My Least Favorite Things

Paper clutter and taxes.  My least favorite things and right now, they seem to go hand in hand.

I have a terrible aversion to paper.  I don't know why.  I don't like the amount of it that comes into the house, I can't seem to throw it all away, and I hate filing.  There, I said it.

The result is that I have small piles of paper stashed all over the house.  None of it is organized, and probably most of it is not necessary.  I causes no end of frustration because I'm constantly shifting piles from one surface to another.  I never throw away a paper that might be important but when I need to put my hands on it, I can't.

That's where taxes come in.

Preparing my taxes

I'm not against paying my taxes at all.  I do believe that I live in the best country in the world, however flawed the government may be.  I wish we were more fiscally responsible but there is still much good that comes out of our tax money.  But paying my taxes requires so much paper work!!!

So today, to kill two birds with one stone, I started sorting through all the piles of paper to locate the few things I need for my taxes.  The rest went into the trash can or (gasp!) were filed away appropriately.

Surprisingly, it only took a couple hours to sort through it all.  It's a huge load off my mind.  Now, I have to discipline myself to file papers right away instead of letting it lay around.

21 Days to Simple

It's common knowledge that forming new habits takes 21 days of repetition.  There are so many things that I wish came naturally.  Honestly, I envy some who are obsessive about cleanliness in their home.  I'm not.  But I wish I were.

Since January 6th, I have made my bed every day in hopes of starting a new habit.  A made up bed makes the bedroom feel tidy and it's very comforting to crawl into snug sheets.  It takes so little time and I immediately feel like I've accomplished something so early in the day.

Making my bed

I was not prepared for how strong this new habit would feel.  There have been a couple of occasions when I had to leave the house before my husband was out of bed.  I didn't think about making the bed when I left or even when I returned.  But when I walked into my bedroom and saw the bed, the sight of it startled me!  It looked out of the ordinary and it hurt my brain to walk by it.  I had to stop what I was doing and make the bed before I could continue with my task.  It let me know that a new habit had truly been formed.

My hope is to form some other new habits.  Like not filing papers instead of letting them stack up.  Or refraining from using the dining table as dumping grounds.  To not leave books or papers on the floor.  Maybe to bake something every day.

Pineapple cake

I have been reading my Bible everyday after I make my bed, start a load of laundry, and get my coffee.  Doing these 4 simple things every day help me to feel like I have order in my life.  And that gives me peace.