Clearing out the Clutter

Since I got back from the Smokin Hot Mama Retreat two weeks ago I have focused on clearing out the clutter.  Out of my house, out of my car, out of my head.  I've made a discovery.  It is easier to function in life without so much clutter in my head and in my house.  Let's start with the mental clutter.  For a while now, I have had in my head that my mother in law looks down on me for staying at home with my kids and for buying yellow box flip flops, a kinda pricy brand of flip flops that I LOVE...I had thought for months about trying to talk to her about some things and could never quite get the courage to because "she kinda scares me a little bit".  I totally say this tongue in cheek.  She is a wonderful woman and one I admire very much, but she is also one that I don't want to make mad, and I value her opinion of me, so I was scared to say some of the things I wanted to say because I thought I might make her mad...  I let this clutter my brain up.  So, I decided when I got home to write her an email to tell her some of the things I wanted her to know.  And her response was everything opposite of what I had been thinking she was thinking.  And here I had let this clutter my brain for months, thinking that she was thinking poorly of me and mad at me, when that was anything but the case.  I have also been dealing with some health insurance drama that is a long story.  But what it boils down to I could stick my hand in the sand and not make a few phone calls to get some answers to questions and worry for the next 6 months or I could make a few phone calls and possibly here some answers I didn't want to hear.  Well, I tackled those phone calls, and turns out I have nothing to worry about, everything is fine with my current policy, and they can't cancel me in 6 months like I thought.  And again, I could have spent the next six months off and on worrying about something that there is no need in worrying about. 
Now let's move along to the house.  I am starting to see that how I keep my house, greatly effects my mood and my stress level and even my relationship with my husband.  There is just something soothing about walking into a bedroom at night and seeing a bed that is made and the room is neat.  I used to never make my bed, my thought was, what's the point, nobody's gonna see it and I'm just gonna mess it up again tonight. There is also something refreshing about opening my medicine cabinet and knowing exactly where to look for the cold medicine instead of getting the feeling of searching for a needle in a haystack.  And my kids are having a blast playing in Griffin's cleaned out closet that is no longer bursting at the seams.  Sydney calls it her dog house.  For me a clean house is easier to function in.  Things don't take as long to find.  Things don't take as long to put up when you aren't trying to cram them into a cabinet, closet or drawer that are stuffed to the gills.  There is less stress when there is less mess.  And you can ask my mama...this isn't something that comes naturally for me.  But unfortunately, yes I'm gonna say it.  My mama was right.  It is easier when you clean as you go...This isn't something that happens over night.  I still have a long way to go.  But, I am now finding when I go to my room in the afternoon to put up laundry, that I look at the bed and think...hmmmm I don't even remember when I made the bed.  There are a few things that have helped me in getting organized.  One, my sister in law's mother once told me she uses the philosophy "Don't Pass it Up, Pick it Up"  and wow, try this for a few days and you will be amazed.  Instead of thinking I need to pick up those toys or I need to unload that dishwasher, I now pick up the toys or unload the dishwasher.  It's phenomenal really how this little saying has made my life so much easier.  The other thing I do is I play a little game with myself.  I say in the morning, okay, what about my house would I be the most embarrassed about if Rob's Aunt Cindy saw it if she stops by today.  (She's gonna kill me if she reads this, but I'm trying to be an open book so, there ya go)  You see Rob's Aunt Cindy keeps the cleanest house I have ever seen.  She and my mother are my heros when it comes to cleaning house, but my mom can't stop by any day because she lives in Wichita, so Aunt Cindy it is. 
So I know everyone doesn't tick exactly like me but maybe just maybe if you are feeling a little stressed out, worn out or out of control, you can clear out some mental clutter or literal clutter from you life and maybe one of my solutions to my struggles might help you too!