How to create clutter without even trying!

Life teaches us many lessons, some of those we take to heart, and others we just pretend that we weren't in class that day. One of those lessons is that I am not the kinda girl who can just leave things be, let life take its course. No, not me. I must control everything and most of the time, I have no control over anything. Take, for example, my kids. Try as I might to make them the kinda girls who like to be clean and orderly, they are slobs. I have tried over and over again to make them see the light, that cleanliness is next to Mommy being happy. I bought them bins, I bought them Barbie cases, the more I bought to control the clutter, the more what I bought became part of the clutter. I have just about given up trying to control these two little terrors that become a super force against all that is orderly in my house. Not a morning goes by, that something sticky is spilled on my tablecloth, which in turn, has to be washed, along with the floor that collected the drips. The only way I could think to control this, was to not let them drink anything but water, but that didn't go over well, as water still spills!

So my lesson today is to become the kinda girl who does leave things alone, and let the water and juice spill where they may!

There isn't a Blank Wall Anywhere!

It has become quite apparent to me that I am not the kinda girl who likes clutter. I don’t have to look far to realize where my apparent hate of all things knick-knacky came from. My parents, God love them, believe that less is less and more is best. They have been collecting things, paintings, books, Hummels, anything that fills a void space in their house for as long as I can remember. Oh yeah, plants too, they are all over the house, the porch, usually finding a spot on top of the piles of newspapers and gadget magazines that seem inherently drawn to my parent's mailbox.

Here's an early memory that I believe brought about my loathing of things that are called collectibles by some, and junk by others. The day of my wedding (my first, more about the second later), the photographer came to my parents house to do the usual family photos, bridal photos and such. Well, he was shocked that there was not one, not one, blank wall in the entire house, including the bathroom, where we could take pictures.. Seriously, my parents have stuff everywhere, but not to the extreme that I should call the producers of Hoarders. Anyway, as it turned out, my dad would not remove the paintings from the living room wall, so we all had to stand by the picture window. So, in most of the family pictures, there are plants hanging behind one of my brothers' head. Funny stuff.. needless to say, those pictures aren't hung up anywhere in my parent's house, simply because there is no where to put them.

I don’t think I will ever be the kinda girl who likes knick knacks or Hummels, no offense, I like my walls bare, except for a nice picture here or there. When my daughters get married, I don’t want to waste the photographer's time and my money taking down pictures just so we have a blank canvas.