Creating a place of solace...

Did you know that the scripture talks about "the home" over 600 times? I didn't. Well, not until I was Googling ways to help create a more peaceful home.  In my mind, the only significant scripture about being a HomeMAKER was that seemingly unattainable Proverbs 31 woman that I don't even want to start comparing myself to...
I don't know about you but I've come to realize that the state of my home (bedroom, kitchen, even my van) is often a direct correlation to how I am feeling internally. The more at peace and centered I feel, the more motivated I feel to create a stress-free place of relaxation and solace at home. When I am feeling stressed, overwhelmed or even depressed I tend to avoid the mundane every day chores and the more chaos around me the more chaotic I feel inside.  I know it's a vicious cycle and you would think that the direct correlation of the two would cause me to work constantly to create a peaceful habitat but if I'm being honest I don't always succeed.   A couple of my downfalls are: (1) I don't particularly like to clean.  I can keep things basically "picked'up" but hate the deep cleaning (2) I'm a procrastinator --- even if I have a good intention of doing a cleaning project, I will find other things "to-do" and never get to the original project (3) I'm an organized STACKER...yep, you read that right...a STACKER.  That means I keep organized stacks of paper, mail, coupons, and other things that only I know what/where they are.  It's not a good method and is a habit I am adding to my list of things I want to change. I really want to work on creating a peaceful, relaxing and happy space that my family can feel comfortable in.
All this reflection was brought about by my ONE accomplished task yesterday (nope, once again it was not working toward my weight goals lol)...I cleaned mine and my husband's bedroom.  I mean I actually picked up all the stacks of stuff - the pile of clean clothes, the duffle bag I keep at instant access in case I need it (or at least that sounds like a good excuse), a couple cookbooks, choir music and cds from our Christmas production and various other papers I might need for something -- I finally moved it out of our room or found a place for them. Now don't get me wrong, some of the items are probably not in the proper place. Some just got moved to our home office and out of the bedroom BUT at least the bedroom is now a more peaceful place.  I lit a couple candles and looked around thinking "wow, it really is peaceful."
So, now comes my additional project for 2014.  I want to create an environment in my home that is a place of refuge and peace for my family...not one of disorganization or chaos.  I'm not having grandeur dreams that I will have the perfectly clean home - that will probably never happen - but I will make a new attempt to change the energy of my home through a more direct and conscious effort of doing away with the STACKS and finding a place for everything.
I would love to hear YOUR ideas of how you maintain order and peace in your home. What tricks do you use and what has made a difference in organization?  And if you, like me, would like to make changes for a peacefully and more orderly habitat...how are you going to start?  For me, I'm cleaning out the medicine closet and kids bathroom today...that's my plan so let's see how it goes...


Here are a few links to tips on creating a peaceful home I found in my research:
Creating a Peaceful Home
Tips on creating a Peaceful Home
4 Steps to a Peaceful Home