project DE-clutter continues; the master bedroom

It's been quite the week and as expected housework has taken a major backseat, as has Project DE-clutter.

But, I want to stay true to my word and I wanted to update ya'll on the latest!

Currently working on decorating and de-cluttering the master bedroom. Our master closet continues to be an area where clutter and organization thrives (we passed the two-week test! Score!) and it really is encouraging to see that a family really can live in an organized state consistently.

So, my master closet keeps me going. :)

I think the master bedroom is one of the most looked over, yet most important rooms in the home. It is the room where you and your husband retire to and unwind in. It is the room where some of the most intimate conversations and moments take place in the home.

But, in most cases (at least I know in our home...) it tends to get overlooked and it becomes the room that everything gets shoved in when visitors are "suddenly" coming. Laundry piles tend to stack up there and I often forget to dust and vacuum it (probably because of all the massive amounts of junk stashed in there).

Not to mention, (in our home at least) the master bedroom tends to be last on our decorating priority list. It's the room others see least, so why bother?

Oh, what a horrible mindset that is.

The master bedroom really is an important room! And it deserves probably one of the most amounts of energy put into it. Because it's a retreat. Because it's a place of open communication and intimacy. Because it's the sacred room shared by your husband and you and he deserves a calm, clean, beautiful and organized getaway from the beautiful chaos that probably rings throughout the rest of our home.

Husband and I have agreed upon a certain set of rules when it comes to our bedroom. Certain boundaries and understanding, so that it can reflect a place where both of us can unwind and enjoy one another's company.

Here are the basics;

1) Kids get every other room in the home, Mommy and Daddy's room is private; Now please don't misconstrue this. We are not Nazis with this rule. It is just a general boundary where both of our girls (and our future children) will know that Mommy and Daddy's room is their room. It is not a place to play, to bring toys or to just barge into. Daniella always knocks before coming in or asks permission, but she also knows Sunday mornings are for cuddling (in Mommy and Daddy's room). It's all a game of balance!

2) No electronics in our bedroom. Caleb is big into technology. I tend to be too. But, I refuse to put a computer, a television or anything else that may distract us in our bedroom. As of late, I've even been convicted of having my IPod Touch in our bedroom at arms' length. There are many nights now wasted where I could have been talking to my husband in instead of social networking through that device...

3) Make the bedroom aesthetically pleasing and personal. I firmly believe in frugality and I am not one to encourage you to spend thousands or even hundreds of dollars in remodeling any room in your home. Simplicity is key. But even in simplicity, there are small things to do that can make a bedroom look beautiful and encourage intimacy. Caleb and I tend to keep mostly pictures of ourselves, as a couple in our bedroom. We I tend to decorate with Scripture that will remind us to love and to daily re-commit ourselves to one another and to display the little notes and knick-knacks that fuel special memories.

4) Clean the kitchen first, the master bedroom second and all else third. As a homemaker, I've decided that the master bedroom is one of my top musts in daily and weekly cleaning. When I have a place to go into, seek my Jesus, and openly communicate with my husband in (without massive amounts of clutter), the rest of homemaking becomes an easier feat and I am ready and able to take on the rest of the house!

So, project DE-clutter continues to ransack the Arrazolo household, and I am so thankful of all I am learning through it. :)

K, time to go organize our master bedroom some more... Where is the master bedroom on your homemaking priority list? Do you have any set rules or boundaries in your home regarding your room?