tis the season...to organize!

well hello there!  it has been a hot minute, to say the least, since i wrote my last blog post.  i hope to get into the rhythm of blogging more this school year.  i don't know about y'all, but i am always re-energized by the start of school...new school supplies, new teachers, fresh starts, etc.  now granted, ellie is only going into the 3's class for preschool, but the start of school [no matter how big or small] still brings an enticing energy with it!

i have at least twenty different topics i have journaled about that i want to share on here, but organizing has been on my mind and my heart for quite some time.  just recently, one of my best friends said i should look into virtual organizing for clients, and i have to admit that i'm pretty intrigued by the idea.

i believe we're wired by God to love and to crave order.  God created the world and everything in it in a very specific and intentional order.  i think He's created humans to crave order as well (probably why i majored math education and became a math teacher too).  i am slightly on the obsessive side of being organized, but i like to think that i channel my issues for good...amirite?!

after talking with several friends and gleaning different things from books, i truly believe the start of overwhelm for people is their home environment.  home can feed the constant dread and frozen feeling of not knowing where to start, or it can be the peace and calm in a world that hypes up busyness and productivity.  once someone's home environment is run by simple systems, i truly believe people have more time and energy [whether they really do or it's just perceived] to fill their time with the things they love.

without question, our saving grace during lucy's life was the fact that everything had a spot in our home, and everything had simple systems.  we could come and go and have friends and family pop in to help us when we were in divide and conquer mode and still be able to tell them exactly where things were and exactly how things worked.  i also believe this gave ellie GREAT consistency and expectation during [what i've really realized looking back] was a very chaotic and unpredictable time [i will write more on kids and home environment in another post].  at least we all knew what to expect in our home and could leave immediately to go to the hospital without worrying if we had our junk together.  historically, we have not been spontaneous people, especially when it comes to vacations, but we have decided and left day of to go to disney at least two times in the past year.  this is because we can wake up, tidy up, and exit without feeling guilty that we [let's be honest, me] were abandoning work on the home front.

in my brief stint as an organizer [after i taught school and before i had lucy], i learned that most people are so overwhelmed by stuff that they just don't know where to start.  their energy levels are less at home because they walk in and immediately put weight on their shoulders...so they get even less done at home than they typically could because they can't start.  i also understand most of the world doesn't want their home to be perfect, just somewhat put together where love can live there.  i will even say for me, that my home is not picture perfect during the days.  we have baby toys, little girl toys, and random papers i'm working on on the floors and on the counter.  BUT, i can take 30 minutes every night and return things to their "place," so we're all set when the morning comes.

it also helps to come up with a purpose/vision statement for your home, and that will help you decide how simplified, minimalist, or organized you want your home to be.  we live in the home we do because we want space for our kiddos to play, for friends and family to gather and comfortably stay, and to keep an open door for friends and family to stop by anytime.  so, we have organized and simplified to the degree that will allow us to successfully do that.  but don't mishear me, because we also won't turn company away if we're in the middle of transitioning closets or have stuff "all around."

so, on this first day of september, my question for you is this...would you like more posts about specific areas/systems to organize?  if so, what questions do you have or places do you want to cover?

happy friday to all and happy football season!  wahoo!