My mind is a little all over the place today, which is probably why I've decided to publish a links post, with a little bit of this and a little bit of that.
But today a major publisher will make a decision about my next book, so if you could say a quick prayer that God will lead them in the right direction (and lead me to accept it no matter what the answer is) that would be great! I really believe in this book, though, so I really want to see it published. And I'll tell you all about it once I can!
Anyway, I stumble. Do you stumble? I don't mean do you fall on your nose all the time, the way my daughter does even when she's going up stairs (I never thought it was possible to fall UP stairs until my daughter came along). I mean I use StumbleUpon, a social media site that helps you discover new sites that might interest you. I wrote a post about it here which you can read to fill you in, but I enjoy it when I'm bored and have a few minutes. I usually discover some pretty cool stuff!
Today I just want to show you the sites I've discovered that relate to organizing, cleaning, or simplifying your life.
Need more incentive to scale back? Here's a really neat graphic of how household compositions and budgets have changed over the decades. Makes an interesting dinner conversation, especially the amount of TV & the average house size!
Simple article on 5 ways to simplify your life. This woman thinks like me! Have a pen and paper handy as you read it, and decide what your 5 ways will be (they don't have to be the same!)
Absolutely gorgeous pictures of kids sharing rooms! I love the bunk beds in the hallway alcove especially. You probably will never decorate this well, but some of her points are profound.
8 Ways to Kill Clutter in 5 Minutes. It's written by a twentysomething guy, but the ideas are good. I'd make my teenage boy learn these tricks!
And I'll end with this: The Secret to Having a Clean Home without Trying. Really quick tips, but here's her main point: clean all the time. I don't mean that every moment of every day you have out the mop. I mean that whenever you're in a room, leave it cleaner than when you got there. See a glass? Bring it downstairs when you leave. If you're in the bathroom and you're brushing your teeth, put away the bottle of Tylenol that's on the counter. If we did this all the time, the house wouldn't get so out of control!
That's more than enough links for today, but I do encourage you to try StumbleUpon. It's not like Facebook where it takes a bunch of time; it's fun just to discover new sites. And remember, if you like a post, you can "thumbs up" it on Stumbleupon here by clicking the "Share on Stumbleupon" button below!
So back to my original topic: we're all trying to organize our lives this month, but I find it hard to get into a routine when I'm worried about something. Today, for instance, I'm supposed to start off by jogging with my daughter and by posting some posts and doing some work, but I don't feel like it one bit because I'm nervous about this publisher's meeting.
But I'm going to try to do it anyway. I find I often give myself excuses not to do things--oh, you don't have to jog because you're too busy/too tired/too worried/too excited. There's always an exception. I can usually talk myself into an exception for just about anything. You don't have to clean today. You don't have to cook dinner tonight. You can't be expected to get that work done.
I want to stop that. I need to develop better habits where I'm not always making excuses for why I don't NEED to do something that's important. Life will always get in the way, but I want to choose how to live life deliberately, rather than letting my life run my day.
So I shall go jogging now, even if I'm nervous. And while I'm doing that, I shall pray for the publisher's meeting.
What about you? Do you make excuses for not having to do things?
Sheila, I think this is my favorite post ever, for 2 reasons, organizing is my secret (not so secret) obsession. I love all things to do with it. Especially reading how other people do it. AND this post is so honest and transparent. I struggle with the very same things and it's so refreshing to know and hear, it's not just me. Thanks for the freedom. Praying for you today! :D
About Me: I'm a Christian author of a bunch of books, and a frequent speaker to women's groups and marriage conferences. Best of all, I love homeschooling my daughters, Rebecca and Katie. And I love to knit. Preferably simultaneously.
Stumble It!
Sheila, I think this is my favorite post ever, for 2 reasons, organizing is my secret (not so secret) obsession. I love all things to do with it. Especially reading how other people do it. AND this post is so honest and transparent. I struggle with the very same things and it's so refreshing to know and hear, it's not just me. Thanks for the freedom. Praying for you today! :D