Where Do You Find Yourself on The Pendulum?

Alright.... where are my parents at?

Then you know that it is absolutely true that when your kids are being TOO quiet or TOO loud, something bad is going down?

The other day this happened to me while I was making dinner.

My middle 2 sons were playing in the living room, laughing, and actually getting along!! They are usually the ones who butt heads the most so I was cooking feeling so happy that they were having fun together.
Until...
I go to ask a question and see water everywhere!! Turns out that they were drinking my water bottle and spitting it out all over the place! I was not happy!! Thankfully it was just water but still another mess, among the other 5 or 6 that day, to clean up!

Naturally, the in between volume of activity is ideal but with 4 boys under age 6 makes these occasions few and far between. My fellow parents understand this without question!

So....as I was cleaning up the mess and finishing dinner, I got to thinking about how organizing is so very similar on these levels of noise.

Visualize a clock pendulum with TOO quiet on one side, TOO Loud on the other and Middle Ground smack in the center.

Lets start with TOO quiet. When your home is so unbelievably spic and span in cleanliness and organization like you see on magazine covers, then more times than not(unless you live alone) you are causing even more stress in your life striving to maintain PERFECTION. For yourself and any one else in the home. Believe me when I say I wish this was possible, because I have tried! Of course, there will be times of quiet once you hit the reset button by getting the house back to square one.
Which is why we take showers right? Not because we believe a shower will keep us from ever getting dirty again but just refreshes us to until the next shower.

Now for TOO loud. When your home is so chaotic and everything is just all over the place, wherever it happened to land, you will not be able to have any peace or achieve any productivity. It is proven that our ability to think clearly and sanely is largely affected by our surroundings. We are just not capable to function at our actual potential in this type of environment. I believe we all have the TOO loud moments whether its daily or weekly. Which are only defined by each persons desires and standards. These moments are inevitable for different reasons and circumstances but are not hopeless.
This is why it's ok to get all sweaty while working out, go mudding, or make a mess baking because its easily solved with a quick shower or rag and some water.

So the goal in being organized and clean is NOT an all or nothing type of situation. It is finding the middle ground.
As with most things in life, going to any sort of extreme on either side of the spectrum is overkill, unnatural, and unhealthy for any length of time.

The hope and encouragement I want to give is to settle the "magazine worthy" and the "why try" mindsets that hold us back from living life and living it fully!
Also, that no ones middle ground is ever the same or identical. The art in it is finding each persons middle ground to make it possible and reasonable to maintain and simplify life.
Do what works for you not what may have worked for someone else or just because it looked really great.

My hope is that you find what your middle ground is so that you aren't swinging from one extreme to another but instead finding that unique sweet spot that keeps your home in a calm, productive manner.
Being relaxed in the quiet moments and calm in the loud moments.
The pendulum will swing but never allow yourself to get stuck in either extreme.