Change did not happen overnight. It did not even happen that week we spent deep cleaning and decluttering. Change has been seeping into my daily life one small step at a time.

Accepting that change only comes with the first step, I am now moving on to change other areas of my life. There are places that the best me does not shine forth. Instead, I send out a black and white image if I make any showing at all. Today that first small step was taken.

1. I told everyone (including my husband) what was needed from them and then I expected it to get done.

2. While they were doing what I needed from them, I was also doing the things on the list that I had committed to do. That meant I had to walk away from the computer because it was not time for the computer.

3. “How do you stay focused on the work you are doing?” That question was posed to me by my teenager and the only answer I had was that you have to CHOOSE to do that task. I am choosing to stay on schedule, on track and on task for today!

Change is coming but only if I choose to make the necessary adjustments to allow change access into my life.

How do you bring change?

Homemaker skills were not passed on to me from generation to generation and are skills I continually work to perfect. I have the cooking part down on most days (except with fish – fish and I have issues), but I have to coax myself into washing the dishes that I use to cook. When I leave the dishes stacked up in the sink they have a tendency to multiple into an overflowing mound. I avoid the kitchen when that occurs.

Growth is something I do desire, so I have started doing things that will force me to stretch and to be more.

• Have company over on a regular basis. Knowing others will see my home keeps me accountable to keep it clean. I am not going for the “unlived in” look, not with three active boys, but I do want people to be able to stop in without having to step over piles or move piles to sit down.

• Volunteer to lead a bible study. This may seem like it has nothing to do with having a good, orderly home, but God has a way of working things into any study that you might pick up. I discovered in the first group that I lead that I was an example to those around me. I now try to think before I react, say or do, “what kind of example will I be?”

• Accept that you are a role model. Someone looks up to your walk RIGHT NOW – where you are. It may be your children or that cashier at your local grocery store. Forget about big brother, people are watching you to discover the right walk.

• Do a little every chance that you get. Thirty minutes worth of cleaning in the morning and evening go a long way towards keeping your house ship shape.

• Do it as you go. “If you kick it or step on it then pick it up and put it in its home.” That one rule has saved me hours of clean up. BUT this rule also goes for my cooking. Doing the dishes as I cook makes it easier to do the dishes and keeps my kitchen ready for the next round.

Keeping a good house requires more than housekeeping skills. A good, warm house comes from a Proverbs life and that Proverbs life springs directly from the heart. Plant the good, the positive and the uplifting in your heart and you will see the benefits of a good home sprouting soon.

The little things can end up being the big thing that makes THE difference in your journey.

Every time I come BACK by, the mess is still there. Sometimes it has even managed to gain a voice and calls out to me – taunting me for my lack of incentive. There have been those moments when I am certain that the pile has grown and expanded all on its own.

Most of these moments could be avoided completely if I would just kill the procrastination in my own life. But the truth is there are days when I am tired, or worn down or just not in the mood to do the things that need to be done. That is when it is best to have a plan that I can fall back on and carry me through so that my dishes and laundry no longer talk to me.

6 Tips for Getting it Done

1. Never walk past it. If you see it then pick it up, put it away or wash it. One is much easier than an entire sink or room.

2. Keep a list of things that come up. It is too easy to get lost in the day and forget about that phone call that you needed to make or bill that HAS to be paid.

3. Make it a family thing. Even if you are a stay at home or work at home parent you do not live alone in the home. Assign jobs for each kid. According to my husband, men need SPECIFIC tasks, so give them tasks. Kids can be forced to work. Husbands have to go voluntarily. Share your needs and wants and then work out the list together if you really want the whole family onboard. Yes, it would be easier to do it yourself in the beginning, but eventually they will be a benefit so keep pushing!

4. Put on your shoes when you get up and get dressed in the morning. It will help you feel like you are actually doing something but it will also help to protect your feet when you are running around the house. Bare feet can become sore feet when you get active!

5. Allow for some flexibility. Some things are more important than others. The laundry does not have to come out as soon as the buzzer sounds. Finish that game with the kids first. Know what needs to be done, but be willing to shuffle things around if something else comes up.

6. One more thing means one less thing. Get one more item done before you take a break, call it a night, or change gears. Be careful, it is easy to “one more thing” yourself into exhaustion. Stick to the ONE and you will get more done.

It is often the delay that causes the messes. Putting off washing the breakfast dishes until supper means your kitchen feels cluttered and you really do not want to cook dinner. Getting things done now will make life easier and much less stressful. The more tools you have in place to help you get things done then the more likely you are to actually do them.

The Christmas spirit always takes over my thoughts when the weather turns cold and all the leaves have fallen. Sometimes it does it when I turn the calendar to December. Alabama weather does not always cooperate with the holiday season.

The joy and generosity of Christmas lifts my heart and focuses my attention on the right things. Each year the gremlins show up trying to make chaos of the season. It is important to be prepared for their invasion if I am going to come out on the other end still focused on the peace and joy.

3 Tips for Defeating the Christmas Gremlins

1. Refuse debt – finances are tough for us right now and the immediate thought is to turn to the credit cards to be able to pay for anything or credit of any kind. But the debt gremlin will ruin the festivities, if not immediately then soon after the paper has been thrown aside.

2. Avoid obligations – EVERYONE wants to have a party during the holidays. Most of us could literally schedule some type of event for almost every day in the month of December. The time gremlin will make you feel guilty if you do and if you don’t. Decide right now to mark off the amount of time that you will spend going and doing and how much needs to be spent at home.

3. Get beyond traditions – having events and activities that are remembered by the kids is great but should not be the driving force of the holidays. Times will change, interests will change and pretty soon the kids will be IN the parade instead of just sitting along the route collecting candy. The tradition gremlin will try to control the entire holiday schedule but you have to be willing to let it grow and change with your family.

The Christmas spirit comes from a heartset and not a mindset. Getting beyond the way things are expected and focusing on the season will help to keep the Christmas gremlins cuddly and lovable little mogwais.

I’m going to blame it on our wedding (even if it was almost 15 years ago). We received a total of four towels (two sets of a bath towel and wash rag) and one set of sheets. Everything else was silver, crystal or china. Just what every couple needs when they are first starting out.

There was a time when I tried to use the gifts as much as possible. After three kids – all boys – those times seem like a far away dream. Part of it is that I don’t have time to entertain like I once did. Most of it is because we are much more casual than I thought I’d be. Crystal and silver just don’t work well with water balloon fights and grilling.

We are planning a huge sale/fund raiser in the upcoming days to help fund a drama ministry (and to get rid of all the stuff that is getting in the way out of our blessings). I have a feeling that at least a few of those bowls will likely make the sale. If I get real frisky I might even take a few of the more impressive items to an actual auction (or in my spare time put them up for sale on Ebay).

All I know is that it is time to use it or to lose it. What are the crystal bowls in your life that are cluttering up your ability to receive the blessings God desires for your life?