Everyday Stuff Every Day

In her book, The Way of Abundance, Ann Voskamp poses the following question:

Tough question, right?

In this fly at your face, mixed-up crazy world, how do I remember anything at all? Doesn’t having a jam-packed schedule of soccer games and a whole bunch of to-do’s on my list mean I have an abundant life?

Nope.

In fact, when our lives are packed so tightly, we hardly have any room to remember the important stuff. Stuff like:

• Hugs √
• Kisses √
• tousling hair √
• brushing teeth √
• passing on basic life skills–wait, what?

When parents tell me of the troubles they have getting their kids out the door in the morning, this is what they ask: “How do I get my kid more organized?”

“You don’t.”

is my response. You don’t get your kids more organized unless you make being organized yourself a priority. For many parents, this is a tough nut to swallow.

When your children see you doing the everyday stuff every day, it will be much easier for them to follow along. For example, if you want them to make their beds every morning before school, make your own. If you want them to clean up after themselves, you do likewise.

I’ve compiled a neat little list of what you can do to begin living the abundant life today. These habits will give you more time for the important things in life–like spending time with your loved ones.

Here’s how to begin:

1. Make your bed as soon as you get out of it. It will then be done and you don’t have to think about it for the rest of the day.
2. Clean up right after meals. Put the dishes in the sink if the dishwasher is full. See the next item for more on that:
3. Empty the dishwasher. Not doing this as soon as the dishes are done is more catastrophic than you realize: when it’s not emptied, any dirty dishes have to remain in the sink. When the sink is full, the counter becomes cluttered with dirty cups, plates, etc. See where I’m going here?
4. Avoid running the dishwasher over night. You probably won’t have time to empty it in the morning. The dirty breakfast dishes will then be hanging out in the sink until you empty the washer. Either run the dishwasher right after dinner OR run it in the morning after breakfast. Then empty the washer before you begin dinner.
5. Put items away as soon as you are done with them. When you use the last drop of toothpaste, immediately replace it with a new tube. The same goes for body wash, shampoo, etc. No more searching for toothpaste at the last minute!

Doing each one of these things not only smooths out your nighttime and morning routines, it puts you on the road to a more abundant, simple life.

Do you suffer from C.H.A.O.S. (Can’t Have Anyone Over Syndrome)? There is no shame in asking for help in decluttering your home and life. I am more than happy to show you how I got out of living in chaos. Contact me at kimscutebags@gmail.com