Contemplating Clutter

"Clutter is anything that complicates your life and prevents you from living in peace as you live out your life purpose...Think of it as any possession, habit, thought pattern, attitude, or activity that (1) you don't need or use anymore (2) doesn't fit or work for you like it used to, or (3) doesn't add value and meaning to your life as it once did."   

 Nancy Twigg, From Clutter to Clarity: Simplifying Life from the Inside Out

I have a confession...well, yes, I am disorganized...but you already knew that about me. My actual confession is that I had fully intended to write a post about my New Years resolutions and never did, in part, because I knew that once I had put them in writing, they would seem more real. If you don't fully create them you can't be as disappointed in yourself if you don't keep them, right?

There is only one really. It is leftover from last year. It is on the "not accomplished in 2010 list". The resolution is to become more organized.

Did you read the quote above? Well, that's me. Not living in peace because I have too many possession's, habits, thought patterns and activities in place that are not adding value to my life or helping me to reach other goals.

My mom bought me this book a couple of year's ago (the one referenced above). It's been sitting in my "to read" pile, and while I had evidently started it (obvious by the many lines I had already starred and underlined in the first couple of chapters) I never finished it and certainly have not implemented the habits into my life. What I like about it though is that it is one thing to buy a book about organizing the "stuff" in your life, but there are real hard changes that have to take place in one's habits before you can ever dream about living a more organized life long term. This book talks about how it is more a heart issue than simply a stuff issue.

Well, here is the deal...I'm committed to tackling this area of my life this year and I'm writing about it because it offers me some accountability. Kind of like when I committed to running a 1/2 marathon last year, and losing that last 15 lbs. of baby weight...writing about it helped me to DO something about it!

So my first step to doing something actually happened yesterday. I had a professional organizer come over to my house!

I told someone this yesterday, and they looked at me sort of quizzically and and said,

"Huh?...(long pause) What does that mean?"

I know. It seems a little ambiguous and perhaps unnecessary at some level, right? Like, "Com'n lady, get your act together and just clean up your sh*!...do you really need to pay someone to do that for you?" 


Well, two things, the answer is "yes" I do need someone to help me with it because I have been sorely unsuccessful at it many times and secondly, my husband's face when I told him I'd spent the money on a professional organizer had that very same question written all over it. Instead he said the very right thing...

"That's GREAT honey. I'm sure that's going to be very, VERY helpful." And nodded his head up and down enthusiastically until I got out of his space

...and then he probably rolled his eyes.

All that said, this woman's name is Jennifer Ford Berry. She has a website that you can check out here    ( Organize This Life! ) and she has changed my life already! Truly.

She lives outside of Buffalo and she has been a Godsend. I say that in the truest sense. I think God put her in my life to help my live the life I've always wanted to live.

I know I sound a little like one of those crazy hoarders after Peter Walsh cleans out their houses...but, while my clutter may not have been nearly that bad, the emotional space it was taking in my brain was causing enough strife in my life.

Alright, I'm going to stop there for today...I know you are sitting on the edge of your seat waiting to hear more about Jennifer...(who by the way, I gave the link of my blog too, so Jennifer, if you are reading this, "Thank You" and I'll see you next week!) but my children need to get up from their naps and most of you are also mommas with short attention spans (that out of necessity need to match that of your children), so I don't want to go on and on in one long post that you won't read the end of.

That said, check out Jennifer's website for now and leave a comment if this is a crazy area in your life as well. Maybe tell us how you've tackled this part of your life. I always love to hear that I am not alone in my struggles! I know that sounds a little sadistic, but really, I mean it in the nicest way!

I promise to write more this week about my eye-opening three hour session with Jennifer and what I plan to do about it all.

P.S. Just for the record, the above picture is not of my house. I swear! But doesn't it just make your skin crawl?!