thursday thoughts

i'm sick. i've been sick for 2 days. i don't like being sick. it's very unproductive. and if i could be sick in a a house in hawaii where someone else cleans everything and cooks for me then i wouldn't be as sad about being sick. but i'm sick and want to lay on the couch and watch movies all day - which is what we did Tuesday. but i'm emotionally overwhelmed at the 4 baskets of laundry that need to be folded and the 5 loads that still need to be washed. and it's cleaning day at my house so i really need to take a stab at the main floor. it's been 2 weeks. no more spot vacuuming or Clorox wipe downs will do. and i just looked up how to spell vacuuming correctly.
So all of this sick complaining got me thinking about productive things i've learned to help me stay emotionally healthy in my house. clutter drives me crazy. and there's no way to LIVE in a house with 4 kids and a dog and not have clutter. so i let clutter go for a few days and then i snap on it! it all needs to be picked up super fast. which can't be done with 4 kids and a dog. so then i get sad and feel depressed that my house will never be cleaned again, that i'm a lazy person, yada, yada, yada. So here are the tricks I've picked up from others that help me jumpstart out of the paralyzing clutter depression.

1 - Pray. this one came straight from God. seriously. this did not used to be my first step. bad decision for me because doing any of the following things in my own power is a waste of time. I need to remember who I am and why i'm here - a pursued and deeply loved woman by God who He has left on this earth to tell others how He feels about them. First, I need to own that for myself. Second, He's given me a pretty great responsibility in speaking that into my husband's life. this is usually where i send him an encouraging email or text. Third, i don't know if you've seen my kids but they're cute and soaking up everything they hear and see - pretty awesome to be teaching them the character of God. that doesn't happen by yelling at them to pick up their toys or hurrying them along to the next task. So, starting first with calling out God's character and His presence in my life is really the most fundamental aspect of me having a better day. See, i'm feeling better already just talking about it.
2 - get dressed. i've heard this a few places but i'll give credit to my Mom when she sold Avon. That's right, she did. They told her before making any phone calls to potential clients that she should get dressed all the way down to her shoes with full make-up and hair. Crazy when you're never leaving your kitchen?? but it works! when i get dressed then i am automatically feeling much better about myself. and later when i'm tired and catch myself in the mirror i'm pleasantly surprised that i look good. instead of staying in my pjs pants all day with no make-up on and hair looking like a hot mess - that's a downer when i catch that picture in the mirror later in the day. this trick also works in the hospital after having a newborn and especially the first 6 weeks at home. this is my favorite trick to surviving post-partum.
3 - empty and clean your kitchen sink. i learned this one from www.flylady.com - i think that's the address. that website was personally overwhelming to me but this trick - she also talks about getting fully dressed - and trick #4 are from here. and they're golden! the idea is that before you go to bed you make sure there are no dishes in your sink. the rest of the house could be in shambles but when you get up the next morning your kitchen will be shining clean. i don't clean it like she says to but just waking up to an empty sink instead of the pile of dishes from the day before is very motivating! it's weird, i know. but it works. like today, i didn't clean my sink last night b/c i'm sick (reread 1st paragraph) and so i'm feeling already behind in my day because there's a mound of dishes in the sink. so sad. i must tackle that first so that the rest of the day i will look over and see a clean sink. i also like to make sure toys are picked up before bed. again, there's just something about walking through your house early in the morning and seeing a picked up floor and a clean sink. it's like all is well with the world.
4 - this trick will be short b/c Murray is screaming from her bed. oh, is it time to feed the baby again? wow. who knew! this is a FlyLady trick that i've modified. she says set a timer for 15 minutes to pick up and straighten/clean each room. with 4 kids i've had to lengthen it to 20 minutes but the principle still applies. again, this is golden for me because i am easily distracted by deep cleaning. so i get overwhelmed that there are 7 rooms to be cleaned today and i concentrated on deep cleaning one of the rooms. which is nice except 5 hours later i've still got 6 rooms that are messy/dirty and i'm exhausted. so it really helps me to set a timer. then if it get all my rooms done and i have time at the end of the day i can go back and clean out drawers, closets, rearrange furniture, etc. again, this one is clutch for me. i'm going to need it today because i feel myself moving slowly and concentrating on the problem parts of every room. i need to move a little faster or my house is going to look the same at dinner tonight.

So those are my Thursday thoughts. it's been good for me to say them out loud. i feel motivated. i'm going to get Murray now, make sure the kids are good watching Sesame Street and then i'll move forward with getting dressed, etc. Good chance it'll be 11:30am before i actually get to start anything but let's not pour cold water on my plan just yet.
Feel free to share your tricks. but only the ones you actually use. i don't want to hear any junk that you read in a book that you've never tried yourself. Hope your Thursday is grand!