another monday, another mess.  yes?

i know these photos don’t portray a mess of any kind but, you’ll see.

truly, i could share from a variety of messes i have going on.  one being my car, after a 12 hour road trip with 6 people.  but, i’ll spare you of that.  we spent last week visiting family in atlanta and had a super nice time.

i feel like life has been so busy lately.  too busy.  and  i’ve been neglecting things.   i haven’t been taking the time to get things in order that are seemingly causing a lot of dis.order in my mind and my everyday.  say, the closet that i started cleaning in, like, april, but never entirely finished.  i sometimes start something and don’t take the time to finish it.  and now for 3 months, this unclean closet has been causing me so much mental clutter (thinking about when and how i will finish it) which seems to be bothering me more than the actual clutter, itself.

i’m not here to give you tips or suggestions on the best ways to stay organized or my most favorite products for organizing (although you could find some ideas here).   instead, i’ve decided that, somehow, someway, i’d like to spend a little less time online this week and little more time getting a few things in order and organized as well as just having some summer fun with my little ones.

i still struggle in wanting my surroundings to be clean, organized and uncluttered in an effort to feel calm, peaceful and mentally stable ( i mean…. mentally uncluttered).  i think there is a connection.  don’t you?  i’m not talking about a home that is perfectly decorated or constantly clean.  in fact, i’m learning more and more how much i really don’t care for perfect.  it’s boring.  perfectly imperfect is more my thing.  but, don’t get me wrong, embracing imperfection doesn’t mean being messy or disorganized.

i realize that in a household of 6 and with 4 little ones that there will be mess and disorganization.  there is no way around it.  but i’m also learning to let go of things (literally, as in getting rid of things we don’t need) more than i’ve ever been able to in the past in an attempt to find calm, mental space and function.  and i’m getting it that if things are too dis.organzied, than i need to stop and find time to create a little more order.

you know that whole, don’t have anything in your home that you don’t love or find to be useful thing?  well, i’m working towards that.  just being better at that would be fine with me.  i want my home to feel peaceful (cue in the inspiration photos  . . . stylish and peaceful).  i love the idea and concept of mindful living (having been thinking on it a lot lately).

so, this week, for me it’s going to be finishing my closet and cleaning up the playroom in the basement.  you all have seen my pretty playroom (which i assure you does not always look like this) but what lies beneath is kind of embarrassing.

click on through to get a glimpse (yes, i’m sharing a photo, just to boost some morale and make you feel better about your house . . . go ahead . . .

see?!?!?!?  feel better?  i thought so.  i’m going to feel better after i spend some time down here purging.

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i’m curious, do you think your surroundings affect you mentally or create inner clutter?  are you doing any purging this week?  and if so, do you struggle, like me, to get rid of things (thinking you just might need them later in life)?  what do you think about the idea of mindful living?

p.s.  this disastrous basement playroom used to my bedroom growing up.  it started out with a southwestern theme and then i moved on to forest green (you can see the color popping through on the shelves) and eddie bauer bedding.  the ceilings are extremely low but i wasn’t bothered since i’m a shorty at  5′ 3″

images : pinterest / signepling / mokkasin