One a day. (Well, ...most days.)

I am not naturally a neat and organized person. Truth be told, I am one of those people who opens the tupperware cabinet, throws in the container, and then shuts it really fast so nothing falls out. But I am a meal planner, list maker, and schedule follower. If something involves or impacts other people, I am all in. I will be there prepared and on time. But I am a procrastinator. When faced with something I don't want to do, I may spend an hour and 40 minutes playing on my phone before forcing myself to get up and just do it. So I use planners, lists, and schedules to trick my rule-following-procrastinating-personality to get stuff done.

This is a list/schedule hybrid I use to try to get stay organized. It has nothing to do with my weekly cleaning; like dusting, laundry, mopping, and scrubbing bathrooms. This is more about the stuff most people don't see. Some of it does involve cleaning, but most of it is organizational. A few chores on the list may take 10 minutes to complete, but most take 5 minutes, max, especially if I actually did said chore last month. If I am out of town, too busy, or just don't feel like it   -- I don't do it. Chances are, the next time that chore comes up, I'll be in town, not as busy, and might feel like it. Some days are a bye. I mean- if I actually dusted the ceiling fans last month, how dusty could they be this month? Some days "my closet" might mean I straighten my shoes, or some days it means color coordinating every piece of clothing. Just kidding. But you get the idea. Each item on the list could be as simple or detailed as that day allows. And with the billions of creative organizing ideas on Pinterest, it could even be fun.

Depending on your living and family situation, your list might be completely different. When the kids were little, organizing toys and scouring fingerprints needed to be done weekly. Then, I might have washed favorite stuffed animals once a month. When the kids got bigger, much of the list became part of their chore charts. Woot. Woot. But kids grow up. They and their stuffed animals and chore charts move out. Then you're stuck with all the boring, thankless chores; like vacuuming the intake vents.

One for each day of the month. Or not -- because let's be honest, if I did everything on the list a couple times a year, I'd be thrilled.

And just consulting the list makes me feel more organized.

P.S. None of the pictures above are actually from my house. I just made the collage out of pretty pictures I found on the internet.  :)

Young moms and old moms

I am about 3 weeks into a new women's bible study at my church. There are about 40 women in the study and we break into small "Table Groups" for discussion.  Most of them are young moms. I was feeling really old, a little out of place, and I must admit, questioning whether this was the study for me.

But then, I think about my table leader.

She is young; a mom of four, one of whom is 11 weeks old and not sleeping through the night. But every week she is there - on time, dressed with hair and teeth brushed, baby in a front pack, and a SMILE. That is saying something with an infant and 3 other children! She has done the homework, baked a little treat for us to nibble on, and emailed us several times over the week with our group's prayer requests and some personal encouragement. I can see and feel the love of Christ oozing out of her pores. She inspires me.

And so I am going to continue to go. I will be the old mom. I will listen to and smile at the stories of crying babies and potty training, carpools and soccer practice. And I will remember the years I was a young mom and going through the same challenges. And I know each of us will be blessed by being there.