it wisely. My goal for myself for this school year is to use the time while my daughter is in school and the newborn naps to organize my house. No, my house is not going to look like a hotel anytime in, say, the next twenty years BUT there's no reason why it can't look like a tidy home.
Here's my plan: I'll take one room a week. Might need a month for the playroom and that's okay. I want to do this the right way and not rush through.
I am going to take two trash bags in to the room I'm tackling at the beginning of each week. One bag will be TRASH and the other will be DONATE. I'll go through drawers, cabinets, and closets. If it's broken, I'll throw it away. No excuses. (I can already hear myself now, "I'll hang on to this because one day I'll learn to sew and can fix this..." No excuses. Trash.) If it's something we've outgrown or don't use, I'll donate.
I will continue until I've been through every last inch of my house. I can already feel the sense of peace within my grasp. I desperately desire my home to be organized and well kept. I just know that once I get through this, it will be easier to keep my house clean. If everything has a determined place, my daily straighten ups should be so much easier because I will know where everything should be put away.
I really can't wait. I'm excited even as I type this. Will you do me a favor? Hold me accountable. When you see me at the grocery store or in my office, ask me what rooms I've cleaned out.
Anyone want to join me in the cleanup project? Maybe some of my readers have organization as their gift and want to share some tips and tricks with us!
What plans do you have for your house while your children are in school?
If you need some inspiration, just check out Pinterest and search things like "house organization" or "bathroom redo"! And then, GET BUSY. Clean up. Clean out. Let's work together and get our homes feeling calm and peaceful!
See you next Thursday!
Ps- For readers in San Antonio; great news! CBSnews reported last week that San Antonio is one of the top fifteen cities in the nation for soaring home prices. Additionally, CNNMoney listed Alamo Heights as one of the best neighborhoods in the nation! It's a great time to sell your home and buy before interest rates rise! Call me today if you'd like a complimentary evaluation of your home determining for how much you'd be able to sell.
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