Kid Clutter

I have a confession; I sort of love kid clutter.

When I walk through my house and see a puzzle piece on the coffee table and two Matchbox cars on the stairs I smile just a little bit. I walk into the bathroom and see the bathtub littered with boats and play fish and it doesn't bother me at all. When we used to have the housekeepers (notice the passed tense on that one... reduced hours at work for mama = an attempt at reduced living expenses = daddy cleans the house now:)), I would come home to shiny floors and all the toys put away on shelves and out of my room, the stairs, the hallways etc, and it would feel almost strange. Luckily, my son wastes no time and there would be blocks and trucks on my bedroom floor within moments.

When I walk through the house and it's quiet because Connor is in bed or at preschool and I see his stuff everywhere, it reminds me of him. I see the shoebox full of small toys and am reminded about how he brought that shoebox to me that morning and said it was my "mail." I see one of my high heels in the bathroom and remember how he was trying to wear them the day before while looking in the full length mirror at himself. I see the Light sabre in the hallway that I specifically asked him to bring back to the toy room that morning and even that makes me smile because he is three and doesn't always follow directions very well and that means he is a pretty normal kid. Most of all, I see this stuff and I am reminded that we don't live in an adult only house anymore. We are a family and this is a family house now, and that's the best reminder of all.

I think I know where this whole loving-kid-clutter thing stems from. I specifically remember as a child when we went to a new place, someone's home or even a new classroom, I would immediately judge the "funness" of the new place based on the toys I could see. If the place was immaculate with all the toys out of sight, the fun level was pretty much a zero. However, if the place was messy with toys and art projects and games out everywhere, the fun level was a 10! It makes me laugh to think of this because kids have such different standards than adults do! Kids could care less if the floor hasn't been swept in two days (or three, or four, or a week- who doesn't sweep their floors for a week? You'll never get me to admit it so don't even try) but do they have the freedom to take the all-important stuffed orange dog with them when they eat breakfast, and maybe leave said dog there to finish breakfast while the child goes on to a new activity? That's what is important.

I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, because growing up our house was always clean (I got the housekeeper gene from them too), but there was always kid clutter everywhere. I think this was one of the reasons my house was always the place my friends wanted to hang out at. They could tell this was a family house, not an adult house, and didn't ever worry about having to take off their shoes or breaking important stuff or getting yelled at because they sat on the wrong couch. Dan and I have always said we want our house to be as welcoming as possible to our children's friends and I think kid clutter just might be a way to do that.

In conclusion, the next time you trip over a Barbie on the stairs or step on a Lego that seems sharper than it should be, remember why that stuff is there. And what a boring place your house would be without it:)

Loves to all.