Spring Has Sprung

After several weeks of icy conditions and rain, it is finally beginning to look like spring outside my window and I couldn’t be more thrilled. I love spring! It’s such a beautiful time of renewal and reminder of God’s promises to us. I love the smell of daffodils growing in clusters on a hillside and the sight of trees full of new buds and wooden crosses outside of churches draped in colorful purple fabric.  Did I mention I love spring?

God’s word tells us in Song of Solomon 2:11-12, “For behold, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.”

Just like spring is a renewal of the land, it can be a renewal in our homes as well. There’s a reason they call it spring cleaning….there’s no better time to tackle deep cleaning and organization than on days when we can open our windows wide with the spring breeze, roll up our sleeves and get to work.

I’ve mentioned before that as a single mom, my time is very limited. However, I can certainly find time to set a timer as our own Lisa Rippy suggests and tackle what I can… one room at a time. With that in mind, I wanted to share what I’ve been working on the past couple days. I recently bought several spices and seasonings for easy meal preparation along with pantry staples in bulk. The problem is storing it all where I can easily see what I have. I noticed that all my seasonings and meal kits were stacked in the pantry where I couldn’t see what I had. I bought a clear shoe/pocket organizer to hang inside my pantry door to organize seasonings, box mixes, gravies, etc. and problem solved! I now can easily see what I have for meal preparation just by opening the pantry door.

Recently, I was entertaining a group of friends and one of them asked to borrow a pen. I pointed her to a drawer at the end of my kitchen cabinets and I heard her laughing and commenting about the dividers in the drawer. She asked “how is it that your junk drawer is even organized? Are you trying to make us feel bad?”

Here’s the thing, ladies….organization and homemaking doesn’t require us to be perfect. It’s simply about customizing your life to what works best for you and your family.

In my case, I can function much more efficiently in my crazy single-mom world if I’m not digging in a junk drawer for an ink pen to sign to that last-minute permission slip for my children as we run out the door in the morning.  Does your husband misplace his keys every morning? Maybe you prepare a sweet little tray or key ring by the back door just for him?

Here’s my challenge to you over the next few weeks…  make a list of things in your home that require some attention and spring cleaning.  Is it your laundry room, your closet, the kids’ playroom?  Start with the first thing on your list, set a timer for 30 minutes to an hour, light your favorite candle, open the windows, turn on some music and start working.  I’ll also be sharing some of the things I’m spring cleaning over the next few weeks and maybe even a video or two. Will you join me?

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; …