Even Marie Kondo Has 'Given Up' Having a Tidy Home With Three Kids

Parenting is messy. Not just metaphorically, but literally. If you are struggling to wrangle the mounds of clothes, toys, diapers, dishes and more, know that you aren’t alone. In fact, even one of the world’s biggest icons of organization, Marie Kondo, has recently ditched her dreams of a tidy home with three kids.

Famous for her KonMari method of letting things go that don’t “spark joy,” since her debut on Netflix’s Tidying Up with Marie Kondo in 2019, Kondo has welcomed her third child to the family and, with it, a new perspective.

“Up until now, I was a professional tidier, so I did my best to keep my home tidy at all times. I have kind of given up on that in a good way for me. Now I realize what is important to me is enjoying spending time with my children at home,” she said during a webinar attended by The Washington Post. "My home is messy, but the way I am spending my time is the right way for me at this time at this stage of my life,” she added.

Kondo’s switch in priorities isn’t so much of an abandonment of her methods but rather a pivot toward focusing on the new things that ‘spark joy’ for her—chief among them her kids. In her new book Marie Kondo’s Kurashi at Home: How to Organize Your Space and Achieve Your Ideal Life, the busy mom elaborates on simple ways to bring calmness and happiness to your everyday life.

The clutter-cleaner is open and honest in her new book about how you likely won’t get to everything on your tidying to-do list during these busy times, but you can still foster joy by creating a rhythm and indulging in what makes you happy. From flinging the windows open for fresh air to scrapbooking and lighting incense, the organization empress offers parents and nonparents ideas, small and large, for finding their personal peace in the chaos.

Her main takeaway message? It’s okay to let things go and be imperfect. “I used to be a perfectionist, but it became difficult to maintain that standard after having my children. So much was out of my control,” she told People in a past interview. “I hope my openness on the subject will help others to ease up on impossible standards. I gave up on perfectionism a while ago!”