The other day, me, my friend Bean and our two families were talking about getting together. We were going to go to Bean’s house.

She said, “If you come over, you need to know that my house is a mess. There is clutter everywhere.”

I assured her, that I completely understood, but I don’t think she believed me. I’m here to tell her that she’s not alone. Here’s why…

This is my dining room table. Also, you should know that we recently ATE at this table while this massive pile sat with us. I had to do a two-armed swoop to push everything to one side, because the only other place to sit is our breakfast nook and that space doesn’t look any better.

Let’s take a closer look, shall we?

1. Lots of socks, because my husband has started doing the laundry and he won’t cart them around like I do. Now, they include one baseball and one softball sock from the games that were played IN JULY.

2. Two first aid kits.

3. Golf balls in a Santa bag.

4. Two mini water bottles.

5. Last week’s clean laundry; some thrown over chairs, some folded, but for goodness sake, NOT PUT AWAY.

6. A coverless book called Magic Eye II.

7. Buried under the book is a stuffed reindeer named Comet.

8. Buried under all of it is a homework assignment. Lucky, for us, it was from three weeks ago.

9. And, the white thing that looks like a tablecloth, is actually the table pad from Thanksgiving dinner.

Stay tuned for next time, when I make Bean feel even better about her house when I post a picture of my kitchen counter!

My daughter brought home a poem today that she wrote about herself.

I am energetic and creative.

I wonder how many stars there are.

I hear the wind blowing.

I see the sun glowing.

I want to travel the world.

I am energetic and creative.

I pretend to always know what I’m talking about.

I touch the grass.

I worry about money.

I say God Bless America.

I dream of going to Stanford.

I hope to have a good future.

I am energetic and creative.

From this I can gather three things of which I was not previously aware. First, when she says, “I know what I’m talking about” I will no longer believe her and, second, we need to not discuss money problems in front of the kids.

Third, my heart broke a little when she said, “…Stanford.” I have never imagined her anywhere but right here, at Ohio State.

Because if she leaves town in six years, who the heck is going to help her brother with his 9th grade math homework?

I felt the need to tell my son that, no matter what the problem,

“Sharts” are never the answer.

I saw this on Etsy the other day and fell in love:

I think it’s fair to say that it’s hard for most people to step outside of their comfort zone. I also think it’s fair to say that a lot of people are searching for something they will never find unless they take that first step. You know that whole, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” thing? Yeah, that.

Take the shot.

Whatever it is that you want to be, or do…just try. I promise that no one will laugh at you or call you foolish. Even if you fail, they will say, “Wow. How great that she tried!” or “He never shirks away from a challenge”.

If you want to learn to tango, wear a red dress, get a new job, go back to school, attend trapeze lessons, start going to church, run a marathon, clean out your garage, or write a blog post every day for a month (or even…let’s say…28 days out of 30), then go for it!

Maybe, just maybe, you will succeed.

And, that will feel spectacular.