Insanity

As a stay at home mom, I have recognized lately that a lot of time is devoted to picking up after other people. I think anyone who has children understands this. We all have so much stuff! And if you are not a super organized, OCD person, things don't like to get put away. Every two weeks I start with a fresh slate after the cleaning lady comes, and I have the best intentions of keeping everything clean and organized. But then somehow life gets in the way, toys get scattered and dishes start to pile up. I often wonder how a large kitchen table can become covered in paper and junk in just one afternoon.

So for the past few months I have been reading magazines and blogs about organizing and decluttering your house and life. I always come away filled with a fervor to simplify my surroundings and get rid of half of the stuff in our house.

What I don't understand is my desire to purge the junk in our house and then continue to buy more junk to replace it!

Today I got a catalog in the mail filled with everthing you never knew you couldn't live without. And this month I am afraid to open up these same magazines that I have been reading that tell me how to organize and manage my surroundings, because of their gift guides and lists of things to get for everyone in your life. I always find about 52 new things I want. Of couse I don't NEED any of them, but I feel like I must get a few of them - it is Christmas after all! And at least half of them are for Juliette who doesn't put anything away without my help!

If I could just remember Einstein's definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Oh well, come December 26, I will be complaining about putting stuff away. But as for today, I'm making a great Christmas list!