A place for everything...

...and everything in its place.

Anyone who has known me for five minutes (okay, maybe two) knows that I like my environment neat and tidy. Before Ryan came along, this was relatively easy to do. Paul is certainly not what anyone would describe as organized. However, we came up with areas of compromise. He has certain drawers, places, and the entire garage where he can pile his "junk" (as I call it), and I promise to turn a blind eye. In return, he kindly cleans up after himself in the other areas of the house.

One of my big fears prior to having a baby was the realization that although babies are relatively small, they come with an enormous amount of stuff and all of that stuff must have a place to go. As we began registering for all of that stuff, I would quickly become overwhelmed. We learned that registering in batches was helpful so that I could gradually adapt to this organizational challenge. During my second trimester, I began a mission to clean out every closet, cabinet, and drawer in the entire house before the baby came (and I almost succeeded with the exception of one drawer, which has since been taken care of). We made trips to Goodwill almost every weekend to deposit all of the stuff we did not need. Poor Paul stood by anxiously, ready to make a defense for any item that he believed to be valuable and that I had defined as absolutely unnecessary. He lost the battle for one book bag in particular, and we have both come to lament its absence. But, hey, regretting one giveaway isn't that bad!

I believe some of my friends were actually worried that my child would not be allowed to play with abandon, or that I would spend my days following him around, picking up every toy that he dropped. Never fear! Ryan has free reign of the house, and he certainly takes advantage of it. As long as he is not destructive or in danger, I love watching him carry around and play with toys throughout the house.

How am I able to live in this messy environment? Because I know that once 7 p.m. arrives, Ryan will go to sleep, and the house will once again be mine (I mean, ours)! Every toy will be returned to the place where it belongs. Most of that stuff will even be out of eyesight, and I can enjoy several clutter-free hours before the morning comes, and the cycle starts all over again.

There are promising signs that Ryan shares my appreciation of the orderly. His sippy cup is always returned to the cup holder on his tray during mealtimes. If he is given a cloth or paper towel, he pretends to clean the floor with it. He always tries to hang up his washcloth to dry following his bath. It gives me hope that perhaps one day he will be a happy companion as we clean up his toys together at the end of the day. Yeah, right!