Getting Organized and Why It Matters

Well, next week is one of the most beautiful weeks of the year — and I’m not saying that I always feel that way while going through Holy Week — but I know that it is.

No matter what our Lent has been like thus far, we have a chance to finish strong this next week.  My best word of advice is to forget about all the things you’ve failed to do this Lent — just give it your all this last week — we can do that, right?

Even though the Triduum is not an obligation, if you can attend all the services, I highly recommend you go, go, go.  Really, I know it’s hard with little ones or even big ones, but it’s a time to push ourselves and see what God had in mind for us this Lent.

You know, the God who made the Heavens and the Earth can certainly do in one week what you may have been hoping He’d do in 6 weeks — all things are possible, so don’t lose hope!

This next week is a beautiful chance to walk the way of the cross with Jesus — don’t miss out on this opportunity — you might never get another chance.  So let’s make the most of it.

Off to Holy Week we go.

Today I noticed this picture I’ve had on my desk for years now.  I just love how my little girl caught the sadness of the event of the crucifixion.

Anyway, as I was taking this picture, I noticed that below the picture was a set of resolutions that I had set for myself about 5 Lents ago.

It was a good reminder to me why my efforts to get some more order in our house can absolutely be an inspiration from God. That is why, this week I’m making good on one of my resolutions: to tackle my mudroom/laundry room and bring some order into it.

I’m also cleaning out my pantry and refrigerator — so clearly I’m a glutton for punishment.

I realize that I should just focus on one space, but we might be pulling in a professional to help us build some storage pieces in the mudroom. So, that means my project is on hold and I need to do something to feel like I’m making some progress on the clutter in this house.

I had suggested a few weeks back to John that I go to the hardware, buy some ship-lap, nail guns, and a table saw and “weekend warrior” it myself.

John kindly reminded me that I may not be up to the task, as I can’t hang up a picture without drilling at least 5 holes all the way through the drywall — and even then, it often falls out of the wall. How dare he bring me back to reality.

Pictured below are those old Lenten inspirations I just referred to.  They seem incredibly appropriate for putting my organization goals in proper perspective this next week.

I hope it inspires you as it did me.

By the way, the “perfection” of the Father is a perfection of Love — so I don’t mean to imply that a “perfect” home is the goal here — it is not.  In fact, sometimes my attempts at a more perfect love will result in a more messy home — really.

The goal is to bring a little more order so we are free to focus on the more important things in life.  When things get too out of whack in our homes, it’s awfully hard to have the energy and enthusiasm to keep focus on the people that matter.

Here’s the thing: God is a God of order. He’s not a God of chaos — He brings order out of chaos — so if I want to imitate God, I need to try to do the same.

That is why my very practical resolution to get some order in our house seems to be a good inspiration from God for this Lent.

Our environment is important, and as John has been saying this week, we need to make a cultural change towards order or my efforts are not going to make a difference.  He’s right.

We all need to find a balance between fulfilling our duties and having some order in our lives, and I’m hoping my little efforts will inspire everybody else to get on board.

Honestly, I’m still trying to find the balance.  It’s a challenge with two little kids below the age of reason who mess things up on a regular basis.

Besides, I have more important duties than just keeping my home in order.  I am educating children, teaching them to pray and seek out God, making meals that nourish the body and the soul, loving my family as best I can and so much more. No wonder it’s hard to find the balance.

A family is never really in balance — there’s always starts and stops and priorities changing, and sometimes I just need to be okay with my priorities requiring me to drop a clean house in order to handle what’s more important in the moment.

For now, though, getting a little more order on a regular basis seems to be what we need as a family to thrive.

That might change in a few weeks or months or years. I need to be okay with that, and honestly I have  learned to make peace with that reality.  I know that’s the deal of having a big family.

Besides, messes can serve as a great mortification that can bring me closer to God — so they’re not all bad — but the order I am trying to bring to the mess is one little way I feel God is asking me to bring peace to our family.  It’s a little way to say I love you, without using words.

The goal is also to instill that discipline of keeping order in our kids as well.  It is good for them, good for our family, and ultimately it will be a gift for whomever they live with in the future.  Future roommates or spouses — you’re welcome.

I’m trusting there’s a reason for it all, and so I am moving forward in trust that these little things matter in the end.  They matter to my family and they matter to God.  Besides, I know God sees it all, every little effort.  So all the effort won’t be wasted if I offer it to God.

So in this next week, that’s just what I’m going to try to do.  Wish me luck.  I’ll let you know how it all turns out.

For now, I’m going to post some “before’s” and some “progress made” pictures, but no “after’s” because I’m not there yet.

This is my way of being real with you: sharing my mess.  Honestly, in the back of my mind I can envision my mom telling me that a chaotic home is a sign of mental illness — and in some ways, she’s spot on.

Fortunately, though, she also taught me that family has to be the priority and that sometimes that means we have to let the world think we’re clinically insane because our family need us to be present more than they need a spotless home.

Without further ado, I give you the “before’s” of our life lately.  I believe a few areas of our home would have served as great inspiration for Dante’s Inferno — or at least his Purgatorio — so consider yourself forewarned:  these pictures ain’t pretty.

To be fair, this is worse than usual, but since I began working on this space, it seems everybody has given up trying.  Including me.

Now, here’s the good news.  I did buy and build a piece of furniture for the laundry room.

I also removed a big table, which my friend Maura says she’d kill to have for folding — but in our house, the big table seemed to scream, “place all your junk on me, every unmatched sock, overdue video, and piece of garbage you can find on me”.  So it just had to go.  The less open surfaces the better, at least in our house that seems to be the case.

Here’s the piece I built.  It’s a decent start.  I did move it to the opposite wall because I have a plan for more storage.

Now here’s a picture I took to give me the exact dimensions of the closet.  I’m using this to order bins, shoe trees that will fit in this space, and perhaps a few clear storage bins for up top.

Finally, here’s a simple inspiration that I think would be very manageable for John or another handy person to accomplish:

On other fronts, I did re-organize the baby’s clothes in our closet.  They were on an old diaper changing table, and it just wasn’t working.  So here’s that before and after.

It’s not perfect, but again, it’s a bit less chaotic when I go into my closet — so I consider that a win.

Yes, it needs to have stickers removed and some polish put on it, but it’s progress — and honestly, I’ve had to let go of perfection for the sake of sanity.  Good enough.  All the clothes and diapers organized.  I’ll throw it in the win category.

So that’s about it.  I will follow up with my progress on the 7th ring of Hell — a.k.a. my laundry/mudroom.  If anything, you can follow my progress on my Instagram stories.  I’ve been having fun with that.

Almost midnight, I have to run!

Blessings to you next week!

 

Sharing over at Kelly’s.