Homemaking: Avoiding CHAOS

SORRY: Apologies for the comments I deleted.  I did not mean to but I can't find a way to get them back.  I didn't delete any for any reason and I love receiving comments from readers.

CHAOS is a concept I read about quite a while ago and unfortunately cannot remember where from.  I would love to acknowledge the owner, but I feel that it's important to share it with as many homemakers as possible, so more may benefit from it's wisdom.

 

Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome.

 

Do you have it?

 

I often do.

 

Is there a way to avoid it?

 

Yes.

 

How?

 

It depends.

 

Avoiding CHAOS depends on your attitude towards it.  If you want to avoid it you are half way there already.  If you don't mind, then you will probably find that it hangs around and bothers you.

 

I have  2 young children and another on the way.  I'm going to share some things that work for me that should encourage you if you want to avoid CHAOS in your home.

 

1. Make your bed every morning.

 

 

 

It makes your room look fresh and tidy (even if the floor needs a vacuum) and will be presentable for a guest to enter and walk past.  I'm not a fan of shutting doors to rooms, but this may provide a solution for you.  I expect my 5 and 3 year olds to make their beds too.  It's not perfect and is not how I would do it, but after a couple of weeks of me assisting them, they know what is expected of them.  Unless we were having visitors who I know would enter their bedrooms, I won't go and remake their beds.  I want them to know that their best effort is enough.

 

2. Don't put it down, put it away.

 

I'm terrible for leaving things out to put away later! I really should have learnt this by know but I still struggle with it.  Yes it takes a bit longer in the first place, but when that unexpected visitor is at your front door, you will be glad you cleared the coffee table before going to bed last night.  I ask my children to go around the house and see if anything belongs in their bedrooms just before bed.  They are then learning to take responsibility for their own things rather than leaving it up to Mum to clean up.  Hubby struggles with this one too, and sometimes it takes a reminder and a few days wait but he'll help out too.  Having a small decorative plate for him to empty his pockets after work has been a great idea and means that he can sort it out when he's rested and able to think clearly.

 

3. Have a place for everything and put everything in it's place.

 

This is similar to point number 2 but entails a little bit more work.  We've been in our home for just over 2 years and still I find that I'm settling in.  When doing anything I look critically at the way things work.  I find it difficult to keep stuffing things into a cupboard or drawer when it really needs to be reworked, cleared out and decluttered.  I'll often get carried away and empty the cupboard or drawer in a huff, but be warned.  Once one is done, you might find energised to do more and you may find time slipping away from, perhaps cooking dinner or collecting the children from school!

 

Hubby dislikes drying the dishes because when he's putting the items away, I've often moved the kitchen cupboards around and he can't find it's place!  Find a way to make your storage, however limited it may be, to work properly for you.  I'm able to store my garden basket and seeds in my laundry cupboard as I've made it a priority to fit it in, however storing a swimming bag in my linen press just isn't working and is an area I need to work on.

 

4. Do the dishes...everyday.

 

Those of my readers blessed with a dishwasher and the funds to run it, use it!  Fill it during the day as you use dishes, run it during the evening and empty while getting breakfast ready.  Those of you who don't have a dishwasher, thank the Lord for your hands!  Make time in your day for washing the dishes.  I find that washing after dinner suits our family best as the dishes can dry overnight and while I'm getting breakfast and school lunches ready, I can be emptying the dish rack ready for another day.  I'm also the sort of person who will stack the dirty dishes nicely on the draining board.  I wash in a certain order and tidy dirty dishes helps me.

 

5. Sweep the kitchen floor every evening.

 

This idea is from Martha Stewart.  It is also an idea that sounds great in theory but I struggle to keep up with.  My children have the innate ability to create a mess under the table after eating a bowl of cereal!  I vacuum about once a week but I am in disbelief at how there can be so much mess under their chairs a day later.  Martha wrote that a  clean kitchen floor makes for a less stressful morning.  And I agree that starting a new day with a clean (slate!) floor is a lovely idea but for me, it is something that gets pushed aside constantly.

 

Hopefully these five suggestions gets you thinking about little things that could make a big difference in your home making it ready for visitors at any point, or just a little bit more confortable to live in.  I'd love to know of any other suggestions that you use to make a big difference in your home.

 

Blessings to you and yours from Scrub Cottage

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