Long way to go!
If you read yesterday’s blog and watched the video, then you know I have started a huge undertaking. I am using my very public blog as a motivator to clean my house. I am going to prove to myself and all of you that I can do it. But Holy Cow is this going to be a lot of work. I much prefer writing about the experience than actually doing it. It’s funny, I workout every day, but the bending, squatting, and reaching involved in cleaning seems so much harder. I was exhausted last night when I went to bed.
What I like about cleaning is you see results. And I am a results driven kinda gal. Originally, I set out to do this home makeover in a week. After taking a stab at my first pile, I am thinking it may take me the rest of the December to finish, if I am lucky. That’s okay though, right?? One must set realistic expectations. This mess wasn’t built in a day and it’s not going to be erased in a day either.
So as I go through this de-cluttering process, I am learning about myself, my family and how cleaning together can be a team-building experience.
First Observation: I must have some type of complex about throwing things away. I found school lunch menus from 2008. I also found tons of the boys’ old homework projects that went back almost six years. I also unearthed somewhere in the back corner of a cabinet, a preschool class photo and my son’s 2004-2005 school yearbook.
Secondly, I learned it’s okay to involve the kids. When they were younger, we had to clean when they weren’t around because they wanted to keep everything . This time around, at ages 11 and 12, they were actualy helpful and they enjoyed the trip down memory lane. We evaluated the items together and then we agreed on where each toy, project, or game should end up. There were 3 options: Trash, Attic or Donate. We ended up with 4 filled garbage bags, one save box and two full donate boxes.
Thirdly, I found out, in order to clear out the clutter, sometimes you make a temporarily bigger mess in other areas of the home. For instance, the dining room table is now holding the donate boxes and packing tape.
As I like to say. Baby Steps. Big Picture, it can only get better. It certainly can’t get any worse.
Laurie – you are an inspiration!
I also have a tendency to be stuck with clutter and here are some of the things that help me – implement OHIO (only handle it once) when decluttering. Move it to its final destination or toss it – do not create new piles from your old piles.
Kids crap – scan it then toss it! I scan all of their stuff – art homework I want to keep etc and then toss it all. Each kid has a DVD for each year.
good luck! it aint easy and I think we all have this clutter (except for those annoying perfect people) – you just put it out there for us to laugh with you.
love it!