Neatness is relaxing

I love my house. If we lived in Las Vegas, it certainly wouldn't be found anywhere near the vicinity of the posh Las Vegas Luxury Condos, but I'm not interested in Vegas or in posh. I try to decorate it to create a peaceful welcoming haven; however, serene decorations are not all that is necessary to achieve a peaceful atmosphere.

Through almost eight years of marriage, I have come to realize how important it is to keep our home picked up. Some days that is a well-nigh impossible task! However, when the girls' toys are scattered everywhere and there are piles of (clean) laundry and (dirty) dishes, I start to feel tense and uptight, my patience is noticeably limited, and the smallest inconveniences become overwhelming irritants. I am frequently amazed by how rapidly that tension disappears once I pick up the messes! Because I tend to be an inconsistent housekeeper, I am setting goals that I hope will help get me into a cleaning routine. My goal for this week is to wash all dishes after every meal.

Have any of you noticed the correlation between disorderly surroundings and increased tension in your house?

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