Slow progress is still progress!

Okay! So here is what I achieved last night and this morning...

As you may recall the entrance porch was quite underwhelming...

And although there is now a rather large cage there I was able to remove some boxes to recycle...
I will get back to this space again, obviously, as it is far from welcoming, but I do have some improvements in the other spaces from yesterdays post.

Next is the living room...

AND... I now have a table!!!! (And clean laundry!)

Then there is this bit... to be honest I pretty much only put away my ironing board here...

And another bit...

And the dreaded kitchen, which is a constant work in progress, as unfortunately humans have to eat to keep living, thus the dilemma...

So not much of a difference here, but I will get there :)

The fact that the sun has shone occasionally today makes life a little brighter!

I was able to do most of yesterdays plan of action also,

 with an added bonus of decluttering my bag (woohoo!)

...except I didn't shine my sink... there is always tonight!

So a pretty successful 24 hours so far.  Back to it again tomorrow, as I am rejoining a bellydance class tonight.  Something I haven't done in about 6 years?!?

Stay tuned for some more 'before and afters'... til then, PEACE OUT!

New leaf?

*WARNING* THIS POST CONTAINS DISTURBING IMAGES OF DOMESTIC SQUALOR.

Well, This roller-coaster of a journey called life is pretty messy.
Literally.

I have (finally) married the love of my life and the aftermath to this event, not to mention the lead up, is pretty chaotic.

My housekeeping standards over the last 12 years have slipped to an incredibly depressing low.  It didn't happen overnight.  It had been a creeping, underhanded, all-consuming monster devouring my sanity bit by painstaking bit.

This house that we moved into in 2011 inspires nothing but dreariness in me.  So my desire to keep it clean, tidy, under control and pretty has eluded me enormously...

So my aim is to make it livable, comfortable and appealing. 

The first thing to do is give you the 'befores' for accountability, then using a combination of Flylady, Marie Kondo and the Bullet Journal systems, hopefully I can transform this dire mess into a welcoming haven for my beautiful, and very patient, family.

So here goes nothing!!!

The first thing that you see when you enter our 'home' is this:

...Nice.
I don't think so.

This is where some of the wedding stuff landed after the event, I was using the white cupboards to hold all the accumulated bits and pieces needed for our big day, so now it is mostly empty, and the contents are now strewn in this area and my dining room and library...

There is also some gardening supplies here and most of our camping stuff... and much random crap!

Are you scared yet?

No?

If you are brave enough we will venture further into the pit of despair.  Here you are greeted with this monstrous sight:

 

By the way, there is only 1 dog living here, she is just a very talented, albeit hairy, photobomber!

I will lead you deeper into the bowels of hell later on, but first let me fill you in on a little secret...

I am a dreamer and a crafter and all-round master procrastinator.

I dream of a life of minimalism, of living clutter-free.  And up until recently I thought I was just a consistent failure at following all the guides to 'get rid of your stuff'.   But when my beautiful little sister, who is very much a minimalist in her own right, came down to help me out and spend some time with me before my big day, she just said that maybe I have to face the fact that it was just 'not me'.  This whole minimalism lark, although it is something I desperately aspire to, might not actually be something I can realistically achieve. 

This is a thought I had never even considered before.  I have tried, failed miserably and given up, so many times.  I have discovered though, that inconsistency is my only consistent trait.

Now since I have started on this post this afternoon, I have eaten a very late breakfast (yes, that is nutella on a crumpet, don't judge me!)

I have also made the sure the kids are alive, and done two loads of laundry so the kids will have clean clothes for school tomorrow

I also went to a linen party, to support a friend who hosted it, which has left me feeling worse than before... I should know better than to go to those things.  It always accentuates how little our bank account holds and the poor quality of the stuff that we possess and those two factors mixed together make me feel rather poverty-stricken.  I can't help but look upon the others with envy as they purchase all the finery without having to consider weather they will still be able to feed their children for the rest of the week.  I, of course, bought nothing.  Even though I should feel proud for not spending money that I cannot afford, I feel a little on the glum side, especially because I came home to this:

 

Oh, yeah, and my kitchen...

 What can I say...? I am a lost cause and my poor children have to live like this.

My plan of action this evening, being that it is approaching 5.30, is this:
  * pop to the shop to buy some essential groceries for dinner, school lunches and to feed the pets
  * make a quick, healthy meal,wash the dishes and shine my sink (thank you Flylady!)
  * review my calendar to plan for the week ahead and list it in my bullet journal

I will post tomorrow to let you know how I went... Wish me LUCK!