Why I Make My Bed

My house has been a pigsty lately. I rally everyone together to pick everything up and it's a disaster again within the hour.
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When I walked into my bedroom yesterday, it looked so cluttered. I remember reading once that when the bed is made in a bedroom, it tends to look more tidy because the surface area of the bed is so much of the room. This thought popped into my head at that moment and, although I wasn't convinced it would do much good, I decided to make my bed (My bed is unmade most days anymore because I take so many naps, which is very unlike me. The unmade bed, that is...not the naps.)
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I instantly felt better. There was still a basket of folded clothes on the floor. There was still a huge pile of dirty clothes waiting for the laundry basket to be emptied so they could appear contained. There was still a grocery cart and baby stroller that the kids had dragged upstairs from the playroom...last week. My dresser was still piled high with baby stuff, clean clothes that needed to be put away, hand-me-down clothes that needed to be packed up, congratulations cards from friends, random cords from our new video monitor, even birthday party supplies that have lingered from this summer.
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But because the bed was made, the room didn't seem like such a train wreck.
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I realized that there are certain things that help areas of my house "feel" clean to me. As I said, in my bedroom, it's my bed being made. In my bathroom, it's Mike's stuff (brush, gel, deodorant, razor, etc) not being on the counter. (I found a great way to contain it all a few months ago that has made a world of difference!)
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In my bedroom, my dresser is my catch-all.

Upstairs, it's the desk at the top of the stairs.

In my kitchen, I have a small, but packed, "junk counter" that only gets on my nerves when I can no longer fit things on it. Unfortunately, that is it's current state today. The junk counter is my area of transition for paperwork, my dumping ground for my purse and camera and the place where I throw random odds and ends until I have time to find them a permanent home.

I'm one of those "a place for everything and everything in it's place" people. But not to the extreme. For instance, in my kitchen, I need the counters to be clear for it to feel clean. As long as the dishes are at least in the sink in my house, they don't bother me. For most people, the dishes have to be in the dishwasher, but as long as they're at least in the sink, I'm fine. (until they start overflowing onto the counters...) Either the sink OR the dishwasher can be the "place" for the dirty dishes.
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Would I like my house to look like it's staged for a magazine photo shoot? Absolutely. But at this stage in my life (with little kids, toys and baby stuff everywhere) that's unrealistic. I have baskets scattered and hidden throughout my house to contain much of the mess. It helps the kids be able to quickly help pick up their toys, no matter what room we're in.
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One thing I learned while thinking about this yesterday is that I need my desk clean in the office. I've always known this, but have decided to commit to cleaning it off every night before going to bed. There's no reason for me to be on the computer and have non-office stuff staring at me. I mean really...did you see what was in that picture above? My day planner and some Thank You notes are the only office-appropriate things on that desk. A Krispy Kreme hat, new office supplies, hand-me-down shoes for when Jason is older, Barbie shoes, a storybook, a bib, tissue paper and a card from a recent baby gift and Ryan's dirty socks. Dirty socks, people. On my desk. EW.
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Think through the areas of your house that help it feel clean to YOU. I challenge you to focus on straightening those areas today so your home feels a little more calm. We're about to get into the whirlwind of the holiday season, so thinking about this before life gets chaotic might keep you a little more sane for the rest of 2009!