ITS THAT TIME

Housecleaning. Housekeeping. Blech. Those are dirty words. My house is not messy. It's lived in. When you have children, especially young ones, it's normal that your house looks lived in, right? And when you run a business from your home, it's even worse. Especially when your business is baking. A few words to facilitate a mental image: powdered sugar, flour, cocoa, buttercream, eggs, cream, icing color, mixing bowls, beaters, pots, pans, spatulas, measuring spoons and cups, pastry bags, pastry bag tips, and on and on AND ON.

Throw in being married to a man who also works from home, who has undiagnosed OCD about keeping neat, clean and organized (not to mention a secret obsession with having no dirty clothes in the laundry room) and the pressure is on to at least keep up with the day to day. There's a few problems though. One, I looooooath cleaning. Two, I am a procrastinator. Three, I am the 'creative type'; typically unconcerned with having an immaculate house. Organization can be a challenge.

So today and tomorrow, I am going to speed clean. I am getting my bucket of cleaning supplies ready, I am turning off my computer, my blackberry and the television. I am kicking the kids outside, cranking the music and will be out of the gates like Calvin Borel riding Super Saver. Hopefully I'll last longer than two minutes!

Why the sudden urge? There will soon be some redecorating going on in this house. So I need to get things organized, do some purging in closets and such. I need a clean palette. A fresh perspective. A blank canvas will open up the space so I can do something here with all of the ideas I have found. I discovered some incredible women bloggers last night and got some fantastic ideas around decorating for less without it looking cheap. Check them out here and here. I am warning you though, do it when you have an hour (or two) free because one amazing blog that you will want to read from first post to last will lead you to another blog that you want to read from top to bottom too. Thank you Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick and Katie from Bless Our Nest. You've both inspired me to make my house feel welcome and cozy to not just it's residents, but everyone who enters.

And she's off....