Progress

For the past few days I've done very well with maintaining the house. I figure progress isn't really progress unless it can be maintained. So I won't allow myself to do any new project until my daily routines are done. It's been working quite well, especially since the new projects appeal to me far more than the daily grind and that always leads to household disaster.

I bought myself a houseplant to celebrate. I forgot to buy a hook, though, so for now it lives on the kitchen counter. It makes me happy to look at it. I love the vibrant green.


I'm setting up command central in the dining area. A friend was selling the desk at a yard sale, and I popped the $20 for it. It works well there, although I would rather not have to combine eating space with office space. There are many changes to be done in this room, but as I said before, I'm not starting new projects until my daily tasks are done. The room isn't perfect, but it's clean, and that's good with me.

My camera was acting up the day I took the "before" picture of my bedroom. It's blurry and weird, but you get the idea:

BEFORE

AFTER

One of the new projects is to turn our bedroom into a haven. I'll take pictures of the progress, unless at some point I decide that showing you pictures of my bedroom is too personal. A woman has to have SOME privacy.

Finishing Up

After Sprout woke up from her nap, I did two 15 minute sessions in the living room. It probably could have been done in one, if the kids hadn't dragged out every puzzle we own yesterday and mixed all the pieces together.




They sure do love me.

BEFORE

AFTER 1 SESSION

AFTER 2 SESSIONS

The cool thing is, if I stick to my routines, my kitchen will look like this every night before bed, with little to no effort:

My entire downstairs was cleaned today in less than two hours. I need to remember this the next time I start feeling oh so bad because everything is messy so I end up doing nothing for days. Seriously.

15 More, Here and There

While my lunch was heating up I spent 10 more minutes in the corner of the dining room that has gathered a bunch of different things. I consolidated, arranged and organized, so that I have Soldier Boy's care package supplies all on one shelf, and my sewing things on another shelf. This project isn't complete, but it is more orderly and I now have an idea of how I want to fix things when I dedicate time to more detailed organizing.

After lunch I spent 15 minutes in the laundry room, which has an area under the stairs that you can't see. The majority of the time was spent under there, and cleaning the cat box. Neither of which you can see.

BEFORE

AFTER

So let's total this up:

15 minutes in the kitchen, 15 minutes in the dining room, 10 minutes in the dining room, and 15 minutes in the laundry room. To cap it all off, I spent 15 more minutes in all three areas, cleaning surfaces and sweeping.

That's an hour and ten minutes to go from complete, nasty chaos to clean, comfortable living.

In between my cleaning sessions, I ate lunch, blogged, took pictures (obviously), took care of all of Crush's needs and put Sprout down for a nap.

The only thing I've given up is unproductive computer time... the kind where I flip between 3 different email addresses, facebook, myspace and a couple of other sites I usually visit. I've read all the blogs in my feed and responded to all the emails in my inboxes. I haven't felt guilty for cruising the sites I enjoy because I set my timer for 15 minutes to rejuvenate.

Easy breezy.

15 Minutes, Dining Area

BEFORE

AFTER

I actually accomplished more than it shows in these pictures, because I didn't manage to get one half of that room in either picture. Oh, well. You get the idea.

The Power of 15 Minutes

I know it's been almost a year since I updated this blog. That's ok, though. The beauty of this system is that there is no room for guilt. If I get sidetracked on how behind I've become, I will never move forward.

So, once again, I will offer pictures of my filthy house. This time, however, I will go room by room, and show you exactly what can be accomplished in 15 minutes. When the timer goes off, I put down what I'm doing and take a picture.

BEFORE

AFTER

After isn't perfect. I didn't get to wipe the counters and there are still a few things misplaced. But it's better, and it's good enough to encourage me to make it better the next time I have to go in there.

That's what this is about.

Better. Not perfect.

Ugh.

The depression from the events of the trial has played hell on my house.

So, today I have showered and put my shoes on.

I will try to get all the trash out.

I will try to get the laundry done.

15 minutes at a time.

Dear Self:

You've done really really well this week! The house has been clean and maintaining itself all week. You've done a great job of putting food away and washing dishes after every meal. It really helps make the next meal easier to prepare. The new system in the refrigerator is working well, too, because you're eating everything you bought. You haven't thrown away any food this week so far. It helps to have a clean fridge!

When HD sprayed the stuff in his eyes, you were able to lay him on the counter and wash his eyes out because it was all clean and the sink was empty. That system worked great and showed you how important it is to have a clean counter.

This week you organized his art area so that he can find his materials, and what do ya know, he has drawn more pictures and done more creative things this week than he has done in the last month.

Don't forget about that morning that you made your bed without thinking about it--you actually went back to the bedroom to make it and found that you had already done it. This means your routine is becoming a habit! That's great!

I'm proud of all your hard work and I want you to keep it up.

This week the main project will be organizing the office so that you can focus on business matters and not be held hostage by the clutter. You can do this, 15 minutes at a time. Also this week I want you to work on doing all the steps of laundry--don't leave clean laundry in the basket! If you do one load all the way through every day, it will be easy and you'll never find yourself cussing because what you want to wear is dirty or wrinkly.

Also this week I want you to work on maintaining a better attitude. I think that for the first ten minutes of Sprout's naps, you should meditate. No matter what else you have or want to do, use that first ten minutes for meditation and I think you'll be much happier and calmer for it.

Lastly, good job on saying nice things to yourself. It's easy to focus on the imperfection, but you are steadily moving forward and I'm proud of you.

Now, say it the right way:

I'm proud of myself. I have worked hard and my home is getting better and my family is experiencing the rewards.

Good job. ;)