decluttering Archives - Stories of Our Boys https://storiesofourboys.com/category/decluttering/ faith, family, and travel Wed, 26 Jul 2023 21:20:55 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://i0.wp.com/storiesofourboys.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/cropped-Copy-of-Add-a-heading-2.png?fit=32%2C32&quality=80&ssl=1 decluttering Archives - Stories of Our Boys https://storiesofourboys.com/category/decluttering/ 32 32 78942211 The Year of Getting Organized https://storiesofourboys.com/2014/03/22/getting-organized-in-2014/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=getting-organized-in-2014 https://storiesofourboys.com/2014/03/22/getting-organized-in-2014/#respond Sat, 22 Mar 2014 11:18:20 +0000 http://storiesofourboys.com/?p=2583 I’ve written gobs of blog posts where I’m really bad about never going back and letting you know how that all turned out.  This is my goal for tonight:  lots of updates!! Update #1:  The Great Clean Out inspired by reading Money Saving Mom‘s book:   It’s sort of an odd time to suddenly be all about organizing my house:  we are moving in JUNE.  However, we are drowning in TMS–too much stuff–so I have been plugging away at “The [...]

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the year of getting organized, easy organizing tips & updates

I’ve written gobs of blog posts where I’m really bad about never going back and letting you know how that all turned out.  This is my goal for tonight:  lots of updates!!

Update #1:  The Great Clean Out

inspired by reading Money Saving Mom‘s book:

Buy it. Read it. You’re welcome. No, you can’t borrow mine. I read a chapter, set it down for a month, read the next chapter….I’m on chapter 5. You will want your own copy. ; )

 

It’s sort of an odd time to suddenly be all about organizing my house:  we are moving in JUNE.  However, we are drowning in TMS–too much stuff–so I have been plugging away at “The Great Clean Out”.  I decided to combine it with “Getting Organized”, one of my goals for the year.  I’ve been a rubbermaid boxing, label makin’ fool.

Okay, really I’ve only managed to organize three rooms and a few closets, but I’m going to whip out that “4 small boys” excuse again.  It works well for me.  Progress is progress.  Go me.

Here are my Organization tips:

1.  stackable boxes.  There’s nothing worse than avalanches of stuff. You know, like a giant pile of purses that falls on your head if you move the wrong way.  It looks bad.  It creates confusion, and it just doesn’t work.  Put all that same junk in stackable boxes, and suddenly BOOM, you look–and are indeed–organized.

2.  Label it!  If it’s in the box, it needs to be on the label.  “Office stuff” is not a label.  A proper label should read:  “paper clips, folders, notebooks, paper”.  You get the idea.  Specify!!!!

3.  Toss, toss, toss!!!!  

If you don’t remember the last time you used it, you don’t need it.  If you’re keeping it for that day, two years from now, when you will most certainly need it, but you don’t need it now–chances are you won’t know where it is then, so unless it’s extremely expensive–toss it.  

Even if it is costly, it may not work anymore by the time you finally need it.  You get the idea.  Go watch that t.v. show Hoarders for some inspiration.  This could be you!

I am almost done with our coat closet:

getting organizing

Sometimes I find myself with literally only 20 minutes before I have to leave the house, and that’s when I work in mini-projects like this.  All you need is 10 minutes to organize one drawer–one shelf–one cabinet.  You get the idea.  But first, go to your favorite “everything” store (Target), and get some of these awesome clear, square boxes.

Update #2:  Keeping My Toddler Busy

danknex

Remember all the hilarious Dan photos?  Dan covered in pudding, Dan and the powder- bedroom- blizzard, Dan and the baby cereal, etc. etc.???  I’m constantly on a mission to keep this little booger busy.  

My friend Patti gave us these Knex blocks for him.  HIGHLY RECOMMEND.  Check out the house he built.  After I took this photo, he stuck a propeller on top of it all and called it a helicopter.  Then it flew away with Daniel, and I’m not sure where it is now.

He has been much better lately.  Your birthday gifts to him also have helped him to stay busy.  THANK YOU!  He is obsessed with airplanes.

Update #3 Snow

We have snow everywhere, every week or so.  The good news is that it melts more quickly now.  The bad news is black snow:  GROSS.  Alabama friends, you would die.  Piles of plowed snow everywhere, and the street pollution turns them black.  Makes you wonder about what we’re breathing.

snow14

It’s a thing of wonder and beauty when it’s freshly fallen.  I will never really dislike snow.  It’s just that I don’t want to be cold anymore.

snowshots14
snowtrampoline14
snowtrees14
snowyard14

Last update:  #4  My Friday night dilemma from my last post

We ended up dividing up the kiddos.  Alan took Joshua and Dan to the buffet dinner.  I stayed home with Caleb and John David, which has actually been an extremely relaxing evening for me.

See, I kept JD out and about all day.  We volunteered at the school–don’t worry, we made and sorted copies and didn’t disrupt any classes.  Then we went to lunch with my friend Margret. JD ATE QUESADILLAS!!!  I was so proud!

All that, plus three hours of stroller riding to get the boys from school and an hour and a half at the park left JD wiped out. He was completely sleep deprived, so he went to bed at 6pm.  Yes, I will have to be up with him a little tonight to pay for that, but oh well.

Right now it’s just Caleb and me–oh the glory–the two people who love to sit here and play computer the most, and that is exactly what we are doing.   I love you, Caleb!!!!

newborncaleb

Caleb and me, 6 years ago

More Organizing Posts:

The Great Toy Overhaul

Goal: To Take Housekeeping More Seriously, But Not Too Seriously

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]]> https://storiesofourboys.com/2014/03/22/getting-organized-in-2014/feed/ 0 2583 I May Never Make it to Chapter Three…. https://storiesofourboys.com/2014/01/11/i-may-never-make-it-to-chapter-three/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=i-may-never-make-it-to-chapter-three https://storiesofourboys.com/2014/01/11/i-may-never-make-it-to-chapter-three/#respond Sat, 11 Jan 2014 04:10:00 +0000 http://storiesofourboys.com/2014/01/11/i-may-never-make-it-to-chapter-three/   I mentioned in a previous post:  new-years-check-up, that one of my missions this year is to get back on track with our budget.  With four kids in tow, we really need to chill it on the spending!    I decided a great way to help me focus on this mission would be to read this book:     Here’s my only problem:  In chapter two she says you should de-clutter your house.  In fact, she recommends getting a babysitter [...]

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  I mentioned in a previous post:  new-years-check-up, that one of my missions this year is to get back on track with our budget.  With four kids in tow, we really need to chill it on the spending!    I decided a great way to help me focus on this mission would be to read this book:
    Here’s my only problem:  In chapter two she says you should de-clutter your house.  In fact, she recommends getting a babysitter and knocking out every room, freeing each room of all the stuff you no longer need.  She says not to even move on to chapter three until you’ve done this.
   I have four kids, and my house has a lot of rooms packed with a lot of stuff.
……I haven’t bothered with the babysitter, but I obviously should, because three days later, and I’ve finally finished the storage room and part of the guest room, and I’m not sure if I will EVER get to read chapter 3!!!  Do you have any idea how much junk we have?  A lot.
  That’s been kind of a depressing project to deal with this week.
  We send about 2 bags of cast-aways per month to thrift stores on average, so I am very much in the habit of de-cluttering.  Yet somehow, things are never quite the way I want them to be.
  I’ve found that one key to this issue is labeling.  I hate it when I organize something, but then the kids mess it up and no one knows how to put it back the way it was because nothing is labeled.
  I’ve spent a lot of time this week labeling.
 We are going to end up being that family whose house looks like a toddler’s word book.
….Speaking of toddlers…..Here are my adorable, slightly exhausting companions:

 

 

 

 

Common theme:  Dan is playing with an airplane in every single photo.  He has been flying his airplanes all week long.  Future pilot, perhaps??
  If Dan is a future pilot, Caleb is a future doctor.  He has come home from school each day describing to me what kind of science experiment they did in class.  He said today they learned how to make soda.  Pretty cool, huh?  Plus, he’s been putting his digestive system puzzle together over and over again.  Not kidding:
 Love of science + Caleb’s social skills = possibility for a wonderful doctor!
You better believe I’ve told him that, too!
  I actually had all four kids at home for a lot of the week because they kept canceling school.  It wasn’t even snowing or icy!  They kept closing schools because it was “cold”.  We all thought that was kind of weird.
  Oh!  I was careful to take some snapshots of Daniel being helpful this week, to help improve his reputation.
He gets really excited about cooking, especially about baking cakes.  Yes, I bake a lot of cakes, BUT don’t be too impressed.
How I bake a cake:
1.  Send Alan to store for cake mix and icing.
2.  Follow directions on cake mix box.
3.  Cool cake and ice with the little plastic tub of chocolate icing.
Benefits:
quick and easy
 You choose your kind of oil and eggs.
Less sugar than bakery cake.

 

cleaning the coffee table
Have a great weekend, everyone!

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