You Can't Chase Happiness

You can't chase happiness, you have to find it where you are.

Do you know where I heard that saying? In a Hallmark Christmas movie... I stopped the movie, re-wound it, re-played it and quickly wrote it down.

I just love it. It's exactly what we all need to hear. Why are we always looking for happiness? Why is it that when we finally get that promotion, or get that new car, or that new whatever then we'll be happy? Why can't we just be happy NOW? With what we have and where we are in our lives? Let's focus on the here and now. Celebrate all the positive things in our lives right now. Right this second.

Here are some things that make me happy right this second.
- Having Ryan as my husband
- Being able to go home to a nice, warm apartment
- Coffee (I neeeed it)
- A good job with a great boss

Two things from my happiness list - Ryan and coffee!!!

See, it's pretty easy to come up with a quick little list. It took me less than thirty seconds. When you take the time to write out what makes you happy you realize you have so much to be happy about.

So maybe those Hallmark Christmas movies are doing something right... Behind those sappy lines and bad acting there's some pretty great messages on how to live your life.

Thanks for reading,

Hello My Name is Catie... And I'm Messy - Part 2

Okay! Part 2 of Hello My Name is Catie... And I'm Messy has been completed!
I started small and wanted an easier project that wouldn't be overwhelming... since you know, being neat and organized isn't my strong suit.

So, I tackled our desk! Which I had taken over and just turned into a mess. It now looks so nice and inviting! I actually want to sit at the desk and get things done. I might be browsing the internet more, since now I have a pretty and organized desk to sit at.

So, how did I do accomplish this? Just a couple of things really.
First - Some money. I visited the Container Store on my lunch break and hit up the Home Office section. They have an amazing selection and so many colors to choose from. My purchase was under $70 dollars! (The line to check out was very long... so going on your lunch hour during the holiday season might not be the best idea... oops!)
Second - A garbage bag to throw out all the stuff you don't need. I used the bag all of my purchases came it. Recycling at it's finest :)
Third - 30 - 45 minutes of pure cleaning and organizing.

That's it! And the finished product looks pretty darn good!

What I bought- file folder, double drawer, white board and three magnetic holders for the little stuff (paperclips and pushpins).

Just a couple of more Christmas cards to send out!

The hardest part for me is always throwing things away. I'm a little bit of a pack-rat... Almost everything I keep has memory. Or, I just might need it someday... I'm trying to get over keeping and do more tossing.

I can't wait to pick my next spot in our apartment! Where should I head next???

Thanks for reading,

Hello My Name is Catie... And I'm Messy - Part 1

I'm messy.
I don't know how it happened, but ever since I was little I've been messy.
Which is weird because I'm always on time, a big time planner and very detailed oriented. So you'd think with those traits I would be a neat freak too. But to the dismay of Ryan, who is a very neat person, I am not.
The thing is, I want our home to look nice, neat and organized. But during the week it just gets messier and messier. I don't know how to re-train my brain not to pile things up and just put them where they belong. It's become a weekly cycle – Monday through Friday the apartment gets messier and messier. Saturday and Sunday we clean and put things away. Repeat, repeat, repeat. I need to get out of this cycle! And I know Ryan is pretty tired of cleaning up after me...
But how? How do I re-train this brain of mine???
I'm going to start small. My first 'project' will be our desk. I've basically taken it over and it's horribly cluttered. As you can see I like to make piles…

To help me combat my messiness I've added this this book to my Christmas list:
One Year to an Organized Life: From Your Closets to Your Finances, the Week-by-Week Guide to Getting Completely Organized for Good - by Regina Leeds

I'm going to make this a little mini-series to show you that even a pile happy messy person can change her ways!

Can't wait to update you with Part 2 :)

Thanks for reading,