Spring Fever
It should not be news to anyone who has read this blog for very long, but in case you are new here, I do not like to clean my house. I do it (grudgingly), but I don’t like it.
I was totally shocked to find myself chomping at the bit to declutter and spring clean as soon as the weather got warmer. Mr. A was a little busy earlier this week, but tonight he occupied the hooligans so I could start to throw things away and organize the stuff that remains. I have been feeling weighed down by all our stuff, but I was surprised to discover that we haven’t managed to accumulate much new stuff since my big decluttering kick last year.
It helps that both Mr. A and I have very few clothes. On the other hand, the girls have enough clothes (purchased by my mom or sent by a friend who is very generous with her daughter’s hand me downs) to outfit a small army. I am waiting until the weather warms up to really prune the girls’ wardrobes, but I threw out my rattiest t-shirts and some old clothes that don’t fit or I don’t wear any more. Poor Mr. A only has about 7 shirts and 3 pairs of jeans, so I didn’t make him throw any out this time.
I also got rid of an old broken dehumidifier and a broken Ikea dresser. I pitched all the boxes to the girls’ small DVD collection and put all the dvds into a single case. I also pawned all the baby clothes that L has outgrown and the remnants of my baby toys/gear onto my pregnant sister. Now that my sister moved into a new house with storage space, I am going to try to hand down things as soon as L outgrows them.
I tackled the mess of our bathrooms too. One of the worst messes in the entire house was the cabinet where I store the girls’ hair supplies. I am always buying new brushes, barrettes and rubber bands because I can’t find them, so I decided to try a new system to keep them tidy (barrettes hanging on ribbons tied to the cupboard door, rubber bands in ziplocks, brushes in a plastic shoe box). I also organized the linen/medicine closet and the cabinets.
So far, I have decluttered the attic, my room, two bathrooms, the living room and the dining room. The biggest jobs will be the playroom, basement storage, office and the kitchen. There is a lot to do, but I feel like I am already making progress. All hail spring!
(I just rememberd the mess that is out in the garage, but I am going to block that from my mind right now and just focus on INSIDE the house. Ugh. The garage.)
Wow. I desperately need to do those same kinds of projects, but I’m lacking the motivation. Must. Find. Some.
Good for you. Doesn’t it feel good to have things organized?
Wait, it’s spring by you? It is most definitely not spring here yet, what with fresh snow on the ground. I’m jealous. I need that warm-weather-kick-in-the-butt to start my cleaning next week to prepare for Passover and a houseful of guests who will be here for 10 days+. Come on SPRING!
I think there is a big difference between the the drudgery of daily cleaning (or weekly) and the thrill of simplifying your life…I love the latter. A few years back we got rid of a ton of stuff (donated mostly but out of the house) but somehow stuff always manages to accumulate so periodically I clean out or reorganize things…I look forward to doing this…definitely not doing the dishes or cleaning the damn toilet!
Wooo! Love it!
I just love throwing out crap. What a great feeling.
you rock! i love decluttering and organizing so much. if you ever actually need help getting rid of stuff (like, someone to tell you to get rid of it), i’m your girl.
ugh, if i don’t clean out the garage soon, scott’s gonna stop speaking to me.
I agree with Eos. Decluttering leaves us feeling fresh and clean and new. Daily cleaning just feels endless and tiresome. Stupid toilets. Somebody’s always pooping them all up.
Thanks for the tip on the culture keeping book, I plan on checking it out of the library today. I keep DD’s in an organizing box normally kept for sewing supplies. So long as I return them when I take them out of her hair, I always know where they are.
I’ve been itching to do the same but need to find someone to take E off my hands for some good chunks of time so I can actually get stuff done. I love the feeling decluttering gives you.
I’ve got the fever too! I hope I can get a bunch of crap thrown away before I run out of motivation. Closets are the trouble spots at our house…crap seems to multiply like bunnies.
We are moving AGAIN (second time in a year) and so are decluttering (AGAIN) and trying to keep constantly clean for house showings in this horrible market. It is depressing. But I hope it will at least remind us not to bring any more crap into the house. I had to sit my daughter down and explain Why We Do Not Keep Every Single Piece Of Art She Makes or Brings Home. (i.e. we would have to buy a double-wide trailer for it.)
I keep telling myself it will make me feel all young and fresh and relaxed like those young bloggers who have perfect homes and no children. I keep telling myself that I will be so happy when I purge it all. But, instead I keep opening the basement door and throwing more shit down the stairs. I keep cramming more into drawers. Oh Teach me at pub night yr tips and tricks. xo
Good job! I need to do this, too.