I mentioned last week that my washing machine died. It died a watery death.
A watery death that ruined the wood floor outside the laundry room.
Which meant I had to call our insurance company.
Which meant I had to let someone inside my house.
Which meant I feared she would need to open the door to the master bedroom which is just to the side of the now-warped area.
Which gave me heart palpitations.
Welcome to one of those posts that separates the true slobs from the people who complain about a messy house but would never in a million years let any room (especially the master bedroom) get like the picture above.
To those who hang around assuming I’d only write a slob blog because I’d already solved all my slob problems: See ya! It’s been real.
Here’s the thing. I KNOW I can do amazing things in even the craziest of rooms in less time than I’d ever have imagined pre-blog. I just have to do it. To start. Finding out someone with master-bedroom-door-opening powers will ring the doorbell the next morning at 10 a.m. gets me started.
My goal: Make it Less Embarrassing
That’s how I roll. I feel the average non-slob can have an imperfect bedroom when surprised with a reason to let people see it. I’m even good with being deemed a Really Messy Person. I just want to avoid the gasps. And the shudders. And the dropping of the jaws.
In real life. Online, I’ll show the world. (Wow. I have serious issues.)
Anyway, not having perfection as my goal was helpful. (As always. Duh.)
I started with the Easy Stuff. That’s the best way to stop the in-the-doorway-glazed-over-eyes feeling of overwhelm that I experience at the beginning of any daunting decluttering project.
Easy thing #1: Move the final box of Christmas decor out of the room. (I totally almost wrote: “to the garage so it can be taken to the attic by Hubby” but looked up from my computer and saw the box, complete with partially filled ThreadUp bag, tucked “neatly” in the gameroom.)
Easy Thing #2: Boots to the shoe spot.
Easy Thing #3: Shut the bathroom door.
I’m sure there could have been a reason for her to cross the bedroom and go into the bathroom, but I was willing to had to take that risk. (For time’s sake.)
Easy Thing #4: Close the dresser drawers.
Not much of a difference, but a difference. And really, it doesn’t get easier or more decision-free than that, people.
Once I’d plowed through the easy stuff, I decided to repeat to myself (over and over, again and again) the phrase once casually uttered by a Normal Person I knew: If your floors are clean, people think your house is clean.”
Since “what people think” was all that mattered, I went with it.
I concentrated on clearing the floor at the end of the bed first. And next, the floor in front of the dresser.
I needed a way to stay focused and not just run around in circles waving single socks and long lost belts and crying about how I’d never ever be able to finish.
Once the floor areas were clear (remove trash first, then put away, then “declutter”), I tackled the Pile O’ Good Intentions at the end of the bed. While it was overwhelmingly humongous, it turned out that a LOT of it (the top 2.5 feet or so) was made up of a load of laundry that somehow missed out on the Laundry Management Method that rocks my world. I’m sure there was a really great and logical reason why that didn’t happen.
That, and a batman mask.
And the rest of my new velvet hangers and other hangers and more.
Once the pile at the end of the bed was gone, I decided to . . . make it. Ummmm, yeah. I’m pretty sure the state of the bedroom and me ignoring the most basic daily habit of MAKING THE BED are somehow related. Somehow.
And so, after twoish hours, the bedroom looked slightly better:
Not perfect, but much less embarrassing. Yes, I still had to practice feigning some WHAT?-you-need-to-open-my-bedroom-door-but-but-but-there’s-a-huge-pile-of-laundry-just-inside-the-door-y’know-cuz-my-washing-machine-broke embarrassment, but I was actually pretty proud of myself.
And yes. I do see that brown flip flop in the picture. I’d have looked for it all next summer.
--Nony
So, about a month ago, we decided we should refinance the house because of the great interest rates. I did not put this together with the fact that someone would have to come to my house and look at it to appraise it. So about 2 weeks ago my husband told me the appraiser would be coming the next day to look at the house. I totally freaked. I am a homeschooling mama of 4 and in the middle of debilitating morning sickness. So, in order to get school done, no cleaning got done until the day of the appraisal, when the kids and I had to be gone all morning. My husband stayed home for the morning and worked his tail off and when I got home I worked hard for 2 hours. It was still horrifying! Then he showed up and not only did he have to walk through the whole house (including master bedroom and master bath) but he took pictures! I hid. Being a slob is stressful! I just keep trying to turn over a new leaf.
Been there! Yep, they need to explain that part of the process!!!
I. love. you. Seriously. So happy I’m not alone 😉
I. love. you. Seriously! So happy I’m not alone 😉 Makes me feel less like a freak :-p
(Sorry for the double post, didn’t think the first one went through; feel free to delete it.)
Nony~ I’ve been following your blog for years. When I first found it I felt so justified, finally someone who GOT me. And it was motivating. If SHE can make changes, then so can I. There is hope. It’s not a lost cause. And I did.
Am I still a slob at heart? Yes. Does my house still get messy? Absolutely. But my house no longer gets to the kind of messy that is mortifying for others to see.
The best thing I ever did was to get rid of about half of our stuff. I’m not just talking about decluttering. I’m talking about a major overhaul. It is so much EASIER to live with less stuff, even the stuff you think you need, and *gasp* even stuff you use! Things that we would only use once in a while we now borrow from friends. Other things we just make do without it. We get creative.
So I wanted to say thank you Nony for inspiring me to make changes. And now the hard part.
Nony.
It’s time for an intervention.
I know your house is better than it used to be.
But looking at your master bedroom (which by the way is still my hardest room) makes me sad for you. You are not able to live your best life in your home when you are living under that much stuff.
Like you, I have issues of just throwing things away. Each item I get rid of I want to give to the right place. Or sell it. But for the health of your home, it’s time to purge, and purge deeply. And not care where it goes. Just get it out of your house. Please know I am saying this not to be hurtful, but because I want you to experience the freedom that comes from not having so much stuff. The stuff is stifling. The stuff is taking away from your quality of life.
Another major factor that has contributed to my own change is finding out that I have ADHD (actually ADD as I don’t have the hyper part). Understanding this about myself has really helped, and I am just now considering medication so that I can be more focused and productive. Have you considered that you might be ADD/ADHD? There are lots of free online tests on the web. Here is an article that describes the traits of someone with ADD/ADHD.
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/20-things-remember-you-love-person-with-add.html
About 18 out of 20 of them fit me to a T.
Like you, one of my biggest worries is that I don’t want my kids to grow up and be like me! I want them to have better skills than I do. While I am still not great about organization and routines, I have helped them contain their own items, and to have LESS items to contain.
I hope you take this in the spirit in which it is written. I am not intending to make you feel bad. I want to encourage you to take that huge next step and purge like you have never purged before. I promise you that it will be so rewarding.
YOU CAN DO THIS!!!!!!!!
Ok so I just stumbled onto this blog and I LOVE you! Thank you for being honest. How do I deal with moments like this? Grab a wash basket or large container and quickly dump stuff in it… Scanning to see if I need to pull anything ( like a bill or shoe that will be needed this week). I then take it to our utility room (read:dumping ground) I think I have 9 LARGE containers that I have NO clue what is in them…. Apparently nothing so bad as I didn’t buy a new one or truly don’t use it! This is my endless cycle that I want to break! PS I still have my Xmas tree up :/. Yes.. There are more out here then you know! Thanks for being honest and sharing your journey!
Don’t feel bad, I just took mine down Sunday night! Lol. I still have misc Christmas crap scattered in totes in every single room of my house though, along with God knows what else I was trying to hide in a hurry, ugh… So overwhelming and exhausting! Noni, I love your blog, I have never followed a blog or even considered buying am e-book, but bought two of yours a couple weeks ago. Thank you for what you do to help all of us out, if nothing else, it is just comforting to know there is someone else out there that “gets me” ☺
You have such a pretty bedroom, with the coffered ceilings and the fireplace. Lovely.
OMGosh!! I just love you that much more. As I listen to your podcasts while I am cleaning I am laughing because I believe you and I are the same person. Your posts and podcasts make me feel better about myself because I know that I am not alone. I really enjoy all your stuff!
p.s. I am a fellow Texan and BSFer!
“I have looked for it all next summer”…. bwahahahaha
January 2nd of last year my toilets exploded. I’ll spare you the gross details about that, but I knew men were coming to clean it up. I’ll also skip the horrific tale of why it took 13 days for them to do so. I knew men were coming and I knew they would be in my bedroom to get to that bathroom. I had done am AMAZING JOB of keeping the “water” out of my closet and bedroom with every single towel we owned. O also had a new one year old and two older boys to keep me sane while preparing for their arrival. I made the bed, moved everything off my closet floor (that lead into the bathroom) and got the bathroom floor ready for the clean up. They started ripping up carpet, wood, and even after TWO plumbers, the problem was no where near fixed.
I asked time and time again if I could move my things off the sink, because they were going to have to take the sink out! They said no and they had everything under control.
(Small sob) They trashed everything I hadn’t nailed down in there! They stepped on false eyelashes, drug the grossness I had worked so hard to keep out of my hallway and entryway all over their boots. I set one laundry basket on the bed and they took that to mean it was their owpersonal tool bench. I mean these are some NASTY things.
Today I have a remodeled bathroom that is BEGGING to be finished. After it is complete I will have a closet again!
If you told me someone was coming in my bedroom today, or tomorrow for that matter, I’d be a little more than hesitant. Not because of my previous experience, but because the stuff piled in there now is still aftermath from the explosion of 2014.
As I read and see pictures. Then read coments, I’m going with this: we’re normal. It’s those clean people who have some magical brain power……
Hear, hear!
My bedroom used to look like that when I started reading your blog. But thanks to your decluttering advise I have learned that less is best and boy have I gotten rid of a lot of stuff. I didn’t know I could throw stuff out or that things I wasn’t using could be donated, but now I do! Whenever I’m cleaning up, I know I will get rid of stuff and that means anything I dislike even just a little. And it makes me feels so good and free. As for those days when life gets crazy, my mother inlaw, who is “normal”, suggested I get laundry bags to put the clothes on instead of throwing them on the floor. But the genius that I am, with a little help, I got folding mesh hampers instead ($5 each) that way I can see what’s inside in case I need a certain shirt or sock etc. Now I don’t have piles of clean clothes on the floor. As for the laundry, the kids are still working on it, but there’s a hamper in their closet, another in their bedroom and in the laundry closet, so most of the laundry makes it to its place for the exception of a few socks here and there. Thank you so much for sharing your struggles and it has been so encouraging and I have learned so much about myself. Today when I washed the last dish and hung my counter towel to dry I thought of you. My kitchen is clean and ready for business tomorrow. And it’s all thanks to you!!!! Good luck with that bedroom and my advise to you is, get some folding hampers so you can throw whatever is around in there instead until you have time to put it away and have no more clothes on the floor. It won’t be perfect but it will be better
You do have a beautiful bedroom. Did you find it a little odd, as I did, to see how disconcerting it was to no longer have to find the path through your bedroom? I had piles like this of Christmas clutter… and when I finally got all the boxes and bags and ribbons and trash out, I kind of missed the nightly challenge of finding my way without mishap through the jungle! 😀
Looking at the final pic of your bedroom, I wondered if you have ever thought of moving the easy chair to the end of your bed, instead of the trunk? It looks like it might be a nice way to cosy up in front of the fireplace, if there is room for it. Just an idea. 🙂
Haha! Love the “nightly Challenge”!! But no, I don’t miss it at all!!
Is that the same brown flip flop that was next to the brownie box or is it it’s mate? You made awesome progress for only 2 hours. It’s reassuring to see that you still understand what slobdom is like when so much of your house looks so organised these days.
BTW – I think I’ve figured out in my head what I’ve got to do for the sewing room, (the dishes/make the bed equivalent). It’s clear the sewing and cutting tables. I’m not calling it a 5 min pickup. A 5 min pickup would be in addition to clearing the tables. And I’ll need to add a daily sweep – ughh. I don’t know if I can do it but I’m gonna try.
I love your honesty. For my husbands sake there are certain areas that I have to keep straight and others that tend to explode, seemingly overnight. So my side of the bedroom and his side look like two totally different rooms depending on where you stand. Thank you for your inspiration. Oh, I love the trunk at the end of the bed and your “Kiss Me” sign. See, your friends don’t notice the clutter, they notice your treasure.
Is that a huge mirror at the end of your bed? Good golly – no wonder it’s so hard to get started!! The whole room is magnified – makes it look like you have twice the area to tackle!! But of course, it’s seems like you’ve tackled twice as much when you’re done. Yeah!! Keep up the valiant effort – you inspire all.
You crack me up! AND you inspire me to tackle my bedroom. Tomorrow. LOL No, seriously, Saturday….
I am SO grateful to have found you! I’ve struggled with piles and disorganization my whole life. No, I don’t want therapy or counseling. No, I’m not a hoarder. I do have a husband who is absolutely NO help!
Yesterday my son (who was home sick from school, but bored) tidied up the whole book case. I wish I had taken before and after shots like you did because it made an ENORMOUS difference! Thank you so much for the idea!
The bedroom is most definitely on the list!
You are SO real and I am so thankful for that!
you are my hero!
so honest! I woldnt have the guts…
Thank you. Thank you for starting this blog, posting your progress, and posting your ongoing struggles.
I think I am related to everyone here…I can relate to every comment. Thanks for helping me feel like I’m not the only one…Hoping the plumber doesn’t have to get to my Master bedroom TODAY! I’m thinking of telling him it’s my sisters’ house (I don’t have a sister)…
I just love you! Thank you for being so real!
I could literally weep with how happy your posts make me. I am a total slob, and you have given me courage to own up to that! I am so grateful for your real-life before and after pictures, for your courage and compassion in reaching out to help others. I have tried so many cleaning “methods” and I just end up frustrated because it always feels like perfect people giving advice on how they got to be perfect, which usually leaves me hiding in a (rather messy) corner. But you make it feel doable! Finally, someone who GETS me! And I just adore you for it.