One More Move!

I know, I know. I've done a lot of moving for this poor blog. I have moved it one final time to another web domain. Its cleaner, and nicer to work with. (yes, I'm having an affair with Wordpress... sorry Blogger)

But here: https://jalebaronblog.wordpress.com/

this is where any new posts will be written. Love you all!

The Great Purge of 2015

I can imagine what it would be like to live in a clean house... one in which the laundry is done for the day, the dishes are all put away, and the floor is visible and vaccuumed. It is a lovely place in which I like to visit in my imagination on days that are particularly stressful... then I come back to my house, and this is not the case. Ever.

Why? Why can't I seem to wrap my abilities around the idea of a clean house? Yes, I have toddlers who tend to leave a wake of destruction everywhere they go... but others seem to have a better time than I do. And maybe they do, maybe they don't. Its not worth my time comparing myself on that level... Rather, it has occured to me that we simply have too. much. stuff.

Thats right, I'm calling it out. Too. Much. Stuff. Too many clothes means too much laundry and a lot of folding time... to many toys means a toy room that cannot ever be played in, and too much time fighting the "pick it up or else" game. Too many dishes means that there will always be a pile of dishes awaiting their fate in the dishwasher. (with our dishwasher, its debatable whether or not it will work on each load...)

And so I have undertaken what I am calling "The Great Purge of 2015" this is the first step in my journey toward thriving rather than surviving. I am ridding myself of all the needless clutter and I am learning to say no to those same items that want to reenter my life. There will be an option to come sift through this stuff of mine to see if it has a place in your life, more details on the yard sale when decisions have been made...

It is a vast undertaking. One room, one category at a time. I've already reduced the children's clothing storage by 50-60% ... No need to keep it all. It is hard. "That was the shirt Brayden wore when ____" or "its so little and so darn cute!" I keep having to remind myself that others can benefit from using these things more than I can by keeping them boxed up wasting space... I keep telling myself "Be big and be brave!" For some reason, it helps.

I have also found that it helps to tackle the big projects when I'm tired. No kidding. When I'm in a bad mood, it seems to feel better putting things in the yard sale pile. And I'm more likely to put more into the pile because of it... win-win! (at least for me).

Hopefully this "phase" of the journey toward thriving is a short one, but I love organizing, so probably not. I am already seeing results and benefits from my efforts! Here's to success for tGPo2015!

2015. Thrive!

Its the same story every year. Christmas season begins and I never have a moment to sit. Then it ends with a loooong list of "resolutions"... basically I call out all of my shortcomings and weaknesses and promise myself that I am going to do and be better on every one of them... its a long list. And despite the fact that I know that we are supposed to only focus on one goal at a time (to cut down the overwhelming feeling you get when your list is too long... and to up your chances for success...) I still write a list about a mile long.

Now its the end of January. How am I doing you ask? Well, lets just say that its a good thing no one knows just how long my list actually is... so according to the public, I am doing great! But between you and me, January is a difficult month for me. Always. Every year. Its the longest month of the year.

This particular January is less miserable because of the un-winter we are having here in Utah. No snow, except for the stuff that came on Christmas (thanks Santa!). Its not even that blisteringly cold! So I am already for spring to arrive. But that is a total side story... usually January is the worst month of the year. 

My list always includes: 

• Be a better (read: more fun, more attentive, happier, cooler.... insert other desirable adjectives here) mother/ wife/ friend. etc. 
• Be better in my financial life
• Lose weight
• Clean the house
• Be healthy
• etc, etc, etc... blah, blah, blah...

New year resolutions. What a funny thing. Yet I participate in this particular tradition every year. I secretly love the new year because of the "clean slate" sort of feeling that I talk myself into every January the 1st. I'm a planner, a goal setter, and a dreamer. I'm quite comfortable in the planning stages of any project. I'm also a perfectionist, so I tend to find myself stuck in this phase because I don't want to screw it up and not get the outcome that I tend to dream about... (this is a problem I'm working on)

This year is different. Not that my list is any shorter than it has been in past years (I promise, its not)... No, this year I have an umbrella goal. Its a goal that covers all the others. I hope that this theory will mean I end up with a small feeling of accomplishment, rather than total failure... 

My mantra for 2015 is: I don't want to just Survive... Now is the time to THRIVE. 

What does that mean? It means I finally tackle the projects that I have set aside for "later." It means I attack the clutter strewn around the house and release it into the world by any means necessary (yes, there is a yard sale in our future). It means a quick kick in the behind for our financial planning sessions, a budget that we stick to, and the use of my new favorite word. "NO" wow. what a freeing word. Its seems silly, but those two letters mean I can finally have time to achieve things on my personal bucket list.

So here's to 2015! The year I get to thrive! Who's with me?!