I wear a dress almost everyday to work. (I know, you already hate this post, but keep reading!) I just love dresses. I learned early on in my fight to balance work and motherhood that getting out of the door in the mornings for work could be a real challenge. Before I left for work, I would have a million things to do! Things like making breakfast and lunches, reviewing and signing papers that were usually given to me 5 minutes before it was time to leave and sometimes stopping fights between siblings! I had to do all those things and still manage to make myself look presentable! Oh! By the way, why wasn’t this in the motherhood handbook when my children were born? Right, there is no handbook. Sigh…Anyway, I quickly realized that with a dress, I was…well…dressed. There was no matching or coordinating. Just a pair of shoes, some earrings and lip gloss (on a good day) and I was ready to walk out the door! So, it started as a time-saver.
But there is another part to it. See, when I wear a dress, I am different. I feel beautiful. My walk is different. I mean really, my stride is different. And don’t let me find a great pair of shoes to go with it, you can’t tell me nothing! I am more confident. The only way I can describe it is that my putting my dresses on everyday is how I shine my sink. OK, I know you have no idea what I am talking about. Let me explain!
See, earlier in my marriage, I stumbled across a website designed to help women manage the task of house cleaning. The site listed a series of “baby steps” to help get you started on the way to managing the chaos of your home. The first step was pretty unusual. Step 1 was to shine your sink. Yep. Literally clean your sink (and only your sink) until it shines before you go to bed each night. I thought it was weird but tried it anyway. I followed the steps listed and I tell you, my kitchen sink was so shiny that you could see your reflection! The next morning I came downstairs, mentally preparing myself to tackle my mommy duties and get ready for work, and wouldn’t you know it? That darn sink actually made me smile! There was something about coming down to that shiny sink that completely changed my morning mood! It’s a simple thing but shining my sink made me feel somewhat accomplished, despite being overwhelmed. It was a small thing but it had a big impact.
It is the same way with my dresses. No matter what happens in my crazy world, a great dress can instantly change my mood! My dresses work for me. My dress is my shiny sink. For you, it may not be a dress. It could be your favorite pair of jeans, your best pair of shoes, a fresh manicure, or your favorite song. It is that one thing that tends to make you smile, no matter what. Do you have a shiny sink? Have you figured it out? Whatever it is, just know that once you identify it, it can be a wonderful tool to help you make it through rough times or even everyday crazy! So go ahead…shine your sink!
Oh, and just in case you need a little house cleaning motivation, that site still exists. I actually visited it recently and it has grown quite a bit since I first stumbled across it. The site is http://flylady.net/. Just remember, the first step is to shine your sink :-).
I LOVE IT BELINDA!!! Good advice.. Looking forward to more posts♥️