Since I was awake naturally by 4:30am (yay, insomnia!), I decided to capitalize on the early hour and go for a swim. While I swam, I prayed a lot to know what to do with these next couple months of life before the baby comes. Specifically, I wanted to know what I could do to be a better mom and homemaker. I don’t want the time to zip by while I bury my nose in books and then realize that my opportunity to create a beautiful childhood for my kids has completely passed.
Ironically, the last two books I read came to mind while I pondered my question. I thought about Stephanie Nielson and realized I wanted to be a great homemaker like she is, and then I thought about Marie Kondo’s Konmari method and realized that would help me get there. I want to apply the Konmari method of tidying up to create a literal structural foundation for peace and beauty in my house. The Konmari method requires that you touch every object you own and determine whether it brings you joy or not. She has you start off with clothes, and then works systematically through the rest of items in your house.
Marie Kondo promises that when you deep clean in this manner, you will never relapse to untidiness again. She estimates it takes about six months to properly tidy your house, but afterward, you’re so traumatized by the experience (my interpretation) that you never, ever allow yourself to accumulate unnecessary clutter again.
I love the idea of a house free of clutter and filled with only meaningful items. Even if my kids don’t notice an obvious difference at first, I feel like this exercise will enhance their experience in this home.
So, ironically (again), I ignored the kids all day and started cleaning my closet. Honestly, I felt that the decision must have been inspired because the kids played together beautifully all day. My faith in their ability to continue without incident wavered after lunch, and I tried to set them on a movie–but to no avail! They loved playing on this rainy day, and during her afternoon snack, Lydia announced, “This is the day I wanted.”
My jaw dropped open because I had literally done nothing for her except feed her. She even had to dress herself, brush her teeth by herself, and bring me a brush to get me to comb her hair. Since Mary had no interest in participating in her outfit change, she got to stay in pj’s all day.
In the evening I drove to Draper to get a massage Karin gifted me almost a year ago, and while I was gone, Abe took up the tidying banner–at which point the kids finally lost steam and settled in front of the TV.
