The daily grind...

My house has been more or less clean and tidy for a few weeks now. When it gets out of control (which it magically seems to do in less than 24 hours sometimes!) it takes less than a day to reclaim. That is a blessing, and something that didn't used to be true.

Take today for example... I woke up and the kitchen table and counters were covered with stuff from lunch and dinner yesterday. Dirty dishes, leftovers that needed to be thrown out, papers, trash, boxes... It was a sight! There were dishes in the sink to be taken care of, Leif's hiking clothes in the chair in the living room, Ellie's toys on the floor... You get the idea. Shannon was coming over at 11 and I needed to get it cleaned up.

You know what? By the time Shannon came over, everything was pretty much clean. Dishes in the dishwasher, table cleaned up, clothes in the hamper, bed made, and I was dressed and fed. Ellie and I had even spent about 45 minutes outside swinging and playing by the time they arrived!

Then tonight Leif called to say they were on their way home, but he didn't call until they were about 3 minutes away, so I didn't even have time to pick up the house before he walked in the door. And you know what? It was okay! The house wasn't PERFECT, but it was nice, and 95% tidy. He noticed. He said it looked much better. And I realized that it's okay it wasn't perfect.

Me, my house, and I are a work in progress.