Now for the pics... Not bad, eh?
I was hoping to find some sort of treasure though! 
Peace...
I was hoping to find some sort of treasure though! But this, gross!
Not so gross...
...thanks to METHOD (Target baby!)
Not so gross...
...thanks to METHOD (Target baby!)Look familiar...
Peace...31 Days To Clean - Start Here
Let's be honest, we are probably not going to become Martha Stewart. That's okay.
"O LORD, You have searched me and known me...You...are intimately acquainted with all my ways...For You formed my inward parts You wove me in my mother's womb..." Psalm 139:1,3,13
God formed our personalities and He knows how we work and how we don't. He knows where we struggle and where we excel. If you are not a naturally "neat and organized" type A personality, just accept it, and live out of who you are. I used to beat myself up all the time, "if only I were like so and so, I would be such a better wife, homemaker, mother..." These are thoughts from the enemy! We do have a responsibility to our families and the domains God gave us, and must lay down our flesh minute by minute, by the grace of God, and do our best. However, let's not get trapped by perfection, comparison's, or any other distractions that steal away the truth that God loves us and we are a work in progress!
With this said, I want you to think about your personality style, and what works for you. Maybe you love the idea of having a schedule and you are great at writing one out, but when it comes to actually following it, well, let's just say, not so much! Perhaps, for the time being, you need to not be scheduled, but instead focus on getting certain things accomplished by a certain time in the day. For example, I want to challenge you to clean your kitchen every morning (I know, this is counter to the flylady, but I don't want to clean my kitchen at night!) but maybe mornings are better spent hanging out with your kiddos and just gathering yourself for the day. So for you, you might say, "I will have my kitchen cleaned by noon." That's a realistic goal that doesn't put you in a box...there is freedom in flexibility.
My number one rule is: DON'T BEAT YOURSELF UP! I don't care how many times you "fail," don't quit, press on, and know who you are. Figure out your cleaning style, and go with it, not trying to be anybody else. Work hard, get what you need to get done, confess laziness, and accept God's grace. Oh, and know that you are not alone - that's why we're here, to encourage you on!
Now, let's get started on today's "cleaning," shall we?
Today's Challenge:
The living room. Ah yes, the place where many family memories are made, a place to carve out peace and comfort, a place to invite guests to relax and "make yourself at home," a place where love treads. Let's work on it today. Do this:
- Vacuum/mop behind the couches (you never know what goodies you may find!)
- Dust what needs dusting
- Vacuum/mop the floors
- Get rid of any clutter (just get rid of it already! Let it go...)
- Straighten up (knowing that, if you have kids, this will last two minutes - just accept it!)
While you're working and dropping beads of sweat, thank God that you have a home to take care of.
Now, please post your before and after pics - I promise, it keeps you accountable! As always, I'll post mine as well!
7 comments:
this is so me! i love making lists and writing out schedules, but have so much trouble sticking to them! thanks for the encouragement! i'll be back with pics!
Hi Sarah
THANKFULLY my livingroom is the easiest room for me to keep clean. I don't know if it is because that is the first room one walks into in my house or because the kids spend most of their time in the family room. My biggest problem is under the couch. Meghan and I stash the books we are reading, have read, are going to read under it. Since we are prolific readers and do most of our reading stretched out on the couch, you can imagine what it looks like under there. Let's just say I need to move the couch often. You'd think with a wall of built in book cases in the family room we would just put them away...but you know how it is with some of us. We are all so (probably too) busy and are always rushing off to the next thing. I'll take part of your challenge and move the couch everytime I straighten up the livingroom. My best option would be to just put the books where they belong when I am done with them. But.... no guarantees. My PROBLEMS are the laundry room (I totally dislike folding laundry) and the sewing room/office. I usually have five or six projects going on at once (costuming for drama, stamping, mending, etc.) all out. I can find what I need (usually), but it drives my very organized, methodical, engineer husband crazy.
I should probably get some stacking bins to keep the projects in when I'm not working on them.
Have a great day and keep up the great job.
ohh sarah if only you could see my kitchen... no scratch that haha i want to clean it first before you see it haha... i miss us not hanging out lately because of all this stuff we have going on but hopefully we can get together soon. Keep up the great work your amazing
Amanda
Better late than never right? My B & A pics are finally up. Thanks for the inspiration to clean!
Feeling inspired - thanks! You're right - just learn to flow with what your style is and don't try to live up to someone's ideal (that would be a stressful life)!
So, I like to clean in bits and pieces and would actully much prefer to re-arrange things and throw things out rather than actually get a bucket of soapy water and clean.
Am accepting the challenge of cleaning the fridge and will do so right now (that way I can re-arrange something and clean in a small space that won't stress me too much).
Thanks.
I've recently enlisted a "one bin at a time" rule for my kids to try and contain the toys. It's been really helpful!
AND, the 6 list has been so good for me!
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