Mission: De-clutter & De-stress

I LOVE STUFF!

I LOVE BARGAINS!

I HATE PASSING UP A GOOD DEAL!

I HATE A MESSY HOUSE!

I’ve learned that all of those things don’t coexist well together. My youngest son is 10 years old and he’s the ultimate example of clutter and disorganized chaos. Sad part is I’ve taught him that. I’ve taught him that we need all these clothes and all of these toys and all of this junk that he’s probably played with once since he’s owned it. After going through their room and purging toys and clothing I’ve decided to take a better look at our whole house. The clutter is everywhere. Look at our game closet for crying out loud!

I purged a bunch of games a few months ago. I figured since playing Dora the Explorer Candyland wasn’t cool anymore, we could probably eliminate that one. Yesterday I decided to purge again. There are games that I love that no one else wants to play (Pictionary, I have 3 versions of the game in hopes of getting someone to play with me but no,) and games that others love that I don’t want to play (Monopoly, was fun on Sega, not so much in real life.) So I pulled out even more games. The above picture is the start of reorganizing that closet.

My garage has become the catch all. Everything that I’m going to put in a yard sale, everything that is going to be used later, everything that I really don’t need goes there. I don’t even want to share a picture of that but yikes here goes! How embarrassing! Just in case you’re wondering the table full of things is actually yard sale prep, I’m working on it I promise.

I have multiple totes full of Christmas decoration, Halloween decorations and every other possible holiday that I don’t decorate for anymore because life is too busy to worry about those things. I have boxes of books that I plan to read some day. James has 3 bicycles, why because I haven’t gotten rid of the old ones.Two saddles and no horse, in my defense saddles are expensive and when you find one you like you should hang onto it, but two?  I have hundreds of CDs and DVDs and craft supplies and old t-shirts that are supposed to be a project someday. Why do I keep holding onto these THINGS? Why do I keep filling empty closets and shelves with STUFF that I haven’t used in over a year?

It’s TIME for a CHANGE!

One day at a time, one room at a time, one closet at a time I plan to eliminate the stuff in my life that makes my house feel messy and makes me feel stressed out because I need to clean all of that up.

The Rules

• If you haven’t used it in OVER 6 months, get rid of it! Of course winter clothes and things of that sort are a give in, who wants to buy new winter gear every year (expensive!)
• If you have more than one, get rid of it!
• If it’s broken, get rid of it!
• If it’s not yours, return it!
• If you have saved it just in case you might, chances are if you haven’t used it, you can get rid of it!
• Do you LOVE it or NEED it to make life easier? If not, get rid of it!

Lets get started!

Get 4 boxes ready to throw stuff in as you go through things, or if you’re like me 2 piles and 2 bags. A spot for the things to be put away, a box/bag to be given away or donated, a spot for the things to store and a bag for the stuff that is just garbage.

This round of purging everything that I decide I don’t need is going to be a yard sale item, then donated if it didn’t sell because it’s got to go!

Day 1: Storage Closets- Hallway Closets, the coat closet, the game closet and the towel and linen closets. Why do I need multiple sets of sheets for my bed? I have a washing machine, time to get rid of them. Do I need 15 hand towels? No. How about 5 spare pillows? We rarely have people sleep over, I think I can narrow that down to 2. How many jackets do I really need? Yes the pacific northwest has crazy weather but I think I can narrow it down to a rain coat and a light weight jacket, snow coat doesn’t count (thank you winter clothes.)

Day 2: Kitchen- Get rid of all the appliances you don’t use like the citrus juicer, the funny shaped waffle iron that is difficult to clean and has only been used once. I have 4 glass Pyrex dishes that are exactly the same, I’m getting rid of 2 of those. I have pans that are scratched up that I don’t use. I need to get rid of them so I can make room for new ones. Get rid of the canned for that is probably expired, while you’re at it look at the condiments in your fridge too!

Day 3: Bathrooms- I’ve decided to go minimal with my makeup these days, that’s my personal preference. Do I still need 6 shades of brown eye shadow, six shades of purple, etc? No. Get rid of the perfume your aunt gave you that you don’t use but feel guilty getting rid of it because it was a gift. I tend to collect lotions and then decide I don’t like them but they’re still there. Do you REALLY need it?

Day 4: Bedroom Closets/dressers- I love shoes and dresses. Why do I have so many that I haven’t worn since 2 years ago? I’m a pack rat, guilty as charged. I tell myself I’ll sell it and then it sits there, don’t be a me, get rid of it. Clean out the little knickknacks that you’re storing under your bed because they were your Grandma’s. What good are they if you aren’t using them? They are only things and your kids won’t appreciate them like you do anyway.

Day 5: Living Room- I loved movies, so much so that I bought and bought and bought and only watched one time, maybe two. If you can rent it or watch it on Netflix, it’s time to let it go. Do you have books on the shelf that you’ve read and are hanging on to them? Libraries were invented so you don’t have to buy and store books. Unless you’re using them for reference regularly let them go. Magazines? Let them go.

Day 6: Take a Break and forget about it for today! Everyone needs a break, I get it. I’ll be enjoying my family today because the goal of this challenge is to be able to spend more time with them and less time with my stuff.

Day 7: Outside stuff/garage- Get rid of broken tools, quit using the garage for storage when you could be using it for your car or home gym or workshop to build a fort with your kids. Remember the rules and stick to them here too.

Ready to start your own de-cluttering challenge?

Click the image below to join us August 29th-September 4th.

Be on the look out for an UPDATE!

I’ll be sharing my house and garage transformation September 5th! 🙂