Clutter Be Gone

Not nearly the worst it's ever been!

If I had a magic wand I’d wave it around my house yelling “Clutter be gone!”  Unfortunately, magic wands only work in fairy tales.  Hold on a minute, you say, what does clearing the clutter have to do with parenting? Everything.  Clearing the clutter will clear my head, making me a more content, less stressed mommy, and will make for a warm, welcoming home that my family and I can relax and find things in!  Joe would say that our house isn’t cluttered or messy.  If only I could see it though his eyes, but when it takes us more than five minutes to find the remote, I beg to differ with just how uncluttered he thinks we are.  On my quest to get myself and my home organized, clearing the clutter is high on the list.  I don’t have time to read books on the subject, so off to Google and Pinterest I go.

Benefits to Getting Clutter-free (from Oprah.com)

• Emotional benefits: When your space is neat, clear and free from clutter, you'll notice a change in the way you feel about your life and your relationships. Your rooms fulfill the functions you've chosen for them. Gathering places are comfortable for friends and family. Your bedroom is a romantic oasis. Enjoy the peace, pride and satisfaction that come with living the life that you've chosen for yourself.
  
• Financial benefits: When you organize your papers, your financial life improves. You can work toward paying off debt. Bill are paid on time. Not only that, when you start looking at all the stuff you own but don't use or appreciate, it should help you buy fewer items and spend less money. When you spend less time shopping, you spend more time finding new interests, being active in the outdoors, being with your family and friends.
  
• Time benefits: Gone are the minutes and hours spent cursing yourself or blaming the dog for eating your homework. When everything has a place, getting ready in the morning takes less time. You won't be late. You won't forget important dates or arrive at a meeting without critical papers. Tax time is a breeze (except for the check-writing part). You will feel more relaxed, confident and in control. Your time belongs to you, not your stuff.
  
• Space benefits: The less clutter you have in your house, the more you can reap the benefits of free space. Now your family can sit down at the dining room table and enjoy a meal together. Now your family room is a comfortable place to relax. Now you can have friends over or host a spontaneous party. Gone is the shame and embarrassment of having a home that bears no resemblance to the person you want to present to the world. Revel in your space. Host parties. Show off! You've earned it.

These benefits make me feel vindicated.  When I’m in my home and can’t see the floor and can’t walk around without stepping on toys, I feel like I’ve got bugs crawling all over me and I can’t relax. It’s amazing how much more calm I feel when I can see the floor beneath my feet and the counters are clear.  I've made attempts at keeping the toys organized, but five minutes later they are strewn about again and I don’t have the energy to keep up with the mess.  There has got to be a better way to keep these things organized!  Also, as I mentioned in my last post, when we moved into our apartment almost two years ago, I just shoved things away.  Some of those things have yet to see the light of day since then and that’s a clue to me now, that things like those board games that I thought we might play someday, won’t be getting played. Either way, I see trash cans, several donations and maybe a garage sale in my future.  

Some stuff will be easier and quick to get rid of such as the baby stuff that we no longer need.  There will be no babies following Hunter, so baby stuff be gone!  That means you Breast Pump, that has been sitting on a pile of shoes on a shelf in my closet, let’s find some boobs that need you!  And hey you What to Expect When You’re Expecting, I no longer need to know, let’s find someone who doesn’t know what to expect.  And to the maternity shirts I’ve held onto and sometimes sleep in, no more lounge wear for you, you’re out of here too!  Wow, I’m feeling good, but this is easy to say, the actual time and digging around it will take to make this happen isn’t going to be so effortless.

Helpful Advice

*  Make a list of goals

*  Don’t do it all at once, one drawer, one shelf, one section of the closet at a time

*  Have a plan with what you will do with the stuff you’ll be getting rid of (toss, sell,     

donate) and clean it up right away--don’t let it clutter your house up more or you’ll give up

*  Find “a place for everything that matters”

*  The In-Out Rule--this can work for clothes and toys, when you get something new, get rid of something old

Tip for What to do If You Can’t Decide What to Do

*  The one year box-if you’re unsure if you should get rid of something or not, put it in a box seal it, date it one year into the future and when the time comes and the box is still sealed, without opening it, donate it.

*  Hang clothes backwards on their hangers: turn all your hangers the wrong way, after  you wear something turn the hanger the right way, after a year get rid of the clothes that you haven’t worn

My Plan

Our bookcases

I began this get organized series to help my brain dead brain return to the living with photo organization.  My last blog post details how I will do that.  This will be my first priority.  Once I get caught up on choosing, editing and naming my photo files and begin creating my yearly Blurb book, (the new year is right around the corner) I will bust out my magic wand.  After the photos, I will tackle my clothes.  Much of the clothes that are clogging my dresser drawers are a couple sizes too big.  Thankfully, I’m smaller than I was before I got pregnant and as I don’t desire to ever fit into these larger clothes again, these will be the first to go.  As for the clothes that I haven’t worn in forever--see ya!  And to the clothes that whenever I go through my closet I think “I should wear that sometime,” but never do, you’ll be hanging on a backwards hanger and probably gone in a year.  While I’m in the closet, I might as well look into old purses and shoes.  Then I think I’ll move onto my bookcase.  I have a nook (electronic reader) and haven’t bought an actual book in years.  I used to work at a bookstore and have a bookcase full of unread books (advanced copies or books I bought along the way) as well as some old favorites.  I don’t have time to read.  Any free second I have goes to writing this blog and whatever I have left after that will go to organizing and clearing the clutter. Reading, which I absolutely love, will have to wait until I get more organized or the kids get older.  I don’t think I’ll be able to bear to part with any of these books, but maybe I can get rid of some of them. 

Toy Organization Ideas

*  One in one out--when you get a new toy have the kid choose one toy to donate (same should go for clothes too)

*  Give everything a home 

*  Use labels (pictures and words labels on boxes)

*  Put small toys into ziplock bags or buckets

*  Toy rotation-switch out toys every month or so.  Toys will be like new and as there will be less toys and they will play with the ones that are there, as there will be less of them. (While I love this idea, to do this I would have to drag boxes up and down the stairs and outside to our garage--I don’t realistically think I would do this) 

*  Use clear kitchen canisters or clear cookie jars for small toys or art stuff such as crayons.

As I mentioned I have attempted to get these toys organized, but after mere minutes the kids have already dragged the toys out and scattered them about again.  I attempt to keep pieces of toys that are supposed to go together together, but it hasn’t succeeded.  I tried labels, but I’m the only one that used them.  I’m going to try something new.  I will label clear plastic shoe box sized boxes with a photo and a label.  This will make is easier for Zoey, Hunter and Joe(!) to help clean up.  For example, Mr. Potato Head and his various pieces (once I find them) will be in a box with a picture of the complete Mr. Potato head and a label that reads “Mr. Potato Head.”  Because what's the point of having Mr. Potato head’s head floating around if you can’t give him a face?  Currently, I keep toys with many pieces (such as the Little People) and large objects (such as the Little People house, bus, circus and Zoey’s princess castle) on a shelf in Zoey’s closet.  She can’t reach this shelf and she has to ask to play with it.  When we are done with those toys we put them back in the boxes and back up in the closet.  This works well.  I will attempt to do this with more toys.  This will be my version of rotating toys.  I will switch off what I put on the shelves they can reach and if she wants to play with something on the high shelf she can and then we’ll make sure it gets back up there when she’s done.  

I’m going to go through and take out the baby toys (any rattles, etc) that might still be floating around) and get them to a baby that needs them.  I’m going to go through the overflowing box of stuffed animals and see what I can donate to kids that could use a new friend. I will have to do this when Zoey isn’t around and I would never be able to get rid of something I know she loves.  Stuffed animals seem to make their way into your heart and are so hard to let go of.  I still have some from when I was a kid that Zoey plays with now.   

From the kids stuff, I will move on and out and eventually get through the whole house.  It will take me many months to make this happen, maybe even a year.  I’m going to try not to stress about it and do what I can when I can, just one drawer at a time!  I’m looking forward to the day when I can sit and relax in my organized clutter free home.  Who am I kidding?  This will probably never happen, nothing is ever perfect, especially with kids around, but I’m sure going to try!  I’ve got my goals and thankfully, I’ve got some good tips to help guide me on my way because I still can’t get this magic wand to work.