Being organized is not my forte.  Well, maybe (strong emphasis) it was before I had kids, but now I have sink holes.  They pop up everywhere.  Tricky little piles of junk, sucking in matter and threatening to explode at any moment.  Hiding in drawers, trunks, bookshelves…

 

 

This little gem – okay, more like glaring eye sore – sits in my kitchen.  It contains photos, books, magazines, school paperwork, and tons of other random bits of crap that add up to an abyss of scariness.  I have cleaned it out before, but the madness came back.  I’ve never really found a good way to contain the madness, really.  And since I’m on a roll here, I kinda gave up.  Not all together, mind you, but enough that it was easier to pretend the bookshelf was invisible than to tackle it head on.

And this is not the only area of my house that needs organizational help.  As evidenced by my multiple junk drawers.

So, when I got the opportunity to review Pretty Neat by Alicia Rockmore & Sarah Welch, I kinda jumped at the chance.

 

 

At first glance, and stick with me here, I was kind of disappointed when I flipped through the book.  Where were the beautiful glossy pictures of what my house could look like?  Where were the step by step diagrams of how I should organize the paper mountain?  My visual mind had a hard time with the lack of photo’s and pretty distractions.

Then my adult self stepped in, and told my visual self to woman-up and read the book like a big girl.  So I did…and I started hearing what I really needed to hear. What I should have already known, but needed someone else to tell me…

• How to develop my own definition of “organized” and how to create a “good enough” goal.
• Excuses and postponing tasks only make me more stressed, and make the task harder.
• The fact that we all have clutter, but no amount of complaining makes it disapear.

And then, as if to say “Hey, lady, look at the possibilities,” the book gives you countless amounts of real-life situations and interviews in which other women – just like the rest of us – deal with all the chaos of life.  How they manage the to-do lists, schedule, de-clutter, and even make time for healthy home-cooked meals.  But these ladies aren’t super-women.  A lot of them even thought they didn’t have enough expertise to be included in the book.  They were doing enough – not everything – but enough so that life was easier.  They were doing.  And the book gives you a few ideas of how you can do it too.

Needless to say, I have dog eared many pages.

Now, I can give you a copy to read too!  To enter:

• Comment below telling me what area’s of your organizational life you’ve been struggling with – I know I’m not the only one!
• For extra entries: tweet or facebook the giveaway, follow my rss, or follow my Facebook page. Create a new comment below for each separate extra entry.
• US readers only, giveaway ends 3/20 at midnight, eastern time.

And there is a kickin’ BONUS.  Many blogs are giving away this book right now, and one person from all the book giveaway winners will also receive a $200 same-as cash (Visa, AmEx, etc.) gift card and $50 worth of Buttoned Up products to help organize your life!  So get to commenting!

 

UPDATE: we have a winner!  Becky won the Pretty Neat book and a chance at the big prize too – good luck Becky!  And thanks to all for entering!

 

Disclosure:  This post was made possible by Global Influence.  Although I was given the book to review (and an entry into another prize drawing) all thoughts and opinions are honest and my own!