A Letter To My Organized*ish Readers

In the midst of all the craziness, I wanted to take a minute to sit down and chat, really chat, with you, my online BFF, about everything that’s been going on lately. From Covid to our move to my organizing business to the blog, and everything in between, we haven’t really gotten a chance to catch up in a while.

So today I’m taking a break from the usual tips, tutorials, and inspo to get real, raw, and personal with you about what’s been happening behind the scenes here. Whether you’re a regular reader or you only pop over when you follow a Cricut Pin from Pinterest, I’m so glad you stopped by. Let this be my formal invitation to you into my personal world.

On Covid-19:

Let’s jump right in, shall we? This coronavirus deal is pretty scary. Not just the virus, but the fact that people are losing jobs, kids are forced to be homeschooled, and families are still semi-quarantined for who-knows-how-long. I don’t have the answers on the virus, and I promise I won’t even go there on details. That’s not my jam. But what I can assure you is that I’m here for you and I get it.

I understand what it’s like to be unsure of your job security. I understand what it’s like to juggle working from home while your kid is doing school work beside you. I understand that you’re tightening your budget even more than ever. And I understand that you’re bored out of your stinkin’ mind.

What I also understand is that now, more than ever, we are all realizing how important our home is to us. Our busy lives are basically on pause, and we’re spending more time at home than we even imagined. I get emails every single day from women just like you who realized that this is the time to finally get organized.

Organization isn’t about pretty pictures of pantries with ROY G. BIV food packets stored in a small clear containers, spaced exactly 6 inches apart. Organization isn’t about having gold foil labels on every mason jar of flour, sugar, and salt. And organization isn’t about having the most Instagram-worthy desk drawer the likes of the internet has never seen.

It’s about creating a refuge you can feel safe, relaxed, and at ease in. You know where things are, you know how to keep them tidy, and you can sit on your couch and binge Netflix without stressing over where the medical documents are in case someone gets sick. Organization isn’t an accomplishment. It’s a feeling. And a damn good one, at that.

On Our Move:

As I write this, we are five days out from moving our stuff into our new house. I won’t lie and say this process has been easy. It hasn’t. No amount of organization could prepare us for the struggle we’ve had during our buying and selling process. The Covid-19 pandemic hasn’t even been the biggest roadblock either. We had some unexpected repairs that we never thought would be needed on a new construction home, along with the difficulty of finding contractors on short notice.

We had some amazing humans come to the plate to help us out on tight timeframes, and I’m beyond grateful for the connections I’ve made to get me in contact with these “heroes of the day” as I call them. And while this has definitely been the hardest moving process we’ve ever experienced, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. And girl, that light is BRIGHT!

I can’t WAIT to show you our forever home, and I promise I will soon. I know you have questions regarding why we’re moving, especially since we just moved into this new construction home less than two years ago. And I know some of you are upset that I didn’t share that we were house-hunting. But honestly, we weren’t.

We stumbled across a house we loved, looked at it, and something just felt right. We could see Christmas Eve with grandchildren there. We could see ourselves as a cranky old couple rocking on the deck drinking our morning coffee. And we could see how this home, even though it was built in 1979, was somehow built just for us. It has this feeling of “home” that we can’t even describe. I get teary-eyed just thinking about it.

So there you have it, the hard truth that we made an impulse decision, we didn’t take time to plan, and we really didn’t even take time to think about it. Sometimes when you know, you know. 🙂

On My Organizing Services:

In mid-March I stopped visiting clients in person for their safety as well as my own. I have been continuing with virtual sessions and DIY plans, and I will continue with this through the end of May. Beginning in June, I will start visiting clients in-home again, but things will be a little different.

I will be arriving with gloves, a mask, and shoe covers, and I won’t be removing my shoes like I used to. I’ll take my temperature before entering your home and reveal the temp to you, and I’ll expect you to do the same. All visits will cap at three hours, and I won’t be doing any double sessions until July. I also am unable to haul off donations as I had done before due to center drop-off restrictions.

I highly recommend that new clients opt for virtual sessions or DIY plans, because my existing clients have already paid for sessions that have been delayed, along with my monthly maintenance clients. It sucks to say it, but I’m super behind and am unable to take new in-home clients at this time, aside from those who have already been contracted. I am currently building a waitlist for those who still prefer in-home sessions, and you’re welcome to shoot me an email to get on that list.

On The Blog:

Things are changing a little around here, but in a good way, I promise! New posts will now be live on Mondays and Thursdays, and sometimes a bonus blog post may pop up on Saturdays. You’ll still see a good mix of organization, cleaning, and diy projects. I’m working behind the scenes on some exciting new things, so make sure you’re on my email newsletter list so you find out about them first. Think: go-at-your-own-pace courses, virtual workshops, and a membership section with VIP organizing goodies only members can get.

Good things are coming, so stay tuned! And tell me, what do you want to see here? I know so many women come to my blog every day to escape the Covid news, and I’m so honored to be that welcome distraction. Shoot me an email, an Instagram DM @lelaburris, or drop a comment to let me know what you want to see.

In the meantime, I miss you, I love you, and I hope you’re safe, well, and Organized*ish.

Much love,
Lela