Confessions of a sloppy homemaker

I am a slob. For years I have tried to pretend I am not.

It's not that I enjoy squalor. Truly, I love a clean house - it makes me very happy. Cluttered spaces cloud my mind - clean spaces open it up. Even more than that, it pains me that my house is almost never "spontaneous visit ready". One of my favorite things about my mom is that she always made her home the hub of activity and friends were always welcome. I feel the same, but my house is often so in a shambles that I hesitate to throw the doors open.

And I'm not just bad at clutter. I am delinquent in the cleaning aspect too. My home is a haven for dust bunnies, my bathroom always goes at least a day or two (or more!) longer than it should before I clean it, and when I say you could eat off my floors - it is not because they are sanitary.

I'm told I come by this honestly. My mother was never an excellent housekeeper. My grandmother used to push the dirty dishes back on the table to do her weekly baking. This is a little comforting. Not much, but a little.

So, if I like clean spaces why don't I make more of an effort to keep my house better? I'm ridiculously anal about my schedules, why can't I just "pencil it in" to my weeks? Heck - I could even give house cleaning it's own color on my calendar!

Because it is low, low, LOW on my priority list. There are so many other things that are either more pressing or, frankly, more fun. Dishes get done routinely, laundry can never be fully ignored, so it's not like I'm not doing ANYTHING in the house. But given the choice between washing floors or tidying the always cluttered dining room table - and an afternoon at the pool with my kids or an evening out with my friends? Hmmmmm...... Sorry, I'm not disciplined enough to Just Say No.

Also, I have 4 other bodies in the house helping to clutter and dirty. 3 of those other bodies are even less inclined to notice a dirty house than I am. I am slowly, finally trying to get them into a routine of chores that will lessen my load a little. It is an uphill battle

I live by a motto that I would rather have time with my kids than a clean house right now and that someday my house can always be clean because those 3 dirt-ignorant bodies will no longer be in residence. I know there are flaws with this logic. First, I have many friends who spend loads of times with their kids and still find time to keep a clean house. Second, I know myself well enough to know I will probably find more things to do when the kids grow up and the only difference may be the lack of Legos underfoot.

But a girl can dream!

Anyhooooo..... That's my confession. Now you know. If you stop by unannounced (and I hope you do!), you are forewarned. Now off to laundry, gardening, dust bunny control, etc!