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Dana K. White

A SLOB COMES CLEAN

Reality-Based Cleaning, Decluttering, & Organizing

 

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Decluttering Certification

My phase of life

September 17, 2009 By Dana White | 16 Comments

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My Phase of Life at ASloComesClean.com

I’m so excited that I’ve had several comments lately! I guess I can no longer say that no one is reading my blog.

Of course, I feel panic along with that excitement. What if I can’t keep it up? I fully expect to have times of failure, but I’m in this for the long haul, so I’m determined to keep going, one dirty dish at a time. Or 30 dirty dishes at a time. Whatever it takes.

I had a comment yesterday asking about my kids’ ages. I started to just respond, but then thought I should write a post.

I have lots of excuses. Each phase of life seems to bring some great ones along with it. As a kid, I was “just a kid.” In college I was too busy having fun to worry about having an orderly dorm room.

When I had an apartment by myself, I started to realize something was really wrong with me. I had always dreamed of setting up a new home. I even lived overseas so I HAD to buy everything to furnish it. I would buy fun, cute things but then they got lost in the clutter. This was the first time that I really cared about having a nice home, but it wasn’t happening.

Once I got married, I thought that would be enough motivation. I had dreams of a cute little place where we could invite friends over for impromptu get-togethers and I would serve homey delicious meals to my new husband every night, sometimes with candlelight. Instead, we had an entire extra room of our apartment piled to the ceiling with boxes full of stuff. Always with the excuse that we would need it when we got a house. For dinner, we would shove the piles of clutter to one end in order to eat. If we had people over, it involved our entire Saturday being spent cleaning. And still I lived in fear that they would open the master bedroom door. But hey, I was working full time, a theatre teacher with lots of rehearsals outside school, so I was rarely home to keep things organized. Surely, once I had kids and stayed home, I would have nothing else to do but keep things neat and orderly. FINALLY, I would be organized.

Then we had babies. I soon realized that babies mean you spend the entire day working with absolutely nothing to show for it. Maybe not even a shower. I finally got the hang of babies, toddlers, etc, but the house just got worse and worse. I had tons of stuff, and babies have more. My small amount of control was gone. I lay things in odd places without thinking and then they are hard to find. But before kids, at least they stayed in the odd place until I found them. With kids, things walk away.

So where am I now? My kids are 7, 6, and 3. For the first time I have only one child at home with me during the school day. So yes, it is a bit easier because the one at home has no one to wrestle with, throw things at, etc.

My reality, however, is that I can’t wait for a new phase of life to solve my problems. I am the problem. I’ve been waiting through many different phases and the problem has only gotten worse and worse. The common factor in each phase/situation is me. I am the one who has to change. I’ve been waiting and searching for motivation and a magic wand, when I should have spent that time doing dishes and folding laundry.

I hope this doesn’t sound preachy. Please remember that I’m being very self-centered with this blog. I do have dreams of someday getting this thing figured out and being able to help others, but for now, I am at the very beginning of this journey, and if you’re reading, you are along for the ride. I’m realizing that whatever phase of life I’m in, this will always be a struggle for me. Having young kids makes it difficult for anyone, even naturally organized people, and really close to impossible for someone like me. But it isn’t impossible. I’m learning day by day that the little bitty things I’m doing are making a huge impact.

My Phase of Life pin at ASlobComesClean.com
Read Newer Post Don’t feel like it
Read Older Post Daily Checklist

Filed Under: figuring myself out, My great excuses | 16 Comments

Daily Checklist

September 16, 2009 By Dana White | 3 Comments

0share 0 0 0Crazy day. Gone pretty much the whole day. But hey, my house is as clean as when I left it this morning! Today I: Made bed Emptied dishwasher Cleaned up kitchen Swept kitchen Checked bathroom floors for clutter. Made quick sweep of main rooms looking for clutter. And all this before 8 […]

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Filed Under: daily checklist | 3 Comments

Wearing Pantyhose On My Head

September 16, 2009 By Dana White | 10 Comments

22shares 21 1 0I love to wear scarves in my hair. It creates a dramatic look for when I’m in an artsy-fartsy mood. I have three main choices: a hot pink one with polka-dots that can only be worn with a few outfits, a white one that I rarely wear because it makes me look […]

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Filed Under: My Survival Techniques, Works for me Wednesday | 10 Comments

Daily Checklist and a little dose of honesty

September 15, 2009 By Dana White | 7 Comments

0share 0 0 0Today I: Made bed. Emptied dishwasher. Cleaned kitchen. Swept kitchen. Checked bathroom floors for stuff. Remembered to start thawing chicken for tonight’s dinner. Did my new non-negotiable. Since a 5 minute maintenance pickup is my new habit for the week, I looked around to see that the main areas were pretty well […]

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Filed Under: Uncategorized | 7 Comments

Thank Goodness for Tackle it Tuesday!

September 15, 2009 By Dana White | 17 Comments

2shares 1 0 1I have issues. If you’ve read this blog before, you already know that. If you haven’t, it won’t take long for you to figure it out. I’m a slob, BUT I don’t like to waste time. Doesn’t make sense at all, right? Issues. I love Tackle it Tuesday (this linky party is […]

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Filed Under: duh, tackle it Tuesday | 17 Comments

Fighting the Urge to Ignore the Kitchen

September 15, 2009 By Dana White | 8 Comments

1share 0 0 1Here we are in the middle of a hectic week. I have several big projects hanging over my head that have deadlines this week. I HAVE to get them done. I can’t explain how strong the urge is to ignore the kitchen. It’s just one night. The other things are much more […]

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Filed Under: Uncategorized | 8 Comments

First day of my new non-negotiable

September 14, 2009 By Dana White | 2 Comments

0share 0 0 0I added a 5-minute-general-pick-up to my list of non-negotiables this week. I did this today right before lunch. My house is quite clean right now, so I was tempted to fall back into my normal habit of thinking it was good enough. I want to catch the little things before they turn […]

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Filed Under: Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Panic

September 14, 2009 By Dana White | 6 Comments

1share 1 0 0I got into bed last night and was startled to notice, AFTER getting in, that my bed was not made. I panicked. I had taken a Sunday nap, and thought maybe that was why, but could see that my husband’s side was unmade as well. I hadn’t made the bed at all […]

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Filed Under: Uncategorized | 6 Comments

Menu Plan Monday – Woohoo!

September 14, 2009 By Dana White | 2 Comments

1share 0 0 1 So strange that I’m this excited over menu planning. When Laura over at orgjunkie.com says that menu planning is a great way to start getting organized, she’s right. I’m not sure why, but she is. It actually seems that my kitchen stays cleaner when I have meals planned. This is a […]

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Filed Under: Menu Plan Monday | 2 Comments

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A Slob Comes Clean is the completely honest (and never-ending) story of my deslobification process. As I find ways to keep my home under control, I share the truth about cleaning and organization methods that actually work for a real-life slob. And I'm funny.

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  • Home
  • Get Started!
  • About
  • Blog
    • Cleaning
    • decluttering
    • organization
    • All posts
  • Podcast
  • Books
    • Organizing for the Rest of Us
      • Claim Your Preorder Bonus
    • Decluttering at the Speed of Life
    • How to Manage Your Home Without Losing Your Mind
  • Video
  • Shortcut Solutions
    • Take Your House Back
    • 14 Days to Opening Your Front Door to Guests e-book
    • Make Dinner Happen
    • The 5 Day Clutter Shakedown Video Course
    • Printable Checklists E-Book from A Slob Comes Clean
    • Teaching Kids to Clean e-book
    • Giving God the Worst of Me – free e-book
    • My Book Publishing Journey
  • Decluttering Coaches
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