I have shared a lot recently about my blog journey, how grateful I am for finding this path and my thoughts, prior to hitting publish for the very first time. I would however like to backtrack a little to give you a better understanding of how The Organised Housewife came to be, even before I realised it.
My journey to becoming ‘The Organised Housewife’
My hubby and I married very young, 20 and 21 respectively. We started dating the night of our school formal, last day of school, so not quite high school sweethearts. Soon after we were married we purchased our first home. It was tiny, but suited us fine, it was our home. We both worked full-time, we weren’t home much so it stayed tidy. Cooking for two didn’t require many dishes so keeping the kitchen tidy wasn’t too much of a chore. I did the washing on weekends usually only ever two loads, which was easy to keep on top of. We shared our responsibilities around the home, cooking and cleaning. I usually ironed while he mowed the lawn. We had it all under control, clean and organised.
After 18 months of trying, we fell pregnant, I was 24 years of age. Being pregnant was such a special gift after taking so long (this is a whole different story), we found out early on that we were expecting twins. Just after the 14 week mark of my pregnancy, I had moments of being so tired at work resulting in falling asleep on my bosses couch. Not feeling the best and having to attend many doctors appointments, we made the decision that I would stop work . I rested at home and slept a lot, theses little babies took a lot out of me. I didn’t have much energy at all.
It was at this point the real ‘housewife’ side came out in me. I woke up each morning to make hubby lunch, while he was at work I made him yummy treats to send with him the next day. Dinner was on the table when he got home, I started organising all the drawers, planning the twins nursery and of course plenty of coffee’s with friends. I was in my element. Yes this sounds really 1950’s housewifeish, but I didn’t mind, everything was under control, clean and organised.
Then the twins were born, two bundles of absolute sweetness a girl and boy. Babies take up a lot of time, feeding took a good hour and a half at times, bathing two babies, giving them each cuddles, the amounts of washing that started to pile up, the dishes that I didn’t find time to do, the sweeping that I put off because I was too tired and no time to fold washing. My house turned upside down and wasn’t so controlled, clean and organised as it had always been.
In the photo below you can see in the background, clean washing. I had a plethora of images to choose from to show you as all our photos had washing in the background. I chose this photo to show you , because this is the photo that I think of when I get an email from a new mum saying I need help, how do I do it all? I was in that place and I want to help my readers to move forward and gain back their control.
After a few months I regained my energy (I think we like to think of ourselves as superwomen, that we will bounce back the week after having a baby, we shouldnt’ put that pressure on ourselves). I then learnt that I had babybrain (common symptom of having kids I hear lol), I was very forgetful, and putting a load of washing on in the morning just wasn’t priority with crying babies to deal with. For me to get some order back into our home life I needed to create some routines. Before the twins were born we had a routine, we cleaned, washed, ironed, baked etc all in one afternoon which is impossible to do now. I spilt up my tasks and dedicated specific day’s for particular jobs. From that day forward I have kept to a routine. Monday was grocery shopping day, Tuesdays I cleaned the bathrooms and tidied the house, Wednesdays I cleaned the floor, Thursday and Friday I had off and hubby would help with some tasks over the weekend. Splitting the workload over specific days meant I could get the jobs done around the house when the twins were sleeping or happily in their rockers.
Having a clean house was great, but nothing ever stays clean too long but having an organised house just made it a whole lot easier. I guess this is where The Organised Housewife grew from.
Over the years many people who crossed my path often asked for advice on how I coped, friends asked for recipes and one person close to my heart lost her mum. I watched as her home changed. She came home with items belonging to her mother, there was no place made for these things and there was no room to accommodate them and with that a corner became cluttered. I watched as she started to accumulate more items, she found it really hard to part with her belongings that she didn’t really need. I watched, feeling helpless as all of this happened. I offered some small tips and advise and to help her and to help clear the clutter, however this was a big emotional task, I had to step back and wait for her to be ready.
When the twins started school they were always forgetting to do something, brush their teeth or put on their socks ready for when it was time to leave, so I made them a routine chart. One of the mums from school saw their chart, she loved it and wanted one too, with that request, I made her one, then the neighbour wanted one too. This started something, a spark, an idea, a want, to share and help other people who feel just like i did or worse felt like my friend overwhelmed in a house of clutter.
So I created the blog, I now share my ideas on how to stay organised, my recipes, my routine charts plus many more printables and my decluttering tips. I want to share with my readers that if you are struggling, you can gain back the control. As for that one person that lost her mum, she is proud of my blog and achievements, but she does not read my posts, I understand it’s a hard process. I will write and share as much as I can about decluttering, organising, meal planning and cleaning, because I know that she will find that moment when she is ready to make that step and I will be here to help her on her journey, to have a home she wants to spend time in, creates calm to replace the chaos and to embrace the empowerment felt when becoming an Organised Housewife.
This post is a part of the Kidspot Ford Territory Top 50 Blog Awards. I am humbled to be in the Top 50, but to be Kidspot’s number 1 Blogger would just be amazing. I would absolutely love a trip to BlogHer in New York to help grow my blogging skills and to drive around in a Brand New Ford Territory for a year, cruising the Queensland coastline in style and showing you our adventures! Thankyou Kidspot I have really enjoyed writing this post, by the end of it I was in tears.
Please visit Kidspot for some really great recipes, ideas of activities to do with the kids, a forum for parents, plus so much more!
Ooh and while your there, please vote for me, by doing so you will have a chance to win $5,000.
