Step out of your comfort zone

I have had a set back.  My recovery has taken a turn over the past few days.  Basically, I am in a lot of pain and have been forced into bed rest.  I say forced, because bed rest is about the worst thing a person could ask me to do. 

Suddenly, I can't drive, I can't run errands, I can do NO form of cleaning, I can't cook, and on and on and on.  I was told that my recovery could be anywhere from five days to six weeks.  Of course as my recovery progressed so quickly and so well, when I proudly entered my doctor's office for my two week check up, I figured that my days of being at about 75% were almost done.  This has been quite a shock, and very emotionally hard on me.

I have wonderful friends and family, they would do anything for me.  "What can I do?", "What do you need?".  How do I answer these questions when I am emotionally not ready to face the reality that I have regressed rather than progressed? 

I can politely say "no" with the best of them, but "help" is a really hard one.  One of my wonderful friends told me last night, "I am calling you tomorrow and will be helping you, have a list ready.".  How can I say no to that?  She has come and taken my 4 year old (who has been so patient with mommy being under the weather, but REALLY needs some fun play time) for the day.

Then, stepping a little further out of my comfort zone, I called another friend who has been begging me to let her help.  She is bringing me the shopping items that our household needs.  I did the shopping for the entire month of October, but eggs and milk don't last forever.

"Don't rob people the blessings of service", I remember hearing as a child.  I always figured that meant that I needed to serve more.  The reality though, is that can also mean you need to allow others to serve YOU.

Asking for or allowing people to help us is very difficult.  If you are searching for a more balanced and less stressful life, then we must allow help to come into our lives.  It is out of our comfort zone, but can make a huge difference in our lives, and not only bless us, but also bless those that are serving us.

Don't sweat the small stuff!

Many time it is the items that we use almost every day that can give us the most problems. When you have an easily accessible, but not cluttered place for your most frequently used items, it can make the day go MUCH smoother.

More questions for you to go through...Where do you put?

Purse

Wallet

Keys

Sunglasses

Backpacks and kids’ purses

Mail

Coupons

Bills

Grocery List

Cell phone and chargers

Husband “stuff”

Laptops/netbooks

Last minute laundry

Kids papers and school work

Pens/pencils/scissors/extra paper

Coats

Umbrellas

Holiday decorations

Crafts (Adult and Children)

Memory items

Gift wrapping and cards

If you don't have answers for any of these, or the answers are not working for you. You have another jumping off point.

Where do I start?

I recently was able to visit with a great family member who lives out of state. She was telling me how much she was enjoying my blog (THANKS for that!), but didn't know where to start. She loved the "Girl in a Whirl" poem in the first post, and agrees that we can't do it all, but when you WANT to have it all organized, where do you start? GREAT QUESTION!!

When I do in home consultations, I have a print out of basic questions that help me to answer that very question. To make it simple, I will narrow it down to two questions... What IS working? What is NOT working?

Even though it is a very simple question, I think that it is one that we do not stop and ask ourselves enough, and make the necessary adjustments to enhance or change those answers.

So, when you ask yourself these questions, write the answers down! Push yourself, something HAS to be working. Figure out what those areas are and think of why they are working for you. Is it because it is simple, small, maybe that you have a large area to contain something, etc.

What isn't working? If you want to jump to say EVERYTHING, back up a minute and really go through it. Are you always loosing your keys? Is your pantry a disaster? Do you trip over children's toys and clutter all day? When you have written down your list, number the items. What is bothering you the MOST, then start there.

E-mail me, or put up a comment if you are having trouble with these questions. Or, when you have come up with your most important area to focus on, and don't know where to start to improve this area, ask me for my thoughts. Together we can make these things better! :)

Organizing is NOT a 4 letter word!

Actually it is a 10 letter word, and many people have very different ideas as to what it means for them and their lives. For me, it is a continual effort to make my life easier. The way a person looks at organization can make or break their success with it.

I found the following poem when I was doing research for an organization class I taught several years ago. I often say, you can have it all, but not all at the same time, and that certainly applies to organizing too. We can NOT do it all at the same time, and will kill ourselves if we keep trying. Pace yourselves, find projects that will make your lives easier, and don't take on so much that you get overwhelmed and quit before you enjoy your successes.

My goal is to try to post simple tips, projects, and ideas to make things run more smoothly in all of our lives.

Good luck, and happy organizing!

“The Girl in a Whirl"

by Dr. Sue

Look at me, look at me, look at me now!

You could do what I do if you only knew how.

I study the scriptures one hour each day,

I bake, I upholster, I scrub and I pray.

I always keep all the commandments completely,

I speak to my little ones gently and sweetly.

I help in their classrooms, I sew all they wear,

I drive them to practice, I cut all their hair.

I go to the temple at least once a week,

I change the car's tires and fix the sink's leak.

I'm taking a class on the teachings of Paul,

But that is not all, oh no, that is not all!

I play the piano and work on my talents,

My life is a wonder of fullness and balance.

I read to my children, I help all my neighbors,

I bless my community, too, with my labors.

Our family home evenings are always delightful,

The lessons I give are both fun and insightful.

I do genealogy faithfully, too.

It's easy to do all of the things that I do.

I have a home business to help make some money,

I always look beautifully groomed for my honey.

My visiting teaching is done the first day,

I exercise and I cook menus gourmet.

I can garden produce each summer and fall,

But that is not all, oh no, that is not all!

"It's easy," she said,

And then she dropped dead!