Sometimes I feel I am constantly cleaning, there is no beginning and most definitely no end to the overwhelming task of keeping my house tidy and clutter free.

I am, at heart, a minimalist, however this can be a challenge with a creative 4 year old and a husband who seems to think there are fairies that follow him around picking up after him. 

I regularly get frustrated and say to myself I am not going to clean for a whole day. I set myself the task of letting go of the need for perfection and simply allow stuff to gather around the place. This proves a massive challenge and usually I end up giving in and doing a quick once over to regain some semblance of order. I accept that I cannot function around mess and feel when my space is cluttered, my mind is also.

A few weeks ago my precious hubby and daughter went away for the weekend leaving me to my own devices. I missed them like crazy, but had a very tidy home. It was extremely odd to have all this spare time which would usually be filled with dishes, washing, picking up clothes and cleaning floors. While it was lovely to be able to sit with a cup of tea and my book, it also felt kind of, empty. It made me think about how life would be without my precious family, yes life would be a lot less messy but it would also be a lot less full. I had a realisation that the task of cleaning up after my loved ones is a small price to pay for the joy they bring me every day. Sometimes we are so busy complaining about the small stuff that we forget to step back and see the bigger picture, life is about our relationships with those around us, it is about being present with our daily tasks, especially the most menial ones, it is about compromise and acceptance. My husband will never be a clean freak, but he tries his best and now instead of resenting his underwear on the floor I choose to be grateful that I have a gorgeous man who takes care of me, and I don’t mind throwing the underpants in the dirty clothes basket. Instead of becoming overwhelmed with the amount of dishes in the sink I feel blessed to have shared another healthy meal with the most incredibly beautiful human beings in the world, my family. 

This may not always be at the forefront of my mind, it is only normal for frustration and fatigue to creep in now and then as it is not easy looking after a household, but before I jump into a conflict over something ridiculous as a toilet roll not being changed I think back to which I would rather – a tidy house or these amazing people in my everyday life. When I think of it that way I really understand the term….Bless this mess.