Every now and again for Monday Mess I’ll be sharing a random mess I’ve happened upon.

Yes, this mess is better than most because there is a baby involved and, well, they make (almost) everything cuter.  I personally like to imagine what might be going on in this room.  Why it is messy?  How it got messy. And, will it stay messy?

Baby is not sleeping.  She stays up day and night.  And, in very tired mom’s free time, she is busy reading every book on babies and sleep, which are piled next to her bed, which she is not sleeping in.  Very tired mom just got a really sweet gift from her mom, to help brighten up her day to make up for her sleepless nights.  The other packages are Christmas presents that are just now being sent (at least they are being sent).  The heart taped above her bed is from her 5 year old.  And exhausted mom keeps it there to remind her that, yes, little ones eventually learn to sleep and she, herself, will sleep again, one day, someday.  The other piece of paper is her grocery list because if she doesn’t tape it up than what is the point-at all?  At least, she uses pretty hot pink washi tape, this makes very tired mom feel better.  And the desk in the middle of the room, slightly, pushed up to the bed is there because she just had to blog about the 4th sleep book, she just read, which is the answer to everyone’s sleep deprived nights.  She also must blog about the jeans she wants to buy when she loses the last 5 pounds, and the headboard she is going to buy for her bed, which she is not sleeping in, when narrows down her decision from her top 25 favorites.

Well, that is my best (probably very wrong) guess.  At least, how I like to imagine it.

On messes and cleaning…..

Yesterday, my sister and I were talking about books that we are both reading (I sure do love discussing books, don’t you?).  For starters, I don’t even think I got the name of the book.  I know…. But she mentioned, she was reading about procrastination.  My ears perked up as I have a l-i-t-t-l-e  issue with this. She read that the reason we procrastinate is because we are perfectionists or afraid of failure.  Doesn’t this make total sense?  Me, not doing, even random small, tasks because I don’t have the time to do them as perfect as I’d like is a subconscious decision to procrastinate.  Or me not even attempting to start because I might do it wrong.  Again, subconscious decision  Ah-ha!

She also, interestingly enough, said the book mentioned that a lot of times we go around saying things like, “I don’t want to clean my room.”  “I don’t want to change the cat littler.”  “I have so much to do…I don’t know how I’m going to do it all.”   And by doing that we are taking a negative approach. If we change the words and the view to “I want to clean my room.”  “I want to change the cat litter.”  You are coming from a positive perspective and realizing that yes, of course, you want these things done (you want a clean room, etc).  You than find it is much easier to actually do and complete the task because you want to do it.  Doesn’t that make so much sense?

Kind of random but it helped me so much.  I hope to take that approach this week or at least give it a try.  How do you tackle the never ending duties of housework?  Are you ok with letting some things go or is the never ending list always on your mind and like me you find your self saying, “I don’t want to do this (or that) and I don’t know how I’m going to do this?”

Wherever you are at, I hope you are able to take control (even a small bit) of your piles and papers, rather than letting them take control of you!

xo . trina

(image / souris des villes)