Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Confessions of a Messy Mom

Ok, I admit it...I'm coming clean...I am messy. Actually, messy is an understatement. I am a walking tornado. Yes, that sounds about right. A walking tornado. I leave a path of destruction everywhere I go...at home, at work...everywhere. Ok, well I guess not everywhere, just at my places. I'm not proud of this. It's pretty embarrassing, actually. I'm just incredibly messy.

Problem is, my husband is incredibly messy too. If I'm a walking tornado, he's the massive hurricane. He blows through the house and leaves destruction as well. This is a problem. You see, in most marriages, there is one or the other in the relationship. You may have one messy, and the other is a total clean freak (btw, clean freaks...I SO admire you). They kind of balance each other out.

Not Channing and me. We both leave destruction (our poor kids!). I can have the house totally clean, and in like 30 minutes, it's a complete disaster. I mean, how does that happen? I've tried all kinds of things to get better: I've attended an organization seminar (I left with more clutter), I joined flylady (yet another thing to keep up with. Who has the time? Plus, she says, "Don't expect it to happen overnight. Things didn't get a mess overnight, and it can't be fixed overnight." I beg to differ. As I said earlier, we do make messes VERY quickly), I've prayed about, I've quizzed the clean freaks. So far, my inspiration always wears off.

Just three months ago, God led me to Proverbs 31 and showed me the error of my ways (as He lovingly tends to do). I was also reminded of 1 Corinthians 14:33 of the NIV : "For God is not a God of disorder but of peace." It was the inspiration I needed. I was on fire. My home looked great (we're not counting closets and drawers here, ok?). I felt great. Then things went back to normal. I got super busy, and my house got super messy. I'm now back where I started. In a pit of messiness, trying to claw my way out.

How about you? Are you a clean freak, or are you messy? Clean freaks, let me in on your secrets. What is it that drives you to insanity if you see a piece of lint on the floor? What is it about crayons on the floor that makes you twitch? Can you pass that on to me? Believe me, I would take it. I want it. I need some of that.
You see, it bothers me to have a mess, but I get so overwhelmed that I don't know where to begin.
Realistically, I don't think I'll ever be a clean freak (although my mom wasn't either until a few years ago, now she's a super clean freak like my grandmother. It kind of gives me hope). I would like to be somewhat orderly, though.

If you're messy, let me know, why is it that you're messy? What are your challenges? Am I alone in this?

As for my opening sentence, I just read it and found it kind of ironic, "Ok, I admit it...I'm coming clean... IF ONLY I were coming clean. Ha! :) Oh! That's not a personal picture of one of my messes, but it sure does come close!

7 comments:

Fohner Family said...

Just read your newest comment on Stuff Christians Like...I'm so glad you clarified that! I was super confused for a bit :)

Yeah, I know what you mean about sending your boys to Public School after much prayer...I'm hoping we can afford to send our (hopefully) future kids to Christian School, but we are totally willing to yield to God in whatever He wants for our children (if and when we are ever blessed with any).

Oh, and it's supposed to be "Matthew & Lynsey" but it never shows up right...all well.

annieck said...

Thanks, Lynsey! Sorry for the confusion. I should have paid more attention to my wording. :)
"Matthew & Lynsey" that makes more sense. THANKS! I was going to try to type it but thought I would mess it up. Now I know. :)
BTW, your wedding shot is GORGEOUS!

LeAnne said...

Oh Annie...I feel your pain girl...except I am married to a lean mean cleaning machine. Well, he doesn't "clean" so much as he straightens. He has had a whole lot of personal growth since we had children...but as soon as he comes in the door from work he rallies the troops (the kids, not the mommy) to pick up all their messes and put everything back in its home while i usually start dinner. The balance is good for me and we've both had a lot of adapting to do...he doesn't freak out too much over messiness and I try to give him a break when he "needs" some order. I tried Fly Lady and that was just too much for me to handle...I find that if I just create a cleaning schedule for every day of the week (just a couple of things each day) my week goes much better and things stay pretty much stay in order. It's not as formal as Fly Lady...just a quick list I create over the weekend of the things I need to accomplish that week around the house. I also developed the habit of one major sweep of the main rooms (living room, play room, kitchen) to put out of place things away just before going to bed. That usually only takes a few minutes and hubby doesn't have to start out his day with stress from the mess. Keep us posted!!!

And that is funny about Channing's messiness...I just had a college days flashback to BA giving him a hard time about it!

Rachael said...

Well, from a really radical CLEAN freak, here's some advice....

HA HA HA!!! We both know that I am on the messy bandwagon too. I will admit, it has gotten a lot better lately, but it's still not where I want it to be. I just don't really like to clean! I have been keeping wipes underneath the bathroom counters and quickly wiping them every other day or so and that really helps. It's been nice now that Josiah can help straighten up too!

Anyway, you are NOT alone!!!

Anonymous said...

I'm loving this post! It's good to know I'm not alone in my messiness! But, like Leanne, I am also married to a bit of a neat freak. I'm working really hard to become better and my mother-in-law gave me some tips. One good one is when you leave a room and go to another, take 5 things that don't belong there and put them where they do belong. That is a really easy change that actually does work! There are certain "messes" that I can't handle, though. So, I take care of these every day. Such as dishes in the sink. For whatever reason, it grosses me out to have a dirty kitchen. So, that is almost always clean (at least at the end of the day it is). Anyway, I once heard of a priest that coined the term "pet sin". It's that pesky sin that you carry around with you all the time and are constantly having to confess it and pray about it and struggle with it. Being disorganized and messy would probably be (one) of my "pet sins". I'll pray for you as I pray for myself!! :)

The Greenfields said...

oh do i ever feel you on this one, annie- i hate clutter but can't seem to figure out what to do about it!! i have baskets and drawers that have to be cleaned out every so often because i just throw everything in there. karen and jon are my inspiration- they could do tutorial sessions on "a place for everything and everything in its place!" if i could have 1/10 of their organizational skills i'd be pumped. i don't have any advice for you since i'm in the same boat- but i enjoyed the post :)

annieck said...

You guys have some good tips. :) Thanks! :)

Rachel G, you are not kidding about Jon and Karen. If I had 1/10 of their organization skills, I would be doing FANTASTIC! They AMAZE me!
Karen got in my car during the Super Bowl (we had to make a run for some drinks), and I had my usual clutter everywhere. It was so funny because I was embarrassed she had to ride in my mess, and I told her, "Be careful. There are some mice in the floorboard." I think I completely freaked her out. :) I was kidding, of course.

We should make them do a one day seminar. That could be like a second business for them.:)