Mamas that are "Messies" Support Thread

[GodChick]

Uhm . . . Havilah . . . PLEASE tell me those were "after" pictures, and not what you consider messy. Because, Uhm . . . remember that "no cleanies" comment.

Seriously. I didn't read all the posts. What is that? Please oh please don't tell me that's your mess. I would be so happy if that were my mess.

I was just thinking about this thread because I was looking at some old pictures, and you know what REALLY disgusts me? For the first 10 years of our marriage we lived in a tiny, tiny, dumpy little duplex. It was so small you had to go outside to change your mind. I dreamed and dreamed of one day having a nice house with room for a family. And now we've got that. It's not a huge house, but it's nice and it should be roomy enough for our family. But it's not, because it's all cluttered and messy. That really makes me feel like a total ingrate. I should be happy and grateful enough for what I have to take care of it.

[NayneeNoo]

Originally Posted by GodChick

Uhm . . . Havilah . . . PLEASE tell me those were "after" pictures, and not what you consider messy.     Because, Uhm . . . remember that "no cleanies" comment.  

Seriously.  I didn't read all the posts.  What is that?  Please oh please don't tell me that's your mess.     I would be so happy if that were my mess. 

I thought the same thing.   

[GodChick]

ps--I do love that you have a clarinet mouthpiece on your desk.

Michele, are we looking at the same pics? Are you dissin ' on my mess?

Honestly, I made a good bit of progress about the time of your "digging out" thread. I was nesting... I got inspired and purged lots of junk, and I found homes for lots of stuff that tended to float around the house. It's true the house is *much* better than it was six months ago!

I'm def. a messie, though! I struggle every day, and usually run around in a panic when folks come over. My saving grace is that we have folks over pretty often, so the public areas look okay every couple of weeks. The problem is that I stash the mess in the basement or the closets It's a constant cycle of mess-guilt-clean-let down guard-mess-guilt-clean. I want to be a person who picks up after herself so I'm not always creating a mountain of work for later

I'd really like for my kitchen counter not to be a diary of everything James and I have eaten for the last few days

Originally Posted by GodChick

ps--I do love that you have a clarinet mouthpiece on your desk.

Doesn't that qualify me? It's been sitting there for weeks!

[GodChick]

LOL. I do that too -- pick up by stashing my mess somewhere else so that it gives the illusion of being clean. Then the mess creeps back out.

Saving my spot on this messies thread! I haven't had a chance to read the other posts yet, but I deffinitely belong here!
I've been trying to stay off the computer today so that I can get more done around the house. The kids and I were out all day the last two days and the house is a disaster!

You gals are so funny! "No ME, I'm the messiest one of all!" He he he! I guess it is a nice change of pace from always being worried about not being clean enough.

because clicking "recent unread topics" again and again is easier than cleaning up my house.

Ahem... guilty.

I totally feel you God Chick on the "dream of a larger place" thing. I have that dream in my head too. And I sometimes wonder if the problem really isn't a lack of space, but that I don't yet "get" how to take care of space. So then if I move into a bigger home, I'll just have more annoying rooms to clean. (Sort of like what you're experiencing.) Maybe it is a blessing living in a small space.

HopesMommy- WHAT ARE YOUR DAILY 5???

Well I salvaged today pretty well, although I did cry. Yes you read that correctly. Little ol' me shed a few tears while cleaning her kitchen. Why you ask? Well because I got barfed on twice today and had to clean barf up from the kitchen and living room, and THEN the cat barfed in the living room and left a trail of barf into the kitchen. And THEN while I'm cleaning up one half of my kitchen my sweet dd that you see in that Avatar there, managed to throw crunchy crackers on the floor, along with a pile of index cards. So by this time I am crying, because now I have to move my dining table chairs and the highchair out into the living room so that I can thoroughly sweep and mop the barfy, crunchy kitchen floor.

Anyways, it is the end of the day, and once my kitchen was clean, the rest was ok. The laundry is done so that is good. But I tell you, when dh came home he saw the look on my face, he knew it had been rough. My response? "Sometimes it's just hard."

[beccafromlalaland]

Oh I'm a messie...definitly. I get the house clean and within a week it looks worse or just as bad as the day I cleaned it! I HAVE TO clean tomorrow because I have a midwife visit on Sunday.

I'm thinking I'm only going to clean the front half of the house...living room dining room, kitchen, and the guest bathroom.

Living room 20min maybe
Dining room 10min maybe
Kitchen FOREVER!
Bathroom 20min maybe.

[beccafromlalaland]

is it bad that i'm using the tall laundry hamper as a trashcan because I forgot to put a bag in the old trashcan and then was too disgusted by what was in the bottom that I threw the trashcan away with the trash, and have been using a bag on the floor to put trash into and just now realized that the tall plastic hamper would work better?

[NayneeNoo]

Originally Posted by HopesMommy

Yeah, I got the daily 5 idea from A Plan of Attack on Yahoo groups. Mine are
Morning-
1. Shower
2. Breakfast (Prenatals!)
3. Empty dishwasher
4. Make bed
5. E-mail (30 minutes only)

Evening-
1. Clean kitchen after dinner
2. Give Hope bath
3. Toys in living room picked up
4. E-mail (30 minutes only)
5. Read/Relaxing time

Sorry, I posted it earlier, thought everyone saw it.

[RealLifeMama]

That would make me cry, too, jamilyian

Originally Posted by Coopnwhitsmommy

is it bad that i'm using the tall laundry hamper as a trashcan because I forgot to put a bag in the old trashcan and then was too disgusted by what was in the bottom that I threw the trashcan away with the trash, and have been using a bag on the floor to put trash into and just now realized that the tall plastic hamper would work better?

Just something I discovered that works well with the trash can- I do not know how old your children are but I send one of my children out back with the trash can and put some dish soap in it, and let my son turn on the hose and sprayer and play in the water and rinse out the can for me. They love it!!!!
I would think a tall hamper like that works fine, though. They look like Trash Cans with holes.
As soon as we earn enough money back on our CC, we are going to get one of those outrageously expensive trash cans from SimpleHuman, though. We get giftcards from Bed Bath and Beyond with our CC rewards.

[hey mommy]

Originally Posted by HopesMommy

I thought the same thing.

I was also thinking that..... Maybe I'll snap some quick pics of my messes... Ummm, as soon as I can dig out my camera.... I know it's here somewhere!

[AdrienneQW]

Here to say hello and declare myself a Messie - so nice to see the same holds true for others. It's funny, I see other people's photos and think "Awww, it's a shame she's so hard on herself". But when it comes to myself, it's "Wow, look at this mess, you slovenly heap of worthlessness."

I'm happy to say I decluttered the dining room completely on Monday, and as of this writing (Fri night) it's still clean. ::backpat:: Tomorrow's task is to do the same for the family room and the kitchen. These are our three *least* cluttered rooms so I started small. Eventually I'll work my way to the super-messy rooms, particularly our living room (the ultimate dumping ground). Baby steps!

[Garnet]

I don't know if I am a Messy or not, but my house is usually a wreck. Its hard to keep up with three kids, dh, 2 dogs, 2 cats, my brother, etc. Plus there's all the stuff dh ignored while I was working, the Mt Everest of laundry in my basement.

lets see I have 7 rooms and an entry way and a stairway/ hallway and enclosed porch and open back porch. Right now my kitchen is sorta clean, excpet my floor. My living room is sorta clean except all the laundry and the boxes still piled up in the entryway from when dh and the kids "helped" clean the living room. My stairs and hallway are clean, I cleaned them. My bathroom is clean except for the sink, and the floor and the laundry. My room is not clean, and hasn't been in a while. The kids room is not clean. So I guess I am a messy.