I've noticed a few of you doing your spring cleaning lately. I don't think this is a coincidence. I think a clean house is essential to my losing weight! Really! If my house is in order, I feel I have control of my life. It's also a major accomplishment, which also lends to feeling in control. But just like weight, the house needs to be maintained too!

I can get all the daily stuff done: cleaning and laundry etc. What gets me is the nasty stuff: clearing out the garage, doing drawers and closets. Has anyone started doing picture albums yet ("Creative Memories")? What an unending, frustrating job! How do you all manage to get this done? I'm even an at-home mom and STILL can't find time to get it done! I think the day I get it all done is the day I get to my weight loss goal!

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Joni

I used to hate housework, now I enjoy it! I love keeping the house neat! It is hard though, it is a big house! LOL... I actually like doing drawers and all those little jobs, that is funny that you don't! :)

I agree with housework being a workout in itself even if they say it does not help much. LOL

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~Here's to eating right and living longer~
Massielita

Dear Joni,

I so agree with you about needing to get your house in order to really be successful on a program! Depak Choprah says that our homes and bodies are an outpicture of what is going on in our minds. Disordered house=disordered mind. It also makes sense to me that we need to get rid of the old, to give stuff away that may benefit others more than ourselves, to prosper financially. I used to be a Creative Memories consultant, but I couldn't afford the constant big orders and inventory I had to maintain. But I still love to scrapbook.

I think compusive people like to be compulsive in other areas too! We let our houses go and go, making them nice on the surface maybe, but not the closets, garages, etc. Then we want to work till exhaustion and completely overhaul it. That is like a crash diet. It works for a while, but unless you stick with it, you'll just revert to old habits. Better idea: I have made one area my focus for the week. This week my focus is one junk drawer. I will get it clean as I can, but more importantly, I will try to KEEP it ordered. Doing this, I have already tackled my cabinets and got rid of extra dishes and stuff we don't use, and I also did my pantry, so I can actually find stuff when it's time to cook. But I only take on one heavy duty project a week.
Love and success to you, Joni!

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Never give up, Never give in! Stay the course day by day, You're sure to win!

I loveeeeeeee to scrapbook! I have so much stuff to do it too. Geesh I am a sucker for anything new they have coming out....lol..I have finished one book and am working on another. Have you been doing it long?

A clean house is a MUST for me...actually it has to be NEAT. Dust I can over look at times..as right now...lmao..but clutter I can't...drives me insane...lol

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Nothing tastes as good as thin feels!

You like to clean drawers!!!! Oh my goodness, can you please have yourself cloned and send a copy to my house?
I'm ever so envious of those good habits Massie.

Joni, my sister in law gave me a bright and shiny new copy of Oprah's January magazine.
There was an article about a professional organizer. One tip that she mentioned was not to try and tackle the whole mess at once.
How about doing just one drawer today. Another tomorrow.
Good luck and if you get it down pat, let us all know!

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Believe that you are capable of accomplishing anything, however difficult it may seem.

Hey! Someone else that reads Deepak Chopra's books, Heather C. I agree. Though I haven't been tackling much of the disarray in my household yet. I've just been doing little projects. I've made a list for each room and what I want to do with it. After I've done something on the list, I mark it off and move onto the next. I don't get a lot accomplished with a 6 month old to entertain! Slowly but surely! I do feel so much better and more focused when I have a clean house.

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QUESTION: What do you call a person who actually enjoys cleaning drawers?

ANSWER: Massy-chistic!!! LOL LOL :D :D :D

I have read many Deepak Chopra books and once had the opportunity of speaking with him. I asked him what his best advice would be for me regarding weight loss. His answer: meditation 30 minutes 2X/day. (Never did do that!)

I started scrapbooking about a year ago because my girlfriends were doing it and you know that peer-pressure thing. It was great for about a month. But suddenly I am looking at 20 books that have to be re-done and I am in major overwhelm! I figured it will be my retirement project in 20 years!!


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Joni

I'm with you, and I think the stay-at-home mom thing contributes. When kids are in daycare all day, they are not at home messing up your house. Now we have to think of a way to count housework as exercise. I agree with your idea about controll, too. When I have a baby(my third is now almost 6 months), I seem to loose control over everything in my life for about a year. My eating habits are way out of control, my house is filthy, and it's even a struggle to keep my hair clean. I'm trying really hard to get back in the swing of things faster this time!

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Celeste

Putting off things like household chores tends to put us in one of those vicious cycles of dismay, feeling overwhelmed, then seeking food for comfort, then gaining weight, then feeling depressed...you know what I mean?

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Marilyn

disordered house=disordered mind!!!!
well now i know whats wrong with me lol..
seriously though i do believe that having a clean house is important to staying OP and feeling in control.
Its so hard to keep the place clean with a 3 and 1 year old demolition team though. my house is clean at the moment and i do feel GREAT!!!
333 sons sent a quote through to me once i am not sure if i remember it right but it was very true.
"cleaning up after children is like shovelling the walk while its still snowing."
hugs all bell :D

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