Whispers of a Memory: The Harsh Truth of Being a Hot Mess and Fixing It

Thursday, March 6, 2014

The Harsh Truth of Being a Hot Mess and Fixing It

2:20 AM |

Posted by Balinda (RebelChick) |

I have spent the month of February trying to find the balance again in my life. I spent a good two weeks of it feeling like I was swept away in an ocean current trying to swim my way back to shore. I was shocked at how freaked out I was after I took a very harsh look at what I had let my priorities become over the last 14 months. What I saw I did NOT like one single bit. As I was cleaning my family room I noticed the parallel themes of the magazines I had picked up at the first of the month. Was my subconscious trying to tell me something?!?!?!? These two covers said it all....my life needed balancing AND organizing. I had become a hot mess and my home right along with me....if you came to visit, things looked great, I just would not advise looking in closets or time traveling 30 minutes before you arrived. I had become the Queen of "Ten Minute Tidy".

Armed with the harsh facts of what was not working, I went to work to set it right again. I am not saying that a clean house cures all, but for me, it makes me feel like I have control again. I control the things. They don't control me. The messiness in my home would no longer be dictating my stress level, invading on my happiness, pushing me to procrastinate to do the joyful things that happen in day to day living. Everything would have a place again and when that is the case I am very content. Pristine and perfect was not my goal, tidy and lived in was.

I tackled closets, cabinets, utility room and computer/craft room and I have many boxes of well loved, gently used items to be donated to the youth group at church for their rummage sale in April. I am "almost" where I want to be before I give the final *sigh* of relief. Last Saturday I tackled my bill pay area. As awful as this looked with tons of unopened mail, the shelves underneath it were twice as bad. I take the majority of the blame but the man also helped make this mess. I knew the regular bills but after going through it all I found things not paid or some other time sensitive mail that I had NO idea we had gotten. I always wonder why in the world when you want your man to play the silent bystander he is all mouth and when you need him to step up and do something so simple as open an envelope or just speak up and bring your attention to it....not a word? Surely I am not the only woman in the world with a husband/significant other such as this? New mail rules have been set. If you bring it in....you are responsible for opening it....and filing in the proper place and since I know this will only be short lived...kinda like talking to a kid....I am now on notice to stay on top of it all. Something I can do now that I am not working...let me rephrase...not working outside of the home.

Before

After

I picked up the little bins at our local Dollar Tree. I was very pleasantly surprised that they had a sturdy insert for the bottom and the sides were not flimsy. It sure beat the $6.00 a piece price that Walmart had them for.

After an EPIC fail on the husband's part for Valentines Day, he sent me flowers for my birthday. That was on the 17th and as of today (3/6) I still have a carnation, the yellow flowers and all the greenery and fillers still looking pretty on my dining room table. I love a mixed arrangement like this much better than stinky old roses....blech!!!!!

And on that note....I will leave you with photos of the beautiful blossoms I was treated with.♥