Years ago a dear friend sent this post card to me (she knows me very well). Anyway, I crafted the post card into a magnet and every morning it is the first image I see when I retrieve my lemon water from the refrigerator. And it is soooooo true. It makes me giggle to myself and also take inventory of what still needs to be done around here. A tidy house is important to me, I guess because I am a bit of an overachiever? (Please don't comment on that, I'm working on it really) I'm guilty of wanting everything in it's place and needing order to feel comfortable.
My girl friends and I have discussed this a number of times. The verdict is in, I'm a contradiction. I DO want a clean house, so much so that I create a list of 'To Do's every morning after looking at this post card. However, at the end of the day I've probably crossed off three out of the ten I wrote. What happens is a BIGGER part of me likes to PLAY and yet another part of me is very slug-like when it comes right down to it. How important IS a well kept home?
I grew up in chaos (sorry Mom & Dad) the third child of artists. We would often pile up papers and move paint and brushes to clear a spot to eat dinner. It worked, it was fine, everyone was fed and clean and healthy. We didn't entertain much but we made beautiful pictures and sang along to the radio and drove to the beach most every evening to watch the sun set together.
Let's face it there are more important things than a clean house, right? Then why do I feel so uncomfortable when I look around and everything is a mess? It drives me nuts. There are five of us in a very small house and we have allot of stuff. I hate it but we do. My husband talks about becoming minimalists and traveling some day...(honestly that freaks me out MORE than a messy house).
Yesterday I taught Little One how to use our vacuum cleaner. It was shear bliss I felt when I watched him master pushing it about the room, sucking up pieces of rice cake he had dropped.
I take pride in raising three sons who one day will disprove stereotypes and clean toilets, wash dishes and fold laundry!
Anyway, this post is mostly a personal ramble, sorry and thanks for reading. We will return to your regularly scheduled Montessori programming in the near future. I hope all of you take time every day to play with your kids and that if your carpet looks like mine you are able to roll with it. Do we really want them to remember we kept a clean house or that we played farm with them, making all the animal sounds? "MOo, BaA, Hee-HaW"
Signing off from creative chaos central,
Montessori Mama
7 comments:
I can relate. I have 2 houses. One is bright, crisp, clean and an oasis when I come home from work. The other is dusty, in need of vacuuming, window cleaning, some new sheetrock and paint, but is also an oasis. One is in my head and the other is a reality. Between work, 2 large dogs and a cat, and a husband that works up to 100 hours a week, housecleaning is low on my priority list. I think a well lived in house, a realistic one, shows that life is being lived there and is full of love. That's what I feel at your house!
hahaha this just sounds like my house too!
I hate Monday mornings because over the weekend the house ends up a complete tip so I *have* to clean it and the same Friday, I feel like I should sort it out otherwise hubby will start thinking all I do all day is play with babyEbi (not far off the truth), I am really not a house proud type of mom!
This post really made me smile! And feel much better about the fact that I am (sigh) a slob.
Playing is much more important!
Play is definitely better. I guess there has to be some balance somewhere - like everything else in life, right? I always tell myself that I can handle "messy" but not "dirty." At the least, I have to have a clean sink. That's the one thing that just drives me completely nuts.
Oh boy! I used to think I had a psychological problem that I couldn't keep my house tidy. Before that I thought I just wasn't grown up enough to keep a nice house (I was 30+). I spent several years trying to get on board with FLY lady (at least she got me to keep up with laundry and make my bed regularly) Now I'm just resigned to imperfection. I do keep trying, and longing for that peaceful orderly house feeling, but as someone once told me, 20 years from now, no one will look back fondly on the spotless house of their childhood but they may well remember that fun trip to the beach, woods, backyard etc. And if the children don't remember it you probably will, whereas you'll probably never remember your house being perfect (for more than 15 min).
I've been meaning to comment on this post for so long but I've been too busy cleaning. (not! LOL!!)
I have that dream too. I guess I feel satisfied enough if the kitchen sink is clean. That is always nice.
:-)
I don't know if this is your kind of thing, but you might find some of flylady's stratagies useful. http://www.flylady.net/
Hope it helps a bit,
Plavixo
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