A (Somewhat Reluctant) Return To Routine

I took this picture last year on the first day of school...

and I do think it is worth a thousand words, to say the least. 

This week, for many of us, it was time to shed the carefree ways of summer, and get back to the more structured days of school...and some of us were more happy about it than others. :)

Because of this change, each September is a good time for us to talk about our houses & our routines...

(Please don't roll your eyes at me...)

How do you feel about routines?? I know that to some, structure can seem like a straight jacket, but I want to invite you to look at regular routines as the groundwork for tons of fun and free time. 

After all, the sexiest of designs and prettiest of rooms can't be enjoyed if they are buried under dirty socks, piles of unopened mail, or stacks of soiled pots and pans--these are the kinds of things that aren't fun, but always need to be dealt with. HELLO, ROUTINES! 

Here are three of my favorite routines that take very little time, but can make a world of difference:

1. Make Your Bed Each Morning- This simple habit has actually been shown to increase your happiness. Pulling up the sheets and comforter as soon as your feet hit the floor takes less than 5 minutes.

2. Give Me 15-- Each day, right after everyone is off to school and work (and my kitchen looks like a box full of gremlins were let loose), I set a timer for 15 minutes, and quickly straighten and put away breakfast dishes, lunch-making items and and anything else that is out of place. Most days I even have time to empty the dishwasher and wipe down the counter before the buzzer goes off. Just fifteen minutes a day on a room that drives you nuts can be life-altering....

What room make sense for you and your house?

3. A Load a Day Keeps the Crazies Away-  Laundry can be so demoralizing, especially if on the floor is the heaping pile of clothes that needs to be washed, on the bed is the pile that has been washed and is waiting to be folded, and on the dresser is the basket with folded items that need to be put away. UGH-how overwhelming. 

The routine of completing one load of wash from start to finish every day can give you a sense of mastery, accomplishment, and peace.

In the morning, throw a load in before you leave for work. As you start dinner that evening, throw it in the dryer. As everyone goes up to bed at night, have them take their clean clothes up to their rooms and put them away.  You will be amazed at  how little time it takes, and how there isn't stuff just laying around in transition.
 

Do you have a favorite routine that keeps your household afloat? I would love to hear about it in the comments below! I always love to hear what works for you, and what makes a difference in your house, day-in and day-out!

Lightening Has Struck AGAIN (and you can see the pictures here)

KA BLAM!

It was an honor to be featured on PhillyMag's property blog once--but twice?!? I am so honored and humbled...

You may remember that earlier in the summer my own beloved farmhouse was highlighted on the Property section of Philadelphia Magazine's blog (you can see that article here). 

And NOW I am SO THRILLED to share with you that the home of one of my very best clients has also been featured.

It is like an out-of-body experience both to see beautiful pictures of rooms I have designed as taken by Laura Kicey, as well as to read an article telling the story of the rebirth of this home, which I have been so lucky to be an integral part of for many years now.  (For those of you whom have received my emails for a long time, you will probably recognize many of the rooms… :)

If you would like to read the full article and view the amazing pictures, you can do so here. 

SO BLESSED! 

Keep It Together! (Just In Time For Fall)

It has been a while since we have tackled  a homework assignment… and with the end of summer speeding toward us (how did that happen already?),  "getting things together" is very, very important with the busy times that lay ahead for all of us this fall.

So what exactly do I mean when I say "getting things together??" 

Oftentimes when we are overwhelmed by our STUFF--all of our possessions, papers, pantry items, you name it--it is because of how we store them. We are scattered because they are scattered.

You see, it is really easy to make the mistake of storing similar or identical items in many different places all over our house. Things aren't together, like at all. 

Let me explain how this creates problems for us:

For example, you are a tea drinker & you have a stash of your favorite blend right next to the stove where you heat the kettle every day. You also have a few different boxes on 2 or 3 shelves in the pantry across the room....

OH! and there is also some that you bought a while back (just to be sure you wouldn't run out) on the shelves near the basement steps.

When your supply near the stove gets low, you find yourself at the grocery store buying more, because you aren't sure if you really have more in the pantry. You haven't checked in a while...

This scenario could be repeated for many, many different items we keep on hand in our homes. It seems especially true for food items, but it can also be the case for things like lightbulbs, cleaning supplies, sewing notions, scrapbooking items, office supplies....you name it! Not being able to see at a glance the total of what we have and not knowing there is a central location where they are kept leads to confusion, lack of clarity, the wasting of time, the wasting of money .....and, of course, clutter.

Your assignment this month is: 

1. PICK ONE category of things you know you have scattered in various places around your house
2. COMMIT to one central location where these things will now be kept (preferably very close to where they will be used) and 
3. PUT THEM ALL IN THE SAME PLACE.

This can be as simple as finding all of the cans of soup you have on different shelves in your pantry and making sure they are stacked together. Set a timer and devote just 15 minutes to this this weekend.

HOORAY!

Getting Your Ducks (Or Geese) In A Row

Just before I was about to reach the school driveway earlier this week (I was going to pick up my daughter from softball practice) I noticed the large flock of Canadian Geese that lives nearby, off to one side of the road. 

When I was only feet away from them, one silly goose who was closest to the road started to very casually wander into my path. YIKES!

I honked as I put on the brakes. 

But he paid me no mind.  He acted as if he hadn't even heard a sound, continuing to amble casually across the street. And then his buddy decided to follow him. 

And then another friend too...

Next thing I knew EVERYONE--all 15,000 geese (no, I am NOT exaggerating)--had decided to cross the road.  And I was going to get nowhere fast. 

So, WHY am I telling you about this?  It is because the way these geese crossed the road was meaningful, and we can learn something from it...

Really???!?

Really. 

At first, these birds were all over the place. The message that 'IT WAS TIME' to cross the road had not reached everyone, there was no order, rhyme, or reason to how they were moving--disorganized pairings of feathered friends went to and fro (what are we doing? ohhh right, we are crossing the road!), stopping to preen themselves in the middle of the road even--why rush?!? But within a few minutes, the whole operation gained momentum and purpose. Their ducks--ahem, *geese*--were in a row. And they were moving forward!

It is like this with our houses when we decide we want things to change for the better. It can be messy at first, and seem to lack a plan. The other people we live with don't really understand what is going on (what are we doing??), and they may question your resolve (Ohhh she has tried this whole "organization" thing before. Ignore her--it'll be over soon enough).

The important thing is to remember to slowly keep moving forward-- putting one cute little webbed foot in front of the other, decluttering one drawer, one pile of papers, one bag to Goodwill at a time. No shouting, cajoling, or fretting needed.

Ignore those that honk at you. You are on a mission. You are going to get to the other side.

The momentum and purpose that is created is powerful. Big changes can happen in little baby steps taken one after another. I see this all the time with my Keep Moving Forward clients. Our meetings of just two hours each month completely change their houses for the better, and I am amazed & filled with gratitude each time I experience it with them. 

SO, set your intention. Walk on. Keep moving forward! Your peaceful, nurturing home is SO CLOSE... just a few purposeful steps away.