It started with a simple goal: get those clothes off the floor already! An not-to-be named pre-teen had the kind of room that makes mothers cry. A narrow path of carpet ran from doorway to bed to dresser. To be fair, it was winter’s fault. Winter brought snow which piled up on our roof and caused a leak in the closet which caused the clothing evacuation. An evacuation to refugee camps made of piles on the floor.
Spring brought optimism and determination: this is a problem and we will fix it. Of course the solution had a name and that name is IKEA. Well, a trip to IKEA is like going to a theme park. Who knows when we’ll be here next? We’d better do it all. No visit is complete without the impulse purchases. And the impromptu meatballs to keep our energy up.
You’ll be glad to know that a flat-packed dresser and coordinating night stand has given the refugees new homes. I still trip on the model of an Assyrian siege tower but like everything else about the house, it is a work in progress. As we slowly move from space to space organizing and purging, I know there is another room that is hoarding and falling into disorder.
I am completely stumped at people whose homes show up in design blogs or interior decorating shows. Are they obsessively neat or are we ridiculously sloppy? I have come to the conclusion that our family life can’t easily include a highly organized home. I would love it though–tidy shelves keeping only the essential. Our lives are too organic with open-ended projects and books laid open for the next reading session. I will have to settle for keeping clothes off the floor.
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