Oh, I’ve so been there, Shannon! My house was always a mess when my kids were growing up, and every morning I would wake up promising myself that this would be the day I’d tackle it. But it was too overwhelming and at the end of the day I’d be mad at myself for not doing what I said I would do in the morning. That went on forever, or so it seemed. I’m not good with chaos and I only got it together when they all left home, when my husband began to travel a lot, and when I had the house to myself, with no one else’s messes.

I couldn’t afford to have anyone clean my house, and I would have been ashamed for them to see the dust and dirt in every corner. It gets better but never easier. I tend to gather crap, too, and the hardest part is to emotionally release myself from “stuff” and be ruthless about throwing it out.

Watching the “Hoarders” show helped! I wasn’t nearly that bad, of course, but it made me realize how much of my crap was useless and really could be thrown out.

But look at you — here you are writing about it, making lemonade out of lemons! I love that about you.