Step #1 Get Organized

Have you ever looked around your house and thought! How did it get here! It's like I literally have had blinders on. I was aware of possible clutter and shrugged it off, as something to deal with when school got out. But I awoke this morning on a mission and found myself in what looked like a house hit by a tornado by noon and I just thought. How in the he-- did I get here?!!?!

My kids, were completely blind-sided when they came in from playing- as I ranted about the state of disaster a.k.a. our home and I believe I used words like pig sty and garbage dump, I think the word sh--hole was in my mind, as were a lot of other choice words, I left for only in my mind. Thankfully they seemed willing to jump in a help, but after almost an hour in our basement I heard yelling and stomping coming up the stairs and then saw crying and pointing fingers, and then came to the realization, they had been down there for 45 minutes, debating whose job it was to clean what, and when they couldn't agree, they came to tell me. 45 minutes!! NO DIFFERENCE in the basement. I held myself together enough to just shake my head and ask why I should be the one to do it for them. Since in fact I had not "played in the basement well.....EVER!" They seemed perplexed by my reasoning. "Isn't it like your job MOM?!?" "Um NO!" Weird is I think what their faces were telling me.

 

OK time to re-group. We had lunch a delicious, quick and simple. Peanut Butter Sandwich Bites. I sliced a baguette and put PB & Honey on some and PB & J on the rest. Yum! Hit the spot. Got everyone fed in a hurry and onward we go!

After lunch Delaney and Cam came through and emptied their lockers. But then walked away. Leaving me with Laundry baskets full of their crap. Seriously. I know I sound like a lunatic right now, and literally I feel like one, but WHAT THE HECK!!!!!! WHAT IS WITH THE BASKETS AND BAGS OF CRAP THAT SEEM TO FIND THEIR FINAL RESTING PLACE ALL OVER MY HOUSE!!!!!!!!! This is not the first time that we have had this battle. I am notorious for getting fed up and going ballistic on my clutter. Joe has many times gotten a phone call, stating that he better bring the flatbed truck home from work, so he can load the garbage I have just removed from our __________ fill in the blank with basement, closets, garage etc. Deep Breath! Moving on! I only show you these pictures because I have deemed this a "no judging zone." if you are judging right now, please X out of this screen :)

Maddie had, had enough cleaning. Poor baby!

My dear friend the garbage bag 

 Probably time to put the snow clothes away

 

 We had baseball all weekend, and were gone all weekend. Stopping just long enough to dump our laundry and BAGS O' STUFF and run again.  SO that explains part of it, but let's be honest. My Mud Room Lockers were OVERFLOWING!

It is fitting and yet ironic, one of my favorite books growing up was Berenstein Bears Messy Room. Sister and Brother Bear have a pig sty in their room and after they can't find a few things and I think Brother Bear breaks something because it's such a disaster, they decide enough is enough and they have to get organized. How I would excitedly turn the page.... and OH! There were boxes all in a row, clearly labeled and peg board on the wall. Everything in it's place. After that they just kept it all clean I imagined. Always putting their things lovingly back where they belonged. And they lived HAPPILY EVER AFTER...Right!

I think what they forgot to show was a week later Mama Bear coming in going "Are you two SERIOUS!!! Didn't you just clean this!!!!! Papa is not taking you to the Bear Country Turnip Festival until this is taken care of... AND don't you 'But Mama' me or I'll take away your Bear Ranger Bill Video Game so fast your head will spin!!!! Do you want me to call your Papa? Cause he is not going to be happy if he has to walk all the way home from Farmer Brown's to deal with this nonsense. I'm dialing....you better...OK that's what I thought!" No that Mama bear would NEVER EVER say this. Just this Mama Bear.

 Pizza for dinner. Thank you Joe for being on board with delivery for dinner! I know you were probably frightened of what I would do if I had to make dinner too :) Or what our house would still look like if I had to make dinner too :)

Lord knows I love these kids. Or they would probably be out on the street with a FOR SALE! CHEAP! sign :) That includes my husband too. Sometimes I think he thinks there is magic elf that picks up his stuff as well. I love when he comes home, and freaks out because "the kids" have left their stuff everywhere. I find it very entertaining... as he trips over his own shoes :)

During the school year I was SO ON TOP of my business. I shocked myself. The kids were in bed early the house was picked up every night. Every morning I awoke to a lovely clean house! And then baseball happened! I have said before how I love baseball and it's true, or I would never let it take over like this but WHOA! Between that and the end of school activities and volunteering...I really let things slide. And it just happened SO FAST.

If there is a better way to get organized, then to make a total mess and have to work your way back to ground zero then I am all ears. Because I am exhausted! We worked our butts off. The kids finally found their stride and I found mine. I had no clue it would take so long, but since we actually put the stuff where it was supposed to be instead of just moving crap from one place to another, and we actually went through it and threw JUNK away! We are looking good. Tomorrow we still have the basement and I have a few months of back filing to do. UGH!  We will be in great shape! I am excited to really start our summer right. I feel like when I pick up the house now it will REALLY be picked up, which makes a HAPPY MOM, which in turn makes HAPPY KIDS! They were actually really proud of what they accomplished as was I. If you talked to me mid day, I would not have had such a sunny outlook, but I am glad to report that we are moving in the right direction. Look how good they did.

Look how good Delaney did in our reading room/coat closet/play area :) She lined everything up all cute, and she even took everything upstairs where it was supposed to be! They all did so good in the end, they earned a movie night. They pick a movie, I pop them popcorn and I have movie candy I stash for such special occasions. Perhaps they will earn another one tomorrow. Probably. The basement is pretty bad :)

Look at our Mud Room! We can actually see the floor and what shoes are there and we can actually pull out the drawers without an avalanche falling on us! Mama and Papa Bear would be so proud of us. If only I had somewhere to put some peg board. I have always loved that stuff :)

Happy Organizing! May all your summer steps come true!